What makes for the Kingship of Christ?
THE FEAST OF CHRIST THE KING
Br. Celestine, Sermon for the Solemnity
(Br. Celestine is following the distance learning Theology Course in the Maryvale Institute. He is in charge of the monastery laundry, assists in cooking, and accompanies some of the Hours of the Office as Organist).
Origins:
“…I saw, coming on the clouds of heaven, one like the son of man. …..On him was conferred rule and honour and kingship, and all people, nations and languages became his servants. His rule is an everlasting rule
Daniel’s great vision of Christ’s kingship, the Great Feast we celebrate this day, was long ago foretold by most of the prophets of old, confessed by the lord Himself when humiliated before Pontius Pilate, shown in the Epistles and communicated in the Book of Revelation. In the year 381, the Council of Constantinople promulgated as an article of Faith, the statement, “To his Kingdom there will be no end”. Finally at the end of the Jubilee year of 1925, the Feast was instituted by His holiness Pope Pius XI. This Period in the Church’s history was marked by “growing confrontations directed against the Magisterium which sought to threaten her very foundations”. The Pontiff affirmed in his encyclical letter, Quas Primas, Christ’s dominion is not only in man’s temporal matters but more so in his spiritual life. Theologically, the feast sheds light on the feast of Sacred heart, the feast of Ascension and the other feasts of our Lord pointing to the inter-connectedness of the mysteries of our Christian Faith. But it points chiefly, to the glorious return of Christ at the end of time. No wonder then that the Church, in 1970, shifted this Feast, which formerly preceded the feast of All Saints, to the Last Sunday of the Church’s Year – depicting its eschatological significance. Significance of the Feast But why attribute this title of kingship to Christ, many may ask? By his divine nature, Christ is Con-substantial with the Father. He has, as it were, dominion and power over all created things (Pius XI Quas Primas). , and so deserves this title, and more. But I am particularly moved by the other aspect of his kingship: Christ, as it were, saved the human race, not from the convenience of his dwelling in heaven, by wielding his glorious and mighty power, though he could have done this. He redeemed us by the humiliation, ignominy and most bitter death of crucifixion on the Cross. Not by the sceptre, but by the cross. He reigns, says Andrew Sails, not with clenched fists but with pierced hands – a king of love. Using the very words of the Preface to the feast, Jesus redeemed the human race by one perfect sacrifice of peace – to present the 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. Christ, says Pius XI, reigns in the hearts of men, he is King of hearts by the reason of his “charity which exceeds all knowledge” and by his mercy and kindness which draw all men to him, for never was it known nor will it ever be that any man be loved so much and so universally as Jesus Christ. The Jews including the disciples expected, in Christ, the other kind of king. But the Lord must make it clear: “my kingdom”, He said, “is not of this world”. And when the two sons of Zebedee demanded the best possible places at his sides in heaven, what did he answer? “Would you be able to drink of the cup that I drink?” The question has a special dimension for those called to the contemplative, religious life. St Benedict would expect in one so called, to drink of this chalice with heart enlarged and with unspeakable sweetness of love, doing battle for the eternal King, through the weapons of sacred vows and the service of prayer, and thus establishing with Christ, his true kingdom on earth.
Conclusion
A recent Vatican Monthly Magazine compared the lives of two heroines: Princess Diana and Blessed Mother Theresa. They all did remarkable things no doubt. But may I ask, what kind of legacy would you like to leave to posterity? Before he died, the Great Zik of Africa made a remarkable statement. He regretted that he toiled all his life, to be a hero. Given another opportunity, he would rather strive for sainthood. Let us pray in a special way today, for all the ecclesiastical and political leaders, that they may model their leadership after the example of Christ. True greatness, I think, does not consist merely in becoming “Miss World”, or a Hitler or a Napoleon or even a Pope. It is to be found in deep practical loving service to neighbour, for the sake of Christ. The kind that would merit from the Eternal King and Judge: “Come you blessed of my Father, enter into my kingdom….For when I was hungry you gave me to eat; thirsty you gave me to drink, naked and you clothe me; sick, homeless, stranger, and in prison, and you ministered to me”(Mtt 25:34-35).
