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Statement by the Church Leaders of Wootton BassettWhat has developed in our town has been a spontaneous reaction of sorrow for the loss of life of our service personnel, and a demonstration of support for their families and friends. Those who line the route seek to honour the dead and those who grieve their loss. All servicemen and women, regardless of rank or religion are honoured as they pass through the town and the Parish Church bell tolls for them all. The Repatriations through Wootton Bassett embrace families and friends and are signs of compassion in our broken world. In the words of our most recent thank you message – “thank you all for the way you receive our armed forces back from Afghanistan. It must be a big comfort to these families and friends.” We recognize that individuals have their own views on the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, but these remain personal and private. We believe the proposed demonstration in Wootton Bassett would be inappropriate: it would confuse acts of honouring the dead and supporting the grieving with the politics of military involvement. Above all we would wish to stress our belief that all deaths in war are tragic no matter what the nationality of those concerned. Fr. John Reville, Parish Priest at Sacred Heart Church (Catholic) |
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