St Ethelburga’s
© Copyright Robin Sones and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence
Following my previous post about peace and war museums, yesterday evening I found myself in St Ethelburga’s Centre for Reconciliation and Peace. Formerly St Ethelburga’s church, it was almost completely destroyed by the 1993 IRA bomb which caused extensive damage around Bishopsgate. Some 500 tonnes of glass were broken in the explosion and damage amounted to some £1bn. Mercifully, the bomb was detonated on a Saturday; only one person was killed and 44 injured. The church was only seven metres away from the truck bomb.
It was reconstructed as a peace and reconciliation centre after the bomb and is now an oasis of peace, relaxation and beauty in the city. Dwarfed by the office buildings around it, the centre consists of projects, events and services focusing on ‘transforming conflict and division into new relationships and peaceful communities’, set in a lovely environment consisting of the rebuilt church, a yurt and secret garden.
Previously on Barnflakes
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