Lange Nacht der Kirchen 2022
Come Together
After four wonderful days of celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, Her Majesty gave the nation the most moving of finales with a surprise appearance on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
The Queen had been forced to miss the events of the previous two days, but a woman who has never let her country down in 70 years was not about to do so now. Her Majesty stepped out onto the balcony of Buckingham Palace to greet the crowd and listen to the National Anthem which concluded the Platinum Jubilee Pageant. She described the scene in front of her as “fabulous”, telling her family: “Oh my goodness, oh look at this.”
Yet for all the pomp, pageantry and pyrotechnics seen in the capital since Thursday, it would surely have been the pictures of thousands of street parties up and down the nation that gave Her Majesty the most pleasure as they fostered friendships and created bonds that will long outlast the bunting.
More than 85,000 Big Jubilee Lunches were held around the country, on top of thousands more that took place on previous days, including a half-mile-long picnic table along Windsor’s Long Walk, where the Earl and Countess of Wessex joined around 3,000 people braving chilly weather to tuck into sandwiches and cake.
A renewed sense of togetherness
In an address released on the last day of this brilliant, unforgettable and very British four-day-celebration of Her Majesty’s 70 year reign, the monarch said:
“I have been inspired by the kindness, joy and kinship that has been so evident in recent days, and I hope this renewed sense of togetherness will be felt for many years to come.
“I thank you most sincerely for your good wishes and for the part you have all played in these happy celebrations.”
From Trooping the Colour to the Pageant, the “United Kingdom” has really united for a wonderful four day show of respect and warmth towards Her Majesty, coming together to show the nation at its best. “The country has been brought together after a traumatic few years, and it has been great to witness,” concluded political blogger and radio presenter Iain Dale on Sunday evening.
“I genuinely don’t think any other nation on this earth could have pulled off the spectacle of the last four days,“ Dale writes.
“We do pomp well, and let’s just rejoice in that. But it wasn’t all pomp. It was also in large part community circumstance. Communities around the country came together in a way they haven’t been able to for two years.“
So let’s hope that this renewed sense of togetherness will really be something to be “felt for many years to come.“ That would be the perfect way to remember these days of celebrating, and just the way Elizabeth II wanted it.
▶️ Review of four days Platinum Jubilee celebrations (The Telegraph)
The Queen‘s Faith
The Queen’s faith has enabled her to be a constant strength and comfort of the nation
Stephen Cotrell in The Telegraph digitaleditions.telegraph.co.uk/data/990/reader/reader.html
Amid all the pomp, pageantry and pleasure the Platinum Jubilee brings, it is easy to forget that at its heart, the Coronation of 69 years ago was a religious event. And while television cameras may have been granted access to Westminster Abbey, one moment was hidden from public view. Her Majesty was anointed with oil and afforded a time of stillness and reflection before God. She was also given a Bible by the Archbishop of Canterbury and reminded that scripture is “the most valuable thing this world affords”.
Geoffrey Fisher was the archbishop at the time. He came alongside Her Majesty as she prepared for the spiritual journey that lay ahead. One of the treasures in the Lambeth Palace library is the book of devotions, which he presented to Her Majesty all those years ago. It includes prayers, passages of scripture and daily meditations.
For Her Majesty, the Coronation was an intimate encounter between a monarch and her God, a moment where the Queen would be called by name and given a lifelong vocation. It marked a moment where her personal relationship with Christ met the national events and public moments that remind us that this country, its laws and customs and culture, is shaped by the Christian faith.
The Queen’s Christmas addresses have long been a powerful and public example of this faith in our national life. They show how faith in Christ informs and sustains the values of duty, service, honour and sacrifice we so rightly commend this Jubilee.
It is the lens through which she has viewed the world.
Invoking the parable of the Good Samaritan in her Christmas address in 1989, she said: “Our neighbours are those of our friends, or complete strangers, who need a helping hand. Do you think they might also be some of the living species threatened by spoiled rivers, or some of the children in places like Ethiopia and Sudan who don’t have enough to eat?” And, referencing the same story in 1985, she concluded her address by saying that “the story of the Good Samaritan reminds us of our duty to our neighbour. We should try to follow Christ’s clear instruction at the end of that story: ‘Go and do thou likewise’.”
As Supreme Governor of the Church of England, when addressing General Synod the Queen has often spoken about the “ministry of reconciliation” to which Christians are called. She has lived that ministry out in a most remarkable way. In 2012, the Queen famously shook hands with Martin McGuinness, despite the long and painful history and her beloved uncle’s death at the hands of the IRA in 1979.
Platinum Jubilee Concert
Performers eclipsed by the real star of Party at the Palace: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-61691432
Bowen debut against Hungary
Jarrod Bowen is set to be given his England debut in Saturday’s Nations League clash against Hungary.
He trained in an attack alongside Harry Kane in Gareth Southgate’s final training sessions before the squad flew to Budapest for their Group Three opener.
Wer hätte das gedacht?
Unerwarteter Auswärtserfolg für Österreich im ersten Spiel des neuen Teamchefs: 3:0 (1:0) gewann Österreich gegen Vize-Weltmeister Kroatien in Osijek! Ralf Rangnick, zuletzt Interimstrainer bei Manchester United – wo er die Champions League verpasste und nur wegen West Ham’s Niederlage gegen Brighton in der letzten Runde sich nicht bloß mit dem Trostpreis Conference League zufrieden geben musste – konnte seinem Team nach dem Ausscheiden aus dem WM-Play-off (unter Franco Foda) neuen Mut einhauchen und einen überraschend hohen Sieg feiern.
Vor allem aufgrund der guten Leistung in Hälfte 2 ist dieser auch vollkommen verdient! Ein Einstand nach Maß für den Teamchef, der mittlerweile seinen kritisierten Berater-Nebenjob bei ManUtd aufgegeben hat: er hat es, nachdem er aus England nach Österreich gekommen ist, in nur vier Tagen geschafft, seinen Spielern ein neues System mitzugeben, das diese erfolgreich umsetzen konnten.
Besonders interessant: im sechsten Länderspiel gegen Kroatien der erste Sieg für Österreich und gleichzeitig der erste Sieg gegen eine im FIFA-Ranking besser platzierte Nation seit 2008.
Tore: Arnautovic, Gregoritsch, Sabitzer
Match report ▶️ BBC
West Ham could again play Rapid in Europe
West Ham and Rapid Vienna could again meet in the European Conference League this season. Rapid have only qualified via the Austrian qualification playoff and will therefore have to start into the Conference League as early as in the second qualification round. For West Ham it will be sufficient to succeed in the two legged play-offs in August to make the group stage.
Rapid Vienna is going to be seeded when the draw for its first qualifying game (to be played on 21 July) will be made on 15 June 2022. Rapid has to commence its European journey as early as in qualifying round 2. To reach the play-offs of the Conference League (18/25 August) and then get into the group stage (starting from 8 September), Rapid have to be victorious in the second and the third qualification round. The third qualification round is going to be played on 4/11 August.
West Ham will play their first European game of the next season in the play-offs on 18 August, for which the draw will be made on 2 August.
The Final is scheduled for 7 June 2023 and will take place in Prague’s Eden Arena (Sinobo Stadium), the home of Soucek’s and Coufal’s former club, Slavia, with a capacity of only 20,000.
Let’s hope that Rapid as well as West Ham make the group stage again , and let’s also hope for a final pairing next year that will be as interesting as this year’s final of AS Roma vs. Feyenoord Rotterdam – and that West Ham will be one of the clubs playing in this match.
The Premier League is going to start earlier than last year because of the World Cup in Qatar with its first fixtures scheduled for 6 August. The fixtures are expected to be released by the Premier League on June 16, 2022 at 9 a.m. BST.
EXTRA TIME 
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