Feast of Christ the King

Feast of Christ the King - Year B

Can it really be twenty-nine years ago that Diana, Princess of Wales famously said, I don't see myself being queen of this country... (but) I'd like to be a queen of people's hearts?

At the time it was a poignant statement that drew a great deal of international attention and sympathy. Here was a member of the royal family expressing her vulnerability in a way that had never been seen before.

Diana was a complex character, and not a blameless one, but the image of her embracing AIDS patients, of her walking through a landmine field in Angola, and these words remind me of what it is that the Church celebrates as we come to the end of the liturgical year this Sunday.

We hear again the prophetic vision of Daniel that the son of man will reign forever - a sovereign whose realm will never pass away. And from the Book of Revelation that Jesus will reign over all the earth with power for ever and ever. So what do we make of Jesus' own statement before Pilate that his kingdom is not of this world

As Governor, Pilate ruled over the land of Judea. He controlled the economy, he held the power of life and death in his hands, and it was entirely at his discretion that the Temple rites of the Jewish religion were allowed to continue. In other words, Rome ruled their world. But for all its power, the great empire could not command the hearts of the people.

In his most recent encyclical Pope Francis reminds us that the heart is the seat of compassion - the tender love of God - the love that seeks the good of others. It is in our heart that we build relationships and through compassion that we become more than a community. We become a communion.

This then is the foundation and the seat of God's Kingdom - the exercise, the strengthening, the opening of the heart.

Not of affection, but of love.

Love that persists.

Love that is for all.

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Scripture Reflections Seeking Understanding

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