Saturday 25 April 2026
Anzac Day
Isaiah 9:1-6 / Wisdom 3:1-9. Justice shall flourish in his time and fullness of peace for ever – Ps 71(72):2-4, 7-8, 12-13, 17. Ephesians 2:13-18 / 1 Corinthians 1:18-25. John 12:23-28 / John 14:23-29.
Remembering wartime chaplains
‘They went forth and preached everywhere.’ Today, Anzac Day, is a timely opportunity to remember those chaplains who accompanied Australian soldiers to war.
Jesuit priest Fr Edward Sydes served with the Second Division Artillery in the First World War. His service was cut short when he was gassed, and he died in 1918 after he developed pneumonia during his recovery. His comrades testified to his presence on the battlefield:
‘A most cultivated man, a distinguished minister of his Church, a man quite out of the common, was there in the disorder and distress and agony of the time, mingling with his direct spiritual counsel the very lowly service of handing out cocoa and cigarettes, helping here and there and lending a hand in any way he could; but surely all was invested with the true and essential dignity of his calling.’
Lest we forget.
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