Myfyrdod ar y Sul

Adlewyrchiadau Gwarcheidwad Eglwys Pennant Melangell.

Adlewyrchiad Ddydd Sul.

Adlewyrchiad; Brodyr a Chwiorydd.

“Rydych yn bryderus a’ch sylw yn cael ei ddwyn gan sawl peth”.

Yr Iesu, yn Efengyl heddiw Luwc 10:38-42, NRSV.

“Beth bynnag y gost, rwyf angen mynegi fy hanes cywir.” Hussein Abdi Kohin, aka Syr Mo Farah.

Mae llawer o son yn ddiweddar am fagwriaeth Syr Mo Farah, yr athletwr trac Prydeinig fwyaf llwyddiannus yn hanes y Mabolgampau Olympaidd diweddar.

Y gwir yw, ar ol cael ei gipio a’i ddwyn i’r Deyrnas Unedig pan yn naw oed, ei enw cywir yw Hussein Abdi Kahin.
Gweithio fel gwas, mor ifanc, ac yn gorfod gofalu am blant pobol eraill, tra’n ddiarth i’w deulu ei hun, rhedeg oedd ei fodd o gael rhyddhad a darganfod hunaniaeth cywir tra y rhedodd, i ddianc rhag yr hyn oedd yn digwydd iddo.
Am rhai blynyddoedd dywedodd Hussein glwyddau rhag ofn y canlyniadau ond rwan, ar ol iddo ddatgelu yr hyn a ddigwyddodd iddo tra’n blentyn, mae’r Swyddfa Gatre wedi cyhoeddi na fydde’n cael ei erlyn oherwydd plentyn yr oedd pan ddaeth i’r wlad yn anghyfreithlon.
Mae ymholiad wedi cychwyn a mae’n debyg fod rhwng 10,000 a 100,000 o bobol yn cael eu trin fel caethweision yn y Deyrnas Unedig. Un stori o lawer yw stori Hussein.
Mae diwedd y gan yma yn fwy boddhaol na’r rhan fwyaf ac mae’n debyg fydd Syr Mo yn cael cadw ei enw adnabyddus.
Dwynwyd yr enw oddiwrth fachgen arall a cafodd Hussein ei herwgipio gydag enw newydd, anghywir. Mae llunddogfen yn dangos y gwir Mohamed yn siarad ar y ffon gyda “Syr Mo” ac yn ei alw’n frawd yn hytrach na ffraeo. Be fyddai wedi digwydd iddo petai ef, yn lle Syr Mo, wedi dod i’r Deyrnas Unedig, a be fydde wedi digwydd i Hussein petai e ddim wedi dod?
Bydd byth ateb i’r cwestiynnau hyn ond mae gan y Beibl ystori am ddau frawd go iawn yn cael eu cyfnewid.
Esau oedd yr hynaf ond mi newidiodd ei hawliau cyntaf-anedig gyda’i efaill Jacob am fowlen o stiw tra’n llewygu ar ol bod allan yn hela.
Nes ymlaen, defnyddiodd Jacob groenau geifr er mwyn twyllo ei dad, oedd bron yn ddall, i feddwl mae ei frawd blewog,Esau, yr oedd, a felly cafodd freintiau a hawliau y cyntaf-anedig.
Mae Efengyl heddiw yn ymwneud a dwy chwaer, yr un yn cwyno am y llall tra fod yr Iesu yn mynychu. Mae Martha yn gofyn i’r Iesu orfodi Fair i helpu gyda negeseuon o gwmpas y ty, paratoi pryd mae’n debyg. Ateb yr Iesu yw fod Mair wedi gwneud penderfyniad doeth drwy dewis i wrando arno tra fod yno – mae hi’n eistedd wrth ei draed, fel fydde disgybl yn gwrando ar rabbi. Mae O’n cynghori Martha ei bod wedi colli ei sylw drwy bryderu am yr holl bethau sydd angen eu gwneud a’i bod yn anghroesawys drwy ofyn i’r Iesu i ymyrryd yn y sefyllfa. “Arglwydd, does dim bwys gennat Ti?” gofynna Martha, hyd yn oed yn cyhuddo’r Iesu ei Hun!

Tydi Leuc ddim yn crybwyll be a ddigwyddodd wedyn, ond mae agwedd y ddwy chwaer yn bwysig. Mae lletygarwch da yn cynnwys croeso i’r ymwelwr a rhoi sylw addas iddo fel a wnaeth Fair. Ar y llaw arall tydi’r croeso ddim yn gyflawn heb paratoi pryd iddo, a dyma oedd safbwynt Martha.
Mae gwrando a gwneud, ill dau, yn bwysig – derbyn Duw, a gwasanaethu i’r werin. Mae hon yn stori cartrefol am densiynnau mewn teulu a fydd sawl un yn medru unieuthu gyda, heddiw.
Gyda costau byw yn cynyddu, rhyfel yn yr Iwcrain, argyfwng yn yr NHS, a coronafeirws, mae sawl rheswm i rhywyn or-bryderu a cholli gafael ar ei sylw.
Roedd Martha yn bryderus am y gwaith oedd angen gwneud, ond anghofiodd mae ar gyfer yr Iesu roedd yn ei wneud. Hefyd mae’n debyg fod hi wedi synnu gan ymateb Mair, yn eistedd wrth draed yr Iesu – rol roedd fel arfer yn cael ei gymryd gan ddyn. Roedd gan y ddwy ddewis i wneud ynglyn a’u ymateb i bresenoldeb yr Iesu.
Doedd gan Hussein, fel arall, ddim dewis ynglyn a’r sefyllfa cartrefol a oedd yn rhan ohono, ond mae wedi llwyddiannu yn ei faes a wedi dewis cadw yr enw Mo Farar sydd rwan yn rhan sylfaenol o’i hanes a’i hunaniaeth.

Esau a Jacob, Martha a Mair, Hussein a Mo – efallai fod eu straeon, uniaethau ac ymatebion yn debyg i rhai ninnau hefyd?

Gyda fyng ngweddion; pob bendith.
Christine, Gwarcheidwad.

Sunday reflection

Reflection for Sea Sunday

July sees the annual celebration of Sea Sunday and it may seem strange that we’ll be marking this at St Melangell’s when we’re inland. However, recent difficulties with the supply chain have highlighted the importance of international trade and its availability or otherwise – two container ships with bunting and Platinum Jubilee memorabilia amongst their cargoes weren’t able to dock until 5th June, after the official celebrations had ended. The challenges of communication between different nations were also highlighted when some official souvenirs which had been made in China had to be scrapped because the slogan marked the Platinum Jubbly – shades of Del Boy! 

During the pandemic, coronavirus spread very quickly amongst passengers on cruise ships, which had to be quarantined in port and caused great concern for those aboard and their families. This is just one of the issues also faced by crews on container ships, who often have to work in difficult and hazardous conditions to bring goods that are often taken for granted. During the last year and its financial challenges for so many, more crews have been abandoned by their employers than ever before and some are still being denied the right to leave their ships for even a short break away from the relentless noise and pressure onboard. When they are also separated for long periods from their families, stress and poorer mental health is being reported more frequently and the chaplains at the various ports are needed more than ever. 

The theme of Sea Sunday this year is ‘Calming the storm at home, in port and at sea’ and focuses on the story in St Matthew’s Gospel of Jesus calming the storm when the disciples were terrified. Storms can be global, whether warfare in Ukraine, immense tsunamis or the Covid pandemic and they can also be personal as individuals face unemployment, sickness or bereavement. Sometimes, they can develop with very little warning. 

Many people are currently facing unsettled circumstances with the cost of living crisis, the ongoing warfare in Ukraine, food insecurity and petrol costs making changes to daily life as they make fewer journeys, put on layers of clothing rather than the heating and cut back on food and supplies. However, fewer journeys may bring benefits for environmental pollution and the cutback economy may yet enable some to stay afloat with heating not being needed during the summer weather. But, as the storm clouds gather and turbulent times lie ahead, others are already facing very challenging conditions. 

Choppy waters lie ahead, not least after the storms of this last week in Parliament, and good neighbours are also needed more than ever to calm things down and help find safe passage through whatever lies ahead. This is not a storm in a tea cup but a challenge to the way of life we so often take for granted. The pandemic enabled so many to pull together and it can be done again – can’t it?

With my prayers; pob bendith,

Christine, Guardian.

Sunday reflection

Reflection on Doubting Thomas

”Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” Jesus in John 20:24-29, NRSV.

“Doubt is a pain too lonely to know that faith is his twin brother.” Khalil Gilbran.

“The wounded God whose wounds are healing mine.” Malcolm Guite, in his poem St Thomas the Apostle.


“I will not believe,” says Thomas in today’s Gospel and, although he’s still often called doubting Thomas, he’s not just doubting that the other apostles have seen Jesus but is actually refusing what they claim. This is despite the fact that reliable witnesses – many of them people he knows – have been saying that Jesus is alive, that his tomb is empty and that his grave clothes have been found neatly folded and not needed. It isn’t Jesus’s death that Thomas is struggling with but his resurrection – after so terrible a death, how can he be alive?

However, Thomas may have had good reason for his doubts: Jesus had appeared to the disciples locked in the upper room a week earlier but it seems that this had little effect on them as they’re still behind locked doors when Jesus reappears to them. Their encounter with him seems to have changed their behaviour very little and perhaps they need time to come to terms with what’s happening. They still seem to be scared and hiding away for fear of the consequences and, after all that’s happened, that’s understandable.

Thomas is mentioned earlier in the Gospel when he questions Jesus about where he’s going and clearly doesn’t comprehend what Jesus means when he tells them he‘s going ahead of them. “How can we know the way?” he asks, drawing forth the words from Jesus that are used at so many funerals, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life.” (John 14:5,6) Clearly, Thomas has always questioned events, despite being with Jesus for three years and watching his ministry, healing and miracles unfold. 

Now, although others had been convinced by the sight or testimony of his resurrection, Thomas insists that he must not only see but touch the wounds of Jesus to accept that he’s alive. It’s a tall order as Jesus told Mary Magdalene not to touch him that first Easter Day – and yet Jesus honours what Thomas asks of him by inviting him to see and touch the marks of the nails and spear. He is identified by the scars of what he has been through, a wounded saviour who has experienced the terrible depths of human suffering and yet still responds with love and compassion. Rather than chiding Thomas, Jesus enables him to respond with the cry, “My Lord and my God!” Because of the honesty of his doubts and wanting to discover for himself rather than be told by others what to think, Thomas makes the enormous leap of then realising that this is his Lord and God before him. He does this before the other apostles and it’s because he refuses to pretend to believe but rather waits to to see, touch and believe for himself.

Perhaps, at times, we feel pressure to accept or do things because other people want us to or sometimes we may struggle to accept their word. Thomas was actually being told the truth in what the other apostles said – is it possible that there is some truth in what others may be telling us, that we may be denying? Waiting for understanding or belief to grow can be lonely and challenging but being honest about doubts also enables us to be inspired by Thomas’ example as he went on to take the Gospel to India, where his name is still common. Thomas, like Didymus, actually means twin – and perhaps we are twinned with him in the doubts he has the courage to express and which lead to so huge a leap of faith.

Jesus also seemed to know what Thomas needed and responded to it. The same can be true for us as we begin to see, through the scriptures and prayer, how our needs and doubts can also be met by him. Jesus tells Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe” – coming to believe may imply a transition, a gradual realisation or awakening which is part of many faith journeys. Jesus’ words can bring blessing to us down the ages, too, if we have the faith to accept them – or do you doubt that?!

With my prayers; pob bendith,

Christine, Guardian.

Sunday reflection

Reflection for the Second Sunday after Trinity

“Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Jesus, in Luke 9:51-end.

”Home is where my habits have a habitat.” Fiona Apple.

Today’s Gospel shows how little the disciples have understood the ministry of Jesus, although it’s set not long after his transfiguration. Jesus and his followers are passing through a Samaritan village and some of the disciples have gone ahead to make preparations for his arrival. However, Luke tells us that Jesus had set his face towards Jerusalem and that the villagers did not receive him. Was this because, as traditional enemies of the Jews, he had decided to focus on Jerusalem to avoid conflict with the Samaritans or was it because the villagers didn’t want him to stop? Whatever the situation, it clearly offends James and John who suggest to Jesus that they should call down fire from heaven to consume the villagers – until Jesus rebukes them and they all go to elsewhere for hospitality.

The disciples offer violence as a solution and have not yet accepted the wider vision of Jesus, who later says that he has nowhere to lay his head although even foxes have holes and birds their nests. His own ministry was spent away from his home, travelling to meet, challenge and heal those who would encounter him. Jesus tells one potential follower that he should not even delay to bury his father, so great is the call – and yet burial of their dead was one of the greatest priorities for a practising Jew. In making the point that following God’s call means setting out unconditionally, Jesus is emphasising how much is being asked of those who may follow him – and they need to be committed, rather than finding reasons to delay.

As part of this, Jesus mentions setting out to plough and says that no-one who looks back is fit for God’s kingdom. Part of the requirement when ploughing is for a straight furrow to facilitate seed planting and harvesting – if the crop lines were crooked, they were much harder to garner. Looking back to check a straight furrow is one of the quickest ways of guaranteeing that the next bit won’t be! 

Today, like those first disciples, there are many examples of those who want to look backwards rather than forwards, resort to violence when the situation is not as hoped or think up excuses for delay. Regardless, Jesus has set his face to Jerusalem but still urges us as well as his followers then to consider God’s call in our lives. For some, that will involve radical change; for others, it’s being faithful where we are and with those around us. The challenge is to make room in our hearts as well as our lives for the One who said he has nowhere to lay his head or call home – as T R Matthews’ lovely hymn puts it, “Oh come to my heart, Lord Jesus, there is room in my heart for thee.”

With my prayers; pob bendith,

Christine, Guardian.

Sunday reflection

Reflection for the first Sunday after Trinity.



“People came out to see what had happened and….they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.” From Luke 8, 26-39. 

“When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.” Mark Twain.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus enters Gentile territory where he encounters a man possessed by demons. In the time of Jesus and in the Bible, this phrase often denoted what would be termed as mental illness today – and to face your demons is still used today to indicate facing up to mental health challenges. 

However, this account is a different matter. The man affected is naked and lives amongst the ‘unclean’ dead having been kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, although he had broken free and had been driven out into the wilds. Despite his maddened state, the man nevertheless recognises the authority of Jesus and calls him the Son of the Most High God. When Jesus asks his name, he says it’s Legion, a body of four or five thousand professional Roman soldiers and trained killers – this indicates how great is the turmoil within him. As the demons beg to be allowed to enter a herd of swine on the hillside, it may seem surprising that Jesus allowed this but pigs were also considered to be unclean and, as they rush down the bank and drown in the lake, the demons also die and the man is restored to his right mind.

What’s interesting about this is that the supposedly ‘sane’ people present don’t rejoice at the man’s healing but are afraid at what has happened. They ask Jesus to leave, which he does, but although the healed man asks to go with him, Jesus sends him away and tells him to proclaim what God has done for him. The man does this – but why are people so afraid?

Although the swineherds would, understandably, be horrified at the loss of their animals in this way, perhaps the ‘mad’ man was desperate for change which their comfortable lives resist. These ‘sane’ people are not free as he now is – and from their reaction, they choose not to be. Jesus is to be kept away and at a safe distance where their lives will not be affected and there will be no challenge to them. 

Today, mental health issues are a growing concern with more people experiencing difficulties after the isolation and uncertainty of Covid. When I was a prison chaplain, I often met prisoners who should have been in a secure psychiatric unit rather than prison but were unable to receive the help they needed due to a lack of facilities and accessible treatment. It may be thought that a more civilised society today would not treat the mentally ill in the way this nameless man was treated but those living with mental illness – sometimes under bridges, on the streets or in hidden away places – may not agree. And who is the judge? As a person from Yorkshire allegedly said to a friend, “The world’s gone mad except for thee and me. And I ain’t so sure about thee!”

With my prayers; pob bendith,

Christine, Guardian.

Sunday reflection

Reflection for Trinity Sunday

“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth; for he will not speak on his own…. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.” Jesus, in today’s gospel John 16:12-15, NRSV.

“The Trinity is a mystery… It is not a mystery veiled in darkness…. but a mystery in which we are taken by the hand and gradually led into the light.” Eugene Peterson.

Today is Trinity Sunday, when the mystery of God, three in one and one in three, reveals the conundrum at the heart of the Christian faith. How can three be one and one three? No amount of shamrocks, triangles or tricycles will suffice as the reality of Jesus living amongst humanity as the Son of God, revealing the Father and sending the Spirit shows us the communion of love who is not remote but amongst us. How that can be so is a mystery – and yet it is!

As a child, a music teacher used to come to the house to teach us the piano and this included aural tests. One of these involved tonic triads – the first, third and fifth notes of a scale – and Roger, my elder brother, was having his lesson with Margaret when hoots of laughter were heard. Coming to the closed door, I could hear gurgling noises as, having played the triad but expecting him to sing the notes separately, Margaret couldn’t contain her amusement when Roger tried the impossibility of singing all three notes at once and repeatedly tried to do so as he thought he should be able to!

St Ignatius of Loyola had a vision of the Trinity as three keys on a musical instrument, each note being distinctive but harmonising when played with the others to create a diversified yet unified sound. That lead to a devotion to the Trinity which remained with him throughout his life and which he encouraged others to explore.

The poet Malcolm Guite echoes this musical concept in his sonnet and, this Trinity Sunday, may his words inspire that same response today:

“He calls us out of darkness, chaos, chance,

To improvise a music of our own,

To sing the chord that calls us to the dance,

Three notes resounding from a single tone,

To sing the End in whom we all begin;

Our God beyond, beside us and within.” 

From Trinity Sunday, by Malcolm Guite (c)

With my prayers, pob bendith,

Christine, Guardian. 

Sunday reflection

Reflection for Pentecost and the Platinum Jubilee.

“In our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” From the first Pentecost, Acts 2:1-13.


“She gave herself to the Commonwealth and to the nation but also to God and the anointing was a holy moment. Once anointed, Elizabeth was transformed into Majesty. And then suddenly, there she was, Queen. It was a metamorphosis, it was extraordinary.” Lady Glenconner, Maid of Honour, speaking of the Coronation.

This week has seen the celebrations for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee marking her transformation into Majesty and the use of earthly power during her reign. It coincides today with Pentecost when the heavenly power of the Holy Spirit transformed the lives of those first disciples in a way that is sometimes called the Birthday of the Church. In both situations, an extraordinary metamorphosis had profound consequences which are still resonating today. 

One of the ways of marking this is to ‘Plant a tree for the Jubilee’ to create the Queen’s Green Canopy across the United Kingdom. This will provide a lasting tribute to Elizabeth II and enhance the environment too. A yew in St Melangell’s Churchyard, thought to be at least two thousand years old, has been selected as one of the seventy Ancient Trees representing each year of the Queen’s reign and the hope is that a yew sapling will be planted to mark the Jubilee. As the official season for doing this is between October and March, that won’t happen until November this year but it’s good to continue the tradition of marking important events by planting a tree and, as trees can live for hundreds of years, giving a gift in this way to future generations too.

Each of us is rooted in a family tree which gives the various branches of the line of descendants from which we have come, whether we are familiar with this or not. Jesus’ human family tree begins the gospel of St Matthew as the genealogy of Jesus – though I once heard a reader call it the gynaecology of Jesus! He was placed in a wooden manger and died on a cross often called the Tree, having worked as a carpenter before his ministry. The Bible starts with the garden in which grows “every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food”(Genesis 2:9) and ends with the tree of life set beside the river in the city of the new Jerusalem which has “leaves for the healing of the nations”. (Rev.22:2)

The healing of the nations is much needed as warfare continues between Russia and Ukraine, with their blockaded grain supplies affecting the ability of poorer nations to feed their peoples and creating food insecurity. There was little sign of that at the various street parties being held in the UK and it may not be possible to do much about the great issues dividing the nations currently but perhaps there is something smaller we can do to bring about healing closer to home. The Royal Family has had its share of family problems and it’s clear that, whatever individual views of the Monarchy may be, Queen Elizabeth II is widely regarded as having served her peoples faithfully – but, at 96, we are clearly now in a time of transition. Due to what are described as episodic mobility issues, the Queen has been unable to attend even the Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral which, as Supreme Governor of the Church of England, Head of the Commonwealth of Nations and a woman of faith, will have been a hard decision for her to make. Thanks have been given for the seventy years of her reign, but who knows what will happen in future?

One of the things that the Queen was able to do was to light the Tree of Trees remotely, a feat of technology between Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace. This remarkable structure is made of British trees in containers, and each one will be sent to a different county to be planted to mark the Platinum Jubilee and this remarkable moment in history. That contrasts with recent work here in the valley, where great numbers of ash and larch trees have had to be cut down due to disease and the land where they were planted currently looks so devastated. However, this was necessary to avoid further contamination and the ground will be replanted in the autumn – it will take a while, but the trees will mature in due course.

At this time of national transition, when each of us is also invited to plant a tree for the Jubilee, it’s important to remember not only the Queen but the King of heaven that she serves. We are also called to his service and the Queen, whatever may be thought about other branches of her family, has given steadfast and dutiful service throughout her reign. In gratitude both to her and the King who has entrusted creation to our stewardship, and as a sign of faith and hope for the future, why not consider planting a sapling in your garden or some appropriate place for the Platinum Jubilee, the environment or a family occasion? Don’t just leaf it for other people to do!

With my prayers; pob bendith,
Christine, Guardian

June Services

June Services and activities at the Shrine Church of St Melangell

Thursday 2nd June, noon: Service of the Word for the Jubilee
The Day of Pentecost, June 5th, 3pm: Service of reflection for the Jubilee
Thursday 9th, noon: Holy Eucharist and service of healing

Trinity Sunday, June 12th, 3pm: Service of reflection
Corpus Christi, Thursday 16th, noon: Holy Eucharist and service of healing 

First Sunday after Trinity, June 19th, 3pm:  Service of reflection 
Thursday 23rd, noon: Holy Eucharist and service of healing 

2nd Sunday after Trinity, June 26th, 3pm:  Service of reflection
Thursday 30th noon: Holy Eucharist and service of healing 

For further details, please get in touch with the Guardian on 01691 860408 or admin@stmelangell.org – diolch!

Sunday reflection

Reflection for the thirtieth anniversary of the reopening of the  Shrine Church.

Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to your will.” Mary to the angel in Luke 1:38.
We thank you Lord God for the life and prayer of your servant Melangell. May her care and compassion for all your creatures inspire us in our day with the same concern for all you have made. May we learn to find your glory in the world around us and in all that you give us to do. We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen. The Pilgrim’s Prayer in St Melangell’s Shrine Church.
As we give thanks for the life and example of St Melangell and celebrate the reopening thirty years ago of the Shrine Church after its restoration, so today’s reflection is a poem about her. In it, the anonymous author examines some of the possible meanings of her name including the pun in the church registers from 1723 that it might mean a thousand angels: Mil engyl a Melangell Trechant lu fyddin y fallMelangell with a thousand angels Triumphs over all the powers of evil. 
It’s also been suggested that, as Mêl is the word for honey, her name could be sweet  angel but, as angel doesn’t have a double ll in Welsh,this may not be the case. The saint’s Latin name is Monacella and it is the opinion of Sir Ifor Williams in a letter in the Centre’s archives that Mel Angell originates from Mael (Lord) Ancilla (Handmaid). Hence, in answer to Brochwel’s question, “Who are you?” Melangell’s reply was, “The handmaid of the Lord” which echoes Mary’s response at the Annunciation.
The poem not only speculates about Melangell’s name but the possible conversation between the saint and Prince Brochwel on meeting, which had such profound consequences. In all the conversations we have with the people we meet, the possible consequences could also be profound – especially the spiritual communication that is prayer. As the saint, her church and the valley are commemorated once more, why not pray the pilgrim prayer associated with her, before reading the poem below in Welsh or English?
With my prayers; pob bendith,

Christine, Guardian

I Felangell.

Cyfrin enw, cyfrinach yw
ei ystyr; mwynaf ryw.

Debyg mae naws mil angel oedd   arnat
Yn byw ar fel yn Nyffryn Tanat.

Medd eraill “cell melyn” a fu
lle ciliaist yn dawel rhag elynion lu.

Fy hun, credaf Syr Ifor, mawr barch,
mae ateb yw i Farchog ar farch;

“Pwy rwyt?” gofyn Brochwel
Ysgythrog, gan sgythru
“Sy’n byw ar fy nhir heb gymorth, heb bopty?”

Ateb deg gan forwyn decach:

“Fy nisgrifiad yw hyn – Mael Ancillach,
sef Morwyn yr Arglwydd yr wyf,
yn gweddio yn barchus a llon yn dy blwyf”.

“Ond o le yr hannaist, forwyn wen,
a mil o angylion yn cyrchu dy ben?”

“Dros mor a thir y teithiais am hir
nes cyrraedd y man lle clywais y gwir.
Yn nhawelwch, llonyddwch, dedwyddwch Pen-nant
ces dawel weddio ty hwnt i bob chwant.
A llygaid ar gau a chefn unionsyth
ces fewnol gerddoriaeth, goleuni a llith.”

“Rhyfeddod yw hyn a groesodd fy hynt,
ysgwarnog yn cuddio lle na guddiai gynt!
O’r herwydd rwy’n gosod y tir ar dy ran
i amddiffyn pob “Oen Fach” am byth yn y llan.”


Gwrandawyr, ga’i ofyn;

“Oes rhywle sy’n well,
neu llecyn sy’n harddach
na Chwm Felan-Gell?”

To Melangell.

Mysterious name, a mystery is its meaning, o fair lady.
Likely the atmosphere of a thousand angels was upon you
living upon honey in Dyffryn Tanat.

Others say you found refuge in a “yellow cell” from a host of enemies.

Myself, I believe Sir Ifor, of great renown,
that an answer it was to a knight on horseback;

“Who are you?” asked Brochwel Ysgythrog, in haste, “who lives on my land without support nor oven?”

A fair answer from a fairer maid;
“My description is thus – Handmaiden of the Lord”, who worships respectfully and happily in your shire”.

“But where are you from, fair Maiden, with a thousand angels circling your head?”

“Over sea and land I travelled long time, ‘till I reached the land where I heard the truth.
In the silence, stillness and blessedness of Pennant, I quietly prayed, away from all temptation.
With eyes closed and posture erect came inner choirs, light and learning”.

“Strange is this that has crossed my path – a hare who has hidden where never before!
Consequently I give the land for your use, to protect your “Little Lambs” forever in this Llan.”

May I ask;
“Is anywhere better or a site more beautiful than Cwm (Pennant) Melangell?”

by Dafydd Griffiths (copyright with the author)