Poetry of the Celtic Revival (1)
Hearken, all you lovers of God…
– Sechnall, Audite Omnes Amantes
Hear this, all peoples;
Give ear, all inhabitants of the world,
Both low and high,
Rich and poor together.
My mouth shall speak wisdom,
And the meditation of my heart shall give understanding.
I will incline my ear to a proverb;
I will disclose my dark saying on the harp. – Psalm 49.1-4
The Bible and poetry
A rewarding season of meditation can ensue from asking the question, “Why is so much of the Bible written in poetry?”
These days very few people read poetry. Their reasons vary: Some don’t read much of anything, and of what they do read, poetry is last on the list. Others explain they’ve never studied poetry, so they don’t understand it. Some will say they’ve tried reading some poems, but they just can’t figure out what the poet’s trying to say. Still others will say that poetry is too abstract, or too fraught with images and personal references to mean anything to them. Or just too sissified.
For whatever reasons, people don’t read poetry. And yet, presumably, Christians read their Bibles, and nearly one-third of the Bible is written in poetry.
One-third.
Are we reading these poems the way God intends? Or do we read them the way we read the rest of the Bible, as a straight narrative, to get through the day’s reading, or, at best, to find some nugget of truth to carry away into the day ahead?
But one-third of the Bible is written using rhythm, alliteration, rich images, and a wide range of other poetic devices to tell us something about God and His will to faithful readers. Even to the unbelieving world: Look at the opening of Psalm 49. It is addressed to “all peoples” and “all inhabitants of the world”—then a pair of merisms, “low and high” and “rich and poor”—all people, all-inclusive. God has a message for the whole world, and He chose to set it in a poem.
Paul understood the value of poetry, even though he didn’t write it himself. Instead, he encouraged believers to think of themselves as “poems in the making” which God is writing to imprint His beauty, goodness, and truth on each of our lives. The Greek word for workmanship in Ephesians 2.10 is ποίημα—poiema, “poems.” We are God’s poems.
Clearly, God loves poetry. He loves the way it gets to our hearts almost before it gets to our heads, snaring us in images and sounds, rhythm and sometimes rhyme, word order, sentence structure, and even the architecture of an entire poem. When we read poetry as we should, something about the poem grabs us and holds us and invites us to linger and ponder and question until the meaning emerges from the images and other poetic devices, and we have that “Ahhh!” or “Ouch!” or even “Aha!” experience.
Celtic Christians and poetry
Celtic Christians understood the power of poetry. A good portion of the literature extant from the period of the Celtic Revival (ca. 430-800 AD, and a little beyond) is in the form of poems. Celtic poets understood that all people, especially all believers, should receive poetry and read and contemplate it until, like Jacob wrestling the angel, it releases its blessing to their souls.
The opening line of the first Christian hymn written in Ireland—Audite Omnes Amantes—is simply, “Hearken, all you lovers of God…” A poem is coming. A long poem, celebrating the greatness of Patrick and his faithful work. And I’m going to sing it, or at least, you will receive it in all its rhythm and movement and images (“fish with nets of doctrine”, “precious talents of the Gospel”, “heavenly feasts”, etc.), which are crafted to impact your soul with admiration, wonder, and undying respect and gratitude for the man under whose ministry the Celtic Revival began.
Yes, it takes a poem to get our attention for something as significant as that.
We’re going to examine some of the poems that have been left to us by our Celtic Christian forebears. Some are anonymous; some were written by scholars or missionaries; others come to us from those who were trained in the art of versifying, and used their craft to celebrate God and His many great works.
So as we begin, I join with Sechnall and call on you to “Hearken, all you lovers of God” to the rich and varied spiritual poetry of our Celtic Christian forebears. It’ll do you good, really.
For Reflection
1. Why do you think so much of the Bible is written in poetry? Are we missing some of the Bible’s message if we don’t know how to read poetry as poetry?
2. Do you have a favorite poem? What do you like about that poem?
Psalm 49.1-6, 15, 16-20
Sagina: And Can It Be, That I Should Gain
Hear this, you peoples, low and high; give ear as wisdom I proclaim:
My heart with understanding fills to hear and sing my Savior’s fame.
Why should I fear when foes arise, who trust in wealth and boast in lies?
Refrain v. 15
My God redeems my soul from hell!
His grace and mercy let me tell!
Let the redeemed of God take heart, though fools and all their wealth increase.
Death shall deprive him of all he owns, the grave shall make his glory cease.
Thus though he boasts, no light he sees; his end in hell shall ever be.Refrain
T. M. Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
For a good complementary study to this, check out Pray for Your Church. It’s free in The Ailbe Bookstore. And download our ReThinking Church Appraisal Tool by clicking here. And to refresh and deepen your time in God’s Word, order a copy of The Joy and Rejoicing of My Heart while you’re there.
Other columns of interest: This week: Our ReVision series on “The Church” raises questions all church leaders must answer. Our Read Moore podcast has begun a new series of readings from our book, The Joy and Rejoicing of My Heart. The focus of our Scriptorium daily study is on “Matthew: The Coming of the Kingdom.” Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
