Remembrance
Hi, on this page I will be sharing, reviewing, and recommending resources for children’s, family, and all-age, church-based work. I love to explore and discover new ideas, and creative ways of supporting this fantastic ministry. It’s such a privilege to serve the church and to help make worship meaningful and fun for children and families. I hope you’ll find my ideas and recommendations helpful.
I am sure during this week many of us will participate in an Act of Remembrance in some way, by either buying a poppy, attending a special service, or sending up a prayer of thanks for the memories of our loved ones. At the school where I am Chaplain we have a Memorial Garden. It’s a small landscaped walled garden where children can go and find a peaceful, quiet space to sit down and reflect. This year our PTA kindly raised funds to plant it out and installed a lovely arch to form a canopy for trailing plants and will add a bench underneath.
As a symbol of memorial a huge poppy has been carved out of the trunk of an ancient fallen tree. Each year during Remembrance week we hold a little service in the garden where pupils read out the names of former pupils who fought in the world wars and they lay down a poppy for each one. We are known as a music school and a pupil is chosen to play the Last Post and the Reveille as we hold 2 minutes silence. It is a very moving service and the children take it very seriously.
I have also printed paper poppies where children can write the names of family members who fought in the wars and then we hang them up onto our school prayer tree.
My thoughts this week will be with all those families suffering from wars and especially the people of Ukraine. I can’t begin to imagine how their children must be feeling with the terror of bombs and lack of food, power and just normal living standards that have been taken away from them by a cruel and heartless regime. While I am eternally grateful for all those who gave their lives for us in the World Wars I can’t believe why any government would stoop to such extreme cruelty and wreak such destruction and devastation in order to dominate another nation. It is also unbelievable that this is happening in the 21st century by so-called civilised societies. Now more than ever we need to pray for peace in our world.
The Exhortation
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old,
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.
The Kohima Epitaph
When you go home tell them of us and say, for your tomorrow we gave our today.
LET US PRAY
Lord God we pray for all those suffering from wars, cruelty and undeserved hardship. We pray for the weak, vulnerable and for those who have lost loved ones. During this week of Remembrance help us to be kind, loving and compassionate to all those around us. And to be faithful in prayer for peace in our world. AMEN
RESOURCES
Churches Together Remembrance Sunday Service and Resources
Church of England Prayers for Remembrance
The British Legion Teaching About Remembrance for Children