It's Holocaust Memorial Day. A day for reflection and remembrance, marking this year 78 years since the liberation of Auschwitz by Soviet forces.
The utter horror of the Holocaust should be almost impossible to comprehend, yet very sadly events in Ukraine, Darfur and Syria are stark reminders that persecution and prejudice remain.
Those who were Jewish were of course the main victims of the Nazis, however it's worth remembering that many other groups were targeted too. Political opponents, roma, freemasons, trade unionists, the disabled, Jehovahs Witnesses and those, like me, who were gay. It's sobering to think that you, too, would have been a target, subjected to hard labour, torture, experimented upon or executed.
We will be lighting a candle in our window this evening to remember. I hope you will take a few moments to reflect too. Only through the bravery of our forebears are we able to do so