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Articles: Queen: Bridge the age gap

Posted by admin on Tuesday, December 26, 2006 - 05:10 PM

25/12/2006 18:39 - (SA)

London - Queen Elizabeth on Monday called on people to bridge the generation gap between young and old as she delivered her annual Christmas message to Britain and the Commonwealth.

In a pre-recorded speech, which was broadcast on television and radio and for the first time this year as a podcast, the queen, 80, spoke of how parents, grandparents, the wider family and community all help children grow up. But she said modern life was loosening familial ties and the traditional bonds between the generations. "The pressures of modern life sometimes seem to be weakening the links which have traditionally kept us together as families and communities," she said. "As children grow up and develop their own sense of confidence and independence in the ever-changing technological environment, there is always the danger of a real divide opening up between young and old, based on unfamiliarity, ignorance and misunderstanding." Strong religious theme The radio and television speech - a tradition started by her grandfather king George V in 1932 - was recorded this year at Southwark Cathedral on the south bank of the River Thames in London. It again had a strong religious theme, with footage showing people of all faiths in worship. It included images of men praying at London Central Mosque, scenes from the opening of Europe's largest Hindu temple in the English West Midlands, and a Jewish reception involving the country's chief rabbi. The queen, who is head of the Church of England, said all faiths encouraged the bridging of the age divide and had in common the need to help the young become "considerate and active citizens". 'Sense of context' As older people lived longer, the monarch - herself a grandmother of seven - said the opportunities had increased to bring old and young together. Older people could bring an invaluable "sense of context" and the "wisdom of experience" to the energy and ambitions of the young. "Such advice and comfort are probably needed more often than younger people admit or older people recognise," she said.

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