Shadow at Dawn

Our Seven Spiritual Principles.

Let Your Daily Labours be Three; Prayer, Work and Reading.

The Rule of St Columba

The Seven Spiritual Principles of the Society St Columba.

Prayer, Work, Reading, Pilgrimage, Silence, Sabbath and Place.

Respecting your own journey.

The Society of St Columba is an ecumenical gathering, in itself it is not a ‘church’, nor ever seeks to be one. We are like a group meeting on a hill top. “Oh, you’re here too” and “Oh you came up that way”, would summarise our approach. As such the exploration of your own journey and church family is to be encouraged, “it’s your journey and our journey together”. 

Some members arrive to find others from the same church family, whilst other may not, it is with love and equanimity that we become an intentional community, the tool kit for which is prayer. If we fail to travel towards prayerfulness we are missing our goal.  

We are all on a pilgrimage to the eternal city and we have found ourselves in the coracle of St Columba. Travelling with us in our diversity, is to embrace this inclusivity. There is no single view of church (ecclesiology) among us. We are an ‘intentional community’ drawn together by unintended consequences. We are predominantly ‘lay’ or ordinary Christians, some describing themselves as ‘new monastics’ others happy to journey without a label. Importantly we walk together, towards Christ as equals in the Kingdom of Heaven. 

The spiritual rhythm of the community revolves around seven spiritual principles. Members of the community undertake to outwork these seven principles over the course of a year. Each year we gather to review and renew ourselves to one another before God. 

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