On my wall is an icon of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. As one might expect, much of the story of Patrick is shrouded in myth. The accepted story is that he was kidnapped from Britain by Irish raiders when he was 16 and taken to Ireland where he was a slave for six years. He eventually escaped and returned to his family, but he took vows with the Church and returned to his place of enslavement as a missionary. He is credited with converting the island to the Christian faith. By the seventh century, he had come to be revered as the patron saint of Ireland. The genius of Patrick seems to have been his ability to contextualize the faith to win converts. He took advantage of the well-developed stories, customs, and institutions of Ireland to present the Gospel in a powerful way. So significant was this approach that it gave birth to what we call Celtic Christianity, a movement that differentiated itself from the Roman form of t...
Humans are meaning making creatures. We seek understand of the world and of ourselves. We ask existential questions. Existential means "related to existence," often focusing on the big questions of human life like purpose, freedom, meaning of life, responsibility, and place in community. Assistance in finding answers to these questions come through revelation, myth, and reflection. Coaches who partner with clients to consider faith questions begin by being open to what the client seeks, taking into consideration the client’s maturity level, life experiences, family of origin, religious tradition (if any), and present context. Although individuals raised in a similar context such as a Christian tradition have common experiences, we should not assume a common vocabulary or equivalent response. For example, the meaning of the Eucharist (Lord’s supper) for an individual varies upon whether they experienc...