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The Readings.
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.
John 15. 9 - 17
As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.
‘This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.
The Sermon
Prepared by Joe, Reader at St Mary's.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Each year, on this Sunday closest to Armistice Day, we gather to
remember those who gave their lives in two World Wars, and in the
many conflicts since.
We remember the courage of those who stood firm in the face of
tyranny, the pain of those who mourned, and the quiet endurance of
those who came home changed forever.
But remembrance is not only about looking back. It is also about
asking what the past – what those who suffered - asks of us today.
In our reading from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, Paul exhorts us to
“Put on the whole armour of God.”
His words are not about glorifying war; they are about spiritual
resilience — about what it takes to live faithfully in a world that still
wrestles with division and evil.
Paul is writing to a community under pressure. He speaks of truth,
righteousness, faith, salvation, and the Spirit — not as weapons of
destruction, but as the protective armour of those who seek to do
good.
Each of these pieces of armour represents a virtue forged not in
battlefields of earth, but in the inner battlefields of the heart:
The belt of truth — honesty and integrity that hold everything else in
place.
The breastplate of righteousness — doing what is right, even when it
costs.
The shield of faith — trust in God when fear threatens to overwhelm.
The helmet of salvation — the confidence of knowing we are loved
and redeemed.
The sword of the Spirit — the Word of God, living and active, calling
us to peace and justice.
This is the armour of those who stand, not for conquest, but for
compassion.
We often think, rightly, of those who fought in the great theatres of
war – The Somme and Passchendaele, the beaches of Normandy, the
deserts of North Africa, the skies above Britain and Europe, the cold
seas of the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans.
But today I want us also to remember those who were, here in the
UK, for too long, the forgotten warriors — those who served in the
Far East.
Men and women who fought in Burma, Malaya, Singapore, and the
Pacific Islands — many of whom endured captivity in conditions that
defy description.
For years after 1945, their stories were scarcely told. The focus was
on victory in Europe, on rebuilding. Yet in jungle heat and prison
camps, British and Commonwealth troops suffered, persevered, and
held fast.
Their battle was one of endurance — of faith, of hope, of sheer
human will to survive.
They knew, perhaps better than most, what Paul meant when he
said, “Stand firm.”
Among them was the Chindits — the long-range units who fought
behind enemy lines in Burma. Many of them never returned. And
there were the thousands taken prisoner after the fall of Singapore -
forced to work on the Burma railway, where cruelty and exhaustion
claimed so many lives. And then there were those like the runner
and Christian pastor Eric Liddle – of Chariots of Fire fame – who
spent time interned as civilians under brutal conditions.
One chaplain, the Reverend Eric Lomax, later wrote that faith in such
places was not a set of comforting words, but a flicker of light that
refused to be extinguished. “The war,” he said, “taught me the cost
of forgiveness, and the depth of love.”
And that takes us to our second reading, from John’s Gospel.
Jesus says:
“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I
have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that
someone lay down his life for his friends.”
These words have been engraved on memorials and spoken at
gravesides for generations. They are not about sentiment, but about
self-giving. They remind us that true love is costly - it involves giving
oneself for the good of others.
In wartime, that love took the form of sacrifice - lives given, families
broken, futures surrendered so that others might live in freedom.
But in peacetime, that same love calls to us to live lives of service, to
work for reconciliation, to resist hatred and injustice in all their
modern forms. The forces of nationalism and fascism that
precipitated the two world wars still survive today – even in our own
communities.
Christ’s love, the love He commands us to share, is not soft or easy.
It is love that takes up the cross.
It is love that refuses to let fear, bitterness or hatred have the last
word. This love is a kind of battle - one that continues in every
generation.
The two readings together give us a vision of Christian remembrance.
Ephesians tells us to stand strong - to be clothed in truth, justice, and
faith.
John reminds us what we are standing for - love.
On this day, as we wear poppies and observe silence, we do not
glorify war. We honour courage. We lament suffering. And we
commit ourselves anew to the hard work of peace.
Because remembrance is not simply nostalgia. It reminds us what
happened. And instructs us that it must not happen again.
Many of those who fought and returned carried invisible wounds.
Some could never speak of what they had seen. My own
Grandfather, who fought on the Somme, would never discuss it with
my mother; my Uncle, who experienced the slaughter of Monte
Cassino remained silent.
In their silence, too, there is remembrance — the cost of endurance,
the burden of memory.
For us, remembering is more than looking back — it is about what
we do now.
To “put on the whole armour of God” today might mean speaking
truth when falsehoods are easy.
It might mean standing with the lonely or the displaced.
It might mean being peacemakers in our own communities, our
workplaces, our politics, our homes.
The same courage that was expressed in the trenches and jungles
can live on in acts of kindness, patience, and faithfulness.
The same love that led men and women to risk everything for others
can live on in how we treat the stranger and the refugee.
As we approach the two minutes’ silence today, let us do so in that
spirit:
not just to remember the fallen, but to commit ourselves to the
values they fought for — truth, justice, mercy, and peace.
To remember the forgotten warriors, and all who serve in conflicts
far from home, often without recognition.
To remember, too, that Christ Himself laid down His life — not for
one nation, but for all humanity — that love might overcome hatred,
and life triumph over death.
So, wear the armour of God with pride - not for battle, but for peace;
live by Christ’s commandment to love; and honour the memory of all
who gave their lives - by living ours with courage, compassion, and
hope for peace.
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.
Common Worship: Times and Seasons, material from which is used here is copyright (c) 2010 The Archbishops' Council