A few years ago, Pete Greig walked the St. Aidans Way, a 300-mile journey from the Island of Iona on the South West Coast of Scotland to the tidal Island of Lindisfarne on the North East Coast of England. It created interest in many Christians because it was documented on the popular devotional app Lectio 365.
I have been interested in Celtic spirituality since my early 20s, I bought a few books but didn’t really read them. A few years later, I read Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of the English-speaking people, but more recently, it was a trip I made with my family to Iona and then to Lindisfarne in our van during our 2019 sabbatical (I hope to return during my current sabbatical).
I studied history at University (as well as politics), but I never really studied British history in the period known as the Dark Ages, which is now less dark as we have learnt more about it, which is a real shame as it’s such an amazing period in British History.
Every year on St Georges’s Day, I lament our lack of understanding and recognition of truly English saints, of which there are many! Sadly, most Christians are completely unaware of this rich Spiritual history, and the names of these amazing men and women from across the British Isles are often forgotten. (Apart from, of course, when St Patrick’s Day rolls around and suddenly we are all Irish)
But I was thinking, what is it about these men and women of faith that so fascinates me? I think, for me, there is something to recover from them. They lived in a period when Christianity was on the wane, people were worshipping anything and everything, and yet these men and women changed the course of history!
What can we learn from them? Below are the key things that inspire me about this period of history and Christianity, and I believe these are principles the church today would do well to recover (reform? revive?):
Monastic spirituality – most of the saints were Monks, who lived by a rhythm (rule) of life, they knew that their spiritual lives needed to be rooted in Discipline, so there are set times for prayer and fasting, and other aspects of life. Sadly, most modern Christians don’t feel the need to set times to pray, but in a 24/7 world, we need our lives to be disrupted and disturbed by prayer; otherwise, it gets lost in the busyness of our days. Never have we needed these monastic practices to root Spirituality into our lives
Missional imperative – they created the idea of peregrinatio journeys, going where the Spirit of God leads them, without fear of the consequences; they were sent people, and they went everywhere. Colombanus planted a Monastery in Bobbio, which would later influence a young man called Francis, who we know as St Francis!
Egalitarian – women led at every level. They led monastic communities, including mixed communities. As Pete Greig said on Lectio 365, the Celtic churches “recognised and respected women in leadership of every kind.”
Holistic – they worshipped with mind, body and spirit. They embraced the silence and solitude of their cell and also the corporate worship of chapels. Living close to the land (and the sea), they were pan-en-theists seeing God in the natural world around them. They would be climate activists today.
Accountable – they were highly relational, both in terms of living in a community but also having an Anmachara, a “soul friend” who they would allow to speak into their lives. Too many modern-day Christians seem to have privatised their faith with little real accountability to other people
Charismatic – they expected God to do miracles. In Adoman’s life of Columba or Bede’s life of Cuthbert; Healing, prophetic insights and even conversations with Angels were regular occurrences. They expected the Wild Goose (their name for the Holy Spirit) to be at work. Growing up in a Charismatic Baptist Church, I remember that we had a similar expectation.
Community focus – monasteries were often the heart of a vibrant community. They didn’t plant churches; they planted communities, and these communities were mission-oriented. Too often, modern church plants are individuals or a single family. This can be deeply isolating and a source of huge discouragement.
Social Justice – while they spent time with the Kings, they also cared deeply for the poor. Stories of huge generosity to the poorest were normal. Aidan famously gave his horse to a beggar, and Brigid was supposed to marry a king, but her crazy generosity put him off! But they addressed the issues around poverty. Monastic communities were places of employment; they provided medical care and took in orphans. They were among the poor, which is exactly where Jesus assumed his followers would be.
Thin Places – they lived on islands, mountains and hills or by lakes. These were thin places, places where the barriers between heaven and earth were thin. While they knew they had an eternal destiny, they knew their role was to bring about the Kingdom on Earth.
Robust Soteriology – modern at-one-ment theories (they are all theories/metaphors) often focus heavily on personal salvation. But the Celts had a far bigger understanding of the Cross, seeing Jesus’s death as a moment of Victory over not just personal sin, but the systems and powers behind sin and death. This creates a far more robust understanding of salvation.
Humility of leaders – while they were exceptions (like Wilfrid) most of the Celtic leaders did not seek power or influence and celebrity, but more often than not they sought lives of solitude and insignificance. They were reluctant leaders. They rejected material goods and often lived lives of simplicity
There was not one cohesive Celtic church, and so all of these are aspects of Celtic spirituality. But I believe that the emphasis they had will help as we try to re-evangelise in a culture that seems to be turning its back on the God of the Bible.
We recently did a sermon series on Celtic Spirituality, and you can find all the sermons here: https://www.devonportbaptist.co.uk/series/celtic-spirituality/
From Revd Michael Shaws’ blog (updated May 2026)
