a day to: remember

Mar 18, 2011

For me today’s Memorial Service in Hagley Park was unexpectedly powerful.

I knew that it would be a good gathering of tens of thousands of Cantabrians. I knew too that dignitaries would speak and artists would perform.

I did not expect the service to be so explicitly and powerfully sacred. I did not expect it to serve to lead us so strongly into a new stage of life in our devastated city.

The 14 minute video that began the service showed scenes that only few people have seen: the devastated CBD. From the opening scenes of our Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, to the closing images of the Cathedral in the square, every frame revealed a scene of destruction, a place of suffering, and the rubble that has caused so much death.

After these images, the next two hours were filled with significant readings, reflections, speeches and music.

I did fear that the gathering would be little more than a telling of the stories of what had happened to us. My fears were unfounded. We all knew what had happened, now we needed a new story to carry us into the future. We needed a story of hope. And this hope was the powerful theme of the service. The highlights for me included:

  • The Governor General reading from the Roman philosopher Seneca.
  • Dave Dobbyn singing “Loyal”
  • Ralph Moore (ChCh Search & Rescue leader) reading Psalm 23 “The Lord’s my Shepherd”
  • Malvina Major singing “You’ll Never Walk Alone
  • The ‘lighting of the flame’
  • Gathering prayers led by Bishop Victoria Matthews, concluding with the Lord’s Prayer.
  • The reading of Romans 8:37-39 ‘nothing…..can separate us from the love of God.
  • Hayley Westenra singing “Amazing Grace
  • The reading from the Gospel of John 14:1-3,27
  • Prayers led by representatives of the Buddhist, Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Hindu and Baha’i.
  • Singing of “Pie Jesu
  • Prayers of blessings
  • Choristers (Anglican Cathedral) singing “The Lord bless you and Keep you
  • The people’s singing of “How Great thou Art” and the hymn that is our National Anthem.
Commentators will evaluate today’s Memorial Service over the next few days. But as I sit here this evening I am filled with gratitude to those who organised and led such a dignified and hope-filled liturgy of hope.

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest Posts

listen

listen

We struggle to separate the noise and clamour of others’ opinions from the voice of God

growing up

growing up

Thomas was not doubting as much as seeking; expressing his yearning for adult faith.

another way

another way

the real mortality in our sin is not any particular action or omission itself, but what we do next

Corpus Christi

Corpus Christi

Orvieto is an Italian hill-top settlement where all roads lead to the medieval Cathedral.