2 Sam. 5:1-3; Ps. 122:1-5; Col. 1:12-20; Lk.23:35-43
Christ the King is “the chosen one” the anointed as the King and his kingdom has no end. King David was anointed king of Israel for this is how one becomes king by being anointed. The people anointed David as their king but Jesus is anointed by God himself, “the image of the invisible God”. To be “Christos” means to be “the anointed one”, Jesus is the anointed one as king of the universe. This signifies a kingdom not of this world but of all creation “in heaven and on earth”. Blessed are the souls who seek the kingdom prepared from the beginning of time, let us enter and rejoice.
This marks the end of the liturgical year in the Catholic Church as a reminder of the end of time when the fullness of the kingdom of Jesus is to come. The Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ was instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925 with the end of the first World War and the rise of atheism and secularism among nations. It was a sign and a warning that the separation of “church and state” can only bring greater evil to society. A nation with no God is a nation divided among itself with no unity to bring peace. It gives rise to earthly kings who seek their own power and enslave its people.
That movement to isolate the church within its walls has only grown with the rise of a secular god, the god of self. To be one’s own god is to objectify not only every other person, but even one’s own body as the object of pleasure to serve oneself. Lost is the image of the person in the image of a God who we serve. We are created for a God given purpose and apart from that purpose we roam in the desert of life in search of something greater than ourselves. A soul separate from God is among the living dead, in existence without lasting purpose. All earthly treasures come to an end and then what? Look to the cross to see the answer.
If today we celebrate Christ the King, why is the gospel returning to the final hours of Jesus on the cross? As one of the criminals reviles Jesus calling him to save himself and save him, he is the image of society that has no place for God in its circle and structures. It treats the pain of suffering as a condemnation. The other criminal however speaks with a heart of repentance and with a fear of God pleading for mercy when Jesus enters into his kingdom. He is the repentant sinner who deserves death but receives absolution.
The crucifixion was reserved for the death of a slave. The inscription “This is the King of the Jews” is to mark Jesus as the king of the slave people. Jesus’ slavery and death mark the end of death and the beginning of his reign as the king of freedom. It is the freedom to be a slave to God, a slave to the love of God, a slave to the will of God and to a God given purpose. This is why so many turn away from God because it carries the mark of the cross, the slave who dies for another. Few stand ready to die for another so who will enter the kingdom of God? Jesus gives us our hope when he answers to the criminal “today you will be with me in Paradise”.
“Paradise” is not heaven. Paradise represents the hope of eternal salvation recalling that when Jesus died, he descended to the dead where those in Paradise were waiting for the Christ to come. This paradise is in part the final purgatory for nothing unclean can enter heaven. The criminal was forgiven for his sins upon his confession on the cross but his soul still carried the marks of his sins.
Paradise is the cleansing of or baptismal robes, the washing of the feet, the final penance for lack of love. Jesus does not ascend to heaven until fifty days later with the coming of the Holy Spirit. A quote from St. John Vianney says, “It is definite that only a few chosen ones do not go to Purgatory and the sufferings there that one must endure exceed our imagination.” In Purgatory mercy and justice meet to heal and to purify the soul. Christ the King, the chosen one has marked the baptized to be among his chosen ones but he waits for our response to his call. Let us not delay before our time comes to face our Lord.
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