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Our local clergy chapter were meeting this week, and I was ‘hosting’. Usually, part of hosting involves preparing some prayers and worship. As we were also ‘ Remembering‘ St Martin of Tours, I had a few things up my sleeve, including a fine shell remembering the pilgrims that stopped at St Martin’s shrine in Tours on the Way of St James. New Zealand Paua - credit ReedWade It's a blessing from O'Donohue's book, To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings , in which he writes: But nowhere do the beauty, mystery, and soul-sustenance of friendship come more vibrantly alive than in the 1997 masterwork Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom ( public library) by the late, great Irish poet and philosopher John O’Donohue (January 1, 1956–January 4, 2008), titled after the Gaelic for “soul-friend”— a beautiful concept that elegantly encapsulates what Aristotle and Emerson and Lewis articulated in many more words. command of the English language had become so rare and the skill to follow the rules of meter and phonics even rarer to the point that their numbers remained far too thin to raise enough money from annual dues for even an occasional modest bacchanal (as in the Calypso song Harry Belafonte recorded “Zombi Jamboree.”) As a result, they redefined poetry by inventing the very clever idea of free verse which allows anyone to become a self proclaimed poet and therefore a member. Now their motto is; “I came, I wrote, I conquered” and you don’t even have to be admired or even published in your lifetime, you can be discovered long after you are dead. Many people have already paid tribute to the priest and writer John O'Donohue, who died last week. John was buried today in county Clare. One of the most moving tributes I've read was written by Gareth Higgins. Gareth was a close friend of John's and introduced me to him a couple of years ago. I'm glad that he was able to travel to county Clare for the service.
May we let go of the life-holding past and embrace the the new day with hope, courage and gratitude! While many of our ministers only conduct wedding ceremonies, others also conduct baptisms, funerals, baby blessings, and other meaningful rites. When our responses are grounded in Love, in meditation, mindfulness, and prayer, we all have a greater resonance for right-action or non-action. Both might be useful. In my life, it’s often been those little pauses, some minutes, some seconds, and some fractions of a second that have helped me keep a level head and a grateful heart. Without the pauses, I can easily fall into panic and overwhelm. I’m built that way. Without the pauses, I drop into old habits and ways of doing, thinking and responding. I can easily abandon flow, trust and being. The pauses allow grace in. I’m going to write that again … give it space. This poem, by John O’Donohue, honors the grief of losing someone so dear to our heart, while celebrating the memory of a vibrant life well lived.
O’Donohue was a contemporary Irish priest, poet, author, and philosopher, who spent much of his life studying Celtic spirituality. His inspired words have brought comfort to many over the years.
If you could offer up one wish for someone else, or humanity as a whole, today and right now, what would your blessing be? The anam cara perspective is sublime because it permits us to enter this unity of ancient belonging. We are all called to respond in varying ways: professionals with skilled action, colleagues to boost morale, to be good neighbours and friends in looking out for one another, to be vigilant in our amplifying care and to tread softly with the varying emotional landscapes we find ourselves in, as the fear takes hold. We can always do something useful, worthy and kind. Most of us as first years were daunted by the hallowed portals of the college, its long and high cloisters decorated by big oil paintings of grim-faced 19th century clerics. John found his natural habitat in the lecture halls and the library. I must confess I did not always understand him. The range of his thought and the intricacy of its expression sometimes baffled me. Wryly I comforted myself with Oscar Wilde's aphorism that "to be intelligible is to be found out". Meanwhile, here is a blessing that your work may be guided by your soul. I find this greatly encouraging to me, to keep me on the path of following my heart. Enjoy…Neal x May The Light Of Your Soul Guide You, by John O’Donohue
His latest work, Benedictus , is a wonderful book of blessings for a diversity of human experiences. As O’Donohue says in this beautiful blessing, “And though the darkness is now deep, you will soon see approaching light.” If you are currently struggling with questions of what to do with your life, your work and where it is all leading, read the blessing below by John O’Donohue. May your work be guided by the light of you, may you feel encouraged knowing that there is a path for you forward, a unique place where you are meant to be in this world. I find this greatly encouraging and hope that you find it encouraging too. This afternoon, I recorded a short tribute of my own which will be broadcast as part of a montage of tributes tomorrow on Radio 4's Sunday programme. It turns out that the long interview I conducted with John in December is the last he ever gave (listen again here). On tomorrow's Sunday Sequence, I'll be talking to one of John's friends, Father Kevin Hegarty. John And Kevin were students together for seven years at Maynooth. In an article Fr Kevin wrote just before John's untimely death, he explains why John left the priesthood for the life of an independent writer. He writes:
What gifts are hiding in this suffering? Personally, my gifts have come in the form of long, deep talks during daily walks and nightly games with my husband. The gifts are in sharing a glass of socially distant wine with friends across their porch. The gifts are in the solitude and quiet of every day. Reading it, I couldn't help but feel that it's as appropriate today as it's ever been, that it speaks to more than just marriage but to our relationships with one another on a grander, human scale. Aristotle laid out the philosophical foundation of friendship as the art of holding up a mirror to each other’s souls. Two millennia later, Emerson contemplated its two pillars of truth and tenderness. Another century later, C.S. Lewis wrote: “Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art, like the universe itself… It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things which give value to survival.” In this love, you are understood as you are without mask or pretension. The superficial and functional lies and half-truths of social acquaintance fall away, you can be as you really are. Love allows understanding to dawn, and understanding is precious. Where you are understood, you are at home. Understanding nourishes belonging. When you really feel understood, you feel free to release yourself into the trust and shelter of the other person’s soul… This art of love discloses the special and sacred identity of the other person. Love is the only light that can truly read the secret signature of the other person’s individuality and soul. Love alone is literate in the world of origin; it can decipher identity and destiny. They may have hoped that his imagination would wilt somewhat under the sodden weight of careful clerical conversation in the presbytery. It was as if (former All-Ireland club champions) Crossmolina GAA confined the contribution of (star footballer) Ciarán McDonald to carrying the jerseys for their third-string team.oh yes, a journey is indeed a sacred thing, no matter if a journey to a foreign land or the journey in our own town or city; it is all about the intention we set: are we taking the journey with an open heart, mind and soul? Are we allowing for the unexpected to awe us? Are we opening our eyes to truly see the beauty all around us, even if it is simply a tree on the street where we live? Are we engaging with people heart to heart? Are we seeking to grow and learn especially if immersed in a culture other than our own? I have found that many times when i travel, I've been to 27 countries so far: 20 of them through Storytelling performances/experiences, I seek to learn, grow and understand as well as soak in unexpected experiences whether that is a cultural celebration like the one i happened upon in Peru where hundreds gathered in a town square and ate a feast of seaweed, cuy, cheese, and tiny potatoes and there was singing and chanting too. i had little idea what was happen... [ View Full Comment] Recently, I have been enjoying the work of John O’Donohue, who was an Irish writer and poet. My favorite book of his, To Bless the Space Between Us, is a collection of blessings to help readers through struggles and everyday concerns of life. There is something deeply kind and wise about his words, something which is encouraging and inspires hope during times of transition, challenge, new beginnings. Over the last few months I have very much been enjoying the writings and poetry of John O’Donohue. A writer of unique power to me (and many others), John captured a great sense of wonder of the natural world and a deep wisdom and kindness born from a life of studying philosophy and theology. He had also been a Catholic priest for 17 years and left that service to concentrate more on his writings.
A call comes from within to wake up to explore new and unknown territories. Is it exciting? Is it frightening? Is it both exciting and frightening? Many people are addicted to perfection, and in their pursuit of the ideal, they have no patience with vulnerability. (...) Celebrations of Life: Wild Child Reverend Scarlett’s memorial services honor people in the same ways they livedThe beauty of nature insists on taking its time. Everything is prepared. Nothing is rushed. The rhythm of emergence is a gradual slow beat always inching its way forward; change remains faithful to itself until the new unfolds in the full confidence of true arrival. Because nothing is abrupt, the beginning of spring nearly always catches us unawares. It is there before we see it; and then we can look nowhere without seeing it.” After ordination, John honed his intellect in the strict atmosphere of Tübingen, the German university. On his return to Ireland he combined lecturing with some parish work. For people jaded by the blandness of conventional Irish Catholicism, he opened up new vistas of exploration and experience. In the Celtic tradition, there is a beautiful understanding of love and friendship. One of the fascinating ideas here is the idea of soul-love; the old Gaelic term for this is anam cara. Anam is the Gaelic word for soul and cara is the word for friend. So anam cara in the Celtic world was the “soul friend.” In the early Celtic church, a person who acted as a teacher, companion, or spiritual guide was called an anam cara. It originally referred to someone to whom you confessed, revealing the hidden intimacies of your life. With the anam cara you could share your inner-most self, your mind and your heart. This friendship was an act of recognition and belonging. When you had an anam cara, your friendship cut across all convention, morality, and category. You were joined in an ancient and eternal way with the “friend of your soul.” The Celtic understanding did not set limitations of space or time on the soul. There is no cage for the soul. The soul is a divine light that flows into you and into your Other. This art of belonging awakened and fostered a deep and special companionship. Illustration by Maurice Sendak from Let’s Be Enemies by Janice May Udry
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