Yesterday, I shared a blessing from the book of Celtic Daily Prayer. I also mentioned that I have found the Celtic tradition, with its emphasis on the basic goodness inherent in people and creation, quite refreshing. This ancient strand of Christianity perceives that the world itself is a stunning miracle and that all matter is evidence of the creative activity of God. 

The late George McLeod was a Scottish Presbyterian minister who, earlier in life, had fought in the trenches in World War I. He had a profound experience of Christ’s presence while on a train with other wounded soldiers heading home. This led him to re-establish a Christian Community on the Island of Iona off the west coast of Scotland. This community, steeped in Celtic Christianity, is now a popular pilgrimage site.

Today, I’d like to share an excerpt from a prayer written by Reverend McLeod. Let us pray:

We come into Thy house, our home once more, to give thanks:

for earth and sea and sky in harmony of color,

the air of the eternal seeping through the physical,

the everlasting glory dipping into time.

We praise Thee.

For swift running tides, resistant waves, Thy Spirit on the waters,

the spirit of the inerrant will,

striving with the currents that are also Thine.

We bless Thee.

O Lord: How marvelous are Thy works. In majesty hast Thou created them. Amen.

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