Celtic Christianity

Name: Celtic Christianity
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Dr. Thomas P. Power provides a reality check on what has been said, written, and claimed about Celtic Christianity.

Created byThomas Power

Last updated 7/2023

English

What you'll learn

Identify the unique features of Celtic Christianity in the context of Western Christianity from c.400 CE to the 12th century.
Compare and contrast contemporary perceptions of Celtic Christianity with its historic reality
Identify the different revivals of interest in the Celtic past over the centuries, their causes and effects.
Distinguish the different forms of Celtic artistic expression and how these bore witness to a particular form of devotional life.
Identify and give examples of Celtic forms of evangelism, their origins and consequences for Western Christianity
Summarize and explain continuities between the pagan Celtic world and Christianity.

Course content

9 sections • 32 lectures • 6h 35m total length

Introduction1:39
Introduces the different ways Celtic Christianity has been regarded by different groups over the centuries.
Revivals in the Medieval and Reformation Periods10:54
Examines three movements of revival of interest in Celtic Christianity in the medieval and reformation periods.
Revivals Early Modern to Modern9:09
Details how denominational rivalries, rising national consciousness, an emerging scholarly interest in the past, and the rise of the Romantic Movement in the 18th and 19th centuries, combined to keep alive an interest in the Celtic past.
Common Themes of the Revivals and the Reality of Celtic Christianity13:43
Identifies the common themes that characterized the different Celtic revivals over the centuries.
Celtic Revivals

Origins and Development4:34
Traces the origins and development of the Celts as one of the foundation peoples of Europe.
Transition from Pagan to Christian I17:25
Identifies the key pre-conditions present in Celtic society and culture that allowed for an easy transition from paganism to Christianity.
Transition from Pagan to Christian I I26:54
Continues the examination of those factors that allowed for an easy transition from paganism to Christianity in Ireland, and also identifies some difficulties in that transition.
From pagan to Christian

Hagiography6:14
Become familiar with saints' lives and what they tell us about the purpose of those who compiled them.
Lives With A Secular Purpose12:04
Examines one Latin and three vernacular saints' lives of Brigit, Patrick, and Colmcille (Columba).
Lives of Patrick: I: Spiritual8:21
Lives of the Celtic saints (e.g. Patrick's Confession) written with a spiritual purpose were intended to build up an audience spiritually.
Lives of Patrick: II: Secular7:42
Examines the transformation of Patrick by 7th century authors in the lives they wrote of him.
Saints' Lives

Historiography, Origins and Development7:10
Details the Interest in Celtic monasticism by three groups who envisioned a monastic past that served their own religious and political agenda.
Origins of Monasticism9:23
Outlines the origins of monasticism among the Eastern mystics and hermits of the deserts of Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia and its transference to Ireland.
Monasteries: Location, Composition, Economy7:55
Identifies the importance of the location of monasteries, the composition of the monastic household, and the monastic economy.
Monasteries and Society12:02
Profiles how monasteries filled a wider need in society than the merely religious because, as they were founded by families, monasteries integrated naturally into society providing a range of spiritual and other services.
Celtic Monasticism

Ascetic Practice16:43
Identifies the ascetic character of Celtic Christianity, its varying sources, and its manifestations in rules and practices.
Practice of Prayer5:36
Details how prayer was at the heart of Celtic asceticism and how it made its practitioners effective witnesses to God.
Soul Friendship and Penitence23:12
Shows how the diversity of practice in and composition of, Irish monastic households and the rules followed therein, is evident also in the practice of soul-friendship and its concomitant, the penitential system.
Penitentials

Influence of the Bible in Celtic Christianity12:20
Examines how Celtic Christians had a humble love of the Bible, and how they placed Scripture above reason and tradition.
Methods, Interpretation, and a Case Study of the Psalms14:39
Details how the two main schools of biblical exegesis and interpretation (Alexandrian, Antiochene) were adopted, and provides a case study of the Psalms in Celtic Christianity.
The Beauty of the Word: Art18:16
Details the Eucharistic and Christological imagery in Celtic art, specifically in the Book of Kells.
Liturgy and Worship18:29
Outlines the liturgical development in Celtic Christianity including chant, hymnody, and psalmody.
Book of Kells

Celtic Understanding of Faith as Journey20:48
Examines journeying as an ascetic practice that in part had a cultural mandate and explores the extent to which this practice predisposed Celtic Christians to be evangelists.
Evangelism10:20
Identifies the Celtic approach to evangelism and how it was often an unplanned by-product of godly personal devotion.
The Celtic Missions10:42
Demonstrates how scripture and asceticism made the Celtic Christian church monastic and missionary in focus. Shows how Celtic monks had a major impact on the evangelization of the British Isles, western and northern Europe in the period from the 5th to the 10th centuries through their missionary endeavours.
Faith as Journey

Pelagianism: General18:43
Examines the general attributes of Pelagianism and the Augustinian responses to them.
Pelagianism and the Celtic Church5:39
Details how most of the Irish use of Pelagius was selective and for the explication of certain passages, and demonstrates that nowhere was Pelagius used to the exclusion of the orthodox church Fathers.
Christ in Celtic Christianity11:09
Examines the main dimensions to the view of Christ in Celtic Christianity.
Easter Controversy17:04
Outlines controversy around the dating of Easter which was to be the single most important schismatic issue from the late 6th century to the late 8th century.
Christ in Celtic Christianity

Introduction & Basic Questions2:24
Identifies three questions to pose relating to interest in matters Celtic in our postmodern world and why for some it has a spiritual dimension
Postmodern Connections18:21
Details how the revival of interest at an academic and popular level in Celtic Spirituality has occurred within the larger context of postmodern culture.
A Christian Dimension15:45
Details how Celtic Christianity can act as a resource between postmodern culture and Christianity.
Celtic Christianity and Postmodernity

Requirements

No previous knowledge of the subject matter required.

Description

Many people are interested in the Celtic world especially its religious traditions whether pagan or Christian. People hope to discover in that world a simplicity and attitude to life that is elusive in our modern, technological age. People try to locate in the Celtic tradition something that will fulfill their longings and desires for personal fulfilment. The result at a popular level has been that the historical reality of Celtic Christianity is increasingly elusive as claims made about it become exaggerated. The purpose of this course is to situate the Celtic Christian experience of the spiritual in the context of its development in Ireland between the 5th and the 12th centuries.

Because the current revival of interest is not unique. It is just the most recent manifestation of an interest in Celtic matters that goes back centuries. So at the outset we will examine the different movements of revival over the centuries and what they had in common. Against this we will then place the historical reality of the Celts as a distinct group in Europe, their social structure and institutions, and most importantly identifying elements in the pagan Celtic world that lent themselves to adaptation to Christianity when it arrived.

Attention is given to saints' lives as a literary genre, their various elements and purposes, and what they tell us about different aspects of Celtic spiritual practice. Monasticism in Ireland was not unlike its Eastern models, the main difference was the influence of pre-Christian beliefs in forming its particular character.

The place of Scripture in the Celtic Christian tradition, the different versions used, interpretation, and a case study of the Psalms, are highlighted. We will explore how Celtic Ireland developed its own form of pilgrimage, related to the monastic life: journeying as an ascetic practice, and the extent to which it predisposed the Celts to be evangelists. Finally, we will consider the relationship between Celtic spirituality and the post-modern spiritual quest.

Who this course is for:

All who are interested in Christianity, the Celtic world, the history of art, early literature, and spirituality.

Celtic Christianity

What you'll learn

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Course content

Revivals Ancient and Modern4 lectures • 35min

The Celtic World: Society and Institutions3 lectures • 49min

Saints, Sanctity, and Spiritual Biography4 lectures • 34min

Monks, Monasteries, and Meaning 14 lectures • 37min

Monks, Monasteries, and Meaning 23 lectures • 46min

Scripture, Art, and Worship4 lectures • 1hr 4min

Journeys and Evangelism3 lectures • 42min

Controversies and Heresies4 lectures • 53min