Homilies | Father Nathan

‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father.
Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

For I was hungry and you gave me food,
I was thirsty and you gave me drink,
a stranger and you welcomed me,
naked and you clothed me,
ill and you cared for me,
in prison and you visited me.’

— Matthew 25:34

The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe

Today’s Readings:

First Reading — EZ 34:11-12, 15-17

Responsorial Psalm — PS 23:1-2, 2-3, 5-6

The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

Second Reading — 1 COR 15:20-26, 28

Gospel Reading — MT 25:31-46

Father Nathan | Homily

Feast of Christ the King

In the Liturgical Calendar of the Church, this Sunday is celebrated as the last Sunday of Ordinary Time, dedicated to Christ the King.

Next Sunday a new Liturgical Year begins with the First Sunday of Advent, leading up to Christmas and the celebrations surrounding the mystery of God becoming man that we might share in divine life for eternity. It was Pope Pius XI who brought the Feast of Christ the King into the liturgy in 1925 to bring Christ as Ruler, and Christian values, back into the lives of Christians, into society, and into politics.

God as our Creator, Redeemer, and Advocate

As Christ is the origin and end of all creation, the Church never tires of worshiping God as our Creator, Redeemer, and Advocate, whom we profess as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, One God, and Three Persons. Our God is ever near and always ready to receive glory and honor at all times and everywhere.

“The Lord is King, with majesty enrobed,” proclaims Psalm 93.

In our times we are much more familiar with democracies than kingdoms and much more accustomed to a president than a king. In fact, we may even think of presidents as more powerful than kings.

Today’s Mass establishes the titles for Christ’s royalty over men:

1) Christ is God, the Creator of the universe and hence wields supreme power over all things; “All things were created by Him”;

2) Christ is our Redeemer, He purchased us by His precious Blood, and made us His property and possession;

3) Christ is Head of the Church, “holding in all things the primacy”;

4) God bestowed upon Christ the nations of the world as His special possession and dominion.

Today’s Mass also describes the qualities of Christ’s kingdom.

This kingdom is:

1) supreme, extending not only to all people but also to their princes and kings;

2) universal, extending to all nations and to all places;

3) eternal, for “The Lord shall sit a King forever”;

4) spiritual, Christ’s “kingdom is not of this world.”

his Kingdom or Reign is eternal and universal

When we talk about Christ, we do have talk about his kingdom. The most important characteristics of Jesus’ Kingdom include the notions that his Kingdom or Reign is eternal and universal, that it is true and life-giving, bestowing on believers holiness, grace, justice, love, and peace. Could there be a more attractive description of the essential elements in our multi-faceted relationship with the living and eternal God?

We must never lose sight of what is promised us in belonging completely to Christ. Furthermore, our life in Christ is not reserved for some future date, but is experienced here and now, though brought to completion and perfection in the life to come. The Lord himself has told us,

“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

It is Christ the King who strengthens the weary, who lifts up those who are falling down or broken. Christ consoles the afflicted, cures the sick, and gives food to the hungry. We have to see this help as extending beyond the material and physical, to a deeper reality, rooted in the spiritual and eternal kingdom that will never end.

Of course, we all need the daily bread of food and drink in order to survive. For this, we labor as well as receive it from others. Even more, though, we need the bread of heaven, the Holy Eucharist, spiritual sustenance, which only God can give. The Solemnity of Christ the King is a way of reminding us of this reality and tries to get our attention focused on that which endures forever. A point will come when we no longer need the food and drink this world offers, but we’ll always need divine assistance.

Today we recognize our worth as human beings, redeemed in the Blood of Christ

As we worship our God in this celebration of Christ the King, we recognize our worth as human beings, redeemed in the Blood of Christ who suffered and died on the Cross that we might live, through the power of the Lord’s Resurrection. The Eucharist, Holy Mass, is our Church’s principal means of bestowing the needed grace for us to go to God. We rejoice with a holy joy in our call to become for the world signs of God’s goodness and love. God who cannot be outdone in generosity invites you to the banquet of the Kingdom.

The message that we can take for our lives would be …

We need to recognize and appreciate Christ’s presence within us and surrender our lives to Christ’s rule: Since Christ, our King, lives in our hearts with the Holy Spirit and His Heavenly Father and fills our souls with His grace, we need to learn to surrender our lives to Him, live in His Holy Presence, and do God’s will by sharing His forgiving love with others around us. Aware of His presence in the Bible, in the Sacraments, and in the worshipping community, we need to listen and talk to Him.

Amen.

Have a Blessed Week,

Fr. Nathan