By the Way: The value of honour

By Nancy Cocks on November 11, 2023.

I told the children at church about James “Pete” Robertson on Sunday. He’s on St John’s Honour Roll, having served in WWI.

He was awarded the Victoria Cross for an act of bravery that cost him his life on November 6, 1917. He ran straight toward the enemy line to rescue two comrades pinned down in crossfire.

Wounded rescuing the first, he returned for the second man, only to be killed by a shell as they returned. His bravery got me thinking about honour and honourable action.

Honour is not something we claim for ourselves, it’s something we offer others. Honour is something earned from others by the quality of our actions and our character, like Pete Robertson’s.

Yet we hear more about dishonourable actions these days. People seem to take pride in dishonouring others with hate speech, the middle finger, cheap shots in internet memes. Even the “Honorable members” in our parliamentary system delight in dishonouring each other.

Is this why Pete Robertson gave his life, rescuing comrades at Passchendaele?

Jesus called us to recognize the humanity in each other in his quotable quotes.

“Treat others the way you want them to treat you.”

“Love your neighbour”

“Love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you.”

St Paul added, “Outdo one another in showing honour.”

These may not be instructions for the battlefield, but the battlefields of the First and Second World Wars created opportunities for the rest of us to show honour toward each other and avoid future wars.

It seems we have forgotten the value of honour.

And if we do not value honour, we are not likely to offer it to a neighbour, let alone a stranger or an enemy.

But look around. See what dishonouring neighbours is costing so many in the conflicts of our day.

Pete Robertson reminds us that acting honourably is worth a great deal. Surely Remembrance reminds us that honourable action can defeat dishonour.