wfn.org | ACNS3618 St Paul's Cathedral hosts Service of Remembrance for

["Anglican Communion News Service" <acnslist@anglicancommunion.org>]

ACNS 3618     |     ENGLAND	|     10 OCTOBER 2003 

St Paul's Cathedral hosts Service of Remembrance for Iraq

by Matthew Davies

"Today our main task is simply to pause in the presence of God." 

These words spoken by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd Dr
Rowan Williams, identified the mood of the several thousand people who
gathered in St Paul's Cathedral, London, today in remembrance of all
those who have died in Iraq in the course of the hostilities this year.

The service, which began at 11am, drew together leaders of faith
communities, ecumenical dignitaries, Members of Parliament, servicemen
and women from the United Kingdom and members of the royal family,
including Her Majesty the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, the Princess
Royal and the Prince of Wales.

During the Bidding, the Very Revd John Moses, Dean of St Paul's
Cathedral, prayed for those who have lost their lives or suffered
injury, and with them remembered their families, colleagues and friends.
He added, "We continue to hold before God all who are still on active
service in Iraq; we pray for their well-being and for all who hold them
in their hearts at home."

In his sermon, Archbishop Williams recognised the anxiety of friends and
families "watching and waiting", and underscored the conflicting
emotions that all this involves - "fierce loyalty to those actually
putting their lives on the line, pride in their personal commitment,
courage and skill, anger at those who seem to undermine them as they
face the terrible risks of war; but also pain and bewilderment at the
confusions of war itself, the shocking photographs of the innocent dead,
the media experts with their daily questioning of how things are being
run."

Archbishop Williams' pronounced message from today, however, was to
pause in the presence of God. "...we can use this pause in God's
presence to think a little about what it means to turn vision into
reality," he said. "This is part of what we owe to the dead, the honour
we give to those who struggled and sacrificed."

Prayers for penitence and reconciliation were led by: the Rt Revd and Rt
Hon Richard Chartres, Bishop of London; His Eminence Cardinal Cormac
Murphy O' Connor, Archbishop of Westminster; and Mrs Judy Jarvis, Vice
President of the Methodist Conference.

The Choir of St Paul's Cathedral was conducted by John Scott with
organists Mark Williams and Huw Williams.

The full text of the Archbishop of Canterbury's sermon can be found at:
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/articles/36/00/acns3619.html

A photograph is available at:
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/articles/36/00/acns3618.html

___________________________________________________________________
ACNSlist, published by Anglican Communion News Service, London, is
distributed to more than 7,000 journalists and other readers around
the world.  For subscription information please go to:
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/acnslist.html