A History of Christianity in Wales

by David Ceri Jones, Barry J. Lewis, Madeleine Gray

A survey of Welsh Christianity from its origins in Roman Britain to the present.

Christianity has played an enormous role in the history of Wales and in the defining and shaping of Welsh identity over the past two thousand years. Biblical place names, an urban and rural landscape littered with churches, chapels, crosses, and sacred sites, a bardic and literary tradition deeply imbued with Christian themes in both the Welsh and English languages, and the songs sung by tens of thousands of rugby fans all hint at a Christian presence that was once universal. Yet for many people in contemporary Wales, the story of the development of Christianity in the country remains little known.

Aimed at the general reader, this is the first single-volume history of Welsh Christianity from its origins in Roman Britain to the present. Drawing on the expertise of four leading historians of the Welsh Christian tradition, it offers a succinct, clear, and accessible account of the development of Christianity in Wales in its Catholic, Protestant, and Nonconformist forms and will be the perfect introduction to the subject.

Genres: History, Religion

384 pages, Paperback

First published April 5, 2022

Reviews

[Jonathan Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a well needed book - an accessible, one volume, historically accurate, overview of Christianity in Wales. Avoiding hagiography, but sometimes leaning too much into the historical debates, this is a strong overview. The authors are fair to all the various traditions. This book provides an excellent context and overview for further study. The 'a guide to further reading' sections at the back are really helpful.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had been really looking forward to this book: Wales has such a history with Christianity, from the Roman conversions, through a period where it was the British bastion of Christianity against the Saxon invasions, incredibly stubborn debates about Easter, a curious proliferation of Cistercians, a relatively quiet Reformation experience and then on to the sudden, rapid growth of non-conformism and Methodism. Unfortunately, while this book is big on the who, what and when, it is frustratingly quiet on the subject of why. This is accompanied by the authors occasional lapse into correcting their protagonists' theology e.g. "Veneration of the Virgin Mary is one of the more problematic aspects of late medieval piety" and "With the publication of the movement’s Confession of Faith in 1823, a mature document which blends traditional covenant theology with a pronounced Christological emphasis and accent on the work of the Spirit in bringing about union with Christ, doctrinal balance was restored."
The book remains a useful summary of developments, but for analysis of why Wales had such a path - what economic, social and political factors led to a distinct set of developments - I would look elsewhere.

[GRANT · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent scholarly book written for the generally educated reader, that is, the reader with a
basic background in Welsh and Religious History. This book synthesizes the two in an engaging style. There are University lecturers and one reader responsible for their own chapters or who share in the writing. The quotes of contemporaneous writings, hymns, and poetry (with translation) are fascinatingly enjoyable. The detail is wonderful when familiar people or places reveal themselves in the story. It goes just deep enough without losing this reader in too much academic detail.

[A.L. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introductory read about Christianity in Wales. Sometimes it's a bit uneven and contradictory, and I really wish they used the Oxford comma, but it's a very useful book.