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Prayer for Remembrance Day – 11 November

11 Nov

On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day in the eleventh month of the year 1918, an armistice was signed, ending the “war to end all wars” – World War I. November 11 has therefore been set aside as Armistice Day, a day to pray for those who have died serving their country.

Prayer of Remembrance

Let us pray for all who suffer as a result of conflict, and ask that God may give us peace:

For the service men and women 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.

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 civilian women, children and men whose lives are disfigured by war or terror, calling to mind in penitence the anger and hatreds of humanity; May God give peace.

For peace-makers and peace-keepers, 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.

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.