Suffolk’s most senior Church of England clergyman has spoken of his profound sadness at the death of Her Majesty the Queen - and said her decades of service are without parallel. The Rt Rev Martin Seeley, Bishop of the St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Diocese, expressed his deep sorrow at the death of Her Majesty the Queen.Bishop Martin said: “We send our sincere condolences to her family. Her Majesty visited the Diocese on a number of occasions during her reign, and during each visit the warmth of feeling the people had for her was clear. I know she had a particular affection for Suffolk.“Through her decades of devotion to her role and to the people of the Commonwealth she has given us all remarkable focus of constancy and stability, and an example of self-giving service. She was always clear how her Christian faith was at the heart of this, and how she found in her faith strength, fortitude and hope.“She was a wonderful ambassador for Britain and an example to us all. I know people will want to pay their own personal tributes to someone who has been a part of this great country’s fabric for so many years. “Books of condolence have been opened across the churches in our Diocese. As a mark of respect for Her Majesty the Queen, flags on all churches are also being flown at half-mast.“Her family are much in our prayers, and in particular we hold His Majesty the King in our prayers as he accedes to the throne.”Arrangements have been made to enable members of the public to lay floral tributes at St Edmundsbury Cathedral.The Dean of St Edmundsbury, The Very Reverend Joe Hawes, said: “As a nation and Commonwealth we begin to come to terms today with the loss of The Queen, who has been for the vast majority of us a point of stability and fidelity throughout our lives.“As we give thanks for Her Majesty’s 70 years of love and service for her people, we commit her to the arms of the God whose love has been her mainstay, and we pledge our loyalty and service as Church and Nation to His Majesty the King.” Link to resources:Her Majesty The Queen - Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich (cofesuffolk.org)Picture credit PA. Page last updated: Friday 9th September 2022 7:40 AM
It is with profound sadness that I join the nation, the Commonwealth and the world in mourning the death of Her Late Majesty The Queen. My prayers are with The King and the Royal Family. May God draw near them and comfort them in the days, weeks and months ahead.As we grieve together, we know that, in losing our beloved Queen, we have lost the person whose steadfast loyalty, service and humility has helped us make sense of who we are through decades of extraordinary change in our world, nation and society.As deep as our grief runs, even deeper is our gratitude for Her Late Majesty’s extraordinary dedication to the United Kingdom, her Realms and the Commonwealth. Through times of war and hardship, through seasons of upheaval and change, and through moments of joy and celebration, we have been sustained by Her Late Majesty’s faith in what and who we are called to be.In the darkest days of the Coronavirus pandemic, The Late Queen spoke powerfully of the light that no darkness can overcome. As she had done before, she reminded us of a deep truth about ourselves – we are a people of hope who care for one another. Even as The Late Queen mourned the loss of her beloved husband, Prince Philip, we saw once again evidence of her courage, resilience and instinct for putting the needs of others first – all signs of a deeply rooted Christian faith.As we sustain one another in the face of this challenge, our shared grieving will also be a work of shared reimagining. I pray that we commence this journey with a sense of Her Late Majesty’s faith and confidence in the future.As a faithful Christian disciple, and also Supreme Governor of the Church of England, she lived out her faith every day of her life. Her trust in God and profound love for God was foundational in how she led her life – hour by hour, day by day.In The Late Queen’s life, we saw what it means to receive the gift of life we have been given by God and – through patient, humble, selfless service – share it as a gift to others.Her Late Majesty found great joy and fulfilment in the service of her people and her God, “whose service is perfect freedom” (BCP). For giving her whole life to us, and allowing her life of service to be an instrument of God’s peace among us, we owe her a debt of gratitude beyond measure.The Late Queen leaves behind a truly extraordinary legacy: one that is found in almost every corner of our national life, as well as the lives of so many nations around the world, and especially in the Commonwealth.It was my great privilege to meet Her Late Majesty on many occasions. Her clarity of thinking, capacity for careful listening, inquiring mind, humour, remarkable memory and extraordinary kindness invariably left me conscious of the blessing that she has been to us all.In my prayers at this time I also give thanks for the marriage of The Late Queen and His Late Royal Highness Prince Philip. Theirs was an inspirational example of Christian marriage – rooted in friendship, nourished by shared faith, and turned outwards in service to others.May Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II rest in peace and rise in glory. The Most Reverend and Right Honourable Justin WelbyArchbishop of CanterburyPage last updated: Thursday 8th September 2022 8:07 PM