Dyfan

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Saint Dyfan
Merthyr Dyfan parish church.jpg
SS Dyfan & Teilo's in Merthyr Dyfan
Martyr
Canonized Pre-Congregation
Feast Usually unobserved
Patronage Merthyr Dyfan
Llandyfan

Saint Dyfan is a highly obscure figure who was presumably the namesake of Merthyr Dyfan ("martyrium of Dyfan") and therefore an early Christian saint and martyr in southeastern Wales in Roman or Sub-Roman Britain. [1] He is sometimes styled the protomartyr of Wales. The erection of his martyrium was credited to the 6th-century St Teilo. In the 19th century, Edward Williams conflated him with St Deruvian, a figure in the legendary accounts of the baptism of King   Lucius of Britain. The discovery of Williams's alterations and forgeries have since discredited this connection. [2] Partially based on this connection, however, the church of Merthyr Dyfan dates his martyrdom to c. 180.

Merthyr Dyfan District of Barry and parish/ward in Wales

Merthyr Dyfan or Dyfan is a northeastern suburb of Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan, in south Wales, formerly an independent medieval village. It is also an ecclesiastical parish and a formal electoral ward of the Vale of Glamorgan. It borders Colcot to the west, Buttrills to the southwest and Gibbonsdown to the southeast. Its main roads are Merthyr Dyfan Road, a hilly road leading down from the A4050 road which leads into Wenvoe and Cardiff; and Skomer Road which separates it from Gibbonsdown and eventually also leads to the A4050 road. Merthyr Dyfan contains an old parish church, Barry Rugby Club, Bryn Hafren Comprehensive School and the Master Mariner Pub and Holm View Leisure Centre, although the last two could be considered to be in northern Gibbonsdown. Watercolour artist Thomas Frederick Worrall lived in Barry from 1913 and painted several scenes of Merthyr Dyfan. A depiction of Merthyr Dyfan Road, viewed from where the road curves and looking towards the coast, has been deposited at the National Library of Wales. It is to be digitised and made available on their web site. The Church in Wales has a small painting of his of the church.

Martyrium (architecture) church of a specific architectural form, centered on a central element and thus built on a central plan, that is, of a circular or sometimes octagonal or cruciform shape

A martyrium (Latin) or martyrion is a church of a specific architectural form, centered on a central element and thus built on a central plan, that is, of a circular or sometimes octagonal or cruciform shape.

Celtic Christianity Christianity in the Celtic-language speaking world during the early Middle Ages

Celtic Christianity or Insular Christianity refers broadly to certain features of Christianity that were common, or held to be common, across the Celtic-speaking world during the Early Middle Ages. "Celtic Christianity" has been conceived of with differing levels of specificity: some writers have described a distinct "Celtic Church" uniting the Celtic peoples and distinguishing them from the "Roman" Catholic Church, while others classify it as simply a set of distinctive practices occurring in those areas. Scholars now reject the former notion, but note that there were certain traditions and practices used in both the Irish and British churches but not in the wider Christian world. These include a distinctive system for determining the dating of Easter, a style of monastic tonsure, a unique system of penance, and the popularity of going into "exile for Christ". Additionally, there were other practices that developed in certain parts of Britain or Ireland, but which are not known to have spread beyond a particular region. The term therefore denotes regional practices among the insular churches and their associates, rather than actual theological differences.

Contents

His feast day does not appear in any medieval Welsh calendar of the saints and is not presently observed by the Anglican, Catholic, or Orthodox churches in Wales.

A Gŵyl Mabsant, also known as the Patronal Festival or Wake of a parish, is a traditional Welsh festival held annually in commemoration of the patron saint of a parish. Prior to 1752, the corresponding fair was reckoned by the Saint's Day according to tradition or to the official Catholic or Anglican Calendar of Saints; following the shift to New Style dating, however, the fair was reckoned eleven days later. By the 19th century, the fair often began on the following Sunday and then lasted between three days and a week.

Church in Wales Anglican church in Wales

The Church in Wales is the Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. It defines itself as "the ancient Church of this land, catholic and reformed. It proclaims and holds fast the doctrine and ministry of the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church". In 2017, the Church in Wales reported 210,000 attendees in its membership statistics. The Anglican church is the largest denomination in Wales.

Catholic Church in England and Wales

The Catholic Church in England and Wales is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in full communion with the Pope. It traces its history to the apostles through Catholic Christendom, the Western Latin Church, particularised and recorded in Roman Britain as far back as the 1st century. Later, in the 6th century, the church was judicially bonded to the Apostolic See of Rome, when Gregory the Great through his Benedictine and Roman missionary, Augustine of Canterbury, established a direct link from the Kingdom of Kent to the Holy See in 597 AD. This ancient link to Irenaeus's source of Christian guidance, the See of Rome, has enriched its inter-church identity, not only across Britain and continental Europe but also and especially globally within what is sometimes referred to as the "Catholic Communion of Churches".

Legacy

The parish church of Merthyr Dyfan is now dedicated jointly to SS Dyfan and Teilo. [3] As late as 2010, it continued to promote itself as the oldest Christian settlement in Wales on the basis of Dyfan's supposed connection to the King Lucius legends. [4]

Parish church church which acts as the religious centre of a parish

A parish church in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, often allowing its premises to be used for non-religious community events. The church building reflects this status, and there is considerable variety in the size and style of parish churches. Many villages in Europe have churches that date back to the Middle Ages, but all periods of architecture are represented.

There is a Llandyfan ("St Dyfan's") outside Ammanford notable for its importance in the early Welsh Nonconformist movement. [5] The only structure is a chapel of ease erected for visitors to the holy well nearby esteemed for treatment of paralysis and related illnesses. This was known as Ffynnon Gwyddfaen or Gwyddfân [6] and Roberts argues against its connection with Dyfan "because the place was always called Llandyfân with the accent on the last syllable", appearing in earlier records as Llanduvaen. Instead, he notes the similarity of the name with Dyfnan, a supposed son of the invading Irishman Brychan of Brycheiniog. [8]

Ammanford town and community in the county of Carmarthenshire, Wales

Ammanford is a town and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, with a population of 5,411 at the 2011 census. It is a former coal mining town.

Nonconformist Protestant Christians in Wales and England who did not follow the established Church of England

In English church history, a Nonconformist was a Protestant who did not "conform" to the governance and usages of the established Church of England. Broad use of the term was precipitated after the Restoration of the British monarchy in 1660, when the Act of Uniformity 1662 re-established the opponents of reform within the Church of England. By the late 19th century the term specifically included the Reformed Christians, plus the Baptists and Methodists. The English Dissenters such as the Puritans who violated the Act of Uniformity 1559—typically by practising radical, sometimes separatist, dissent—were retrospectively labelled as Nonconformists.

Chapel of ease

A chapel of ease is a church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently.

The festival of St Dyfan does not appear in any surviving medieval Welsh calendar of the saints, [10] It sometimes appears in places where St Deruvian is clearly intended; [10] in Willis, [11] it appears on St Doewan's Day, an apparent confusion of the two. [10] The feast is not currently unobserved by any of the major denominations of Wales. [12] [13] [14]

Browne Willis English politician

Browne Willis was an antiquary, author, numismatist and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1705 to 1708.

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St Teilo's Church may refer to:

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Saint Dyfan was an obscure Welsh martyr and saint.

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References

  1. ↑ Bartrum, Peter C. "Dyfan, St.", in A Welsh Classical Dictionary: People in History and Legend up to about A. D. 1000, p. 236. National Library of Wales, 1993. Emended 2009.
  2. ↑ Bartrum, Peter C. "Duvianus (1)", in A Welsh Classical Dictionary: People in History and Legend up to about A. D. 1000, p. 236. National Library of Wales, 1993. Emended 2009.
  3. ↑ The Church in Wales. "St Dyfan and Teilo". Representative Body of the Church in Wales, 2014. Accessed 3 February 2015.
  4. ↑ The Church in Wales. "The Parish of Merthyr Dyfan: Barry, South Wales". Parish of Merthyr Dyfan (Merthyr Dyfan), 2010. Hosted at the Internet Archive. Accessed 3 February 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 Norman, Terry. "Llandyfan Church". Accessed 3 February 2015.
  6. ↑ Catholic Llandeilo, [7] cited by Norman. [5]
  7. ↑ Randall, Alan. Catholic Llandeilo: A History of St David's Parish. 1987.
  8. ↑ History of the Parish of Llandybie, [9] cited and translated by Norman. [5]
  9. ↑ Roberts, Gomer, Hanes Plwyf Llandybie [History of the Parish of Llandybie]. 1939.
  10. 1 2 3 Baring-Gould, Sabine & al. The Lives of the British Saints: The Saints of Wales and Cornwall and Such Irish Saints as Have Dedications in Britain, Vol. II, pp. 394–395. Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion (London), 1911.
  11. ↑ Willis, Browne. Parochiale Anglicanum (1733), p. 199.
  12. ↑ The Church in Wales. "The Book of Common Prayer for Use in the Church in Wales: The New Calendar and the Collects". 2003. Accessed 18 Nov 2014.
  13. ↑ The Catholic Church in England and Wales. "Liturgy Office: Liturgical Calendar". Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, 2014. Accessed 1 February 2015.
  14. ↑ "Saints of the British Isles". Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain (London), 2015. Accessed 1 February 2015.
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