Stones of Iona

Stones of Iona

The very oldest stones, dated at over 2000 million years, are found on the Isle of Iona.

The stones are so ancient that they contain no fossils. Feldspar and quartz crystal, the most common minerals on Earth, form part of the Lewisian Gneiss on Iona. There are also large boulders of pink granite, beautiful green marble, and ocean-polished white quartz.

The stones of Iona do exactly as Jesus says in Luke 19:40. “I tell you,” he replied, “if they (the people) keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” 

The Celts understand that God’s creation is God’s first revelation. The Iona stones cry out the characteristics of our God. 

Iona stones are of many colors. Some are pure white marble, some solid gray, some are white with streaks of green, or gray, or pink, or rust, or blue, some are gray with streaks of green, or silver, or pink, or rust, or blue. They display the blues of the sky and water, the greens of the fields, the rusts of the plants and land, and even some pink and lavender of the flowers. They have soaked in all the diversity, beauty, and glory of the island and of God, so they now can reflect back that diversity, beauty and glory. 

As Thomas Aquinas grasped, “The works of the Lord are the words of the Lord.“ 

The Iona stones reveal to us that our God is a God who loves diversity and beauty. 

As part of God’s creation, we, too, reflect God’s diversity and beauty. Let us never believe some of God’s people are not beautiful, no matter what physical characteristic, race, religion, sexual orientation, etc. they are given by our Creator.

At one point when I was soaking in Iona’s beauty and opening myself to what I could learn about our Creator through creation, I stubbed my little toe on a rather large stone. 

The poor little toe turned purple and ached for several days. 

I’m still pondering what that stone was crying out to tell me. 🙂