Queen Elizabeth II passed away on September 8, 2022. During her storied lifetime, she reigned as Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms, including 32 sovereign states. At 70 years and 214 days, she was the longest reigning British monarch in history.
Elizabeth ascended to the throne on the heels of Great Britain’s critical role in the Allied victory over Nazi Germany in WWII. And yet her reign saw the global decline of the British Empire—and the near total collapse of Christian faith in the island nation.
At Elizabeth’s coronation in 1952, the Archbishop of Canterbury asked her, “Will you to the utmost of your power maintain the Laws of God and the true profession of the Gospel? Will you to the utmost of your ability maintain in the United Kingdom the Protestant Reformed Religion established by law?” The young queen did not hesitate when she affirmed her commitment to those responsibilities.
In response to her affirmation of the duty of Britain’s monarch to preserve and defend the Christian faith, she was presented with a Bible as these words of encouragement were offered:
Our gracious Queen: to keep your Majesty ever mindful of the law and the Gospel of God as the rule for the whole life and government of Christian Princes, we present you with this Book, the most valuable thing that this world affords. Here is Wisdom; this is the royal Law; these are the lively Oracles of God.
England has undeniably devolved into a post-Christian society. Soon, Elizabeth’s son Charles will be coronated as King. His rejection of the Christian faith as the sole path to God is well-documented. It is unlikely that he will even tolerate words like the ones above being included in his coronation, let alone pledge his devotion to upholding the Christian faith.
As England has gone, so America is going.
