This site provides links to the churches of the Ministry Area of Penybont ar Ogwr.
Background
In response to the decline in church attendance, and the rise in the number of people claiming that
they have no religious beliefs, The Harries report (2012) suggested ways for the Church in Wales to
reshape its ministry and mission. Bishop Harries was asked to read the signs around the Province
and following extensive consultation throughout the Province he discovered that the old pattern of a
single priest serving a small community is no longer sustainable, no matter how much we might
hope for those times to return. Our pilgrimage as a church has moved on and now we have to accept
this and focus on growing the kingdom of God together, or we’ll face further decline and eventual
extinction.
Ministry Areas are effectively large parishes led by a mixed team of clergy and lay people who
draw on each other’s strengths to grow the Kingdom of God. They establish a stronger Christian
presence in our communities, enabling us to do more, both now and in the future and, importantly,
the emphasis is on working together. Parish life will continue. Indeed one of the driving purposes
of Ministry Areas is to sustain Parish life, but we have to embrace the fact that this isn’t just what
happens inside the church buildings, nor should it be left to the clergy alone, otherwise the Church
becomes dependent.
One of the commands of Jesus is that we love God and our neighbour as ourselves. We must care
for our neighbours and the Church in Wales’s response to the increasing demands it faces is to
share our gifts with one another: we are, after all, stronger together in Christ.
The Ministry Areas throughout the Diocese of Llandaff will be officially formed by the turn of the
year so that all of you can be cared for spiritually, and that by that you too might share the love of
Christ within you.