Christian congregations are already organizing the Remembrance Day due to Sunday rest

In various Dutch congregations and villages where many Reformed Christians live, a commemoration of the dead is already being organized on Saturday. This includes Urk (Flevoland), Staphorst (Overijssel), Yserke (Zeeland), Elspeet and Harskamp (Gelderland). Because May 4 this year falls on a Sunday, many Biblebelt places decided to advance the commemoration for a day.

About this, on Urk were already months ago conversationsthe municipality wrote mid -April. This showed that « most those directly involved have no objection to a memorial on Sunday, if sober and modest ». Nevertheless, the municipality opted for a commemoration of the dead on Saturday: the conclusions of the conversations were « weighed against the realization that commemoration on Sunday is not desired by part of society ».

The Foundation 4 May Staphorst laid the choice To move the commemoration to 3 May further: « To give as many residents as possible the opportunity to be present at the commemoration » it will be moved to Saturday. Staphorst also did that with earlier dead memorials that fell on a Sunday.

The chairman of the 4 and 5 May Committee Elspeet says Against Omroep Gelderland That his village will commemorate on Saturday because « the Committee 4 and 5 May Elspeet doesn’t want to exclude anyone ».

From 1946 to 1968, the National Remembrance Day was shifted to May 3 if 4 May fell on a Sunday. In 1968 that use was abolished: the commemoration of the dead would no longer give way to Sunday rest. In 2014 and 2008, 4 May also fell on a Sunday for the last time.