Elisha Pulivarti/Washington DC
The spectacular coronation of His Majesty King Charles III in Westminster Abbe, London, on May 6, Saturday is by and large a rite by Protestant Church of England. Still, it is secular in its nature from many angels. This grand event was eye witnessed by around 2,500 people at Abbe, Buckingham Palace and joined on streets of United Kingdom, by 1 crore people and watched on TVs and digital media by millions more across the globe.
Some say, this is the mega event of royal history in the last seven decades, definitely first in 21st century. If one goes by the long footage of the live telecast of the coronation, it is clear that the entire proceedings were conducted by Archbishop of Canterbury and dozens of other priests. The King was crowned by the archbishop. The King’s first oath too towards the Church of England, that he would be faithful to it, and protect it too.
Other oaths to people and justice come later. This ritual has been going on for close to 500 years, since 1534 with 40 monarchs – both kings and queens. So, the order of authority flows like this: Prime Minister is authorized by an elected Parliament. Parliament is authorized by the monarch – King or Queen, The monarch is authorized by the Church of England. The Church is the representative of the God.
Coronation is multi faithful, secular
But, the King Charles III assured immediately after his coronation his people that he would protect all, in his kingdom, irrespective of their religious affiliations. “I hold myself bound to respect those who follow other spiritual paths, as well as those who seek to live that their lives in accordance with secular ideals,”: declared King Charles III.
The King’s responsibility lies or extends to his territorial or jurisdiction limits, not limited to any particular religion. We have seen, how Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, a practicing Hindu, read out portions from Bible. How leaders from other faiths – Hinduism, Islam, Sikh, Buddhist and Jewish – too joined and greeted King Charles III on his coronation. This is the secular angle of the coronation.
(Elisha Pulivarti is CEO of US India SME Business Council, lWashington DC)
