A Bowed Head

Symbolic gestures at the right time carry great power.

Such was a small gesture made by Queen Elizabeth two days ago, a few hours into her visit to Ireland.  After laying a wreath at the Garden of Remembrance in Dublin, she stepped back and bowed her head. 

For my readers outside Ireland, the Garden of Remembrance honours those who died in Ireland's struggle for freedom from British rule. Now a nation watched as the British monarch showed respect to those who had fought to break free.

Many people told me that they were deeply moved by the sight.  A friar, with strong republican leanings, said tears came to his eyes with that bow.

The right gestures indeed carry power, and can be bearers of transforming grace.

I am reminded of a passage in the Second Eucharistic Prayer of Reconciliation:

'Your Spirit changes our hearts... those who were estranged join hands in friendship, and nations seek the way of peace together. Your Spirit is at work when understanding puts an end to strife, when hatred is quenched by mercy, and vengeance gives way to forgiveness.'

The Spirit was at work in that gesture, in that bowed head.

The Queen Comes Calling



President McAleese and the Queen



The Queen of England arrives in Dublin today.  The visit, her first ever to her nearest neighbour, is full of historical significance. It is seen as a sign of the improved relations between our two countries, united by a long and tortured history.

However, yesterday I met a man who spoke bitterly of the visit. Having been raised in Derry during the Troubles, the British monarch was the symbol of a system he rejected.

While I could listen and have some understanding of the suffering that was the source of  his anger, I know that bitterness must not determine the path ahead.

A man from Holland who read my recent blog  'Praying for Osama bin Laden?' sent me a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr.:

'Returning hate for hate multiplies hate,

adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars.

Darkness cannot drive out darkness;
only light can do that.

Hate cannot drive out hate;
only love can do that.'

Thank God that this day has arrived, unthinkable  at the height of the hated and killings of the Troubles.