Christ the King 2017
Restoring All Things
Extraordinary Form
From the Epistle of Blessed Paul to the Colossians: Beloved, May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation; 16 for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the first-born from the dead, that in everything he might be pre-eminent. 19 For in him all the fulness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
From the Holy Gospel according to St. John: Pilate entered the praetorium again and called Jesus, and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” 34 Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?” 35 Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me; what have you done?” 36 Jesus answered, “My kingship is not of this world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight, that I might not be handed over to the Jews; but my kingship is not from the world.” 37 Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Every one who is of the truth hears my voice.”
Today’s first collect tells us the intention of Almighty God: “who has wished to restore all things through [His] beloved Son.” That is, we all know, the mission statement of our parish, as it was the vision and motto of our patron, St. Pius X. We pray today that the families of nations separated by the wound of sin would be brought together under the dominion of Christ the King.
It was God’s intention from the beginning that human beings, made in His image and likeness, would have the love and unity characteristic of the Blessed Trinity. Our first parents messed that up. In our fallen state, family life was disordered. There was hostility between man and woman, between parents and children. God called Abraham and Sarah to obedience, and they obeyed. From this one man and woman of faith God wanted to create a people who would think rightly, worship rightly, and draw all humankind to that just living and right worship. But, time and time again, Israel failed. They even lost their temple and their homeland, and by the time of Christ they were on the verge of losing them again. They even rejected their own God-made-man in Jesus, despite His pleas, His encouragement, and His miracles. But Jesus, as He died on Calvary, won them, and us, forgiveness, gave us His Mother and enabled all to have a new life in His Holy Spirit. As St. Paul wrote, He delivered us from the power of darkness, and is bringing us, body, soul and spirit, into the kingdom of the Son of God.
Our Lord calls us to true joy, which is achieved through self-giving in the spirit of Jesus and Mary and the saints whom we will celebrate on November 1. He calls us to build families of faith and charity, with fathers and mothers committed to giving to each other and their children and the community, joyfully giving of themselves without reservation. It’s the immeasurable joy that is shared by all of us who make up the Mystical Body of Christ.
That’s what God wants to reproduce here at St. Pius X as we strive to renew all things in Christ, to build on earth the kingdom of Christ. When our neighbors encounter us in the town square, they should experience the same treatment we accord each other here when we worship, or get together in the family center, or work on a church project together. They should see us enthusiastically giving to the poor, advocating for those whom society marginalized, like the infants in the womb, immigrants, single parents. They should see us helping those who have lost a spouse or child or parent, as we do in our Stephen ministry. We should all be alert to others with needs–maybe a child who is being bullied or shunned at school. Our love of God and neighbor needs to be visible to others, so they will be attracted to Christ and His Church.
This week marks the 500th anniversary of the start of a tragedy. In 1517 Martin Luther began a movement of disunity that fractured Christendom and just about destroyed the Catholic Church in northern Europe. It has ultimately led to division after division until today there are over 30,000 different brands of Christianity. We should pray daily that the Holy Spirit move in the hearts of all Christians to see the scandal of a divided witness to Christ, and work and pray for the reunion of all who bear the baptismal seal. The secular world especially is hungry for Christ, but they cannot be effectively fed until we all share the One Body and Blood of Christ.
In a previous age, many Catholics thought that we could bring Protestants and others back to the faith, to the Church, by argumentation. But we all know that few folks will change a closely-held opinion by arguing. No, let’s do it by service, by showing our faith in acts of unselfish love. People everywhere are hungry for the transcendent; they are hungry for Jesus Christ. We can attract them only by being a Church of beauty, truth and goodness. Together we can do this. Both Scripture and Tradition call us to do this. We must pray in faith for the grace the Holy Spirit longs to give us so that we may, united, renew all things in Christ.
Ultimately, all heresy, all schism is rooted in that original revolution instigated by Satan in the garden of Eden. As the fallen angels screamed “we shall not serve” at God, and as they were vanquished and cast out by Michael and the loyal host of heaven, they schemed to ruin God’s greatest creation, humanity. They schemed to teach our first parents, and each of us, to echo their cry of disobedience. Every human being is so tempted. And in the fifteenth and sixteenth century, many politicians and clergy heeded that siren call of evil, and lived dissolute lifestyles. Those who longed for reform, instead of working humbly in the Church, often took up the cause of dissension.
Now the Church had needed reform in prior ages, and in every age the Holy Spirit raised up men and women to call Christians back to obedience. Thus there was a Gregorian reform, a Benedictine reform, a Franciscan reform. In the wake of Protestant revolution, there would be a true reform under Pope St. Pius V and his successors. But before that could happen, Luther and the norther German princes defended him and lined their own pockets with the assets of the Church. Then Calvin and Henry VIII and John Knox ripped away the rest of northern Europe from the fullness of Catholic truth. We continue to pay the price today, as thirty thousand or more Protestant denominations continue to bicker over doctrine and practices that Catholicism settled long ago.
So what now? First, pray for Christian unity, for the end of the scandal that cannot be God’s will. Then, understand better the Catholic faith so that you can charitably defend it when we are attacked. And share your faith with your family and friends, so that they may also share the joy of being Catholic. In a joyless society of unbelief and death, be a joyful witness to faith and life.
