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Churches get set to celebrate the Queen's Christian faith
Her Majesty the Queen has written the foreword to a very special book being published to celebrate her 90th birthday.
'The Servant Queen - and the King She Serves' is a beautifully illustrated short book, which uses the Queen's own words to draw out the central role of her trust in Jesus Christ, offering an inspiring, multi-faceted insight into a life well-lived for others.
Thousands of churches across the country will be giving away copies of this unique tribute published by HOPE, Bible Society and the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity.
HOPE's executive director Roy Crowne says, 'We are thrilled to have the foreword of this book written by Her Majesty. The Queen has served the country and Commonwealth for more than 60 years. From 10th -12th June 2016 we will celebrate her 90th birthday. It is a chance to say thank you to God and to the Queen for her life and example as a follower of Jesus Christ.'
Paul Woolley, Deputy Chief Executive at Bible Society, said, 'In drawing attention to the central role of the Queen's faith in her life and reign, 'The Servant Queen' will be a unique 90th birthday publication. The book will inform, surprise, entertain and challenge, all at the same time.'
Co-author of the book, Mark Greene, Executive Director of LICC, added, 'As I've been writing this book and talking about it to friends, to family who don't know Jesus, to my Jewish barber, I've been struck how very interested they are to discover more about the Queen's faith. The Queen has served us all her adult life, with amazing consistency of character, concern for others and a clear dependence on Christ. The more I've read what she's written and talked to people who know her, the clearer that is.'
All the resources will be available from February from www.hopetogether.org.uk
The Queen's actual birthday on 21 April will be celebrated officially with:
- four days of celebrations in Windsor 12th -15th May;
- a service of thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral on Friday 10th June;
- the traditional trooping the colour ceremony - the Queen's birthday parade - on Saturday 11th June
in Horse Guards Parade, and
- a massive street party for 10,000 people on The Mall on Sunday 12th June.
HOPE will be supporting churches with resources and ideas to bring communities together for this national celebration.
These include:
- posters, invitations, and bunting
- a booklet to give away to children, published with Scripture Union
- school assembly ideas and lesson plans, also from Scripture Union
- church service ideas and a commemorative, customisable order of service
- a street-party planning guide