Brigidine Prayer for Peace

Brighid – a Living Stream of Dea

She has been worshiped by the Celtic people as a Saint for over fifteen hundred years, and as a Goddess long before the Roman invasion of Britain and the birth of Christ. Her cult was so powerful that the Celtic Christian Church had to adopt her as a Saint, and the Roman Catholic Church followed suit, for her people would not abandon her.

Names of the Goddess
There are many variations, pronunciations, and spellings of Her name, including:
Scotland: Bhrìghde, Brighid, Bride
Ireland: Brigid, Brigit, Brighid, Brìd, Brígh
Manx: Breeshey
Wales: Ffraid
England: Brigantia, Brittania
France: Brigandu

‘Bright One’, or ‘High One’ in the ancient Celtic language, referring to her solar aspect. In the old Celtic language, she was Briganti, which is connected to the old Indo European word, Bhrghnti. In Sanskrit, bhrati, or brihati means ‘exalted one’.

Triple Goddess
Brigit is sometimes referred to as a ‘Triple Goddess’, having two sisters, also named Brigit. More commonly, she is considered a triple aspect deity because she is the patroness of three primary skills in the Celtic world – poetry, healing and smithcrafting. In this image, one image carries a pair of blacksmith tongs and a sword, another image is handling two healing snakes, and a third image carries a wand with a crescent moon and a tablet.

Elements
Brigit rules the elements of Water (Uisge in Gaelic, Dwr in Welsh) and Fire (Teine in Gaelic; Tân in Welsh).

As Water deity, Brigit is the patroness of healers, with many healing springs and wells dedicated to Her throughout the British Isles. Water is also associated with psychic ability, music, and poetry.

Natural bodies of water were also sacred to her, particularly where three streams joined together. As a Fire deity, she is the patroness of blacksmiths and poets (a poet’s ‘fire in the head’). The hearth is sacred to her in every home. Another name for her feast day is Candlemas, in which all the candles for the coming year are made and blessed.

Brighid is the Triple Goddess of Fire – the fire of poetic inspiration and divination, the fire of health and fertility, and the fire of metal working and crafts.

Water and Fire were important elements to the early Celtic civilization long before they reached the British Isles. The elements were especially venerated at the end of a long harsh winter – fire was welcomed as the returning warmth of the sun, and water was celebrated as the ice and snow melted

http://www.druidry.org/library/gods-goddesses/brigit

Brigit Peace Mural by Rowan Fairgrove – the story of the mural making http://www.conjure.com/mural.html

Brigidine Prayer for Peace

Brigid,

You were a woman of peace,
You brought harmony where there was conflict.
You brought light to the darkness.
You brought hope to the downcast.

May the mantle of your peace
Cover those who are troubled and anxious,
And may peace be firmly rooted in our hearts
And in our world.
Inspire us to act justly and to reverence
All God has made.

Brigid, you were a voice for the wounded
And the weary,
Strengthen what is weak within us,
Calm us into a quietness that heals
And listens.
May we grow each day into greater
Wholeness in mind, body and spirit.

Amen.

(Source: prayer card from the Brigidine nuns of Kildare.)

~~~

Brisingamen of Cill na Craoibhe Olóige has slightly altered the above prayer to make it suitable for followers of the Goddess Brigit:

Brighid-

You are a Goddess of Peace,
You bring harmony where there is conflict,
You bring light to the darkness,
You bring hope to the downcast.

May the Mantle of Your Peace
Cover those who are troubled and anxious,
And may Peace be firmly rooted in our hearts and in our world.
Inspire us to act justly and to reverence all of Creation.

Brighid-

You are a voice for the wounded and the weary,
Strengthen what is weak within us,
Calm us into a quietness that heals and listens.
May we grow each day into greater wholeness in mind, body, and spirit.

So mote it be!

http://www.brigitsforge.co.uk/olive.html