What do the Coronation and Parshat Emor have in common?

What is the connection between the Coronation and Parshat Emor which we’ll be reading this shabbat? In Parshat Emor we’re given the mitzvah of kiddush Hashem (Vayikra 22:32):

“Venikdashti betoch bnei yisrael.” Hashem says to us, “I will be sanctified in the midst of the Children of Israel.” 

Notice that we’re not told that we must sanctify the name of Hashem, rather it’s passive – I will be sanctified. It is for this reason that Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky taught that this is the only one of the 613 mitzvot which applies to every single one of us,from the day we are born. You don’t have to be a ‘bar chiyuva’ – somebody who has an obligation to keep mitzvot because they are a bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah – because it’s venikdashti, flowing from what you do, there will be a kiddush Hashem, God’s name will be sanctified, because people will just notice and internalise our actions and deeds.

As a result therefore from the moment we’re born, whether we like it or not, we’re all living in a fishbowl – people are noticing us.

When you come to think of it, the world’s biggest fishbowl is that within which King Charles III lives. Under any circumstances, his every word is heard, every action is noticed, and that will certainly be the case on the day of his coronation. A significant proportion of the world’s population will be watching his every single movement, every utterance, and knowingly or unknowingly they will be internalising even the nuances of what he is doing.

We are in awe of the achievements of King Charles – his tireless efforts in order to guarantee that through his reign he will bring about a blessing within our challenged world. From the day of his coronation onwards, may Almighty God be with King Charles so that through all of his sayings, his deeds and his actions, he will contribute towards a better world.

May his reign be one which will be filled with good health, with happiness, with productivity with fulfilment and with the sanctification of God’s name always and let us never forget that we too are just like royalty because everything we do is noticed. Let us guarantee that through all of our deeds, we will cause a Kiddush Hashem.

Shabbat shalom.

Chief Rabbi Mirvis KBE