Over decades, St Mary’s windows have been an inspiring feature of East Chinnock village church, all the windows apart from the east window were made and presented by Herr Günther Anton, a former German POW, as tokens of gratitude for how he was treated by the village, and of reconciliation following the end of WW2. Drawing on these emblems of reconciliation, a one-day Conflict and Reconciliation event is being held at St Mary’s on Saturday May 20.
Organiser, Alex Swarbrick, says "Confict and resolution are ever present themes in the news, in our daily lives, in our relationships. Reconciliation is central to our Christian faith; reconciliation with God and with one another. So we wanted to bring people together around the themes and we hope there will be things people will be able to take away from the event which they can use in their everyday lives."
Joining the day will be speaker Joe Campbell, from Northern Ireland. He will draw on his experience of peacebuilding and reconciliation during the ‘Troubles’ in this 25th anniversary year of the Good Friday Agreement. Jo has also been involved with peace building and conflic resolution in Nepal.
Alice Farnhill from the Community of the Cross of Nails founded by Coventry Cathedral after the city’s WW2 bombing will also be speaking at the event. The Community is a Christian network of Churches and organisations who, drawn together by the story of Coventry Cathedral, share a common commitment to work and pray for peace, justice and reconciliation.
In the afternoon there will be an interactive session lead by Dr Diane Summer from East Chinnock, it will looking at reconciliation in our everyday lives.
The event takes place from 10am until 4pm. ‘Early bird’ tickets are on sale now at £15, and include tea, coffee, and buffet lunch in the Village Hall. Tickets on the day will be £20. For tickets and more details please email Alex Swarbrick