Remembrance Sunday 2026

My dear Friends,

I recently read that the Founder of the Imperial War Graves Commission, Sir Fabian Ware famously calculated that if all those who had died from this country and the Commonwealth in the First World War were marched four abreast down Whitehall, where the focus of our National Remembrance will be taking place this coming Sunday, it would take them three and a half days of continuous marching for them to file past the Cenotaph. If they were lined up stationary four abreast the column would stretch roughly 260 miles north of London, reaching Durham or York. If you then added the casualties from the Second World War the line would pass way beyond Edinburgh and the last in the line would be standing near Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands off the far North Coast of Scotland.

Over 1.7 million women and men serving in British and Commonwealth forces died across the two World Wars. The numbers jumble my mind, I cannot really take in the scale or scope of the statistics. This coming weekend we may all feel overwhelmed by the magnitude of suffering: each one a life, each one of them with their own distinct story to tell- a childhood, parents; each one laughed, cried, loved, each one a precious and unique life.

There is no way that we can do justice to remembering them adequately, which may be why each community and parish throughout the land will remember the names of those from their own area who died. Men and women who ran through our streets, worshipped in our church, drank in our local pubs, walked by the river, were taught in our schools.

Each community across this country and the Commonwealth will play its part this weekend in remembering their own distinct number of those who experienced the horrors of a war which you and I probably can't fully understand impact of.

And of course, a shadow is cast across this year's Remembrance by continuing conflicts in the world, ongoing agonies as people fight over land, identity, ideology, sovereignty. War is unfortunately a present-tense thing, not just something which happened in a remembered past. It remains an abiding reality of too many people in the world of today. The noise of gun fire and bomb`s blast has not been silenced, conflicts still wound our life together, still sears society, divides families, causes pain.

So this weekend as well as remembering and honouring those who fought and died in the two World Wars of the last century, let us also be mindful of those still drawn into the vortex of aggression throughout the world, let us remember those whose homes are ruins, beyond repair; those frightened for their lives and the lives of those they love; those who do not know whether their loved ones are alive or dead; those fleeing their war torn homeland in search of safety and security elsewhere; leaders of nations whose responsibility it is to protect their people; those who are involved in diplomatic talks to further the cause of just peace.

This weekend such as you and I are called, required to pray as perhaps never before, that lessons from the past may be learned, the horror of war`s consequences remembered and a more ardent resolve is attempted to address the injustices and conflicts in the world and promote healing, reconciliation, peace. Easy to say or write perhaps, not so easy to do, but if we don't, where will it end?

Through our faith, you and I have a vision of peace, the promise of the Holy Spirit, the example of Jesus, the values of the Beatitudes, the law of love to guide and inspire us. Let us make creative use of this coming weekend and pray that it may prove a turning point in the life of our beautiful planet and its people.

With blessings and best wishes,

Jeff