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Diocese of Leeds Justice and Peace Commission (1)

Tag: ashwednesday

Ash Wednesday

The Leeds Diocese Pax Christi group will be holding a lunchtime service on Ash Wednesday. It will be held in Dortmund Square, just off the Headrow, starting at 12:30. The theme of the service will be the same as in 2025: repentance for the possession of nuclear weapons. Last year, people attending were delighted to welcome a group from Corpus Christi High School. ALL are welcome to come along.  

24 Mar – Ash Wednesday Act of Witness

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by Carol Burns

Ash Wednesday Act of Witness and service of repentance for the continued possession and development of nuclear weapons

Although there has been an Ash Wednesday Service in London for over 30 years, 2025 was the first time we have organised one in Leeds.

We gathered outside Holy Trinity Church on Boar Lane as a public witness to our commitment to ending the possession of nuclear weapons.

CC College with banners We prayed for our leaders, and ourselves to do everything we can to end nuclear war preparations and to give priority to those most disadvantaged in our world

We are inspired by Pope Francis in 2023 in his Urbi et Orbi message when he said,

‘To say yes to the Prince of Peace, then means saying no to war to every war and to do so with courage, to the very mindset of war, an aimless voyage, a defeat without victors and inexcusable folly’

Teresa J iwth ribbons Our service included a time for repentance a time for remembrance and those present tied purple ribbons to a wooden cross as a symbol of all those effected by conflicts throughout the world. We remembered those in Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine, Democratic Republic of Congo and many others throughout the world

It was encouraging to be joined by young people from Corpus Christi Catholic College who held our banners including one that proclaimed ‘Say Yes to Peace and No to War’

Our service ended with singing Ubi Caritas and a sign of peace to each other.

Download Service Prayers

Group plus banners

17 Jan – Disarming the Heart

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by Carol Burns, Pax Christi

Disarming the Heart

A liturgy of repentance in a Nuclear Age

An Ash Wednesday service will be held on Wednesday 6th March at 12.30 outside Holy Trinity Church on Boar Lane in Leeds.

Since 1982, Christians have assembled on Ash Wednesday at the Ministry of Defence to pray for peace and a conversion of hearts and minds away from nuclear war preparations, the destruction caused by nuclear testing and the wasted resources that are invested in nuclear weapons and in all weapons.

Over those years services have been held in Liverpool and Glasgow and people from peace groups from different parts of the country have travelled to London.

Holy Trinity Church on Boar Lane in Leeds from a drone London protest against nuclear Protest in London against nuclear This year 2025 the Leeds Pax Christi group are organising a prayer service in Leeds.

Ash Wednesday is the beginning of a time of repentance in the Church calendar and we will be praying for all those involved in nuclear war preparations to repent and have a change of heart.

We also recognise that we can all do more to speak out about nuclear war preparations and to prayer to have the courage to carry on with our opposition.

We are inspired by Pope Francis in 2023 in his Urbi et Orbi' message where he said:

"The human heart is weak and impulsive; if we find instruments of death in our hands, sooner or later we will use them. And how can we even speak of peace, when arms production, sales and trade are on the rise?"

All are welcome to join us on 6th March