Remembering the war
Anne Bell and Joan Wicken reflect on a thoughtful event of remembrance and fellowship held at Penrith Meeting
Friends have found it difficult to know how to mark the anniversary of the start of world war one without being either nationalistic or sentimental. At Penrith Meeting we decided to have a reflective session where Friends would bring family stories to share together. We had a picnic lunch after Meeting for Worship and then gathered together. A table appeared in the middle and was soon covered with memorabilia, photographs, handkerchiefs, silver gilt spoons and letters.
The contributions were very wide ranging. We began with Friends who had direct information from their fathers and continued to our youngest, who had visited France with their parents and had pictures of the memorials on their laptops.
We heard of a young man who had arrived in England from China, where his parents were missionaries. His first language was Mandarin. He joined the Friends Ambulance Unit (FAU) and had various experiences, from falling in the mud and having to spruce up for an inspection by the military to helping the Chinese, who were used as labourers and had bad conditions.
One of the older members of the Meeting talked about her father, who was only twenty when the first world war was declared. He volunteered and was drafted into the army. He served throughout the war and wrote letters to his fiancée all the time, mainly from the trenches on the Western Front. He was taken prisoner by the Germans eight months before the end of the war. The German officer who captured him at gunpoint spared his life. The prison was situated on the Polish border and the prisoners were allowed to walk around the small town two or three times a week and visit the church. He met German civilians, including grieving mothers, and these experiences deeply moved him. They led him to believe that there is a basic goodness, which can survive war, in those of all nationalities. This resulted in him taking the pacifist position.
He resolved to work for peace for the rest of his life and both he and his wife made this a priority. They immediately joined the Fellowship of Reconciliation and helped to establish and further the work of other peace organisations. In the second world war he was heavily fined for not registering for civil duties, although, in practice, he was carrying out duties in excess of what the law required.
There were many other contributions, including an account of an eccentric veterinary surgeon who bought souvenir spoons for his wife and a song from two members called ‘No Man’s Land’. After the session closed there was an informal gathering, and conversation, around the table.
We had a deep, worshipping experience. We connected with the life stories of other members in an unusual and enriching way and felt that we had shared an hour of fellowship that will be with us for a long time. We were especially pleased that four younger Friends felt able to join us and take away something that will be a little different from the information that they will be getting from school and television during this year.
Copies of the verbatim record are available on request: anne@bell24740.freeserve.co.uk
