The role of Christianity in British coronations
by Martyn Whittock, Christian Today:
The death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the accession of King Charles III has reminded us of the deep traditions and ceremonies which are the hallmark of this important time in the constitutional life of the nation. Many of these traditions draw from Christian faith, and from the history of the Church in these islands.
Already we have heard echoes of history in the Church of Scotland’s particular place in the Accession Oath sworn by King Charles; and his role as Supreme Governor of the Church of England is seen in the oath he swears before parliament.
However, the connections go deeper than these legal aspects, as important as they are. This is because Christianity is hard-wired into the history and practice of the British monarchy.
This became ever more apparent during the funeral of Her Majesty and will continue to do so as the attention of the nation now turns towards the coronation of King Charles.
As we reflect on this – and then, in time, return to it when the coronation occurs – the way that Christian faith is woven into what it means to be the monarch will become even more apparent.
Raising crowns and laying them down
When Queen Elizabeth was crowned, in June 1953, and when, in due course, King Charles is crowned, the ideas incorporated in these rites (and in the idea of monarchy itself) stretch back into Anglo-Saxon England.
Today, the spiritual centre of the monarchy is in Westminster Abbey, a church whose origins date from the 960s or early 970s, when Saint Dunstan and King Edgar installed a community of Benedictine monks there.
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