God Save the King!
Dear Friends,
It is nearly 10 years since I was ordained at Worcester Cathedral and five since I was installed as your vicar across these two parishes. I well remember feeling quite self-conscious at both occasions, particularly at the installation here in these parishes, as I had the sense of all eyes being on me as I entered Powick Church after a long time in vacancy.
As I recall this, I am left wondering quite what will be going through the minds of the King and Queen as they enter Westminster Abbey on the 6th May? There will be 2,000 in the congregation and, if the late Queen’s funeral is any guide, billions watching on television. I am very pleased not to be on the staff of Westminster Abbey as they navigate all the intricacies of such an ancient and sacred occasion.
We all know how much our country has changed since Queen Elizabeth II was crowned. That was a 3 hour ceremony, complete with Sir Winston Churchill in garter robes and the peers with their coronets. At home, TVs were hired in, gatherings happened around small televisions. Street parties followed on. The King’s Coronation mercifully will be shorter, although I am unsure as to what has been removed. It will be interesting to see how the occasion has been adapted, 70 years on from the last one. Certainly, if anyone will be watching, it will either be on large screen TVs or smart phones. I am not aware of any street parties happening locally, other than over at Guarlford, but the vicarage will have its bunting up!
Central to the Coronation is the anointing with holy oil and the King and Queen taking communion and much of that ritual comes from the Old Testament. How will this be viewed in multifaith or very secular Britain? I really am not sure, but pray that it can be an opportunity both to unite us as one people, and to give thanks for the Christian foundations of this nation.
A couple of interesting local facts – did you know that Powick Church received some of the fabric used in the Queen’s Coronation in 1953? It now adorns the Lady Chapel Altar as a royal blue Frontal. Also, there is a Diary going back to the 19th Century that every Vicar of Powick fills in – sadly, I cannot find much mention of Church in 1953 but I did go back in time in its fading pages and read of it as an opportunity to come together as a parish and wider community for a jolly good celebration! Jumping ahead to 2023, our part in that will be a special service on 7 May at 11am at St Peter’s Church with a “bring and share” lunch, with entertainment, afterwards. I do hope you will join us.
I was amused that one previous vicar spoke of how he was thrilled to have 110 attending a special service! That would be spectacular turnout for a Sunday morning these days – we tend to average 25 (or maybe 50 across both church services): so let’s see if the long bank holiday gives people the time to come to church and welcome in this new era for our Country.
I conclude with a quote from the Bible’s Book of Kings, written sometime between 560 BC and 540 BC:
‘Then the priest brought out the King’s son, put the crown on him, and gave him the covenant; they proclaimed him King, and anointed him; they clapped their hands and shouted, ‘Long live the King!’’ (2 Kings 11,12)
From across the millennia I heartedly respond, Amen to that. Every blessing – Rev Gary