Hello friends! I currently have a course on Celtic spirituality running through Spirituality and Practice (it’s not too late to sign up for it, if you’re interested, click here).
We had a zoom call the other day which gave me a chance to interact with participants in the course, and of course during our time together several books were mentioned; people asked to recommend a few books, and so forth. So I was asked to draw up a list of books on the topic of Celtic spirituality that I enjoy, find useful, and recommend. As I’ve been pulling the list together, I figured it was something to share with readers of this blog as well.
So if you want to deepen your knowledge of Celtic spirituality, here’s a few books (and a CD) to get you going. Hope you enjoy! Forgive me for including a few of my own books, but it’s part of an author’s job to engage in shameless self-promotion. Please note that this list is inclusive of both Christian and non-Christian (i.e., Pagan) forms of Celtic spirituality; remember: at its best, Celtic spirituality blurs the boundaries between different types of religious expression. Just saying!
PS. The links take you to Amazon, and if you make a purchase, I get a small commission at no extra charge to you. Of course, if you would rather buy your book from a source other than Amazon, I totally understand.
- Carl McColman, An Invitation to Celtic Wisdom
- Carl McColman, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Celtic Wisdom
- Carl McColman, 366 Celt: A Year and a Day of Celtic Wisdom and Lore
- Carl McColman and Kathryn Hinds, The Spirit of the Celtic Gods and Goddesses
- Seán Ó Duinn OSB, Where Three Streams Meet: Celtic Spirituality
- Seán Ó Duinn OSB, The Rites of Brigid: Goddess and Saint
- Seán Ó Duinn OSB, In Search of the Awesome Mystery: Lore of Megalithic, Celtic and Christian Ireland
- John O’Donohue, Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom
- John O’Donohue, Eternal Echoes: Celtic Reflections on Our Yearning to Belong
- John O’Donohue, Beauty: The Invisible Embrace
- John Philip Newell, Listening for the Heartbeat of God: A Celtic Spirituality
- John Philip Newell, The Book of Creation: An Introduction to Celtic Spirituality
- John Philip Newell, One Foot in Eden: A Celtic View of the Stages of Life
- Esther De Waal, The Celtic Way of Prayer: The Recovery of the Religious Imagination
- Esther De Waal, Every Earthly Blessing: Rediscovering the Celtic Tradition
- Margaret Silf, Sacred Spaces: Stations on a Celtic Way
- Alexei Kondratiev, The Apple Branch: A Path to Celtic Ritual
- Alexander Carmichael, editor, Carmina Gadelica: Hymns and Incantations
- Cintra Pemberton OSH, Soulfaring: Celtic Pilgrimages Then and Now
- Mara Freeman, Kindling the Celtic Spirit: Ancient Traditions to Illumine Your Life Through the Seasons
- Caitlín Matthews, The Celtic Spirit: Daily Meditations for the Turning Year
- Christine Valters Paintner, The Soul’s Slow Ripening: 12 Celtic Practices for Seeking the Sacred
- David Cole, The Celtic Year: A Rhythm of Prayer and Meditation for the Eight Points of the Celtic Year
- David Cole, Passing the Harp: Four Celtic Allegories
- David Cole, Celtic Prayers and Practices: An Inner Journey
- Macushla (Stefan Waligur), Celtic Kirtan — This is a CD, not a book. Of course, there’s so much wonderful music from the Celtic lands! But this one deserves a special mention because it is an inter-spiritual blend of music inspired by the Celtic lands, performed and sung in the style of kirtan, the devotional call-and-response musical tradition that originated within Hinduism. It’s not as farfetched as it may seem! Remember, the Celtic tongues are part of the Indo-European family of languages, and Irish mythology has many parallels to the Vedic cosmology of ancient India.
