Thomas Craughwell - 30 Days with the Irish Mystics

30 Days with

the Irish Mystics

2012 Thomas Craughwell

All rights reserved. With the exception of short excerpts used in articles and critical reviews, no part of this work may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in any form whatsoever, printed or electronic, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

ISBN: 978-1-61890-073-9

Cover design by Caroline Kiser.

Printed and bound in the United States of America.

Contents

Introduction

The pagan Irish were fond of poetry and music, and after their conversion to Christianity, many Irish poets and musicians used their gifts to praise God, the Blessed Mother, and the saints.

Youll discover that the Irish style of addressing God and the saints is very personal, as if they were speaking to an Irish king or warrior. And the poetic element is striking. For example, St. Maelmuire calls God O bright and gleaming sun, and St. Columba speaks of heaven as the lofty, most beautiful haven of life.

The Irish love of poetry led naturally to a love of books and learning. They collected libraries of Irish poems, legends, and historical works, and added Christian texts as well as the works of the ancient Greek and Roman authors. Isolated at the edge of Western Europe, far removed from the barbarian nations that were ransacking the Roman Empire, Ireland became a center of Celtic, Greco-Roman, and Christian culture. It was a rare monastery or convent that did not have a school, a library, and a scriptorium where books were copied. This led to the classic description of Ireland as the Isle of Saints and Scholars.

This 30 Days booklet introduces you to the poetic, intensely personal prayers, hymns, and meditations of the Irish mystics. Since most of these saints will be unfamiliar to most readers, we have included an appendix with capsule biographies of the saints quoted here.

May all the mystic saints of Ireland pray for you and inspire you to grow in love for Almighty God, Our Blessed Lady, and all the saints.

Day 1: The First Step

I arise today

Through the strength of the love of cherubim,

In obedience of angels,

In service of archangels,

In the hope of resurrection to meet with reward,

In the prayers of patriarchs,

In preachings of the apostles,

In faiths of confessors,

In innocence of virgins,

In deeds of righteous men.

ST. PATRICK (C. 387C. 464)

For he will give his angels charge of you, to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.

PSALM 91:1112

T ODAYS M EDITATION

You are never alone. God pours out his love and grace upon you every moment of your life. He has assigned a guardian angel to watch over you. He hears the prayers that the saints offer up on your behalf. Today make a conscious effort to put aside the busyness and anxieties of daily life and with true gratitude consider all the blessings you enjoy, all of which are signs of Gods loving care for you.

P RAYER

Good Lord, the saints and angels stand around your throne praising you eternally, yet so many days go by when I forget to thank you for the blessings you shower upon me. As I begin these thirty days of prayer and meditation, clear my mind of distractions, touch my heart with your love, and draw me closer to you. St. Patrick, and all you mystic saints of Ireland, pray for me!

Day 2: Pleasing God

Three things that please God most are true faith in God with a pure heart, a simple life with a grateful spirit, and generosity inspired by charity. The three things that most displease God are a mouth that hates people, a heart harboring resentments, and confidence in wealth.

ST. ITA (DIED C. 570)

What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works? Can his faith save him? If a brother or sister is ill-clad and in lack of daily food, and one of you says to them, Go in peace, be warmed and filled, without giving them the things needed for the body, what does it profit? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

JAMES 2:1417

T ODAYS M EDITATION

Just as God is merciful and generous to you, be generous to others. Flip through your checkbookhow often this year have you given to charities? Your gift doesnt have to be a small fortunethe widows mite was more pleasing to Jesus than the bags of surplus gold the rich men gave. Now that youve examined your checkbook, examine your conscience: root out any grudges youve been nursing. The good works God expects from us are not just donations, but also good will toward our neighbors.

P RAYER

Father, remove from my heart all feelings of bitterness and resentment. Help me to be a peacemaker in my home, my workplace, my community. Teach me to be generous and always ready to do good, no matter how small that good work may be. St. Ita, and all you mystic saints of Ireland, pray for me!

Day 3: The Happy Family

God, protect the house, and the household,

God, consecrate the children of the motherhood,

God, encompass the flocks and the young;

Be Thou after them and tending them

ANONYMOUS, BLESSING OF THE HOUSE

Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table.

Lo, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord.

The Lord bless you from Zion! May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life!

May you see your childrens children!

PSALM 128:3-6

T ODAYS M EDITATION

Is there any greater joy on earth than a happy family? Savor the happy timesthe arrival of children and grandchildren, the First Holy Communions and weddings, the holidays, the outings, the family meals. And give thanks to God for all of them.

P RAYER

Almighty Father, I thank you for placing me in a loving family. Bless my family and relatives with good health, long life, happiness, and prosperity. Keep us all faithful to you, and unite us all around your throne. All you mystic saints of Ireland, pray for me!

Day 4: The Mystery of the Mass

Come all ye holy,

Take the body of your Lord,

Drink of his chalice,

Take the blood for you outpoured.

ST. SECHNALL (DIED C. 457), SANCTI VENITE (COME ALL YE HOLY), TRANSLATED BY ADRIAN FORTESCUE

I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.

JOHN 6:51

T ODAYS M EDITATION

When Jesus Christ came into the world he did so many extraordinary things: he healed the rift original sin had caused between God and man; he established the Church to show all the world and all generations the way to salvation; and he left us himself in the Eucharist, the Blessed Sacrament of the altar, so that he would always physically be present among us and our souls would receive the spiritual food they need.

P RAYER

Good Jesus, ever present in the Blessed Sacrament, I kneel in awe before you, hidden in the forms of bread and wine. May I never be bored or distracted at Mass. May I never receive Holy Communion unworthily. And may I always be conscious that each Mass is a foretaste of the glorious liturgy celebrated by all the saints in heaven. St. Sechnall, and all you mystic saints of Ireland, pray for me!Next page