This is the last Sunday in the Liturgical Year and we
celebrate the Feast of Christ the King. The proclamation of Jesus Kingship is
dominated in the preaching and teaching of Jesus. “To the other towns also I must
proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom of God because for this purpose I have
been sent.” (Luke 4:44) He taught his disciples to pray, “Thy Kingdom come.” (Matt. 6: 10) He told them to “Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness.” (Matt. 6: 33) “Jesus said to his apostles: ‘as
you go make this proclamation: The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matt. 10:7)
The story of the crucifixion, proclaimed on
the Feast of Christ the King, reminds us that the Reign of Jesus isn’t a reign
of glory and power, but of service, love, and complete self-giving in order to
rescue human beings from evil, sin, and death. Instituting
this Feast of Christ the King, Pope Pius XI declared: the peace of Christ in
the reign of Christ. This means that we live in the peace of Christ when we
surrender our lives to him every day, accept him as our Savior and King and
allow him to rule our lives.
Caring King. Jesus
does care for His people. Ezekiel 34 speaks of the Lord in terms of a shepherd
who cares for his flock. It summarize His care, I myself will look after my sheep … I will rescue
them from every place where they were scattered … I myself will give them rest
… The lost I will seek out … The injured I will bind up. The sick I will heal.
So Jesus is a
caring King. He’s been good to us. He has
led us, rescued us, purified us, instructed us, and graced us.
Conquering King. Jesus has destroyed the power of many sins. He cleanses
the temple of our soul. He has conquered so much of our pride. And one by one,
He is diminishing lust, greed, anger, envy, and replacing them with greater
love, compassion, and kindness.
Concealed King. He is the newest King of all.
He is a King who is hungry, thirsty, sick, and lonely, a foreigner, in prison,
and a stranger. He is in the needy. He is in the discouraged ones who cannot
find a job; He is in our children who need to be taught and encouraged; he
is in the co-worker who just lost some body; he is in the friend who was
diagnosed with cancer. He is in the lost youth or family member who needs
instruction and needs to be drawn back to the Sacraments. He’s in us, in our
struggles and needs.
Yes, Jesus
is our King, a caring and intimate King, a
conquering King who never forces, a King who is hungry and thirsty, a King who
washes our feet, a King who comes to serve rather than to be served.
He is a King, one who rules with love. We meet Him every day: in the
Eucharist, in the poor, in His Word, in the events of our day and in our very
self. He is just
one prayer away.” So let the devotion to Christ
the King brings peace and reconciliation in our society, with love and justice
and peace.
So this feast is an invitation to all those
who have power or authority of any kind to compare their use of power or
authority with Jesus. They have to use their power to serve others and building
up of a more just society. Never use the
power in any way that might cause pain to others and it should help to
alleviate pain. Jesus as the King of
love has anew commandment of “Love one
another as I have loved you,” and we love others as Jesus loved,
unconditionally and sacrificially. During this Holy Mass let us pray that nations
and individuals will be humble enough to look at how Jesus used His power and
bring about the kingdom of God. Let us always remain loyal to Christ the King who is the Head of the
Body, the Church.
~Fr. George Munjanattu
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