The Celts were adventurers.\u00a0 They sailed off into unknown lands, sometimes sailing without a rudder, trusting that God would bring them to their place of resurrection, their place of wholeness and vocation.\u00a0 Each day was seen as adventure, filled with danger and possibility.\u00a0Spirits, good and evil, lurked around every corner and in every grove of trees. So, Celtic travelers often drew a circle around themselves as they began each journey.\u00a0 The circle (or \u201ccaim\u201d) reminded them that they were always encircled by God\u2019s care.\u00a0 In the spirit of Psalm 139, they trusted that if they ascended to the heavens, God would be with them.\u00a0 If they descended to the depths, God would also be their companion.\u00a0 With the apostle Paul, they trusted that nothing could separate them from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Savior.<\/p>\n
We are always circled by God\u2019s love, especially in times of chaos and disorder, times when leaders have lost their reason and threaten the soul of the nation and the well-being of the planet.<\/p>\n
Legend has it that a local chieftain sought to kill Patrick for sharing the message of Jesus.\u00a0 The chieftain sent his men to kill Patrick as he traveled along a lonely, wooded road.\u00a0 As they closed in on Patrick, Patrick circled himself in divine protection. To their surprise, his pursuers discovered that somehow, Patrick disappeared.\u00a0 All they saw was a deer bounding across the road.\u00a0 From that adventure, legend has it that the Prayer of St. Patrick (the \u201cLorica\u201d or \u201cBreastplate\u201d) emerged.\u00a0 As you read these words, you can almost visualize Patrick drawing a circle around himself as he rotated in a clockwise manner, perhaps saying the prayer identified with his spirituality.<\/p>\n
I arise today
\nThrough the strength of heaven;
\nLight of the sun,
\nSplendor of fire,
\nSpeed of lightning,
\nSwiftness of the wind,
\nDepth of the sea,
\nStability of the earth,
\nFirmness of the rock.<\/p>\n
I arise today
\nThrough God\u2019s strength to pilot me;
\nGod\u2019s might to uphold me,
\nGod\u2019s wisdom to guide me,
\nGod\u2019s eye to look before me,
\nGod\u2019s ear to hear me,
\nGod\u2019s word to speak for me,
\nGod\u2019s hand to guard me,
\nGod\u2019s way to lie before me,
\nGod\u2019s shield to protect me,
\nGod\u2019s hosts to save me
\nAfar and anear,
\nAlone or in a multitude.<\/p>\n
Christ shield me today
\nAgainst wounding.
\nChrist with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
\nChrist in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
\nChrist on my right, Christ on my left,
\nChrist when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
\nChrist in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
\nChrist in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
\nChrist in the eye that sees me,
\nChrist in the ear that hears me.<\/p>\n
I arise today
\nThrough the mighty strength
\nOf the Lord of creation.<\/p>\n
You can almost feel the strength of God as you read this prayer.\u00a0 God permeates everything as the life-giving energy of creation.\u00a0 But rather than being impersonal or indifferent to the affairs of mortals, the Energy of the Universe is personal and protective, as close as your next step or the air you breathe.\u00a0 Christ surrounds us completely, giving us confidence that \u201call shall be well and all manner of thing shall be well.\u201d (Julian of Norwich) Whether or not we are aware of it, we are always encircled by God\u2019s love, which is larger than our own lives and planetary journeys.<\/p>\n
Today, we need the wisdom of St. Patrick and the power of the Encircling God.\u00a0 We live in a perfect storm of challenges, many of which are beyond our control. We are tossed about in the seas of political malpractice and uncertainty.\u00a0 Guided only by ideology, lust for power, and self-interest, US leaders seem bound and determined to push back the hand of the clock on civil rights, social justice, and environmental protection. The world\u2019s religious traditions are in flux and the spiritual landscape in North America is shifting.\u00a0 Congregations are in crisis and wonder if they will survive the decade. Trumpism, despite its claim to wear the mantle of Christianity, is accelerating the demise of Christianity, especially among young people and disillusioned evangelicals. We need to experience ourselves in God\u2019s evolving and emerging circle of love and power so that we can, with John Lewis and contemplative activists throughout the ages, make good trouble to heal the soul of the nation.<\/p>\n
The road to recovery of the US soul is going to be long and difficult.\u00a0 There is no certainty that we will succeed in healing the soul of the nation or preserving the well-being of the planet.\u00a0 But, we must persist. The nation and planet depend on our faithfulness to the task of healing protest. Spiritual well-being and self-care are acts of resistance to the powers of evil.\u00a0 Prophetic healing calls us to experience God\u2019s encircling love as the foundation for protest.\u00a0 With Patrick, we can arise each morning wit this prayer on our lips and let its words inspire and energize throughout the day.<\/p>\n
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
\nChrist in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
\nChrist on my right, Christ on my left,
\nChrist when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
\nChrist in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
\nChrist in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
\nChrist in the eye that sees me,
\nChrist in the ear that hears me.<\/p>\n
+++<\/p>\n
Bruce Epperly is Theologian in Residence at Westmoreland Congregational United Church of Christ, Bethesda, MD (https:\/\/www.westmorelanducc.org\/<\/a>) and a professor in theology and spirituality at Wesley Theological Seminary. He is the author of over 80 books including: \u201cHomegrown Mystics: Restoring the Soul of Our Nation through the Healing Wisdom of America\u2019s Mystics\u201d (Amazon.com: Homegrown Mystics: Restoring Our Nation with the Healing Wisdom of America\u2019s Visionaries: 9781625249142: Epperly, Bruce: Books<\/a>) \u201cJesus: Mystic, Healer, and Prophet \u201c(Jesus: Mystic, Healer, and Prophet: Epperly, Bruce: 9781625248732: Amazon.com: Books<\/a>), Saving Progressive Christianity to Save the Planet\u201d( Saving Progressive Christianity to Save the Planet: Epperly, Bruce G: 9781631999215: Amazon.com: Books<\/a>), and his most recent book, \u201cGod of the Growing Edge: Whitehead and Thurman on Theology, Spirituality and Social Change.\u201d (The God of the Growing Edge: Whitehead and Thurman on Theology, Spirituality, and Social Change: Epperly, Bruce G: 9781631999291: Amazon.com: Books<\/a> The God of the Growing Edge: Whitehead and Thurman on Theology, Spirituality, and Social Change: Epperly, Bruce G: 9781631999291: Amazon.com: Books<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Adventurous Spirituality The Celts were adventurers.\u00a0 They sailed off into unknown lands, sometimes sailing without a rudder, trusting that God would bring them to their place of resurrection, their place of wholeness and vocation.\u00a0 Each day was seen as adventure, filled with danger and possibility.\u00a0Spirits, good and evil, lurked around every corner and in every […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":213,"featured_media":203,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[59,1001],"class_list":["post-6650","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-st-patrick","tag-st-patricks-day"],"yoast_head":"\n