I’m writing this article on the Sunday evening as we come to the end of the weekend during which we have celebrated the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. Not all of us are royalists of course but most of us, in our particular communities, have been celebrating in different ways. And we have been celebrating because we hold the Queen in high esteem.
Have you ever held a famous person in high esteem only to find, if you have had the opportunity to meet them, that they were not actually the type of person you thought they were? It does happen. But I think we’d be hard pushed to find someone to speak negative words about the Queen and her character. When you look at the characterhood of the Queen, we do find someone of genuine character.
Over the 4 days of celebration, many people have been asked to describe her and such words as authentic, astute, constant, inclusive, selfless, wise, having a presence, bringer in of hope – all these descriptions and more have been offered.
Despite the weight of responsibility of her position, despite the fact that her life both public and private are under the scrutiny of the whole world, despite all of that, she somehow manages to be genuine in all that she does and says. In 70 years she has not broken the promise that she made to the country when she ascended to the throne. How has she managed to do that?
Well maybe it’s the source of her strength and wisdom which she openly states as being her Christian faith - that it is her faith in Jesus Christ who sustains her. It is his presence in her life that informs and directs her, so much so that she has said that the Christian faith has taught her to respect and value people of every faith and none. Respect and value for all would surely make for a better world in which to live so wouldn’t we all do well to live in such a way?
Some TV commentators over the Jubilee weekend said that sharing the Christian faith in today’s day and age is a tricky business. I don’t know about that so much. I think rather to live out the servant attitude that the Christian faith calls us to, is the more tricky thing. Maybe though all the joy generated through the celebrations and communities coming together will inspire us to step up to the challenge of living this tricky servant life? It is a challenge but if we all took it up, whether you included Jesus in that or not, surely we’d have even more reason to celebrate.
