I experienced very mixed feelings whilst watching the funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on TV yesterday.
On one hand, I felt apart from it all. As a Jew raised in the United Kingdom but who possesses a national consciousness and a deep connection to Eretz Yisrael and Jewish culture, I knew, while watching the stately proceedings and the soldiers in their distinct red uniforms, that this wasn’t my culture.
The traditions of the British monarchy evoked at the funeral date back hundreds of years, but my family has barely lived in this country for one hundred. I cannot forget that another British monarch, Edward I, expelled my ancestors in 1290 CE from the same country I am living in right now. While I am ruled by the Queen, and now the King, I cannot count myself among the people they rule.
(And when they brought Her Majesty’s coffin into Westminster Abbey and began the religious proceedings, I had to leave the room; all the talk of Jesus and the gospel was anathema to me.)
On the other hand, like countless others I felt a tremendous admiration for the Queen and her life of unswerving commitment to her country and to public service. She was a truly remarkable woman who inspired both loyalty and love. She was wise, kind, brave, possessed a sharp mind and a great sense of humour, an incredible humility and a religious faith which sustained her throughout her long life.
The Torah teaches us that a Melekh is meant to be divested of all traces of personal ego and that he doesn’t so much lead the people as become an embodiment of them. L’havdil (to separate), but I think the Queen accomplished this to a great degree for her people.
Every day for 70 years she devoted herself to public service and the affairs of state with the utmost devotion and selflessness. The fact that she remained above politics and that she never allowed her royal status to go to her head meant that she was able to advise 15 British prime ministers on how to lead the country. She was a unifying figure who was universally loved by the citizens of Britain, the Commonwealth and so many people around the world. Of how many world leaders today could we say the same?
I think it’s fairly clear that we have a severe lack of political leaders we can look up to. Our world today is in desperate need of leadership. We at Vision Magazine have already made the case that Israel is in a prime position to provide that leadership, if we can only look past the deep disagreements plaguing our society and figure out the message we want to broadcast to the world.
But in terms of individual leadership, the Queen was a shining example; an exemplary leader and human being whom we should strive to emulate. If we would all commit to serving the Jewish people the same way in which the Queen served Britain, we could change the face of our people.
