King Charles has been praised for this commitment to “religious inclusiveness” ahead of his coronation this weekend, with the spectacle set to mark a significant moment in history.
For the first time, representatives from a variety of faith communities will play an active role in the coronation of a monarch, with Charles sensitive to the fact that the coronation falls on Shabbat. To accommodate this, Britain’s Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and his wife Valerie will stay at Clarence House on Friday night and will walk from there to Westminster Abbey the next day.
Israel’s President Isaac Herzog and his wife Michal will formally represent Israel at the coronation, with the pair staying near Westminster Abbey so that they too can walk to the ceremony without violating Shabbat.
At the end of the coronation the multi-faith leaders, including Rabbi Mirvis, will deliver a greeting in unison to King Charles declaring that, “as neighbours in faith, we acknowledge the value of public service.”
Commenting on the significance of the coronation, Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-CEO Peter Wertheim said the event will “mark a moment in history that will be notable not only for three hours of pageantry that has changed little over the last 1000 years, but also as a statement of the kind of monarch the new King intends to be”.
“Thus far King Charles has given every indication that he will do all in his power to promote peace, justice, compassion and the finest values of our society,” he said.
Wertheim also welcomed the special courtesy extended to Chief Rabbi Mirvis and his wife of inviting them to stay at the royal residence.
“A significant innovation, also signifying the monarchy’s commitment to religious inclusiveness, will be the role allocated to Jewish, Hindu, Muslim and Sikh peers to present the King with four pieces of coronation regalia during the ceremony,” Wertheim said.
“We congratulate our dear friend, Baroness Gillian Merron, a former CEO of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, on being selected to present the robe royal.
“May King Charles reign in good health in this spirit for many years to come.”
The monarch has enjoyed a good relationship with the Jews of Britain over many years, and has taken a keen interest in Holocaust remembrance as well.
He made his first official visit to Israel in 2020 after earlier making brief visits for the funerals of Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres. However, on that same trip he commented that he was heartbroken to witness the “suffering and hardship” that Palestinians face.
His grandmother, Princess Alice of Battenberg, is buried at the Church of Mary Magdalene on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. She is recognised by Yad Vashem as a Righteous Among the Nations for helping save a Jewish family in Greece during the Holocaust.
Last year, Charles commissioned portraits of seven Holocaust survivors to be displayed at Buckingham Palace for International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
Charles was also close to former UK chief rabbi the late Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, and upon his death mourned him as an “irreplaceable loss” and “a trusted guide, an inspired teacher and a true and steadfast friend”.
At the time of Queen Elizabeth II’s passing last September, Rabbi Benjamin Elton from The Great Synagogue in Sydney told The AJN of meeting the future king in 2015, describing him as “very engaged and interested” and “a great friend of Jewish communities everywhere”.
“I think he has real wisdom and perspective,” Rabbi Elton said.
Communal leader Mark Leibler, who also met Charles on a previous visit to Australia, said, “He’ll prove to be a very worthy successor” to Queen Elizabeth II.
Kate Cowen, daughter of the late Sir Zelman and Lady Anna Cowen, told The AJN last September an amusing story of being “absolutely starstruck” when meeting His Majesty in 1979.
“He mentioned that he liked Barry Humphries … so I launched into one of his routines,” she said, explaining that in her nervousness she forgot it “had an off-colour ending”.
“I kind of froze in my tracks. He said ‘go on, go on, tell me, what’s the ending?’ so I told him – and he roared with laughter.”
Sydney orthopaedic surgeon George Kirsh recounted to The AJN that King Charles’ sense of humour was evident despite the two meeting under challenging circumstances.
“I was a senior registrar at Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham and there was an air crash on the 8th of January, 1989,” Kirsh said.
“We took care of the majority of survivors from the air crash. I was in charge on the night and we were told Charles was coming to visit.
“There were about seven of us waiting for him and I was on the end of the line. Everyone was saying ‘hello, hello, hello’ to him, but I said ‘g’day’ and he responded, ‘You’re not from here.’
“We seemed to spark a connection and he asked me a few questions. Then he said, ‘Ah, so you’ve come here to chop up the Poms.’
“We talked for about 10 minutes, and he seemed a very pleasant fellow who was very dutiful and obviously had a wry sense of humour.”
WITH TIMES OF ISRAEL, AGENCIES
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