CHRIST THE KING YR A 2014
With the weather lately, you'd think we were in January instead of November. Well actually, in the life of the Church, we are just a few days from beginning a new year. Today's feast of Christ the King marks the last Sunday in our calendar of worship and prayer.
When we think of Jesus, the image of a king might not be the first thing that comes to mind. But most of the Old Testament prophecies saw the coming Messiah as a king whose reign would be without end. But many people expected a king far different than Jesus turned out to be. They hoped for an earthly ruler who would bring military victory and freedom from the Roman empire. That's why Herod saw Him as such a threat.
But the Gospel readings for this feast day present a far different kind of king. In our three year cycle of readings, we have:
-last year, a king offering Himself on a cross, being mocked in His suffering, yet forgiving the repentant thief and granting him new life;
-next year, a king on trial before Pilate, proclaiming that His kingdom is not of this world.
-And this year, a king who "will sit upon His glorious throne," yet sees Himself in the lowest and weakest of His people. And He tells us that when we help them, we embrace Him as well.
Mother Theresa reminds us of the deeper meaning of this parable. She said that these "least ones" are "hungry not only for bread, but for love; naked not only for lack of clothing, but lack of dignity and respect." And she says, "This is Christ in His distressing disguise."
In today's Gospel, Jesus describes Himself as a king who is also a shepherd...a clear link to the prophecy of Ezekiel in our first reading. Ezekiel hears God identify Himself as a shepherd who is compassionate toward His sheep: "I will rescue them from every place where they are scattered...the lost I will seek out, the strayed...(I will) bring back." And He's not just talking about physical separation or distance, but distance caused by sin and mistrust and woundedness.
This is a proactive God, one who is not content to sit back and wait. And we're made in His image and likeness. That means We are supposed to go out to the lost sheep as well, both near and far away. We're supposed to come to the aid of those in need, both physically and spiritually.
The Sacraments we celebrate help us to do just that. They help us to be compassionate toward those in need because they immerse us in Christ, who suffers with them. They immerse us in Christ, who says that whatever we do for the least of His people, we do for Him. It is by God's grace that we come to see the man dying from Ebola in Africa as our brother, the unwed mother living in a woman's shelter as our sister.
The first Christians saw Christ as a Shepherd-King, the fulfillment of that prophecy of Ezekiel. And how does Jesus describe Himself? As the "good shepherd" who lays down His life for His sheep. Jesus is a shepherd-king who not only leads us and feeds us, but also sees Himself as dwelling in those who are most in need our love and our help.
So today we proclaim a unique kind of king with a unique kind of kingdom.
A king whose throne is the cross; whose soldiers are called not to take up weapons, but to take up their cross with Him.
A kingdom whose law is the Beatitudes, whose only requirement for citizenship is love.
As I said earlier, we're now entering the last week of our Church year. Next Sunday is our 'New Years Day.' We'll enter the great season of Advent, a time of preparation and looking forward. When our calendar year comes to an end, we often take stock of where we are in our lives, and make resolutions for how we want to live in the new year.
Let's use the week ahead to make a plan for the coming year, especially for how we want to take advantage of the season of Advent:
-Am I allowing Christ to be my King? Do I allow him to lead me, or do I cling to my own plan?
-Am I using my gifts and talents to build up His kingdom, or just my own?
-Am I embracing Christ in His "distressing disguise": in the hungry, the naked, the stranger?