Welcome to the Celtic Order of Benedictine Chaplains

Ordo Celticus Capellani Benedictini

Celtic Order of Benedictine Chaplains
(Celtic Benedictine Chaplains)

The Celtic Order of Benedictine Chaplains is a religious order that combines Celtic spirituality with the Benedictine tradition. The members of this order follow the Rule of St. Benedict, which emphasizes prayer, work, and community life. They also draw inspiration from the ancient Celtic Christian traditions, incorporating elements such as a deep connection to nature and the rhythms of the seasons.

The Celtic Order of Benedictine Chaplains typically serve as chaplains in various settings, such as hospitals, universities, and spiritual retreat centers. They offer pastoral care, spiritual guidance, and support to those in need, drawing on their commitment to prayer, hospitality, and service.

Overall, the Celtic Order of Benedictine Chaplains seeks to live out their faith in a way that honors both the Benedictine and Celtic traditions, fostering a sense of peace, unity, and reverence for God's creation.

Join the Ordo Celticus Capellani Benedictini (OCB)

The Ordo Celticus Capellani Benedictini, or Benedictine Chaplains, is open to all members of the Communion. Throughout history, Christians have formed communities to support one another through prayer, work, and fellowship. In the spirit of Saint Benedict, this ecumenical Christian community embraces a diverse range of denominational backgrounds and professions, committing to a Rule of Life that includes vows of obedience, stability, and conversion of life.

Founded on Scripture and monastic tradition, the OCB serves as a living testament to the values essential to Christian faith and life. Members of this worldwide community unite in a shared commitment to love and serve God, one another, and the world.

Monasticism for a New Millennium

Dietrich Bonhoeffer once wrote, “The restoration of the church will surely come only from a new type of monasticism... a complete lack of compromise in a life lived in accordance with the Sermon on the Mount.” His vision invites us to gather in pursuit of a deeper, uncompromising discipleship.

Join Us

Chaplains seeking closer fellowship can become Affiliated Chaplains within the OCB. This modified, non-cloistered Benedictine community emphasizes a genuine desire to draw closer to God and reshape one’s life accordingly. This transformation is grounded in the conviction that Christ has removed the barriers between God and humanity, allowing us to confront our faults and temptations.

Spiritual Requirements for Aspirants:

A sincere quest for God
Eagerness for the “Work of God,” or Divine Office
Commitment to obedience
Openness to humility

Additionally, aspirants must be members of the CCC in good standing.

Opportunities for Communion Members

Lay Chaplains can join as third-order monastics while maintaining their everyday lives. Open to all practicing Christians, third orders allow members to live at home and pursue diverse occupations, while embodying the spirit of a particular religious order. Tertiaries often distinguish themselves through specific attire or insignia.

Licensed or Certified Chaplains may join as full religious non-cloistered monastics. Serving as chaplains in various capacities, they must be in good standing with their bishop. Ordination may be adapted to align with OCB policy, allowing for dual ordination.

Members receive a Certificate of Membership and may use OCB credentials after their name. A key requirement is receiving the laying on of hands for Apostolic Succession, ensuring a historical connection to Christ and His Apostles.

The OCB recognizes the significance of apostolic succession and the importance of interdependence within the Christian community. By participating in this ancient tradition, we honor the legacy of those who have come before us, fostering a spirit of humility and shared mission.

Apostolic Succession is the “historic unbroken connection with Christ and His Apostles,” by the “laying-on of hands”- transferring Christ’s Apostolic authority and ministry from Jesus Himself, through His succeeding Bishops of every proceeding generation, up until our current day. It was through this “Apostolic Succession” that the early Church maintained their “genuine and authentic” membership in the ONE holy catholic (universal), church.
Having an “approved” Bishop, within (not over), the Community, guaranteed they were a “genuine” Christian Community being historically (not only spiritually), connected to the universal body of Christ – Independence was not something to be cherished in the early Church of Christ, but rather Inter-dependence, sharing one another’s burdens! …it is to this humble holy dependence, we as a Community desire to return to.
We recognize the “gift” of apostolic succession to the Church, and therefore desire to be celebrants of this ancient tradition (not doctrine), followed by our brothers and sisters of the past. We feel safe being in submission to those who have walked ahead of us!

Our apostolic succession can be traced to Christ and the apostles through the Anglican, Episcopal, Celtic Catholic, Coptic Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Old Catholic, Polish Catholic, Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic lines. Our order can trace its apostolic lineage back to the Abbots of Glastonbury, one of the oldest Benedictine Christian sites in England.

History of the Anglican (English) Church

https://youtu.be/x7u9XV67PNI?si=SixcK7ntgKucQL_b

A Course in Celtic Christianity

https://youtu.be/lZDycqZl79I?si=6-scRudQVrBt7onT

Some historic info

The Celtic Order of Benedictine Chaplains traces its spiritual lineage to two interconnected streams of Christian tradition. On one hand, it is rooted in the Anglican expression of Benedictine spirituality, which preserved the monastic rhythm of prayer, work, and pastoral service within the life of the church. On the other hand, the Order also draws deeply from the Catholic tradition of the Celtic Rite, a stream of Christianity that flourished long before the medieval centralization of the Latin Rite.

The Celtic Church itself dates back to the earliest centuries of Christianity in the British Isles. According to tradition, the Gospel was brought to the Celtic lands by Joseph of Arimathea and was florishing as early as the second or third century, and it developed a distinct identity by the fifth century through figures like St. Patrick in Ireland, St. Ninian in Scotland, and St. Illtud in Wales. By the sixth and seventh centuries, Celtic monasticism became renowned across Europe, with saints such as St. Columba of Iona and St. Aidan of Lindisfarne founding abbeys and missionary communities that radiated learning, hospitality, and holiness. The Celtic Church emphasized a spirituality rooted in creation, community, and personal devotion, while maintaining its own liturgical usages, monastic rules, and distinctive practices such as a different calculation of Easter and a unique tonsure.

While eventually brought into fuller conformity with the Roman Church after the Synod of Whitby (664 AD), the Celtic Church remailed in small pockets of the scottish higlands and remote places in Ireland. The Celtic Church retained its influence for centuries and is still celebrated today for its ancient prayers, its monastic zeal, and its missionary character. In many ways, the Celtic Church kept alive a form of Christianity that was deeply incarnational and pastoral, shaped by the rhythms of the land and the needs of ordinary people.

Because of this dual heritage—the Anglican Benedictine revival and the ancient Catholic Celtic Rite—the Celtic Order identifies itself as both Catholic and Benedictine, while maintaining an independent structure. This places it within the broader family of Independent Catholicism, which seeks to preserve Catholic theology, sacramental life, and apostolic succession outside the direct jurisdiction of Rome.

From the perspective of the Roman Catholic Church, such communities are generally regarded as valid but illicit: the sacraments, when celebrated by clergy in authentic apostolic succession, may be considered sacramentally valid, but they are not under the lawful authority of the Pope. Rome therefore recognizes Independent Catholics as separated brethren—sharing much of the same faith and practice but existing outside of canonical communion with the Holy See.

For the Celtic Order of Benedictine Chaplains, this independent stance allows it to embody the ancient spirit of the Celtic Church—hospitable, pastoral, and close to the people—while also remaining faithful to the Benedictine call of prayer and service (ora et labora). In doing so, the Order carries forward a tradition that is both deeply ancient and authentically Catholic, yet able to minister with flexibility and compassion in today’s world.

We Believe in Building Bridges

In 2014 our brother and seminary mate, Abbott Bishop Tony Palmer (Anglican) met with Pope Francis. +Tony and Pope Francis shared a friendship over many years. +Tony was tasked with building bridges of faith between the Roman Catholic Church and Protestant Churches. The meeting was filmed on Tony's iPhone as Pope Francis asks us all to see each other as brothers. Tony shared this video of the visit he had with Pope Francis at a pastor's meeting in the states where the Pope adresses the protestant pastors and asks for us to work together for the gospel, Catholic and Protestant.

This video is historic as it is the first time a Pope adressed Protestant pastors and asks for unity and brotherhood.

The video can be found here.

We are continuing in the work that our dear brother started. Please consider building bridges with us to all believers in Christ.

https://youtu.be/NHbEWw7l_Ek?si=6tW_KerNfszXXSqD