A Land of Pure Delight: Elijah Morgan and the Saints of Bethel

Deep in the heart of rural Wales, not far from the sea, is Bethel village. The first thing you see as you approach the village from town is Bethel Congregational Church. In the early 1950s the minister there was the Reverend Elijah Morgan. This is the story of the new young minister and the saints of Bethel. It is an erudite, closely observed account, spiced with gentle humour. It moves from Elijah’s call to the pastorate, through his ordination and settling in, and then covers such excitements as the nativity play, Christmas caroling, preaching away in the Black Country, the Sunday School outing, the County Show, and Elijah’s marriage. All the local characters are present, as well as visitors from America, Canada, and Cumbria. The story evokes a fast vanishing way of life. It will appeal equally to those who live in rural Wales, or hanker after it, as well as to the many who pass wayside Welsh chapels and wonder what used to go on in and around them.

Diligent students of this website may discern a striking resemblance between Professor Sell and the novelist Isaac Owen (Resource Publications).