Today we celebrate the memorial of Saint David of Wales, Patron Saint of Wales.

Wales’s patron saint, David, is arguably the most well-known of all British saints. Ironically, there isn’t much factual information available on him.

He is believed to have trained as a priest, worked as a missionary, and established several monasteries, including his main abbey in southwest Wales. David and his Welsh monks were the subjects of several tales and legends. Their frugality was excessive. Without using any animals, they quietly tilled the ground. They only had bread, vegetables, and water for sustenance.

David attended a synod around the year 550, and because of his eloquence there, he won the respect of his fellow monks and was named the area’s primate. His monastery in Mynyw, now known as St. David’s, became the episcopal see. Until he was extremely elderly, he was in charge of his diocese. “Be joyous, brothers and sisters,” he said in his final words to his monks and followers. Continue to believe and assist me in the little things you have seen and heard.

Saint David’s portrayal is him sitting on a hill and clutching a dove. Tradition has it that a dove sat on his shoulder while preaching, and the earth shook to raise him above the crowd to have his voice heard. In the days before the Protestant Reformation, he was the subject of over 50 churches in South Wales.

Source: franciscanmedia.org