Queen Elizabeth II became Queen 60 years ago today.
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Damian Thompson has a nice piece calling her the best religious leader in Britain today.
God save the Queen!
V. Domine, salvam fac reginam nostram Elisabeth.
R. Et exaudi nos in die, qua invocaverimus te.
Oremus. — Quæsumus omnipotens Deus, ut famula tua Elisabeth regina noistra, qui tua miseratione suscepit regni gubernacula, virtutum etiam omnium percipiat incrementa; quibus decenter ornata, et vitiorum monstra devitare, et ad te, qui via, veritas, et vita es, cum principe consorte et prole regia, gratiosa valeat pervenire. Per Christum Dominum nostrum.
R. Amen.
Great lady!
May she be a good example to all the British people and may she pass on her love of Christianity to her grandchildren and heirs. God bless the Queen.
God save our gracious Queen/
Long may She reign supreme/
God save the Queen!
Send Her victorious/
Happy and glorious/
Long to reign over us/
God save the Queen!
I remember the day when that picture was new and replaced the old picture of the queen hanging in the hall at school.
The bells at city hall here will ring at 6 to mark this event.
God bless her and keep her. A great queen and a great lady.
It is inspiring to see her quiet devotion to her duty. God bless her.
Less than 4 years until she beats Victoria’s record. I think Victoria’s reign saw a more impressive British Empire, though.
I can’t sympathize with my fellow Americans’ fascination with the British monarchy, though, particularly among Catholics. She’s not the only monarch out there, and some of the others are in fact Catholic. We put WAY too much emphasis on the fact that the English speak the same language we do, as though that implied a greater commonality of thought than it really does.
I didn’t even know Americans really paid much attention to the monarchy. I thought it was just a commonwealth country thing (for obvious reasons).
It is worthy of note that Her Britannic Majesty, head of the church of England, was the only person in the UK releasing a TV Christmas address, to mention Jesus Christ and Christianity. Neither +Westminster nor +Canterbury did.
I hope Charles III will be as strong in the Christian Faith as HM Elizabeth II. Otherwise the Christian backbone to England, and the established Church, is doomed.
I’m from the USA, but I respect and honor Her Majesty the Queen!
God bless her!
I offered a special Rosary for her this morning. Each decade was in honor of: Our Lady of Walsingham, St. George, St. Edmund the Martyr (King of East Anglia), St. Edward of Corfe (the ‘Boy King’ and Martyr), and St. Edward the Confessor.
Yes, I know that Queen Elizabeth is of the Church of England, but she has shown great honor and respect to the Catholic Church in the UK. Remember how warmly she welcomed both Blessed John Paul II and Benedict XVI to her country when they visited. She has met every Pope since Pius XII (excepting John Paul I because his reign was so brief). She was the first British monarch to set foot in Westminster Cathedral when she attended a Vespers service during the Cathedral’s centenary commemoration. She invited Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor to preach at Sandringham House. She called the late Cardinal Hume ‘my Cardinal’ when he received the Order of Merit (he was literally on his deathbed, but somehow managed to go to Buckingham Palace to receive it from the Queen, who graciously allowed him to sit in her presence because he was so sick with cancer).
I heard this morning on the BBC World News Service that Queen Elizabeth has been called ‘the still small voice’ of wisdom and common sense in her 60 years reign as British monarch.
God Save The Queen!
Climbed a tree a princess, descended as a queen. She was in Kenya on a “Royal Tour” and spent the night in a treehouse-type hotel. Her father died while she was sleeping.
John
p.s. Don’t forget that Ronald Reagan turns (or would turn if he were still alive) 101 today.
The Queen is the very model of a modern constitutional monarch. At her Coronation, she took vows before God that she continues to take very seriously indeed; and she can be counted on to do her duty the best that she can until the very end.
She was scandalized when her cousin Juliana retired after a mere 31 years on the Dutch throne. Because Queens, like Popes, are supposed to die with their boots on (as we put it out West where I grew up…or would, if we found ourselves speaking of queens much).
“I hope Charles III will be as strong in the Christian Faith as HM Elizabeth II.”
I hope to find a billion dollars and a pony at home when I leave work, too.
I am not an Anglophile.
May God grant that England and its monarch one day return to the fullness of the Faith.
I am grateful for the good work that she has done and I wish her continued good health. But for all the talk of her as a Christian leader it is her signature on the Abortion Act 1967. I have read that in this life only the Pope can pass judgement on the actions of a head of state so I won’t say any more.
@Boniface:
“I am not an Anglophile.”
No worries; the image shown is that of the Queen of Canada.
Blessings on your Diamond Jubilee, Ma’am; few Canadian monarchs have reigned so long as you! I hope you live 100 years. At least. The thought of “Queen Camilla” makes me shudder. Although when your son’s portrait replaces your own on the Loonie, the name of the coin will make sense on both sides.
As a young Canadian Catholic, I say God Save Her Majesty, Queen of Canada! Long live the Queen. Her example has been more Christian than that of many of the “spiritual” leaders of Canada, both Catholic and Protestant alike. If anyone missed her Christmas address for 2011 – go watch it NOW…… WOW.
God save our gracious Queen!
Thank you Centristian for pointing out that Her Royal Majesty is also the Queen of Canada, and Fr. Z. for the photo of the Queen of Canada. (Not to take anything away from any citizens of Britain or any other Commonwealth nation, of course!)
@JP Manning –
But for all the talk of her as a Christian leader it is her signature on the Abortion Act 1967.
“By and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual….”
I’m sorry but she is not a great lady. She is a eugenicist that believes in abortion and the worst evils of the age. May God have mercy on her.
I see I’m not the only one who noticed that this is Her Majesty’s Canadian portrait. FYI, a tiny Quebec village (Cap-de-la-Madelaine) houses Canada’s only crowned Madonna – Our Lady of the Cape (Notre Dame du Cap). The Madonna was technically crowned as “Notre Dame du Cap, Reine du Tres Saint Rosaire et Reine du Canada.” Elizabeth R. may take umbridge with that last part ;)
In addition to the UK and Canada, it is also her Diamond Jubilee with respect to the thrones of Australia and New Zealand. Her other twelve crowns were acquired more recently.
Easy now folks. Not everyone buys into the myth and romance of the monarchy. It has a long association with war, colonialism and privilege, which are still perpetuated today, albeit with a softer focus. In the UK the monarchy with all its pomp, circumstance, and glamour has a kind of quasi-religious status with a hint of celebrity, namely, Diana and now William and Kate. I’m not sure if all those characteristics are reconcilable with Christianity? The seven churches of Asia Minor may be long gone, but the message still remains, that is, do not become accommodated to the status quo! However, HM Queen, as a woman, is clearly a good role model for tenacious service and fidelity to duty. I’m happy to celebrate that, but let’s ditch the monarchy stuff. The only person who should ‘reign supreme’ is…do I have to spell it out?!
Blessings!
Brian
@Centristian
when your son’s portrait replaces your own on the Loonie, the name of the coin will make sense on both sides
ROFLMAO!
For what its worth …
NEW ZEALAND, January 6, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The former Director-General of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) has received a 2012 New Year’s honor from Queen Elizabeth. Dr. Gill Greer has been made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). The honor recognizes Greer for her service to “international health and women’s rights,” according to the list.
The honor was strongly criticized by a pro-life organization in the country where Greer now resides, and where she formerly directed the nation’s Family Planning Association.
When I moved to Canada from Scotland, one thing that helped me settle was Her Majesty, who is, of course, Queen of Canada (as well as of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and of 14 other kingdoms). God save The Queen!
Maybe these comments will not be very popular here and if you don’t like them then that’s too bad but I have to say it. I don’t like the monarchy. Truth be told I really don’t like any monarchy but I especially don’t like the one in Britain. The monarchy in Britain is not a friend of the Catholic Church and policies to prop up the monarchy directly hurt the Catholic Church. Besides that we should never forget that they are a family of apostates.
Now I would never wish something bad to happen to the nice old monarch (descendant of a military dictator) but as a Catholic I would very much like to see these policies removed. This wouldn’t be bad, in fact it would help her. She has the choice every day to convert to Catholicism but she knows that if she does she looses her crown and would have to leave public service in shame. This prevents her from joining the Church that Christ demands all must join. It is very likely that she knows that Catholic Church is the one true Church and that Christ demands that she join since she has stated several times that she has read the bible and it is in fact pretty clear on the subject.
So I will do for her a very good thing that I know she would never do for me. I will pray for her to have courage, enough courage to convert even if it means leaving public office and having the British people being upset with her. I pray that Britain will finally get rid of its bigot past and allow Catholics to become the monarch and allow the monarch to convert to Catholicism. The “queen” is 85 years old now, she is running out of time to take care of her soul and do the bare minimum that Christ demands. Since she is basically a decent person it would be a shame for her to die before getting valid absolution from a real priest.
Doesn’t Mrs. Windsor still purport to be queen of an occupied part of Ireland? Perhaps she could give that back when she gives back all of the Church’s property that the “Church of England” is no longer using to worship Christ.
Ed Mechmann,
Read my blog on the country under the shadow of hate and unforgiveness.
@Ed Mechmann:
Well, really, I don’t think she purports to be anything other than what Parliament tells her she purports to be, so we might, I think, give her a break insofar as she isn’t in any way responsible for circumstances that an Irishman might not wholly care for (and I happen to be an Irishman…well…an Irish-American, at any rate). At least we ought to, I think, show this much-revered lady the respect due her office by referring to her as “The Queen” (or as “Queen Elizabeth”), particularly since “Mrs. Windsor” simply isn’t accurate. She isn’t married to a man named “Windsor”, after all, but to a man named “Mountbatten”. Therefore if she’s “Mrs” anything she’s “Mrs. Mountbatten”.
While I agree with what some have said that as Catholics we certainly ought to avoid overdoing it when it comes to our praise of the British Monarchy (and Americans are just as susceptible to that as anyone; anytime she comes here we go absolutely ga-ga over her), the Monarchy should nevertheless be respected for what it is: a venerable institution whose delightful incumbent embodies the state of, not only one, but many nations around the world. The United Kingdom is but one of those nations.
There is nothing wrong with showing respect to the Queen’s office, or to this particular Queen’s person. Elizabeth II is rightly regarded the world over as a stellar example of unflagging devotion to duty and as the very personification of the grace and dignity of a better era, of a better generation. This Queen is the Victoria of our time. In fact, she has set a far better example than Queen Victoria.
Victoria was the last sovereign to celebrate a Diamond Jubilee. Elizabeth II celebrates hers this year. Victoria ruled the British Empire. Elizabeth hovers serenely as a benign and beloved grandmother figure over the Commonwealth. The dynamic is different and the personalities are nothing alike, but the augustness of this moment is identical. Most of us have known no other Sovereign of the UK and the Commonwealth realms. I’m 41 years old and by the time I was born in 1970, Elizabeth II had already been on the throne forever. Most of my uncles and aunts were born during her reign. When I was a boy, her portraits on Canadian currency (I grew up in a border town) had just been updated to reflect a woman of middle age. She’s been Queen since the time of Ike and segregation, and she’s still around in the time of America’s first black president (whatever one might think of him). She’ll most likely be around to meet his successor, too.
I do not look forward to the reign of her successor. For so long, the Monarchy has been a delightful thing, and it has been so largely because of her. It is colorful, it is admirable, it is celebratory, and it is grand…and it is all of those things in large part because she is all of those things. Elizabeth II makes the monarchy what it is today. Say what you will (and rightly so) about the sins of the British Monarchy. But also acknowledge that the adorable little woman who sits upon the throne, today–in her brightly-coloured twin sets, lampshade-like hats, and white gloves, holding her ever-present handbag–does not personally partake of those sins of the past or even of her Government, today. Instead, despite the sordid past of the realm and despite its nasty bad rabbits of today, she seems to show us what Britain is meant to be, irrespective of what Britain may actually be.
Her son and his wife will mirror, instead, what the British ruling class really is: a vain, ugly, ridiculous, uninspiring, former thing…a thing the sins of which helped in large measure to bring about the decay of this present generation. When Elizabeth II vanishes (as one day she must) to be replaced by King Charles and Queen Camilla, all the magic of the monarchy will, I think, wither and die that very day. And by the time they are gone, William and Catherine will be of middle age (or past it), and who knows how esteemed they will be by then.
Long may she reign, therefore.
“but let’s ditch the monarchy stuff. The only person who should ‘reign supreme’ is…do I have to spell it out?!”
Christ the … what?
The entire universe is a monarchy. Why shouldn’t the human government reflect the divine?
God save the Queen! Long live our noble Queen! But….
I cannot overlook the fact that in her Coronation she vowed to maintain “Protestant reformed religion” in her realm, and that, as the law of the United Kingdom currently stands, none of her successors can be Catholics or be married to Catholics. Prince William could have legally married a Sikh, Jew, Hindu or Muslim woman, who would one day be Queen, but not a Catholic Christian one.
Her Majesty is Supreme Governor of the Church of England, and therefore is obviously an Anglican, but she has only to cross the border into Scotland to instantly and magically become a member (but not governor) of the Church of Scotland, and therefore a Presbyterian! When the monarch is in Scotland she attends the services of the established church there, i.e. the Church of Scotland, not the Episcopal Church of Scotland. This aspect of the constitutional status of the monarch of the United Kingdom seems anomalous to say the least.
Ed Mechmann – “Doesn’t Mrs. Windsor still purport to be queen of an occupied part of Ireland?”
Yes, Queen Elizabeth II is monarch of the six counties of Ireland which constitute Northern Ireland, a state of affairs in accordance with the wishes of the majority of the residents of the province, and a legal fact recognised by the Republic of Ireland. As for it being “occupied”, Northern Ireland, being part of the United Kingdom, is no more “occupied” than is Yorkshire, Ayrshire or Glamorgan.
“… the majority of the residents of the province,…”
Umm, Simon_GNR: Small(ish) point. Northern Ireland is not a province. It comprises 2/3rds of the actual province of Ulster, the remaining third being in the Irish Republic. But, speaking as a resident of the Republic, I do wish people wouldn’t go on with all that “occupied” guff! The families of many of the “occupiers” have lived in the area for the best part of 400 years. With parity of esteem under the Good Friday Agreement that is now recognised, and it’s only the criminal mafia who like to think they’re carrying on the so-called “armed struggle” who now spout all that fascistic nonsense.
Anyway… God save Her Majesty and many more happy years! And I wouldn’t be too sure about the monarchy going into a steep decline when Charles is (eventually) crowned. Such is the long history of the institution that they’ve been there before. After all, somewhat the same feelings were abroad concerning the then Prince of Wales for much of the latter years of the reign of Queen Victoria (who incidentally was quite unpopular in the 1860s-1880s, something which Queen Elizabeth has never been) since he was seen to be a bit of a wastrel if not quite a scoundrel. But he became one of the most popular Kings ever, albeit his reign was relatively brief.