The Day of Saints - Day 5, Provisional Musing

Do you ever wonder where thoughts come from? Something I have already experienced, although it shouldn't have surprised me, given how often I say it in ministry, is how God is providing here, and countering my sense of apprehension. Many times already, resources and ideas have appeared in things I've seen or read or connections inbetween. For example, whilst mooching around the Morewenstow Church I picked up on a bric-a-brac bookstall, "The Pilgrim Way" by Ray Simpson. Less obviously devotional than several others of his books, this one looks more broadly at underlying values and principles of Celtic monasticism, eg spiritual journeying, prayer and work, care for creation, openness to God's Spirit, and so on. Written as an aid to finding the application of this to contemporary life, it looks like it will be a rich resource for this project.

A sample of the books I have been using so far

Last night, my wife and I sat with a map of Cornwall and plotted on it the locations of the saints I have chosen to look at. I realise I haven't yet given any explanation of the list. Months ago, when I first thought up this venture, I looked up Cornish saints generally on the internet, and found that Truro Cathedral has carvings of twenty four. However, looking more closely at the list, along with Orme's 'The Saints of Cornwall', I decided that some had only tenuous links to the county. That led me to trawl through Orme for my own list and, whilst not entirely free of tenuous links, for example St Germanus, at least it would be distinctive and take me to most corners of the County. Eagle-eyed readers will spot that at present, I have twenty three. I have decided to reserve one slot in case I stumble across someone particularly of interest that I had missed. Anyway, here is the the list of saints in alphabetical order and approximate locations I hope to visit. Below this is the map, decked out in Post-Its.

Breaca (Breage, Helston, Hayle)

Budoc (Budocwater)

Buryan (St Buryan)

Cadoc (Crantock)

Constantine (Constantine Bay)

Endelienta (St Endellion)

Felec (Phillack)

Germanus (St Germans)

Gwinear (Hayle, Penwith)

Ia (St Ives)

Keyne (St Keyne, nr Liskeard)

Leven (Salamon, St Leven)

Mawes (St Mawes)

Meriasek (Camborne)

Morwenna (Morwenstow)

Nectan (Tintagel)

Neot (St Neot)

Petroc (Bodmin)

Piran (Perranzabaloe)

Samson (Scilly Isles)

Senera (Zennor)

Wenedoc aka Enodoc (Trebetherick)

Winwalloe (Gunwalloe, Landewednack)

Provisional travel destinations for sabbatical study