Wow, I cannot believe the response to my new book Celtic Advent: Following An Unfamiliar Path. Thank you for your encouragement and affirmation. So many of you have told me you have already purchased the book and plan to use it with friends. That really delights my heart, as I think Advent should always be celebrated within community rather than as individuals. So if you have not grabbed your copy yet, now is the time to do so. And don’t forget, if you are needing multiple copies you can order them directly from me at a discount price. I am encouraged by this as Celtic Christianity and its concern for both creation and for the disadvantaged in our society is an increasing passion of mine.
The series on Celtic Spirituality on my podcast, Liturgical Rebels has also been extremely popular and I hope that you are able to access these interviews. You can see all this year’s episodes of Liturgical Rebels here. I hope you will join our growing community of listeners. My interview with Christine Valters Paintner is now the most listened to of all the episodes. Next week we will post episode 19, an interview with Celtic artist and calligrapher Mary Fleeson. Mary lives on Holy Island and has a rich history in textile design and study of ancient manuscript techniques. Her beautiful artwork and books can be found at the Lindisfarne Scriptorium
Last weekend I facilitated a retreat on The Gift of Wonder with a small local church group. As I shared in my Meditation Monday: Douglas Fir and the Mice, it was held at a beautiful retreat site on the Hood Canal. Just being there and drinking in the beauty of the place refreshed and renewed me. I loved learning the story about the Douglas Fir and the Mice which I hope you will read. It is one of the most delightful stories I have read for a while and, as it probably originated with some of the native peoples here, was a very appropriate one to post on Indigenous Peoples Day.
Unfortunately the rest of the week did not go as well. I spent most of Wednesday at the hospital with my husband Tom for a heart arrhythmia. Fortunately it was able to be controlled and he returned home, but was advised not to travel. So I will be going to Australia on my own today. It was a hard decision to make and as you can imagine we are both very disappointed but we both feel at peace about the decision. Fortunately Tom will not be on his own as our small intentional community and several friends have all jumped in to help him while I am away. We appreciate your prayers that all goes smoothly as I travel and for Tom here at home.
Lilly Lewin was travelling this week and so we did not have time to write her usual Freerange Friday but should be back next week with more of her delightful insights and creativity.
As Halloween and All Saints Day approaches and you struggle with the waste of costumes and decorations consider some of the suggestions in these posts:
- Resources for a Green, Fair Trade, Ethical Halloween
- One Protestant’s Reflection on All Saints Day by Kathy Hempel
- All Saints Day: An Opportunity to Remember Everyday Saints. By Lynne Baab
- A Beautiful All Saints Day Prayer by Ana Lisa De Jong
The upcoming months have so many opportunities to celebrate and I hope you will take advantage of the broad array of resources available on Godspacelight. We have still not been able to correct the myriad of links in the posts and resource pages so if you click on a link like this https://godspacelight.com/
Many blessings on you as the seasons change and we move towards the beginning of Advent. Remember Celtic Advent begins November 15th.
Here is another prayer I wrote on my recent retreat, a prayer that reminds me to greet each day as a unique and beautiful creation from God.
I greet this day with delight.
This never to be forgotten,
Never to be repeated, moment of wonder.
I greet the birds flying overhead,
And listen as they sing back to me,
A beautiful melody of praise.
I greet the sun shining through the clouds,
A soft glow of morning glory softly lighting the world.
I greet the trees whispering to me in the breeze.
Sit, relax, absorb the rhythm of our moving,
They seem to say.
I breathe in the fragrance of the air
Fresh, invigorating life-giving to body and soul.
The wonder of it lodges in my mind,
Leading me into a new day,
It fills me with the joy of God‘s abiding presence.
Christine Sine
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