Celtic Christianity was profoundly Trinitarian. The Trinity was woven into the rhythms of speech and prayer and was invoked at the commencement of every action and event, large and small.
A prayer for a child at birth goes as follows:
The little drop of the Father on thy little forehead, beloved one.
The little drop of the Son on thy little forehead, beloved one.
The little drop of the Spirit on thy little forehead, beloved one.
The little drop of the Three to lave thee with the graces.
A prayer for the journey:
The Father of many resting places grant you rest;
The Christ who stilled the storm grant you calm;
The Spirit who fills all things grant you peace.
God’s light be your light,
God’s love be your love,
God’s way be your way.
A prayer for protection:
The arm of God be about you,
The way of Christ guide you,
The strength of the Spirit support you.
The holy God encircle you and keep you safe;
The mighty God defend you from all dangers;
The loving God give you his peace.
(Carmina Gadelica)
A prayer for peace:
Be the peace of the Spirit mine this night,
Be the peace of the Son mine this night,
Be the peace of the Father mine this night,
The peace of all peace be mine this night,
Each morning and evening of my life.
(Carmina Gadelica)
As we see in St. Patrick’s prayer, belief in the Trinity is explicitly confessed at the start and at the end. That God is Three-in-One was very important to the early Celtic Christians. Yet, as Esther de Waal points out, their understanding of Trinity seems to be simple and natural, even homely, far removed from the intellectual and abstract concepts that have taken the theological centre stage.
Three folds of the cloth, yet only one napkin is there,
Three joints in the finger, but still only one finger fair,
Three leaves of the shamrock, yet no more than one shamrock to wear,
Frost, snow-flakes and ice, all in water their origin share,
Three Persons in God: to one God alone we make our prayer.
Trinity, the communion of three persons in one, was accepted in Celtic spirituality as simply the way things are. In essence, this is how nature is, how God is and how we are in our true being as the image of God. One yet also three, three yet always one. Trinity has much to teach us about being individuals true to ourselves yet also being a person for others.
