Mary Jones And Her Bible
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The story of Mary Jones and her Bible inspired the founding of the
British and Foreign Bible Society The British and Foreign Bible Society, often known in England and Wales as simply the Bible Society, is a non-denominational Christian Bible society with charity status whose purpose is to make the Bible available throughout the world. The Soc ...
. Mary Jones (16 December 1784 – 28 December
1864 Events January–March * January 13 – American songwriter Stephen Foster ("Oh! Susanna", "Old Folks at Home") dies aged 37 in New York City, leaving a scrap of paper reading "Dear friends and gentle hearts". His parlor song " ...
) was a
Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
girl who, at the age of fifteen, walked twenty-six miles barefoot across the countryside to buy a copy of the
Welsh Bible Parts of the Bible have been translated into Welsh since at least the 15th century, but the most widely used translation of the Bible into Welsh for several centuries was the 1588 translation by William Morgan, '' Y Beibl cyssegr-lan sef Yr Hen ...
from
Thomas Charles Thomas Charles (14 October 17555 October 1814) was a Welsh Calvinistic Methodist clergyman of considerable importance in the history of modern Wales. Early life Charles was born of humble parentage at Longmoor, in the parish of Llanfihangel Abe ...
because she did not have one. Thomas Charles then used her story in proposing to the
Religious Tract Society The Religious Tract Society was a British evangelical Christian organization founded in 1799 and known for publishing a variety of popular religious and quasi-religious texts in the 19th century. The society engaged in charity as well as commerci ...
that it set up a new organisation to supply Wales with Bibles. Together with the Welsh hymnwriter
Ann Griffiths Ann Griffiths (née Thomas, 1776–1805) was a Welsh poet and writer of Methodist Christian hymns in the Welsh language. Her poetry reflects her fervent Christian faith and thorough scriptural knowledge. Biography Ann was born in April 1776 ...
(1776–1805), Mary Jones had become a national icon by the end of the nineteenth century, and was a significant figure in Welsh
nonconformism Nonconformity or nonconformism may refer to: Culture and society * Insubordination, the act of willfully disobeying an order of one's superior *Dissent, a sentiment or philosophy of non-agreement or opposition to a prevailing idea or entity ** ...
.


Journey

Mary Jones was from a poor family, the daughter of a weaver, who lived at Llanfihangel-y-Pennant, Abergynolwyn, at the foot of
Cader Idris Cadair Idris or Cader Idris is a mountain in the Meirionnydd area of Gwynedd, Wales. It lies at the southern end of the Snowdonia National Park near the town of Dolgellau. The peak, which is one of the most popular in Wales for walkers and hik ...
near
Dolgellau Dolgellau () is a town and community in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, lying on the River Wnion, a tributary of the River Mawddach. It was the traditional county town of the historic county of Merionethshire ( cy, Meirionnydd, Sir Feirionnydd) un ...
. She was born in December 1784. Her parents were devout
Calvinistic Methodists Calvinistic Methodists were born out of the 18th-century Welsh Methodist revival and survive as a body of Christians now forming the Presbyterian Church of Wales. Calvinistic Methodism became a major denomination in Wales, growing rapidly in the 1 ...
, and she herself professed the Christian faith at eight years of age. Having learned to read in the circulating schools organised by
Thomas Charles Thomas Charles (14 October 17555 October 1814) was a Welsh Calvinistic Methodist clergyman of considerable importance in the history of modern Wales. Early life Charles was born of humble parentage at Longmoor, in the parish of Llanfihangel Abe ...
, it became her burning desire to possess a Bible of her own. The nearest copy was at a farm two miles distant from her little cottage, and there was no copy on sale nearer than Bala – away; and it was not certain that a copy could be obtained there. Welsh Bibles were scarce in those days. Having saved for six years until she had enough money to pay for a copy, she started one morning in the Spring of 1800 for Bala, and walked the 26 miles over mountainous terrain, barefoot as usual, to obtain a copy from Thomas Charles, the only individual with Bibles for sale in the area. According to one version of the story, Charles told her that all of the copies which he had received were sold or already spoken for. Mary was so distraught that Charles spared her one of the copies which was already promised to another. In another version, she had to wait two days for a supply of Bibles to arrive, and was able to purchase a copy for herself and two other copies for members of her family. According to tradition, it was the impression that this visit by Mary Jones left upon him that impelled Charles to propose to the Council of the
Religious Tract Society The Religious Tract Society was a British evangelical Christian organization founded in 1799 and known for publishing a variety of popular religious and quasi-religious texts in the 19th century. The society engaged in charity as well as commerci ...
the formation of a Society to supply Wales with Bibles. Mary later married a weaver named Thomas Jones. She died in 1864 aged 80 and was buried at the graveyard of
Bryn-crug Bryncrug (), sometimes spelt Bryn-crug, is a village and community in Gwynedd, Wales. Afon Fathew flows through the village and into the River Dysynni. The village is situated to the north east of the town of Tywyn, at the junction of the A49 ...
Calvinistic Methodist Chapel.


The Bibles

Two of Mary Jones' bibles are known, supporting the version of the story where she buys three books from Thomas Charles. One Bible is in the British and Foreign Bible Society's Archives in
Cambridge University Library Cambridge University Library is the main research library of the University of Cambridge. It is the largest of the over 100 libraries within the university. The Library is a major scholarly resource for the members of the University of Cambri ...
and one in the
National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales ( cy, Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru), Aberystwyth, is the national legal deposit library of Wales and is one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies. It is the biggest library in Wales, holding over 6.5 million boo ...
. They are copies of the 1799 edition of the
Welsh Bible Parts of the Bible have been translated into Welsh since at least the 15th century, but the most widely used translation of the Bible into Welsh for several centuries was the 1588 translation by William Morgan, '' Y Beibl cyssegr-lan sef Yr Hen ...
, ten thousand copies of which were printed at
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for the
Society for the Propagation of Christian Knowledge The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) is a UK-based Christian charity. Founded in 1698 by Thomas Bray, it has worked for over 300 years to increase awareness of the Christian faith in the UK and across the world. The SPCK is th ...
. In addition to the Old and
New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
s and the
Apocrypha Apocrypha are works, usually written, of unknown authorship or of doubtful origin. The word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were the vehicles of esoteric knowledge considered ...
, the volume contains the
Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the name given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The original book, published in 1549 in the reign ...
(in Welsh) and
Edmwnd Prys Edmund (Edmwnd) Prys (1542/3 – 1623) was a Welsh clergyman and poet, best known for Welsh metrical translations of the Psalms in his ''Salmau Cân''. Life Prys was born in Llanrwst, Denbighshire 1542 or 1543, son of Siôn ap Rhys ap Gruff ...
's Welsh
metrical Psalms A metrical psalter is a kind of Bible translation: a book containing a verse translation of all or part of the Book of Psalms in vernacular poetry, meant to be sung as hymns in a church. Some metrical psalters include melodies or harmonisatio ...
. In the copy now in Cambridge, Mary Jones wrote the following (in English) on the last page of the Apocrypha (spelling is her own): The Cambridge copy of the bible was exhibited in Bala for 3 days in March 2016.


Published versions

The story of Mary Jones was published in the 7 December 1878 edition of '' The Sunday at Home: a family magazine for Sabbath reading''. Robert Oliver Rees told the story in his 1879 Welsh-language book ' (Mary Jones, the Welsh girl without a Bible : The organisation of the Bible Society). In 1882 an English version of the story was published, ''The story of Mary Jones and her Bible'' by Mary Emily Ropes (credited as "M.E.R."). This was reprinted several times, was translated into
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,
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and
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and is still in print.


Memorial in Llanfihangel-y-Pennant and legacy

Incised on front lower part of a memorial obelisk erected over the ruin of the cottage where she lived (near north end of Pont Ty'n-y-fach) is this inscription: A "Mary Jones Walk" was held in the year 2000 to commemorate Mary's journey, and has been repeated several times. Mary Jones World is a
heritage centre A heritage centre, center, or museum is a public facility – typically a museum, monument, visitor centre, or park – that is primarily dedicated to the presentation of historical and cultural information about a place and its people, and often ...
open in the summer months which tells her story.


Further reading

* * Allchin, A. M.: 'Companions on the Way: Mary Jones, Ann Griffiths and Ruth Evans', ''Resurrection's Children'' (Norwich: Canterbury Press, 1998). * Eade, Sara: 'Mary Jones', 2006. * Eade, Sara: 'The world of Mary Jones: a social history of the people and places that Mary knew' (published by the author, 2015) * James, E. Wyn: 'Ann Griffiths, Mary Jones a Mecca'r Methodistiaid', ''Llên Cymru'', 21 (1998) (Cardiff: Gwasg Prifysgol Cymru/University of Wales Press) * James, E. Wyn
'Bala and the Bible: Thomas Charles, Ann Griffiths and Mary Jones'
''Eusebeia: The Bulletin of the Jonathan Edwards Centre for Reformed Spirituality'', 5 (Autumn 2005) (Toronto, Canada: Toronto Baptist Seminary and Bible College); reprinted in the ''Journal of the Merioneth Historical and Record Society'', 15:2 (2007) * A musical based on the story of Mary Jones and her Bible * * Williams, Elisabeth: ''To Bala for a Bible'' (Bridgend: Evangelical Press of Wales, 1988)


Notes


References


External links

* James, E. Wyn

* – location of her memorial * Small exhibition of artefacts, records, etc., in Llanfihangel-y-Pennant church * 'Mary Jones World' visitor centre, Bala: http://www.bydmaryjonesworld.org.uk/ * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Mari 1784 births 1864 deaths History of Christianity in Wales People from Gwynedd 1800 in Wales 1800 in Christianity