Daily Meditation for October 5, 2022

Queen Elizabeth II became a familiar part of our image of the world during her 70-year reign in Great Britain. Along with being the constitutional Head of State and the Church of England, she was one of the world’s wealthiest women and led a complex life. Despite all this, at her recent funeral, Archbishop Welby’s eulogy focused on her style of “servant–leadership.” A servant-leader focuses primarily on the growth and well-being of others and their communities, putting the needs of others first, and helping people develop and work together. The leader provides vision, resources, support and example. The archbishop described how Elizabeth was unfailingly gracious, kind and helpful. She was selfless in fulfilling her responsibilities and followed Jesus, the exemplar of servant-leadership. As the Queen led in her world, we can do so in our plain and simple lives and follow her famous advice: “Keep calm and carry on.”

By Mary Jackle, OSB