Tìm Kiếm

20 tháng 11, 2016

Homily for Christ The King Sunday - Year C (November 20, 2016)


Jesus Christ, the King 
My dear brothers and sisters,
Today, the holy mother Church celebrates the solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Universal King. Let us adore Him as the King of kings and the Lord of lords (Rev 17, 1).
In the First Reading of today from the 2nd Book of Samuel, we see all the tribes of Israel coming to David in Hebron to make him their king. The account of David’s anointing speaks of his closeness to the people and his future role as a shepherd-king. David is the deliverer and shepherd of his people, thus pre-figuring the mystery of Christ, who is King, Shepherd and at the same time the lamb slain on the cross for his sheep. That is the point of Luke’s crucifixion narrative, in which everything said about Jesus comes to be true: the “chosen one”, the “Messiah”, the “Saviour of all”; the one who saves himself by surrendering his own life. So what message do we take home this Sunday? Ask ourself, “Are we, each of us in our own life, following the way of Jesus? Do we really want to let ourselves be a slave to others?” If we are going to worship Jesus as our King, we are going to do it according to his way. The one who is to be first has to be the servant and the slave of all, has to follow the way of Jesus in the way of reconciliation and love. That’s how we will bring peace into our own lives and into the world.
We are invited to live by the Gospel Christ preached; by His values of peace, Justice and love that Christ shared; and by rules that govern His Kingdom –the Commandments. The readings exhort us to let Christ reign in our lives, so we may be truly united with him, and thus be effective witness in Christ’s kingdom.
In the second reading, Paul reminds us that God: “has created a place for us in the kingdom of the son that he loves.” What more do we need! We believe that nothing, not even death, can take away the dream of His Kingdom from us.
My dear brothers and sisters,
The prayer after Communion beautifully sums up the mystery of Christ we celebrate this Sunday: “Lord, you give us Christ, the King of all creation, as food for everlasting life. Help us to live by his Gospel and bring us to the joy of his kingdom”. This last Sunday of the Liturgical Year challenges us to be more determined to live by the values and principles of Christ our King, and to be willing to sacrifice ourselves for those values. Our baptism into the life of Christ was and continues to be a bold statement to the world: Jesus is Lord and King of our lives. We dream His dreams. We share His hopes. We believe that nothing, not even death, can take away the dream of His Kingdom from us. Amen.

Fr. Joseph Pham, O.P.