How can we honour without gathering?
How can we honour without gathering?
Although gatherings for Anzac Day, in places such as the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery, Tyne Cot, Belgium (pictured above), are not taking place this year, acknowledging and respecting the sacrifical service of so many is still possible.
Nothing will ever be able to match the experience I had last year of standing in the middle of the largest Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery in the world – Tyne Cot in Belgium.
Row after row after row of white grave markers, identical in size and design, signified the remains of over 11,900 brave individuals. The Allied Forces lost many lives, but my mind had difficulty comprehending the number of soldiers buried there.
I wish this was the only site of its kind, but I visited a number of these memorial locations all along the Western Front and it was the scale of loss that brought me to tears each and every time. So many lives cut short in the ‘war to end all wars’ and yet we know that it wasn’t because it hasn’t.
Despite these sobering encounters, I was anticipating being able to engage on a different level in all of the Anzac commemoration services this year. I believed that because I had stood on the battlefields I would more readily be able to picture the locations and pause with more purpose. With all Anzac gatherings cancelled this year I am left wondering, how will we be able to honour those that sacrificed so much for us?
In the past, it has been so simple to demonstrate our gratitude for those who fought so valiantly for our freedom. We would wear a poppy and then turn up to dawn services or marches down the main street and gather at the town memorial where wreaths were laid and The Ode shared. We could even tune in to broadcasts from other major cities and strategic sites and vicariously participate in recognition of the cost of war.
None of this will happen this year. I am aware that this decision is devastating for many people, but also recognise it is in the best interests for the communities as a whole. If we are not able to visibly demonstrate en masse our appreciation for those who have served in combat on our behalf does that mean that we don’t have said appreciation? Of course not. In fact, the significance of their sacrificial service also does not diminish in any way.
There have been a few suggestions on social media on how we can still separately, but unitedly, pause to honour our Diggers on Anzac Day this year. Whether or not we choose to do something visible, or create our own ritual I would encourage you to do something.
The website for the Australian War Memorialhas plenty of excellent resources to explore. You might like to consider making an online donation directly to Legacy Australia to continue to support the families of injured or killed servicemen and women. So instead of our attitude towards our armed forces being visible to all, it needs to be more of a personal, inward focus this year.
Similarly, it reminds me of the sacrificial demonstration of love that Jesus gave us. In the same way, his death and its meaning is not diminished depending on how many people publicly honour him and his teaching. Just as we are unable to gather for our regular worship services and events it in no way reduces the impact of his death and resurrection for each and every one of us. Again, it will be about our personal, inward focus.
Jesus himself said, “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of” (Matthew 12:34), and so I believe that, at least for a time, we need to ensure that our inward attitude about him, and others, is nurtured in readiness for our reengagement with the wider society.
Lest We Forget.
Major Belinda Davis is the Mildura and Red Cliffs Corps Officer, Victoria.
Salvation Army Anzac Day resources are also available here.
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