And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it. It was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter. And I was told, “You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings.”

  - Revelation 10.10, 11

One time when Coemgen was reciting his hours, he dropped his psalter into the lake, and great grief and vexation seized him. And the angel said to him: “Do not grieve,” said he. Afterwards an otter came to Coemgen bringing the psalter with him from the bottom of the lake, and not a line or letter was blotted. The angel told Coemgen to go to teach and preach the word of God to the peoples, and not to hide himself any longer.

  - Anonymous, Life of Coemgen, Irish, 16th century from an earlier ms.

What really happened, in that first generation after Patrick, to get Coemgen to forsake his life of solitude and take up the work of preaching?

We don’t know; however, the hagiographer who wrote his story wanted us to understand that Coemgen’s call was clear and undeniable. Whatever convinced him, however he came to be persuaded, it was dramatic and life-changing.

So how did the writer seek to impress this on us? He created continuity – or at least, identity – with John’s call to preach (a message from an angel), engaged the Word (Coemgen’s psalter, like John’s “scroll”) with the creation (an otter as opposed to honey, each of which is God’s servant, Ps. 119.89-91), and salted in a little miracle (the unblotted word, like eating a scroll?), just to make the story seem all that more impressive.

Was he lying? Not at all. He was relating an historical incident – Coemgen’s call to ministry – in a form familiar to every Irish child or king: Tell me a story. The important point was not the details but the fact that God called Coemgen, the founder of the monastic community at Glendalough, to a work which had immense spiritual, social, and cultural impact on the Irish people.

And as God called Coemgen to such a work, so He might well call you or me.

Celtic Christians were very much aware of the intersection of worlds in which they lived: the world of men and culture; creation and the unseen realm of saints and angels; reality and wonder; history and humor; ourselves and those who have gone before. They understood that they lived in all these worlds, at a place where all this intersects in faith with mystery, wonder, truth, and fun. And, in truth designed to provoke wonder, they related their experiences in ways meant to communicate and invoke that sense of the fullness of life in the will of God.

Today’s Christians are mostly aware of one world – the world of getting-and-spending. We have almost no vision of the unseen realm (although half our faith depends on this, Heb. 11.1), and we take the world of creation and culture for granted most of the time.

Our sense of the past is not very lively, either. So if our Christian lives don’t seem as interesting or fruitful as Patrick’s or Coemgen’s, maybe that has something to do with how we view the world, which has something to do with how we understand our Lord Jesus and the salvation He has granted us by grace through faith.

We begin a New Year this week. Why not try to bring a bit more newness into it by learning to live more fully in the intersection of worlds which is the privilege and delight of all who follow Jesus?

Psalm 148.1, 2, 7 (Hendon: “Take My Life and Let It Be”)
Praise the Lord, from heaven praise! To the heights His goodness raise!
Angels, all you heav’nly hosts, let of Him be all your boasts,
Let of Him be all your boasts!

Let all creatures, ev’rything, God’s great praises loudly sing!
His Name only brims with worth far above both heav’n and earth,
Far above both heav’n and earth!

Lord, help me to live in all the intersecting worlds where you make known Your presence, glory, pleasure, and will.

This Week at The Fellowship
I want to thank those of you who have been so generous in sending end-of-the-year gifts to The Fellowship of Ailbe. These contributions matter because they say you’re part of The Ailbe Community. You want to see it grow and reach more people, and to help as you are able to that end. It says to us that God is using us, if only in some small way, to nurture your souls for His Kingdom, and in this we rejoice! Thank you so much. And thanks to those of you who will be sharing with us over the next few days. You can donate to The Fellowship of Ailbe by using the donate button here or at our website, or by sending your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Dr., Essex Junction, VT 05452. Watch next week for exciting opportunities for you to experience the intersection of worlds more fully through opportunities at The Fellowship we’ll be offering, beginning in January.

T. M. Moore, Principal
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