In it, he describes the great power of this king, the way in which he would strike fear in his opponents and how his strength was too much for any to bear. Yet, one day he met a humble maiden whom he fell in love with, but it left him in a difficult situation, for as Kierkegaard questions: “How can he declare his love for her? In an odd sort of way his very kingliness tied his hands.” He thought of showering her with gifts but knew that would not guarantee her love in return, he thought of making her a queen, but worried she would love him for who he was but what he represented.
His simple desire was that she forget he was a king and let love “cross the gulf between them, for it is only in love, Kierkegaard says, that the unequal can be made equal.”
So, the king realizing what needed to be done became a servant in order to declare his love and for them to, eventually, marry. He gave up his majestic robes and shining crown to put on a beggar-cloak, worn out and fluttering loosely about him.
And it is this that we celebrate on this feast of Christ the King. Our great, omnipotent, mighty, majestic and creator God became a servant for us all.
Yet, the cloak He wears is not just any cloak, it is the garment of love, this is why He did not rule from a throne or dictate from on high, but came among us, serving the hungry, the thirsty, the naked and the sick, the most dejected and rejected, caring for them all, and bringing them closer to Himself.
And what He did He asks us to do as well, to be a servant of the same, not dressed as one but living as one, knowing that the person we serve is not just them, but Christ Himself.
It was Bl. Mother Teresa who recognized this asking: “How can you love God whom you do not see, if you do not love your neighbor whom you see, whom you touch, with whom you live?” When asked how it was we are to see Christ in our neighbor, she simply responded: “To be able to love one another, we must pray much, for prayer gives a clean heart and a clean heart can see God in our neighbor. If now we have no peace, she says, it is because we have forgotten how to see God in one another.”
For, the reality of this Gospel reminds us that Christ will not just return, but ask us to make an account of the lives we lived and of what we have done to bring Christ’s kingdom to earth. And when He comes, it will not be as a simple servant, but as judge and king, His power will no longer be hidden and His sovereignty will be made evident. In fact, as our Gospel puts it: “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him.”
That means that all of us, individuals and, indeed, nations will be held accountable, in fact, one of the reasons for this feast is an encyclical by Pope Pius XI, in which his desire was that everyone would realize Christ’s sovereignty on earth, with the hope, that as he says:
“Nations will be reminded by the annual celebration of this feast that not only private individuals but also rulers and princes are bound to give public honor and obedience to Christ. It will call to their minds the thought of the last judgment, wherein Christ, who has been cast out of public life, despised, neglected and ignored, will most severely avenge these insults; for his kingly dignity demands that the State should take account of the commandments of God and of Christian principles, both in making laws and in administering justice, and also in providing for the young a sound moral education.”
Showing us and reminding us, ultimately, in the end, that those three Latin words Pope Sixtus V had engraved on the pillar in Saint Peter’s Square ring true: “Christus vincit! Christus regnat! Christus imperat!” Christ conquers! Christ reigns! Christ rules!
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