Remembering past Remembrances
Having now been retired for all of two weeks, yesterday - Remembrance Sunday - was the first time I actually felt a huge sense of relief at no longer being in parish ministry. I suspect I was far from alone amongst active clergy in finding Remembrance Sunday the most stressful Sunday of the year, especially when linked to a 'civic' church. Remembrance Sunday is, of course, an important and solemn occasion, and it's absolutely right that we should properly honour those who lost their lives in war. Responsibility for leading a suitably dignified service with a very large congregation is in itself stressful enough, but Remembrance brings with it many added challenges and pressures, especially for the Established Church. Firstly, there's the need to ensure that the Remembrance Service incorporates all the essential elements (Komina Epitaph, Last Post, Two minute Silence etc) in the correct order and that it is accessible and meaningful not only for the Ch...