Welcome to CCS

Dia annseo isteach!
God to all here!

Greetings all,

As I was doing my devotional this morning I came across this prayer and felt like sharing it here. Its from Newell's Sounds of the Eternal, Tuesday Morning Opening Prayer. My hope is that it blesses you as well...

Opening Prayer

As the day’s light breaks the darkness of the night,
as the first movements of the morning pierce the night’s stillness,
so a new waking to life dawns within me,
so a fresh beginning opens.
In the early light of the day,
in the first actions of the morning,
let me be awake to life.
In my soul and in my seeing
let me be alive to the gift of this day,
let me be fully alive.

Scripture and Meditation

‘Awake, awake, put on your strength.’ Isaiah 52:1

‘Maintain the right of the lowly,
rescue the weak and the needy.’ Psalm 82:3-4

Slan
Marty

Hi Marty,
I started the book and am very interested in it. I keep telling my husband that the author says things I hear him saying.

Anyway, I wonder if I could start a new topic. A fellow Christian writer brought up a question on a loop I belong to. She is writing in 10th century Wales and says the people were nominally Christian. Here is part of what she said. I wonder what you all think. I'm thinking that there absolutely were Christians then, and not just nominal ones, but I'm not an expert on that time and area.

>>They all, however, CALLED themselves Christians, whether or not they were doing the war/rape/pillage/enslave thing one the Christian district over. They will NOT see any need to accept Christ, to reform, or open their hearts and minds to the idea of Christianity. In their minds, this was it--they were already there. After all, they weren't worshipping Thor and Odin anymore, were they? My quandary is: if I show the nominal Christians as they were, I will offend--they used much rougher behavior and language than a 2008 Christian book-buying public will tolerate.
 
If I water them down, my characters run the risk of looking and sounding anachronistic. If I draw them similarly to people in their history and literature, they'll offend.>>

Dia annseo isteach!
God to all here!

Hey Cindy,

I'm glad you're enjoying 'a Generous Orthodoxy'. I have already cleared out a space for it on my shelf where I keep 'best books ever' category! I'm sure you noticed in the Foreword where he apologizes for skipping over certain branches of Christianity, including Celtic? I wonder if he knew how Celtic his book is?

Anyway, in 1066 A.D., England was invaded by the Normans under William the Conqueror. That whole century was a time of Norman expansion and merger with the then dominant Angles/Saxon/Jutes. The Normans were 'continental' Catholics with strong ties to Rome. The Welsh (Cymru) were of the simpler remnant of the older British Church (CC). Their faith and structure were simpler than the highly structured ecclesiastical Normans but it was still alive at the grass roots level.

Politics of Religion were prevalent in both the Normans and the English and there you have much of the need for conquest ('war/rape/pillage/enslave'). The Welsh, being Celts, tried to live simply in harmony with the land and their Source. They were about as Christian in real life as we see in the parking lots after service! I think its really hard to put a value on how well they lived their Christianity since what we have is basically a construct as well by comparison. A facade is no better in my book than 'nominal'!

A few months ago I read Steven Lawhead's two book on this period, 'Hood' and 'Scarlet'. I think he captured well the tenor of the times in an engaging way. Perhaps your colleague would like to check those two out for a comparison to her research. Sad to say, as the Roman Church of the West consolidated is hold on Western Europe, the fires of the Good News grew dimmer. But the peoples of the Celtic lands still held onto the old ways!

I hope this may help, I know you'll have a few more questions a little later. Always welcomed of course...

Slan
Marty

Marty,
What you described is the 11th century.

I read Lawhead's books also. Loved them! I have pre ordered the third in the series, which I think is due out early next year.

Any thoughts on the 900's?

Hey Cindy,

Ooops! One of THOSE days! Sorry about that! The time prior to the Norman invasion in England was a time of tremendous upheaval. The settlements and conquests of the previous centuries were starting to solidify into well structured kingdoms. Wales, being in the west, was not part of the major political scene and was content to hold onto their own lands.

Still, however, the Christianity of this time in Wales was much the same as I had described in the previous post, simple! The people were content to live off the land and thank God for their successful crops. Monasteries were still in operation but greatly influenced by the Roman Church now.

Here's a link to a quick history of the period - http://www.anglo-saxons.net/hwaet/?do=get&type=map&id=submap900

Slan
Marty

Dia annseo isteach!
God to all here!

Greetings all,

I've been busy over at Belief.net but keep hoping something will stir us here as well. It seems discussion has slowed to a trickle as of late. So... maybe its time for a little levity?


An armed hooded robber bursts into the Bank of Ireland and forces the
tellers to load a sack full of cash. On his way out the door with the loot
one brave Irish customer grabs the hood and pulls it off revealing the
robber's face. The robber shoots the guy without hesitation! He then looks
around the bank to see if anyone else has seen him. One of the tellers is
looking straight at him and the robber shoots him also. Everyone by now is
very scared and looking down at the floor. Did anyone else see my face?'
calls the robber. There are a few moments silence, then one elderly Irish
gent, looking down, tentatively raises his hand and says: 'I think me wife
may have caught a glimpse....'

Just something one of my daughter's thought I'd enjoy.. (Irish wit and all!)

Slan
Marty

Hi Marty,
After taking a brief look at Belief net, I can see why you wanted to lighten up over here. Taking the side of the woman, I borrowed this one from Irish Culture and Customs. I receive their free newsletters. Some of you might want to sign up too: http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com

Mike wakes up at home with a huge hangover. He forces himself to open his eyes, and the first thing he sees are a couple of aspirins and a glass of water on the bedside table. He sits up in bed and sees his clothing in front of him, all clean and ironed. He looks around the room and sees that it is in perfect order, spotless. He takes the aspirins and sees a note on the table which says "Breakfast is on the stove, dear. I left early to go shopping. Love you!" He goes to the kitchen and sure enough, there's a hot breakfast waiting for him, and also the morning newspaper. His son is sitting at the table, eating. Really curious by now, Mike asks, "Son, what happened last night?" His son says, "Well, Mam said you came home after 3 a.m, you stumbled in the door, threw up in the hallway, and passed out half-way up the stairs. Confused, Mike asks, "So, why is everything in order and so clean, and breakfast is on the table waiting for me?" His son replies, "Oh, that! Mam dragged you to the bedroom, and when she tried to take your trousers off, you yelled "Leave me alone woman, I'm a married man"

Hey Cindy:

I have an idea for a book I'd like to write. I was wondering if I could correspond with you off list to see what you think.

Laurence

Sure, Laurence: cindy at cindys writing dot com

Hi Cindy:

I tried contacting you through the email feature on your website. It didn't work for me. Any other ideas? I know Marty and Scotty have sent me private emails in the past.

Laurence

We are the in process of revamping my web site. That's why it didn't work. Did you try the email I posted below?

Dia annseo isteach!
God to all here!

Hey Cindy,

I'll send you Lawrence's email address and you can contact him any way you wish!

Slan
Marty

A Thanksgiving wish for you!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_Cw5IpQLSA

May our hearts be Thankful always... because He is there!

Dia annseo isteach!
God to all here!

Good Sabbath all,

I have been rather busy on Beliefnet lately with some new discussions. Things are a bit quiet here so I thought I'd invite you over again to the discussions there. Here is the link if you'd care to read up or even join in... http://community.beliefnet.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=362

Slan
Marty

A headline on the cover of the most recent Reader's Digest caught my attention: INSPIRE YOURSELF

I can't think how that is possible. I believe that inspiration has to come from somewhere. You don't just make it up. People say, "I was inspired by..." I think the key is to look outside yourself. Unless I'm missing something. Let me know!