Reflection for the Solemnity of Christ the King, Year A

 

                                        THE KING OF KINGS AND OTHER KINGS

                                                     Fr. Ugochukwu Ugwoke, ISch

The last Sunday of the Church’s liturgical calendar affords us the opportunity to celebrate the Solemnity of Christ as the King of the whole universe. This Solemnity was instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925 to counteract the harmful effects of Secularism. Secularism is basically a way of living and thinking which excludes God. A secularist mind organizes his/her life as if God does not exist. As such, Secularism directly denies Christ’s kingly role in our lives. So, with this feast, the Church wants to proclaim in an effective and eloquent manner, Christ’s kingly and sovereign rule over all, be it individuals, families, societies, governments or nations.

Naturally, when we talk about kingship, the following ideas come to mind: royalty, honor, power, domination, influence and affluence. However, it is surprising that on a day when we celebrate the kingship of Christ, the Church presents us with a gospel reading that is talking about the need to be of service to those in need (Matt. 25:31-46). We would consider this passage absurd and unbefitting of today’s solemnity if we do not take into consideration the fact that a king is not simply meant to rule but to serve the people under him. A leader is meant to serve.

Jesus’ kingship is different from everything we know about kingship today. In Jesus, we see a king who was not enthroned on a decorated kingly throne but on a wooden cross of torture. In Jesus we see a king who wore no golden crown but a crown made of thorns. In Jesus, we see a king who instead of being vested with kingly apparels was divested to almost a nude state. In Jesus, we see a king who instead of being praised and reverenced by the people was rather spat on, sneered at, beaten, bruised, taunted, mocked, insulted, and made jest of. In Jesus, we see a king who was given a reed for a staff of office. We can go on and on.

The above points are not meant to deny Christ’s kingship. Rather, they teach us the best perspective to being a king/queen/leader/head/parent/mentor and so on. The solemnity of today teaches us that the true king (revealed to us in Jesus Christ) is not the one who saves himself, but the one who forgets himself and stakes his life at the service of others, including his own victimizers. The kingship of Jesus teaches us that to be a leader/ king is to share the pains of our subjects. From Jesus we learn that a leader/king should not price his own comfort or interest above that of others. In the agony of the cross, Jesus did not think about saving himself but was concerned about the salvation of the robber next to him. You can ponder on how you as a leader/teacher/head, treat those under your care; the maid or house help working tirelessly for you; the apprentice laboring in your shop; the colleague working under you. Also, our political, religious and traditional leaders have a lot to borrow from Christ’s perspective of kingship.

In our age, the houses of traditional and political leaders are amongst the most visited places. There is never a time that you visit the houses/palaces of the Obas, the Olus, the Alakes, the Obis, the Emirs, the Oonis, the Aalafin, the Atta, the presidents, governors and other political office holders, that you do not find great number of people gathered, waiting for them either to simply catch sight of them, greet them, ask for assistance, consult them on certain issues, or simply, to sing their praises.  If we can relate with an earthly leader/king in this manner, why do we not replicate even a greater gesture of respect for the King of kings? In most Churches, the King of kings is always alone in chapels of adoration, locked up in tabernacles and often abandoned by his subjects. In most cases, the only company that our King gets is the warming presence of the tabernacle light.

In our time as well, it is unimaginable the amount of respect we show to earthly kings/ leaders and modern-day politicians. Some cultures in Nigeria require one to either bow, kneel or prostate before a king. In some places, kings are addressed while seated on the floor. The kind of decorum we exhibit before these earthly figures is unparalleled. However, in our Churches, in the very presence of the King of kings, our conduct is the very opposite. We treat the house of our King with contempt and our comportment before the King hidden in the Eucharistic bread is one devoid of honor and respect.

Dear brother and sister, as we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King today, Jesus sends us out to do two basic things. One is to proclaim him as the king of our lives, families, parishes, communities and the world. To proclaim him king is to allow him to reign in our lives and to be in charge of the affairs of our society and the world. To proclaim Christ as the king is to submit wholly and entirely to his benevolent dictates. To proclaim Christ as the king is to desist from paying undue allegiance to any other earthly king. The second is to build a kingdom for our King in the world. His kingdom is of love, peace, unity, holiness, justice, forgiveness, life, grace, and truth. When we are exhibiting these virtues in the places we find ourselves, we are building God’s kingdom in such a place and we also stand the chance of being admitted into God’s paradise like the virtuous (Matt. 25:46).