Over the weekend, His Grace Assistant Bishop Atanasie of Bogdania led the consecration service for the “All Celtic Saints” Monastery in Kilninian, located on the Isle of Mull. This historic event marks the first Orthodox monastic establishment to be established on the Scottish islands in the past millennium.
The consecration service, sanctioned by Metropolitan Iosif of Western and Southern Europe, was also attended by Archbishop Benjamin of San Francisco and the West from the Orthodox Church in America.
The monastery was built on the grounds of an ancient monastery dating back to the first Christian millennium and was generously donated to the Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese of Western Europe in 2009.
Assistant Bishop Atanasie of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Italy remarked, “Today’s Sunday is truly special as we revive the grace where the first Celtic monks devoted their lives to others.”
Monasticism: A Sacred Mystery
“Monasticism is a profound mystery, as monks gather the world’s sorrows, pain, and helplessness, offering them up in prayer to reveal them transformed by divine grace, bringing renewal and salvation,” shared Bishop Atanasie.
“Monks hold a bag of stars, scattering seeds of grace everywhere, illuminating the world with light and grace from their mystical hermitages,” he added.
Honoring the Celtic Saints
“The miracle lies in the prayers of the Celtic saints we honor today. Through the centuries, they planted the seeds of Christianity in Britain, giving their lives like grains of wheat that bear fruit only after they die to self,” emphasized His Grace.
“By dying to self before physical death, monks find eternal life in Christ, never to perish but to abide with Him forever,” he concluded.
Monastic Legacy in Kilninian
Monasticism thrived in Kilninian from the 6th century until Viking invasions at the close of the first Christian millennium.
The monastery’s revival was made possible by the support of devoted individuals from the United States, Great Britain, and Canada, as well as local monastic communities on Mull and Iona islands.
Photo credit: Diocese of Italy / Source: Basilica.ro