8th November 2026 10.30am – Remembrance Sunday

The Readings

Psalm 139. 1 - 18

O Lord, you have searched me out and known me;
you know my sitting down and my rising up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
You mark out my journeys and my resting place
and are acquainted with all my ways.
For there is not a word on my tongue,
but you, O Lord, know it altogether.
You encompass me behind and before
and lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
so high that I cannot attain it.
Where can I go then from your spirit?
Or where can I flee from your presence?
If I climb up to heaven, you are there;
if I make the grave my bed, you are there also.
If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
Even there your hand shall lead me,
your right hand hold me fast.
If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will cover me
and the light around me turn to night,’
Even darkness is no darkness with you;
the night is as clear as the day;
darkness and light to you are both alike.
For you yourself created my inmost parts;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I thank you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
marvellous are your works, my soul knows well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was made in secret
and woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes beheld my form, as yet unfinished;
already in your book were all my members written,
As day by day they were fashioned
when as yet there was none of them.
How deep are your counsels to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
If I count them, they are more in number than the sand,
and at the end, I am still in your presence.

Ephesians 6. 10 - 17

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

The Sermon
Kath, Reader at St Mary's.

As a species, we are incredible!

There is a line in psalm 139 that says “we are fearfully and wonderfully made” and it’s true. All God’s creation is wonderful and incredible, but of all that he has made we are so versatile that we inhabit his whole world, or at least most of it that we know of and have found our way into and we’ve even stretched out beyond it into outer space. We have insatiable curiosity and amazing imagination which inspire us to inventiveness and problem solving. We design, we create, we experiment, we make and build and travel, we dream, we explore. We’ve built vast civilisations and the technology and infrastructure that keeps them going, we’ve filled them with the amazing products of the arts and the sciences, we’ve learned how to treat diseases and health problems and even how to cure some of them. We’re capable of so much that is good and wonderful and altruistic and yet it seems we can’t stop falling out with each other and fighting. You would think after all our history of conflict, which goes back as far as known history, we could find better ways than fighting and war to resolve our differences, but sadly it seems not.

In my former profession as an intensive care nurse I saw a lot of damaged and broken people. Illness, accident, need, neglect, unwise life choices, sheer wear & tear and occasionally violence took their toll and caused more than enough problems to keep all the health professionals busy. Most of what I saw was sad, some of it was heartbreaking but even more distressing is the totally unnecessary suffering and destruction brought about by war. People who were perfectly fine, become disabled and broken and homeless and orphaned because others want to fight. Every day on the news there are more reports of this and it’s truly distressing and depressing, especially because no one, not even powerful people or governments or great institutions seem able or willing to stop it.

Regrettably, sometimes wars are to some degree understandable such as when people feel obliged to defend their land or way of life or their beliefs against those who would try to take away or destroy these but all too often they are about greed for money, territory, power and control and worst of all about ego. What a tragic waste of lives, homes, communities and cultures. What a tragic waste of God’s creation.

We’ve come together today particularly to mark the two world wars which devastated so many countries and peoples and to honour those who gave or had taken from them their lives in these conflicts. But we are all too aware of the many other wars that have taken place, especially in our own lifetimes and doubtless there are many others that we never get to even hear about. Some of them go on for years and in a strange way for those in the midst of them they become a way of life as happened in the two world wars and we have only to look at the situation in Ukraine or Gaza to see how these respective wars have changed the lives of the citizens and how they have adapted. For those of us watching from further away we can feel pretty powerless to help or bring these wars to a just end, especially when there are so many vested interests in keeping them going. This seems to be the case with many of the conflicts going on throughout the world right now.

But all wars eventually have to end. Even the Hundred Years’ War eventually ended. I wonder if those who were there in the latter stages of these epic battles really remembered or understood why they started. Was the end result worth the monumental sacrifice? Most of the time probably not but some things have to be defended. We can’t just give in and capitulate, tempting as that course of action sometimes is, especially for those who are terrified, crushed and war weary. We have to defend our beliefs and our values because without them what are we?

We may not be on the front lines, which might seem very far away, and the little bit that we can do might seem insignificant and ineffective but it does matter. How we live our lives affects those around us, especially our children and grandchildren who hear what we say and see what we do and learn from it. It’s terrifying when we hear hatred come from the mouths of young children, who probably don’t even understand what they are saying but are repeating what they have heard from their elders, and if left unchecked they too will become adults full of hate and anger and bitterness and go on to repeat the cycle. We all have a responsibility for the future. Our faith shapes our values and collectively we are a force to be reckoned with, so wherever we may be, may we not lose heart. May God give us the courage to shun the easy, convenient and populist ways that we are constantly bombarded with and instead thoughtfully and prayerfully use our voices and our influence for the common good in whatever ways we can, especially if we can show that there are better ways to settle our differences than fighting and war. What better way to honour those who died defending all they believed to be good and righteous in God’s sight. What better way to honour the God who fearfully and wonderfully made us.

Amen.

The Prayers

Let us pray for all who suffer as a result of conflict,
and ask that God may give us peace:

for the service personnel
who have died in the violence of war,
each one remembered by and known to God;
may God give peace.
God give peace.

For those who love them in death as in life,
offering the distress of our grief
and the sadness of our loss;
may God give peace.
God give peace.

For all members of the armed forces
who are in danger this day,
remembering family, friends
and all who pray for their safe return;
may God give peace.
God give peace.

For civilians, children and adults
whose lives are disfigured by war or terror,
calling to mind in penitence
the anger and hatreds of humanity;
may God give peace.
God give peace.

For peacemakers and peacekeepers,
who seek to keep this world secure and free;
may God give peace.
God give peace.

For all who bear the burden and privilege of leadership,
political, military and religious;
asking for gifts of wisdom and resolve
in the search for reconciliation and peace;
may God give peace.
God give peace.

O God of truth and justice,
we hold before you those whose memory we cherish,
and those whose names we will never know.
Help us to lift our eyes above the torment of this broken world,
and grant us the grace to pray for those who wish us harm.
As we honour the past,
may we put our faith in your future;
for you are the source of life and hope,
now and for ever.
Amen.

St Marys Walkley

The Church on the Road: inclusive, eucharistic, a safe place to be with God

8th November 2026 10.30am – Remembrance Sunday