King Charles III has said that he considers protecting the diversity of the whole country as one of his main duties.
The King was addressing a group of faith leaders at a reception at Buckingham Palace. During his speech, he said ” I have always thought of Britain as a ‘community of communities.’ That has led me to understand that the Sovereign has an additional duty – less formally recognized but to be no less diligently discharged. It is the duty to protect the diversity of our country, including by protecting the space for Faith itself and its practise through the religions, cultures, traditions and beliefs to which our hearts and minds direct us as individuals.”
And he said that his own faith was vital in that. In a week when many have remembered the vital importance his mother, Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II placed on her Christian faith, the new King said that ”as a member of the Church of England, my Christian beliefs have love at their very heart”.
He went on ”By my most profound convictions, therefore – as well as by my position as Sovereign – I hold myself bound to respect those who follow other spiritual paths, as well as those who seek to live their lives in accordance with secular ideals.”
He also touched on an aspect of his kingship that has been much debated through the years. As Monarch, he is now ‘Defender of the Faith’, a title first used by Henry VIII. But The King has said before he wants to be ”Defender of Faiths”, embracing the many different beliefs practised in the UK.
As he spoke to faith leaders, including the Archbishop of Canterbury, he said ”I am a committed Anglican Christian, and at my Coronation I will take an oath relating to the settlement of the Church of England. At my Accession, I have already solemnly given– as has every Sovereign over the last 300 years – an Oath which pledges to maintain and preserve the Protestant faith in Scotland.”
However, he referenced his support for faith groups everywhere as he said ” The beliefs that flourish in, and contribute to, our richly diverse society differ. They, and our society, can only thrive through a clear collective commitment to those vital principles of freedom of conscience, generosity of spirit and care for others which are, to me, the essence of our nationhood.”
And he ended by saying ”I am determined, as King, to preserve and promote those principles across all communities, and for all beliefs, with all my heart. This conviction was the foundation of everything my beloved mother did for our country, over her years as our Queen. It has been the foundation of my own work as Prince of Wales. It will continue to be the foundation of all my work as King.”
The faith leaders reception took place at Buckingham Palace on the evening of September 16th 2022, just before His Majesty joined his sister and two brothers for the Vigil of the Princes at Westminster Hall.
