21 May 2018 – Worry ye not. You haven’t missed
Part Two. I’ve merely pondered on other subjects before I finished writing Part
Two. So, here we go with Part Three.
Did you
watch the pageant on voyeur-vision last Saturday? I did but if you chose not to
view it, I put it to you that you allowed an historical event to pass you
by and you missed it. Fancy! History in the making right before your very eyes,
and you closed your eyes and missed it. How remarkably odd.
I looked in
a dictionary for a definition of ‘pageant’. This is what I found:
noun
1. an
elaborate public spectacle illustrative of the history of a place, institution,
or the like, often given in dramatic form or as a procession of colourful
floats.
2. a
costumed procession, masque, allegorical tableau, or the like forming part of
public or social festivities.
3. a show or
exhibition, especially one consisting of a succession of participants or
events: a beauty pageant.
4. something
comparable to a procession in colourful variety, splendour, or grandeur: the
pageant of Renaissance history.
5. a
pretentious display or show that conceals a lack of real importance or meaning.
Hmmm. Makes
ya think, don’t it?
I was quite
taken by the preacher, The Most Reverend Bishop, Michael Curry. Some title,
huh? According to the Daily Mail, Rev.
Curry is the 27th presiding bishop and primate of the Episcopal Church. The
Episcopal Church in America is part of the wider Anglican Communion.
I liked what he had to say and I quite liked the way he said it. It was
refreshingly different under the circumstances. But as I listened and watched the faces of
those within camera range and closest to the young couple, I couldn’t help but
recall the words of a famous Tina Turner song: “What’s Love Got to Do With
It?”
The young couple must have chosen each other because by
no stretch of the imagination could it have been an arranged marriage – which is often the
way of marriage within royal families.
Clearly, it wasn’t a State occasion. If it had been, it is likely that
politicians of the day, from near and far, would have been invited. With the
notable exception of Sir John Major and his wife, politicians in attendance
were as rare as gnat’s teeth. And Prince Charles would have been in military uniform
- even at age 70.
Clearly, too, it was made into a ‘royal’ occasion by virtue of the fact
that H.M. Queen plus the Household Cavalry were in procession and in
attendance. But is Prince Harry now a Pioneer Sergeant? I think not.
No, this was theatre for the benefit of the masses and it was
Metro-Goldwyn-Meyer doing what it does best – making a show.
But what else was going on? I looked at the glum features of H M Queen as
her Episcopalian Bishop preached. At the Queen? The Head of the Church of England?
How audacious. And the Archbishop of Canterbury, too?
What were
they thinking? Your guess is as good as mine but I have the impression that
they weren’t energised or motivated by what they heard. ‘Brassed off’ is a
better description. We are not amused, as Queen Victoria allegedly said. And they were gathered in
the presence of God, too.
* * * *
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