Christian heritage of Plaid Cymru

Mae Cristnogaeth wedi cael dylanwad pwysig iawn ar y blaid a’i chredoau. Yr oedd llywydd cyntaf Plaid Cymru, Lewis Valentine, yn Weinidog gyda’r Bedyddwyr, a’r ail lywydd, Saunders Lewis, yn Babydd dwfn ei gred. Pan anerchodd llywydd Plaid Cymru Ambrose Bebb y Blaid ym 1942 ar "Pa fath o Gymru fydd gennym?" datganodd mai ei ddelfryd oedd "Cymru Gymraeg o werin rydd, Gristnogol - sydd yn trysori ei ffydd yn anad dim." (A Welsh Hundred: Glimpses of Life in Wales gan W. Ambrose Bebb, cyf. Marc K. Stengel).

Ers yr Ail Ryfel Byd, mae Cristnogaeth wedi parhau i fod yn bwysig i’r blaid. Yr oedd AS cyntaf Plaid Cymru a’r gŵr fu’n Llywydd am y cyfnod hwyaf, Gwynfor Evans, yn Annibynnwr o hil gerdd a fu, ym 1954, yn llywydd Undeb Annibynwyr Cymru. Ers hynny, mae arweinwyr Plaid Cymru, Dafydd Elis Thomas, Dafydd Wigley, Dafydd Iwan ac Ieuan Wyn Jones oll wedi bod yn Gristnogion gweithgar; felly hefyd lawer o aelodau’r blaid yn y Cynulliad Cenedlaethol, a’r ASau. Y mae rhai ohonynt, megis Dr Dai Lloyd AC, yn bregethwyr lleyg.

Er i Gristnogion gael dylanwad mawr ar sefydlu a datblygiad y blaid, ni fu erioed yn blaid Gristnogol yn unig, ac y mae’r aelodau yn falch iawn fod aelod Moslemaidd cyntaf y Cynulliad Cenedlaethol, Mohammad Asghar, unwaith wedi cynrychioli’r blaid yn Ne Ddwyrain Cymru. Mae gan y blaid hefyd gynghorwyr Moslemaidd a Sîcaidd ledled Cymru. Wrth gwrs, y mae aelodau o Blaid Cymru heb unrhyw ymlyniad crefyddol, ond buasent hwythau’n cydnabod na fyddai’r blaid, heb ei threftadaeth Gristnogol a’i haelodau presennol sydd yn Gristnogion, mor gryf

ag y mae yn awr. Mae cred y blaid mewn cyfiawnder cymdeithasol a thegwch yn drwm dan ddylanwad y Beibl, a bydd Cristnogaeth yn parhau i chwarae rhan hanfodol yn natblygiad Plaid Cymru.

Christianity has had a very important influence on the party and its beliefs. Plaid Cymru's first president, Lewis Valentine was a Baptist Preacher and the second president, Saunders Lewis, a devout Roman Catholic. When Plaid Cymru president Ambrose Bebb addressed the Party in 1942 on "What sort of Wales will we have?" he declared that his ideal was a "Welsh-Speaking Wales of free, Christian yeomanry - whose faith is most cherished of all." (A Welsh Hundred: Glimpses of Life in Wales by W. Ambrose Bebb).

Since the Second World War, Christianity has continued to be important for the party. Plaid Cymru's first MP and longest serving President, Gwynfor Evans, was a staunch Congregationalist who, in 1954, served as president of the Union of Welsh Independents. Since then Plaid Cymru leaders, Dafydd Elis Thomas, Dafydd Wigley, Dafydd Iwan and Ieuan Wyn Jones have all been active Christians as are many of the party's members in the National Assembly and MPs. Some of them, such as Dr Dai Lloyd AM, preach on a regular basis as Lay Preachers.

Although Christians have had a significant influence in the establishment and development of the party, it has never been an exclusively Christian party and members are very proud that the first ever Muslim Member of the National Assembly, Mohammad Asghar, represents the party in South Wales East. The party also has Muslim and Sikh councillors across Wales. There are of course Plaid members who have no religious affiliation but would acknowledge that without the influence of its Christian heritage and current Christian members the party would be much weaker than it currently is. The party's beliefs in social justice and fairness have been greatly influenced by the Bible, and Christianity will continue to play a crucial part in the development of Plaid Cymru.

Visit the Plaid Cymru Party website: www.plaid.cymru