Was Christ A King?
+ Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop of Sydney
23 Nov 2008
Jesus the son of Mary was born in a stable and crucified as a young man on a hill in Jerusalem. He was not nobly born and refused political power. Is the Catholic Church right to celebrate the feast of Christ the King today?
In fact, the feast is of recent origin, introduced by Pope Pius XI in 1925 to emphasise the importance of Christ in public and private life. It was also designed to counter the pretensions of the Communists and especially Mussolini? Fascists, who had come to power in Italy a few years previously.
Pius XI intended to contrast the goodness and justice of Christ with the oppression of contemporary dictatorship.
Jesus was not rich or politically powerful. His Jewish and Roman rulers might have heard of him as a miracle worker or trouble maker. He did not deny to Governor Pilate that his followers called him king, but he was not kinglike and his kingdom was not of this world.
The kings in history are a mixed bag of good and evil, wise and foolish. Nearly all of them exercised real power, unlike the constitutional monarchs, symbols and umpires rather than rulers, who reign today like our Queen Elizabeth. Some of them were also cruel and tyrannical, not interested in the welfare of their subjects and the more capable and powerful were often warlike and keen for empire. It is not surprising that the title Christ the King was introduced into the Church only when many of the kings and emperors had disappeared from history.
In what sense then can we say that Jesus should be called king? St. Paul writing to the Corinthians does speak of Christ handing over his Kingdom to God the Father at the end of time. Then there will be no more human sovereignties, authorities or powers. All the evil enemies of the Kingdom of God will be under his feet and even death will be no more.
We find a beautiful passage from the Apocalypse (or Book of Revelations) on Christ the King who is described as ?he faithful witness, the First-born from the dead, the Ruler of the Kings of the earth. He loves us and has washed away our sins with his blood, and made us a line of kings.?(Rev.9:4-6) Christ is King because He can and does forgive our sins provided we repent.
Christians believe the one true God is Trinitarian, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. As Son Jesus designed the cosmos and also placed the natural law into the heart of creation, so that human dignity is respected and moral truths are recognised.
And Christ is King because he is to be everyone? judge on the Last Day, a loving, merciful and just judge, but a judge nonetheless, the Good Shepherd separating the sheep from the goats.
Christ is our brother, servant, redeemer; but also our King.
