Canon Pastor, St Davids Cathedral, Pembrokeshire. Busy finding my feet after moving from the big smoke to Britain’s smallest city. Newydd ddychwelyd i Gymru ❤️
Excellent session last Saturday in @StDavidsCath on Edmund Tudor's Tomb/s with Prof Maddy Gray.
Edmund stood in our midst (sort of ) with one of previous brass rubbings, recently come to light.
( 📷 useful height comparison with modern verger)
#Tudors@tonyriches@TudorPlaces
Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, a season that calls us to prayer, repentance and renewal as we prepare for Easter.
On this day, Christians around the world receive ashes as a sign of our humanity and our need for God’s mercy. Ash Wednesday invites us to step back from ostentatious display, to look honestly at our lives and to return to God with humility. Lent is not about being seen to do the right things, but about allowing God to shape our hearts.
Bible reading: Matthew 6:1
‘Beware of practising your piety before others in order to be seen by them, for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.’
Prayer
Faithful God,
you see us as we truly are.
As we begin this season of Lent,
draw us away from outward show
and lead us into the quiet work of repentance and trust.
Teach us to seek you not for recognition or reward
but for the healing and renewal you alone can give.
Create in us clean hearts, O God,
and shape our lives by your love.
Amen.
Artwork: Mary in prayer, stained glass, Monaco.
Today is Ash Wednesday – the beginning of Lent! Lent is a time of prayer, reflection, and repentance.
Heddiw yw dydd Mercher y Lludw – dechrau’r Grawys! Mae’r Garawys yn gyfnod o weddïo, myfyrio, ac edifeirwch. https://t.co/QboaL8fg1d
#AshWednesday#DustToDust#ChurchInWales
Misericords mostly C16th within the choir stalls at St David's cathedral for #WoodcarvingWednesday Each was skilfully carved from a single block of oak My particular favourite is the fat little dragon #Woodensday
I'm not a member of the Anglican Church and I remain Roman Catholic to the dark heart of my soul's desire. But I am so glad of this day, and ashamed of the dismal theology churned out by the Vatican to justify their exclusion of the female body from the sacrament of ordination.
Jesus wants us to feed the poor—they obliterate aid.
Jesus wants us to care for the sick—they attack affordable healthcare.
Jesus wants us to befriend the imprisoned—they criminalize our neighbors.
What good is their Christianity if it looks nothing like Christ?
Mae tri gwasanaeth #Plygain yn digwydd dydd Sul yma:
25 Ionawr - Llandeilo, Eglwys Sant Teilo 6pm
25 Ionawr - Llaniestyn, Eglwys Sant Iestyn 6pm
25 Ionawr - Licswm, Capel Berthen 7pm
Pope Leo: “With great concern, I am following the developments in Venezuela. The well-being of the beloved Venezuelan people must prevail over every other consideration and lead to overcoming violence and embarking on paths of justice and peace, guaranteeing the sovereignty of the Country, ensuring the rule of law enshrined in the Constitution, respecting the human and civil rights of each and every one. And working to build together a serene future of collaboration, stability, and harmony, with special attention to the poorest who suffer because of the difficult economic situation.”
As a new year begins, we place our trust in God’s faithfulness and look ahead with hope. We give thanks for His presence with us in every season and ask for wisdom and grace as we step into the days to come.
Bible Verse:
“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22–23)
Prayer:
Faithful God, as we begin this new year, renew us by Your mercy and guide us by Your Spirit. Help us to walk in Your ways, trusting in Your love and faithfulness each day. Amen.
As the year draws to a close, I’m signing off 2025 with a magical find!
An ancient amber bear. Carved some 10,000 years ago, it washed up on a beach at Fanø, Denmark, from a submerged Mesolithic settlement in the North Sea.
✨ Happy New Year everyone! ✨
National Museum of Denmark 📷 by me
#Archaeology
At Evensong on this New Year's Eve, in the last hours of 2025 and with 2026 before us, the Second Collect at Evening Prayer says all that needs to be said.
Mae pedwar gwasanaeth #Plygain i ddod cyn diwedd y flwyddyn.
28 Rhagfyr - Porthaethwy, Eglwys Tysilio 6pm
28 Rhagfyr - Defynnog, Eglwys Sant Cynog 6pm
28 Rhagfyr - Cefnyblodwel, Capel 7pm
30 Rhagfyr - Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog, Eglwys Sant Garmon 7pm
Perhaps the deepest challenge of the Christmas story is to truly accept the ‘upside-downess’ of it all - the great reversal of the way God does things, the kind of people God gives leadership to & the way the old institutions are left either opposing them or trying to catch up!