By Revd Mark Ackford

As you may know yesterday there was a parish trip to Coventry Cathedral, 28 pilgrims on a journey to a place of remarkable reconciliation, hope and renewal.

The old cathedral was destroyed on the 14th of November 1940, the night of the Coventry blitz and after the bombing, the cathedral’s provost, Richard Howard, wrote “Father Forgive” on a charred wall, symbolising a commitment to forgiveness and peace. In the days that followed, two powerful symbols emerged from the ruined cathedral. Two burnt roof beams – which had fallen in the shape of a cross in the rubble – were bound together and placed where the altar had been and three medieval roof nails were formed into a cross, which became the original Coventry Cross of Nails.

During the BBC radio broadcast from the cathedral ruins on Christmas Day 1940, Howard declared that when the war was over, we should work with those who had been enemies “to build a kinder, more Christ-like world.” The Cross of Nails quickly became a potent sign of friendship and hope in the post-war years. This was especially true in relationships with Germany, and the developing links between Coventry and the cities of Kiel, Dresden and Berlin. In September 1947 a Cross of Nails was presented to St Nikolai Church, Kiel, Germany, a symbol of peace between former enemies.

And so began the moral and prophetic vision of Coventry cathedral’s ministry of reconciliation something that remains to this day at the centre of the cathedral’s raison d’etre.

Beside the ruins of the old cathedral, the new cathedral now stands, designed by Sir Basil Spence and consecrated in 1962, it rises as a beacon of reconciliation, hope and renewal. Its modernist design, in sharp contrast to the medieval remains, represents a determination to move forward without forgetting the past. The physical connection between the old and new structures expresses the continuity between remembrance and regeneration.

This physical connection is the one thing that struck me most profoundly of all. The jagged, open structure of the old cathedral ruins are in stark contrast to the clean lines and uplifting spaces of the new cathedral building, illustrating for me the passage from destruction to hope. In a sense two buildings joined by a bridge, one which physically and metaphorically links the past and future. With the use of natural light, open spaces, and modern materials in the new cathedral all contributing to a feeling of openness, transparency, and trust in humanity’s capacity for renewal.

Today, Coventry Cathedral remains a living symbol of peace, reconciliation, and the enduring human spirit. Its message is as relevant now as it was in the aftermath of war: that out of destruction can come hope, and from forgiveness, a new beginning. Through its architecture, art, and mission, the cathedral continues to inspire people from all backgrounds to seek understanding and to build a more peaceful world.