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November 22: Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe
Readings: Ezekiel 34: 11-12, 15-17; Psalm 23, R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing that I lack; 1 Corinthians 15: 20-26, 28; Gospel: Matthew 25: 31-46
Every year we end our liturgical season with the Feast of Christ the King. I think it is such an appropriate ending, a synthesis of last year, even more significant now under our pandemic situation and, more recently, the triple calamities, from Typhoon “Quinta” (international name: Molave) to “Rolly.” (Goni) to “Ulises” (Vamco).
This year’s Gospel, the Parable of the Last Judgment, gives us great points to deepen in this “end of the year” synthesis.
First, the parable is a timely reminder that there will be a time of judgment. It is not so much about a harsh judicial sentence or a judicial trial, but rather a simple explanation before Christ the King.
Second, the reign of Christ is a good ending from which we will start for the beginning of the new liturgical year, with next Sunday as the first Sunday of Advent: “begin with the end in mind.”
Three, the last eight months, from the moment of confinement to the recent calamities, give us a concrete context within which we must give an account of what we have done to the “least of our brothers.”
The parable and the feast give us a key element in the process of life, that there is an end to each period or cycle. As in all endings, there are closings, synthesis and / or accounting to render.
During the time I was in high school, it was very clear that young people needed beginning and ending cycles. That’s why having grading periods, giving them feedback through grades at the end of the period, and allowing them to start over was good for them.
The same is true for all of us. Today we come to an end. We synthesize. We count. Soon we start again.
We count before Christ the King, the King who told us from the beginning of his ministry:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom to the captives and to regain sight of the blind, to set the oppressed free and to proclaim a year pleasing to the Lord … Today this passage of Scripture is fulfilled in your ears. (Luke 4: 18-19, 21)
Accountable to the Lord
Yes, we will be held accountable, and this is the standard by which we will be measured, clearly stated from the start. Therefore, it is the decisions that we have made that we will present as our accounting before Christ the King.
How do we testify of “a year pleasing to the Lord”? Do we proclaim “freedom to the captives … recovery of sight to the blind” and freedom to the oppressed?
Today’s Gospel explains it in more detail: food for the hungry, drink for the thirsty, welcome abroad, clothing for the naked, care for the sick, presence of prisoners.
This is the Kingdom of Christ the King. This is the accounting that we must render to him, and the “judgment” is ours. This is how we make our decisions.
In this year 2020, the context of these options is clearer than in any previous year. It is undeniable that the suffering of the majority of marginalized humanity has revealed, as clearly as the day, the injustice of inequalities in all areas.
Pope Francis, at the beginning of the global pandemic, articulated the same. The experience returned us to the essentials of life and gave us the opportunity to restart our relationship with God and with others.
It also showed us, the Pope stressed, that we can heal our common home, planet earth and our human family.
This is the context of our accounting before Christ the King.
Let me leave you a prayer, a song that frames our reflections for this Sunday, a song that begins with the end in mind and ends with a retelling.
“In the morning of my life I will watch the sunrise, at that moment of my life when the world is new, and the blessing that I will ask that only God can grant me: to be brave, strong and truthful, and fill the world with love all my life.
“In the afternoon of my life I will look towards the sunset, at that moment of my life when the world wins, and the question that I will ask only I can answer: Was I brave, strong and sincere, did I fill the world? with love all my life? “
Amen. —CONTRIBUTED
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