Let Us Rejoice, Jesus Christ is King!
Br. Anthony Maria Akerman, O.P., reflects on the Gospel for the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe (Jn 18:33b-37) in our weekly video series.
Today the Church calls us to remember and to celebrate Christ is King!
In 1925 this feast was put on the calendar by Pope Pius XI as a reminder to the Church that the kingship of Christ is not just a metaphor. He really is King, not just of my heart, but in His resurrection from the dead He has “received dominion, glory, and kingship; all peoples, nations, and languages serve him.”
Today’s Gospel is very often misinterpreted. Where Jesus says, “My kingdom is not of this world,” people take this to mean that the kingdom of God is not on this earth, but something we have to wait for in heaven. But the book of Revelation says, “He has made us into a kingdom!” And as Pope Pius XI so clearly put it in the institution of this feast: “The Catholic Church is the kingdom of Christ on earth, destined to be spread among all men and all nations.”
Jesus’ point in his conversation with Pilate is that his kingdom would not be established on this earth by his inflicting violence and death. Rather, Jesus by His passion, death, and resurrection, conquers all the powers of the world in the spiritual realm and then calls us to go and preach this good news that Jesus Christ is King and all nations are called to serve Him. As He said on Easter morning: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations.”
In America today, and around the world, we face situations of real political unrest. Tensions are high, and the breakdown of our political systems sometimes feels imminent. But the message that Christ is King should bring us courage.
When Pope Pius instituted this feast a century ago, he described a time not so different from our own. War, greed, shameless sin, instability and an uncertain future: “society,” he said, “shaken to its foundations and on the way to ruin.”
But, His message is that we have found ourselves here, at least in part, because Catholics have become too timid in proclaiming the kingship of Christ. Let us not be ashamed of the Gospel. Instead, let us be bold to say, with clarity and confidence, that there will be no peace among nations, there will be no peace within nations, no peace within families, no peace in our hearts, unless there is submission to the law of God and the reign of Jesus Christ.
Let us rejoice, Jesus Christ is King!
