Our Lord Jesus Christ The King
20 November 2005
Praise be Jesus Christ! Now and forever!
Dear Friends in Christ,
At this solemn end of the liturgical year 2005, the Church throughout the world acclaims Jesus Christ as King. Describing the Lord Jesus as our true King is, of course, an analogy to a form of earthly authority with which we Americans are not well acquainted. More than from the tortured history of Europe, however, we should learn the pattern of Christ’s kingship from Sacred Scriptures, and in the Old Testament we find many types or prefigurings of Christ the King – chief among whom is David, the simple shepherd who became King of Israel. For this reason, the Scripture lessons appointed for this Solemnity of Christ the King are about the Good Shepherd who protects his flock, who seeks out the lost sheep, and who cures the sick sheep. But we also read that the Son of Man will exclude from his everlasting kingdom those who neglect the "least of his brethren" and thereby neglect him.
St. Matthew records in Chapter 25, verses 31-46 that the Lord Jesus commands us to feed the hungry, and welcome the stranger, and visit the sick and imprisoned, and clothe the naked if we are to be numbered among his flock at the End of Days. These sober words of the Word made flesh should inspire us to find practical ways to shape our lives according to the Gospel and so put flesh on the bones of our profession of faith. "Not everyone who says to me, ’Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven" (Mt 7:21). And in this liberating truth we learn the connection between the priesthood of Christ and the kingship of Christ; to serve is to rule. The Preface of the Eucharistic Prayer for this Solemnity draws together all of these strands:
"Father, you anointed Jesus Christ, your only Son, with the oil of gladness, as the eternal priest and universal king. As priest he offered his life on the altar of the cross and redeemed the human race by this one perfect sacrifice of peace. As king he claims dominion over all creation, that he may present to you, his almighty Father, an eternal and universal kingdom: a kingdom of truth and life, a kingdom of holiness and grace, a kingdom of justice, love, and peace."
Father Newman
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, pray for us.