By Chris Cotter
It’s a touchstone moment where positions are being taken, ideologies are being brought to the fore, complicated emotions are being felt.
We can’t yet know exactly how significant this is going to be, but I would say this event is probably going to be seen as being one of the most, if not the most, significant religion related events in the UK for a century.
There are the obvious religion related elements connected with the Church of England, the Church of Scotland and the Church in Wales. And there are the more diffuse civil religion elements surrounding the monarchy in the UK such as national anthems, regalia, particular sites and processions.
But what I think is the most interesting to comment on is the upheaval that this event has caused to the sense of stability and certainty amongst the British public, and people beyond.
Regardless of feelings towards the monarchy and the Queen, there’s something about this individual, that for 70 years has rippled globally through the Empire and the Commonwealth. And this 70 year constant has been ripped away.
Suddenly, something has changed. And I don’t think many could have quite predicted the emotional trauma of this stable presence being gone. Even republicans feel that change, uncertainty and loss of stability.
I think that what’s happening here, I wouldn’t want to say that it’s a religious thing, this desire for certainty. It’s a human thing that is manifest through people’s religious quests, national mythologies, the powerful symbols connected with these, and more.
Dr Chris Cotter is Staff Tutor in Sociology and Religious Studies, The Open University, researching non-religion, new atheism, world views.
