Non (also Nonna or Nonnita) was, according to Christian tradition, the mother of Saint David, the Patron saint of Wales.
The birth of Saint David has become somewhat of a legendary tale through the years and you can certainly understand why.
Saint David, or Dewi Sant as you’ll hear him called in Wales, was born on the 1st March around 550 AD. He was born atop the cliff-side overlooking a bay between Porthclais and Caerfai during a treacherous thunderstorm. The legend tells that Saint Non was by herself on the cliffside where she lived alone in a small house. Whilst the rain and wind thrashed down onto the cliffs, it is said that Saint Non was bathed in glorious sunshine as she gave birth to her son. She gripped onto a nearby rock as she endured the pain of childbirth, but the rock was then split into two by a magnificent bolt of lightning and miraculously a holy well appeared.
Other than the famous tale of Saint David’s birth, we do not know that much about Saint Non. There are many stories and rumours as to her history before David and somewhat about her life following on from the birth.
It is believed that Non, also known as Nonita or Nonna, was a recognised Saint in her own right but her heritage is uncertain. It is widely agreed that Non was completely isolated from the community during her time living on that Pembrokeshire clifftop, and it is this fact that largely casts down on her background. And depending on which of these stories you choose to believe might have some impact on what you believe about why she was all alone that thundery eve.
Some say that she was of Irish descent, and had travelled to Wales to carry out some of her saintly duties. This suggesting that her family and friends were all home in Ireland, hence the reason she was unaccompanied.
Others prefer the story that she was from a noble family with suggestions that she might even have been the niece of King Arthur.
Tradition holds that Nonita was raped and that the product of that rape was David – she was "unhappily seized and exposed to the sacrilegious violence of one of the princes of the country". Rhigyfarch recounts the tradition that the rapist was Sanctus, King of Ceredigion, who came upon Non while travelling through Dyfed (in South Wales). After conceiving, Nonita, who remained celibate both before and afterwards, lived on bread and water alone.
When a preacher found himself unable to preach in the presence of her unborn child, this was taken as a sign that the child would himself be a great preacher. A local ruler (possibly Vortiporius) learned of this pregnancy and feared the power of the child to be born. He plotted to kill him upon birth, but on the day of her labour a great storm made it impossible for anyone to travel outdoors. Only the place where Nonita groaned with birth-pangs was bathed in light. The pain was said to have been so intense that her fingers left marks as she grasped a rock and the stone itself split asunder in sympathy with her. A church was built in the place of David's birth and this stone is now concealed in the foundations of the altar.
After Dewi was born, the pair moved to Aberaeron where they founded a nunnery at Llanon. At some point during her later life, it is suggested that she went to Cornwall and Brittany. At a church in Dirnion, Brittany, apparently there is a shrine and a tomb for St Non.
The place where Non gave birth to Saint David is now named Capel Non, and is marked by the Chapel of St Non. Close to the ruins of this chapel is her holy well; nearby also stands a retreat house, and a chapel dedicated to Our Lady and Saint Non built in 1934. The ruins are easily accessible from the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path. Other churches bear her name in Devon, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire.
Non's relics were initially venerated at Altarnun in Cornwall. However, these were destroyed during the Reformation. Medieval glass fragments which remain above the altar may depict Non; there is a holy well nearby with a long tradition of bringing the insane to be immersed (one legend has them being thrown in backwards) in hope of a cure. She is also the patron of Pelynt in Cornwall where there is St Nonna's Holy Well.
Non died at Dirinon, Brittany, ten miles east of Brest, and is buried there; her shrine can still be seen in Dirinon's parish church. An alternative legend puts her being martyred at the hands of druids at Bradstone in Devon where the church is dedicated to her.
St Non's feast day is given as 2 March by Mullins and by the 18th century text of Browne Willis cited by Rees. Nash Ford identifies 3 March as her date of death. 3 March is also the date recognised by Simpson. She is listed under 5 March in the 1995 revision of the Church in Wales calendar. At the Parish of Pelynt, which contains St Nonna's Holy Well, the feast of St Nonna is celebrated on the second Sunday after Midsummer's Day.
St Non is not officially commemorated in the current liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church: she does not appear in the 2004 edition of the Roman Martyrology, nor the Roman Catholic calendar for Wales.
When St Non was giving birth alone, it is said that a great storm was raging on the peninsula, she was bathed in a golden light and complete calm. This imagery echoes a legend around the birth of Jesus where a frightened young Virgin Mary gave birth in a stable bathed in golden light from the Star of Bethlehem.
Such comparisons were designed to make the reader think of St David and St Non as being like Jesus and the Virgin Mary and to magnify their holiness. Their ‘truth’ lies in how they make you feel.
Let’s be honest, giving birth is hard enough. But just imagine doing so alone, during a thunderstorm, on a remote cliff top overlooking choppy seas. Whichever stories you choose to believe about her, there’s absolutely no denying that that’s a pretty awe-inspiring feat.
If you’re ever in the St Davids peninsula with a spare few moments, pay a visit to the Chapel of St Non. Nowadays you’ll spot the St Non’s Retreat before you see the ruins, this peaceful centre runs events and courses like yoga workshops. Alongside this modern retreat centre in the location now famous as the birthplace of Saint David, you will find a small and serene chapel with stained glass windows illustrating a number of Saints including Non, David, Bride, Brynach and Winifred.
Built in 1934, this Chapel was built in a traditional Pembrokeshire style containing stones from pre-reformation chapels and is now the site of various pilgrimages, as is St Davids Cathedral in the nearby city. You can reach this building by driving into St Davids and following the road down Goat Street, or you can even access it via the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path.
Nearby, there is the Holy Well which allegedly sprang up during the birth – it is now said to be one of the most sacred in Wales with healing powers. There are also ruins of a chapel which is suspected to have been formed many decades ago as archaeologists have discovered constructions of early Christian era graves. There is also an incised Latin Cross standing within the ruins which are dated back to sometime between the 7th and 9th Centuries.
The heart of St Non’s story is a difficult one. It tells of a young woman being attacked by a powerful man who may have seen it as his right to have her. Her resulting pregnancy may have caused her to be shunned by her community or made her feel she had to hide away.
But she survived; her story is also one of faith enabling her to overcome this terrible experience and not allow it to define her. People who have experienced violence, assault or abuse draw strength from St Non’s story seeing in her an example, a light in their darkness.
We may think of a ‘saint’ as being someone who is perfect, but many saints’ lives tell a different story. They tell of people following God, but often failing or having things happen to them which are cruel or unjust. What marks them out is that they hold to their faith and find that God is with them, no matter what.
That does not mean God will ‘fix’ everything, but it does mean they, and we, are not alone. God can make a difference in and through our lives.
St Non has had a number of feast days throughout history. In an 18th century text, her feast day is given as March 2, but March 3 is also given as a feast date, which is her believed date of death. This is the feast day given by the National Catholic Reporter.
The 1995 revision of the Church in Wales calendar states her feast day as March 5, whereas the feast day is celebrated as the second Sunday after Midsummer’s Day in the parish of Pelynt. However the Roman Catholic calendar does not include St Non’s feast day.
She is also seen to have a special meaning to those who have been subjected to abuse or violence due to the abuse she suffered during David’s conception.
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