This summer, a small group of pilgrims, carrying a tall Celtic Cross, walked from North Pembrokeshire, in Wales, to St Davids Cathedral. We prayed for:
• Unity among Christians
• Reconciliation between the people of our Four Nations
• A fresh outpouring of The Holy Spirit on these Isles.

The project had its roots in a prophecy made in 2005. We believe that the Lord is asking us to organise ecumenical celtic/charismatic pilgrimages of prayer and witness to pray for our isles.

The original prophecy was given by Fr Pat Collins at the Newman Conference in 2005 and called for a walking pilgrimage to Assisi in 2007. Those who walked felt that The Lord was saying “rebuild My Church” (for an article see Goodnews Mar/Apr 2008). This was a call to prayer but we were also led to organise walking pilgrimages on ancient routes in these, our own, Isles. Walking has the advantage of getting us out of the churches and onto the roads. It lifts us from our comfort zones and gives witness to the Church alive today. The hardships involved, minimal though they are, are effective in bonding the pilgrims together in unity and mutual support.

Early Christian sites appeal to many denominations and are excellent vehicles for promoting Christian unity. Moreover, today there is renewed interest in Celtic Christianity and also in walking. After much discernment we settled upon a walk, in Wales, between St Brynach’s Church in the village of Nevern and St Davids Cathedral in St Davids City. St Brynach and St David were friends and both are important figures from the 6th century.

St Brynach - Like that of many of the Celtic saints, Brynach’s story is a mixture of reality and legend. A contemporary and friend of St David, he evangelised and built churches extensively in South West Wales, most notably along the rivers Cleddau, Gwaun and Caman. He is said to have conversed with angels on Mynydd Carningli (Mountain of the Angels) and we know he established his monastic base at the foot of this hill - in what is now the village of Nevern (the Celtic Church was based on monastic communities rather than dioceses). There has been a church on this site ever since, and St Brynach’s Church in Nevern has always been on the pilgrim route from North Wales to St Davids.

St David - St David is the patron saint of Wales and we have a wealth of reliable information about his life. Unusually for these Isles, he is a native of the country of which he is patron. He is known as a saintly man, and a gifted teacher and preacher. He founded monastic communities and churches in Wales and Cornwall. As Bishop he presided over two synods, the most well known was at Llanddewi Brefi (where he noticed a woman crying over her dead child and restored the boy to life). St Davids Cathedral now stands on the site of the monastery he founded in Glyn Rhosyn (Rose Vale) on the banks of the river Alun.

The pilgrimage 2009

We met up in Nevern and then moved on to a Christian retreat centre on the south western slope of Mynydd Carningli (Mountain of the Angels). The centre, Ffald-Y-Brenin (Sheepfold of The King), is an amazing place with many stories of God’s extraordinary actions in its life. While we were all comfortably asleep, a storm was lashing down outside – just to remind us that we were in the mountains on the west coast of Wales. Fortunately, the storm gave way to light rain by the time we got up. Morning started with prayer in Celtic style, taken from authentic sources, and each evening ended in similar fashion. Our route took us through: The Gwaun Valley, Fishguard, Llanwanda, Tremarchog (St Nicholas), Mathri (Mathry), Llanrhian and St Davids. As we walked, two of the group travelled in a support car and supplied food, bandages for the footsore and encouragement for us all. Wherever we walked, people tended to wave from cars or stop us to ask what we were doing. Sometimes this involved Christians encouraging each other and sometimes we were met with puzzlement, but almost always with smiles. There were two overnight stops: one in St Nichols’ village hall and the other in the church hall in Llanrhian. We visited the many old churches and holy wells on the way. These wells, which are natural springs of water arising from hill sides, have historically been sources of healings and still tend to be known as “Healing Wells”. One particularly interesting stop was at Mathri (Mathry). This is a village high on a hill and very isolated. The explanation for its location is that it started life as a monastic hospital for lepers and pilgrims. It became an important stop-over for pilgrims going to St Davids and eventually grew into a large settlement.

On the final day of the walk we processed through St David’s City and headed for the Cathedral. Cannon Patrick Thomas was waiting to greet us and take us for tea, a tour and a celebratory Celtic Prayer Service. It was amusing to see the puzzled faces of tourists as they watched the canon, in his black and purple robes, welcome this motley band of pilgrims carrying a tall Celtic Cross.

Come and Join Us in August 2010

We plan to walk the same route in the second week in August 2010. If you are interested please email us at celtic.cross@ btinternet.com or write to us c/o Goodnews. Given the aims of the pilgrimage, we are particularly interested in hearing from our brothers and sisters in Ireland. It would be wonderful if we could have a leg beginning from Ireland and sailing to Fishguard to walk together to St David’s.