THE NATION AT WAR

Waiapu Church Gazette, Volume 31, Issue 7, 1 September 1940, Page 2

THE NATION AT WAR

"We Commit Our Cause to God/

Shrine of the Nations History

Sermon preached m Westminster Abbey by, the Archbishop • of . Canterbury. .. "Lord, Thou hast been our refuge: from one generation to another" — Psalm xc. 1. . It is a solemn thought— indeed m the strict sense of the word an aweful thought—that we are living m an hour darkened by greater dangers than have ever threatened our nation m the long story of its life. .Is there not also something truly awe-ful m the spectacle of the fierce and ruthless onrush of the powers of evil? Yet let a light of quiet confidence break m upon the darkness. Here m this Abbey Church, the shrine of the nations history, we \ are surrounded by memorials of other dangers' and of the valiant men who overcame them. The centuries rebuke the fears and calm the anxieties of the hour. It is not to be thought of that the Flood ■ Of British freedom; which, to. the open sea . ' '.'_.■■ Of the world's' praise, from dark antiquity *■"■'... * " ' Hath flowed with pomp of . waters un withstood ..-.,'■,- Should perish. This is no vain boasting. It is the thankful remembrance of a trust m God which has" been vindicated through centuries of danger, stress and conflict. "Our fathers hoped m Th6e; they trusted m Thee, and Thou didst deliver them. They called upon Thee and were holpen; they put their trust -in .Thee and were not confounded." :' "" ' " '*' Nation Turns to God And now the day of anxiety becomes, a day of prayer. At the bid.ding of its King the nation/turns from itself to the Eternal God, its hope and strength, its very present help m trouble. The message of the day to each one of us m our perplexity is this: "Who is among you that feareth .the Lord . . . that

walketh m darkness/ and hath no light?, £et him trust jn) thi&N^me of the Lord and stay upon his God." "Lord, Thou has been our refuge : from one generation to another." We are the more bold thus to turn to God and stay upon Him because it is with a clear conscience that we can on this day and always commit our. cause to Him. We are called to defend our land and all that we hold dear within it, the wider Commonwealth that has wondrously grown

up around it, and our "-common". -heri? tage of freedom. Please God, this we shall- do with', all our .might. But more than this— we are called to take our place m a mighty ., conflict of right against wrong. The ruthless invasions of peace-loving have stripped the designs of the enemy v of every possible disguise. They have shocked ' the moral conscience of the world, at least wherever that conscience is free to act and speak. They lay bare a mere

unbridled. lust of power under whose pressure all the. old" sanctities of truth, justice, mercy and freedom are trampled under foot. These are riot the mere heated words which spring from the passions of war. To hesit ate to brand this force which has been let loose upon the world as essentially evil would be to scorn 1 all those moral standards which have been slowly and painfully established by mankind to give security and honour iovthe common life. Steadfastness a Trust ~ Strength comes to soul and will when moral issues are thus simpli,fied. In a man's own life, when his conscience is confronted by a clear conflict of right and wrong, if there is any worth m his manhood he will abhor the evil and cleave to the good. Whatever he may lose of ease or advantage he will <at all costs keep the integrity of his soul. So m this present struggle we dare not falter m holding to what we believe to be right, whatever it may cost. This steadfastness is a trust we owe to our conscience, to our country, to the world, and —we dare to add— to God. For what is it that invests these ultimate moral principles with inviolable sanctity and .with the right to claim our unswerving loyalty? It is because we believe they stand for the Will of God. It cannot be the Will of God that a rule of brute force, enslaving the mind and soul of men to the power of a single State, should prevail on the earth. Then must it not be the Will of God that this rule should be resisted and overcome? This simple loyalty to the Will of God as He has given us to see it will be our strength. Whatever dangers and sufferings it may bring , it will m the, end be proved right 'Here to us Christians, as always m times of perplexity— be it said with reverence— the Cross of our Redeemer comes m sight. On that Cross the powers of evil seemed at the time to triumph. He Himself m one moment of distress seemed to wonder whether the Father to whose will He had clung had not forsaken Him, Yet that loyalty to the Father's will was justified. The divine purpose, . hidden at the time, was made plain m the Resurrection.

The Son of man crucified arid risen gives the final assurance that loyalty k t<i> the will of God, even at the cost of bitter sacrifice, will m the end be vindicated. r . 'It All Depends on Me" This, then, my friends and. fellowcountrymen, is vthe assurance which gives us confidence both m committing our cause to God arid m pursuing it wherever it may lead. This is the assurance which will keep our spirit strong, and it is strength of spirit that we most need. Other forms of strength must be supplied— all. the resources, which a country now puts wholly at the disposal of its Government, can furnish, all the utmost personal service which every man and woman can render. This is not the occasion to dwell upon the .urgency ~of that' call. Suffice it ■ tp> say that each single citizen has a part to take and a place to fill m, this great struggle which can be taken or .filled by no one else. He or she must think' or. act as if on him or her alone -the issue hung. . The suggestion has been made, and. the intention of it is right, that we should all have imprinted on our minds and hearts the word, "It all depends' on me." Yet-in, the last resort it is m : the realm of the Spirit that the, war must be lost or won. However formidable, and indeed: appalling, 1 be the power of the vast machine of war, which the ruler of Germany has been preparing for years for its malign purpose, man is always mightier than any machine. It will yet be proved that the spirit of free .men is, stronger than the subservience of men who are the mere cogs of the machine. Whatever losses of reverses may come* whatever suf-' ferings may be m store, there remains the unconquerable soul. Here, too, on each single' person lies a separate and inescapable responsibility — either to weaken or to strengthen the spirit of the nation. God helping us, we shall keep our spirit strong. ; , ; The Surest Power God helping us. The surest power for this arming of the spirit is the remembrance of God. It is to rise above all the things that are being so manifestly shaken to the things that abide unshaken—

God's sovereignty, God's will, God's ;. : . grace. ' \>-' ?->:'<i~-.y- ■'■■;' . /■ ■■'■. ■• So the. nation, I repeat, turns its day of danger into a day of prayer. Truly it is with humility that we must draw near to God Most High, Most Holy. Far be from us any mood of self -righteousness. He knows how much there is tp repent of m our personal and national life, m,, our neglect of Him, and m the lot of multitudes of our own people. Our first prayer must be for forgiveness. Humility, yes indeed. But surely not ' humiliation. Rather the head which has first bowed m humility and penitence; may raise itself m solemn exaltation. For we have been called to take our place m a mighty conflict against the powers of evil, and we ask God's strength that we may be found worthy pf ■ that high calling. ' Mere act of Prayer The mere act of prayer now and repeated continually day by day— of staying upon our God, "of touch with the Eternal— will bring calmness, courage; self-control. It will keep our minds, from being swayed about by rumours, and our tempers from yielding to mere angry passion. It will sustain even now m the background of our minds an awareness of the other great call which will await us when this tyranny of evil is overpast to strive for a truly just and therefore lasting peace. # • - More than this, prayer is the submission of ourselves to the Will of God. Just as we have put ourselves at the disposal of our country, so m prayer we put ourselves at the disposal of our God. If this he done simply and honestly even / we, each one, may be found worthy of being His instruments m the fulfilment of His Purpose. So let us fall to prayer. We shall remember that multitudes of our brethren m this country and m the' Colonies and Dominions are praying with us. But here again we shall also remember our solitary personal responsibility. We shall try so to pray, With such earnestness and m- ■ tensity, as if each one of "us were the sole intercessor with God for the brave men across the Channel who are set m the midst of so many and great dangers, for the men, women

and children who have been driven from their homes, for bur own country, and for the world. Here m the stillness of this church, moved by all the memories which surround us, we commit ourselves "and our cause to God. "O Lord hear: O Lord forgive: 'O Lord hearken and do: defer not for Thine own sake, O our God:" Thou ""Who hast been our refuge \ from one generation to another." ■