This year the Feast of Ascension coincided with the beginning of the long weekend celebrating Her Majesty’s 70 years on the throne. The Anglican churches in Langley had a joint service as usual, this year at Christ the Worker church. And the sermon was given by Bill Birmingham.
Ascension is one of the more difficult topics to preach on, but Bill’s sermon, weaving in thoughts about the Queen’s time on the throne and linking them to Jesus’ life and words , was a beautifully crafted talk, and I draw out some aspects of it to share with a wider audience. (Ascension, being on a weekday, attracts only a tiny congregation to the service.)
Bill began his sermon with the words, ‘When I was 6, my mother took my sister and me on the bus to Windsor...‘ That was to see the vast array of posies and other affectionate tributes to King George VI, who had just died.
In the following day’s newspapers there were pictures of a young woman descending the steps of an aircraft, to be greeted by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and other dignitaries. She had been undertaking a tour of the Commonwealth on behalf of her Father. She had set off to Kenya as a Princess, but now was returning to the UK as Queen.
Bill drew our attention to the parallel of Jesus returning in glory to his Father after he had completed his task on earth, and the Queen returning home from Nairobi in February 1952 to take up her ‘permanent’ job.
The disciples of Jesus had come to the end of the time they shared with the ministry of Jesus on earth. But Jesus had prepared them for the time when he would not be physically present with them. The Bible explains that after Jesus ascended in glory to his rightful place with his Father, he continued his ministry on earth, but now working through his disciples. He had indeed prepared them for this task and it was only ten days after the Ascension, that they felt the Holy Spirit coming upon them, empowering them and enabling them to continue Jesus’ mission.
Bill also linked this continuation of Jesus’ ministry with the Queen’s constitutional responsibilities. She is limited in what she is able to do herself in government, as we know, but has to operate through her Ministers. And now, we also know that increasingly more of her stately duties are delegated to members of her family, although she attends to affairs of state herself.
It was noted that at the most recent State Opening of the Parliament, most unusually, the Queen was not able to read the speech setting out the Government’s plans. Prince Charles read it on her behalf: but whereas the Queen would have referred to the plans of ‘My Government’ with regard to new legislation and so forth, Prince Charles used the words ‘Her Majesty’s Government’ throughout. One couldn’t but be reminded of Jesus himself always referring to his task on earth was doing ’his Father’s will’.
Bill concluded his sermon with these words: so this week we look back, but also forward. As we celebrate we look back over the 70 years that the Queen has led this nation, through good times and bad. But in our Langley churches, we look back also to celebrate what Jesus has done for us over past years and will continue to do through us.
(with grateful acknowledgement of the sermon by Bill Birmingham)
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