Solemnity of Christ the King (Traditional Latin Mass)
/Dominica D.N. Iesu Christ Regis (Mass of the 1962 Missal)
31 October 2021
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY GHOST. AMEN.
In a Church with as much history as ours, we observe today a solemnity that is more recent in history. This solemnity of the universal kingship of Christ was established by Pope Pius XI in 1925. In his encyclical letter about today’s feast, Pope Pius XI sets the context of this observance. Let’s listen to his own words:
“In the first Encyclical Letter which We addressed at the beginning of Our Pontificate to the Bishops of the universal Church, We referred to the chief causes of the difficulties under which mankind was laboring. And We remember saying that these manifold evils in the world were due to the fact that the majority of men had thrust Jesus Christ and his holy law out of their lives; that these had no place either in private affairs or in politics: and we said further, that as long as individuals and states refused to submit to the rule of our Savior, there would be no really hopeful prospect of a lasting peace among nations. Men must look for the peace of Christ in the Kingdom of Christ; and that We promised to do as far as lay in Our power. In the Kingdom of Christ, that is, it seemed to Us that peace could not be more effectually restored nor fixed upon a firmer basis than through the restoration of the Empire of Our Lord” (Quas Primas, Pope Pius XI, December 11, 1925).
Exponentially moreso than did the year 1925, our time bears the marks of a society suffering great difficulties and manifold evils due to Jesus Christ and his law being thrust out of public and private affairs and out of the governance of nations. There is no authentic and lasting peace between nations, and within nations divisions, tribalism, and dissolution is on the rise, bringing with it great turmoil, unrest, and fear. What a vision Pope Pius XI had so many decades before the insane lawlessness that has now gripped our nation and much of the world! This reality should give us renewed focus and vigor to observe the kingship of Christ. This reality should also lead us to unapologetically submit ourselves more completely to the reign of Christ. To stay on the current path of modernity and secularization is to choose a path of destruction.
By virtue of his divine nature, being the Son of God with all lordship and sovereignty, our Blessed Lord is a King by right. Being God his kingship extends farther than any mere man’s kingship. Yet, having given us the curious gift of freedom, there is a certain sense in which his sovereignty must be claimed over us, as if by conquest. The Lord has absolute rights over us. Yet, in freedom, he expects us to use that gift to submit and to subject ourselves to his rule. Our Blessed Lord makes this conquest and claims his rights over us by his Passion, death, and resurrection. Thus, with good reason do we hear the Gospel on this feast, a Gospel that communicates to us the unique way the Lord exercises his kingship. It is a Gospel leading to the Lord’s condemnation and death on the Cross. By shedding his blood on the Cross, the Lord condemns sin and wins victory over Satan and his kingdom of darkness.
Having established his kingship over us, we hear words from the Epistle to the Colossians that let us know it is God’s action that makes it possible for us to enter his kingdom, to subject ourselves to him, and in so doing to find ultimate and lasting freedom. St. Paul expresses our thanks today because it is God “who has made us worthy to be partakers of the lot of the saints in light: who has delivered us from the power of darkness, and has transferred us into [his] kingdom.”
The placement of this solemnity in the traditional calendar situates it always near the annual observance of All Saints’ Day. This year it falls literally the day before All Saints’ Day. The proximity of this traditional placement can serve as a lesson that the mission of the Lord Jesus as King continues in how the saints manifest the holiness and glory of the Lord. While we will celebrate the reflected glory and holiness of the saints, we also must admit that the Lord’s mission is supposed to continue in each of us who must strive for holiness and who are saints still-in-the-making.
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY GHOST. AMEN.