We seem to be experiencing a great crisis of leadership recently. The influx of refugees from Syria and the Middle East has lead Western leaders to equivocate and quibble over what to do. The attacks in Paris last week have made things seemingly harder instead of perhaps easier for our leaders. Most are quite unsure how to act or are seemingly incapable of acting. Christians in particular are worried about their future, as many are being driven out of their homes or even killed for professing Christ as their Lord. Not only those Christians in ISIS-controlled lands, but even here at home, where the increasingly secular and anti-Christian crowds try to repress the faith through the civic imposition of moral evils such as abortion and homosexual so-called “marriage.” Whom shall we rally around in these increasingly dangerous and treacherous times?
We must not delude ourselves to think that this is the first time in Christian history that the Church has been on the verge of collapse and destruction. For the first three centuries of the Church’s existence, she was consistently attacked by the Roman Empire, to the point of creating numerous martyrs. The barbarian hordes seemed to be slaughtering Christians left and right as they tore the Empire apart. Much later, the machinations of Luther, Calvin, and all the Protestants seemed poised to rip the Church to pieces, incapable of recovering. The modern era of the past 150-200 years has seen time and again the consistent pronouncement of the death of Christianity and in particular the Church. This is to not even begin to highlight the various evils done within the Church by her members that seem poised to make the whole thing collapse.
And yet it does not fall apart, it does not collapse. To be sure, the Church has been at many points in her history weak and in need of great care and healing. Yet this institution we call the Catholic Church is still with us today, 2000 years after her founding. To what can we attribute this streak of persistence? How can it be, especially in this so-called “modern” age of technology and science and anti-religion, that this Church continues to not only take the blows giving to her, but to bounce back and overcome her attackers?
We can see the Church’s vitality in the feast we celebrate today, for it is due to Christ the King that the Church has been able to persevere even in spite of the scandalous behavior of some of her members. A nation or a people is only as healthy as her leader, and it is no exception in the Church. In fact, we can only attribute the longevity of the Church purely on her foundation in Christ her divine Head. It is purely through the Word made flesh that the Church is able to endure even the worst of its own internal sickness or the greatest of attacks against her.
Why is it that we celebrate Christ as being King of the Universe? It is because He has won that right for Himself through the victory earned on the cross. Last week we saw how we are at war with evil, starting with Satan and continuing in each heart which separates itself from God. But this war has already seen its victory occur in the life of Christ. Jesus comes among us not merely to be a great teacher or a wise man, but to obtain for all of humanity our freedom from evil. The cross is not a nice little story or a cute image; it is like a Matthew Brady photo from the Civil War, conveying the harsh and cruel manner of war. Our first reaction should be horror at the pains and sufferings that Our Savior underwent in order to redeem us from Satan and sin. But our second reaction should be one of joy and thanksgiving, in that Christ has emerged victorious in this battle, the victory highlighted in His resurrection on Easter Sunday.
Satan has tried to claim mastery over this world from that initial victory with Adam and Eve in the Garden, but Jesus does not let him keep that claim up for long. With the victory of the cross and the triumph of the Resurrection comes the rewards, and for Jesus, it is to be crowned the rightful and true King of the Universe. From Easter Sunday onwards, we are in the right to call Jesus not only our King, but in all truth the only King that we can really know, love, and serve completely.
Yet Jesus’ kingship is not completely realized in this world. Our King tells Pilate when asked if He is a king that, “My kingdom is not of this world.” How can it be of this world? While Jesus has won his crowning victory in His passion, death, and Resurrection, yet there are still those who avoid, reject, or even hate Christ and do not seek to have Him as King. Even among those who profess to belong to Christ, there are those who try to employ doublespeak, saying that they are Christian while leading lives that are diametrically opposed to what Christ and His Church teach and command. How can Christ be truly a king when even those who claim to be His subjects are disobedient?
Jesus Christ is king no matter what our opinion or belief may be. The question is whether we will accept Him as our king or not. The Church will continue to proclaim the victory of Christ and His reign as the King of the Universe until the end of time. Each one of us will be presented in this world and in the next with the ultimate question: Is Jesus Christ my king? A king can only rule with the assent of his people. So it is with Christ the King. Will we let Him reign in our hearts, or will we place a usurper as king, to our eternal detriment? Will the Lord’s Prayer come true for us now, most especially that Thy kingdom come?
Let us follow Christ our King as our true leader, as our victorious leader, as our faithful leader. Let us abandon all those usurpers who have tried to rule our hearts and minds, and let the true King reign supreme. Let us do our part to build up the Kingdom of God on earth by showing the triumph of Christ in our own lives. But let us also be mindful of the final coming of Christ the King at the end of time. He will come on that terrible day to pass judgment on all and to reward all according to their labors. Let us not be too late in following the King of the Universe, so that He may bring about the completion of His kingdom and lead us to the glories that await the faithful in eternal life, sharing in that victory with Mary and all the saints forever.
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