Celtic Christianity and Climate Crisis: Twelve Keys for the Future of the Church

by Ray Simpson

Celtic Christianity is the key not only for the future of the Church but of the whole planet, argues Ray Simpson, Founding Guardian of the Community of Aidan and Hilda.

181 pages, Paperback

Published August 15, 2020

About the author

Ray Simpson is Founding Guardian of the international Community of Aidan and Hilda and the author of forty books on Celtic spirituality and other subjects.

Before that he was invited to plant a Fresh Expression at Bowthorpe, Norwich: 'One Family of Christians for one New Neighbourhood' sponsored by six denominations. He has linked early Celtic monastic villages with villages of God inspired by emerging new monastic churches.

He owns a house on UK's Holy Island of Lindisfarne, where the Community of Aidan and Hilda has its Retreat House, The Open Gate and Celtic Library, but is mainly based on the nearby mainland at Berwick-Upon-Tweed.


His big project is to make 'The Way' accessible to
all peoples through daily emails (enrol on www.waymarksoflife.com) and a year's app is being crowd funded.

Reviews

[Siân’s Reading Corner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Celtic Christianity and Climate Crisis by Ray Simpson is a must read for anyone interested in Celtic Christianity.

In this book Ray Simpson explores the ways of the Celtic Christian traditions and its Saints such as Brendan, Columba, Hilda and many many more. Through the book Twelve keys for the future of the Church are explored.

These twelve keys are:
1. Connect with Jesus as God at the heart of creation and care for it as he directs.
2. Let first, second and third nations people’s (indigenous, rich and poor, black and white) journey together in the dignity of difference.
3. Embrace fresh expressions of Reality, roots, rhythms, relationship- Four Rs of Celtic Christianity.
4. Weave together Christianity’s God-given strands that have become separated- scriptural and sacramental, charismatic and communal.
5. Release the Divine Feminine/Masculine glory: Let women as well as men flow in their greatness
6. Invite the Spirit to speak to us through the varied constructs in Sacred Scriptures.
7. Draw living water from our spiritual well-springs.
8. Focus on what is deep within us- God in the beauty of our origins.
9. Re-connect with the movements of Christ- freed from imperial hijackings- ever ancient, ever new.
10. Restore restitutions justice as the medicine for crime and social ailments.
11. Make our common global home in the eternal Communing of the Three Loves in God’s heart.
12. Grow true community in our friendships, neighbourhoods and world.

Ray Simpson concludes his book by stating that “Celtic Christianity offers a way, in the face of catastrophes on earth, for humans to cherish creation and be directed by the Christ from whom creation emanates. It is universal and its greatest era lies ahead”.

This book is both an insight and a guide to following the ways of the ancient Celtic traditions whilst looking forward to our world today and making a positive difference to it with God at its centre.

[Jason Kanz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this book, but it had far less to do with climate change than what I really would have hoped considering the title.

[Mjh · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was good for the history of Celtic Christianity, but it barely mentioned the climate crisis.