Today we are at the end of the liturgical year. Our readings through the year, especially the Gospel readings, teach us how to live our lives as followers of Christ. I’ll recap just the past few weeks. In the Gospel, five weeks ago, we heard Jesus tell his disciples: “Whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all.” The weekend after that, we heard Jesus tell the blind man, that he had just restored sight to: “Go your way. Your faith has saved you.” On “All Saints Day,” we heard the beatitudes, what are often called the “directions,” or “a road map” to heaven. The next weekend, we heard Jesus praising a poor widow for depositing just a few cents into the treasury; not just contributing from surplus wealth as others were doing, but giving all that she had. Last week’s Gospel, as we near the end of the liturgical year, the readings began to prepare us for the “End Times,” whether that be the end of the world, or the end of each of our own lives.
And now on this last weekend of the year, we celebrate the solemnity of “Christ the King;” a day to remember that Christ is King and Lord of our lives.
This solemnity was added to the Church calendar in 1925 by Pope Pius XI. He added it as a response to prevailing attitudes of the time; a way to refute the threats of communism and secularism. Communism isn’t too much of a threat anymore, but secularism is a constant, and ever-growing problem; struggling with those who want to take away any kind of public display or mention of religion, everything from displaying the Ten Commandments, taking away prayer in school, and especially this time of year as we start thinking about Christmas; the battles over displaying nativity scenes, Christmas trees, religious symbols, to our simple greeting of “Merry Christmas.” Today’s solemnity stands in defiance of all that. It challenges us to ask ourselves: “Who” or “What” really rules our lives? Is Christ truly our King; or do we let the lures of this world rule us; status, power, wealth, just like Pilate in today’s Gospel?
Christ is our King. All through the bible, Old Testament as well as new, Holy Scripture attests to that fact; that the Lord reigns over all; but we’re given a choice; we have to accept him as our King. We must allow Jesus to reign over our minds, our hearts, our wills, our entire souls.
In today’s Gospel, we hear the conversation between Pilate and Jesus after his arrest. Pilate asks Jesus if he is the King of the Jews. Pilates’ idea of being a King is very different than the reality of Jesus’ Kingship. Pilate had in mind political and military power; and as a representative of the Roman Empire, he had access to that kind of power; to the mightiest military force of the time. By contrast, Jesus stands before him as a helpless and shackled prisoner. Pilate doesn’t see him as a King to worry about. Jesus answers Pilates’ question: “You say I am a King. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world; to testify to the truth listen to my voice.” Jesus’ Kingship is based on the “truth.” When Jesus says he came into the world to testify to the truth, he is claiming a power far beyond Pilates’ reach. The truth to which Jesus is testifying is the ultimate truth about God’s intention for the world, and for mankind. Jesus received this truth from his heavenly Father, and Jesus reveals the truth through his words and actions, never more so than in his passion and death. That truth is now revealed to us through Holy Scripture. Jesus is telling us that the only truly effective and lasting power in the world is that of unselfish love. The love of Jesus conquers and leads the hearts of millions, while the power and wealth of Pilate and the Roman Empire crumbled to dust. He was a bound prisoner because of his love for others. But those bonds could not shackle the “truth;” as he soon handed over his life for all of mankind.
Our celebration of Jesus Christ as King, today, means that we place Jesus first in our lives, and accept him as King of our lives. It reminds us that we are called to return God’s love by loving our neighbor as ourselves. This is how we acknowledge and testify to “the truth.”