church
By the time the Romans left Britain, Christianity was well-established and the old Celtic gods were consigned to the region of myth and legend. The Celtic church developed its own distinctive style of worship and church life; in many places small communities grew up around the llan, an enclosure where a devout teacher would live. At first there were a number of differences between the Celtic church and the Roman Catholic Church but gradually it became absorbed into the Roman church and by 16th century the four dioceses of Wales all came under the archbishop of Canterbury. When the Church of England broke away from Rome, the church in Wales was also required to sever ties with Rome as well.
Queen Elizabeth 1 realised that most people in Wales could not rerad the prayer book and Bible in English and so ordered them to be translated into Welsh. Bishop William Morgan completed the first translation of the Bible into Welsh in 1588 and in doing so not only made the scriptures accessible to the ordinary people but played a most important part in preserving the Welsh language itself. Its poetic language made the Welsh bible very popular and soon a revised version was produced by Dr. John Davies. For many families this was the only book they could afford.
"It is impossible to believe that God would have seen fit to keep this language alive until these days, after so many crises in the history of the nation … had He not intended His name to be called and His great works to be proclaimed in it."
Dr. John Davies.
The Church of England never really flourished in Wales since its leaders were mostly English and rarely visited their dioceses; it became more the church of the gentry who gradually stopped using the Welsh language and adopted English ways. Eventually, in 1919 it became the Anglican Church in Wales but by this time there had developed a rivalry between church and chapel.
There was a spate of new churches in the 18th and 19th centuries. Many of these began in industrial areas, sharing the gospel and ministering to those working in the mines and slate quarries. Methodists, Baptists, Congregationalists gained large numbers of new converts as the result of frequent revivals and awakenings. The chapel congregations were Welsh-speaking and the fervour of singing and preaching alike appealed to the Celtic temperament.
The beginning of the C20th saw a great spiritual awakening in Wales. God used an uneducated young evangelist, who had been both a miner and a blacksmith, to turn a nation back to Himself. The story of Evan Roberts and the Welsh revival of 1904 is well-documented. Within a year more than 100,000 people were swept into the kingdom of God. This move of God only lasted a few years but its legacy remained for much longer.
Many new chapels were built and filled at this time and there was a widespread effect on society. It is said, however, that there were those within the church who did not want revival. The first World War, 1914 – 1918, saw many godly young called into the armed services to fight on the battlefields of Europe. Many did not return and this also affected the life of the church in Wales.
Following World War two, 1939-1945, the second half of the C20th witnessed the decline of the church in Wales. Many chapels have closed down, becoming workshops, warehouses, or private residences. Some buildings are preserved for their historical interest but are difficult and expensive to maintain. In many places the congregations are elderly, numbers have dwindled and those remaining feel discouraged. The overall picture is a sad one.
Yet there are a number of thriving and growing churches and many Christians who believe that God has promised to bring revival again to this lovely and needy land. We ask you to join us in praying for Wales, for this generation to hear the good news and to respond afresh to the love of God in Jesus.