And so, the liturgical year ends with the celebration of Christ the King.
The Catholic Echo tells of the origin of the Feast of Christ the King as follows.
Since the first century A.D., Christians have acknowledged that Jesus is a king. However, it was only 99 years ago that the feast day of Christ the King was created and inserted into the annual church liturgy.
The origin of that feast day can be traced back to one person—Achille Ratti, who was born in 1857 near Milan and was ordained a priest at age 22. Father Ratti went on to serve as the director of the Ambrosian Library of Milan and the Vatican Library in Rome for 30 years and became very knowledgeable about various world leaders and their political ambitions. At almost 60 years old, Father Ratti was then sent to Poland to attempt to bring about unity between the Catholic Church and Russia. He became a Cardinal and served as the Archbishop of Milan.
In January 1922, following the death of Pope Benedict XV, 64-year-old Cardinal Achille Ratti was chosen to become the Pope, assuming the name Pius XI. His chosen motto was: “The peace of Christ in the reign of Christ.”
In an effort to promote peace in the aftermath of World War I, Pope Pius XI determined there would be a new Mass added to the Sunday liturgy; the Mass of Christ the King. The Mass was first celebrated on October 31, 1925.
That particular year was significant because of political uprisings on three major fronts. The first was led by Benito Mussolini, the fascist dictator in Rome. The second was Adolf Hitler’s rise to power. His third concern was Joseph Stalin, who was about to assume the role of Premier of the USSR.
And today not much is different, so it is probably good to ponder on what kingship, and especially the kingship of Jesus, mean to us today and how relevant it is for us.
Particularly when Jesus says, “My Kingdom is not from this world.”
The kingdoms of our world could hardly be more opposite than the Kingdom Jesus has in mind, even when David says in today’s Old Testament reading:
“One who rules over people justly,
ruling in the fear of God,
is like the light of morning,
like the sun rising on a cloudless morning,
gleaming from the rain on the grassy land.”
So, what kind of kingdom does Jesus propose?
Jesus undermined the whole concept of kingship. This world’s kingdoms are all about power and prestige; Jesus was about service and humility. The rulers of this world are about coercion and violence, privilege, domination, vengeance, vindictiveness and corruption; Jesus’ life is characterized by peace and reconciliation, love, service and justice.
Jesus seemingly didn’t think too much of the kingdoms of the world as it was known back then, and he would certainly feel the same way today. I think history also tells us how all earthly kingdoms eventually fell, because the rulers have run out of ideas, or moves.
There was a painting in the Louvre called “Checkmate” in which the devil is playing a forlorn-looking man in a game of chess. The devil seems to have the man in checkmate. So, one day a chess master is studying the painting and then calls out, “It’s a lie! The king has one more move!”
I think that sort of sums up the Kingdom of God. God always has one more move to surprise us and to manifest his Kingdom on earth.
And while God’s Kingdom will come regardless, because it’s God’s after all, Revelation reminds us today that Jesus “made us to be kings.” And since we have been made to be kings (and queens) of God’s Kingdom, it is our calling as Christians to work for that Kingdom and not for the kingdoms of this world. It is our calling to strive for something different and better. And in living out our calling, we pray several times a day to bring about “Thy Kingdom come.” Well, at least the monks do.
I once read something to the effect that Jesus’ Kingdom is a state of being, a way to live and love, and a commitment to a particular way to view the world.
And in John, Jesus wants us to see that his Kingdom is not about his ultimate rule over and above others. Jesus’ Kingdom is about relationship. “My Kingdom is not from this world” because it is from God. That’s a whole different perspective on Kingdom. When Kingdom is seen as the truth of relationship and not rule, from the truth of being and not just saying, from the truth of love and not law, then Jesus as Truth will be true.
This is the truth that the kingdoms of this world cannot see: God’s truth; Jesus as Truth.
But it is the truth that we can see and that we are called to live out and make visible as God’s Kingdom in this world.
The Kingdom of God is very real; it exists here and now. It is the Kingdom that exists in the heart of men and women who give themselves over to the King of Kings, and it exists in the heart of men and women who give themselves over to love, peace, and justice.
Someone once said that justice is like a river and it flows from God’s Kingdom of love, peace, and justice, into this world, through us, who try to live the truth.