Queen’s Easter plea for ‘light and life’ to overcome despair
Monarch tells the nation ‘We need Easter as much as ever’ with churches closed during lockdown
EASTER is not cancelled and is needed as much as ever under lockdown, the Queen has said, as she urged Britain to take heart from its message that darkness “will not overcome us”.
The Queen said the Easter message was one of “new hope and fresh purpose”, with the forces of “light and life” overcoming those of darkness and death.
In a special message, broadcast last night, the Queen, as head of the Church of England, shared her faith in the unifying power of lighting candles, saying: “May the living flame of the Easter hope be a steady guide as we face the future.”
The short audio message was recorded in the White Drawing Room of Windsor Castle, with one microphone – cleaned to protect the 93-year-old monarch from the risk of contracting Covid-19 – and a sound engineer in the next room.
It is the Queen’s first dedicated Easter broadcast. In it, the Queen said: “Many religions have festivals which celebrate light overcoming darkness. Such occasions are often accompanied by the lighting of candles. “They seem to speak to every culture, and appeal to people of all faiths, and of none.
“They are lit on birthday cakes and to mark family anniversaries, when we gather happily around a source of light. It unites us.
“As darkness falls on the Saturday before Easter Day, many Christians would normally light candles together. “In church, one light would pass to another, spreading slowly and then more rapidly as more candles are lit. “It’s a way of showing how the good news of Christ’s resurrection has been passed on from the first Easter by every generation until now.” Acknowledging the difficulties faced by the British public, unable to join their church congregations or see their families under lockdown conditions, she said: “This year, Easter will be different for many of us, but by keeping apart we keep others safe.
“But Easter isn’t cancelled; indeed, we need Easter as much as ever.
“The discovery of the risen Christ on the first Easter Day gave his followers new hope and fresh purpose, and we can all take heart from
‘As dark as death can be, light and life are greater. May the living flame of the Easter hope be a steady guide as we face the future’
this. We know that coronavirus will not overcome us.
“As dark as death can be – particularly for those suffering with grief – light and life are greater.
“May the living flame of the Easter hope be a steady guide as we face the future.
“I wish everyone of all faiths and denominations a blessed Easter.”
In the last few years, the Prince of Wales has issued his own message, using it to address issues including the persecution of Christians worldwide and knife crime. This year, he has recorded a reading for Westminster Abbey’s Easter podcast.
The Easter message follows the Queen’s address to the nation in which she spoke of the strength of her people and urged them to remember: “We will meet again.”
Her grandson, the Duke of Cambridge, has also sent an Easter message to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in his role as Lord High Commissioner, which was supposed to see him join them for a week in May.
In a letter, he said it was “heartening to see” how the Church of Scotland was reinventing itself to serve congregations from afar, adding: “I have no doubt that this support, as well as other means of offering help, is hugely appreciated at this extremely challenging time, particularly by the elderly, vulnerable, those economically affected and, of course, those who have so tragically lost family and friends.”