What is a Christian funeral without hymns and bible readings?. Of course, it wouldn’t exude the solemnity that characterises such an event.
This is why, we join the rest of the world to pay our proper respect to the late Queen’s funeral at Westminster Abbey on Sept. 19, 2022.
This service aims to pay tribute to her “remarkable reign and lifetime of service as Head of State, Nation and Commonwealth according to a statement by Buckingham Palace.
Excerpts included.
Excerpts
The Reverend Dr Iain Greenshields, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, says:
Let us give thanks to God for Queen Elizabeth’s long life and reign, recalling with gratitude her gifts of wisdom, diligence, and service. O God, from whom cometh everything that is upright and true: accept our thanks for the gifts of heart and mind that thou didst bestow upon thy daughter Elizabeth, and which she showed forth among us in her words and deeds; and grant that we may have grace to live our lives in accordance with thy will, to seek the good of others, and to remain faithful servants unto our lives’ end; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Ms Shermara Fletcher, Principal Officer for Pentecostal and Charismatic Relations, Churches Together in England, says:
Confident in God’s love and compassion, let us pray for all those whose hearts are heavy with grief and sorrow. Almighty God, Father of all mercies and giver of all comfort: deal graciously, we pray thee, with those who mourn, that casting every care on thee, they may know the consolation of thy love; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Right Reverend and Right Honourable Dame Sarah Mullally DBE, Bishop of London and Dean of His Majesty’s Chapels Royal, says:
Let us pray for His Majesty The King and all the Royal Family; that they may know the sustaining power of God’s love and the prayerful fellowship of God’s people. Almighty God, the fountain of all goodness, we humbly beseech thee to bless our most gracious Sovereign Lord King Charles, Camilla The Queen Consort, William Prince of Wales, and all the Royal Family: endue them with thy Holy Spirit, enrich them with thy heavenly grace; prosper them with all happiness; and bring them to thine everlasting kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Reverend Canon Helen Cameron, Moderator of the Free Churches Group, says:
In recognition of Queen Elizabeth’s service to this United Kingdom, let us rejoice in her unstinting devotion to duty, her compassion for her subjects, and her counsel to her ministers; and we pray for the continued health and prosperity of this Nation. O almighty God, whose will it is that all thy children should serve thee in serving one another: look with love, we pray thee, on this Nation. Grant to its citizens grace to work together with honest and faithful hearts, each caring for the good of all; that, seeking first thy kingdom and its righteousness, they may possess all things needful for their daily sustenance and the common good; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
His Eminence Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, says:
Let us give thanks for Queen Elizabeth’s commitment to the Commonwealth throughout her reign, for her service and dedication to its peoples, and for the rich bonds of unity and mutual support she sustained. Almighty and everlasting God, hear our prayer for the Commonwealth, and grant it the guidance of thy wisdom. Inspire those in authority, that they may promote justice and the common good; give to all its citizens the spirit of mutual honour and respect; and grant to us all grace to strive for the establishment of righteousness and peace; for the honour of thy name. Amen.
The Most Reverend and Right Honourable Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York, Primate of England and Metropolitan, says:
We give thanks to God for Queen Elizabeth’s loyalty to the faith she inherited through her baptism and confirmation, and affirmed at her coronation; for her unswerving devotion to the Gospel; and for her steadfast service as Supreme Governor of the Church of England. Lord, we beseech thee to keep thy household the Church in continual godliness; that through thy protection she may be free from all adversities, and devoutly given to serve thee in all good works, to the glory of thy name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Precentor says:
Let us pray that we may be given grace to live as those who believe in the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, and the resurrection to eternal life. Bring us, O Lord God, at our last awakening into the house and gate of heaven, to enter into that gate and dwell in that house, where there shall be no darkness nor dazzling, but one equal light; no noise nor silence, but one equal music; no fears nor hopes, but one equal possession; no ends nor beginnings, but one equal eternity; in the habitation of thy glory and dominion, world without end. Amen. John Donne (1572-1631)
The choir sings ‘O Taste and see how gracious the Lord is’, composed by Ralph Vaughan Williams for the Queen’s Coronation in 1953.
The Precentor concludes:
In confidence and hope, let us pray to the Father in the words our Saviour taught us, Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.
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