I spent some time today looking through our book of condolence and reading people’s messages. That was a very moving experience. Several times I had misty eyes and a lump in my throat, reading people’s heartfelt tributes.
Some words and themes came up again and again, and I thought I would share them with you.
The first was service, dedication and duty. From the moment when, aged 21 the then Princess Elizabeth dedicated ‘her whole life, whether it be short or long, to your service’, she lived that out without fail, through good times and bad, whether she felt like it, or – as I’m sure must have been the case sometimes – she would rather have been at home with her feet up.
The second was that the Queen gave herself in dedicated service to our country, but not only to our country, to the nations of the Commonwealth and to the world. The tributes from people around the world have shown that; the growth of the Commonwealth, from eight countries to 52, has shown that; the Queen’s remarkable humility and relationship building in Ireland, and in the former countries of the empire have shown that.
Many entries talked of the care that the Queen had for her people, her unflagging, unfeigned interest in all she met, her constant presence over seventy years in which our world has changed so much. People talked of her radiant smile, and the sense of being looked after by her. One of the entries said, ‘I am blessed by what you did for us.’
How did she manage it? I think the answer, the key to it all, is something that happened on that long-ago day of her coronation, something that wasn’t seen by the cameras or watched by millions. Unseen, the princess took off her pearl-encrusted, satin dress, and put on a simple white shift, Then, beneath a canopy, she was anointed with holy oil.
When she was anointed she was set apart and given a sacred task – a calling – that came from God. Throughout her whole reign, every day of her life, she lived out that calling. She knew that she received it from God and that she was accountable to him for how she lived out her sacred task.
It was a heavy task – as heavy as the weight of the crown that was placed on her head that day. But her strength to bear it – and to bear it joyfully and lovingly – came from the God in whom she unfailingly placed her trust. It’s because she gave her trust to him that she was able to dedicate her life to duty and service, and to show us that it was a life lived in love and in joy. We have indeed been blessed.
We will miss her — as so many of the entries in our book say. We look towards the reign of our new King with the hope that he will live out the same sacred trust, and hold our nations in the same care. And, for ourselves, maybe we can take this moment to ask: can we dedicate ourselves in our own lives to bless those around us? Can we learn from our late Queen’s great faith to live in faith ourselves? Can we look to the future, in which so much is unsure, and follow her courage, her dedication and her trust in God?
These are questions for us to ponder, as we look to the future. For now, we say thank you for all she gave. May she rest in peace and rise in glory. And as we say goodbye, we also say welcome: Long live the King; God save the King.
with my prayers and blessings, Nicola