In a homily during a memorial service to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who died on April 9, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher recalls the prince’s honorable and faithful service to the Queen, her country and world.
By the Vatican News staff writer
On the day of the funeral for Prince Philip at Windsor Castle, a memorial service was held at the Anglican Church of All Saints in Rome. The Duke of Edinburgh, husband of Queen Elizabeth, died on April 9, at the age of 99. The Vatican secretary for relations with the states also participated in the memorial service held in Rome.
Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher opened his homily during the service with “an image far from this place, in the words of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, of the prelude to his epic poem Evangeline”:
“This is the original forest. Whispering pines and hemlock, with moss-beards, and green clothes, indistinguishable at dusk, stand like grain druids, with sad, prophetic voices. Put on like a harper hoar, with beards resting on your breast. Loud from its rocky caverns, the deep-voiced neighboring ocean speaks and, with accents, responds heartbroken to the forest’s grindstone. ”
Archbishop Gallagher points out that the forest described in the poem would be full of immense trees of different varieties. As he walked through the woods, “his presence would be noticed with fear,” he said. “They seem to have always been there.” Returning to the forest for many years, take for granted their presence, he adds. “You barely notice them; they are so much part of the landscape, but when they fall, by human hand or by the force of nature, it is a powerful sound, an earthquake in the heart of the forest. When you return you will find a seemingly irreparable void in the fabric of the forest, which will take an eternity to fill, ”Archbishop Gallagher said.
“The passing of Prince Philip is such a fact in the forest of our contemporary history and society,” Archbishop Gallagher said. He described Prince Philip as a constant: “always there, a few steps back, but always present,” he noted.
Prince Philip was “present in so many ways and on so many occasions and scenes,” said Archbishop Gallagher, adding that, nevertheless, “for most of us it has remained indelible, for many changes. and years, the prince consort. A role, not an office, next to a queen who reigns but does not rule. ”
Vision of St. Paul
Archbishop Gallagher went on to say that “Paul’s dynamic vision of Christ’s redemptive action is also the unfolding of the Kingdom for which Jesus prays to the Father:“ Come your kingdom, your will be done on earth as in heaven. “The apostle teaches,” He must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death, “he added.
“I think St. Paul and Prince Philip would have done very well,” Archbishop Gallagher said, “both direct speakers with a tendency to a little controversy,” he explained.
Prince Philip
Prince Philip’s achievements are remarkable, continued Archbishop Gallagher. He spoke of the prince’s naval career and noted that he was patron of more than 800 charities and organizations.
It is believed that the early years of Elizabeth and Philip’s marriage, especially in Malta, are almost carefree. “The latter was to change on the king’s death in 1952, when Princess Elizabeth was 26,” Archbishop Gallagher said.
“From that moment until his death, Philip was always there,” he noted. It is clear that the Duke shared the Queen’s commitment to the Commonwealth, helping in the early decades to maintain the great project that was the transition of the Empire to the Commonwealth. He also stood by his wife firmly in the darkest moments, like the Annus Horribilis. “
Archbishop Gallagher then said that “our perceptions of this service of remembrance and what we will see transmitted from Windsor this afternoon differ, but the eyes of the Christian faith invite us to witness the contrasts of which St. Paul wrote: perishable – imperishable, weakness – power, mortality – immortality And we will make our own the words of praise of the apostle: “But thanks be to God, who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
At the end of his homily, Archbishop Gallagher noted that “indeed, Prince Philip lived a life of multiple contrasts and that some could reconcile only with difficulty, while others comprehensively witnessed resentment and pain.” However, he continued, the faith we celebrate this Easter cuts across all of this, “resolving differences and illuminating darkness and dispelling doubts.”
“For the navy commander, the consort, the father of a large family, for the leader of benevolence and education, the battle is over, and everything is calm again in the woods,” the archbishop concluded. Gallagher. “It is possible that the big tree has fallen but it leaves its mark and encourages new growth towards the sky.”