Lawnsiad Prosiect Llenyddol ar Lwybr Cadfan
Rhwng mis Mawrth eleni a mis Awst 2023, bydd cyfle i ddod i adnabod eglwysi a chymunedau ar Lwybr Cadfan Sant, o Dywyn i Ynys Enlli; lle y credir mai Cadfan oedd yr abad cyntaf. Trwy gyfrwng barddoniaeth, cerddoriaeth a digwyddiadau cymunedol byddwn yn dathlu cefndir crefyddol, hanesyddol a diwylliannol yr ardaloedd ar hyd y llwybr.
Bydd dau fardd preswyl, Siôn Aled a Sian Northey, yn arwain y prosiect dan nawdd Esgobaeth Bangor, gyda’r bwriad o roi llwyfan i wahodd beirdd, cerddorion a haneswyr y gwahanol ardaloedd i gynnig golwg newydd ar y llannau hynafol ar hyd y daith. Bydd hynny’n cynnwys cofio gwreiddiau Cadfan Sant, y cenhadwr Celtaidd o’r chweched ganrif, yn Llydaw.
Meddai Siôn,
Yn ogystal ag edrych yn ôl i hanes, a nodi arwyddocâd ysbrydol, er enghraifft, Ffynnon Gybi yn Eifionydd, byddwn hefyd am dynnu sylw at dreftadaeth ddiwydiannol Porthmadog, a gedwir yn fyw yn Rheilffordd Ffestiniog, a gwaith yr Eglwys heddiw mewn ardaloedd sy’n wynebu heriau economaidd a chymdeithasol y Gymru wledig rŵan hyn.
Mae deg o safleoedd eglwysig wedi eu dewis i fod yn ganolfannau penodol ac yn ganolbwynt y gweithgarwch ar y daith a hynny dros y deunaw mis nesaf. Lleoliadau y tybir i Cadfan ymweld â hwy ar ei bererindod gyntaf i Enlli yw rhain. Maent oll yn amrywiol ac yn cynnig naws a themâu gwahanol ar hyd y daith.
Meddai Sian,
Dw i wrth fy modd sut mae eglwys yn wahanol beth i wahanol bobl - gwrthrych pensaernïol, rhan o hanes plwyf neu hanes teulu, lleoliad ysbrydol, mynwent llawn bywyd gwyllt a llawer mwy. Bydd y prosiect yn gadael i ni i gyd weld ein heglwysi trwy ffrâm newydd.
Bydd y prosiect, a gynhelir drwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg, yn cyrraedd ei uchafbwynt yn Eisteddfod Genedlaethol Llŷn ac Eifionydd 2023, a gynhelir ym Moduan ger Pwllheli, dafliad carreg o lwybr y bererindod. Trefnwyd encil yn dilyn hyn hefyd ar Ynys Enlli fel clo swyddogol i’r prosiect a therfyn y daith.
Meddai’r Hybarch Andrew Jones, Archddiacon Meirionydd,
Dwi'n hynod o falch o gael bod yn rhan o dîm Llwybr Cadfan ac yn edrych ymlaen yn fawr iawn at y lansiad. Fel un sydd wedi gweithio ym Mhen Llŷn ers blynyddoedd dwi'n ymwybodol iawn o'r cysylltiad hanesyddol rhwng Tywyn, Enlli a Cadfan Sant. Cadfan oedd arweinydd cyntaf y gymuned grefyddol Geltaidd ar yr ynys ac edrychwn ymlaen at gael blasu mwy ar y cysylltiadau hanfodol yma sydd dal i ddylanwadu ar grefydd gyfoes y Gymru fodern.
Yn ogystal â’r digwyddiadau bwriedir casglu’r cerddi fydd wedi eu cyfansoddi ar y daith a chyhoeddi cyfrol ohonynt. Mae bwriad hefyd i amrywiol unigolion o gefndiroedd crefyddol ac ysbrydol gwahanol gerdded rhannau o’r llwybr gan greu blog am eu profiad o fod yn bererin modern, yn troedio llwybr Cadfan heddiw.
Bydd y dathliad hwn o bererindod Cadfan hefyd yn cydweithio’n agos gydag adain ‘Pererin’ o brosiect ehangach ‘Llan’ yr esgobaeth. Fel rhan o’r cynllun Pererin mae tri o lwybrau pererindod yn cael eu datblygu ar draws yr esgobaeth. Bydd sylw o’r newydd yn cael ei roi i’r llwybr penodol hwn fel rhan o’r cynllun. Gobeithir ei ail-sefydlu yn llwybr pererindod boblogaidd gyfoes y bydd modd ei droedio a’i fwynhau am ganrifoedd i ddod.
Dywedir Archesgob Cymru, Y Parchedicaf Andrew John, am y prosiect,
Ystyr efengylu yw defnyddio ein holl greadigrwydd, ein holl hanes, ein holl ddiwylliant a'n holl adnoddau i hawlio'r newyddion da am Iesu Grist o fewn ac ar gyfer ein cymunedau. Mae hawlio'r newyddion da am Iesu yn ymofyn ymatebiad ac felly rwyf wrth fy modd bod prosiect llenyddiaeth Llwybr Cadfan, sy’n defnyddio ein traddodiad barddol Cymreig, yn torri tir efengylaidd newydd heddiw.
Mae’r llwybr hwn yn tywys pererinion drwy dirwedd hynod amrywiol y rhan hon o Wynedd, ar hyd llawer o lwybr yr arfordir gyda’i olygfeydd godidog. Cyniga gyfle cyffrous i ddod i brofi gwead yr ysbrydol a’r cymdeithasol, y gorffennol a’r presennol, yn y cymunedau ar y ffordd. Mae croeso i bawb flasu rhan o’r daith yn unig, neu brofi’r cyfan - a chreu eich pererindod unigryw eich hun.
Bydd gwasanaeth cychwynnol i’r prosiect gyda’i sylw ar ddathlu’r dreftadaeth leol, gan nodi’n arbennig bwysigrwydd Carreg Cadfan sydd wedi ei lleoli yn Eglwys Tywyn. Byddwn yn gweddïo dros ei lwyddiant yn deffro’r gwahanol ardaloedd i’w gwaddol ysbrydol. Cawn hefyd gyflwyno’r holl Brosiect i ofal Duw. Cynhelir hwn yn Eglwys Cadfan Sant, Tywyn ar ddydd Sadwrn 5 Mawrth am 2pm. Mae croeso cynnes i chi ymuno â ni. Bydd yn brynhawn hwyliog yng nghwmni’r beirdd preswyl Siôn Aled a Sian Northey. Cyflwynir cefndir hanesyddol Cadfan gan yr Hybarch Andrew Jones, Archddiacon Meirionydd ynghyd â chyfraniadau llenyddol, a cherddorol gan Manon Steffan Ros, Twm Morys, Aled Lewis Evans, a Carwyn Siddall. Bydd bendith ar y daith yn cael ei harwain gan Archesgob Cymru .
Os ydych yn dymuno ymuno â’r gynulleidfa dilynwch y ddolen isod er mwyn archebu eich lle. Bydd croeso cynnes i bawb.
Launch of the Literary project on Cadfan's Trail
Between March this year and August 2023, there will be an opportunity to get to know the churches and communities on Saint Cadfan's Trail, from Tywyn to Bardsey Island, where Cadfan is believed to have been the first abbot. Through poetry, music and community events we will celebrate the religious, historical and cultural background of the areas along the route.
Two poets-in-residence, Siôn Aled and Sian Northey, will lead the project sponsored by the Diocese of Bangor, with the aim of providing a platform for invited poets, musicians and historians of the different areas to offer a new look at the ancient churches and locations along the journey. This will include remembering the origins of Saint Cadfan, the sixth century Celtic missionary, in Brittany.
Siôn says,
As well as looking back to history, and noting spiritual significance, for example, Cybi’s Well in Eifionydd, we also want to highlight the industrial heritage of Porthmadog, which is kept alive in the Ffestiniog Railway, and the work of the Church today in areas facing the economic and social challenges of rural Wales now.
Ten ecclesiastical sites have been selected to be centres for the focus of activity on the journey over the next eighteen months. These are locations which Cadfan is assumed to have visited on his first pilgrimage to Bardsey. They are all varied and offer a different tone and themes along the journey.
Sian explains,
I love how a church has a different significance to different people - an architectural object, part of parish or family history, a spiritual setting, a cemetery full of wildlife and much more. The project will let us all see our churches through a new frame.
The project, which will be run through the medium of Welsh, will reach its peak at the Llŷn and Eifionydd National Eisteddfod 2023, which is to be held in Boduan near Pwllheli, a stone's throw from the pilgrimage route. A retreat is also arranged following this on Bardsey Island as an official ending for the project and the journey.
The Venerable Andrew Jones, Archdeacon of Meirionydd says,
I'm delighted to be a part of the Cadfan Trail project and I’m looking forward to the launch. I have worked on Pen Llŷn for many years and am aware of and very interested in the historical link between Tywyn, Enlli and Saint Cadfan. Cadfan was the first leader of the Celtic religious community on the island. We look forward to having a bigger taste of the historical links that still influence the contemporary religion of modern Wales.
In addition to the events, it is intended to collect poems which will have been composed on the journey and publish them as a volume of work. There is also an intention for individuals from different religious and spiritual backgrounds to walk parts of the trail creating a blog about their experience of being a modern pilgrim, treading the Cadfan Trail today.
This celebration of the Cadfan pilgrimage will also work closely with the 'Pererin' wing of the wider diocesan 'Llan' project. As part of the Pererin scheme three pilgrimage routes are being developed across the diocese. New attention will be given to this particular route as part of the project. It is hoped that it will be re-established as a contemporary popular pilgrimage route that can be walked and enjoyed for centuries to come.
The Archbishop of Wales, The Most Reverend Andrew John, says of the project,
Evangelism means using all our creativity, all our history, all our culture and all our resources to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ within and for our communities. To share the good news of Jesus Christ means inviting a response, so I am delighted that the Cadfan Trail literature project, drawing on our Welsh bardic tradition, is breaking new evangelistic ground today.
The trail leads pilgrims through the highly diverse landscape of this part of Gwynedd, along much of the coastal path with its magnificent views. It offers an exciting opportunity to come and experience the unity of the spiritual and the social, past and present, in the communities along the way. Everyone is welcome to either sample a part of the journey or experience it all - and create your own unique pilgrimage.
There will be an initial service to launch the project with its focus on celebrating local heritage, noting in particular the importance of the Cadfan Stone located in Tywyn Church. The purpose of the service is to pray for the project's success in awakening the different areas to their spiritual legacy. We will also commit the whole project into the care of God.
This service will be held at Saint Cadfan's Church, Tywyn on Saturday 5 March at 2pm. You are warmly welcome to join us. It will be an enjoyable afternoon in the company of the resident poets Siôn Aled and Sian Northey. The historical background of Cadfan will be presented by the Venerable Andrew Jones, Archdeacon of Meirionydd, along with literary and musical contributions by Manon Steffan Ros, Twm Morys, Aled Lewis Evans, and Carwyn Siddall. God's blessing will be pronounced by the Archbishop of Wales.
If you wish to join the service please follow the link below to book your place. We look forward to welcoming you there.