“DIVERSITY of culture, ethnicity and faith provides strength, not weakness,” the King said in his Christmas message this 12 months.
In his third Christmas message since his accession, he spoke of his “deep sense of pride” on the response to the “anger and lawlessness” in various towns throughout the summer — a reference to the riots that erupted within the wake of the murder of three girls at a children’s dance party in Southport in July (News, 9 August). He described how “communities got here together, to not repeat these behaviours but to repair. To repair not only buildings, but relationships. And, most significantly, to repair trust; by listening and, through understanding, deciding how you can act for the great of all.”
Listening was “a recurrent theme of the nativity story”, he said. “Mary, the mother of Jesus, listened to the angel who revealed to her a unique future stuffed with hope for all people. The message of the angels to the shepherds — that there ought to be peace on Earth — in actual fact echoes through all faiths and philosophies. It rings true to today for people of goodwill the world over.”
The King referred to his recent visit to the South Pacific to attend the Commonwealth summit (News, 25 October), during which he issued a call to “reject the language of division”.
“I used to be reminded continuously of the strength which institutions, in addition to individuals, can draw from each other,” he said in his Christmas message. “And of how diversity of culture, ethnicity and faith provides strength, not weakness. Across the Commonwealth, we’re held together by a willingness to hearken to one another, to learn from each other and to search out just how much now we have in common. Because, through listening, we learn to respect our differences, to defeat prejudice, and to open up recent possibilities.”
The King, who holds the title “Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England”, has long championed interfaith dialogue. Shortly after his accession, he spoke of his duty “to guard the range of our country, including by protecting the space for faith itself and its practise through the religions, cultures, traditions and beliefs to which our hearts and minds direct us as individuals . . . I hold myself sure to respect those that follow other spiritual paths, in addition to those that seek to live their lives in accordance with secular ideals.”
During his coronation, peers belonging to different faith traditions presented a number of the Regalia (News, 6 May). At the close of the service, he received a spoken greeting delivered in unison by representatives from Jewish, Hindu, Sikh, Muslim and Buddhist communities.
During a visit to Southport within the wake of the attack, he told residents: “In times of great sorrow, we must remember the strength of our unity.”
His Christmas messages was delivered against a backdrop of strains in interfaith relationships. The Archbishop of Canterbury told the House of Lords in July that interfaith dialogue had “almost collapsed” for the reason that Hamas attacks on Israel on 7 October (News, 2 August). He condemned the riots that erupted within the wake of the Southport attack as “anti-Muslim, anti-refugee, and anti-asylum-seeker . . . the Christian iconography that has been exploited by the far right is an offence to our faith, and all that Jesus was and is” (News, 16 August).
In common with lots of the Bishops’ messages (News, 24 December), the King’s Christmas speech referred to the “devastating effects of conflict” around the globe. “The Gospels speak so vividly of conflict and teach the values with which we will overcome it,” he said. “The example that Jesus gave us is timeless and universal. It is to enter the world of those that suffer, to make a difference to their lives and so bring hope where there’s despair.
Quoting from “Once in Royal David’s City”, he spoke of God’s “redeeming love”. “That is the guts of the nativity story and we will hear its beat in the assumption of all the nice faiths within the love and mercy of God in times of joy and of suffering, calling us to bring light where there’s darkness,” he said.
His speech was recorded on the chapel of the previous Middlesex Hospital in London, in Fitzrovia. It was the one constructing preserved when the hospital, founded in 1745, was demolished in 2008, with the location now home to luxury apartments. The chapel, where the primary service was held on Christmas Day 1891, is now described as “an enriching cultural space for creative health and wellbeing”.
The King and his daughter-in-law, the Princess of Wales, have each been treated for cancer this 12 months (News, 28 March). He offered “special, heartfelt because of the selfless doctors and nurses who, this 12 months, have supported me and other members of my family through the uncertainties and anxieties of illness, and have helped provide the strength, care and luxury now we have needed”.
