So much in common

THE EDITOR, Madam:

Way back in 1527 King Henry VIII petitioned Pope Clement VII for his marriage to Queen Catherine to be annulled, so as to marry his new love, Anne Boleyn. The Pope refused, so Henry withdrew from Roman Catholicism to form his very own Church of England, becoming its titular head as Supreme Governor and Defender of the Faith.

Five hundred years later on October 23, Pope Leo XIV invited England’s King Charles III and Queen Camilla to pray in the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel. For those with a religious bent it was probably something wonderful to behold, although the more secular might ask: “What took you so long?”.

This event was well-reported around the world, especially in England where it came during another deepening scandal in the Royal Family.

This time the offender is Prince Andrew embroiled for several years in claims of sexual relations with a

17-year-old girl allegedly trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein, a couple of decades ago. Andrew has been removed from royal duties for several years; now parliamentarians and the media want him to lose all his titles and his taxpayer-sponsored residence. It seems ironic that the religious rift began with a royal sex scandal, and closes with another one, 500 years later.

Not that royal sex scandals are anything new to England. If kings who ruled during that half-millennium had one thing in common, it was their penchant for multiple mistresses. Participant’s names were hardly ever kept secret, with many becoming infamous in the pages of British history.

King Charles II who reigned from 1661 to 1685, was probably the most accomplished philanderer with a large stable catering to his every sexual need, including the notorious Nell Gwynn.

Far too many merry monarchs to list here, but just over a century ago King Edward VII was well-known for having an over-active zipper, even before zippers were invented. One mistress, Jennie Churchill was the mother of Winston, while his favourite Alice Keppel was an ancestor of today’s Queen Camilla, who used to be quite infamous herself only a few decades ago.

There seems to be a family tradition involved there. All the while, these Supreme Governors and Defenders Of The Faith kept up the façade to the peasantry of being self-righteous and holier-than-thou. Exactly the same can be said for the Roman Catholic Popes whose many cardinals, bishops and priests have participated in such horrific child sexual abuse over the centuries. The two main Christian denominations are formally meeting after all these years apart, and they really do have so much in common.

BERNIE SMITH

Parksville, BC

Canada