Solemnity of Christ the King – Year B

Collect

Almighty ever-living God, whose will is to restore all things in your beloved Son, the King of the universe, grant, we pray, that the whole creation, set free from slavery, may render your majesty service and ceaselessly proclaim your praise. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Lectio Divina

Today marks the end of the liturgical year with the solemnity of Christ the King, and this is no coincidence. If the greatest desire of the Jewish people in the time of the Old Testament was to have a King who would be the saviour and hope of the entire nation, the desire of all people is that their lives are marked by hope and joy, even amid the darkness that surrounds us and is within us. This King finally arrives, not elegantly wearing a golden crown as he is represented in many paintings and other artistic works that we find in our churches but mocked and wearing a crown of thorns. This image of Jesus as King is given to us by St John the Evangelist in the middle of an interesting and ironic dialogue between Jesus and Pilate, which takes place midway through the 7 times Pilate entered and exited the praetorium of the Roman Governor. This and many other literary details serve only to emphasise the importance of this image of Jesus, which must be at the centre of the life of every Christian.

The dialogue between Jesus and Pilate in today’s Gospel reveals the reason why. In the last verse Jesus declares that he came to testify to the truth:

“Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” Do you desire to discover and grow closer to the truth in your life? Closer to him who can save you from addictions and the bonds of sin as well as filling you with hope in your sufferings, consoles you in adversity and fills you with courage in the face of injustice? We are surrounded by many voices that promise all this to us, and many people have trusted them, maybe even people we know. They ended up disappointed, deceived and cheated.

There are also many people that genuinely tried to follow what they believed the Lord was calling them to, with the result being totally different from what they expected. They discovered that the King the people needed is one who understands their sorrows, fears and the anxieties deeply rooted in their hearts. Jesus himself experienced these feelings and can also solve them by guiding every person and standing beside them while sharing their human experience. He also walks before them showing them the way. Jesus does this through his Word in the Gospels, in the Liturgy of the Word during Mass, from the Cross where he gave his life freely in complete love as well as from the empty tomb he left behind. He also reigns by stirring up the hearts of many people around the world we live in to love, give their lives in love and live in the hope that through their actions done in faith, God is capable of saving the world … you and I will also have a share in this salvation!

Prayer

Lord Jesus, we want you to be our King. Come and live in our fragile, tired and occasionally confused hearts, and fill them with your Holy Spirit, in order that, in all that we do we may do your will which frees us from slavery and teaches us to love without asking for anything in return. Shape us into fitting instruments for the building of your Kingdom, a Kingdom build on love, hope, compassion and meekness. Amen.