5 facts about religion in the life of Queen Elizabeth II
She served Jesus her king
by Bobby Ross Jr.
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(ANALYSIS) When news broke Thursday of Queen Elizabeth II’s death at age 96, I immediately consulted with the leading expert of her 70 years on the throne I know: my wife, Tamie.
Seriously, I texted my bride of 32 years.
“Yes, I’ve been watching,” she replied. “The news and social, that is.”
A few years ago, Tamie, a fellow writer, sent the queen a letter and received one back in an enveloped stamped “Royal Mail” from Buckingham Palace.
“She never sat for an interview, so a few documentaries are the closest thing to hearing her asked/answering questions,” Tamie told me. “I thought it was worth writing to tell her how much I enjoyed it, and this response came a few weeks later on her behalf.”
“The Queen wishes me to write and thank you for your card and very kind message,” the reply said.
Did Elizabeth actually see my wife’s letter? Tamie has no way of knowing. I’m a skeptical journalist, so I’m guessing not.
But it’s cool to imagine that she did!
In the meantime, here are five facts about religion in the life of Elizabeth, who wrote the foreword to a 2016 British Bible Society book titled “The Servant Queen and the King She Serves” (that king being Jesus):
1. She was the official head of the Church of England.
The Associated Press obituary by Danica Kirka, Jill Lawless and Sylvia Hui explains:
In Britain’s constitutional monarchy, the queen is head of state but has little direct power; in her official actions she does what the government orders. However, she was not without influence. The queen, officially the head of the Church of England, once reportedly commented that there was nothing she could do legally to block the appointment of a bishop, “but I can always say that I should like more information. That is an indication that the prime minister will not miss.”
2. She spoke openly about her Christian faith.
Writing for Religion News Service, Catherine Pepinster notes:
While Defender of the Faith has been an inherited title and little more, Elizabeth II embraced it and in recent years made it her own, speaking very openly about her faith and explaining how it provided the framework of her life.
She did this mostly through her annual Christmas message, a tradition begun by her grandfather, George V, in 1932, and continued by her father. Her early Christmas Day broadcasts were platitudinous — the holidays as an occasion for family was a frequent theme. In 2000, however, she spoke of the millennium as the 2,000-year anniversary of the birth of Jesus Christ, “who was destined to change the course of our history.”
She went on to speak very personally and frankly about her faith: “For me the teachings of Christ and my own personal accountability before God provide a framework in which I try to lead my life. I, like so many of you, have drawn great comfort in difficult times from Christ’s words and example.” Similar sentiments have been aired at Christmas ever since.
3. Trust in God was ‘foundational’ in her life.
The Washington Times’ Mark A. Kellner reports:
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the symbolic head of the global Anglican Communion, lauded the late monarch’s commitment to her Christian faith.
“As a faithful Christian disciple, and also Supreme Governor of the Church of England, she lived out her faith every day of her life,” Archbishop Welby said in a statement. “Her trust in God and profound love for God was foundational in how she led her life — hour by hour, day by day,” he added.
4. She met with five popes in her lifetime.
Francis X. Rocca, the Wall Street Journal’s Vatican correspondent, recounts:
Pope Francis met the queen and the Duke of Edinburgh at the Vatican in 2014, when the royal couple presented him with a gift of whiskey produced at her castle of Balmoral in Scotland.
Queen Elizabeth met with five popes in her lifetime, beginning with Pope Pius XII in 1951, when she was still a princess.
The others she met were Pope Benedict XVI in 2010, Pope John Paul II in 1980, 1982 and 2000 and Pope John XXIII in 1961, according to Catholic News Agency’s Courtney Mares.
5. She was friends with late evangelist Billy Graham.
At Christianity Today, Dudley Delffs points out:
Her friend and confidant Billy Graham attested to the Queen’s love for the Bible, as well as the strength and depth of her Christian faith, in his autobiography, Just As I Am.
“No one in Britain has been more cordial toward us than Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II,” Graham wrote. “Almost every occasion I have been with her has been in a warm, informal setting, such as a luncheon or dinner, either alone or with a few family members or other close friends.”
They rarely publicized their meetings or leveraged their relationship professionally, but the two enjoyed a friendship that endured for more than 60 years until Graham’s passing in 2018. He wrote, “I always found her very interested in the Bible and its message.”
The Washington Post’s Sarah Pulliam Bailey did a fascinating piece in 2018 fact checking the Netflix show “The Crown’s” portrayal of the relationship between Elizabeth and Graham.
Let’s go back to my original expert for a bit of final analysis.
“She went to church every Sunday,” Tamie said. “It’s kind of engrained in the culture when you think of her and the monarchy. But I don’t think there will be another British monarch who goes about it like she has.
“I mean, her son, King Charles III, already has said that he’s going to be the ‘Defender of Faiths’ vs. the ‘Defender of the Faith’ so it’s inclusive of all religions,” my wife added. “But I think Elizabeth probably saw this vision of the Church of England kind of being a host to all the other religions. Every year they had a Commonwealth Day service, and she was the one who asked if that could be held at Westminster Abbey and include all of the different faiths.”
For more on that, see “A devout believer, the Queen took her faith seriously” by The Independent’s Laura Elston.