This summer marks 80 years since the end of the Second World War in the Pacific. On 15 August 2025, the UK will pause to remember VJ Day and remember those who gave their lives, those who endured great suffering, and those whose lives were changed forever.
Margaret Dryburgh was a British missionary and teacher who was captured in Singapore during the war and imprisoned in a Japanese internment camp. Though she died before the end of the war, her witness lives on through her creativity, as she composed The Captive’s Hymn, her prayer set to music:
May the day of freedom dawn,
Peace and justice be reborn,
Grant that nations loving thee,
O’er the world may brothers be,
Cleansed by suffering, know rebirth,
See Thy Kingdom come on earth.
Suffering, conflict and injustice still mar our world, yet Margaret’s example urges us to keep on praying for peace, even in the bleakest of days.
A Prayer for Peace (inspired by The Captive’s Hymn)
Lord of every nation,
We remember with gratitude those who gave their lives in war,
And we honour the memory of the broken, the brave, and the bereaved.As we mark this anniversary of VJ Day,
We pray for a world where justice and mercy walk hand in hand.
Let peace take root in divided lands.
Let reconciliation grow in wounded hearts.
Let your kingdom come,
On earth as it is in heaven.In Jesus’ name we pray,
Amen.