None of us quite know what to expect when a new year dawns. Two years ago, as we went into 2020, we would never have imagined how disrupted and changed our lives would be because of the coronavirus pandemic. Perhaps that’s a good thing – we were able to celebrate the turning of the year with joy and looking forward, rather than with afear of what was to hit us.

   Some of you know that back in October, I went to the island of Iona with a group from the diocese, led by the Bishop of Sherborne. The Christian community on Iona began when Columba, in a small boat, crossed the sea from Ireland as a missionary. The story goes that Iona was the first place he stopped at where he could no longer see his homeland.

   The faith in northern England was mainly inherited from their Celtic neighbours; while further south, it was missionaries from the Roman Church who brought Christianity to this country. Over time the Latinised version dominated and the Celtic traditions all but died out.

   Fortunately in the past 30 years or so, people have begun to rediscover them. One of the great joys of the Celtic tradition is the explicit focus on God in daily life. There are prayers for home and hearth, for farmers and fishers, for getting up and going to bed, for friends and strangers. In all these prayers is a sense that God is part of the every day, encircling everyone. There are prayers for protection, for help, and wonderful blessings. The popular hymn Be Thou my Vision is based on a Celtic prayer.

  As the new year dawn and none of us know what it will hold, I offer three prayers from the Celtic tradition. The first reminds us that, even when we are weak, God’s strength is with us:

 

I arise today

through a mighty strength:

God's power to guide me,

God's might to uphold me,

God's eyes to watch over me;

God's ear to hear me,

God's word to give me speech,

God's hand to guard me,

God's way to lie before me,

God's shield to shelter me,

God's host to secure me.

 

The second is an acknowledgement that God has many dimensions:

 

You are the peace of all things calm.

You are the place to hide from harm.

You are the light that shines in dark.

You are the heart's eternal spark.

You are the door that's open wide.

You are the guest who waits inside.

You are the stranger at the door.

You are the calling of the poor.

You are my Lord and with me still.

You are my love, keep me from ill.

You are the light, the truth, the way.

You are my Saviour this very day.

 

Finally, my wish and prayer for you for the coming year:

 

May your year be filled with blessings

like the sun that lights the sky,

and may you always have the courage

to spread your wings and fly!

  

May God bless you all.

 

Best wishes

Sarah