Diocese of Menevia

Diamond Wedding Anniversary
Penblwydd priodas Ddiemwnt

Bu offeiriad a phobl Eglwys Y Groes Sanctaidd, Aberaeron, yn dathlu digwyddiad arbennig dros cyfnod y Nadolig.

Yn ystod yr offeren noswyl ar gyfer Gwyl y Teulu Sanctaidd, ( ar nos Sadwrn 30ed o Rhagfyr), cyflwynodd y Tad Augustine Paikkatt M.C.B.S., yr offeiriad plwyf, fendith Babaidd i Wyndham a Nansi Davies (y ddau yn Gymru Cymraeg) wrth iddynt gyrraedd penblwydd eu priodas Ddiemwnt.

Cyflwynwyd hwy hefyd a blodau ar ran yr eglwys gan Michelle Rafferty, y wasanaethferch allor.

Bu pawb yn curo dwylo ac yn llongyfarch Wyndham a Nansi yn gynnes iawn - dau aelod ffyddlon, sy'n fawr eu parch.

A special event was celebrated over the Christmas period by the priest and people of Holy Cross Church, Aberaeron.

At the Vigil Mass for the Feast of the Holy family (on Saturday 30th December, 2007) Father Augustine Paikkatt M.C.B.S., the parish priest, presented Wyndham and Nansi Davies ( both native Welsh speakers) with a Papal Blessing on attaining their Diamond Wedding anniversary.

Michelle Rafferty, server at Mass, also presented them with a bouquet of flowers on behalf of the church.

Wyndham and Nansi, as faithful and much-loved parishioners, were warmly applauded and congratulated by all present.

Rhidian Jones

Fr. John FitzGerald, O.Carm.

Fr. John FitzGerald

It is with sadness but trusting in the mercy of God that the British Province of Carmelite Friars announces the death of our brother, John FitzGerald, on 28th November 2007 following a short illness and aged 80. The funeral took place at Aylesford Priory, Kent on Friday 7th December at 11.30am with Requiem Mass followed by burial in the Province cemetery

Born Michael FitzGerald on 3rd February 1927, he joined the Carmelite Order in 1942 taking the religious name John and making his first profession of vows as a friar a year later at the age of 16. Following initial study of philosophy and theology in Ireland John undertook higher level studies in Rome and at Christ's College, Cambridge. John was ordained a priest in 1951.

With his death the Welsh-speaking Christian community has lost a key figure. Sent as a young friar to join the then "Welsh Mission" of his Order, John grew to love the language, culture and people of Wales. He was a key figure in the translation of the Liturgy into Welsh and participated in the production of an ecumenical Welsh translation of the Bible. He also translated some of the works of the philosopher Aristotle from Greek into Welsh. His commentary on The Letter to the Hebrews, originally written in Welsh, was translated into English and published as the Lenten reading recommended by the Catholic Bishops of Wales. A book of Fr. John's poetry in Welsh was long-listed for the Book of the Year award of the Welsh Assembly in 2007.

Fr. John enjoyed a distinguished academic career, teaching philosophy in Welsh for many years at University College, Aberystwyth, where along with his brother Gregory (also a Carmelite) he served at times as Roman Catholic Chaplain to the University. From 2002 he combined the office of Chaplain with that of Prior of his community until 2004 when the Carmelite community transferred from Aberystwyth to Llanelli where he continued as Prior.

He will also be remembered by generations of students from Saint Mary's College, Aberystwyth, which functioned as a college for "late vocations" to the priesthood until its closure in the 1970s.

John was a man who never stopped learning and retained something of a young person's wonder and awe in discovery right up until the end of his life. In his latter years he took up the study of Basque. The Basque Country became the regular location for his summer holidays, always taken after he had fulfilled his duties on the Catholic stall at the National Eisteddfod of Wales. In the last few years he was involved in exchange visits of both sheep-farmers and poets between Wales and the Basque Country.

John FitzGerald's great love of learning, especially the works of Thomas Aquinas, gave him a breadth of humanity and understanding which meant he was a compassionate and understanding friar-priest. Never the narrow scholastic, John would always err on the side of pastoral care for the individual. His easy humour and love for God and the people he served drew many people of all ages to the Gospel.

We will not see his like again.

(The above is reproduced from the website of the British Province of Carmelite Friars, with kind permission of Fr Tony Lester O.Carm, Prior Provincial)

A New School for Haverfordwest

The Blessing and Official Opening of the new MARY IMMACULATE PRIMARY SCHOOL at Haverfordwest was performed by BISHOP MARK on Wednesday, 24th October 2007.

The school entrance

This marked an historic landmark in the history of the Parish, during the Golden Jubilee Year of the original School, established in 1957. The total cost of the project was in the region of £3.5 million, with the required parish contribution amounting to about £450,000.

The occasion was a particularly joyous and proud one for the children, staff, governors, and parishioners alike. This was the culmination of over ten years of negotiations, planning, feasibility studies, and some frustrations. But all this was deemed well worthwhile on this great day of celebration.

Present at the Mass of Thanksgiving and Blessing were all the children and staff, the Mayor and Mayoress of the Town, over seventy invited guests, including representatives of the Contractors and Architects, the Local and Diocesan Education Authorities, and local clergy.

There was a particularly warm welcome for the Sisters of Mercy from Cahir, including Sr.Bosco, the first Headmistress of the old School back in 1957.

The children were very much involved in the liturgical celebrations and the standard of the singing was particularly impressive. They certainly set the tone of the whole celebration.

After the Mass the guests were treated to a high quality Buffet Meal, organised by parishioners under the expert guidance of Doug Harvey. Later in the evening Bishop Mark officiated at the Blessing of the Plaque to commemorate the occasion. There was an open invitation to this ceremony to parents and parishioners, and they responded in large numbers. They too were entertained to a generous Buffet. Those present also enjoyed browsing through numerous photos and memorabilia from past years.

Our New School is a fine, 'state of the art', modern structure, with all the up-to-date facilities fully equipped to meet the requirements of 21st Century educational standards. Its special design has been awarded a prize by the local Civic Trust.

As a parish we are all justly proud of MARY IMMACULATE SCHOOL, proud of its reputation through the years and grateful to God for the Sisters and teachers who have contributed to its success. As we now begin a new chapter our continued trust in God will energise our actions.

Together with children, parents, teachers, Governors, and parishioners, I want to thank Bishop Mark not only for his presence on the day but for his valued support and encouragement in the past few years. His Homily was practical and to the point, fitting the occasion reflecting his past experience in the educational field.

I conclude with the optimistic words of our present head teacher, Pat Mansfield:
"MARY IMMACULATE SCHOOL is noted as one of the most successful Primary Schools in Wales. It is constantly ranked above the County and national average in the annual assessments for the Key Stages. It is the ethos of the school which makes it so popular. This is cohesive and in no way divisive."

Fr Owen McGreal (Parish Priest)

Pererindod Y Cylch Catholig I Aberteifi
The Cylch Catholic Pilgrimage to Cardigan

Pleser bob amser yw cael y cyfle i ddod i Aberteifi ar bererindod - ac elini unwaith eto roedd y tywydd yn braf a'r croeso yn gynnes iawn.

I rai, profiad newydd - a werthfawrogwyd yn fawr - oedd Gwasanaeth Bendith y Sagrafen Fendigaid ar ddiwedd yr Awr Sanctaidd.

Arweiniwyd y gynulleidfa'n ddyheig iawn ym myfyrdodau a gweddiau Dirgeleddau Goleuni y Llaswyr gan Rhidian Jones o Aberaeron.

Roedd y gerddoriaeth (bore a phrynhawn) yng ngofal tri organydd medrus o'r un teulu - sef, David Leggett sydd bellach yn byw yng Nghaerdydd, a'i fam a'i frawd - sef, Jane a Pete Leggett - o blwyf Aberyswyth. Roedd y gerddoriaeth a'r Salm ar gân wedi cyfrannu'n fawr at ysbrydolrwydd y bererindod.

Cyd-ddathlwyd yr Offeren gan Esgob Daniel Mullins, Canon Seamus Cunnane, a Tad Jason Jones. Ar ddiwedd yr Offeren, diolchodd Esgob Daniel i'r darllenwyr a'r gweision allor a phawb oedd wedi cynorthwyo gyda'r paratoadau ac yn ystod yr Offeren.

Yn ei bregeth, dechreuodd Esgob Daniel gyda'r Proffwyd Sechareia ar yr adeg y dychwelodd yr Iddewon i Jerwsalem ar ôl y Gaethglud ym Mabilon. Dangosodd sut mae neges Sechareia yn bwysig ac yn amserol heddiw i ni i gyd ‘ym Mabilon ein dyhaedau materol’, a sut roedd gofidion y proffwyd am gael ei wrthod yr un fath ân gofid ni ‘Mae atyniadau'r byd a'r angen am fod yn barchus yn wyneb cyfoedion . . . yn gallu boddi neges yr Efengyl.’

Wrth gyfeirio at fuddugoliaeth Lepanto ym 1571 a sefydlu Gwyl Fair y Llaswyr gan y Pab Pius V ym 1572, esboniodd Esgob Daniel am hanes y llaswyr a'r ffordd yr ystrid adrodd 150 o weddiau ‘Henffych well, Fair’ gan bobl anllythrennog yn gyfwerth ag adrodd y sallwyr llawn, sef 150 o salmau, gan bobl oedd yn medru darllen.’ Mae'r Breviarum Romanum, yn ein hannog ni ar yr Wyl i fyfyrio ar ddirgeleddau Crist, gan ddilyn esiampl Mair.’

Wrth gloi, gwerthfawrogodd Esgob Daniel y ffaith ein bod ni yn Aberteifi ‘yn un â chenedlaethau a chanrifoedd o Gymru Gatholig a ddaeth yma i ofyn am eirolaeth Mair wrth iddynt ymlafnio i gadw'r Ffydd yng nghanol holl drafferthion a diddanion bywyd.’ Gweddfodd y byddai pawb, wrth fynd adref, yn cadw un peth yn glir ac yn gadarn yn eu meddyliau a'u calonnau - sef, ‘Daeth y Gair yn gnawd a phreswyliodd yn ein plith; Mynegodd ei ddymuniad y byddai pawb yn sylweddoli ein bod yn y bererindod ‘wedi cael cipdrem yma ar Ei ogoniant ef...fel unig Fab yn dod oddi wrth y Tad.’

Ar ran y Cylch Catholig, hoffwn ddiolch i Esgob Daniel, i Blwyf Aberteifi, ac i bawb a gyfrannodd o'u hamser a'u doniau i sicrhau diwrnod `i siarsio'r bateriau ysbrydol' a chyfle i ni foli Duw ac anrhydeddu Mair yn ein Cysegrfan Genedlaethol.

`Mair o Aberteifi, gweddfa dros Gynru'

The opportunity to go to Cardigan always a pleasure - and this year once again the welcome was warm and the weather was fine.

For some, Benediction was a new experience. It was celebrated by Fr Jason and was much appreciated.

Rhidian Jones of Aberaeron reverently guided the congregation through the meditations and prayers of the `Luminous Mysteries of the Holy Rosary'.

The music for both morning and afternoon added much to the spirituality of the pilgrimage. The organists, all from the same family (David Leggett, who now lives in Cardiff and his mother Jane, and brother Pete from Aberystwyth parish) played excellently and the Psalm was truly uplifting.

Mass was concelebrated by Bishop Daniel Mullins, Canon Seamus Cunnane and Fr Jason Jones. At the end of Mass Bishop Mullins expressed his thanks to the readers and the altar servers and all who had prepared for and participated in the Mass.

Bishop Daniel began his sermon with reference to the prophet Zechariah, at the time of the return of the Jewish people to Jerusalem, after their exile in Babylon. He demonstrated how the message of Zechariah is important and relevant in our day and age - in our `Babylon' of materialism, and how the fears of the prophet that he would be rejected and not listened to are the same as our fears (the attractions of the world and the need to be acceptable to our peer groups may bury the message of the Gospel).

Referring to the victory at Lepanto in 1571 and the institution of the `Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary' by Pope Pius V in 1572, Bishop Daniel explained some of the history of the Rosary and the way in which the recitation of 150 'Hail Mary's' by an illiterate person came to be considered of equal worth to the recitation of the 150 psalms by someone able to read. The 'Brevariun Romanum' encourages us to meditate on the mysteries of Christ and to follow the example of His Mother.

In concluding, Bishop Daniel told us that we on our pilgrimage were at one with generations and centuries of Welsh Catholics who had come to Cardigan to ask for Our Lady's intercession to help them as they tried to keep the faith in the face of all the problems and distractions of life. He expressed his wish that we pilgrims all keep in our hearts and our minds, clearly and firmly, that "The Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us", realising that in the pilgrimage we have caught a glimpse of the glory of the only-begotten Son who comes to us from the Father.

On behalf of `Y Cylch Catholig', I would like to sincerely thank Bishop Daniel, the parish of Cardigan, and all who gave freely of their time and talents to ensure a day to `recharge the spiritual batteries' and an opportunity to worship God and to venerate Our Lady at our National Shrine.

Anne C. Uruska
(Cyd-Ysgrifennydd y Cylch Catholig)
Hydref/October 2007

Come Home for Christmas

Nearly every Catholic family and friendship group is affected by the reality of people who have lapsed. It is a source of great sorrow for many, but this Advent, Christmas and New Year, we are invited to take a courageous step to invite them back.

Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, Archbishop of Westminster and the bishops of England and Wales sends this message to non church-going Catholics . . .

'My Dear Friends,
A warm welcome awaits you. At your own pace and in your own time, we'd be interested to hear your story and learn from your experiences. You are an important and much-loved member of the Body of Christ. Come.'

And as one of the English bishops remarked recently . . . "From outside, I imagine that the Catholic Church can seem quite an intimidating organisation, full of people who are fearful, guilty, pious and joyless. Ask a Catholic in church on a Sunday, and they won't know what you are talking about. Catholic churches should be welcoming places, but we need to ask ourselves what we look like to people who don't know us.

I was in Istanbul not long ago, and wanted to visit the famous mosques there, but was not sure how welcome I would be. It was only when I saw streams of other visitors heading in that I had the courage to follow. And it was all very easy - take your shoes off and be respectful. If there are people who want to come into our Catholic churches, I would say that you are most welcome.

I am sure that there are people who lost contact with the Church long ago, and now, with all the changes that have happened, might feel too shy to come back in, afraid to embarrass themselves by doing the wrong thing. I would say to them, don't worry, come in and see. Sit at the back and do what the rest do. You might be pleasantly surprised."

Finally a message from our own Bishop Mark . . .
"As a Catholic Community we welcome you and want to listen to your story. If it's been a long time since you've been to church, or perhaps you visit now and again, come and see. The holiday season is a wonderful time to revisit people and places of your youth. A feast awaits you at your local Catholic parish."

"How to Misunderstand Religion"
a lecture by the Archbishop of Canterbury

The Most Honourable and Rt Rev Dr Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury and head of the Anglican church came to Swansea University on the 13th of October to give a lecture entitled 'How To Misunderstand Religion.' He focused his lecture on popular atheists, in particular Richard Dawkins and his most-recent book 'The God Delusion' in which he sets out arguments against the existence of God. Although his talk did focus on Christianity, the Archbishop demonstrated a knowledge of other beliefs including Buddhism and Hinduism. The archbishop’s lecture was not an attack on atheism itself, but instead addressed the ways in which atheists interpret religion wrongly, and the reasons for believing in God. To begin with, he quoted Dostoyevsky’s novel 'The Idiot', in which Prince Mishkin says, "Atheists always seems to be talking about something else." This was a running theme for the lecture as he discussed how the religion some militant atheists argue against is not, in fact, the same one that the majority of Christians believe in. It was also, he said, not a case of religious believers defending themselves, but a question of the character of intellectual debate, and the need to understand what it is a debater actually disagrees with.

Using the play 'On Religion' by Mick Gordon and A. C. Grayling as a basis for his lecture, the Archbishop first addressed the idea, prevalent in Dawkins' writing, that Darwinian theory can be applied to everything, and that everything should be broken down and explained in terms of survival strategies. This, however, is a fallacy, as a theory designed around biology cannot, and should not, be applied to philosophy or culture. In order to apply Darwin’s theory to religion, you have to assume the hypothesis of there being a measurable transmission of cultural ideas in the same way as genes are passed from one generation to the next. This, however, does not work as there simply is no mimetic which transmits culture. He concluded that if we were to treat cultural phenomena as survival strategies, we would end up with an inadequate theory, and would have to exclude from study of cultures anything which is not a matter of survival. This would necessitate ignoring an enormous amount of subjects in culture and as the Archbishop pointed out, this would not be a scientifically sound method. Religion, he concluded, does not necessarily provide the believer with anything they need, and he suggested that if someone becomes religious purely for what they might get in return, they have missed the point.

He then addressed the question of religion as an explanation. He began by saying that religion is "a bad explanation of the universe - muddled, irrational and ultimately inconclusive." By all accounts, religion should no longer be attempted as an explanation for the universe. Dawkins says in his book "I will do religion the courtesy of treating it as an explanatory hypothesis" but, Dr Williams says, that is not the way religious believers would like it seen. A thesis is designed to be tested, evidence versus counter-evidence, but as Dr Williams said, there is no creed which states "I believe in God the father, maker of Heaven and Earth, subject to further investigation". Religious activities - worship, adoration, contemplation and love - are not generally used in testing scientific theories. Religious believers treat God as real already, and He does not require testing to find. Arguments for God’s existence have been presented, but they were not done as scientific works, which move from the more certain to the less certain, but instead relate two equally-certain realities, God and the world, and look for connections between them. St Thomas Aquinas wrote his arguments not to explain why things happen in the world, but to relate the uncertain things in the world to a certain deity, who does exist, and examines how He makes things happen. God is not a link in a chain between activities, but is instead an "explanation of why we look for explanations. The explanation of rationality itself." He is the answer to an entire system of objects, movements and activities, existing outside of everything else.

Dr Williams welcomed criticism to religion, and said it was to be expected that we would not understand everything about God, and should be prepared to face the idea that we might be wrong. We cannot understand something that is so enormous and upon which we depend, and so it would be unnatural to attempt to fully understand God and use Him as an explanation for other things in the world. All we need to know is the least information possible to pass on knowledge of God to the next generation. And we need trust, not for God to provide us with an explanation, but trust in His existence and His love. Referencing "On Religion" again, Dr Williams quoted that the way to deal with bad religion is not to abolish religion entirely, but to strive for better religion, suggesting religion which understands its own humility and place in the universe is preferable to one which seeks to use religion as a weapon to cow atheists into submission.

Dr Williams concluded that religion has no way of defeating atheism, and the existence of God may not be proved. But the true believers who trust in God demonstrate good habits which atheists should not be keen to put down. Do not assume that religion is eccentric or irrational for its lack of evidence, but instead look at the effect it has on individuals and communities, breeding an attitude of self-questioning, honesty and trust.

Dr Williams was charitable to Dawkins and how readable his book is, and admitted that religion is an irrational concept, based on no solid evidence and, as well as being beneficial, can also be "fantastically destructive". He said that he would applaud Dawkins' attempts to wean religious behaviours away from destructive actions based on an extreme religious ideas, and what the Archbishop described as "absurdities". On the subject of challenging absurd beliefs, the Archbishop said, "I would say alleluia. Well, [Dawkins] wouldn’t."

The Archbishop is no stranger to Swansea, having spent his youth in Ystradgynlais and Cardiff before his family moved to Mumbles. On his return to his native area for the lecture, he found an audience of over 1,000 people, with 300 in the Taliesin theatre and the rest in other rooms in the university watching a live video feed. The Rev. Nigel John, Anglican chaplain at the university and organiser of the Theology public lectures - of which this was the first of the academic year - said, "There was unprecedented interest in Dr Williams’ lecture, which was a magnificent success. He gave a wonderful lecture, which was hugely appreciated and well received by those who were present."

Rt Rev Ivor Rees, Rt Rev Mark Jabalé,
The Most Rev and Rt Honourable Dr Rowan Williams,
and Rt Rev Anthony Pierce.

"Raise a Million Appeal"
to be launched at the Twentieth Anniversary of the Cathedral Church of St Joseph.

In 1987 one year short of its centenary St Joseph’s Church became a cathedral at the inauguration of the new Diocese of Menevia. On the seventh of December the Cathedral church of St Joseph celebrates its twentieth anniversary as a cathedral. On this date, Bishop Mark, the priests and Canons of the Diocese will concelebrate Mass and launch the start of the million pound appeal for the purpose of refurbishing the Cathedral, the presbytery and the organ. The works will be carried out in phases spread over a three-year period.

Fr J.W. Richards O.S.B arrived at St Joseph’s church as parish priest in 1875 and found it in an appalling state. The parishioners were very poor and lived in homes, often not fit for human habitation. He decided that this area needed a special place for its people to worship, which would lift their minds, and hearts to God. So began a project, which many considered foolhardy and to which there was much opposition. He enlisted the services of the architect Peter Paul Pugin to design the church in 1886 and work began. The general building took two years at the staggering cost of £10,000. Built over the years with the blood, sweat and tears of the people of Greenhill, many of who were poor Irish immigrants who had settled in that area. Works continued as funds became available, for instance the confessional doors were added in 1896 at a cost of £20, the floors were concreted and wood blocked at a cost of £276.

Furnishings and decoration were slowly added with gifts from many including the beautiful Stations of the Cross from the family of Fr Van Volckxsom in Antwerp. The church was eventually opened on 25th November 1888 by Bishop Hedley O.S.B.

Thanks to the far sightedness and inspiration of Fr Richards whose vision was that the beautiful church he built would one day be a Cathedral, and the love of God, which was shown to be present in those people who struggled to pay for it, we are now able to enjoy the peace and tranquillity that is our Cathedral Church of St Joseph in Menevia.

The cathedral is open daily to anyone wishing to spend some time in private prayer, contemplation or simply to visit and enjoy its splendour between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday to Friday.

We would like to take this opportunity to invite you to come along to the Mass to launch our appeal at 7.30 on the 5th December and to support the cathedral in this very important venture. We need to preserve this magnificent church, which is our inheritance so that we can ensure its availability for future generations. It is now our responsibility.

CONTACT: Grace Beanan Tel:01792 422210

Swansea University Catholic Society News

Swansea University Catholic Society started the 2006-7 academic year in the now-traditional manner with an All-Saints party when they joined with the parish of St Benedict’s, Sketty and, at the party St Theresa, St George and St Gerard Majella helped run activities such as the chocolate game and bobbing for apples, with Father Neil co-coordinating the whole thing.

While the year continued with the usual Sunday lunches (cooked by the members) and Thursday night discussion groups (run by Fr Neil, and with Lectio Divina provided by Sr Brigit) preparations were already underway for the Christmas celebrations. Regina constructed an advent calendar containing prayers and chocolates, and Angela and Richard made a prayer tree for people to hang their petitions on. At the end of the term, after weeks of preparation, came the party, which this year was a black-tie event, which was described by one member as “very James Bond”. The evening included a four-course Christmas dinner which was partly provided, very kindly, by the Sisters at Stella Maris Convent, and a Christmas cake provided by Richard (although the brandy was carefully regulated). There was also a rousing debate on the seemingly-simple topic of ‘Christmas versus Easter’, which caused almost as many arguments in the audience as it did on stage. Easter won by using such ingenious arguments as "Coca-Cola hijacked Christmas and possibly invented the colour red", and "Anyone can be born, but only one person can die and rise again." Later in the evening they moved into Christmas carols and the traditional singing of 'The 12 Days of CathSoc', a personal reworking of the popular song.

The second term saw Lenten preparations, and several members finding their resolve tested as they struggled to keep their Lenten fasts. The second term also contained a pilgrimage to St Nons, an extremely enjoyable three days staying with the Sisters of Mercy. The members who went enjoyed long walks on the cliffs, regular prayers with Fr Neil, and Mass in the chapel. Everyone agreed it was an excellent trip, and preparations are already underway to return next year.

CathSoc members
in the Chapel of Our Lady and St Non, St Nons

As Sunday lunches continued through the second and third terms the menus became more adventurous, and included cuisine from as far afield as Hungary, America, Italy, and Ireland, and local Welsh recipes. As well as the food, there was information and souvenirs from the countries involved and, where appropriate, silly hats.

As the end of the year fast-approached, the main event to be organised was the end-of-year barbeque. This commenced with Holy Hour in St Benedicts, before moving into the hall for tea and homemade scones (provided by Yvonne). Then came speeches from the committee and awards (comprising a sweet, a CD of CathSoc photos and recipes from the year’s lunches) given to every member of the society for their individual contributions, which really made it clear how important every individual member is. After this the cocktail bar (manned by Leo and Richard) was opened, and Nick fired up the barbeque. Amongst the masses of food and drink there was also giant Jenga and Connect Four, or people could simply sit and enjoy the sun and being among friends.

And so all too soon the year ended. Some members returned to their own countries, some went to study abroad, and a few remain behind to run the society next year. With an award from the Students Union (for Most Efficient Society) and the friendships of many members to remind them of the year, CathSoc is looking forward to many similar years ahead.

Un o binaclau gwersyll ieuencid y Cylch Catholig yng Nglan Llyn dros ŵyl y banc fis Awst eleni heb os oedd taith hudolus yng ngolau’r lloer i ben bryn cyfagos. Roedd Llinos, a oedd yn gofalu am y gwersyll yr wythnos honno, yn adrodd rhai o chwedlau’r ardal ar y daith ac Esgob Regan yn cynnal hwyrol weddi ar ben y bryn.

Doedd y bobl ifanc erioed wedi cael profiad tebyg. Roedd yn well hyd yn oed na’r hwylio, dringo, bowlio deg ac yn y blaen sy’n gymaint rhan o’r hwyl yng Nglan Llyn.

Cynhleir y gwersyll yn flynyddol i bobl ifanc Catholig 10 – 15 oed sy’n siarad Cymraeg. Mae’n gyfle iddyn nhw ddod i adnabod pobl ifanc eraill o bob rhan o Gymru ac yn gyfle unigryw i ddathlu eu ffydd drwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg.

Diolch i Anna Elwyn o Borthaethwy, Tim o Bwllheli a Cathy o Gaerdydd am ymuno gydag Esgob Regan i gadw trefn ar bawb.

Dylai unrhyw un sydd awydd mynd i’r gwersyll y flwyddyn nesaf (22 – 24 Awst 2008) gysylltu â Sue Roberts, 01758 614977, sue@inc-cyf.com

Without a doubt the pinnacle of the Cylch Catholig youth camp in Glan Llyn over the bank holiday this year was the moonlit walk to the top of the nearby hill. Llinos, who was in charge of the camp that weekend, told local tales on the walk and on reaching the top of the hill Bishop Regan held a short evening prayer session.

It was spellbinding - the young people had never experienced anything like it. It was better, so they said, than the sailing, climbing and ten-pin bowling etc. that is so much part of the fun of Glan Llyn.

The camp is held annually for young Welsh speaking Catholics aged 10 – 15. It is a chance for them to get to know other young people from all over Wales and an unique chance to celebrate their faith through the Welsh language.

Many thanks to Anna Elwyn from Menai Bridge, Tim from Pwllheli and Cathy from Cardiff who joined Bishop Regan in keeping an eye on everyone.

Anyone wishing to join next year’s camp (22- 24 August 2008) should contact Sue Roberts - Tel: 01758 614977 or email - sue@inc-cyf.com


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