‘Gwnewch y pethau bychai’ – do the little things.These are the famous last words of St. DAVID (Dewi Sant).
We remember them especially today, the 1st March) which is his feast day.
Not far from St. David’s Cathedral in Wales, there is a lovely scenic walk along the coastal headlands to a place where St. David is reputed to have been born in the 6th century.
It is said that David’s mother, Saint Non, gave birth to David in a house on the site of an ancient chapel and nearby there is a small well bubbling up from the ground and forming a little pool before cascading away. Today it is known as St. Non’s Well because tradition says that it first sprung up at the time David was born. The water is said to have healing and miraculous powers. It is regarded as one of the most sacred Wells in Wales. It certainly feels a holy place – one of those spots where you sense that God’s grace has been specially dispensed. Visitors to the well strew garlands of flowers and herbs in the pool of water and some, like me, fill water bottles with the crystal clear spring water. Cupping one’s hand and letting the water trickle through the fingers is a delicious sensation.
David himself was very fond of water – the only liquid he drank, except the wine of the Eucharist. He and his followers were known as the Aquati because of this. Perhaps, too, David’s affinity with water stems from the legend which surrounds his birth. He is said to have been born in the midst of a terrific thunderstorm!
St. Non, David’s mother, was the daughter of a local chieftain and she is said to have been made pregnant (perhaps even by force) by Prince Sant of the royal house of Ceredigion. Some say he was King. Whatever the circumstance of the pregnancy, Sant seems to have tried to make amends by renouncing his kingdom after David’s birth and following the life of a hermit.
David himself eventually became a monk and a scholar. He is said to have founded 12 monasteries and certainly many came to him to learn the Christian faith. Of those, quite a few went on missionary journeys to Cornwall and to Brittany. There they established the faith and proclaimed the Gospel. David continued to live in Wales but his reputation for holiness and scholarship, as a spiritual warrior, spread throughout Europe.
He and his monks lived a simple life of prayer, worship and study. They ate frugally on a diet of vegetables with water. Not all his monks approved of this and it is said that a group of them were so fed up that they tried to poison him! Hagiography is not always noted for its accuracy!
It was as death approached that David prepared himself for his final words to his monks and nuns. According to his chief biographer, Rhgyfarch, himself a son of a later Bishop of St. David’s, David gathered his loved ones to his side and spoke these words:
Be joyful and keep the faith and do the little things that you saw and heard from me.
The little things which David taught included prayer, being present for the breaking of bread at the Eucharist; reading scripture; speaking only when necessary and helping the poor. He believed also that we should have a deep respect for others. Learning to listen to each other with real love is a way towards greater understanding but it also leads to godliness. We are encouraged to be lowly, possessing a humility which never expresses itself arrogantly and which steers us away from pride. He also set great store on hospitality – always being ‘at home’ for others and for God – having time for both.
There are so many big, dark things happening in our world today and we might wonder what doing some little things can make such a difference. You would be amazed – in fact do be amazed!
It is the little things we do in Christ’s name which matter most. Mother Teresa of Calcutta expressed much the same thing when she said that she and her sisters didn’t do great things but rather little things with a great love. St. David would have approved of that.
Mother Teresa points us to one particular thing we can do more than anything else and it is suggested by the lovely Saint John of the Cross.
Where there is no love, put love in, and then you will draw love out!
That will change everything in a world of great sorrow and need.
[Mr G]
Mr G's Ponderings 