34th Sunday in ordinary time. Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. Today’s readings: 2 Sam 5,1-3; Col 1,12-20; Luke 23,35-43
Kings are not easy to come by. In fact, even eligible members of royal families can have difficulties becoming one. Yet, whereas some may wait for decades on end before they are finally proclaimed kings, today we celebrate the feast of one who not only was born a king (Matt 2,2), but whose kingdom will have no end (Lk 1,33). Today’s solemnity crowns the whole liturgical year and brings it to a close on such a positive note as though to emphasise the fact that the Lord Jesus, reigning forever, will sooner or later rule over all.
Royalty may have been particularly charged with meaning in the eras of the great colonial powers that held sway over many peoples and nations. Nowadays, kings and queens still have an important, albeit somewhat different role to play in society. Excessive media coverage and an insatiable thirst to pry into their lives has made them sensational characters splashed on to too many a tabloid. If only people could nurture the same degree of curiosity about Christ himself and his own royalty.
The key to understanding his kingly nature can be found in Jesus’s conversation with Pilate about his regal state. “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered: “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” (Jn 18,37) It is curious that following his affirmation about his royal status, Jesus spoke immediately about his mission and role in testifying to the truth.
The King’s Speech depicted King George VI’s struggle with a speech problem that impaired him from allowing the full power of his wit and intellect to come across clearly and unhindered. Conversely, of the eternal King it has been said: “your lips have been anointed with grace... In your majesty ride forth victoriously in the cause of truth, humility and justice...” (Ps 45,2.4). And “his voice was like the sound of rushing waters”. (Rev 1,15)
While many a king was driven by his own personal agenda, manoeuvring societal factors to justify and validate their own political strategies, Christ stands for absolute truth, the kind that sets people free rather than subduing them to ongoing systems of oppression. To say that he is the King is to affirm the validity and authority of his word. His utterances have immense gravitas and they are utterly dependable.
For this reason, it is imperative that humanity submit to his words, which is essentially what accepting his royalty ultimately means. The Latin submittere, literally “to send under” or “to place under”, indicates where we must place ourselves in relation to Jesus. Since he has taken his place in the highest echelon of existence, it would be foolish not to acknowledge his words or to deny the nature of our “creatureliness” in relation to his ultimate authority over our lives.
It would be foolish not to acknowledge his words or to deny the nature of our “creatureliness” in relation to his ultimate authority over our lives
The University of Malta’s Faculty of Theology is this week gifting Archbishop Charles Scicluna a celebratory volume entitled Fidelis et Verax: Essays in honour of His Grace Archbishop Charles J. Scicluna on the Occasion of the 10th Anniversary of his Episcopal Ordination. Fidelis et Verax, Faithful and True (the motto the archbishop chose for his episcopacy) are two appellatives that describe Jesus in the Book of Revelation as he rides a horse with royal prowess and wears many crowns on his head. Moreover, we are told that “his name is the Word of God” (Rev 19,11-13). Indeed, here is a King who speaks, loud and clear. To heed his word is to live. The King, whose kingdom will last forever, will surely have the last word when it comes to your very life.