Devotion

Anzac Devotion

As a school, we are fortunate to have a Gallipoli Pine, or a Lone Pine. It's a living connection between us and those who shaped our nation through their courage and sacrifice.

The story begins on a battlefield at Gallipoli in 1915. At a place called Lone Pine Ridge, Australian soldiers fought in one of the most brutal battles of the campaign. The ridge had been stripped of its Aleppo pines except for one lone tree—hence the name that became legendary in our history.

Those three days of fighting claimed 2,000 Australian lives and an estimated 7,000 Turkish casualties. In the aftermath, Lance Corporal Benjamin Smith gathered pine cones from the battlefield and sent them home to his mother in memory of his brother Mark, who died in the fighting. From these cones grew seedlings—one planted in Inverell and another at the Australian War Memorial—living tributes to those who fell.

The philosopher Albert Camus wrote, "In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer." The lives of many of our veterans and returned service personnel after experiencing the darkness of conflict embodies this truth. One of their greatest legacies lies in their capacity to return and build a world worth living in. Their quiet courage in peacetime—bearing physical and psychological scars with grace—are one of their greatest gifts to us.

In honouring those who carried this knowledge, we accept the responsibility of their legacy—to build a world worthy of their sacrifice.

Every day, we make small sacrifices for those we love. These everyday acts form the foundation of our deepest connections. But in these modest offerings, we see something greater.

The young men who stormed the beaches at Gallipoli took sacrifice to extraordinary heights, relinquishing futures bright with promise for their mates and their country. As it says in John 15:13, "Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down their life for their friends."

Yet even their noble sacrifice points toward something more. Jesus’ deliberate journey to the cross was not a sacrifice demanded by human conflict but one made to address our deepest need.

This progression of sacrifice—from our daily acts of love, to the soldier's ultimate gift, to Jesus perfect sacrifice on the cross—forms a sacred continuum in which we are all a part.

Our Gallipoli pine, remember is not just a memorial to the past. It's a living challenge to consider how we might live sacrificially for others, inspired by those who gave so much before us. And it reminds us that from the darkest soil of human suffering can grow enduring symbols of hope, resilience, and new life.

Heavenly Father, 

Thank for for the opportunity that we have to remember and give thanks for the sacrifice of your Son, Jesus, this Easter. We also pray that as we commemorate Anzac Day, we can give thanks for the service of our service men and women, and those who continue to serve. We pray that we can grow in our understanding that true sacrifice is made not for oneself, but for those who follow. As we remember the fallen, we pray that we will also acknowledge our responsibility to build upon the future they fought to secure. Amen. 

Blessings!

Will Wallace

Principal