A LIBRARIAN’S ORIENTATION
What this book explores
John Philip Newell presents a creation-centered stream of Christian spirituality in which Earth, the body, and every person bear sacred worth. Through figures associated with Celtic and wider Christian traditions, he connects contemplation with ecological healing, nonviolence, justice, and renewed attention to the divine presence within creation.
EDITORIAL NOTE
Why it’s in the Library
This book gives approachable weight to a doorway many travelers are actively seeking: spirituality rooted in nature, embodiment, and care for the Earth while remaining in conversation with Christianity. It expands the mysticism shelf beyond interior experience and shows how contemplation can shape relationship, ethics, and ecological responsibility.
Good starting place if…
You are drawn to nature-based spirituality, creation-centered Christianity, Celtic wisdom, or a vision of sacred life that connects contemplation with healing the world.
Know before you begin…
Newell offers a contemporary spiritual synthesis, not a neutral history of a single continuous 'Celtic Christianity.' The figures he gathers span different centuries, settings, and theological debates, and scholars contest some popular reconstructions of a unified Celtic tradition. Read it as constructive spirituality shaped by selected voices, not as the uncontested recovery of one ancient worldview.