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The Marble Church, Bodelwyddan is one of most visited churches in North Wales. It is known for its elaborate and spectacular architecture. St. Mary's, Rhuddlan is one of the oldest churches in our diocese.

Both our Churches are in the in the Deanery of St. Asaph, which is an area grouping of parishes within the  Diocese of St. Asaph, and together they constitute the Grouped Benefice of Rhuddlan & Bodelwyddan.  The diocese is one of the six dioceses of the Church in Wales. The Church in Wales is a member church of the world wide Anglican Communion .

The Marble Church, which is located just off the A55 North Wales Expressway (Junction 25), is open daily for private prayer and meditation and visitors are most welcome.

Guided tours of both St. Margaret's and St. Mary's may be arranged with the Vicar or the Wardens. We warmly welcome you to come and visit both our churches -- St. Margaret's spectacular example of Victorian architecture at its finest and best, and St. Mary's with its rich history spanning some 700 hundred years.

The benefactress of St. Margaret's, Lady Margaret Willoughby de Broke had this church built, at a cost of sixty thousand pounds, in memory of her husband, Henry Lord Willoughby de Broke. She laid the foundation stone on the 24th July 1856; and the new church was consecrated by the Bishop of St. Asaph on the 23rd August 1860. A short distance away from the Marble Church is Bodelwyddan Castle --Lady Margaret Willoughby de Broke was a daughter of the castle. Hotels adjacent to both churches are the Faenol Fawr Hotel and the Warner Bodelwyddan Castle Hotel. Full details of St. Margaret's Church may be read by clicking here oron the tab at the left side of this page.

St Mary's Church, Rhuddlan is an ancient church that sits high and dry on the steep bank of the River Clwyd just a few hundred yards from Rhuddlan Castle. The first church in the Norman Borough of Rhuddlan was built about 1080. The church celebrated it's 700th. Anniversary in 2001. The building was substantially restored in 1812 and by George Gilbert Scott in 1870. It has the appearance of a typical 'Clwydian' or double-naved church of the late 15th Century.  Full details of St. Mary's Church can be read by clicking here, or on the tab on the left side of this page.
 
 
 

We have many inquiries about getting married in both St. Margaret's and St. Mary's.  All marriages must comply with the Marriage (Wales) Act 2010.

The following documents have been produced for your assistance:

Residency Conditions -- Bodelwyddan.  You may read this document by clicking here.

Residency Conditions -- Rhuddlan.  You may read this document by clicking here.

You may read read full details of the Marriage (Wales) Act by clicking here.  The Church in Wales document: "Getting Married in the Church in Wales" may be read by clicking here.

 

 
Readings for this Sunday may be read by clicking here.

 

Next Thursday, February 02, 2012, we will celebrate the Presentation of Christ in the Temple.  (Candlemas).  Yet this Sunday we remember in our Gospel the occasion of Our Lord being present in the Synagogue at Capernaum.  This time, he is no helpless child; at the beginning of his adult ministry, he acts with authority against that which is dark and sinister in his world.  Whatever the diagnosis of the man with the unclean spirit, (Mark 1:21-28), one thing is for sure, he is unable to fulfil what is necessary of him in the Synagogue.  Unclean, he is unable to fulfil his duty to worship the Lord.
 
Dean Jeffrey John, in the The Meaning of the Miracles points out, "From the Gospel writer's point of view, the whole world is in the grip of fallen powers, and their work is everywhere to be seen.  All sickness, sin and disorder derive from their rule, not only explicitly 'supernatural' phenomena…  In the Synoptic Gospels especially, Jesus is presented as the one who bears God's unique authority and power to drive down the usurped authority of the demons.  He is the 'Stronger One' promised by Isaiah who can defeat Satan's temptations and bind his powers.  So in our Lord and through his miracles, we see the force of God's kingly rule drive back the frontiers of darkness and reclaim God's creation for himself."
 

Lent Book: LOVE UNKNOWN -Ruth Burrows OCD
The Archbishop of Canterbury's Lent Book 2012  ISBN: PB: 978-1-4411-0372-7
Ruth Burrows is the author of a number of best-selling books, most recently Essence of Prayer. This new book is the result of a commission to write the Archbishop of Canterbury's Lent Book for 2012. In it she distils the wisdom and experience gained from her 70 years of living as a Carmelite nun into a vigorous and compelling presentation of what it means to be a Christian.  Burrows believes that many people, even regular churchgoers, miss the true meaning and joy of Christianity. God longs for us to know him as our Saviour, so that he can bring us to share in his own Trinitarian life and love.  In successive chapters Burrows traces how God reveals himself to us through our personal lives, particularly our experiences of weakness and failure; through history and the natural world; through the scriptures; and above all, through his beloved Son Jesus. Encountering the living and true God revealed in Jesus Christ challenges us to face our own truth, and so sets us free to receive the boundless love, the joy, fulfilment, and holiness, for which we were made. Then we shall 'sing a song we have never sung before.'     Ruth Burrows is a Carmelite Nun from Quidenham in Norfolk, UK. She is the author of a number of best-selling books including Guidelines for Mystical Prayer and Essence of Prayer.  (CONTINUUM PRESS)