Yesterday, for the Remembrance service - which someone else led sensitively and thoughtfully - the church's Roll of Honour was on display. I haven't seen one like this before, since rather than a memorial for those who died in active service, it was a list of those who went into active service during WWII, asking people to pray for them. The two edged in black were the those who did not return.
I was interested - and pleased - to note that the minister who led us read out the names of those from the church who had died during the two World Wars... similar to what I have done in the past, displaying the names on a PowerPoint presentation.
During the silence, I paused to remember those on the Memorials at Dibley and at the Gathering Place... I can't recall all the names, but I recall the memories of remembering them... and still the lists grow, year on year... and still we pray that Gods rule of shalom will be found in human hearts and lives.
Comments
I was deeply moved to realise that the first, and last two, surnames of our WW1 soldiers which were read out at the village memorial yesterday were men who'd belonged to our little chapel in 1914 - and three of our current, active members are from those same two families.
Thanks for the comment, Angela, it's quite powerful to be reminded of these connections, isn't it? In my last church, and in this one, are people who are old enough to recall the people named from WWII.