Esgob Saunders Davies : 'Mae Cymro da ac ysbrydol wedi mynd at ei Arglwydd'
Cynhelir gwasanaeth angladd Esgob Saunders ar Ddydd Sadwrn, Ebrill 7 am 1yp yn Eglwys y Santes Fair, Aberteifi, ac wedyn ei gladdedigaeth yn fynwent Brynach Sant, Nanhyfer.
Mae teyrngedau'n cael eu talu i gyn Esgob Bangor a fu farw Ddydd Gwener y Groglith yn 80 oed.
Fe wnaeth Esgob Saunders Davies wasanaethu fel Esgob Bangor am bum mlynedd cyn ei ymddeoliad yn 2004. Roedd ei weinidogaeth gyfan, dros 40 mlynedd, yn yr Eglwys yng Nghymru, yn bennaf yn Esgobaeth Bangor.
Dywedodd Archesgob Cymru, John Davies, ei fod yn 'arwyddocaol' fod yr Esgob Saunders wedi marw ar ddydd Gwener y Groglith.
Meddai, "Bydd y newyddion am farwolaeth yr Esgob Saunders Davies yn achosi tristwch i lawer yn yr Eglwys yng Nghymru lle bu'n gwasanaethu'n ffyddlon am 40 mlynedd. Roedd Saunders yn unigolyn addfwyn, sanctaidd a gostyngedig, llawn dysgeidiaeth, gyda meddwl craff a chalon gynnes. Fe'i heffeithiwyd yn gynyddol gan Glefyd Parkinson yn ystod ei flynyddoedd diwethaf a oedd yn ei wanhau yn dangos ar ei iechyd. Er gwaethaf y ffaith fod yr afiechyd yn cynyddu, fe lywddodd i ysgrifennu ataf ar fy etholiad fel Archesgob, a gallaf weld ei gerdyn yn fy meddwl, a olygai ei fod wedi gwneud ymdrech aruthrol i ysgrifennu. Cefais fy nghyffwrdd o'i dderbyn.
"Ym mywyd yr eglwys, yn aml mae 'partneriaethau' nodedig o wr a gwraig, ac yn achos Saunders, roedd yn eithaf prin iddo gael ei grybwyll heb sôn hefyd am ei wraig Cynthia, a oedd yn ei gefnogi mor llawn a ffyddlon, a rhannu cymaint o fywyd, gweinidogaeth a dysgu. Iddi hi, a gweddill y teulu, yr wyf yn ymestyn sicrwydd fy nghariad a'm gweddïau. Mae’r ffaith fod Saunders wedi gadael y byd hwn ar ddydd Gwener y Groglith yn arwyddocaol. Gweddïwn y bydd, yn rhydd o fregusrwydd a gwendid, yn rhannu llawenydd addewid Crist o fywyd newydd."
Ychwanegodd Esgob Bangor, Andy John, “Gyda thristwch mawr mae marwolaeth y Gwir Barchedig Saunders Davies wedi'i gyhoeddi. Bu i Saunders wasanaethu'r esgobaeth hon a'i Gadeirlan yn ffyddlon fel curad, periglor, Is-ganon, Archddiacon ac Esgob. Mae’n gweddïau a'n cydymdeimlad hefo Cynthia, Siôn, Angharad a'u teuluoedd. Mae Cymro da ac ysbrydol wedi mynd at ei Arglwydd. Boed iddo orffwys mewn tangnefedd ac atgyfodi mewn gogoniant.'
Mae’n gweddïau a'n cydymdeimlad hefo Cynthia, Siôn, Angharad a'u teuluoedd. Mae Cymro da ac ysbrydol wedi mynd at ei Arglwydd. Boed iddo orffwys mewn tangnefedd ac atgyfodi mewn gogoniant.'
Graddiodd yr Esgob Saunders, o Brifysgol Cymru, Bangor, Coleg Selwyn, Caergrawnt, a Phrifysgol Bonn (Yr Almaen). Fe'i hyfforddodd ar gyfer ordeinio yng Ngholeg Mihangel Sant, Llandaf, a dechreuodd ei weinidogaeth fel curad yng Nghaergybi. Roedd y Gymraeg yn iaith gyntaf iddo a pharhaodd Saunders ei weinidogaeth yn Esgobaeth Bangor fel Rheithor Llanllyfni, ac Is-ganon yng Nghadeirlan Bangor cyn symud i'r de i wasanaethu fel Ficer Gorseinon a Deon Gwledig Llwchwr yn Esgobaeth Abertawe ac Aberhonddu. Yn 1983, fe'i penodwyd fel Ficer yr eglwys Gymraeg yng Nghaerdydd, Eglwys Dewi Sant, lle bu'n gwasanaethu am 10 mlynedd.
Dychwelodd i'r gogledd fel Rheithor Criccieth ac Archddiacon Meirionnydd. Ym 1999 fe'i hetholwyd yn Esgob Bangor, lle bu'n gwasanaethu tan ei ymddeoliad yn 2004.
Yn ystod ei weinidogaeth, cadeiriodd Esgob Saunders y grŵp a ddatblygodd gynllun iaith Gymraeg yr Eglwys yng Nghymru.
Yn y llun mae Esgob Saunders (chwith) gyda'i ragflaenwyr fel Esgob Bangor, Barry Morgan (canol) a’r diweddar Cledan Mears
Gwelwch yr erthygyl gwreiddiol ar wefan yr Eglwys yng Nghymru
Bishop Saunders Davies : 'A great and spiritual Welshman has gone to the Lord'
The funeral service for Bishop Saunders will take place on Saturday, April 7 at 1pm at St Mary’s Church, Cardigan, followed by a burial at St Brynach’s churchyard, Nevern.
Tributes are being paid to a former Bishop of Bangor who died today aged 80.
Bishop Saunders Davies served as Bishop of Bangor for five years, before his retirement in 2004. His entire ministry, spanning 40 years, had been spent in the Church in Wales, mostly in the Diocese of Bangor.
The Archbishop of Wales, John Davies, said it was ‘poignant’ that Bishop Saunders died on Good Friday.
He said, “The news of the death of Bishop Saunders Davies will cause sadness for many in the Church in Wales where he served faithfully for 40 years. Saunders was a gentle, holy and self-effacing individual, possessed of learning, a good mind and a warm heart. His last years were increasingly affected by Parkinson’s Disease which took an inevitably unkind toll on him. Despite the increasing grip of the disease, he manged to write to me on my election as Archbishop, and I can picture, in my mind’s eye, the card sent, which must have taken a tremendous effort to write. I was deeply touched to receive it.
“There are, in church life, often notable ‘partnerships’ of husband and wife and, in the case of Saunders, it was quite rare for him to be mentioned without mention also being made of his wife Cynthia, who supported him so fully and faithfully, and with whom he shared so very much of life, ministry and learning. To her, and the rest of the family, I extend the assurance of my love and prayers. That Saunders should leave this world on Good Friday is poignant. We pray that, free from frailty and infirmity, he will share the joy of Christ’s promise of new life.”
The Bishop of Bangor, Andy John, added, “It is with great sadness that the death of the Bishop Saunders has been announced. Saunders served Bangor Diocese and her Cathedral as a faithful curate, incumbent, Minor Canon, Archdeacon and Bishop.
“Our prayers and sympathies are with Cynthia, Siôn, Angharad and their families. A great and spiritual Welshman has gone to the Lord. May he rest in peace and rise in glory.”
Our prayers and sympathies are with Cynthia, Siôn, Angharad and their families. A great and spiritual Welshman has gone to the Lord. May he rest in peace and rise in glory.
Bishop Saunders, who died aged 80, graduated from the University of Wales, Bangor, Selwyn College, Cambridge, and Bonn University. He trained for ordination at St Michael’s College, Llandaff, and began his ministry as a curate in Holyhead. A first language Welsh-speaker, Saunders continued in Bangor Diocese as Rector of Llanllyfni, and a minor Canon at Bangor Cathedral before moving south to serve as Vicar of Gorseinon and Rural Dean of Llwchwr in the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon. In 1983, he was appointed Vicar of Cardiff’s Welsh language church, Eglwys Dewi Sant, where he served for 10 years.
He returned to the north as Rector of Criccieth and Archdeacon of Meirionnydd. In 1999 he was elected Bishop of Bangor, which he remained until his retirement in 2004. During his ministry, Bishop Saunders chaired the group that developed the Church in Wales’ Welsh language scheme.
The picture shows Bishop Saunders (left) with his predecessors as Bishop of Bangor, Barry Morgan (centre) and the late Cledan Mears.