June 22, 2016

Adventist Pastor Attends British Queen’s 90th Birthday Celebration

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By Adventist Review staff, with reporting by the British Union Conference

A Seventh-day Adventist pastor has represented the Adventist Church at a celebration of Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.

Richard Daly, who pastors the Croydon Seventh-day Adventist Church in London, joined about 50 members of the royal family and 2,000 other dignitaries at the national service of thanksgiving on June 10.

Richard Daly taking a selfie in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. (BUC)

“It was an honor for me to attend and represent my church,” Daly said.

At the service, British Prime Minister David Cameron read Luke 12:22-31, and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, used his sermon to focus on how people are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” Prayers were offered, giving thanks to God for His protection and guidance in the queen’s life. Among those who prayed was Hilda Price, a 90-year-old great-grandmother who shares the queen’s birthday, April 21, 1926.

Reflecting on the service, Daly said it was a “privilege to be able to experience a spiritual service where the theme of thankfulness to God and His preserving protection came through very clearly.”

“The hymns and Scripture passages were all uplifting, and even though the attendees had come from all different walks of life, it was impossible to leave without a sense of awe and reverence for the whole spiritual atmosphere,” he said.

Daly, who has pastored the Croydon church since 2010 and served as one of 60 volunteer chaplains during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, was not the only Adventist in attendance at the queen’s birthday celebration. Also present were Patrick Allen, the governor-general of Jamaica, and his wife, who are both Seventh-day Adventists.

Daly sat close to the front of the cathedral, allowing him to see the members of the royal family pass by.

He said the experience “ushered in my mind the biblical truth that as followers in Christ we are all royal in His eyes and joint heirs to the kingdom of God.”