Christ in Celtic Christianity: Britain and Ireland from the Fifth to the Tenth Century (Studies in Celtic History) (Volume 20)

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Christ in Celtic Christianity gives a new interpretation of the nature of Christianity in Celtic Britain and Ireland from the fifth to the tenth century. The written and visual evidence on which the authors base their argument includes images of Christ created in and for this milieu, taken from manuscripts, metalwork and sculpture and reproduced in this study. The authors challenge the received opinion that Celtic Christians were in unity with Rome in all matters except the method of Easter reckoning and the shape of the clerical tonsure. They find, on the contrary, that the strain of the Pelagian heresy which rooted itself in Britain in the early fifth century influenced the theology and practice of the Celtic monastic Churches on both sides of the Irish Sea for several hundred years, creating a theological spectrum quite distinct from that of continental establishments. MICHAEL W. HERREN is Professor of Classics and Distinguished Research Professor at York University (Toronto), a member of the Graduate Faculty at the Centre for Medieval Studies in the University of Toronto, and an Honorary Member of the Royal Irish Academy; SHIRLEY ANN BROWN is Professor of Art History and a member of the Faculty of Graduate Studies at York University. Review: For the brave hearts and minds! - Christ in Celtic Christianity (2002) is Volume XX in the Studies in Celtic History series. The book-which is for academics and students-offers a new interpretation of Christianity in Celtic Britain in the fifth to tenth centuries. The book challenges many long held views, and presents a Celtic Christianity far more Pelagian and complex than previously understood. In other words, the Celtic sticking points were not only the dates of Easter and views on tonsure! "The thesis of this book is that Celtic Christianity and its Christological images were formed in the matrix of the controversy surrounding Pelagius and his divergent views on grace and redemption. This in turn created a theological spectrum that differentiated Britain and Ireland from the European continent (x). As indicated for the seriously minded academics out there. Full on interesting photos, Latin quotes, references to other documents. A wonderful "Christology" which looks both at theology and the images of Christianity found in Celtic literature and art. This is a challenging and difficult work, yet a volume needed to counter many of the Romantic views of things Celtic. Destined to a classic. I particularly welcomed the dissuasion of Pelagius and his overall impact on Celtic thinking. Review: Like another reviewer said - Like another reviewer said, it is an academic book. But I deeply enjoyed it. If nothing else it gives you a real feel for how deeply monastic early Christianity was in the Celtic Isles, and how pre-Catholic (pre-Augustinian especially) that monasticism was. There are lots of translations of little excerpts from texts written in the period and land under discussion. And the last two chapters "non-representational images of Christ" and "representational image of Christ" about how Christ was depicted in literature and art are interesting, and there are eight color images in that last chapter and one black and white one.