Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1633614 in Books
• Published on: 2006-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 281 pages

Customer Reviews

Good understanding of celtic christian mind-set.
Sellner, an associate professor of pastoral theology, brings historical interest and spiritual insight to his fine book on the celtic saints.

The main part of _Wisdom of the Celtic Saints_ consists of excerpts from original documentary material about the lives of various celtic saints. One flaw of the book is that Sellner does not tell you which original manuscript the excerpt is from, but, knowing a little about the material, I can see that he has been wide-ranging and very thorough. Among the saints whose lives he includes are such famous beacons of the Faith as St. Patrick, St. Columba, and St. Bride; but he includes also many who are not widely known: St. Ia, St. Ethna, and more. Nineteen saints in all make up this "gallery of faith."

But perhaps the most exciting part of the book is the ;material which brackets the main section. In the introduction, Sellner does one of the best jobs I have seen describing the complex, compelling, and somewhat alien celtic christian mindset. After a historical overview, he sets out for the reader seven characteristics of celtic Christian spirituality, including love of the environment, love of learning, and a peculiar attitude toward time. Each of the seven is discussed consicely yet adequately, and in such a way that the reader is invited to meditate further.

This is followed by a brief discussion of stages of spoiritual kinship with Jesus and of various symbols which symbolic objects and numbers which occur frequently in the stories to follow.

In the conclusion he beautifully provides one sentence for each of the saints the reader has just encountered, "mythologizing" that saint into the representative of some particular virtue or way of approaching life. For example, "Patrick's openness to letting the spiritual realm, including angels, lead him;" "Ia's placing her life in God's hands and letting go of the results." This feature hints to the reader that the holy people are not to be approached as historical relics, but as living companions and active guides on the road to fellowship with God.

I recommend this book with no reservations.