PERPETUAL KING OF THE UNIVERSE SAVES US

Solemnity Of Christ The King (A)

Ez 34:11-12,15-17 1st Cor 15:20-26,28  Mt 25:31-46

PERPETUAL KING OF THE UNIVERSE SAVES US

The Solemnity of Christ the King was instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925 and is observed on the last Sunday of the liturgical year as it helps us to meditate on Christ the King and on his second coming, at the end of the world. Jesus Christ is  the King of Kings. His Kingdom does not follow the model of kingdoms of the earth. He is a conquering Messiah and his army is spiritual, not physical. He battles to restore life, not to destroy life. He came down from heaven to bring us to heaven. 

The great Anglican scholar C. S. Lewis wrote humorous essay about what would be our experience if we were admitted into heaven. He wrote that there would be a triple surprise, rather a triple shock. First, Lewis wrote, we would be surprised at the people in heaven, i.e., we would be shocked that there would be people who we never expect them to be there. The second surprise would be the shock at realizing that there would not be people we expected to be in heaven. The third surprise would be that we would be there with all our sins!! 

What surprises us in his serous essay mostly is that the people whom we do not expect would participate in God’s kingdom!! Because they are of good will and the Spirit of Christ. They reach out to others in charity, and in doing so, reach out to the very presence of Christ in others. There will be many in heaven whom we would not expect to be there.

The souls of those who did not expect to be in heaven asked Jesus in today's gospel, “But when have we seen you hungry or naked, or ill or imprisoned, Lord?” the Lord responds, “I was present in those who reached out to you for help,” Their exposure to Christ's presence in others afforded them the capacity for receiving his presence in themselves. 

There were two men who found this parable blessedly true. The one was Francis of Asissi - he was wealthy and high-born and high-spirited. But he was not happy. He felt that life was incomplete. One day as he was riding, met a leper, in the ugliness of his disease. Francis dismounted and flung his arms around the wretched sufferer, and in his arms the face of the leper changed to the face of Christ. 

The other was Martin of Tours. He was a Roman soldier and a Christian. On a cold winter day, as he was entering a city, a beggar stopped him and asked for alms. Martin had no money. But the beggar was blue and shivering with cold, and Martin gave what he had. He took off his soldier's coat, worn and frayed as it was. He cut it in two and gave half of it to the beggar. That night he had a dream.  He saw in it the heavenly places and all the angels and Jesus in the midst of them. And Jesus was wearing half of a Roman soldier’s cloak. One of the angels said to him, “Master, why are you wearing that battered old cloak? Who gave it to you?” And Jesus answered softly, “My servant Martin gave it to me.”

Now, at the conclusion to the year we beg Jesu to help us recognize him in our world and to acknowledge his presence by reaching out to him in others. We seek the mercy of his continual grace drawing us out of ourselves and into his presence in the needy of his kingdom. Christ is our King. May we be true members of his Kingdom.

A little girl and her father were crossing a bridge. The father was kind of scared so he asked his little daughter, “Sweetheart, please hold my hand so that you don’t fall into the river.” The little girl said, “No, Dad. You hold my hand.” “What’s the difference?” asked the puzzled father.  “There’s a big difference,” replied the little girl. “If I hold your hand and something happens to me, chances are that I may let your hand go. But if you hold my hand, I know for sure that no matter what happens, you will never let my hand go.” Let us ask our king and savior to hold us well to face many hurdles in this new Liturgical year. Let us acknowledge the Kingship of Christ with the voice of Blessed Miguel Augustin Pro of Mexico who voiced strongly at his Martyrdom “Viva Cristo Rey”.