Exeter Cathedral to mark lockdown anniversary

Bells toll at noon Tuesday

The Bishop of Exeter is to lead an act of reflection in Exeter Cathedral on Tuesday (23 March) to mark the anniversary of the first coronavirus lockdown.

Bishop Robert's reflection, which will include prayers and the lighting of a candle in memory of those who have died, will be streamed on social media from 11.45 a.m. It will conclude at noon with a minute's silence followed by the tolling of the cathedral's bells.

The National Day of Reflection is being coordinated by the charity Marie Curie and officially supported by the Church of England.

More than 1020 people in Devon have died over the last 12 months after contracting covid. 

The Archdeacon of Plymouth, the Venerable Nick Shutt, said "We think it is important to pause, to reflect and to remember what we have been through in the past year."

He has written to all funeral directors and crematorium staff in Devon on behalf of the Diocese of Exeter, to thank them for the work they have been doing to support grieving families during the pandemic.

An online survey published this week of more than 2000 adults commissioned by the Church of England, showed that nearly three quarters of people – more than seven in ten - who wanted to attend a funeral over the past year were unable to do so because of the pandemic.

Eighty-nine per cent of mourners said that people had not been able to say goodbye properly to those who had died, while a similar proportion, 84 per cent, said that people had not been able to fulfil the funeral wishes of the person who died.

Four in ten people said they had lost someone close to them since March 2020 from any cause, including covid.

Nick Shutt said Tuesday's acts of reflection at the cathedral and churches across Devon would "look back on where we have been, but also offer hope for the future, because we are so thankful that we are in a situation where we can get our jabs now."

Bishop of Exeter, Robert Atwelll