0:00:02 > 0:00:04This week, I'm in the UK's smallest city, St Davids
0:00:04 > 0:00:06in Pembrokeshire,
0:00:06 > 0:00:09to explore this beautiful part of South Wales
0:00:09 > 0:00:13and to find out more about its saintly connections.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15Welcome to Songs of Praise.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42In today's programme, I meet the new Bishop of St Davids,
0:00:42 > 0:00:45the first female bishop in Wales,
0:00:45 > 0:00:48to find out all about her city's famous saint
0:00:48 > 0:00:52and the special well that sprang up the night he was born.
0:00:52 > 0:00:55It was a healing well throughout the early centuries and the Middle Ages,
0:00:55 > 0:00:59and I think people still come to it on pilgrimage and for prayer.
0:00:59 > 0:01:02Claire McCollum meets a group of city-based children
0:01:02 > 0:01:04making a pilgrimage to the cathedral.
0:01:04 > 0:01:11St David was a man who was spreading the word of Jesus around in Wales.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13And to celebrate this glorious coastline,
0:01:13 > 0:01:16we've a special performance of one of the UK's favourite hymns
0:01:16 > 0:01:18from our very own Katherine Jenkins.
0:01:31 > 0:01:33With a population of just over 1,000,
0:01:33 > 0:01:37St Davids is surrounded by the stunning Pembrokeshire coastline,
0:01:37 > 0:01:40and right at its heart is its majestic cathedral.
0:01:41 > 0:01:45Our first hymn pays tribute to not just St David
0:01:45 > 0:01:47but to all this nation's saints.
0:05:10 > 0:05:13APPLAUSE
0:05:13 > 0:05:18Last year, the 129th Bishop of St Davids was installed,
0:05:18 > 0:05:22and Joanna Penberthy made history by becoming the first female bishop in Wales.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26With St David's Day earlier this week,
0:05:26 > 0:05:30I met Bishop Joanna on the coastal path just outside the city.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33Bishop Joanna, the place where we're stood now,
0:05:33 > 0:05:35what's the significance of this site?
0:05:35 > 0:05:37Well, this is really special because this chapel,
0:05:37 > 0:05:40ruined now, but was built on the site that's reputed to be
0:05:40 > 0:05:44the birthplace of St David, where St Non gave birth to St David.
0:05:45 > 0:05:49Non, like her son David, also became a saint,
0:05:49 > 0:05:52and a legend from her time involves this nearby well.
0:05:53 > 0:05:59St Non was giving birth, she needed water and the Lord opened the ground
0:05:59 > 0:06:01and the spring sprung.
0:06:01 > 0:06:05It was a healing well throughout the early centuries and the Middle Ages,
0:06:05 > 0:06:09and I think people still come to it on pilgrimage and for prayer.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12Our St David's Day celebrations begin at the well,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15where I bless people with the water from the well.
0:06:15 > 0:06:19Why do we celebrate St David's Day, what were his achievements?
0:06:19 > 0:06:21He was an amazing man.
0:06:21 > 0:06:25He lived a religious life but he wasn't just stuck in his community,
0:06:25 > 0:06:28he took the Gospel out across Britain.
0:06:31 > 0:06:32And there are many, many places
0:06:32 > 0:06:36where churches are still dedicated to him.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40As a Welsh Christian, is St David's story something that inspires you?
0:06:40 > 0:06:45Yes, very much, and not because he was a holy person a long time ago,
0:06:45 > 0:06:48but because especially in the festival at St David's Day
0:06:48 > 0:06:51when his bones in their casket are there in the cathedral
0:06:51 > 0:06:55for people to pray in front of, it reminds me he was a human being.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58He's not just this plaster saint from a long time ago,
0:06:58 > 0:07:01he was a real human being that made a difference in other people's lives in his day,
0:07:01 > 0:07:03and that makes me think that we too,
0:07:03 > 0:07:06although perhaps we won't be St David, but nevertheless we too
0:07:06 > 0:07:08open ourselves to the love of God,
0:07:08 > 0:07:10can be transforming in our own communities.
0:07:10 > 0:07:12Is that something you hope to do, in terms of changing people's
0:07:12 > 0:07:16life for the better, in your role as the first female bishop in Wales?
0:07:16 > 0:07:17Yes, yes.
0:07:17 > 0:07:19I would hope that part of my episcopacy would be encouraging
0:07:19 > 0:07:23every person to know their own uniqueness and to know that
0:07:23 > 0:07:27they themselves have something that can be offered to their communities, their families,
0:07:27 > 0:07:30and be channels for the transforming love of God, yes.
0:07:30 > 0:07:34So, on a day like today, what for you would be the perfect hymn to sing next?
0:07:34 > 0:07:36Well, when I first started taking my faith seriously,
0:07:36 > 0:07:40I came across Psalm 139, and where that amazing thing -
0:07:40 > 0:07:44God knows us intimately. "God, you have searched me, and you know me."
0:07:44 > 0:07:47I think that just sums up what it is to be a Christian.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50You don't have to impress God, God knows you from the top to the bottom
0:07:50 > 0:07:53in your innermost hearts and loves you for who you are.
0:10:27 > 0:10:29Bordered on three sides by the sea,
0:10:29 > 0:10:33Pembrokeshire benefits from the Gulf Stream which creates a milder
0:10:33 > 0:10:37climate for farming and a longer growing season.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40Claire McCollum's been to a farm near St Davids
0:10:40 > 0:10:43that's cultivating faith as much as food.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47There are many farms around St Davids, including this one,
0:10:47 > 0:10:49Treginnis Farm.
0:10:49 > 0:10:52But the workers here are a little bit younger than usual.
0:10:55 > 0:10:59It's a residential centre run by Farms For City Children -
0:10:59 > 0:11:02schoolchildren from across the UK visit,
0:11:02 > 0:11:04and those staying this week are from London.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09The charity was started in the 1970s by children's author
0:11:09 > 0:11:12Michael Morpurgo and his wife Clare.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15They were primary school teachers at the time and discovered a real
0:11:15 > 0:11:20sense of need for children to connect with the countryside
0:11:20 > 0:11:23and find out where their food really came from, and they were desperate
0:11:23 > 0:11:28to see those children come out of the city and experience all the countryside had to offer.
0:11:28 > 0:11:29In the seven days that they're here,
0:11:29 > 0:11:35they are immersed in all the muck and the magic of farming life.
0:11:35 > 0:11:37And then enjoying the fruits of their labour,
0:11:37 > 0:11:40so very often what they will eat in the evening is what they've
0:11:40 > 0:11:43been planting or growing or looking after during the week.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48One day of the children's stay on the farm is taken up
0:11:48 > 0:11:52by a special pilgrimage to St Davids Cathedral.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55For some of them, it's their first introduction to Christianity.
0:11:56 > 0:11:59Personally for me, that visit is really important
0:11:59 > 0:12:02because it's a wonderful opportunity for the children
0:12:02 > 0:12:06to go on a journey of discovery, to explore, to question,
0:12:06 > 0:12:09and to discover that perhaps there is more to life.
0:12:11 > 0:12:13Well, when I first saw the cathedral,
0:12:13 > 0:12:19it was actually really big and when you go inside, it's actually bigger.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22It seems bigger than the outside.
0:12:22 > 0:12:26Cathedrals particularly have this wonderful, grand story to tell
0:12:26 > 0:12:29and when you look around a building full of those stories,
0:12:29 > 0:12:31you can't help but be inspired.
0:12:31 > 0:12:36I wonder if you can work out which one is St David.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38There are some clues.
0:12:38 > 0:12:44St David was a man who was spreading the word of Jesus around in Wales.
0:12:44 > 0:12:48And he was also friends with St Patrick who travelled to Ireland
0:12:48 > 0:12:51to tell people about Jesus, too.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55So this is where the priests tell the story
0:12:55 > 0:12:57and say the words of Jesus.
0:12:57 > 0:13:02So, I wonder if one of you might dress up as the priest.
0:13:02 > 0:13:06For some children, that moment, that experience,
0:13:06 > 0:13:09or those collection of experiences over the seven days
0:13:09 > 0:13:12really has changed the course of their life for the better.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16We did the carol singing, with the guys,
0:13:16 > 0:13:19and they did really good, I liked when they sang it, the song.
0:13:19 > 0:13:23# Thou little tiny child
0:13:23 > 0:13:31# By, by, lully, lullay. #
0:13:31 > 0:13:36I really like being here, because we get to explore
0:13:36 > 0:13:40and see how different it looks like to London.
0:13:40 > 0:13:43The cloth onto the table...
0:13:43 > 0:13:45How valuable would you say this whole experience is for a child
0:13:45 > 0:13:47going forward in life?
0:13:47 > 0:13:52For these children, they discover that what they do actually matters in life.
0:13:52 > 0:13:55The responsibility that they have, maybe for the first time ever,
0:13:55 > 0:13:57is something that's really special,
0:13:57 > 0:14:00and goes with them when they go home -
0:14:00 > 0:14:04that the decisions they make, the actions they take really matter.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03St Davids not only has the title, "smallest city in the UK",
0:17:03 > 0:17:07it is also hoping to become a dementia-friendly city.
0:17:09 > 0:17:13Gill and Andrew Lease are two local residents working towards
0:17:13 > 0:17:17this goal, and have very personal reasons for getting involved.
0:17:18 > 0:17:24A few years ago, Andrew was a very healthy 57-year-old
0:17:24 > 0:17:26playing cricket every weekend,
0:17:26 > 0:17:29working probably an 80-hour week, which was too much really.
0:17:29 > 0:17:32But coping with it and loving it.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36And then we started to notice that things were going wrong,
0:17:36 > 0:17:37things were going missing.
0:17:38 > 0:17:42You started to get dip in mood, didn't you, and things like that?
0:17:42 > 0:17:43We went through all the testing then
0:17:43 > 0:17:46and it turned out to be Alzheimer's then,
0:17:46 > 0:17:49what they call young-onset dementia.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53Did you know much about Alzheimer's up until that point?
0:17:53 > 0:17:55No...
0:17:55 > 0:17:57Well, a little, yes.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00A little bit more, and...
0:18:00 > 0:18:02But not a lot.
0:18:02 > 0:18:03And, Andrew, how do you feel?
0:18:03 > 0:18:05I'm OK!
0:18:07 > 0:18:10He's OK. He's got a very good sense of humour.
0:18:10 > 0:18:12I can see that.
0:18:12 > 0:18:16He's been dancing around before we started filming.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20And that has been a big bonus, so...
0:18:20 > 0:18:23And different things - you still like your sport on television, don't you?
0:18:23 > 0:18:25Yeah.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28As his condition develops, Andrew finds it harder
0:18:28 > 0:18:32to communicate, which has had a profound impact on the family.
0:18:32 > 0:18:36I went through a period of sadness.
0:18:36 > 0:18:39I have known Andrew since I was 16, so we have been married now
0:18:39 > 0:18:43for 38 years, and you see somebody that you have
0:18:43 > 0:18:45known for all that time start to change
0:18:45 > 0:18:49and to struggle with things that were very easy.
0:18:49 > 0:18:54I am not saying that I am always praying for a cure because
0:18:54 > 0:18:57I know that for Andrew that probably isn't going to happen.
0:18:57 > 0:19:00But I do pray for myself for patience,
0:19:00 > 0:19:03because you do need a lot of patience.
0:19:03 > 0:19:04And that he stays well,
0:19:04 > 0:19:08because if he stays well and happy, then that is good.
0:19:10 > 0:19:13Rather than be defeated by the diagnosis, it has inspired Gill
0:19:13 > 0:19:17and Andrew to start a dementia-friendly social group
0:19:17 > 0:19:20in their church hall just outside St Davids.
0:19:20 > 0:19:25We actually saw an article on how table tennis could help
0:19:25 > 0:19:29people with dementia and different memory problems.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32And we actually had got at the time
0:19:32 > 0:19:34table tennis down in the church hall.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38So we started asking around and it turned out that the people
0:19:38 > 0:19:42that really wanted the help were the people with long-term conditions -
0:19:42 > 0:19:45so perhaps couldn't go and do a whole hour's keep-fit
0:19:45 > 0:19:49but would be quite happy to come down and do perhaps
0:19:49 > 0:19:53ten minutes of something, have a rest and then go and do something else.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57And I suppose we identified about ten people,
0:19:57 > 0:20:00so we became a dementia-friendly group.
0:20:00 > 0:20:04It is open to anybody in the community
0:20:04 > 0:20:07and it is there for anybody to use that wants to.
0:20:10 > 0:20:14How has your faith helped you through what you have been through?
0:20:14 > 0:20:16I don't think I would have managed without one.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18I don't know how people do.
0:20:18 > 0:20:21- I mean, we've used it a lot, haven't we?- Yeah.
0:20:21 > 0:20:25What surprised you the most about being in this position?
0:20:25 > 0:20:29I think the different path it has made us take.
0:20:29 > 0:20:33I think we have really both of us taken a positive thing for it,
0:20:33 > 0:20:35- haven't we?- Yeah, I have.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38And we have become dementia friends and we have encouraged that with
0:20:38 > 0:20:41the Alzheimer's Society and things like that.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44- We have met a lot of nice people, haven't we?- Yeah.
0:20:44 > 0:20:48You know, so I suppose it has expanded our horizons really.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54Our next piece of music is an inspirational hymn
0:20:54 > 0:20:57sung by stirring Welsh male voice choirs.
0:23:02 > 0:23:06St David isn't the only saint associated with these parts.
0:23:06 > 0:23:09Claire McCollum is meeting Canon Jeffrey Gainer at the cathedral to
0:23:09 > 0:23:14discover Pembrokeshire's links with another of the UK's patron saints.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17St Davids is obviously hugely connected to St David himself,
0:23:17 > 0:23:20but also connected to Saint Patrick?
0:23:20 > 0:23:23Well, Rhygyvarch, who wrote a Life Of St David
0:23:23 > 0:23:25at the end of the 11th century,
0:23:25 > 0:23:29tells us that St Patrick was here some 30 years before David was born.
0:23:31 > 0:23:35Certainly St Patrick, according to Rhygyvarch's account, had a vision
0:23:35 > 0:23:39of Ireland, near the coast somewhere in west Britain -
0:23:39 > 0:23:41it could be here.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45And he was told that he had to go and convert the Irish,
0:23:45 > 0:23:48so that is the link and of course he is shown in one of the icons
0:23:48 > 0:23:51in the restored shrine in the cathedral itself.
0:23:54 > 0:23:56It's a very saintly place, isn't it?
0:23:56 > 0:24:00I think saints are very important in Christianity.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03And we keep St David's Day here, of course,
0:24:03 > 0:24:06quite rightly, as the Irish do St Patrick.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09The important thing is that for generations people have been
0:24:09 > 0:24:13coming here and taking an interest in this place, as they still do.
0:24:13 > 0:24:17And so we are very proud of the connection with St Patrick.
0:24:19 > 0:24:22And the connections with Ireland's patron saint
0:24:22 > 0:24:23don't end at the cathedral.
0:24:23 > 0:24:27In the 17th century, there was an historical reference to
0:24:27 > 0:24:30a medieval chapel on the coast near St Davids
0:24:30 > 0:24:32which was dedicated to him.
0:24:32 > 0:24:34Little was known about the chapel
0:24:34 > 0:24:39until its remains were exposed during winter storms in 2013.
0:24:39 > 0:24:41The following summer, an archaeological dig took place
0:24:41 > 0:24:45on the site to unearth the chapel's hidden secrets.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48Roger Smith was part of the dig team.
0:24:48 > 0:24:52Roger, hard to believe we are standing on the actual site where the chapel is buried.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55Yes, it's underneath us, and in fact there are probably about
0:24:55 > 0:24:581,000 interments still underneath us as we speak.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01The remains of the chapel are protected from the harsh
0:25:01 > 0:25:05coastal elements and only uncovered during digs.
0:25:05 > 0:25:07Why was a chapel built on this particular site?
0:25:07 > 0:25:10Whitesands Bay, where we are now,
0:25:10 > 0:25:13is actually the end of what is called the Golden Road,
0:25:13 > 0:25:17which is a trackway which has been in existence since the Bronze Age.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20This is where people would have sailed to Ireland
0:25:20 > 0:25:22and indeed further afield.
0:25:22 > 0:25:25Porth Mawr is the name for Whitesands Bay in Welsh,
0:25:25 > 0:25:26that means "big harbour".
0:25:26 > 0:25:30And at that point in history people often used beaches as opposed
0:25:30 > 0:25:33to what we would call harbours now for travelling.
0:25:33 > 0:25:36This is why it is such an important site because this is a place
0:25:36 > 0:25:39of worship next to a major transportation hub,
0:25:39 > 0:25:41just like you have maybe a chapel or place of worship
0:25:41 > 0:25:43at an airport these days.
0:25:44 > 0:25:48People may well have made offerings here before they set sail.
0:25:48 > 0:25:49What is interesting though,
0:25:49 > 0:25:52when we excavated, we found a much earlier site
0:25:52 > 0:25:57where we have burials which go back to 500, 600, 700AD or thereabouts,
0:25:57 > 0:26:00what Christians might call the Age of the Saints which is
0:26:00 > 0:26:02just the time St Patrick and St David and all the other
0:26:02 > 0:26:04saints were worshipping here.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13And now to celebrate this spectacular and saintly coastline,
0:26:13 > 0:26:17here is Katherine Jenkins with one of the nation's favourite hymns.
0:26:19 > 0:26:29# Oh Lord, my God, when I in awesome wonder
0:26:29 > 0:26:39# Consider all the works Thy hands have made
0:26:39 > 0:26:50# I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder
0:26:50 > 0:26:59# Thy power throughout the universe displayed
0:27:01 > 0:27:11# Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee
0:27:11 > 0:27:21# How great Thou art, how great Thou art
0:27:21 > 0:27:31# Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee
0:27:31 > 0:27:42# How great Thou art, how great Thou art
0:27:42 > 0:27:53# And when I think of God, His son not sparing
0:27:53 > 0:28:02# Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in
0:28:02 > 0:28:13# That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing
0:28:13 > 0:28:23# He bled and died to take away my sin
0:28:23 > 0:28:33# Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee
0:28:33 > 0:28:43# How great Thou art, how great Thou art
0:28:43 > 0:28:53# Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee
0:28:53 > 0:29:03# How great Thou art, how great Thou art
0:29:03 > 0:29:13# When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation
0:29:13 > 0:29:23# And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart
0:29:23 > 0:29:33# Then I shall bow with humble adoration
0:29:33 > 0:29:42# And then proclaim, "My God, how great Thou art"
0:29:42 > 0:29:52# Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee
0:29:52 > 0:30:02# How great Thou art, how great Thou art
0:30:02 > 0:30:12# Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee
0:30:12 > 0:30:22# How great Thou art, how great Thou art
0:30:22 > 0:30:37# How great Thou art, how great Thou art
0:30:37 > 0:30:47# Thou art. #
0:30:51 > 0:30:54Next week, Katherine will be visiting some brand-new mums
0:30:54 > 0:30:57to celebrate Mothering Sunday.
0:30:57 > 0:31:00And Pam Rhodes talks to the Christian woman helping those
0:31:00 > 0:31:04for whom Mothering Sunday can be a difficult time.
0:31:04 > 0:31:08We return to the city's stunning cathedral for our final hymn.
0:31:08 > 0:31:13So in the words of St David, be joyful and keep the faith.