Editing Charles III (section)

=== Religion and philosophy ===
Shortly after his accession to the throne, Charles publicly described himself as "a committed [[Anglican]] Christian";<ref name="Davies16Sep22">{{Cite news |last=Davies |first=Caroline |date=16 September 2022 |title=King tells faith leaders he has personal 'duty to protect diversity of our country' |work=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/sep/16/king-tells-faith-leaders-he-has-personal-duty-to-protect-diversity-of-our-country |url-status=live |access-date=30 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230115062151/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/sep/16/king-tells-faith-leaders-he-has-personal-duty-to-protect-diversity-of-our-country |archive-date=15 January 2023}}.</ref> at age 16, during Easter 1965, he had been [[confirmed]] into the [[Anglican Communion]] by Archbishop of Canterbury [[Michael Ramsey]] in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.{{sfn|Holden |pp=141–142|1979}} The King is the Supreme Governor of the Church of England<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Queen, the Church and other faiths |url=https://www.royal.uk/queens-relationship-churches-england-and-scotland-and-other-faiths |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810162529/https://www.royal.uk/queens-relationship-churches-england-and-scotland-and-other-faiths |archive-date=10 August 2022 |access-date=21 September 2022 |website=Official website of the British monarchy}}</ref> and a member of the [[Church of Scotland]]; he swore an oath to uphold that church immediately after he was proclaimed king.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=King Charles vows to protect the security of the Church of Scotland |date=10 September 2022 |publisher=The Church of Scotland |url=https://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/news-and-events/news/2022/articles/king-charles-vows-to-protect-the-security-of-the-church-of-scotland |access-date=14 September 2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220914074809/https://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/news-and-events/news/2022/articles/king-charles-vows-to-protect-the-security-of-the-church-of-scotland |archive-date=14 September 2022}}</ref> He attends services at various Anglican churches close to Highgrove<ref>{{Cite news |date=13 February 2005 |title=Prince and Camilla attend church |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/gloucestershire/4262155.stm |url-status=live |access-date=25 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804192306/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/gloucestershire/4262155.stm |archive-date=4 August 2017}}</ref> and attends the Church of Scotland's [[Crathie Kirk]] with the rest of the royal family when staying at Balmoral Castle.
[[File:Otec Jaroslav a JKV Charles.jpg|thumb|left|With [[Czech Orthodox]] priest {{ill|Jaroslav Šuvarský|cs}} in [[Prague]], Czech Republic, March 2010|alt=Charles conversing with Jaroslav Šuvarský]]

[[Laurens van der Post]] became a friend of Charles in 1977; he was dubbed Charles's "spiritual guru" and was godfather to Prince William.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Garner |first=Clare |date=17 December 1996 |title=Prince's guru dies aged 90 |work=The Independent (UK) |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/princes-guru-dies-aged-90-1314900.html |url-status=live |access-date=31 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121220174006/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/princes-guru-dies-aged-90-1314900.html |archive-date=20 December 2012}}</ref> From van der Post, Charles developed a focus on philosophy and an interest in other religions.<ref>{{Cite news |date=17 December 1996 |title=S African author Laurens van der Post dies in London |publisher=Irish Times |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/s-african-author-laurens-van-der-post-dies-in-london-1.116819 |url-status=live |access-date=8 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308220846/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/s-african-author-laurens-van-der-post-dies-in-london-1.116819 |archive-date=8 March 2021}}</ref> Charles expressed his philosophical views in his 2010 book, ''[[Harmony: A New Way of Looking at Our World]]'',<ref>{{Cite news |date=4 January 2012 |title=Review: In Harmony with a Philosopher King |publisher=Wessex School Of Philosophy |first1=Raymond |last1=Payne |url=http://www.philosophyinwessex.org/in-harmony-with-a-philosophy-king |url-status=dead |access-date=30 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140808035942/http://www.philosophyinwessex.org/in-harmony-with-a-philosophy-king |archive-date=8 August 2014 |postscript=; }} {{Cite news |date=29 March 2013 |title=It's time for harmony between science and spirituality |publisher=Positive News |first1=Paul |last1=Fletcher |url=http://positivenews.org.uk/2013/wellbeing/spirit/11760/its-time-harmony-science-spirituality |url-status=dead |access-date=30 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140808033717/http://positivenews.org.uk/2013/wellbeing/spirit/11760/its-time-harmony-science-spirituality |archive-date=8 August 2014 |postscript=; }} {{Cite news |date=6 December 2010 |title=Books of the Year – Harmony and Farundell |website=Philip Carr-Gomm |url=https://philipcarr-gomm.com/books-of-the-year-harmony-and-farundell/ |access-date=30 July 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200924011005/https://philipcarr-gomm.com/books-of-the-year-harmony-and-farundell/ |archive-date= 24 September 2020 }}<!--Old link was https://archive.today/20140805160225/http://philipcarrgomm.wordpress.com/2010/12/06/books-of-the-year-harmony-and-farundell--></ref> which won a Nautilus Book Award.<ref>{{Cite web |title=2011 Nautilus Awards Gold Winners |url=http://www.nautilusbookawards.com/2011_GOLD_Winners.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111219163149/http://nautilusbookawards.com/2011_GOLD_Winners.html |archive-date=19 December 2011 |access-date=11 May 2013 |publisher=Nautilus Book Awards}}</ref> He has also visited [[Eastern Orthodox]] monasteries on [[Mount Athos]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Smith |first=Helena |date=12 May 2004 |title=Has Prince Charles found his true spiritual home on a Greek rock? |work=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk_news/story/0,3604,1214522,00.html |url-status=live |access-date=25 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210401092057/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2004/may/12/monarchy.helenasmith |archive-date=1 April 2021 |issn=1756-3224 |oclc=60623878}}</ref> in Romania,<ref name="ref1">{{Cite web |date=13 May 2003 |title=Prinţul Charles, fermier de Fălticeni |trans-title=Prince Charles, farm owner in Fălticeni |url=http://www.evz.ro/detalii/stiri/printul-charles-fermier-de-falticeni-616319.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105061103/http://www.evz.ro/detalii/stiri/printul-charles-fermier-de-falticeni-616319.html |archive-date=5 November 2013 |website=[[Evenimentul Zilei]] |language=ro}}</ref> and in Serbia,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Princ Čarls u manastiru Kovilj |trans-title=Prince Charles in the Kovilj monastery |url=https://www.ekspres.net/drustvo/princ-carls-u-manastiru-kovilj |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170926035631/https://www.ekspres.net/drustvo/princ-carls-u-manastiru-kovilj |archive-date=26 September 2017 |access-date=9 September 2022 |website=Ekspres.net |language=sr-Latn}}</ref> and met with Eastern Church leaders in Jerusalem in 2020, during a visit that culminated in an ecumenical service in the [[Church of the Nativity]] in Bethlehem and a walk through the city accompanied by Christian and Muslim dignitaries.<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 January 2020 |title=Prince Charles wishes Palestinians 'freedom, justice and equality' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jan/24/prince-charles-wishes-palestinians-freedom-justice-and-equality-west-bank |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200326161121/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jan/24/prince-charles-wishes-palestinians-freedom-justice-and-equality-west-bank |archive-date=26 March 2020 |access-date=27 March 2020 |newspaper=The Guardian}} {{cite web |date=24 January 2020 |title=Charles arrives in Bethlehem during historic Palestinian visit |url=https://www.itv.com/news/2020-01-24/charles-arrives-in-bethlehem-during-historic-palestinian-visit |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200327044648/https://www.itv.com/news/2020-01-24/charles-arrives-in-bethlehem-during-historic-palestinian-visit |archive-date=27 March 2020 |access-date=27 March 2020 |publisher=ITV News}}</ref> Charles also attended the consecration of Britain's first [[Syriac Orthodox]] cathedral, [[St Thomas Cathedral, Acton]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 November 2016 |title=Britain's first Syriac Orthodox Cathedral consecrated |url=https://www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/britains-first-syriac-orthodox-cathedral-consecrated.aspx |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161126162550/https://www.anglicannews.org/news/2016/11/britains-first-syriac-orthodox-cathedral-consecrated.aspx |archive-date=26 November 2016 |access-date=9 April 2021 |website=Anglican Communion News Service}}</ref> Charles is patron of the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies at the [[University of Oxford]] and attended the inauguration of the [[Markfield Institute of Higher Education]], which is dedicated to Islamic studies in a multicultural context.<ref name="princeofwales">{{Cite web |date=9 February 2005 |title=HRH visits the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies new building |url=http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/newsandgallery/news/hrh_visits_the_oxford_centre_for_islamic_studies_new_buildin_566.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20070619191733/http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/newsandgallery/news/hrh_visits_the_oxford_centre_for_islamic_studies_new_buildin_566.html |archive-date=19 June 2007 |access-date=15 December 2008 |publisher=The Prince of Wales}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=About OCIS |url=http://www.oxcis.ac.uk/about.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071028192204/http://www.oxcis.ac.uk/about.html |archive-date=28 October 2007 |publisher=[[Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies]]}} {{cite web |publisher=MarkfieldInstitute |title=Introduction to MIHE |date=29 January 2009 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIZHXhVfBEs&t=51s |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308163533/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIZHXhVfBEs&t=51s |access-date=29 April 2017 |archive-date=8 March 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In his 1994 documentary with Dimbleby, Charles said that, when king, he wished to be seen as a "defender of faith", rather than the British monarch's traditional title of ''[[Defender of the Faith]]'', "preferr[ing] to embrace all religious traditions and 'the pattern of the divine, which I think is in all of us.{{'"}}<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Sullivan |first1=Kevin |last2=Boorstein |first2=Michelle |date=13 September 2022 |title=King Charles III may bring new approach to 'Defender of the Faith' |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/09/13/king-charles-religion-faith |url-status=live |access-date=13 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220913152120/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/09/13/king-charles-religion-faith |archive-date=13 September 2022}}</ref> This attracted controversy at the time, as well as speculation that the [[Coronation oath of the British monarch|coronation oath]] might be altered.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sherwood |first=Harriet |date=9 September 2022 |title=King Charles to be Defender of the Faith but also a defender of faiths |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/sep/09/king-charles-to-be-defender-of-the-faith-but-also-a-defender-of-faiths |url-status=live |access-date=13 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220912175237/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/sep/09/king-charles-to-be-defender-of-the-faith-but-also-a-defender-of-faiths |archive-date=12 September 2022 |issn=1756-3224 |oclc=60623878}}</ref> He stated in 2015 that he would retain the title of ''Defender of the Faith'', whilst "ensuring that other people's faiths can also be practised", which he sees as a duty of the Church of England.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Charles vows to keep "Defender of the Faith" title as King |publisher=secularism.org.uk |url=http://www.secularism.org.uk/news/2015/02/charles-vows-to-keep-defender-of-the-faith-title-as-king |url-status=live |access-date=24 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150715203555/http://www.secularism.org.uk/news/2015/02/charles-vows-to-keep-defender-of-the-faith-title-as-king |archive-date=15 July 2015}}</ref> Charles reaffirmed this theme shortly after his accession and declared that his duties as sovereign included "the duty to protect the diversity of our country, including by protecting the space for faith itself and its practice through the religions, cultures, traditions, and beliefs to which our hearts and minds direct us as individuals."<ref name="Davies16Sep22" /> Although the text of the coronation oath was not altered, because the process of passing new legislation through Parliament would be lengthy and liable to raise divisive issues, a [[preamble]] spoken by the [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] was added to the text:<ref>{{cite news |last=Moore |first=Charles |date=8 May 2023 |title=The service deftly proved the King's power to unite 'neighbours in faith' |url=https://www.pressreader.com/uk/features/20230508/textview |work=The Daily Telegraph – Coronation Special |location=London |pages=6–7}}</ref>
{{blockquote|Your Majesty, the Church established by law, whose settlement you will swear to maintain, is committed to the true profession of the Gospel, and, in so doing, will seek to foster an environment in which people of all faiths and beliefs may live freely.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://catholicherald.co.uk/the-kings-coronation-oath-an-explainer-for-catholics/ |title=The King's coronation oath: an explainer for Catholics |last=McDonagh |first=Melanie |date=2 May 2023 |website=catholicherald.co.uk |publisher= Catholic Herald |access-date=14 October 2023}}</ref>}}

His inclusive, multi-faith approach and his own Christian beliefs were expressed in his first [[Christmas message]] as king. In line with his multi-faith approach, Charles has served as a patron of the [[Council of Christians and Jews]] and of the [[Jewish Museum London]].<ref name="Jewish-Museum">{{Cite web |last=Prinsley |first=Jane |title=King Charles renews patronage of Jewish Museum London |url=https://www.thejc.com/news/uk/king-charles-renews-patronage-of-jewish-museum-london-ugwzyewt |access-date=7 January 2025 |website=thejc.com |date=18 June 2024 |quote=Originally appointed patron of the museum in 2008, the King's renewed patronage is a "huge vote of confidence in reiterating the importance of the Jewish Museum London," a spokesperson for the museum said.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=20 May 2024 |title=HM The King to be Patron of the Council of Christians and Jews |url=https://www.cbcew.org.uk/king-charles-iii-patron-of-ccj/ |access-date=7 January 2025 |website=Catholic Bishops' Conference |archive-date=7 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250107121835/https://www.cbcew.org.uk/king-charles-iii-patron-of-ccj/ |url-status=live }}</ref>