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It getting more and more difficult to look at the news these days. Practically every time I check on what is happening, there is more bad news emphasized. Whether it’s about the pandemic, our nation’s political divide, race relations, natural disasters, or any other number of tragedies highlighted on a minute-by-minute basis, one would be forgiven for thinking very little good is happening anywhere at any time. Months ago, I had begun to notice how addicted I was to checking the news. What tipped me off was the screen time report my phone gives. More and more time using my my phone correlated directly to my sense of anxiety, cynicism, and anger. Slowly but surely I’ve been trying to balance any reading of the news with the reading of the Good News, the Word of God. If I am willing to give 30-60 minutes a day to learn about what is going on in our world, why wouldn’t I give at least a similar amount of time to learn the highlights what is happening in the kingdom God is building? That world is just as real as the one I am slogging through right now! When I am faithful to this balancing practice, the presence of peace, faith, and hope is palpable.
Perhaps you understand this struggle as well. Maybe you have been hurt by some of the events that are taking place in our country and across the world. Maybe you struggle to remain hopeful and ask “why”? Why have so many good people lost their jobs and their ability to provide for their families? Why are their different rules for different people? Aren’t we are equal as children of God? Why are so many innocent people losing their lives to violence, disease, and hunger, even when so much of this could be prevented? Why are troublemakers glorified and law-abiding citizens ignored? But even more fundamental than the question “why” is the question, “where is God in all of this?”
As Christians, we believe that God is all-good, all-powerful, all-knowing, and ever-present here in our world. But when we see good people being hurt and getting sick, when the innocent are suffering and dying at the hands of the wicked and greedy, this belief can be challenging. And it becomes even more difficult when the people who are suffering are our friends or family members. At times like these, it can be easy to look around and wonder: “Where are you God? How can you allow these things to happen?”
It’s for times like these that the Church, in her wisdom, gives us the feast we celebrate today, the feast of Christ the King. Today we reminded of the faith we profess in Jesus Christ as king of heaven and earth. He is in control of all that is happening, no matter how bad it seems, and he will make all things work for his greater honor and glory.
The belief that Jesus reigns over all things is ancient but this feast is relatively new in the life of the Church. It was founded in 1925 by Pope Pius XI for a very practical reason. At the time, a certain dictator named Mussolini had taken control of Italy and another young man named Adolph Hitler was gathering support for the Nazi Party. Across the world, the economy was beginning to fail and peace was faltering only a few years after the devastating First World War. 50 million people had just died from the Spanish Flu pandemic. These times were dark and many were wondering if God was present or if evil had finally conquered the world. So Pius XI established the feast of Christ the King to remind Christians that Jesus was in charge of the world and of history; not evil people and their destructive plans, not disease or natural disasters.
Our times aren’t so different from the 1920’s. We often experience the effects of bad leaders and sinful shepherds; evil people still seize power and oppress the weak for their own gain. Our world hopes for peace as wars rage and terrorists murder the innocent and defenseless. So many in our world are affected by the struggle for earthly power and dominance, which causes abuses in marriages, families, and whole societies. Our times have seen horrendous attacks on human life and dignity. People still go hungry; the rich still oppress the poor, good so often appears to be defeated by evil and lives are too often snuffed out for the sake of profit and convenience. We need the message of hope and comfort given to us by Christ the King just as people did in 1925!! We need to be reminded that Christ still rules over history, even when things look terrible and depressing. We need to recall the fact that this world is passing away and the kingdom of God is coming to take its place.
This is the truth of Christ the King. He is Lord of heaven and earth. He will return to make things right and to destroy evil once and for all. But for now he waits and, despite his unlimited power, he gives us a choice, he doesn’t force us to serve him. He asks us to choose between serving him and serving the world. But we cannot do both.
We would be wise to learn from the parable of the sheep and goats. The sheep are granted eternal life not because they immediately recognized Jesus in the people they served but because they were willing to love those who were marginalized, ignored, despised, and rejected. And Jesus reveals that these are the ones with whom he identifies. There is no shortage of individuals and groups who fit this description in our time.
St. Teresa of Calcutta used to teach the "five-finger Gospel." You can watch the video of her holding a man's hand, palm up and beginning with the thumb, she says, "You. Did. It. To. Me." Mother Teresa emphasized that we don't need to go to Calcutta to practice the five-finger Gospel. We have people near us who are hungry, forgotten, imprisoned, rejected, and ill. The person who comes across angry, nasty, and hard to love often has the greatest need. Treat them with charity because, more than likely, you are ministering to Christ! Resist the temptation to adopt the world’s one-finger gospel which simply says, “me” or something even worse!
We can take comfort in Christ, whose kingship is described in Isaiah and psalm 23 as a loving shepherd. True power is manifested in service. We have a king who loves us by seeking out the lost, binding our wounds and even laying down his life for us. In dark times like these, when things are truly difficult and frightening, Christ comes to seek us out and show us the way to safety. In return, he asks us to do the same for those around us who are struggling.
Our times are tough but they’ve been bad before. Jesus was Lord and King then and he is Lord and King now! Stay close to him! Don’t lose hope! He will not abandon us. Be willing to love him through acts of mercy and compassion for those around you and nothing shall you want!
