Solemnity of Christ the King of the Universe, Cycle B. Today’s readings: Daniel 7:13-14; Revelation 1:5-8; John 18:33b-37
What might an American rapper and a Mexican martyr share in common? Nothing much perhaps, except that they are both somehow connected to the feast we are celebrating today: the Solemnity of Christ the King.
Kanye West and Blessed Miguel Pro lived worlds apart from one another. Yet, in their own way, they both make reference to the importance of submitting to a kingship that goes beyond that of this world.
Although some dismissed his efforts as a publicity stunt, Wayne’s 2019 album Jesus Is King deals with his struggles in his faith journey as he grew in his recognition of Jesus as the king of his life, after years of submitting to other worldly kings that were unable to bring him salvation.
The Jesuit priest Blessed Miguel Pro, in turn, with his defiant cry “Viva Cristo Rei!” as he was being executed by a firing squad in 1926 during the Cristero War, is an eloquent expression of his conviction that neither persecution, nor death must dissuade us from proclaiming Jesus as the only true king, even in the face of oppressive and violent regimes.
Mentioning theology and politics in the same breath is taboo. But theology and politics intersect by their very nature. The very roots of the Solemnity of Christ the King of Universe cannot make this more evident.
This feast was only introduced into the Western liturgical calendar in 1925. In a world assailed by militant secularist and atheist ideologies that were threatening to undermine the freedom and dignity of entire populations, Pope Pius XI had then issued an encyclical, Quas primas, calling for the faithful around the world to celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King. In it, the pope had insisted that “Christ must reign in our wills, which should obey the laws and precepts of God. He must reign in our hearts, which should spurn natural desires and love God above all things, and cleave to him alone. He must reign in our bodies and in our members, which should serve as instruments for the interior sanctification of our souls, as instruments of justice unto God.”
Our political and economic choices must always be influenced and determined by the submission of our will to Christ, our true King
The pontiff’s point was that our spiritual life cannot be bracketed from our political life. Rather, our political and economic choices must always be influenced and determined by the submission of our will to Christ, our true King. Only in so doing could we ensure that our society is indeed a just one, thus actively cooperating in bringing about the Kingdom of God here on earth.
Today’s gospel makes this point by narrating the encounter between Pilate and Jesus, signifying two reigns, an earthly one on the one hand, and one that “does not belong to this world”, on the other. It is significant that the dialogue that ensues between the two revolves around the question of truth.
Jesus affirms that he came into the world to “testify to the truth”, and, he adds, “whoever belongs to the truth listens to my voice”.
Pilate and Jesus, by Giorgio AgambenAs Giorgio Agamben points out in Pilate and Jesus, at that instance, the factual truth that Pilate seeks is confronted with the eternal truth, Jesus himself. While the former needs to be proven or denied, the latter just is. This confrontation, argues Agamben, is the tragic predicament politics finds itself in.
Pilate exerts political power and metes out judgment. Jesus needs no defence. Truth is self-evident. It simply shines forth.
In a world of opportunist, misguided and self-serving politics, truth emerges as the quintessential hallmark of good governance. It demands that we all participate in the political life in truthfulness and honesty. Like Miguel Pro, we are called to give our life to Christ the King, each in our own way, and thus be courageous witnesses to the truth.