ed atop church steeples. Large stone crosses stood in churchyards out front. Cemetery plots were marked with them. At Monasterboice (an ancient, ruined monastery north of Dublin), giant Celtic crosses carved of heavy stone stand nearly 20 feet tall. Carvings on them outline the biblical story.
The Celtic cross In Ireland, there are more Celtic crosses standing than Irish flags fly- ing. Te numbers don’t even appear to be close. Although its origins are unknown, the Celtic cross is also oſten referred to as “St. Patrick’s Cross.” Te design of Celtic crosses is
SHUTTERSTOCK
St. Patrick’s Day? S
It’s greener than you think By Dave Daubert
t. Patrick’s Day can evoke images of leprechauns, green beer and pubs filled with music late into the night. In Chicago, even the river is dyed green as part
of the celebration. But there is something more power- ful and transformational beneath this day. St. Patrick is credited with helping start Celtic Christianity, which has “green” roots in its awareness of creation, the environment and how God is involved in the natural world.
Last summer my wife, Marlene, and I spent a month in Ireland studying
Celtic Christianity as a result of a sabbatical grant from the Lilly Founda- tion. We hoped the land of St. Patrick would renew, refresh and also teach us as Lutherans some new things about this strand of Christianity. One of the things that attracted us was Celtic Christianity’s heightened awareness of creation and God’s commitment to the world God made and loves. Driving across Ireland we saw Celtic crosses everywhere. Small ones rest-
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said to be inspired by pre-Christian culture. Long before the early Chris- tian missionaries began their work, Celtic people had a view of God and the world that centered on nature. Like many indigenous peoples, they were keenly aware of the land and the seasons. Tey chronicled the lengthening and shortening days, seeing the sun as a sign and source of life. Five hundred years before
Egypt’s pyramids were built, Celtic people built Newgrange, a huge mound with tunnels and chambers carefully aligned with the rising sun on the winter solstice—the shortest day of the year. Teirs was no casual fascination with the sun. It was a deep-seated awareness of the skies, the seasons and the pass- ing of time. Rather than try to change the
indigenous people’s attraction to creation, Christians designed the Celtic cross to use their inter- est in the world as a connecting point to the gospel. Te circle on the Celtic cross represents the sun and creation—the culture’s central concern.
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