love’s bright presence
in Your grieving, struggling, yet hoping world. (Anon.)
RAF Remembrance Day Service
REV. CAROLINE TAYLOR
St Athernase Church in Leuchars has as its neighbour RAF Leuchars. This prayer was shared at a joint Remembrance Day service at which RAF personnel and their families were present as well as ex-Air Force and Army personnel and civilians.
Photographs
In frames on the mantelpiece or bedside table
Attached by magnets to the fridge
Sent by e-mail
So many photographs, Lord, all of them depicting people who are loved.
Photographs
of men and women in uniform of a style which betrays that they weren’t taken yesterday
of recent passing-out parades showing the optimism and confidence of youth
jet, ship or tank, bleak desert, icy mountain or ruined city in the background.
Combat gear, khaki, Air Force blue, number 1s, off-duty casual
So many photographs, Lord, all of them depicting people who are loved.
And today we remember those whose photographs we treasure because of the good memories they evoke,
even as we sigh for what might have been:
Those who went to war and didn’t come home;
those who came back but not as we had known them;
those who met their deaths on the home front;
those who struggle still to live with their battle scars, emotional or physical.
May your love surround them all, dear God.
And we remember women, children and men in the thick of conflict even as we pray. Keep them safe.
This morning, we include in our prayers the waiting ones at home; those who live daily with the worry of what might happen. For the children who are too young to understand but who know the military life of a father or mother. Surround them all with your peace, Lord.
And we pray for ourselves, dear God, that we, who bear your Son’s name, may be channels of your peace; that the Church be a sign of hope in a divided world.
Like those who have given themselves in the service of their country, we give ourselves to your service, wholeheartedly for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ in whose name we offer these prayers. Amen.
Memorial Stones
REV. DOROTHY ANDERSON
I wrote this memorial piece because I couldn’t find anything in this area of ministry that was particularly helpful in a non-religious context.
We probably all know the various ways we can use stones and pebbles symbolically. This is a version of an Act of Remembrance I took for a group of largely non-churchgoers who wanted to do something to mark the death by suicide of their colleague, a man in his late thirties.
Before the service, at the front of the worship space (or other accessible spot), place a rug or other covering. In the middle, place four or five large stones (available from garden centres).
As the congregation gathers, give them each a small polished stone. Try to make them of different sizes, colours, types (these too can be obtained from garden centres, where they are cheaper than those found in gift shops – but they tend to come in bulk!).
At the appropriate moment, explain:
When you came in, you were given/chose a stone. Look at them now. No two are alike – they are different sizes, shapes, colours and so on. Just as we are.
Yet we are all connected through AB who has died. For in his/her living and in his/her dying, he/she has affected us and brings us together now.
In front of me are some stones – the start not of a cairn [I thought of building a cairn but the thought of the symbolism if it collapsed put me off!] but of a pattern. I don’t know what pattern – that is up to you.
Each of us can come and place our stone down – wherever you want. Where you put it will affect the pattern, and may influence someone else’s decision. But together we create the bigger picture. It needs all of us together, united despite our differences, and our individual contributions to create the pattern.
As you come forward, feel the stone in your hand, think about its size and shape. As you lay it down, think about AB and what he/she means to you. As you lay the stone down, it is your act of remembrance but also your release.
Use the laying down of the stone as a way of letting go also of any burdens you are carrying. Of remorse, guilt, anger, hurt, pain.
And as you return to your places, note that your hands are empty; you are no longer carrying that stone. You return slightly lighter than when you came – use the space left by the stone and by the laying down of your burdens as a chink to let in the light, as an openness to help and healing and wholeness.
NB: Some people may prefer to take their stone as a memento. That is OK – the fact that their stone is not laid down affects the pattern too.
Closure of
Deerness West Church:
16 October 1994
REV. JOAN CRAIG
At the closure of the former Deerness West Church in Orkney, the status and use of buildings were and are contentious and painful issues in this part of the world. The service of closure acknowledged the pain but also the creativity and faith of the members in moving on with grace and thanksgiving – and to be a stimulus to other ministers and members trying to make meaning and note of a painful moment in their church’s history.
Flower festival and thanksgiving service
Opening
Who is able to build a house for God when heaven itself, the highest heaven, cannot contain him?
Prayer
God of love and power, you hold all souls in life. You bind together all your people in heaven and earth in one holy fellowship. We praise you for those who in their generation have been lights in the world, in this church and parish. We thank you for their courage and commitment, for their vision and generosity in establishing this place of worship. Help us to keep faith with them and their vision, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
