“…My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends”

(John 15:12)

Yesterday was Remembrance Day where we paused at 11:00am to remember the moment in 1918 when World War I came to an end. On this day, we remember Australian men and women who have served in war and peacekeeping activities. Remembrance Day does not glorify war – it honours the memory of all those who laid down their lives for Australia. As a mark of respect to those who have served, we stopped to observe one minute’s silence.

This year will mark the 103rd anniversary of the Armistice, which ended the First World War. One thing we can do for the people who fought for our country, is to continue the tradition of remembering them.

Images of war, violence and destruction fill social media and the news. Pope Francis has been inviting us to think of our neighbour since he began his papacy. Even when reading his latest Encyclical, Fratelli Tutti, we are called again to consider who is our neighbour.

When we look through the news and some of our social media feeds, we can be brought to tears by the vulnerability of children caught in war zones, in places that we may have heard about in, but not necessarily known about in terms of human cost and the impact of war.

One image that was thrust into the global spotlight in 2016 was that of Omran Daqneesh, the 5 year old who became the face of Aleppo’s devastation as a result of the Syrian Civil War. For almost 12 months, Omran’s bloodied face, was used to cast shade on the rebels and support the Syrian government. When Omran’s face filled the news feeds in 2016, the war had been raging for 5 years…now, 5 years later, not much has changed. Whilst the barrel bombs and the rockets no longer rain daily in the capital, the devastation remains. Not only to the buildings and infrastructure, but to the health and livelihood of the citizens of Syria who are dying from starvation and Covid-19.

Today, Omran and his family no longer fill our social media; yet they, and thousands like them need their stories told. Why not search beyond your ‘likes’ to see what is happening to those communities like Omran’s in Syria who have been and continue to be effected by war. Let’s do more than ‘like’ an image; engage in the image. Let us learn about the story and share the story with others. Let us foster a culture of encounter. Perhaps the words of Pope Francis will help…

Mercy nourishes and strengthens solidarity towards others as a necessary response to God’s gracious love, “which has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit” (Rom 5:5). Each of us is responsible for his or her neighbour: we are our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers, wherever they live.

Concern for fostering good relationships with others and the ability to overcome prejudice and fear are essential ingredients for promoting the culture of encounter.

As another Remembrance Day comes and goes, let us be ever mindful of becoming people of peace and encounter.

Yours in Faith, Justice and Learning