The Holy Spirit, the Dove, the Wild Goose (an geadh-glas)

Further on the Way to Community

2008-08-31T20:56:00.020-04:00

The Lord is making connections.

At David's Celtic Monastic Community in Wales, a novitiate would knock on the door of the monastery but be required to remain, outside for a full ten days - rain or shine. The Monk-to-be stayed "as if rejected and also silenced by words of rebuke. If he put his patience to good use and stood there until the tenth day, he might be admitted..." (Celtic Daily Prayers, Finan Readings, October 15, p. 776-777.)

There were no words of abuse, but apparently August was my time to stand and wait. I made numerous attempts to establish connections in various ways but...nada.

Then suddenly with the dawn of September, things began to click.

After a technical glitch was resolved, the on-line gate to the Northumbrian Community (NC) forum opened to me and acquaintances are forming.

A misdirected e-mail from a companion of NC living in Ontario finally made it to me and we have agreed to get together as the Lord leads.

Soon, I'll be given guidance on how to form a local NC group. There are certainly far more important requirements but it seems wise to wait until God provides twelve Toronto enthusiasts before we officially form. God has given us four so far.

Crux book store, which inexplicably has a quantity of the Northumbrian Celtic Daily Prayer (CDP) books at a very, very decent price, was the site of a serendipitous meeting with another priest of the diocese buying some. We even talked about the possibility of doing the offices sometime with the music.

We bought eight CDPs this week and I have now but one left - the rest being bought by or given as gifts to Toronto friends between Tuesday and today (Friday).

A Toronto member of a community in the UK similar to NC invited my wife and I over for a LONG coffee time today in his Sacred Space.

Who knows where this well lead?

Ah, the Father who created us.
The Son who bought us.
and the Spirit who walks with us.

The Celtic Way of Evangelism - George Hunter

2008-08-31T20:47:00.010-04:00

A superior presentation.

George Hunter III has made a significant contribution to our understanding of how to do evangelism among Neo Barbarians in his The Celtic Way of Evangelism. It is an excellent example of what I look for in a book on things Celtic.

He is careful with his research, shifting what can be known for sure on the one hand from legends and over the top embellishments on the other. Yet he also brings to the table current understanding about human communication and rhetoric which help to fill in the gaps of what little is recorded from this time frame.

The book is profoundly prophetic. The year it was written (2000) is about the same time that many upstarts and "thorns in the sides" of UK dioceses were extending themselves in unconventional ways to reach people they knew needed Christ and the gospel. These types, asking for forgiveness rather than permission, constantly risked church discipline.

Yet by a miracle of God when the Mission-Shaped Church report was not only endorsed but made the "pet project" of Canterbury these same "scalawags" became the darlings of the church. Many are now Canons of cathedrals. How did this happen? Because their startling methods proved remarkably effective at winning all sorts of pockets of the UK to the love of God in Jesus. Who but a few could have guessed that their approaches stunningly paralleled the Celtic way of evangelism.

THEMES
Whether or not the current trends in church planting or Fresh Expressions in the UK are actually dependent upon Celtic studies, the similarities Hunter describes in the themes of Celtic approaches hits the nail firmly on the head. (p. 47-52)

1) Celtic Christians usually evangelized as a team (not as lone-rangers)

2) Those in the monastic communities were prepared to live with depth, compassion and power in mission.

3) There was a generous use of imaginative prayer pervading the community - a decidedly right brain activity).

4) Hospitality to seekers, visitors, refugees and guests was central to their life.

5) Conversion comes through belonging. Belonging Comes Before Believing.

In every place I visited on my Fresh Expression Pilgrimage of June 2008, these five themes could be observed being lived out in ways appropriate to the people being reached.

The Celtic eagerness to adapt to the local culture - while maintaining biblical faithfulness - beats at the heart of the Fresh Expressions movement.

CELTIC MONASTIC COMMUNITY LIFE
Especially enlightening was Hunter's description of the layout of a Celtic Monastic Community and how guests were received (Chapter 2). I had been wondering why monks at such remote places as Iona and Lindisfarne would sometimes also have another place further away to be alone. Hunter helped me see that the Celtic Monastic Community could actually be a very busy place. Added to all the normal activity of a human community, plus the unique dimensions of the alternative life lived there, plus greeting whatever guests who spontaneously arrived - well it allowed for little privacy.

THE CHALLENGE FOR THE CHURCH TODAY
Yet the most challenging aspect of the life of these communities for today seems to me to be item 2) above. For the Celts living with depth, compassion and power in mission meant (p. 48):

a) Voluntary contemplative isolation: Go to your cell and your cell will teach you everything.

b) Having a soul-friend who would be a spiritual helper in keeping you accountable

c) Involvement with a small group

d) participating in the common community life

e) thereby gaining experience in ministry.

It was a rigorous calling. A people living in voluntary accordance with these high standards would be immensely attractive to neo-barbarians searching for genuine community.

THE FUTURE
Hunter is skeptical that a Celtic Monastic Community fully living into all the above is possible for our urbanized environs. He lists instead a number of examples of ministries current at the publication of the book which fulfill the above five themes in part.

Yet in the last few years the New Monasticism has indeed begun to re-establish a form of urban monastic life remarkably similar to what Hunter describes (though certainly most are not rural). "Boiler Rooms" as described in Punk Monk are perhaps the closest. Interestingly enough, these "Boiler Room" rose out of Revelation Church, UK which Hunter features.

It was an enjoyable, enlightening if all too brief study.
BUY THE BOOK!

Drop-in Prayer Day

2008-08-31T16:58:00.015-04:00

The Church of the Resurrection, Toronto, where I serve had our first "Drop-in Prayer Day", a sort of mini-24/7 time last Saturday August 30 from 10 AM -4 PM.

We set up at the home of one of our members both inside the house and outside in the yard and on the split level deck. Her warmth and hospitality helped to make the day what it was.

Some arrived on foot, many by car, one by bike.

It proved to be a very relaxed - and inspiring - time. People understood immediately what it was about and how it worked.

A small pew, which once served the Church of the Resurrection, displayed the yellow lined post-it note prayer requests. Blank ones were also available and many people added prayers. Other helpful resources from 24/7 Canada and 24/7 London were also available. (Thank you, guys!)

We put out Anglican Prayer Books (both burgundy and spinach) and Celtic Daily Prayer by the Northumbria Community. We played their CD of Morning Prayer to get us started.

From start to finish three scent-less candles burned for the Three of my Love.

Paper, pencils and crayons were on the kitchen table to draw or compose a prayer. Most often, people prayed alone but some spontaneous two-somes and groups formed.

Our host kept refreshments to a minimum - water, mints, dried apricots - and late in the afternoon a stout cup of coffee (yum).

One surprise for me personally: I began to sense the power of the old anchorite model. That is where a monk or nun would remain in one place (monastery, church, green space) while others could drop in at their leisure for prayer or spiritual conversation. People I had not spent much time with were able to bring their concerns when or if they felt it was needed. Setting up appointments is such a different proposition.

Our next "Drop-In Prayer Day" will be September 27 from 10 AM - 4 PM. The Church will know the location..

(6 hours of a 24/7 = 6/.036!)

A Short Bibliography

2008-08-31T16:29:00.014-04:00

Asked what books I was reading, I compiled the following list. There is more in my library but I have found these most reliable.

PRAYER BOOKS
Adam, David. The Rhythm of Life: Celtic Daily Prayer. New York: Morehouse. 2007.

Celtic Daily Prayer: Prayers and Readings From the Northumbria Community. San Francisco: HarperOne. 2002. [A CD of music with this has made it a valuable Fresh Expression resource.]

Simpson, Ray. Celtic Daily Light. London: Hodder & Stoughton. 1997.

BOOKS
Bradley, Ian. Celtic Christianity: Making Myths and Chasing Dreams. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1999.

_____. Colonies of Heaven: Celtic Models for Today’s Church. London: Darton, Longman & Todd. 2000.

____. The Celtic Way. London: Darton, Longman & Todd. 2003.

Brown, Michelle. The Lindisfarne Gospels: Society, Spirituality and the Scribe. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. 2003.

Cahill, Thomas. How the Irish Saved Civilization: Anchor Books. Doubleday. 1996.

Hunter, George. The Celtic Way of Evangelism. Nashville: Abingdon Press. 2000.

Simpson, Ray. Exploring Celtic Spirituality: Historic Roots for Our Future. Hodder & Stoughton. 1995.

MODERN INCARNATIONS OF CELTIC FORMS
In addition to the Northumbria Community and The Community of Aidan and Hilda (Lindisfarne) below are some forms which are transforming today's world and which are also inspired by Christian Celts:

Freeman, Andy. Greig, Craig. Punk Monk: New Monasticism and the Ancient Art of Breathing Regal Books. 2007.

Greig, Craig. Red Moon Rising: How 24-7 Prayer Is Awakening a Generation. Relevant Books. 2003.

Wilson-Hartgrove, Jonathan. New Monasticism: What It Has To Say To Today's Church. Baker Book House. 2008.

Chasing a Christian Community

2008-08-22T13:45:00.013-04:00

After dropping some of the family off at camp, I stalled my return to Toronto last Monday by visiting a small-town park in Magnetawan, Ontario. The water was flowing furiously in the distance, run-off from some serious rain - but where I was all was calm. Opening to another chapter in Mark Batterson's "Wild Goose Chase" I settled down on a dry stone by the water's edge.

Something to my left caught my eye - a wild goose. No kidding- a Canadian goose and I sharing the corner of a small park. He/she obviously didn't appreciate my presence on his turf nearly as much as I did it. After eying me for a few minutes, it flew off to the middle of the lake- where it knew I wouldn't be able to follow.

Still, was this a sign from God? The quest charted by this blog began with a revived interest Deborah and I have had since we were married all those years ago - to live in Christian missional Community, analogous to the L'Abris she lived in in France, and the one we honeymooned in at Gretham, UK.

August has been a little frustrating. Several people who have access to the sort of information who would be key for us to talk to about all this sort seem to be on the road. Meanwhile little is happening in developing actual community. In the meantime, our dull vision is beginning to come into focus- yet ever so slowly.

Was this Canadian goose a sign that God was leading us to a property up there? I decided to get a remembrance of the occasion by finding a discarded goose feather. There was enough down for a small pillow but in four locations over two hours - nada but tiny things.

On the way driving back home, it occurred to me that Canadian geese reside all summer in Toronto. Why don't I look there? After dinner, I set out with Zephyr the wonder dog - the miniature schnauzer who has now walked twice around Toronto with me. We drove right to where we had previously seen geese and - sure enough - within twenty minutes I had gathered a copious quantity of large goose quills.

A sign from God? Maybe. But it also says to me that we already know Toronto well. Our heart has ached for the people of this city for decades. We know some of the needs here and what is being done - or not being done - to meet them.

So I suspect this mystical mysterious missional Christian Community we envision - if it exists at all in the mind of God - will likely have a Toronto address.

Batterson's "Wild Goose Chase"

2008-08-22T12:02:00.048-04:00

The wait for Mark's Batterson's second book is over. His writing shows a mind well-studied and well-traveled. He is just as at ease with scientific jargon as he is with the Biblical text - which he treats with the utmost respect. The book is an easy read for the popular American imagination. It has some relevance for church planters and planting teams caged in by fears of the unknown.

There is little on Celtic Spirituality - it is not that sort of book. Yet very like the Celts is his way of observing both nature and scripture. Some of the principles he shares certainly seem consistent with the adventurousness of Patrick, Columba, Aidan, David, Cuthbert, and Columbanus.

Batterson springboards from a commonly held, but unproven assertion: that Celtic Christians called the Holy Spirit the Wild Goose. It is a claim for which no textual evidence can be adduced. The metaphor of the Spirit = Wild Goose can only be traced to 1940; "an geadh-glas" (Greylag) later still (see: "Did Celts Call the Holy Spirit "Wild Goose"?).

That does not diminish in the least either the power of the image or where Mark takes the reader.

Had "Wild Goose Chase" been focused more on what we can know of Celtic Christian practices, I would have recommended a few more cages for Mark's sharp mind to open for us.

THE CAGE OF INDIVIDUALISM
Scottish Gaelic prayers preserved in the 19th century Camina Gadelica and the Irish prayers compiled by Douglas Hyde, can be intensely individualistic. Many prayers are for individuals to use to call on God to provide protection and encirclement in the home and hearth, the kitchen and milking barn.

Yet there is also a strong emphasis on the need for togetherness in pursing the grand mission of God. Through the "Wild Goose Chase", are some stories of people working together to accomplish God's goals. Yet the readers would be forgiven if they came to the conclusion that a "wild goose chase" is an individualistic affair. Perhaps this is a by-product of the author telling us many of his own personal experiences of being led.

It is also true that English perpetuates this individualism even when the author is trying to speak to a community. "You" may be either singular or plural. Celtic Christians reading and faithfully copying the Latin of the biblical text, knew that the vast majority of "you"s in the New Testament are plural, in southern, "ya'll" or yoonz" in Pittsburghese.

Brendan famously sailed with a dozen of his followers to parts unknown. Same with Columba though his entourage was seven times the size of Brendan's. Same with Aidan - though he and his twelve probably walked. Columbanus set off for Europe with a dozen monks.

A wild goose chase to be genuinely Celtic must be a corporate / group activity. Rarely would Celtic Christians make a bold move apart from their community. The Holy Spirit dwells both in the individual and the church. The Celtic evangelizing of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, England and much of Europe depended upon monastic communities to return to - and they are inherently communitarian. In fact, Celtic monks waited upon the permission of their abbot before setting off on mission or pilgrimage.

Conferring with those you love and those whom love you and to whom you are accountable is a step on the Christian path that is missed at one's peril. We need each other. So I would have preferred to hear more in "Wild Goose Chase" on how the people of National Community Church collectively are making an impact.

THE CAGE OF CHAOS
"Wild Goose Chase" does offer several correctives for the unrestrained and dangerously impulsive adventurer to consider. As Mark says, "There is smart courage and dumb courage."

I still would like to read more from Mark on the value of gaining a spiritual rhythm. Batterson's commendable goal is to challenge us to get out of our deadly mind-numbing routines. The ancient Celtic Church offers much wisdom in learning how to balance adventure with the regularity of life as written into God's creation. It is in fact that rhythm that allows for the ad lib. Good jazz riffs off a rhythm and chordal sequence the musicians know - even if the untrained listener can't discern it.

During one concert, my sitar instructor played in 7/ 8 time while the tabla player played in 10 / 8. At one point the tabla player stopped and said, "I don't think you in the audience appreciate enough what we just did. He is in 7 - I am playing 10 - and we have perfected it." He had to explain it all to us slowly. Then they started again. I watched the audience transfixed as one Sikh across the room counted out the 7 and another of us counted in 10. We all loved it. To the untrained ear - it may have seemed chaotic - but once you know the key to the rhythm- wow!

Discerning your own unique spiritual ebbs and flows is a vital discipline. The God with whom you relate made the day to follow the evening, summer to follow spring, and winter to follow fall. Your heart beats with a steady rhythm - it may speed up or slow down depending on your stress levels but if it skips a beat - you'll be spending long hours with the cardiologist. Even Wild Geese migrate seasonally - with dependable regularity.

"If you want to know the Creator, learn of His creation" (Columbanus). Find your spiritual rhythm - and only then ad lib!

THE CAGE OF MEGA-SUCCESS
Finally, Mark's stories are most inspiring when they are most self-effacing. His eagerness to serve the needs of the poor and other DC dwellers is commendable.

Yet part of the reason he and the book are popular is because he and his church are deemed a success. That is because it grew from a membership of 19 to 250 in just four years. His church continues to expand to multiple locations and has added an award willing coffeehouse component. Of course, we want to learn from such people.

Celtic Christians tended, in contrast, to create smaller village-oriented communities. It is one reason why it was so long before Ireland had major cities. Some research indicates that the optimum size for developing Kingdom of God consciousness and discipleship is somewhere around 90-120 - the size of the average North American congregation.

Some great gains in transforming specific neighbourhoods or populations for the gospel are being made in the UK using smaller "clusters": mid-sized missional communities of between 20-70 people. Such Clusters, as subsets of the larger church, are small enough to share a common vision and yet big enough to do something about it. Now that is genuinely Celtic.

On the other hand, most faith communities in the UK, either Celtic or English, till sometime after the Norman conquest, tended to be focused around monasteries. From those "colonies of heaven" would emanate leadership, worship, teaching, spiritual direction and pastoral care. If that is how the National Community Church's head office operates, then more power to them.

The hospitality of Brigit in Ireland, Columba in Iona, Aidan in Lindisfarne and Hilda in Whitby is legendary. They would have identified with Mark's church's coffeehouses.

CONCLUSION
By all means buy it, but I am not inclined at the moment to use it at the Rez!

I'll be going on from Batterson's good book to George Hunter's "The Celtic Way of Evangelism!" (reviewed above).

DID CELTS CALLTHE HOLY SPIRIT "WILD GOOSE"?

2008-08-07T00:25:00.249-04:00

Summary:

Scholars have not yet found any textual evidence that either "Wild Goose" or "an geadh-glas" were used by ancient Christian Celts (435-793 AD) to refer to the Holy Spirit. The presence of geese in Celtic art does not itself constitute proof. Celtic Christians drew many animals and art without an interpretive key can be quite ambiguous.

It is also sometimes said that ancient Celtic Christians did not speak of the Holy Spirit as a dove. Yet Celts, both ancient and modern, did and do write of the Spirit as a dove and of that we have proof.

We do know the metaphor of the Holy Spirit as Wild Goose was in use about 1940 by 20th century visionary George MacLeod and /or his contemporary sources.

But that does not mean we should abandon the image. Not at all.

There are good reasons why the "wild goose= Holy Spirit" metaphor, may actually be more relevant for these tumultuous times if recently coined than if it had come from ancient Celtic Christians.

Much can be garnered for today by understanding ancient Celtic Christian Spirituality - and the nature of geese - as we heed the call of the Wild Goose.

Come, follow...

Holy Spirit, Wild Goose

Great Spirit,

Wild Goose of the Almighty

Be my eye in the dark places;

Be my flight in the trapped places;

Be my host in the wild places;

Be my brood in the barren places;

Be my formation in the lost places.

I am taking to heart that prayer of Ray Simpson, Guardian of the Community of Aidan and Hilda on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, UK. So many of us can identify with it. Church planters, or those developing Fresh Expressions of the church, the pioneers and Christian entrepreneurs among us surely understand what following the Wild Goose implies.

Seeing where one ought to go with a new thing is more like catching up to a pillar of fire than it is executing a well-developed plan. Your situation changes and things seem out of control. The spirit reveals something new. A yearning grows in you. You seek the Lord in all the familiar places, but you are only met by an absence. Weary you sit not knowing what to do.

When in the murky distance, you hear something beckoning - high above - and you sense maybe what the next step might be, as if a flock of geese were miraculously forming an arrow in the sky to show you that way. But as you get up to go it's gone leaving you with a journey of hope that you heard it right.

Faithfully you walk on - in mission and in love with your Lord.

Deborah and I fresh from our pilgrimage to Lindisfarne find growing in us a gnawing hunger for missional community. We had once shared a few memorable days on Iona that other monastic centre of Celtic evangelism. The fleeting moments on Lindisfarne and Northumbria are calling us to a deeper friendship with the Northumbrian Community and are learning more about the inspiring vision of the community of Aidan and Hilda on Lindisfarne.

We are open to any who could help us along the way.

ALWAYS BEGINNERS
It is a new journey for me - I am just beginning to explore Celtic spirituality. The Celtic Church is variously dated, from as narrow as the 5th-6th centuries AD to from 435 AD when Patrick began his mission to Ireland to 793 AD when Viking raids destroyed the monastic communities. I am searching within the wider time frame. Yet the spirituality of the Celts is re-emerging of late as a viable alternative to the inherited ways.

So I am eager to learn to see the world as they saw it and to feel the gaps they felt between life now and the uncertain but assuredly better future to come. Yet I come at this with many disadvantages.

My mother was so loving but she was no Celt to sing me a lullaby in Gaelic.

My sister never spoke with an Irish lift.

My father had no Scottish brogue.

There's no Welsh in me.

So I am just an interloper, yet I'd like to be a learner if you'll help. This is so late in coming to me on my long journey that I have no hope of catching up to any of you who have been at this all your life.

TRUTH ABOUT THE GOOSE

A number of people on-line and in print are saying something stunningly fascinating if true.

Some say that in the Celtic tradition the Holy Spirit is not pictured as the peaceful and serene dove which settled on Jesus at his baptism. Rather the people in the Celtic Church, who unquestionably saw the life of faith as a pilgrimage, chose the image of Wild Goose (An Geadh-Glas) to depict the Holy Spirit.

This includes four thoughts...

1) The Celtic Christian Church said

2) the Holy Spirit is not like a Dove

3) the Holy Spirit is like a Wild Goose

4) specifically "an Geadh-Glas".

Knights in days gone by searched for the Holy Grail. While I am on a pilgrimage of discovery of the Celtic way of Jesus, I am also keeping an eye open for the Wild Goose and the first evidence of it being referred to. The trail of evidence so far stops far closer to our own time than with the ancient Celts.

But telling where it stops now would spoil the fun of the search (but we will say before this article is done).

So on with the chase...

starting in reverse order with the species...

4) AN GEADH-GLAS =THE WESTERN GREYLAG GOOSE

Celtic Christians studied the scriptures so they could understand God's ongoing active presence in His creation. They also studied the world drawing spiritual lessons from the ordinary. "If you want to know the Creator first understand and know the creation" (Columbanus, 540-615).

Only some specify the species. Ray Simpson (above), the band Iona (below), simply say the wild goose; others, "the bird of heaven."

The Scottish Gaelic "an geadh-glas" is literally "the goose-grey" and most likely refers to the Western Greylag (anser anser anser). Before a change in species nomenclature around 1778 the Greylag had been designated "Wild Goose" (anser ferus). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greylag_Goose

"The ancestor of most domestic geese, the greylag is the largest and bulkiest of the wild geese native to the UK and Europe and is commonly seen in Scotland. http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/greylaggoose/index.asp

It is therefore highly likely that the ancient Scottish Celtic Church was familiar with the Greylag. If Christian Celts had called the Holy Spirit the Wild Goose (which has not yet been proved), then a compelling case can be made that the bird they had in mind was indeed the Greylag, especially if they called it an geadh-glas.

WHAT ARE GREYLAGS LIKE?
"The native birds and wintering flocks found in Scotland retain the special appeal of truly wild geese." (see above "rspb.org.uk"). Yet there are significant differences between Greylags and genuinely wild species.

FERAL
"Greylags are widespread in the rest of the UK but are mainly feral rather than wild" (Natural History Museum UK), that is, they are more at home in croft and farm, becoming somewhat more comfortable near humans than purely in the wild (see The Skye & Lochalsh Biodiversity Action Plan).

They "tend to be semi-tame and uninspiring." (see above "rspb.org.uk")

[I suppose that could be said of many people.]

That might have been the reason God sent them to the Celtic monks! The monks of Iona and Lindisfarne, among others, wrote with goose quills. Birds which remain close to human settlements give the gift of a steady supply of quills for writing and the transcribing of scripture.

TASTY
Feral geese would mean a ready supply of meat for the occasional feasts. Tradition has it that Martin of Tours (316-397 AD in Gaul) had an extreme antipathy to geese. Tradition suggests that to avoid being made bishop, he tried to hide in a flock of domestic geese. They cackled. He was exposed and thus could not avoid being consecrated. To this day his annual feast is celebrated in France, Germany and Sweden with roasted goose.

Various local legends insist that Patrick, who evangelized Ireland was a nephew of Martin. It is said that Ninian, the first Celtic Bishop to reach Scotland, either met or was inspired by Martin's ministry or his monastic community. If either Patrick or Ninian knew of Martin's dislike of living geese, it would be surprising that they would deify a wild goose.

On the other hand, author Caitlin Matthews states (somewhere) that on Martin's coat of arms was a goose (the messenger of the gods?) and heavenly fire (The Holy Spirit?). But it is necessary to place an image in context if possible.

Martin was named after Mars, the Roman God of War. As we will see below, the bird most associated with Mars was the goose, because of that bird's attentiveness and aggression. Martin was ruthless in his destruction of the symbols of pagan druidism - though never violent toward pagans themselves. Could the goose and fire have been symbols of holy militarism? Was it showing two contrasting sides of Martin, the goose his reluctance, the fire what motivated him to action? Was it a wish for a good roast? It is hard to say. Art without the interpretive key of the artist can be quite ambiguous.

["Coats of arms" only emerged somewhere in the 12-14th centuries so nearly 1000 years would separate Martin of Tours himself from a coat of arms made in his honour. It is, however, possible that his standard / flag had flames of fire on it. I am still seeking an early depiction of either Martin's standard or his coat of arms.]

SOCIALIZATION
Konrad Lorenze in 1935 famously demonstrated that Greylag chicks, deprived of the mother's presence, would "bond with whatever animal is present and adopt this animal as their mother" (filial imprinting).[from "Early Socialization: Sociability and Attachment" by Cara Flanagan. Routledge, 1999, p. 26].

FLIGHT
A flocking bird would have spoken to the sense of community that was at the heart of Celtic Christianity. Research done in 1972 by Dr. Robert McNeish circulates widely on the net, rarely with the credit he deserves. Here is an example lifted from "Free On-line Health.com"

POINT: As each bird flaps its wings, it creates ‘uplift’ for the bird following. By flying in a V formation the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than if the bird flew alone.

LESSON: When people share a common direction and sense of community they can reach their goals more easily because they are traveling on the thrust of one another.

POINT: Whenever a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to fly alone, and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the ‘lifting power’ of the bird immediately in front.

LESSON: If we have as much sense as a goose, we will stay in formation with those who are headed where we want to go and be willing to accept their help as well as give ours to others.

POINT: When the lead goose gets tired, it rotates back into the formation and another goose flies at the point position.

LESSON: It pays to take turns doing the hard tasks, and sharing leadership. With other people, as with geese, we are interdependent on each other.

POINT: The geese in formation honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.

LESSON: We need to make sure our honking from behind is encouraging and not something else.

Since this is based on relatively recent research, it is doubtful any of those four points were on the minds of the Celts. They certainly didn't write about it.

Still, though Celts would not have known the science behind why geese fly in "V" formations, they knew the reality of the advantage of working together. Based on the mission and ministry of Jesus, the Celtic Churches launched new missions with a leader and a dozen disciples. Yet they avoided developing mega-churches, tending to establish smaller community churches and buildings rather than the huge minsters of the Norman era.

It's worth adding that the loyalty of Greylags to their mates also would have appealed to the Celts.

RHYTHM
Celtic Christians are renowned for their sense of spiritual rhythm, especially the monks on Lindisfarne. That holy island is cut off from the mainland twice a day by the ebb and flow of the tides. Migrating birds would have also underlined to them that God has written seasonal rhythms into the creation. Thus monks would be reminded by the tides and the geese to keep daily and seasonal spiritual disciplines, such as observance of the church year. It was, in fact, a harsh debate over the timing of the celebration of Easter that led to the assembly at the Synod of Whitby (644 AD) of both Celtic Christians and Christians influenced by Rome. For the sake of the unity of the church, the Celtic Christians gave in to Rome's preferred dates. Some blame the eventual decline of Celtic Christianity to that momentous decision.

A NUISANCE
The Greylag in the 19th century (and presumably also the past) could be quite the nuisance rather than an inspiration. See the end of this blog for an 1885-1886 article on the Greylag in "Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness Volume 12" from Google books.

SLOW TO MIGRATE
"Greylag" either means "grey-legged" or "grey-laggard", that is, late, last or slow to migrate; in other words, a loiterer (see above "rspb.org.uk").

QUESTION:
Some of these traits are surprisingly human but are they what "wild goose" brings to mind? Naming a specific type of bird invites such speculation. It seems more poetically evocative to me not to mention the species.

A QUEST TO FIND THE CELTIC VOICE

Having searched high and low, documentary evidence is lacking that catches an ancient Celt calling the Holy Spirit "the wild goose". Such knowledge would be so wonderful for me - but certainly isn't easy to find. So far it has been a wild goose chase in the worst sense. Please leave a comment if you find something ancient on this.

Because, there is no firm supporting evidence to suggest this idea surfacing much further back than around 1940.

WHY KEEP SEARCHING?
Knowing who first sang a song and the impulse which gave it birth helps us hear it with its own original natural-cultural rhythms and accompaniment to preserve it even while we add our own ad libs. With no Wild Goose tune being heard sung by ancient Christian Celts, we find we are humming a more modern melody.

There is a lot of romanticism in our contemporary Celtic revival. Where it helps us fly in formation behind our leader, we may yet arrive at our divine destination. Where it has us off on our own flights of fancy... well, we can get dangerously lost, especially in regards to truth.

I am greatly encouraged that the ancient Christian Celts were actually, in their own time, leading scholars, dedicated recorders of history, detail-oriented scribes faithful to the text of Scripture. The ancient Celtic monks, fastidiously copying every detail of Scripture (or whatever text they had been handed), whisper from within their beehive huts and across the centuries,

"Record it as truly as the triune God guides your flight."

The Venerable Bede set the standard high. Wedded to the Roman way of church, he nonetheless commended the life and manor of many of the Celts he write about. Bede researched carefully the most reliable of resources for his Ecclesiastical History of England. From his work is derivedmuch of our knowledge of the early Christian Celtics in England.

3) LOVIN’ THE GOOSE

Don’t get me wrong, I love this image of the Spirit as a Wild Goose. I embrace the longings the thought releases, even if it is a relatively recent innovation. Rather than the docile, gentle, nearly domesticated dove with which we can become overly comfortable, a more adventurous - unpredictable - wild model of spiritual life fits an age where Christiandom has come to a close - and new more challenging frontiers beckon. A Wild Goose of a Spirit better fits my experience – and my hopes - and if the truth be known my fears - of taking the gospel into an increasingly unwelcoming world.

The image is proffered by the most reliable of sources. Ian Bradley first affirmed (1993) then renounced (2000) this view. Ray Simpson, in his must-read and much read 1995 primer "Exploring Celtic Spirituality", includes the chapter, "The Wild Goose". I refer to this book regularly for personal insight and reflection on Celtic Christianity. I highly recommend it. In his book we find, "The Celts use of the wild goose as a symbol of God's Spirit captured this biblical sense of wildness" (p. 163) [He said nothing of "an geadh-glas"]. This obviously was conveyed as fact to the good Guardian of the Community of Aidan and Hilda. I am sure he also would appreciate documentation supporting the theory.

Yet until more evidence is forthcoming, we can only trace the emergence of the idea to about 70 years ago.

Would that an earlier source could be found. Oh, to hear from that first original clear voice!

2) WHAT OF THE DOVE?

The part about Christian Celts not seeing the spirit as a dove is just NOT TRUE.

Well, not some of them, anyway.

Christian Celtic monks were notoriously scrupulous in their fidelity to the text of Scripture and knew well various God-given dove images written by the tender hand of the apostles, especially as we will see, the spirit's descent on Jesus at his Baptism.

There is wildness and unpredictability in doves, too. "The dove was not, as we often imagine it so domesticated that it never flies outside the comfort of its dovecot. The rock doves of the Bible flew in from the wild" (Ray Simpson, "Exploring Celtic Spirituality", p 163).

For example, in the Carmina Gadelica (that definitive compilation of oral Gaelic sayings by Alexander Carmicheal published in 1900), in "The Gift of Power" (p. 143) we read...

"I see the hills, I see the strand,
I see angels heralding on high.
I see the dove shapely, benign,
Coming with kindness and friendship to us."

Perhaps this is an allusion to the dove returning to Noah coming with an olive branch in its beak a sign that the wrath of God has been abated and a renewed nature will receive again God's human flock (Genesis 6-9). Ever since that day, a dove has been a sign of peace, rest, kindness, friendship - and a new beginning.

The most ancient Celtic Holy-Spirit-as-dove image I have found is in the Welsh Vita Sancti Samsonis, composed between 600-615 AD (or as late as 800 but clearly based on earlier sources). The dove here and in the two stories to follow is meant to help us see that the humble people in the story are receiving from God an approval and power similar to what Jesus received at his baptism (Matthew 3:13-17, Mark 1:9-13, Luke 3:21:38) and thus marking a new beginning in ministry.

Three brothers were ordained at the same place, two to the office of priest and he, the third, to that of deacon; but when the brothers were required, according to custom, to bend for pardon, the holy father, at the same time with St Eltut, saw a dove, sent from heaven through the open window, take its stand fixedly on high over St Samson, not as is the way of a bird flying or flitting about, but remaining all the time without the least flutter of its wings while the ministers went to and fro everywhere throughout the church.

in "the Life of Brenainn" (10th century)...

3876. Now thus was the holy old man: without any human raiment, but all his body was full of bright white feathers like a dove or a sea-mew. and it was almost the speech of an angel that he had.

in the Life of St Dubricius (13th Century)...

Among those that lived there was brother Samson, the son of Amon, who obtained from the said father, that at the episcopal seat, on the day of his ordination, first, a deacon, secondly, a priest, and thirdly, a bishop, a white dove should descend on his head, which was seen by the holy Archbishop, and by the Abbot Illtyd, during the whole time of his ordination.

These last two quotes, of course, are not from the "golden age" of Celtic Christianity but rather by medieval hagiographers who embellished the lives of the saints. Nevertheless they are consistent in their use of "dove" with the Vita Sancti Samsonis which is of the ancient Celts. Sometimes these writers did just pass on previous tradition. For example, in The Lives of the Saints in the Book of Lismore (15th century) we find repeated what was said of the saint in Vita Brigitae by Cogitous written no later than 650 AD, regarding Brigit (note the capital "D" on Dove)...

was compassionate towards the wretched : she was splendid in miracles and marvels: wherefore her name among created things is Dove among birds...

Most of these documents are searchable at the Celtic Christianity E-Library (http://www.lamp.ac.uk/celtic/ccelibrary.htm)

1) IS THE WILD GOOSE AS HOLY SPIRIT CELTIC?

A) IS IT IN THEIR LITERATURE?

In none of those volumes – or any other ancient Celtic source I have access to- is there any hint of the wild goose replacing the dove as a representation of the Holy Spirit – and there are actually somewhat fewer geese of any sort in those writings than doves! Of course doves have a distinct advantage over geese in this regard in that the later are not mentioned in the Bible at all.

What Celtic Christians held in abundance was an intimate yearning for, combined with an intense familiarity with, the Holy Spirit. The third person of the Godhead was not a distant theological concept - not at all like a distant uncle or aunt you've heard about but never seen.

Rather, the Spirit was one of their three best friends, with power to comfort, heal and help in the most practical and mundane aspects of life's journey.

To illustrate, if the Gaelic sources from which the Carmina Gadelica was compiled are consistent with Celtic Christian spirituality, we can hear their dependence for God in A Prayer for Grace (p. 35)

I AM bending my knee
In the eye of the Father who created me,
In the eye of the Son who died for me,
In the eye of the Spirit who cleansed me,
In love and desire.

or from The Bathing prayer, p 61, the Spirit is as close as one's bath water... This may seem playful but it is in imitation of an Irish Celtic practice of immersing a baptismal candidate three times since Jesus had been in the grave three days (Ray Simpson).

The three palmfuls
Of the Secret Three,
To preserve thee
From every envy,
Evil eye and death;
The palmful of the God of Life,
The palmful of the Christ of Love,
The palmful of the Spirit of Peace,
Triune
Of Grace.

And one of my favs, the Bed Blessing (p. 83)

I am lying down to-night with the Holy Spirit,
And the Holy Spirit this night will lie down with me,
I will lie down this night with the Three of my love,
And the Three of my love will lie down with me.

This 19th century Gaelic intimacy is only possible if the Holy Spirit is docile and gentle: settled. Yet the settling on the loved by the beloved three is never static or doctrinaire but alive and invigorating as the most passionate of friends can be.

Yet the yearning for more - and for guidance and protection are never absent either.

Celts of all descriptions delighted in an imaginative, nature-oriented use of the tongue. Such a playfulness as we are investigating is indeed consistent with them, but not to the extent of rejecting scripture.

b) IS THE WILD GOOSE HOLY SPIRIT IN CELTIC ART?

- SUCH AS THE CELTIC GOSPELS

The Lindisfarne Gospels are replete with drawings of stylized birds, many with long necks, woven into the carpet-cross pages and elsewhere. Surely some of these are geese. Even so it is not at all certain they are there to bring to mind the Holy Spirit. Notice that many of the birds in the patterns have hooked beaks, which tend to be more closely associated with eagles. Even so there are other animals gracing those same pages, many with no clear biblical warrant. On one page the scribe has included a cat chasing a mouse. God's love touches all of creation.

Since geese frequented the Lindisfarne environs, and it was goose quills with which the text was written, geese in the drawings may have just been acknowledging life around that Holy Island – and thanks for the quills!

This graphic embrace of God's natural world all around is also quintessentially Celtic. There is no secular apart from the sacred. All of life, all animals included can be near sacramental signs of the presence of the affectionate God. To paraphrase Freud, sometimes a goose in the margins is just a goose.

- OR TRUMWIN'S CROSS

Birds are carved in a central position on the 'Bishop's Cross' fragment at Abercorn, West Lothian, probably erected (c. 670-680 AD) by Bishop Trumwin, friend of St Cuthbert (pictures and comments above courtesy of Celtic Christianity lecturer the Rev'd Colin Symes).

If these are geese, why does the lower one appear to have a hooked beak? Is it instead a stylized "bird of heaven" frequently found in Celtic Christian art?

Pillars of stone were understood everywhere in the ancient world to be a claim to link earth and heaven. Note the intriguing circles around each bird. The circle around the cross-beams of a Celtic cross was a symbol of Jesus' Resurrection. Is this bird a symbol of the Holy Spirit? If so, why are two birds circled?

One looks left, the other right. Neither are contained by the circle. The wings are outstretched but the legs are perched, grounded, much as a bird ready to take flight.

To the left is a full sized view of what the restored cross would look like. In those days, where people were buried was said to be the place of resurrection. "It is possible that underlying this idea was the intuition that the Christian's work of prayer continued after death and was particularly focussed upon the place that had been God's home for them" (Simpson. p. 246) (http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue/adsdata/PSAS_2002/pdf/vol_072/72_217_223.pdf

Considering the relatively low position of these birds of heaven on the restored cross, it would be within the Celtic world-view to take these birds as signifying this:

"Blessings from the Three, all you who have come to pay homage to the departed at this Holy Cross shrine. Be assured that till the day of his resurrection, the prayers of Bishop Trumwin continue to go from here to heaven on your behalf and of his people, whether they be left or right."

Or it could be simply Celtic interlaced zoomorphic designs typical of the era indicating an embrace of both earth and heaven but not much more.

It's hard to know what was intended.

It is certainly less than convincing proof of the Holy Spirit as Wild Goose theory.

HMMM... THEN WHY THE WILD GOOSE?

We have yet to find the Christian Celt who first spoke this way. There are only ambiguous hints that that connection may have been made in Celtic art.

IF WE CAN'T SHOW IT IS ANCIENT CELTIC, IS IT AT LEAST CELTISH

"Following a wild goose" (in the best sense of the phrase) has some affinities with the well known Celtic view of the Christian spiritual life as pilgrimage. Consider this hymn, attributed to Columba (521-597 AD):

Alone with none but thee, my God,
I journey on my way.
What need I fear when thou art near,
O King of night and day?
More safe am I within thy hand
than if a host should round me stand.

My destined time is known to thee,
and death will keep his hour;
did warriors strong around me throng,
they could not stay his power:
no walls of stone can man defend
when thou thy messenger dost send.

My life I yield to thy decree,
and bow to thy control
in peaceful calm, for from thine arm
no power can wrest my soul.
Could earthly omens e'er appal
a man that heeds the heavenly call?

The child of God can fear no ill,
his chosen dread no foe;
we leave our fate with thee, and wait
thy bidding when to go.
'Tis not from chance our comfort springs.
thou art our trust, O King of kings.

Pilgrimage was the Christian Celts' chosen metaphor to speak of the dynamics of the Christian journey, a risky venture in which one becomes totally dependent on God. (Ian Bradley, Colonies of Heaven). To that extent, pursing the wild goose is Celtish, if not actually derived from the Celts themselves.

Is it consistent with what Celtic Christians might have said?

TIMELY
Certainly an increasing number of good people think so. This belief (true or not) is widely (wildly?) held, and indeed is currently much in vogue. The story of the emerging Iona community is loving punctuated with allusions to the Wild Goose leading the founders of the community: "Chasing the Wild Goose": The story of the Iona Community, Ron Fergusson, Wild Goose Publishing, 1998.

A decade later and another has been published by an innovative American church planter and Christian leader in Washington DC. It adds little to our understanding of Celtic Christians yet still is an enjoyable read: "The Wild Goose Chase": Rediscover The Adventure Of Pursuing God by Mark Batterson, Random House, 2008.

With the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service estimating that there are more Canadian Geese in North America than any other time in history, the time is ripe (perhaps over-ripe) to teach some good godly lessons from these noble birds.
http://www.nationalpost.com/related/links/story.html?id=608670

If this theory is true - which is far from certain - how might the Celts have come to this radically unsettling turbulent image for the comforter of John's gospel?

Of course, this is just speculation but...

In ancient pagan circles, geese were considered messengers of the gods - presumably because of their long flights heavenward beyond the horizon and their faithful return in due season.

Further says Answer.com:

The animal most associated with Mars, the Roman god of war, is “the goose, which for Celts evokes the protectiveness of an alert sentry as well as a certain measure of aggression."

Notice it is not adventuressness, per se, but militaristic qualities of watchfulness and aggression. Geese are also like an army in that they operate in graceful cooperative formations, fly in stealth (until somebody honks) and when they land, suddenly occupy a wide swath of territory. At a "Celtic Animals" site is the claim that the goose was a common symbol displayed in the homes of Celtic warriors off on a combat mission so as to encourage their return (though no source is given

http://www.whats-your-sign.com/Celtic-animals.html

"Wild Geese" has been a designation for Irish mercenary soldiers for centuries, specifically those serving foreign armies in continental Europe. A 1978 movie of the same name was based on mercenaries in WWII.

How might geese, associated with war as they were even in Celtic times, have become a symbol for the power of God revealed in the gospel? Here's one suggestion following the logic developed in Thomas Cahill’s “How the Irish Saved Civilization:”

Could it be that after their conversion to Christianity and setting aside their bellicose nature for a more irenic one, the Celts transformed the image of the goose from an icon of militaristic war to another kind of campaign: one that would inspire monks such as Columcille, Aidan, and Columbanus to such risky evangelistic adventure by God's grace they would convert or reconvert much of Europe?

SO WHAT"S THE BIG DEAL?
Well, credit should be given where credit is due of course. But the "wild goose = holy spirit" image improperly attributed to the early Christian Celts risks concealing and distorting what their actual motivation was for their legendary travels.

Irish Christian Celts were not just trying to follow the Spirit's lead. They were also acting out of penance. Leaving Ireland, abandoning the places they loved for the sake of Christ and the gospel was for them a form of martyrdom. Columba in particular may have actually been in a self-regulated exile. Many of these monks had given up aristocratic priviledges to follow Christ - that was part of what made them so attractive to others. Traveling to parts unknown was a way of mortifying the flesh: Celts of all varieties could be ruthless that way.

Today, we are unlikely to be impressed with those motivations. Indeed, they would cause us some concern. Candidates who confess they want to be in ministry to work out previous sins are quickly weeded out of ordination processes.

The "wild goose" metaphor, as compelling as it is, bears none of that. Rather, it implies something more appropriate for our own age: a free response of the will to a free call of the spirit to go to parts unknown - without any penitential overlays. At least, I have yet to catch any of the people who claim this connection speaking that
way.

MAYBE WE NEED BOTH BIRDS

If the truth be known, we need the Spirit of both birds:

the dove to anoint and comfort in the silence of our cells:

the wild goose to send us out

transcending the powers of the empires that only crush the human spirit

we landing in power to bring good news to the poor in the empty abandoned places of the world,

then flying home again to our cells to praise the God who has brought us home rejoicing at the wonders he has shown us.

CONCLUSION - SO WE CAN SAFELY SAY
Until other evidence is presented...

1) The Celtic Christian Church. said..

There is no textual evidence in ancient Celtic Christian sources for the claim. At the very best there may be hints in some ancient Celtic art but even this is by no means certain.

It should be enough that modern poets and spiritual people on the journey find this image compelling.

But, citing the Celts as the source implies that this Holy Spirit / Wild Goose image is more ancient than the 20th century. Celtic Christianity was by no means a uniform much-of-a-muchness over time and place. Tradition traces seven Celtic Nations: in addition to Ireland, Scotland and Wales, are also parts of Cornwall, the Isle of Man, Spain and Brittany. Though there is much cultural overlapping, there are regional differences.

2) Did Celts say the Holy Spirit is not like a Dove...?

Celts as a Biblical people said no such thing. The Dove is often used in reference to the Holy Spirit because it is in the scripture which they scrupulously copied and emulated. Ray Simpson states that firmly (see above).

3) Did Celts say the Holy Spirit is like a Wild Goose...?

It's an inspiring image but how old is it really? "No historical evidence can been adduced to support this" says the Rev'd Dr. Ian Bradley, who teaches at the University of St Andrew, Fife, Scotland and publishes in the areas of contemporary British Christianity, Celtic Christianity and more (see also below). He and other scholars dismissed the central thesis of our quest after an extensive disciplined search of potential sources. No verifiable record has since weighed in to the contrary.

4) Specificity was the goose "an Geadh-Glas".

The Greylag is "an geadh-glas" but being "tame and uninspiring" seems not the most ideal species to illustrate wild unpredictability. Saying the generic "Wild Goose" without further designating the breed of bird seems more evocative to me.

AND THE WINNER IS:

George MacLeod, founder of the Iona Community, should be credited with bringing this wild goose / Holy Spirit connection to attention sometime around 1940 (Ian Bradley, author, academic and of the Iona Community writes of this in "Celtic Christianity: Making Myths and Chasing Dreams". MacMillan: 2003." This is repeated in Bradley's "Colonies of Heaven", 2000, reprinted 2007). MacLeod either received with enthusiasm the oral tradition he had been told in the Western Scottish highlands; or, visionary that he was, it is strongly suspected that it arose from his "fertile imagination" (Bradley). Out of that fertile imagination also seems to have come the phrase "thin spaces", oft attributed to Celts.

Therefore, George MacLeod should receive proper credit for introducing this notion to us. The Iona community and others are also to be commended for developing and proffering for our consideration this moving and challenging image. I have yet to see George MacLeod in his own words associating this with the Celtic Church, per se, or "an geadh-glas" specifically, though I am still searching for his first article on the subject.

Yet surely MacLeod would have credited the faithful highlanders who presumably, he said, preserved such imaginative theological speech for who knows how long.

The breathtakingly haunting "Here I Stand" lovingly sung by "Iona" makes the best case for continued use of the image. This version has been placed as a sampler on YouTube

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycELmMgwNZ8

Queue it up and listen in.

But the poem stands on its own merits:

Here I stand, looking out to sea
Where a thousand souls have prayed
And a thousand lives were laid on the sand
Were laid on the sand

Years have passed, since they have died
And The Word shall last
And the Wild Goose shall fly
Shall fly

Here I stand, looking out to sea
And I say a prayer
That the Wild Goose will come to me
The Wild Goose shall come to me

Order the whole Iona DVD at http://www.amazon.ca/Iona/dp/B0002XOZ0G

Or go to their official web site: www.iona.uk.com/newindex/2004_pages/home.htm

What does the song mean? In spite of the passing of so many of the faithful, to natural causes or the Vikings' murderous raids and the martyrdom on the sandy beaches of the monks of Iona (and Lindisfarne) who prayed on those Holy Isles, (and anyone else around the world who have followed in their steps)...

God's word which they faithfully transcribed and for which they gave their lives, will endure forever,

and the Spirit will continue the work of Jesus and come to comfort those still in mourning and to empower them to carry on.

Maybe that's what it's saying...

Yet this poem is so riveting because it is not straight-forwardly clear who or what this wild goose is:

Is it enough just to make it a wooden reference for the Holy Spirit?

Or is the goose more a symbol of a living one who flies free above the tragedy
searching for a heart to make a home in?

Or is it Jesus who will return?

Or is the wild goose someone who has gone across the waves, perhaps to evangelize the hinterlands, and for whom the singer longs?

Or is it my own hopes that are coming, someday flying home to me on the wind?

Or some combination of the above...

Or something else...

The power of this dramatic poem is that it is so open-ended - and that fascinates and moves me more than if it had just been explained away by the droll "the Holy Spirit will come to me."

So I love the image. It moves me toward my goal and gives me vision...

...so the chase continues.

____________________________

FOOTNOTES

This is my pseudo-scholarly chase for the "wild goose" as Holy Spirit, even though I am told that the phrase "wild goose chase" is either about horse racing (!) or vain hopes and dates only back to Shakespeare (see below).

From: http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/wild-goose-chase.html...

“This phrase [wild goose chase] is old and appears to be one of the many phrases introduced to the language by Shakespeare. The first recorded citation is from Romeo and Juliet, 1592:

Romeo: Switch and spurs, switch and spurs; or I'll cry a match.

Mercutio: Nay, if thy wits run the wild-goose chase, I have done, for thou hast more of the wild-goose in one of thy wits than, I am sure, I have in my whole five.

Our current use of the phrase alludes to an undertaking which will probably prove to be fruitless - clearly wild geese are difficult to catch. Our understanding of the term differs from that in use in Shakespeare's day. The earlier meaning related not to hunting but to horse racing. A 'wild goose chase' was a chase in which horses followed a lead horse at a set distance, mimicking wild geese flying in formation. The equine connection was referred to in another early citation, just ten years after Shakespeare - Nicholas Breton's The Mother's Blessing, 1602:

"Esteeme a horse, according to his pace, But loose no wagers on a wilde goose chase."

That meaning had been lost by the 19th century. In Grose's Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, 1811, he defines the term much the way we do today:

"A tedious uncertain pursuit, like the following a flock of wild geese, who are remarkably shy."

________________________

A 1885-1886 article on the Greylag in "Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness Volume 12" p. 26.

GREY-LEGGED GOOOSE, OR GREY-LAG.
Latin — Anser ferus. Gs&lic—Geadh-glas. Welsh — Gwydd.

In the old song, already quoted in the article on the
Capercaillie, we have — "
An lachag riabhach, geadh-glas nan lar-innis',
Is eala 's ciatfaiche snamh."

The brown-striped duck, grey goose of the Western Isles,
And the proudly-swimming swan.

The grey-lag may well be called the "grey goose of the Western
Isles," as it is a permanent resident there, and is everything but
a friend to the crofters. This will be seen from the following
quotation from Grey : — " The grey-lag is now almost wholly
confined during the breeding season to some of the bleakest bird-
nurseries of the Outer Hebrides. There it leads a comparatively
quiet life, being but seldom molested, save at the season when the
slender crops are being gathered ; and even then the native
farmers prefer the practice of driving it off by lighting fires to the
extreme measure of powder and shot. For the last hundred years,
indeed, the flocks of wild geeso that collect about that season — and
a very important one it is to these isolated husbandmen — have
been kept at bay by fires alone. As soon as the breeding season
is over the geese gather into large flocks, and are then very
destructive to farm produce of all kinds ; indeed, it requires the
utmost watchfulness on the part of the crofters to keep them in
check. Several fires are made in the fields, and kept burning
night said day, and by this means the crops are to a great extent
saved. But the moment any of the fires are allowed to fail, the
geese, which are continually shifting about on the wing, suddenly
pitch on the unprotected spot, and often do much mischief before
they are discovered."

_______________________

Muriel Helen Dawson's sketch - Greylag geese and Invernessshire landscape

The Latin name for the greylag (grey-legged) goose is Anser anser, in Gaelic geadh-glas. This comment accompanies a 23, Jan. 1956 sketch "Greylag geese and Invernessshire landscape" by Muriel Helen Dawson. Interestingly, the second sheet of the sketch pad "bears a small reversed triangular icon of the Dove of Peace with 'Veni Sancte Spiritus' across the top, in gouache." Obviously no replacement of the Holy Spirit as dove there.

_______________________

There is an inspiring article written in 1972 by Dr Robert McNeish of Baltimore on "Lessons From Geese." The link below is to a printable article with particularly pleasing graphics.
web.mac.com/govertvanginkel/verbindendcommuniceren/Hulpbronnen_files/The%20sense%20of%20a%20Goose.pdf

Here is a record of the long heroic search to find that author and re-confirm the claims made. http://suewidemark.com/lessonsgeese.htm. Sue Widemark's success gives me hope for my own quest - though her work did not include anything on Celts.