Celtic Lament

My ancestors, the Celts.  My Celtic heritage, and all the gifts it bestows, has become more and more of a presence over these last number of years. A presence that was absent, sad to say, for many of the previous years.  I now have to admit, confession is good for the soul, that the lack of my understanding of Celtic Spirituality, resulted in unnecessary pain, and sorrow.  My pain and sorrow was of necessity, felt by others as well.  For that I am heartily sorry.  Everything, at that time, was either black or white. There was no willingness to understand the baggage of personal journey, with all that it brought to each person. The imperative to see each person, as a person to be listened to, not some impersonal object to be judged, was a gift that was coming.  Thank God, the new Spirit which came with the Second Vatican Council was The Spirit of kindness, understanding, and compassion.  The reforms brought us back to a new, and a more vibrant, life giving, understanding of The Mystery.  The Mystery revealed in the life, and ministry of Jesus, who became The Christ, was none other than, The Living Father-God of the same Jesus Christ.  We were introduced to the historical en-fleshed, oh so human Jesus.  In this human Jesus, it was revealed the fullness of The Divine One.  If I was to know The Unknown, and Unknowable, all I had to do was to immerse myself in the reality of The Carpenter Shepherd from Nazareth. That was 50 years ago, and it is only now I am becoming more and more aware of what was being offered at that time.  The proclamation of that Good News has continued over years, but not without opposition.  The Gospel proclaimed in its purity, always finds opposition.  The Gospel it appears, only thrives in opposition.  The persecuted church is the spiritual healthy church.  Look at history and see when the church has been most vibrant.  A vibrant faith flowers in persecution. That is so true for our individual faith journey as well.