Stories of Faith
You do not have to travel far in Cornwall to be made aware of its Saints: in names of towns, villages and hamlets; on public houses and well-trodden ways the county revels in its Saints. Of some of these names from antiquity, very little hard fact is known. Some are chronicled in early lives of the Saints, others live on in myth, legend and folk tale.
All were apparently renowned for the example which they set; many were known for their teaching of the Gospel; a relatively small number suffered for their faith.
What is clear, however little is known of their lives, is that not all were Cornish born and bred. Many, like St Piran, who is probably the most popular Cornish Saint, made the customary missionary journey from Wales to Cornwall to Brittany, leaving a very real impression in each of these three areas. Piran, or more correctly Perran, is celebrated in Wales, where there is a mediaeval chapel dedicated to him at Cardiff, and in Brittany his name features in large numbers of dedications and place names.
In Cornwall he is probably best commemorated at Perranporth. It is probable that he landed there, and founded his first simple church in the sandhills: Perranzabuloe, Perran in the sands. The building which he founded was abandoned to the shifting sands in the 11th century, and eventually completely lost - except in folk memory. Around 1800 the church was uncovered again, and since then efforts have been made, with only limited success to save the building - though the sands forever threaten to overcome it.
St Piran's involvement in Cornish life is particularly important to Cornish miners - and especially the tinners whose patron Saint he was. St Piran's Cross - the white cross on the black background - is said to symbolise the Gospel shining over falsehood, good over evil, and it has become widely adopted as the Cornish flag. But of Piran himself little is really known - his name lives on, hallowed by centuries as one who lived by, and shared the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Cornish Saints can be divided into the Celtic Saints, like Petroc and Piran, Juliot and Gluvias, Crowan and Endelienta and scores more, and the mediaeval saints like Clement and Dominic, Agnes and Hilary, Bartholemew and Gregory. Some of the so-called mediaeval saints did not actually live in those centuries, but their names are recorded in church dedications in those times, often replacing earlier Celtic traditions. Anyone travelling through Cornwall and visiting its churches will pick up guidebooks, pamphlets, and church histories which record numerous variations on the life story of the local Saint, man, woman or child called out by God to live a life of holiness, and great goodness. Do not be worried by the discrepancies; their names have been hallowed for centuries in the places named after them and the churches, holy wells and abbeys dedicated to them.
They remain an example to those who live here, and those who pass through the county; marvel at the faith of those who built the places dedicated to them, and rejoice in the heritage of Cornwall's Saints.
To learn more click on the following links:
St Petroc, Bodmin
Padstow Parish Church
Early British Kingdoms
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