About Dyfed I have been blogging since returning to my island home of Anglesey - Ynys Môn - in the summer of 2008. The blog began more as a journal where I would share about the work I was doing and the journey I was on. By now it has morphed into a theological reflection as I explore the role of the church in a post-Christendom age. Early years I was brought up on Anglesey where most of my family still live. I was educated in my village primary school before going to Ysgol Syr Thomas Jones, Amlwch - the UK's first comprehensive school. Though my plan was to go and train for primary school teaching, I got a job working in the island's town planning department soon after completing my A levels and there I stayed for five years.
Baptist ministry and depression In 1989 I felt God calling me to full time ministry and I left the local authority to study Theology at Bangor University. Having been brought up from a young age and having come to faith within the Welsh Baptist tradition of my mother (my father is an Anglican) I was prepared for ministry in the Baptist College, Bangor, at the same time as reading Theology. I was ordained within this tradition and called to serve two Welsh Baptist chapels in the port town of Holyhead in 1992. In 1997 I moved to the Swansea valley and to the village of Clydach and ministered in two chapels once again. |
It was during my time in south Wales that I suffered a bout of depression and stepped down from ministry for a period. I moved back to the north and settled in the coastal town of Colwyn Bay and as part my return to health I returned to university and completed a MTh and embarked on a PhD.
Charismatic stream In this period also I was drawn to the charismatic stream within an English speaking Baptist church. Partnering with others I co-planted an independent charismatic church - Antioch - which is by now a thriving congregation with its base in Colwyn Bay. Sadly it was during this time that my first marriage fell apart. It was an event that sparked a deep crisis of faith for me and I had little choice but to stand down from ministry altogether. As part of my journey of recovery I completed my doctoral research, worked in Bangor University - including being a halls of residence warden - and found myself once again being drawn to Anglesey. Returning to Anglesey By now I am remarried and have returned to a teaching ministry in a local church based in Trearddur Bay. I live with my wife Helen, her mother, Gwyneth, and our Springer Spaniel, Ruth, in the village of Brynsiencyn. Helen runs the village Post Office and we run a holiday cottage rental business. |
