Ita gave him welcome as she would have bidden welcome to Christ and His apostles and said to him, “Ah, dearly beloved son, why didst thou go on thy journey without taking counsel with me? For the country which thou art seeking from God, ye will never find on these dead soft skins, for it is a holy conse-crated land, and no blood of man was ever shed in it. But let timber boats be made by thee. Belike thou wilt find the land on this wise.”
– The Life of Brendan of Clonfert
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
– Galatians 2.20
Return to Ireland
Three accounts of Brendan’s journey to The Promised Land of the Saints have come down to us from medieval times. We are following the Irish life translated and edited by Charles Plummer early in the 20th century. Also in his Lives of Irish Saints is the account of “The Twelve Apostles of Ireland”, which includes a shorter version of Brendan’s travels. Then there is the Navigatio Brendani, which parallels the other two accounts and is longer than the second but shorter than the first.
For his adventure, Tim Severin followed the Navigatio, which is reproduced in his book. I have mentioned certain interfaces with Severin’s adventure, where our two accounts seem to overlap, to help us establish a ground of history for Brendan’s story.
But it seems to me that the Life is our best, most complete, and most enduring account, surviving from the Middle Ages in 125 versions in three languages. And in this account, Brendan returns to Ireland, his first effort to find The Promised Land of the Saints a failure.
Still, he was greeted warmly by his countrymen and the account he shared with them saw many come to faith in Christ, and “many mighty works were there” as Brendan recounted his journey.
A wise counselor
But his failure troubled him, and so Brendan sought out his first and wisest counselor, Ita, with whom he had studied as a child. And again, here history and parable intertwine. It’s likely that, if our account so far is true, Brendan did seek advice on how to continue his calling. God had not released him, and although he had not succeeded thus far, he still felt compelled to do what the Lord had prepared and called him to do.
Ita suggested that “soft skins”—a reference to Breandan’s first boats, but here perhaps intending works of the flesh—will never get you to the Land of Promise. No. No matter how hard you try or how much you suffer, no works of the flesh will achieve the promise we seek. Ita counseled Brendan to build wooden boats, for relying on timber—that is, relying on the cross of Jesus—is the only way to realize God’s favor in our calling. The anonymous writer seems to imply in this bit of course correction that depending on wood rather than skins, the work of Christ rather than our own efforts, is what the company required.
Consequently, Brendan returned to Connaught and built a wooden boat, large enough for his crew, supplies, and “wrights and smiths who had prayed Brendan to let them go with him.”
Setbacks, disappointments, failures: these are par for the course in our journey with the Lord. But they must not be allowed to keep us from pursuing the Lord’s calling on our lives.
When things are not going as we expect, we must thank God for the progress He has allowed us to make thus far—like Brendan as he recounted his adventures with his countrymen. Then we must seek counsel for our next steps, not hesitating to reaffirm our calling before the Lord and seeking clarification from Him as well as trusted friends.
Then it’s off to build new boats and resume our journey in the Lord—every day, as each day requires, according to the leading and guidance of God’s Spirit and Word.
For Reflection
1. How would you describe your calling from the Lord?
2. In what ways would you like to see more progress in this calling?
Psalm 119.50-54
(Wyclif: All for Jesus)
This my comfort in affliction,
this my comfort in all strife:
that Your Word is my redemption,
giving me eternal life!
Though the proud deride and taunt me,
I will trust Your faithful Word.
Let Your judgments from of old be
all my comfort, holy LORD.
Indignation grips me, Savior,
for those who forsake Your Word.
All Your statutes, all Your favor,
I will sing with joy, O LORD!
T. M. Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
If you’d like to see some other examples of the lives of Irish saints, download the PDF of our free book by that title by clicking here.
Other columns of interest this week: Our Read Moore podcast is concentrating on praying the psalms to seek revival—why we should and what we might expect. Our current ReVision series, “Pray for Your Church”, teaches us how to pray for the ministries of our church. Read recent installments in this series by clicking here. And new in our bookstore, our workbook, The Ongoing Work of Christ, shows us how the book of Acts provides a template and footprint for all who take up the work of building Jesus’ Church.
Thank you.
Many of you are faithful and generous in praying for and supporting Crosfigell and The Fellowship of Ailbe. Thank you. May I encourage all our readers to seek the Lord about becoming a supporter of The Fellowship of Ailbe? It’s easy to give to The Fellowship of Ailbe, and all gifts are, of course, tax-deductible. You can click here to donate online through credit card or PayPal or Anedot, or send your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
All Psalms for singing from The Ailbe Psalter. Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
