Category - white poppy

Armistice service remembers civilians as well as soldiers among war dead

staff writers — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:52:26 +0000

A special Armistice Day service at Westminster Abbey on 11 November, attended by the Queen and leading public figures, remembered the civilians who have died in war as well as soldiers, following calls for change in Remembrance ceremonies.

Reimagining Remembrance

Kate Guthrie — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:46:47 +0000

Remembrance Day needs to be re-imagined to make it more inclusive, more truthful and more meaningful for future generations, says this report. This would include an honest acknowledgement that some did “die in vain”, an end to “selective remembrance”, a positive stress on peacemaking, and making Armistice Day a bank holiday. The report follows the death of the 'last Tommy', Harry Patch from World War 1, who sadly described current patterns of Remembrance Day as “just show business”. Remembrance has been ‘cheapened’ by a failure to back up words with action, particularly when it comes to successive Government’s care for war veterans, but also the lack of resources put into peacebuilding. The report traces the development of Britain’s remembrance tradition and makes a series of proposals about how Remembrance Day might be updated and made more accessible. It also includes reflection on the meaning and practice of 'memory', not least from a Christian theological standpoint.

Kate Guthrie

War remembrance and Christian hope

Simon Barrow — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 14:04:08 +0000

Today is Remembrance Day. But what is ‘remembering’ in human and Christian terms, asks Simon Barrow? How can we probe beneath the emotion and ceremony in order to discover (and practice) something life-affirming as we recall the tragedy of war?

FAQ 22: Why did you urge people not to wear red poppies for Remembrance Day?

sysadmin — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 23:30:14 +0000

We didn’t.

Not giving peace a chance by Simon Barrow

Simon Barrow — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 23:37:37 +0000

Examining the politics and theology of remembrance

'Newsreaders should wear their poppies, with humility' by Michael Portillo in the Sunday Times 12th November 2006

Press Office — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 14:23:34 +0000

Ex Secretary of State for Defence Michael Portillo agrees with Ekklesia that red poppy 'remembrance' includes the suggestion that violence is redemptive (which Ekklesia says is a bad thing, Portillo a

Debate about White Poppies - Sky News - 9th November 2006

Press Office — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 11:34:48 +0000

Ekklesia's director Jonathan Bartley find common ground with the British Legion over white poppies on Sky News.

The choice to wear a white poppy - Radio 4 Today Programme 9 November 2006

Press Office — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 11:24:33 +0000

An interview on BBC Radio 4's explaining why Ekklesia has urged that people be given a

'Think tank to promote theological ideas', Daily Telegraph, 11th November 2006

Press Office — Sat, 11 Nov 2006 15:39:13 +0000

A profile of Ekklesia's director Jonathan Bartley, looking at his past and the founding of Ekklesia.

Veterans defend 85 years of tradition in row over 'Christian' white poppies - The Times, 10th November 2006

Press Office — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 17:20:02 +0000

Veterans respond to Ekklesia suggestion that White Poppies should be made available alongside red ones