Solemnity of Christ the King

Pilate said to Jesus, “Are you the King of the Jews?” – John 18:33

       “I worship You, O Lord, before Your throne. I will lift up my hands in glorious praise, Your Majesty.” This is a line from one of our community’s “top hits” many years ago. It still is a top hit in my book.

       The hymn automatically transports me to holy ground, where I am on my knees in front of our resplendent Lord. He is my King whom I can keep my gaze on. He is my King to whom I can bow low and obey His every law and command. He is my King whom I will never get tired of serving. Or so I thought… because it isn’t that way all the time.

       I get distracted by worldly desires, materialism and sin. I sometimes intentionally forget the great laws of loving Him and my brethren. I become envious of other people’s capabilities and successes. I invent excuses not to serve Him. I put the blame on others for things that I have not accomplished.

       Many times I forget my King. But, thank goodness, He doesn’t send me to the lions’ den or have me beheaded! Instead, He lovingly embraces me to go back to His fold. Sol Saura (sol_saura@yahoo.com)

Reflection: Do you acknowledge God as King of your life? Or do you sometimes dethrone Him?

Behold the glorious King! Behold the mighty God! Behold resplendent Lord! I see You shine with brilliant light, brighter than a million stars. I worship You.

St. Cecilia, virgin and martyr, pray for us.

We read another apocalyptic writing that embellishes and glorifies a religious figure. It is not necessarily an end-time image. The subtitle to this reading tells me that the primary message is that the sovereignty of the person spoken of in the text is eternal. We can assume that we are talking about God. Importantly, we are reminded that not only is God’s sovereignty assured but also that of His Kingdom to which we belong and for which we strive to serve.

13 As the visions during the night continued, I saw one like a son of man coming, on the clouds of heaven; when he reached the Ancient One and was presented before him, 14 the one like a Son of man received dominion, glory, and kingship; all peoples, nations and languages serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not be taken away, his kingship shall not be destroyed.

R: The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.

1 The Lord is king, in splendor robed; robed is the Lord and girt about with strength. (R) And he has made the world firm, not to be moved. 2 Your throne stands firm from of old; from everlasting you are, O Lord. (R) 5 Your decrees are worthy of trust indeed; holiness befits your house, O Lord, for length of days. (R)

The Church places this reading from the Book of Revelation with the First Reading from Daniel such that they are mutually interpretative. Are they speaking of the same reality? Probably not but their message is similar enough to enable us to combine their message. This text reminds us that we are called to unite ourselves with the One who has unending sovereignty.

5 Jesus Christ is the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead and ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, 6 who has made us into a kingdom, priests for his God and Father, to him be glory and power forever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, he is coming amid the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him. All the peoples of the earth will lament him. Yes. Amen. 8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “the one who is and who was and who is to come, the almighty.”

Jesus does not claim an earthly kingdom for Himself. His authority is for the eternal Kingdom. This explains His lack of concern for earthly realities. What matters is that we get the eternal realities of faith in the right perspective and then the rest will follow in its own time. Jesus does have earthly authority, but this is not the focus of the Gospel as it is concerned with eternal life, not this passing life on earth.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that is to come!

33 Pilate said to Jesus, “Are you the King of the Jews?” 34 Jesus answered, “Do you say this on your own or have others told you about me?” 35 Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?” 36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here.” 37 So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”

think: Jesus does not claim an earthly kingdom for Himself. His authority is for the eternal Kingdom.

READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Jeremiah 50-52

Things to be grateful for from the past week

Things to ask God for in the coming week

Most important word God told me this week

THE KING OF OUR HEARTS

The solemnity of Christ as King of the Universe always marks the end of the Church’s liturgical calendar. By next Sunday, we begin the season of Advent, the time of expectation for the birth of the Messiah. Today’s feast highlights the Church’s collective longing: to put all things under Christ’ feet, to acclaim Him as the Alpha (beginning) and the Omega (end) of our lives.

       But Jesus IS King. We do not and cannot make Him King. Even if we do not acknowledge His Kingship, He remains to be King. Our Lord is not an egomaniac who needs to be reminded often of His greatness. This solemnity is not a massage to the Divine Ego. Ultimately, this feast is not for Jesus, it is for us. That’s why this feast is important.

       The modern man might see only absurdity in this feast. “Who needs kings anyway?” he might even ask. Indeed, monarchs and royalties can seem like vestiges of an archaic medieval fairytale and their “importance” can only be justified by a sentimental longing to hold on to a relic of the past.

       But look around. We enshrine royalties left and right. There is the King of Pop, the Pound-for-Pound King, the Divine Diva, the Princess of Pop, and so on and so forth. As you read these acclamations, I’m sure you can easily supply the faces to the titles. Admit it, we do have kings and queens enthroned in our hearts. We are so quick to bestow honorific acclaims.

       There is a reason for this. Contingency necessarily bows to necessity. Finiteness longs for infinity. Incompleteness yearns for fulfillment and perfection.

       There are people and things that we treasure above all else. The crucial question is: Are they really worth bowing to? Can they really bestow the necessity, infinity and fulfillment that the human heart and soul is pining for? Do they really have a Kingdom where they can bring us to? Today’s feast is an honest call for discernment. Fr. Joel Jason

REFLECTION QUESTION: What or who holds first place in your heart?

May everything I do, think or say redound to Your greater glory. Amen.