Pilgrim

Discover the Llanscape of Wales

The landscape of Wales is alive with the Christian Faith. It lingers in landmarks and place names, in valley and vale, across coastal towns and city streets, in lines of terraced houses, and through the deep forests and open fields.

It is alive in the lives of communities, in the churches which remain. Subtle, stubborn, determined ‘Llans’ of faith.

Wales is rich with the heritage of the saints who lived here. Today, the faith they professed lives on. Life has changed so much since then but we can learn from them, hear their whisper, join our voice to theirs.

PILGRIM invites you to visit places across South Wales, stopping for a while to meet a saint or two, to pray where they prayed, and discover God in our own day.
A view of the Rhondda Fawr

Why Llan-scape?

LLAN is a Welsh word which features in more than 600 place names around Wales, and often includes the name of a saint associated with that place.

The word means more than ‘church’. It means an enclosure, the sacred land around a church. It’s distantly related to the English words ‘land’ and ‘lawn’, a specially cleared and enclosed area of land, and came to be applied to the sanctified land occupied by Christians.

Our Llans

At each Place across the Llanscape, we provide:

  • An Introduction to the saint and the site
  • A Call to Prayer, along with a Bible reading and other prayers (from which we hope to create an Audio Track as the project develops)
  • A link to the Google Maps Trail (which will also help to plan your visit)
  • Links and other points of interest
A view of the South Wales valleys from Llanwonno

Get Moving

Some of the Llanscapes of Wales are mapped out on our Google Maps Trail to help you plan your journey. Click on each Llan for an introduction and a link to the page on our website.

Llanscapes

The best way to find your way around the Llans is by using the Google Maps Trail above but our Llanscapes page provides a quick peek into each one with links to find out more.

You’ll find Llanns across Wales although, for now, our Llanscape falls within the boundaries of the Diocese of Llandaff.

Pilgrimage Prayers

In addition to prayers provided for each Llan, we also have extra prayer resources which include Prayer of Blessing for setting out on a pilgrimage, Prayers at Places of Pilgrimage, and a Litany of Welsh Saints. Why not check them out?

Notes and Copyright

Website Text: Dean Atkins, South Cardiff Ministry Area, 2023. Other items have individual attributions. Bible Readings: Texts from the New Revised Standard version of the Bible, Anglicized edition 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America, used as permitted. All rights reserved.