By Fr. Marcel Uzoigwe, CSSp
(Christ the King: 2 Samuel 5:1–3; Colossians 1:12–20; Luke 23:35–43)
Dear friends in Christ,
Today, we celebrate Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. He is king, not just of the Jews as Pilate wrote and placed over his head on the cross, but of the universe. “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him” (Colossians 1:16). We also proclaim it loud and clear that we belong to the kingdom of God, through Christ – “giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:12-14 from the second reading) Jesus Christ has made us princesses and princes, according to our second reading – “We shall reign with him!”
But what kind of King is Jesus? The first reading presents David being anointed king of Israel after the death of Saul whom God rejected to choose him. He had to fight many battles to claim his kingship and to protect it. At some point he had to face the rebellion of his own son, Absalom, who wanted to overthrown his father (David) to become the king of Israel.(2 Samuel 15-18). David was a shepherd who had reverence for God right from his childhood. That made him decide to face Goliath, the Philistine who defiled the name of God of Israel and shamed his armies (1 Samuel 17:26). As a shepherd king, he fought many wars to protect the people entrusted to him. David had unwavering faith in God and the desire to do God’s will in spite of his weaknesses and sins (like the taking of the wife of Uriah the Hittite (2 Samuel 11). He was a great king in the history of Israel such that Jesus is often referred to as the son of David. Psalm 98 said of him, “I have found David my servant; with my sacred oil I have anointed him. My hand will sustain him; surely my arm will strengthen him. (Psalm 89: 20-21).
But Jesus’ kingship goes far beyond that of David. It is not concerned with a section of people and the exercise of raw power to protect his kingship. Jesus serves the people he leads rather than being served by them (Mark. 10:45). For the sake of mankind he set aside his divine nature and took flesh to teach us the way to the Father. He even gave his own life to pay the price of our sins (Phil. 2:6-11). The very people he taught, fed and healed made him undergo the painful crucifixion. While on the cross, as our today’s gospel portrays, his only interest was still on the salvation of mankind. That is love unending, love that goes beyond any human imagination.
Going by the event of today’s gospel, one notices that, sometimes, when the chips are down, one questions the meaning of life; whether it is worth living. That is also the moment to know the true nature of those who call themselves one’s friend. Look at Jesus Christ of today’s gospel, the whole society rejected him: the rulers scoffed at him, the soldiers jeered at him and the crowd watches on as all that unfolds, and even a thief mocks Jesus’ power, “save yourself and us” (Luke 23:35-39). The only consolation Jesus gets, while hanging on the cross, is the consolation of a thief, the so-called “good thief”. When earthly power confronts and surrounds Jesus flexing its muscles – the rulers, the soldiers and thieves; only a thief has the audacity to declare Jesus innocent, saying, “we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong” (Luke 23:41). He is hanging on the cross for the guilt of others instead of his own sins. Such experience of being forsaken in times of trial and hardship by those one has given everything is common in our days.
Curiously, it is in the gospel of today that we see the manifesto under which Jesus, and all who leads in God’s name, functions and lives. Leadership in the community of God is the willing martyrdom of the leader for the good of the community. It is the vulnerability of the leader while protecting the led. God’s leader on earth leads in the hope of a reward hereafter, not for an immediate gratification: it is a thankless earthly job! Indeed, Christ-the-King Sunday is a cleaning and dusting up time, an embrace of a new style of leadership because Christ is our King. By our jubilant celebration, we declare our willingness to become leaders like Christ, especially when surrounded by mockery, scoffing and insults, to bear all silently in the spirit of forgiveness, love and the kingdom of God.
The two thieves crucified on either side of Jesus provide an opportunity for Jesus to teach us the exercise of power. The first thief jeered at Jesus: “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us?” And he never received any answer from Jesus. The second thief challenged his colleague and defends the innocence of Jesus. The “good thief” refuses to be a silent bystander, like the spectator-crowd of the gospel, when evil is being perpetrated; instead of mockery and scoffing, the “good thief” rises above his sin to challenge the status quo, seeing the complacency of the leadership of the day. He concludes, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
Jesus’ answer, “Today, you will be with me in Paradise” shows the salvific power of God to save those willing to be saved. Do not hold back any good deed that is in your power to do. Do not wait for tomorrow or set unnecessary conditions. Otherwise the opportunity would be lost and a soul may not be saved. Consequently, the first step towards becoming princes and princesses, since Christ is our king, is to allow the message of the gospel to transform every aspect of our lives. Only then can Jesus truely be the king of our lives. The second is to participate in his saving mission such that we, in our turn, can count those we have saved from starvation, joblessness, sadness, sin, etc. The testimony of our faith and actions should speak so eloquently that friends and foes alike can say “he/she saved others”. Those touched by the example of our lives should willingly testify to the grace of God in us and acknowledge that we belong to Christ.
We celebrate today because we know that Christ is the Lord of the living and the dead. His kingdom has no end and we are children of that kingdom. The “good thief” shows us that when the world condemns us, God still stands by us, as he stood by his Son on the cross. And even if we die living for Christ, we will be with him in paradise.