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Dewi Sant - Saint David
Patron of Wales
by J B Midgley
Review:
Barry Midgley gives us a clear and simple account, from a Catholic perspective, of the life and achievements of Saint David, Patron of Wales, who died in 589 AD (or possibly 604). After briefly discussing the nature of patriotism, which he carefully distinguishes from any kind of exaggerated nationalism, Midgley puts the life of Saint David into the context of evangelisation in Europe, and Celtic spirituality in the 5th and 6th centuries. Among other things, we read of his establishment of St Andrew's Monastery, on the site of what is now St David's Cathedral. It was only after his death that the name of the monastery was changed to Saint David's. Midgley records David's consecration as Archbishop, though comments that this may have been simply an honorary title. Nonetheless, there is no doubting the reverence with which David was viewed, a mark of which was the devotional cult that came to surround him. I sensed, on the part of Barry Midgley himself, real warmth for his subject, and his little book is informative and helpful.
Reviewer: Barry Vendy (20/02/13)
Barry Midgley gives us a clear and simple account, from a Catholic perspective, of the life and achievements of Saint David, Patron of Wales, who died in 589 AD (or possibly 604). After briefly discussing the nature of patriotism, which he carefully distinguishes from any kind of exaggerated nationalism, Midgley puts the life of Saint David into the context of evangelisation in Europe, and Celtic spirituality in the 5th and 6th centuries. Among other things, we read of his establishment of St Andrew's Monastery, on the site of what is now St David's Cathedral. It was only after his death that the name of the monastery was changed to Saint David's. Midgley records David's consecration as Archbishop, though comments that this may have been simply an honorary title. Nonetheless, there is no doubting the reverence with which David was viewed, a mark of which was the devotional cult that came to surround him. I sensed, on the part of Barry Midgley himself, real warmth for his subject, and his little book is informative and helpful.
Reviewer: Barry Vendy (20/02/13)
