Anglo-Celtic & Norse Observances...

One of the few subjects this white man embraced during his school years was history. It didn't matter if it was Australian History, European History, Modern or Ancient History...I loved it all! Perhaps history endeared itself to me because early in my life I grasped the fact that interpreting history speaks into the realities of today and can help chart the course of tomorrow. Naturally, as a pastor, biblical history always fascinates and feeds me. Yet it isn't really bible history that has been fanning the intellectual and spiritual flame within recently. For I have been finding great joy in discovering the depth of wisdom within Anglo-Celtic and Norse history which is the major heritage of my ancestory. Epic tales from the Celts and Viking tales from the north and their amazing mythologies have led this white man deeper into his understanding of himself and the God he worships.

One such tale is the account of the Norse hero Beowulf. His story was the first-ever documented piece of writing in Old English script. The epic of Beowulf, especially as interpreted through a recent cinematic adaption is a saga of heroism, egoistic pride and ultimate downfall. For after all, the superheroic Beowulf, slayer of monsters and dragons is eventually revealed to be a mere mortal with drastic failings. A healthy reminder that at the height of pride a fall always comes.

And then there are the incredible accounts from Norse mythologies about the pantheon of gods like Odin, Loki and Thor. Their belief in the spiritual afterlife as expressed through their hope in Valhalla and even their own apocalyptic revelation of Ragnarok have eerie similarities with Christian views of heaven and the end of this age. And so on...Arthurian legend, Druid spirituality, Gaelic legends...too much to elaborate on here.

What I am saying is simply this - to touch the heart of oneself in relation to who you are in your physical and spiritual life-blood, sometimes you must return home into the history of that which you are a product of. I guess it is a way of truth to arriving at a place of 'owning' oneself and the complexity of who you are. For at that place of understanding hopefully comes wisdom, heightened self-esteem and serenity of soul. And most importantly, a closer understanding and connection with our God of Ages, revealed in and through the person of Jesus Christ.