The Eagle and the Dove: The Spirituality of the Celtic Saint Columbanus Book

Columbanus was one of those medieval Irish saints who capture the imagination with their combination of asceticism, heroic journeys and intensely poetic spirituality. Katherine Lack is a freelance writer and lecturer on church history. She is also the wife of a country parson. Lack's rural spiritual existence helps make her writing vivid as she brings to life the austere and beautiful life of this Celtic saint of sixth-century Europe.Dr Lack traces the story of Columbanus' exciting life from his monastic training in Ireland through his voyage to Brittany and his action-packed missionary life in France. The book follows Columbanus' footsteps into Switzerland and finally to Italy where he ends his life at the monastery at Bobbio. Throughout the text, Lack uses the tools of the professional historian: archaeological finds, historical records and geographical history all help reveal the details of Columbanus' village life, his monastic existence and the practical details of his sea travel. These fascinating details are woven into a sympathetic treatment of Columbanus' spirituality. The book is subtitled "The Spirituality of Columbanus", but this is not your typical ethereal book on spirituality. Instead of explicit spiritual writing one gleans Columbanus' spirituality from the austere and passionate details of his life.If there is a criticism of this book it is that it is too much of a "little paperback". It may not therefore be taken as seriously as it ought. Lack's book is a readable and inspiring contribution to the study of the foundations of Western monasticism and consequently the whole of Western culture. --Dwight LongeneckerRead More