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Written by: Kamran Mofid

Published: 25 April 2020

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Paul Oestreicher – an inspirational peace campaigner. Photo:vaincrelaviolence.org 

N.B. Early this morning, as usual at 5.00am, I came down to my little place, my den- the office- and turned my computer on. The first thing I noted was an email from a very dear friend, Canon Dr. Paul Oestreicher, in Wellington, New Zealand. I must say, it is always joyful for me to hear from Paul, our friendship goes back a long way. I always like his writtings, talks, and sermons. He says it all so eloquently, and passinonately, always speaking truth to power, a quality short in supply these days, whilst needed more than ever. I am grateful I had a chance to learn from him, all those years ago, when he was at Coventry Cathedral. I miss those days very much, I must say.

Paraphrasing his email,  Paul had thanked me for my email of yesterday, sharing my  moment of enlightenment with him, and saying that I  have gone on living it. This made me very pleased.

Paul then told me that today, April 25, is the day that  New Zealand remembers its war dead. ANZAC Day, The county's most solemn day which ‘I will honour and challenge in a live stream sermon from my parish church. The day commemorates the catastrophic defeat of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps on a Turkish beach in 1915.’  He had also sent me the text of his sermon.

Paul had also sent me a lovely photo taken by a good friend of his  of the Dawn taken at 6.00 am on Saturday 25th of Wellington Harbour, beside which he and his wife, Barbara, live.

He then concludes his email by saying that this photo in the light of what I had sent him yesterday, speaks for itself.

Now it is my pleasure to share Paul’s ANZAC 2020 Sermon with you (With his kind permission).

ANZAC DAY 2020 SERMON, ST PETERS ON WILLIS WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND

Photo: NZPlaces

Shirley Murray died earlier this year. HONOUR THE DEAD, A Hymn for Anzac Day, is one of her finest poems. We shall reflect on the words and then hear the hymn sung.

Honour the dead, our country’s fighting brave,
honour our children left in foreign grave,
where poppies blow and sorrow seeds her flowers,
honour the crosses marked forever ours.

They were our sons, our brothers, our lovers, our husbands. We loved them. How could we not? One Empire, ours, was at war with other empires. Their sons, brothers, lovers, husbands, like ours, were under orders like ours to go and kill the enemy, hoping to survive. All this, to maintain the structures of power. Today the historians tell us, it was a pointless, futile war. They said it was a war to end all wars - it was not. It fuelled the next, and once again young men were sent to kill and if need be to be killed. 

Today the grandchildren of those who fought on both sides can hold hands and mourn together on that Turkish beach, though this year only virtually because the same disease threatens them all. There is only one humanity.   

Weep for the places ravaged with our blood,
weep for the young bones buried in the mud,
weep for the powers of violence and greed,
weep for the deals done in the name of need. 

In every war, the real enemy is not the squaddie on the other side who breathes and thinks and fears like you, but war itself. War makes a mockery of humanity. War drenches the good earth with good blood. There is no such thing as Turkish blood, no Maori or Pakeha blood, no German or Russian blood. No Jewish or Muslim blood. Only human blood. Are you wounded? Ask not whose blood will save your life. You need a surgeon? Ask not the colour of her skin. If you die, they’ll say your cause was holy. And if you kill an enemy, his people will believe his cause was holy. The warmakers will deck the war graves with crosses. Don’t believe their lies. Truth is war’s first victim. But have compassion for the liars, for ‘they know not what they are doing’. Weep for the dead. Weep for the living. Work to end killing.

Honour the brave whose conscience was their call,
answered no bugle, went against the wall,
suffered in prisons of contempt and shame,
branded as cowards, in our country’s name.

Those who defied public opinion and said no to the First World War because they would not kill, were few in New Zealand. Their names are known. They put humanity before nation. They were treated as cowardly traitors. Let one name stand for them all: Archibald Baxter. His account of the cruelty he was made to suffer in his book We will not Cease tells the bitter story well. It makes a painful reading. Their number in the Second World War was greater. Some of them were exempted on religious grounds and the rest treated like prisoners of war. At least people now knew what conscientious objection was.

Archibald and his fellow sufferers had paid a high price for the human right to say no. There are still many countries, where that right does not exist. In Hitler’s Germany, during WW2, the devout farmer Franz Jägerstätter’ refused to kill: ‘Jesus’ he said, ‘will not let me’. His Bishop tried to change his mind: ‘You will be executed. Your children will have no father.’ ‘Are you saying, then, that I should kill the fathers of Russian children?’  He was beheaded. Half a century later the Pope beatified him. Our churches are slow to learn.

Weep for the waste of all that might have been
Weep for the cost that war has made obscene,
Weep for the homes that ache with human pain,’
Weep that we ever sanction war again.

The nations have not ceased to sanction war. Often enough on Anzac Day it is made to seem holy. It never has been, though good men have fought. Soldiers are not the problem, our mindset is. Yet long before Jesus - who taught his followers to love their enemies - the prophet Micah looked forward to the day when ‘nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore’. Look, just for a moment, at what we, all of us humans, spend on preparing for war:

The money needed to provide adequate food, water, education, health and housing for everyone in the world is about $30 billion a year. A huge sum of money. It is about as much as the world spends on armaments every week. 

Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy.

Honour the dream for which our nation bled,
held now in trust to justify the dead,
honour their vision on this solemn day:
peace known in freedom, peace the only way.

Honour the dead, is where this song began, began with our country’s fighting brave. Gallipoli was over a hundred years ago, but why should our honouring, if honour we must, not go further back than this British war on a foreign beach? Why not grieve for the brave of the Maori/Pakeha wars, when the original people fought for their land, this land? Do we want to forget those wars in which our land bled? Do we want to hide, that their aftermath still bleeds?  But it is the dead of all the wars of all of history that make Jesus cry. To quote him: ‘They do not know what truly makes for peace’. 

I was reminded of Jesus’ words in 1976 on an Anzac Day at a First World War   Cemetery – you will now be surprised - just outside Berlin. with the graves of those Commonwealth Soldiers who had died in German Prisoner of War camps. My job had taken me to Communist East Berlin where the Australian Ambassador asked me, as a Kiwi, to conduct the traditional Anzac Day ceremony. In New Zealand, given my views about war, I would never have been asked. In NZ, I would have been in the crowd, wearing a white poppy.

On that Anzac Day in 1976, these Commonwealth graves were surrounded by a Soviet Russian Tank Brigade. The mourners were diplomats: from India, Pakistan, Australia and Sri Lanka. It seemed surreal. In my heart, I prayed for the millions of Russians and Germans who had died in both World Wars. But publicly I followed the traditional ANZAC military protocol, bugle and all. I looked up and saw, as usual, a sword over the cross on the Cenotaph - and wept. I can only leave the last word to Jesus: ‘Those who live by the sword shall die by the sword.’   

Amen.

More articles by Canon Oestreicher from the GCGI Archives: 

THIS ENGLISH BREXIT- Canon Dr Paul Oestreicher …

 The Disintegration of this Disunited Kingdom- Canon Dr Paul Oestreicher …

 THE BATTLE OF THE SOMME, A HUNDRED YEARS ON

Dawn at 6.00 am on Saturday 25th of Wellington Harbour

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Written by: Kamran Mofid

Published: 24 April 2020

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"What humbugs we are, who pretend to live for Beauty,

and never see the Dawn!"- Logan Pearsall Smith

“Day’s sweetest moments are at dawn”

'How to Make the Most of Your Day: Wake up With the Sun'

Louis Armstrong - What a Wonderful World 

Oh, What A Beautiful Morning w/Lyrics

Photo: How to Make the Most of Your Day: Wake up With the Sun

"In the morning, everything is new.

The day's blank slate lies before me,

ready for my writing.

May it be words of beauty I write.

May it be deeds of grace I do.

May it be thoughts of joy I think.

All the Holy Ones, Listen;

this is what I pray.

Great Spirits of the Four Realms,

Holy Ones of the Realms of Minds,

Kindreds of Yore,

as I go through the day,

keep my eyes open wide.

May I not miss beauty.

May I not miss joy.

May I not miss wonder.

Keep me awake and aware of the world.

It is my privilege to perform my morning prayers.

It is my honor to do what should be done.

As I rise with the morning, fog lifting slowly for my mind,

I pray not to forget these truths. Awen."-  Ceisiwr Serith, Book of Pagan Prayer

When is the Dawn?

“How can we determine the hour of dawn, when the night ends and the day begins?” asked the Teacher.

“When from a distance you can distinguish between a dog and a sheep” suggested one of the students.

“No” was the answer.

“Is it when one can distinguish between a fig tree and a grapevine?” asked a second student

“No” “Please tell us the answer then.”

“It is, then,” said the wise Teacher, “when you can look in the face of a human being and you have enough light to recognize in him/her your brother/sister. Up till then, it is night and darkness is still with us.”-Hasidic Tale

The Inner History of a Day

‘No one knew the name of this day;  

Born quietly from deepest night,

It hid its face in light,

Demanded nothing for itself,

Opened out to offer each of us

A field of brightness that traveled ahead,

Providing in time, ground to hold our footsteps

And the light of thought to show the way.

The mind of the day draws no attention;

It dwells within the silence with elegance

To create a space for all our words,

Drawing us to listen inward and outward.

We seldom notice how each day is a holy place

Where the eucharist of the ordinary happens,

Transforming our broken fragments

Into an eternal continuity that keeps us.

Somewhere in us a dignity presides

That is more gracious than the smallness

That fuels us with fear and force,

A dignity that trusts the form a day takes.

So at the end of this day, we give thanks

For being betrothed to the unknown

And for the secret work

Through which the mind of the day

And the wisdom of the soul becomes one.’-John O’Donohue

'The sweetest part of dawn is the silence before the chorus, the moment after; the song thrush and the blackbird first up and then the great tits and the sparrows all asking, where is the sun? They build their nests with their eyes on the horizon soften the twigs with egg-safe star stitched moss and the pull of lamb’s wool plucked fresh from the barb they spin it with the hope of golden thread, good yarn.

Gaia sits at her window and looks out beyond the communal garden waits for the light to reveal itself its fingers running through the drying remains of last year’s harvest, the ribbons of greenery chasing the hill through the wasteland and down toward the forest.

If she stands on her flowerbed she can see the needling floor the carpet of wood anemone and the curls of wild scent garlic, sees the eyes of a tiny deer his fresh infant antlers gleaming as he steps across the treeline into path blockers, shin catchers, he calls out, hear this...'-Natasha Carthew,'Hope's heart beats'

 

A beautiful sunrise from our garden in Coventry. April 2020. Photo: Anne Mofid

N.B. Over 20 years ago, I had a turning in my life.

I was facing some big challenges of life’s ups and downs, hopes and hopelessness. My mind, my feelings and emotions were not in harmony with my usual self. It was a painful time. Until, a very dear friend, a loving friend, a wise teacher, encouraged me to get up early in the morning, at dawn, just before the sunrise. He told me Kamran, you will see a different world, a better world, a kinder world, a healing world at that time of the morning. You will see the clouds dancing, the birds singing, the sky changing. You will see the dawn of a better life that you are searching for…

I rose to the challenge my friend has set for me. My life changed. I became the same Kamran as I used to be.

Now, this is the challenge I am setting for you, my dear friends. Please read what I have noted below. Be inspired by it. Then, on this coming Sunday- 26 April 2020- put your alarm clocks on to wake up at 5.00am (your local time) and join me (hopefully with a cup of lovely tea in your hand) and be with me in the spirit of oneness. Feel the Dawn moment, the sunrise, change of colours, the awesome Dawn chorus and more. Feel these changes, feelings and emotions, positivity, hopefulness, gratitude for being alive, seeing so much beauty and wonder.

Then, I invite you to write me a short note, up to 200- 300 words, telling me of your experience of this new awakening, engaging and dialoguing with the creator and creation.

I will then publish all that I have recieved on the GCGI website, so that together we may encourage a more fruitful global dialogue on ‘The healing power of the life-giving ‘Dawn’ at this time of coronavirus crisis’ and beyond.

The coincidence of the coronavirus arriving at the changing of the seasons seems like a cruel twist. But, in fact, to my mind, this will help us all spring back from this calamity, moving from despair to hope; darkness to light, and winter to spring.

Beautiful cherry blosoms, our street, Coventry, April 2020. Photo: Anne Mofid

‘It's times like these you learn to live again

It's times like these you give and give again

It's times like these you learn to love again

It's times like these time and time again

I—I'm a new day rising

I'm a brand new sky

To hang the stars upon tonight’ - Dave Grohl, Foo Fighters

In times like these, we need an antidote so that we can keep our positive attitude and march forward with determination and hope. Be deliberate in activities that are positive, heartwarming, stress reducing and laughter inducing! We can do all these and more, if we begin the day in a beautiful, inspiring way. Hence, my message of loving Dawn and the wonders of the sunrise. 

Together, we’ll get through this. 

In Praise of Dawn and the Life-giving Sunrise

The Dawn, the time of the sunrise, a magnificent, precious and timeless time of day. It is an awakening of the planet, birds, trees, and wildlife. It is always a new beginning. This is the  moment of unity, between you and the world of creation, you and Mother Nature.

A lovely early mornig stroll, Green Lane, Coventry, March 2020. Photo: Anne Mofid

‘In these uncertain times, as so many of us are restricted in our travel, and with social distancing or self-isolation, DAWNS offers a moment of celebration, a time for us to feel we are together even when we are apart.

“Dawn is a magical time to experience the natural world. It’s an opportunity to notice nature awakening, to see and listen to what’s around us, as night passes into day.”- John Orna-Ornstein, Director of Culture and Engagement, The National Trust

‘The need of quiet, the need of air, the need of exercise and, I believe, the sight of sky and of things growing, seem human needs, common to all and not to be dispensed with without great loss.’ -Octavia Hill (1838-1912), Founder, National Trust 

These are the words, sentiments, that, I, too, most passionately believe in. The only way that I can tell you about my 'Dawn-Time' happiness, my moments of unity with creator and creation, is to share the email I had sent to my family and friends from Crete, Greece, where we were on holiday in May 2019, which I have reprinted below.

A beautiful sunrise from our Hapimag Resort apartment, Crete, May 2019. Photo: Anne Mofid

But before getting there, I want to share a bit more about ‘Dawn, sunrise, unity with creator and creation, etc.

Without a doubt, without any question,  my most favourite thing to do is to be present at dawn at a place of total stillness, quiet, devoid of human presence, just me, myself and I, when I am not lonely, but immersed in the wonders of solitude. Thankfully, I am able to celebrate this time of day regularly, either in our relatively large conservatory, with lovely views of our garden, if it is raining, or sitting in the garden surrounded by a lovely scenery that my wife’s green fingers have created. A beautiful ‘English Garden.'

In this lovely, inspiring setting, dawn signifies a “shift change”. The creatures of the night return to their burrows and dens, getting their well-deserved rest. While creatures of the day emerge. Dawn is that “pointe vierge'' (‘virgin point’ as noted by Thomas Merton) when I hear birds greeting the sun with chirps and cackles, and begin to sing their dawn chorus.

In addition to setting a rhythm for Earth’s flora and fauna, dawn is the pattern in time that signifies the daily arrival of our highly complex energy source — the sun. An arrival of energy that is a highly connected to the necessities of life.

David Haskell in his wonderful book, The Forest Unseen, describes this special moment so beautifully:

‘The light and sound energies washing over the mandala find a point of convergence in my consciousness, where their beauty quickens a flame of appreciation. There is convergence also at the start of the energy’s journey, in the unimaginably hot, pressurized core of the sun. The sun is the origin of both the dawn’s light and birds’ morning songs. The glow on the horizon is light filtered through our atmosphere; the music in the air is the sun’s energy filtered through the plants and animals that powered the singing birds. The enchantment of an April sunrise is a web of flowing energy. The web is anchored at one end by matter turned to energy in the sun and at the other end by energy turned to beauty in our consciousness.’

Thus, in considering all these things and more, at Dawn we are taking a journey of adventure, exploration, and discovery. We are finding ways to find answers to some fundamental personal questions and inquiries: Who am I, where have I come from, where am I going to, what is the purpose of this journey we call life?  For me, Dawn-time is the time to wonder and ponder about these and more. At Dawn we can ponder on how everything is connected. In doing so, we are engaging the very lifeblood of our Earth, of our humanity, our soul and being.

And now, reverting back to Dawn and my email from Crete:

Dear Friends, 

Greetings and love from the loveliest Island of Crete. You know, about 20 years or so ago when I was going through some challenging times in my life, a loving friend, a wise teacher, encouraged me to get up early in the morning, at dawn, just before the sunrise. He told me Kamran, you will see a different world, a better world, a kinder world, a healing world, at that time of the morning.  You will see the clouds dancing, the birds singing, the sky changing. You will see the dawn of a better life. WoW! How wise and correct my loving, wise friend has been, I must say. I have been getting up everyday at 5am, doesn’t matter where I am in the world. And I have never looked back. Today sitting in the balcony of our apartment here in Crete, surrounded by the most beautiful sea and mountains, waiting for the sunrise, listening to the birds, watching the light clouds dancing, I thought it makes me even happier sharing these feelings with you. 

So my friends, please join me-wherever you are- in the spirit of beauty and healing, and begin your journey of Sun-gazing, an old method of healing. Our ancestors worshiped the sun for many good reasons, grandeur, peace, beauty, inspiration, wisdom, contentment, gratitude, healing, joy, hope, happiness, and the calming of the sounds of the awakening wilderness, when the birds are singing good morning to us all.

And also let us all rise to the calling of the first eco-warrior, the poet of nature, William Wordsworth, when he asked us ‘Let Nature be your Teacher’.

Join me at Dawn and let us together sing the praises of mother nature.

Together, we’ll get through this.

See also: My Dawn Experience, by my friend, Steve Pendrey