On the 28th of October 1989 the Peace Train which ran between Belfast and Dublin in protest against the paramilitaries’ bombing of the railway line was held overnight due to a bomb scare.
Last Sunday, BBC1 Songs of Praise commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Peace Train movement with a special program, which traveled the route of the railway line, and sung hymns from various key churches and cathedrals along the route.
In 1989, I was 3. I remember the Troubles because of the news headlines, but I was too young to understand what the various sides were fighting for.
Northern Ireland has come a long way since 1989, but this doesn’t mean the significance of the program was lost. Whilst Songs of Praise is, by definition, a religious program, by creating thematic episodes, it reaches out beyond the Christian community with a message that has a bearing for all of us. And it communicates that message through song.
Which made last week’s program, for me, so much more memorable. Here were people from both sides of the border coming together to sing hymns which are shared by both the Catholic and Protestant faiths.
The music was the embodiment of their shared desires for the future of Ireland and of Peace.
Post by Mary Stokes - Meet Me
Located in the UK, music has been part of my life for a long time. I'm a classically trained violinist but have a wide range musical knowledge.
