|
Shelburne Free Press https://shelburnefreepress.ca/?p=9053 Export date: Wed Jul 3 15:24:49 2024 / +0000 GMT |
Stitches of Healing and Hope On August 4th, Anna Alonso, owner of the Terra Nova Public House in Mulmur and her brother Lieutenant Colonel James Muth of The Royal Canadian Regiment, stood filled with humble reverence in the hallowed sanctuary of St. Paul's Cathedral in London, England. They were there to honour the memory of their grandfather in a commemorative ceremony on the eve of the 100th Anniversary of the beginning of England's engagement in the Great War with the rededication of an altar cloth created by wounded soldiers. Near the end of the war, Anna Alonso's grandfather, Lance Corporal James Muth of the 133 Battalion in The Royal Regiment of Canada, lay recovering in Sheffield, England, suffering from wounds in his arms and legs. As part of rehabilitation, wounded soldiers were taught embroidery, under the guidance of the Royal School of Needlework, a treatment for shell shock that passed the long days of recovering from the wounds of both body and soul. Muth and 138 wounded soldiers from around the United Kingdom created a beautiful altar frontal cloth for St. Paul's Cathedral; stitches that became a symbol of healing and hope for the men and for generations to follow. The cloth was dedicated on July 5th, 1919 in preparation for the following day's national service of thanksgiving for war's end, attended by King George V and Queen Mary. The Daily Telegraph described the alter cloth that day in 1919, “…there was the beautiful radiance of the altar, embodying a symbolism of poignant and splendid appeal. The new altar frontal ... is the offering and work of soldiers so disabled that they can only undertake tasks involving no physical exertion. The richest white satin forms the ground. In the centre panel is the chalice, suggested, it is said, by a lad of 19, as the fitting emblem of sacrifice, and surely implying a noble submission to suffering in the words “the cup which My Father hath sent shall I not drink it?” ... On either side are crossed palms embroidered in gold by men who kept the flag flying at sea to their own grievous wounding; while the bordering includes the rose, alike of mystical and national significance, wrought with conventional foliage in artistic colourings.” In preparation for the commemorative ceremony, relatives of the soldiers were traced, including Anna Alonso and her father Malcolm Muth, a Presbyterian Minister and the son of Lance Corporal Muth. Malcolm Muth sent an email to England, “My father often spoke of the kindness of the doctors, nurses, and others during his convalescence. He was wounded twice and gassed, and so spent a long time in hospitals in England and after he came home. He did more embroidery here. He died at age 83 after a useful life in the community: the father of seven children, carpenter, church elder, village councillor, and so much more.” His words were repeated by the Reverend Canon Michael Hampel in his sermon at St. Paul's Cathedral. It was not only the voice of the Lance Corporal's son that was heard at the service – his grandson, Lieutenant Colonel James Muth, of The Royal Canadian Regiment, was given the honour of reading the Liturgy of the Word, an Old Testament Reading from the Prophecy of Micah, which includes the passage: “they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more; but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees, and no one shall make them afraid;” The ceremony which included representatives of HM Government, the High Commissions of Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa, marked the fist time the altar frontal had been used in over 70 years. It was restored for the occasion after being damaged during the bombing of St. Paul's in the Second World War and kept in a storage trunk ever since. In his email, Malcolm Muth noted that when his father had heard “that the altar was destroyed he assumed that the frontal was lost as well. We are all delighted to learn of its restoration and the service…” With over 80 relatives in attendance, the ceremony and especially the sermon given by Reverend Canon Hampel was deeply poignant, “…you came here this evening from Australia, Canada and around the United Kingdom, drawn by something good and beautiful and used in the service of Christ's Church, to remember and to give thanks for the British, Australian, Canadian, New Zealand and South African men who expressed hope despite everything and whose swords were turned by that very hope not into ploughshares but into embroidery needles.” “To be in that Cathedral and to hear the music was overwhelming,” said Anna, struggling to express the beauty of the moment, her pride in her brother, and the importance of being there for her Grandfather. “It was incredibly emotional; everyone was so amazed that we had come.” In WWI Canadians suffered the unthinkable loss of over 60,000 brave boys from our then sparsely populated new country, where over 600,000 men enlisted to support their ‘mother country.' The altar cloth will be on display at St. Paul's Cathedral in London for the next four years, along with the names of all 138 men who worked to craft it. This includes Lance Corporal James Ernest Muth, whose war torn, young hands carefully stitched the delicate threads of an “intricate yellow tulip” nearly one hundred years ago, and who… is not forgotten. By Marni Walsh  Photos Submitted |
|
Post date: 2014-08-20 12:35:15 Post date GMT: 2014-08-20 16:35:15 Post modified date: 2014-08-27 13:30:37 Post modified date GMT: 2014-08-27 17:30:37 |
|
Export date: Wed Jul 3 15:24:49 2024 / +0000 GMT This page was exported from Shelburne Free Press [ https://shelburnefreepress.ca ] Export of Post and Page has been powered by [ Universal Post Manager ] plugin from www.ProfProjects.com |
