Farewell to the Queen of EnglandAway from London's pomp and circumstance, the coronation of the King Charles III at Westminster Abbey has made all Christian denominations and other religious traditions visible. It was also an opportunity to offer a secularized world a religious ceremony, a reference to the transcendent, to the spiritual sphere, which millions of people around the world were able to watch on television and on the Internet.
A solemn ceremony was planned, "a thorough and faithful expression of Christian faith and hope," wrote the Cardinal Nicholsthe Primate of England and Wales. And so it was. The Primate had also recalled that "excluding the Vatican City State, there is only one other country in the world in which the inauguration of the Head of State takes place in a religious ceremony".
"For us, it is an ancient tradition that contributes greatly to the sense of identity and continuity of this complex modern society and all that we bring to the world at large," he added. The Pope Francis was represented at the coronation by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State. The ceremony was attended by more than two thousand guests, diplomatic representatives from over two hundred countries and one hundred heads of state.
Archbishop of Canterbury: "to serve".
The Archbishop of CanterburyJustin Welby, Primate of the Anglican Church, who has just participated in an ecumenical peace pilgrimage to South Sudan with Pope Francis and Scottish Presbyterian pastor Iain Greenshields, anointed the king with the holy oils.
In his brief homily, the Archbishop of Canterbury noted that "the King of Kings, Jesus Christ, was anointed not to be served, but to serve. Service is love in action," care for the vulnerable, care for the young, care for the natural world. "We have seen these concerns in our king," he said.
"It is the Spirit of God who gives strength and draws us to love in action." So did Jesus, "who laid aside all privilege and gave his life. His throne was a cross and his crown was made of thorns. Each of us has received God's call to serve. Each of us can choose God's way today. Grant me the grace that in your service I may find perfect freedom," he concluded.
At the end of the ceremony, and before leaving Westminster Abbey, King Charles III was greeted by religious leaders of other traditions, who addressed him as "close in faith" and received a gesture of recognition from him. The British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, of Hindu origin and religion, read an excerpt from the Letter of St. Paul to the Colossians.
"Defender of the faith"
The coronation rite of King Charles III can be considered from different angles, but it has not been, as it is evident, a secular act. Millions of people were able to watch a meticulous ceremony that made Charles III "defender of the faith" and "supreme governor of the Church of England", an important reference of the Protestant tradition, in which the 'God save the King' was not missing.
Buckingham Palace had assured in a statement that the ceremony would reflect the current role of the monarch and look to the future, without leaving traditions behind. It further noted that "the coronation is a solemn religious service, along with an occasion for celebration and pageantry."
The ceremony, and the events before and after, testified in this sense that "religion is not a private thing" and "that it can be shown in the public social sphere", contrary to the heritage received from the French Revolution, as the Jewish Harvard professor reflected. Joseph WeilerRatzinger Prize 2022, at an Omnes Forum.
Prayer for the king in parishes
The Bishops' Conference of England and Wales had requested that a Mass be celebrated on Friday, May 5, "for His Majesty the King on the occasion of his Coronation." It was also requested that at the end of the Mass, prior to the final blessing, a prayer be recited Prayer for the King.
It was also noted that in the Sunday masses on May 7, parishes could include in the prayer of the faithful an intention for the King and the Royal Family, and at the end of the mass the Prayer for the King followed by singing Domine, salvum fac and/or the national anthem. The suggested text is as follows:
PRAYER FOR THE KING
O Lord, save Charles, our King.
And hear us on the day when we call upon you.
O Lord, hear my prayer.
And let my cry come before you.
The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
Almighty God, we pray,
that your servant Charles, our King,
who, by your providence has received the government of this kingdom,
may continue to grow in every virtue,
that, imbued with your heavenly grace,
be preserved from all that is harmful and evil
and, blessed with your favor
can, with his consort and the royal family,
finally reach your presence,
by Christ who is the way, the truth and the life
and who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, forever and ever.
Amen.
Details of the coronation ceremony
With a similar structure, for the past 900 years the ceremony has taken place at Westminster Abbey, and since 1066 the liturgical celebration has been conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The coronation featured some of the ceremonies seen at the funeral for Queen Elizabeth II last year.
The opening words of the coronation of King Charles III that could be heard "are very significant," Cardinal Nichols has written. "The first to speak is a chorister, who says, 'Your Majesty, as children of the Kingdom of God we welcome you in the name of the King of Kings,' and King Charles responds, 'In your name, and according to your example, I come not to be served, but to serve.'"
"The ceremony that follows is profoundly Christian in every feeling and action, combining history and innovation, action and word, music and silent prayer," continued the cardinal, who recalled that "the history of these lands is deeply marked by our religious history. Until the sixteenth century, the coronation was Catholic. For the last four hundred years it has been a service of the Church of England and continues to be so".
The Catholic Primate considers that "this time many aspects of the event reflect and reinforce the profoundly changed relationship between our two Churches". And it relates that, "as is well known, Pope Francis gave King Charles a relic of the true Cross of Christ. The relic was embedded in a silver cross, which will be carried at the head of the first procession on the coronation day."
Cardinal Vincent Gerard Nichols recalls that "the ceremony contains many traces of its Catholic origins: the chanting of the Kyriethe Veni Sancte Spiritusthe Te Deum and the Gloriawith an arrangement written in the 16th century by William Byrd for recusant Catholics".
And he reveals that "as Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, I was invited to participate in the blessing of the newly crowned king, a development that represents a further step in the healing of our ancient common wounds."
Religious freedom in the United Kingdom
King Charles recently stated that he takes this oath as a "fully committed and devoted member of the Church of England." He also said that while this solemn duty is his constitutional duty, he also has other duties, less solemnly expressed but equally sincere. He explained that these are the duty to uphold the exercise of religious freedom in the United Kingdom and the welcome of people of other religious faiths and of all faiths."
One of the most important innovations of this coronation that has been witnessed, in the cardinal's opinion, "is that the king prays publicly, so that everyone can hear him. This prayer takes place immediately after the oath.
The king prays: "Grant me to be a blessing to all your children, of all faiths and convictions, that together we may discover the ways of goodness and be guided in the paths of peace, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."
The faith of Queen Elizabeth II
A review of statements made during these months shows that Charles III follows in the footsteps of his mother, Elizabeth II, who died on September 8, 2022. Already when she was 21 years old, and six years away from becoming queen, transmitted a public commitment, saying: "I declare before all of you that all my life, whether long or short, I will dedicate to your service... God, help me to fulfill my vow well".
In her later years, Elizabeth II was increasingly explicit in her profession of religious faith, mainly through her annual Christmas messages, a tradition begun by her grandfather, George V, in 1932, and continued by her father, George VI. Thus he spoke about his faith: "For me, the teachings of Christ and my own personal responsibility before God provide a framework within which I try to conduct my life. I, like many of you, have derived great comfort in difficult times from the words and example of Christ."
English Cardinal Arthur Roche, Prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, has pointed out that "as supreme governor of the Church of England, the importance and example that the Queen gave to interfaith relations is something that King Charles III has sought to maintain, during these days of mourning in which he has agreed to accede to the throne and has visited the principal places in the United Kingdom."
With Muslims
Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Muslims of all ages signed a book of condolences during an interfaith ceremony at the Baitul Futuh Grand Mosque in London. "Our loyalty to the king" will be "as strong as the loyalty we show to her majesty the queen," said Rafiq HayatThe president of the British Ahamdiyya Muslim community.
"We believe he will be a very good leader for Muslims and that he will bring the different faiths together," especially because "when he speaks, people listen," and "this will have a lot of weight in the relations between the Muslim world, the Christian world and the Jewish world," he added.
