The Celtic Quest unravelled after 16 years

THE Celtic Quest is a new book from Shannon resident Rosemary Power, who has been in Clare for the last two years acting as a pioneering minister on behalf of the Methodist Church.

“It’s about the modern Celtic movement as something that may not be historically very sound. I’ve argued in the book that the current Celtic movement started in England. In Ireland, it’s very much tied to traditional practice and belief. It seems to be attractive to people who don’t attend traditional churches very often but are looking to grow their own spirituality. It’s an assessment of the Celtic movement and there are a few suggestions for the future,” she says.
The book will primarily be of interest to people who have an interest in spirituality.
“Like most of Columba’s publications, it certainly will appeal to people who are interested in spirituality, church goers and people who are curious about how spirituality is developing at present. The main interest would be people who are church-goers or have been church-goers,” she said.
However, she is also at pains to stress what the book is not. “It’s not like one of John O’Donoghue’s books, which are more directly contributing to Celtic spirituality. Mine is more an assessment of how it has developed.”
She says that local sites and landmarks are all part of her own spirituality. “I am interested in prayer and spirituality, particularly quiet prayer and I organise prayer walks every year in Clare, there’s one coming up in September. They are between historic sites and I would see part of my spirituality in engaging with the land, the history and the Irish language.”
The book is the result of many years of work. “I was 16 years writing it, on and off, I’m a busy woman. I finished it in the very cold weather last January. The last two years in particular I was working on it. Like anyone writing a book, I had the idea but revising it and putting it on paper takes a lot of effort but everyone’s got a book in them. It’s finding the time, the persistence and the encouragement to complete it.”
She has already done a lot of writing and has plans to write another book, when the time allows it.
“I’ve written a lot academically including some books and I write quite a lot of articles as well, but this is my first full book on spirituality. I’m going to write another one on the Book of Kells in time,” she concluded.