O.T. 34 Christ the King (Nov 22) – Dn 7:13-14; Rv 1:5-8; Jn 18:33b-37(L/15)
Introduction: This Sunday, at the end of Church’s liturgical year, the readings describe the enthronement of the victorious Christ as King in Heaven in all his glory. Instituting this Feast of Christ the King, Pope Pius XI proclaimed: “Pax Christi in regno Christi” (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 God, Savior and King and allow him to rule our lives.
Scripture lessons: The first reading, taken from the book of Daniel, tells of the mysterious Son of Man (with whom Jesus would later identify himself), coming on the clouds, glorified by God and given dominion that will last forever. Today’s Responsorial Psalm (Ps 93), proclaims, “The Lord is King,” celebrating the God of Israel as King over all creation. In the second reading, taken from the Book of Revelation, the risen Christ comes amid the clouds as the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last of all things. In today’s Gospel, Jesus asserts before Pilate that he is a king and clarifies that that his kingdom “does not belong to this world.” He rules as King by serving others rather than by dominating them; his authority is rooted in truth, not in physical force, and his Kingdom, the reign of God, is based on the beatitudes. Jesus has come to bear witness to the truth: about God and His love for us, about himself as the Son of God and about us as the children of God. There are plenty of texts proving the kingship of Jesus both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament of the Bible.
Life Nike Free 3.0 Messages: 1) We need to accept Christ the King as our Lord, King and Savior and surrender our lives to him. We surrender our lives to Jesus every day when we give priority to his teaching in our daily choices, especially in moral decisions. We should not exclude Christ our King from any area of our personal or family lives. In other words, Christ must be in full charge of our lives, and we must give him sovereign power over our bodies, our thoughts, our heart and our will.
2) We need to accept Jesus Christ as our serving King. Jesus claimed that he came not to be served but to serve and showed us the spirit of service by washing of the feet of his disciples. We become his followers when we recognize his presence in everyone, especially the poor, the sick, the outcast and the marginalized in the society and render humble and loving service to Jesus in each of them. 3) We need to accept Jesus Christ as the King of love. Jesus came to proclaim to all of us the Good News of God’s love and salvation, gave us his new commandment of love: “Love one another as I have loved you,” and Nike Air Max 2017 Women’s demonstrated that love by dying for us sinners. We accept Jesus as our King of love when we love others as Jesus loved, unconditionally, sacrificially and with agape love.
CHRIST THE KING (Nov 29) (Dn 7:13-14; Rv 1:5-8; Jn 18:33b-37)
Anecdotes: #1) Long live Christ the King! In the 1920s, a totalitarian regime gained control of Mexico and tried to suppress the Church. To resist the regime, many Christians took up the cry, “Viva Cristo Rey!” (“Long live Christ the King!”) They called themselves “Cristeros.” The most famous Cristero was a young Jesuit priest named Padre Miguel Pro. Using various disguises, Padre Pro ministered to the people of Mexico City. Finally the government arrested him and sentenced him to public execution on November 23, 1927. The president of Mexico (Plutarco Calles) thought that Padre Pro would beg for mercy, so he invited the press to the execution. Padre Pro did not plead for his life, but instead knelt holding a crucifix. When he finished his prayer, he kissed the crucifix and stood up. Holding the crucifix in his right hand, he extended his arms and shouted, “Viva Cristo Rey!” (“Long live Christ the King!”) At that moment the soldiers fired. The journalists took pictures; if you look up “Padre Pro” or “Saint Miguel Pro” on the Internet, you can see that picture. (Fr. Phil Bloom).
#2: “I die the king’s good servant, but God’s first.” St. Thomas More is the patron saint of politicians. He was a brilliant lawyer and diplomat in 16th century England. His patriotism and loyalty to the throne attracted the attention of King Henry VIII who made him Lord Chancellor of England. What Henry VIII did not know was that Thomas More’s first loyalty was to Christ, the King of kings. When Henry VIII decided to divorce his wife Catherine of Aragon, marry Anne Boleyn and make himself head of the Church of England, More thought this was not right. Rather than approve what he believed to be against the Divine will, he resigned from his prestigious and wealthy position as Lord Chancellor and lived a life of poverty. Since he would not give his support to the king, More was arrested, convicted of treason, imprisoned in the Tower of London in 1534 and beheaded in July of the following year. On his way to public execution, More encouraged the people to remain steadfast in the faith. His last recorded words were: “I die the king’s good servant, but God’s first.” For More, it was not simply enough to confess Christ privately in the safety of his heart and home; he believed one must also confess Christ in one’s business and professional life as well as in the laws and policies that govern society. (Fr. Munacci).
# 3: On His Majesty’s Service: Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna, was brought before the Roman authorities and told to curse Christ and he would be released. He replied, “Eighty-six years have I served him, and he has done me no wrong: how then can I blaspheme my King, Jesus Christ, who saved me?” The Roman officer replied, “Unless you change your mind, I will have you burnt.” But Polycarp said, “You threaten a fire that burns for an hour, and after a while is quenched; for you are ignorant of the judgment to come and of everlasting punishment reserved for the ungodly. Do what you wish.”
Introduction: The Church’s liturgical year concludes with this feast of Christ the King, instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925 to celebrate the Jubilee Year and the 16th centenary of the Council of Nicaea. Instituting this feast, Pope Pius XI proclaimed: “Pax Christi in regno Christi” (“The peace of Christ in the reign of Christ”). This feast was established and proclaimed by the Pope to reassert the sovereignty of Christ and the Church over all forms of government and to remind Christians of the fidelity and loyalty they owed to Christ, who by his Incarnation and sacrificial death on the cross had made them both Nike Shox Nz Id adopted children of God and future citizens and heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven. Christ is our spiritual King and Ruler who rules by truth and love. We declare our loyalty to him by the quality of our Christian commitment, expressed in our serving of others with sacrificial and forgiving love, and by our solidarity with the poor. Although emperors and kings with real ruling power exist today only in history books, we nevertheless honor Christ as the King of the Universe and the King of our hearts by allowing him to take control of our lives. In thousands of human hearts all over the world, Jesus still reigns as King. The Cross is his throne and the Sermon on the Mount, his rule of law. His citizens need obey only one major law: “Love God with all your being, and love others as I have loved you.” His love is selfless, compassionate, forgiving, and unconditional. He is a King with a saving and liberating mission: freeing us from all types of bondage, enabling us to live peacefully and happily on earth, and promising us an inheritance in the eternal life of heaven.
This Sunday, at the end of Church’s liturgical year, the readings describe the enthronement of the victorious Christ as King in heaven in all his glory. The first reading, taken from the book of Daniel, tells of the mysterious Son of Man (with whom Jesus would later identify himself), coming on the clouds, glorified by God and given dominion that will last forever. Today’s Responsorial Psalm (Ps 93), proclaims, “The Lord is King,” celebrating the God of Israel as the King over all creation. In the second reading, taken from the Book of Revelation, the risen Christ comes amid the clouds as the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last of all things. In today’s Gospel, Jesus asserts before Pilate that he is a king and clarifies that that his kingdom “does not belong to this world.” He rules as King by serving others rather than by dominating them; his authority is rooted in truth, not in physical force, and his Kingdom, the reign of God, is based on the beatitudes.
First reading: Daniel 7:13-14: The apocalyptic Book of Daniel came to prominence during a bitter persecution of the Jews in the second century BC, where it bolstered the faith of the beleaguered chosen people of God. The book rises from the sixth century BC, during the Captivity of the Jews in Babylon (the Exile).Today’s selection from Daniel expresses well the Jewish understanding of the Kingship of God and that of the Promised Messiah. It describes the mysterious “Son of Man” (with whom Jesus would later identify himself), as coming on the clouds, glorified by God and given the dominion that will last forever. In his Nike Air Max 90 Ultra Breathe Pink vision, Daniel saw God seated on a Throne, with millions of people serving Him. Into His presence there came a human figure, “one like a Son of Man,” to whom were given (v.14) “dominion and glory and kingship, that all should serve him… his kingship is one which shall never be destroyed.” He would be the King of kings and the Lord of glory and His Kingdom would last forever. The New Testament proves that Jesus is this long-awaited King of the Jews.
Second reading: Revelation 1:5-8: The New Testament Book of Revelation has the same apocalyptic character as the Book of Daniel, although that element is not very evident in today’s short selection. Its readers were being persecuted, and the author wanted to bolster their faith. To the description of Jesus given here, we can apply what was said above about the Son of Man and his commission from the Ancient One. Today’s reading from the Book of Revelation also explains how the risen Christ will come amid the clouds as the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last of all things. In its apocalyptic style, the Book of Revelation describes how Jesus has become our King by freeing us from our sins by his blood (and so from the ruler of darkness), and by blessing all of us to be priests for his God and Father — all because he loves us. Today’s reading concludes by stating that Christ the King is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, that is, the A and the Z, the beginning and the end of our lives and of all life. Alpha and Omega are the first and the last letters of the alphabet in Greek, the original language of this book. Giving Jesus the Alpha title reminds us of the : That Jesus is the Word of God, pre-existing with the Father before all creation. To call Jesus the Omega is to say that he will be in charge at the end of the world. The four passages refer to the supreme Kingship of Christ who founded a Kingdom for us, where He has made us priests dedicated to the service of God his Father. He will come a second time to judge all men.
Exegesis: The Biblical basis of the feast: A) Old Testament texts: The title “Christ the King” has its roots both in Scripture and in the whole theology of theKingdom of God. In most of the Messianic prophecies given in the Old Testament books of Samuel, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel, Christ the Messiah is represented as a King. B) New Testament texts: a) In the Annunciation, recorded in Lk 13:2-33, we read: “The Lord God will make him a King, as his ancestor David was, and He will be the King of the descendants of Jacob forever and His Kingdom will never end.” In fact, the Kingdom of God is the center of Jesus’ teaching and the phrase “Kingdom of God”occurs in the Gospels 122 times, of which 90 instances are uses by Jesus. b) The Magi from the Far East came to Jerusalem and asked the question: (Mt. 2:2) “Where is the baby born to be the King of the Jews? We saw his star… and we have come to worship him.” c) During the royal reception given to Jesus on Palm Sunday, the Jews shouted: (Lk.19: 38) “God bless the King, who comes in the name of the Lord.” d) During the trial of Jesus described in today’s Gospel, Pilate asked the question: (Jn.18: 33): “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus replied: “You say that I am a king. I was born and came into this world for this one purpose, to bear witness to the Truth.” e) The signboard hung over Jesus’ head on the cross read: “Jesus the Nazarene, king of the Jews.” f) Before his Ascension into Heaven, Jesus declared: (Mt. 28:18): “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.” g) Finally, in Matthew 25:31, we read that Christ the King will come in glory to judge us on the day of the Last Judgment.
Jesus’ clarification of his kingship before Pilate during his trial: The Jews accused Jesus of blasphemy for claiming to be God, and they wanted him to die by the most shameful and painful type of Roman execution. Hence, they brought Jesus before Pilate the Roman governor and accused Jesus of causing sedition against the Roman Empire and Caesar. “We found this man inciting our people to revolt, opposing payment of the tribute to Caesar, and claiming to be Christ, a king” (Lk. 23:2). Today’s Gospel presents the first part of the trial conducted by Pilate who questions Jesus about his kingship. In his dialogue with Pilate, Jesus implies that Pilate does not understand the spiritual or transcendent nature of Jesus’ kingship (“My Kingdom does not belong to this world”). Jesus admits that he is a king but declares that his Kingdom is not of this world. Neither his present nor his future reign operates according to the world’s criteria of power and dominance. Jesus’ Kingdom, the reign of God, is based on the beatitudes, and he rules through service rather than through domination. His authority is rooted in truth, not in physical force. Jesus also claims that he has come to bear witness to the truth about a larger and eternal Kingdom. Jesus has come to bear witness to the truth: about God and His love, about us and about whom we are called to be.
èLife Messages: 1) We need to assess our commitment to Christ the King today. As we celebrate the Kingship of Christ today, let us remember the truth thathe is not our King if we do not Golden Goose Francy Mujer listen to him, love him, serve him, and follow him. We belong to his Kingdom only when we try to walk with him, when we try to live our lives fully in the spirit of the Gospel and when that Gospel spirit penetrates every facet of our living. If Christ is really King of my life, he must be King of every part of my life, and I must let him reign in all parts of my life. We become Christ the King’s subjects when we sincerely respond to his loving invitation:“Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart“ (Matthew 11:29). By cultivating in our lives the gentle and humble mind of Christ, we show others that Jesus Christ is in indeed our King and that he is in charge of our lives.
2) We need to give Jesus control over our lives. Today’s Feast of Christ the King reminds us of the great truth that Christ must be in charge of our lives, that we must give him sovereign power over our bodies, our thoughts, our heart and our will. In every moral decision we face, there’s a choice between Christ the King and Barabbas, and the one who seeks to live in Christ’s Kingdom is the one who says, “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.” Let us ask ourselves the question, “What does Jesus, my King, want me to do or say in this situation?” Are we praying each day that he will give us the right words to say to the people we meet that day, words that will make us true ambassadors of Jesus? Does our home life as well as the way we conduct ourselves with our friends come under the Kingship of Jesus? Or do we try to please ourselves rather than him?
3) We need to follow Christ the King’s lesson of humble service to the truth. Christ has come to serve and to be of service to others. Hence, we are called to his service – service to the truth. In today’s Gospel, we hear Jesus saying that the reason for his coming – the reason that he was born – was to “bear witness” to the truth. The truth to which Jesus bears witness by His Life and which he teaches us is that God his Father is also our loving and forgiving Father, so we are all His children, forming one body. Hence, whatever we do for His children, and our sisters and brothers, we do for Him. So we are called to be a people who reach out to embrace the enemy and the stranger, a people who are called to glory in diversity, a people who will endlessly forgive, a people who will reach out in compassion to the poor and to the marginalized sectors of our society, a people who will support one another in prayer, a people who will realize that we are called not to be served, but to serve. In other words, servant-leadership is the model that Christ the King has given us.
4) We need to obey the law of love of Christ the King. Citizens of Christ’s kingdom are expected to observe only one major law–the law of love. “Love God with your whole heart and love your neighbor as yourself.” “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” Jesus expects a higher degree of love from His followers: “Love one another as I have loved you.” On this great Feast of Christ the King, let us resolve to give him the central place in our lives and promise to obey his commandment of love by sharing what we have with all his needy children.
JOKE OF THE WEEK
#1: Christ is in charge: Susan C. Kimber, in a book called Christian Woman, shares a funny piece of advice she received from her little son: “Tired of struggling with my strong-willed little son, Thomas, I looked him in the eye and asked a question I felt sure would bring him in line: ‘Thomas, who is in charge here?’ Not missing a beat, he replied, ‘Jesus is, and not you mom.’ “
#2: Co-pilot Christ the king: Many people love bumper sticker theology. Bumper stickers may not always have the soundest theological statements, but they generally at least have the ability to make you think. One such, “God is my Co-pilot,” has also been found on Church signs, where the theology is just as much fun and sometimes sounder. In this case, the Church sign says, “If Christ the King is your Co-Pilot, change seats.”