DIANA: Tragic Princess

Her death elicited a response of grief and shock, the likes of which had not been felt since the assassination of President Kennedy. Airwaves were suddenly filled with nothing but news of the tragic crash in a Paris tunnel which snuffed out the life of Princess Diana.

CNN’s Larry King called her “the most loved woman on the planet.” A British man said that this was a sadder day for him than the day his own mother died. People who hadn’t cried in years were sobbing with grief. Even crusty Dan Rather found his voice cracking as he reported on the death of the Princess. Linda Bowles perceptively wrote: “It became quite dangerous not to participate—the queen of England was brought to her knees by a wailing mob that demanded she do public obeisance to Diana – or else.”

Upon learning that her chauffeur had been speeding to escape the flashes of an aggressive, motorcycle riding gang of independent photographers, there were immediate cries of outrage and censure. Stars like Elizabeth Taylor, Tom Cruise, and Sylvester Stallone began to speak out against over-aggressive photojournalists in the severest terms. Finding new villains to hate has always been a delicious exercise, and the world lost no time in making the most of expressing their disdain for the evil “paparazzi.”

Many Christians weren’t sure just how to respond to the outpouring of love and adulation to the memory of Princess Di. Although they admired her beauty and style, there were those troubling accounts of adultery, extravagance, consultations with psychic counselors, depression, and suicide attempts that didn’t exactly speak of a high level of morality and a steadfast faith in Christ. Some decided it was all Charles’ fault and joined the throng of mass adulation. Others decided that the public’s elevation to sainthood might be a bit premature, but kept their reservations to themselves rather than risking the scorn afforded those who dare express ideas contrary to the overwhelming sentiments of the day.

IDOLS OF FLESH

Any incident that attains this level of worldwide press surely must have something to say to us, some redeeming lesson or insight that people can profit from. One of the ugliest insights to come from this tragedy is the picture of our world’s idolatrous obsession with celebrities. One of the phrases that we heard over and over again in the wake of the tragedy was that Diana was one of those people “famous for being famous.” She hadn’t really earned her fame. She couldn’t throw a fastball ninety miles an hour, she had never made a movie, hadn’t discovered a cure for a disease, or wrestled in the political arena with the world’s weightiest problems.

No, Diana had become what she was as a result of marrying a man destined to be the future king of England. This, combined with her fresh good looks and shyly winsome personality, captivated a watching world. As she contrasted with a no-nonsense aging queen and her husband’s distinctly ordinary looks and stiff mannerisms, it was inevitable that she quickly attain world class celebrity status.

How we loved her! Her face adorned the cover of People Magazine over 40 times. When she was featured in a new movie or television interview, we rushed to watch intently, almost in spite of ourselves. Her appearance on any talk show could boost ratings into the stratosphere.

Diana became larger than life, the Princess who could do no wrong. Even when she admitted to adultery, the world passed judgment on Charles, rather than her. When it became evident that divorce was the only answer to their marital problems, we accepted it as the natural outcome of a Princess who kissed a frog, only to find that the frog just kept on acting froggy.

I have no desire to trash Diana. She was, without a doubt, a beautiful lady with a great sense of style, and a gift to touch the common people in a way that the royal family might do well to learn from (although they’ll never do it like she did). Nevertheless it would be foolish for Christians to fall into the kind of idol-worship that the world has so shamelessly indulged during the weeks following her death. If we want heroes, there are a few around. Mother Teresa inspired us with her devotion to the poor, Billy Graham with his commitment to evangelize the world, and countless faithful pastors who labor in the trenches and behind the scenes encouraging the weak, speaking hope to failing marriages, and encouraging believers to go the limit in their service to Christ.

APPETITE FOR SLEAZE

While Elizabeth Taylor and others rail at the photographers, they fail to address the reason for these camera packing vultures. These men are not stalking the celebrities of the world to take pictures for their own private collections. They may be a lot of things, but they are not stupid. They know all too well that juicy photos of those famous for being famous will net them a haul of cash that could set them on the road to retirement. Millions have been paid for single rolls of photos. The reason magazines pay such incredible sums for a few pictures is simple: they have discovered America’s and the world’s obsessive lust for celebrity sleaze. A topless princess cavorting on a beach, a new love affair of some jaded movie star, an embarrassing moment for a world political figure will sell magazines like no scholarly piece could ever hope to.

In our unquenchable appetite for sordid details and suggestive photos we have created a monster. When the monster rises up and kills one of the objects of our lust, we whine and complain as though it were not our own offspring. Too often we have failed to admit that only our wicked appetite for sensuality makes possible the many abominations that dot the landscape. Where would Howard Stern be if no one listened to him? How long would Penthouse Magazine stay in business if the men of our nation suddenly became moral? How long would the trash talk shows last if the vast majority of Americans simply left their televisions turned off and refused to view these lurid programs?

When pornography producers are making millions, when magazines like the National Inquirer and the Star are being sold in nearly every store across the country, when X rated videos are making their producers rich, it is as much a symptom of national corruption as it is a cause. Don't get me wrong. I’m all for working to rid our stores of pornography, and keeping the airwaves clean, but as long as our nation is populated by those who see no problem with ingesting smut, we will never be rid of the stuff.

ROYAL DEPRESSION

If there is one lesson that stands out in the saga of Diana, it is that all the things that we think produce happiness do not make us happy. Diana had the twin offspring of celebrity – fame and fortune. She was without a doubt the most well known woman in the world. Men admired her beauty and women longed for her fairy tale life. She had none of the financial concerns that you and I have: saving up enough money to be able to pay the house bill at the beginning of the month, wondering where the extra cash will come from when the car unexpectedly breaks down, hoping that the dental bill for the kids won’t force us to cut our grocery spending short this month, and so forth. None of this for Diana. She was one of those privileged few who could have basically whatever they wanted from the material world. Dresses costing thousands were hers for the asking.

Yet with all the perks of a princess, with all the jet-setting life style, the expensive restaurants, and servants at her beck and call, Diana was a distinctly miserable lady. Constant depression, eating disorders, and suicide attempts made clear that she was not enjoying her royal life. Even after her divorce from Charles, you still got the impression that she was looking, searching for the peace of mind that constantly eluded her. A few accounts have daringly tried to suggest that she found happiness at last with Dodi Fayed.

But this son of an Egyptian millionaire was no Prince Charming. Any suggestion that she could have lived happily ever after with him was the height of wishful thinking. Dodi had built up a long track record of wining and dining women all over the world, renting expensive mansions for short seasons, and then stiffing his landlords. Fayed was the stereotypical spoiled rich kid who had never quite grown up.

TOO YOUNG, TOO SOON

One of the reasons we felt so shocked and saddened over Diana’s death was no doubt the untimely nature of it. When Mother Teresa died, the world mourned, yet it was no shock. She had lived many years, and death seemed natural, if grievous. But death seems so unnatural to those who die young. We had not been able to see, or even imagine, Princess Di with wrinkles. At thirty six years of age, she was in the prime of her life. Suddenly she was gone with no warning, no hint of any kind that she would be with us no more.

Diana had no idea when she got up that fateful day, that she would be experiencing a whole series of “lasts.” The breakfast she ate would be her last breakfast ever. Throughout the day she would perform one after another in a series of lasts: the last time to put on her makeup, the last time to brush her hair, the last cup of coffee, the last newspaper she would ever read, and finally the last time she would ever be annoyed by a pack of eager paparazzi.

She arose that morning thinking it would be similar to so many other days she had enjoyed – only to die in a French hospital and wake up in a new dimension, facing the prospect of that great and awesome day when we will stand before the Judge of the earth to give an account of the lives we have lived.

LEGACY OF SADNESS

Diana’s was a tragic life – short, sad, and seemingly unfulfilled. It speaks volumes to us of that simple rhyme which so eloquently sums up the nature of our brief time here: “Only one life, twill soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last.”

Most of us will never know anything like the fame Diana experienced. Our lives will be lived in the more normal plane of thirty year mortgages, PTA meetings, trips to Wal Mart, and watching a little TV at night after the kids are put to bed. And yet many of the issues that Diana faced are ones that we must grapple with as well. Depression comes to the rich and the poor, the royal and the common. Miserable marriages are found in the suburbs as well as the palaces. And like Diana, we too will one of these days face a series of lasts on our final day.

Jesus emphasized again and again that His disciples were to live with a constant expectation of His return. A life of watchfulness and sobriety is commanded of all that would name the name of Christ. The reason He gave for such watchfulness was simple: “You do not know what hour your Lord is coming.” Certainly His primary reference was the Rapture of the church – that day when Christ shall return and catch away into heaven all those that have put their faith in Him. Yet there is, no doubt, a secondary meaning.

Had Diana been living in the expectation of the return of Christ, had she lived every day as though this were the day our Lord would come for her, she would have been prepared for that terrible crash in a dark Paris tunnel. When her car crashed violently into the stone pillar, it was the end of the world – for her.

Most of us are not going to die in a car fleeing from paparazzi at ninety miles an hour. But few of us are going to die in the way and at the time that we have expected. Whether from a massive heart attack, a cancerous growth, a thug’s bullet, or a worn out body, the issues are the same. Those who have trusted in Christ as their sacrificial Lamb, who have believed that His death was for their offenses and His resurrection for their justification, and who have surrendered their lives unto Him – these are the ones who will be secure on that Day at the awesome tribunal of God. These are the ones whose deaths are counted precious in the sight of the Lord.

The joy that Diana had so yearned for and rarely found is but a part of the fullness there is to be found in Jesus. How sad that there was no one who could tell her the good news that all those things she so longed for: the sense of security, the need of being deeply and thoroughly loved, the desire for meaning and purpose could all have been found in a prince after all. Not the Prince of Wales, of course, nor even Prince Charming of fairy tale fame. The Prince that gives these things is that Prince of Peace whose death on the cross has been imparting forgiveness and transforming lives for 2,000 years – from the ghettos to the palaces.

Jesus is the only celebrity who is worthy to be worshiped and adored. He is worthy.