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Thank you Aethelstan for your reply. I agree with your points. On the green issues, I agree with you, but I think it's not rocket science to support the idea of us being good stewards of God's plentiful earth, in line with Genesis 2:15, whilst rejecting at the same time the anti CO2 and Net Zero anti-scientific nonsense. In fact the worry is that we may become worse 'stewards' if we are forced, through massive increases in fuel prices, to burn coal to keep ourselves warm, instead of much cleaner gas. I use the 'Celtic Daily Prayer' books from the Northumbria Community, but would not dream of suggesting that these bear any resemblance to the prayers of St Cuthbert and the others!
Thank you, Aethelstan for a good and very wide-ranging contribution to understanding our problems, Christian and otherwise. I feel that the arrival of St Augustine in Canterbury and the subsequent Synod of Whitby also robbed us of a form of 'Celtic Christianity', which whilst it was not 'English' did include elements that sat more comfortably in English culture. But it's so long ago now, that after my research I would say that it would be impossible to resurrect it. The Celtic Christians approach to ecology and nature could, I would like to think, make a useful contribution to the current nihilist debate about 'Green' matters? You obviously have a much greater grasp than I have about immigration matters; it's not just the size but the speed of this that concerns me - at what rate can we sensibly assimilate people - it's almost certainly lower than the current rate?
Firstly, I welcome your comments; they stimulate my thinking, and I hope what follows is not too dogmatic. Saint Wilfrid by John Nankivell captures the controversies of the period but also the internal communications between Rome, western Christendom, the British Isles and Ireland. Note the disputes you refer to at the Synod of Whitby need to be understood by the records of the time. What moderns refer to as "Celtic" Christianity is, in part, a reimagining of the past shaped by the Anglican need to backdate the tensions with Rome and possibly gloss over some of the problems in the origin and imposition of Protestantism in England. What we see as the Celtic liturgy is a variant of https://orthodoxwiki.org/Gallican_Rite and the three differences of importance at Whitby:
The rule for keeping Easter.
The tonsure.
The manner of baptising (the necessity of a trinitarian invocation) was settled through debate.
That there would be uniformity of practice in a United Christendom seems reasonable (but, of course, is an anathema after the reformation and inimical to a Broad church, albeit an understandable compromise). It was predicated on the notion of unbroken Apostolic succession. When actual heresies have to be opposed, and a central authority is compromised, then you have problems, then to have Ecumenical Councils to settle the matter. A few years ago, I read translations of some of the "Irish liturgies", and it struck me how similar they were to the Orthodox Divine Liturgy - which, of course, can also be seen in Anglican rites. The controversy over setting a confirmed date for Easter continues today. We Orthodox still use the lunar cycle to determine Passover and Pascha's closest Sunday, not the Solar calendar's nearest Sunday. A lot of overwriting of history happens if people refer to ecological or other features in early Irish variants of the Galliancian rite or other recovered prayers. The Orthodox divine liturgy says, "For favourable weather, for an abundance of the fruits of the earth, and for peaceful times, let us pray to the Lord. (Lord, have mercy.)." All Christians at that time lived close to nature and were partly at the mercy of the climate. Today's Climate Change nonsense and the Zero Carbon disaster are partly a return to pagan Gaia gnostic heresies. And in terms of recovering what has been lost. We Orthodox venerate all the saints and martyrs of these vital centuries. And that is primarily what On the Settled Questions is supposed to be about. Is it a daunting challenge? Of course, but an honourable one. Christ is risen!
Celtic Daily Prayer, Book One, The Journey Begins. ISBN 978-0-00-812302-4
Celtic Daily Prayer, Book Two, Farther Up and Farther In. ISBN 978-0-00-810019-3
Sorry, I'm showing my age with ISBN rather than links, that I'm never sure about.
My books are hardback. I'm sure there must be cheaper softbacks available now? They have inspired my life, but maybe you'll find stuff that doesn't rhyme with your theology - as I've never been Orthodox, I don't know? I laud every different form of Christianity, as I think more unites us than separates us? Maybe you disagree? If so, that's fine, I absolutely don't want arguments with other Christians; I have enough disagreements with non Christians. Blessings to you, brother, and thanks for everything you do to advance the Christian faith.
Thank you Aethelstan for your reply. I agree with your points. On the green issues, I agree with you, but I think it's not rocket science to support the idea of us being good stewards of God's plentiful earth, in line with Genesis 2:15, whilst rejecting at the same time the anti CO2 and Net Zero anti-scientific nonsense. In fact the worry is that we may become worse 'stewards' if we are forced, through massive increases in fuel prices, to burn coal to keep ourselves warm, instead of much cleaner gas. I use the 'Celtic Daily Prayer' books from the Northumbria Community, but would not dream of suggesting that these bear any resemblance to the prayers of St Cuthbert and the others!
Send me the link for your prayer book. Thank you for your reflections.
Thank you, Aethelstan for a good and very wide-ranging contribution to understanding our problems, Christian and otherwise. I feel that the arrival of St Augustine in Canterbury and the subsequent Synod of Whitby also robbed us of a form of 'Celtic Christianity', which whilst it was not 'English' did include elements that sat more comfortably in English culture. But it's so long ago now, that after my research I would say that it would be impossible to resurrect it. The Celtic Christians approach to ecology and nature could, I would like to think, make a useful contribution to the current nihilist debate about 'Green' matters? You obviously have a much greater grasp than I have about immigration matters; it's not just the size but the speed of this that concerns me - at what rate can we sensibly assimilate people - it's almost certainly lower than the current rate?
Firstly, I welcome your comments; they stimulate my thinking, and I hope what follows is not too dogmatic. Saint Wilfrid by John Nankivell captures the controversies of the period but also the internal communications between Rome, western Christendom, the British Isles and Ireland. Note the disputes you refer to at the Synod of Whitby need to be understood by the records of the time. What moderns refer to as "Celtic" Christianity is, in part, a reimagining of the past shaped by the Anglican need to backdate the tensions with Rome and possibly gloss over some of the problems in the origin and imposition of Protestantism in England. What we see as the Celtic liturgy is a variant of https://orthodoxwiki.org/Gallican_Rite and the three differences of importance at Whitby:
The rule for keeping Easter.
The tonsure.
The manner of baptising (the necessity of a trinitarian invocation) was settled through debate.
That there would be uniformity of practice in a United Christendom seems reasonable (but, of course, is an anathema after the reformation and inimical to a Broad church, albeit an understandable compromise). It was predicated on the notion of unbroken Apostolic succession. When actual heresies have to be opposed, and a central authority is compromised, then you have problems, then to have Ecumenical Councils to settle the matter. A few years ago, I read translations of some of the "Irish liturgies", and it struck me how similar they were to the Orthodox Divine Liturgy - which, of course, can also be seen in Anglican rites. The controversy over setting a confirmed date for Easter continues today. We Orthodox still use the lunar cycle to determine Passover and Pascha's closest Sunday, not the Solar calendar's nearest Sunday. A lot of overwriting of history happens if people refer to ecological or other features in early Irish variants of the Galliancian rite or other recovered prayers. The Orthodox divine liturgy says, "For favourable weather, for an abundance of the fruits of the earth, and for peaceful times, let us pray to the Lord. (Lord, have mercy.)." All Christians at that time lived close to nature and were partly at the mercy of the climate. Today's Climate Change nonsense and the Zero Carbon disaster are partly a return to pagan Gaia gnostic heresies. And in terms of recovering what has been lost. We Orthodox venerate all the saints and martyrs of these vital centuries. And that is primarily what On the Settled Questions is supposed to be about. Is it a daunting challenge? Of course, but an honourable one. Christ is risen!
Celtic Daily Prayer, Book One, The Journey Begins. ISBN 978-0-00-812302-4
Celtic Daily Prayer, Book Two, Farther Up and Farther In. ISBN 978-0-00-810019-3
Sorry, I'm showing my age with ISBN rather than links, that I'm never sure about.
My books are hardback. I'm sure there must be cheaper softbacks available now? They have inspired my life, but maybe you'll find stuff that doesn't rhyme with your theology - as I've never been Orthodox, I don't know? I laud every different form of Christianity, as I think more unites us than separates us? Maybe you disagree? If so, that's fine, I absolutely don't want arguments with other Christians; I have enough disagreements with non Christians. Blessings to you, brother, and thanks for everything you do to advance the Christian faith.