This weekend we end our year-long, Sunday-by-Sunday hearing of Luke’s Gospel. Most solemnities in our liturgical calendar are focused on biblical events. In contrast, “Christ the King” is focused on an idea. The celebration was founded as a reaction to global political upheaval in the 20th century, as a reminder that Christ calls us beyond all earthly rule to a higher allegiance that transcends national boundaries and makes war a sacrilege against Christ’s body. Today, as at its inception, war and terrorism torment many areas of the world; the Middle East, parts of Africa and Latin America. Let us not forget to pray for nations taken up by war, as well as for the victims of acts of terror and violence.
Luke , evangelist and artist, chooses the Cross as the setting for Jesus’ “royal portrait.” Enthroned, the dying Jesus welcomes by “executive pardon” his kingdom’s first citizen, fittingly, a fellow criminal. Remember that Luke’s Gospel throughout this liturgical year has celebrated outsiders welcomed in, the lost found, the strayed carried home, the estranged reconciled.
Today, we end the Year of Faith, called by Pope emeritus Benedict XVI in October of last year (2012), with the celebration of Christ as the Universal King. Luke has called us to examine our lives to determine whether we are living as true disciples and inviting others to become disciples or more committed ones. We’ve heard about the brevity of life, about the need for discipline and humility, and also for hospitality and enterprise. Almost all of our values have been called into question. Wealth and power can ruin our chances for entering the kingdom. So can indecisiveness. Also at the forefront of Luke’s Gospel are the need for prayer and the power of the Spirit. This is a Gospel that begins with shepherds receiving the good news directly from heaven. It ends with a thief being welcomed into paradise – a word that even for non-believers evokes peace and plenty, reconciliation and rejuvenation, consolation and contentment, creation in harmony with itself, its fellow creatures, its creator. Such will be our world if all of humanity makes Jesus the king of their lives; if all cultures and civilizations enthrone Jesus as their king. Let us make Christ our Universal King!
Fr. Gabriel Wankar
Priest in Residence