Thoughts from the Benefice

Remembering…Remembering is important. November is, especially, a month of remembering. One of my favourite African-American Spirituals has the refrain: ‘I’m gonna study war no more,’ words sung over and over again. Every day, slaves experienced real hardship and harsh cruelty. The natural response would have been to fight back. But, somehow, they took to heart the words from Isaiah in the Bible: ‘nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.’ They seemed to realise that ‘war,’ revenge, anger, was not the way to go.

Remembrance Day came about to commemorate the anniversary of the end of hostilities of the first World War the ‘war to end all wars.’ Such was the scale of human carnage and destruction then, that people thought that something like this could never happen again. That the human race would learn a lesson and, like those slaves, pledge to ‘study war no more.’ But as the wars in Israel, Ukraine, Sudan, and Yemen today remind us, hatred, anger, and the need for revenge so often push the hope of reconciliation and peace off the page.

Over the years, I have been able to visit a number of genocide memorials in different countries. What they have in common is that their determination to warn people that these horrors should never happen again. War is a horrible thing and remembrance services should make us, and indeed our leaders, ever more aware of that fact.

Which is why Remembrance Sunday is very special. It is one of those unique times when millions of people in many places focus their minds on one thing…remembering. There are some who remember because they simply cannot forget. They have personally experienced the horrors and effects of war on them and their families. These days, we especially treasure those personal accounts from the few veterans still alive who actually experienced action. But most of us need to remember simply because we shouldn’t forget. We need reminding of the sacrifices made and continue to be made on our behalf, not just then but in more recent conflicts, too. The phrase ‘Lest we forget’ is often found on War Memorials around the country. It is a call to remember and, of course, to be thankful.

I wonder, though, if these specific Acts of Remembrance stopped taking place – would people continue actively to remember? Sometimes, we need prompting. We need things brought consciously to our minds. And for the younger generation, this is especially true. As adults, we owe it to them to help them keep this memory alive. Their links to this part of our national history are tenuous – their knowledge, second hand. They need it brought to their minds – regularly. It was Jesus himself who spoke those memorable words often quoted in remembrance services: ‘No-one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.’ He knew that he, himself, would soon be making the ultimate sacrifice by dying on the cross. Jesus, God’s Son loved us enough to die for us so that we might live, have forgiveness for our sins and have