NOVEMBER 24^th 2013. FEAST OF CHRIST THE KING

Gospel: Luke 23:35-43

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

___________________________________________________________­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­_____

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading ...

(Check us out on Facebook – Sunday Gospel Reflection)

GOSPEL                   Luke 23:35-43

The people stayed there watching him. As for the leaders, they jeered at him. 'He saved others,' they said 'let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.' The soldiers mocked him too, and when they approached to offer vinegar they said, 'If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself'. Above him there was an inscription: 'This is the King of the Jews'.

One of the criminals hanging there abused him. 'Are you not the Christ?' he said. 'Save yourself and us as well.' But the other spoke up and rebuked him. 'Have you no fear of God at all?' he said. 'You got the same sentence as he did, but in our case we deserved it: we are paying for what we did. But this man has done nothing wrong. Jesus,' he said 'remember me when you come into your kingdom.' 'Indeed, I promise you,' he replied 'today you will be with me in paradise.'

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . To celebrate the Feast of Christ the King we read a passage about a king who is tortured and insulted and whose throne is the cross! In front of this cross a drama plays itself out that represents in microcosm all of human life. First of all the religious leaders deride Jesus, stating that he ought to be able to save himself if he really is a saviour. Religion seeks happiness and fulfilment in life. These religious leaders represent that current in religion (and in our attitude to life) that looks at the sufferings of Jesus and fails to see how the cross can bring salvation. We want religion to perform miracles, to eliminate suffering NOW. The soldiers then mock Jesus, saying that if he really is a king then he should be able to come down off the cross. The soldiers represent the temporal powers of the world. We look at Jesus from the point of view of human power and achievement and say “What kind of power does Jesus have when he is unable or unwilling to alleviate our sufferings and the sufferings of others?” The bad thief represents suffering humanity in its bitterness and anger towards the God who will not relive their burden of suffering. We look at God in moments of distress and say, “Where are you? Why do you do nothing? Why did you allow this to happen?” The good thief represents the one who trusts in the providence of God despite the present suffering. He sees beyond the present moment to a future in which God’s reign will prevail. All of the characters in this drama were asking Jesus to be a particular type of king, the kind of king that suited their particular needs. Only the good thief has understood the kind of king that Jesus is! He is king that does not take us down from the cross. Rather he takes us by means of the cross to paradise.

On the feast of Christ the King we read of a king who is tortured and insulted and whose throne is the Cross

The word “universal” means “to go towards unity, towards the one and only.” The universal kingship of Jesus that we celebrate on Sunday is a reminder that he is the ultimate meaning and goal of the universe. All things are headed towards Jesus of Nazareth. And to celebrate this beautiful, illuminating and redemptive future of all things, we read the most enigmatic and unlikely passage from the Gospel! In this passage we see Jesus completely humiliated, seated on a throne which is the cross. Above this throne, on which he is condemned to death, is the epitaph “King of the Jews.” The title “King of the Jews” implies that he is the Messiah promised in the Old Testament. The Jews are God’s chosen people, so the King of the Jews is evidently the universal king, the Lord of history. Let us examine this text that the Church in her wisdom places before us on this feast of the last Sunday of the liturgical year.

Different characters in the Gospel aim insults at Jesus. Each of these insults has a genuine question behind it

The passage can be read as a sort of drama with different characters reciting key lines. Plays for the stage usually last about three hours, and this is about how long the passion of Jesus lasts on the cross. The profound message of this Gospel could easily be transformed into an entire play, and maybe someday someone will do it. Every sentence in the Gospel can be attributed to a character who has a significant part to play, one representing religion, another representing the political status quo, etc. The people too, though they say nothing, also have a role to play – that of stopping and beholding the spectacle. This is the role that each one of us will play this Sunday. The scene before us is one of great suffering and a series of people who hurl insulting comments at Jesus with regard to his suffering. But behind these insults there are genuine questions that deserve consideration. Behind the violence and insults that all of us lapse into at times, there are always issues that need to be addressed.

The leaders of the people represent the religious worldview. Religion seeks happiness and fulfilment for people. Religion demands the suffering Jesus to answer the question, “What kind of happiness and fulfilment can you give us from the Cross?”

The religious leaders of the people are the first to reproach Jesus. “If he is the Christ, let him save himself.” These leaders believe that religion is something that should bring happiness and wholeness to people. They are saying to Jesus, “Go on! Bring about this happiness that we are all looking for! You’ve saved others. Let us see if you can really deliver salvation when the chips are down!” These words contain in them the affirmation that Christ has brought salvation to people. They do not deny the miracles of Jesus. These sentiments represent the response of the religious worldview to the predicament of Jesus. Religion seeks salvation and lasting happiness, and it has difficulty seeing that in the figure on the cross. “If your promise of lasting fulfilment and wholeness is genuine, then let’s see some concrete proof!”

The soldiers represent temporal power. The temporal powers of this world want an answer from Jesus as well. What kind of power or kingship can be possessed by a figure nailed to the cross?

The soldiers then join in the abuse. They represent the temporal power of the world. Notice that their reproach to Jesus does not speak purely of salvation as the religious leaders did. Instead they speak about kingship, saying, “If you are really King of the Jews, then let’s see you come down off the cross.” For the temporal powers of the world, real power is that which brings concrete advantage to its bearer and brings it promptly. It is interesting to note that Jesus gives no reply neither to the religious reproach nor to the temporal reproach.

The bad thief represents suffering humanity with all of its anger and bitterness directed towards the God who seems unmoved by their cries

The “bad” thief on the cross then makes his contribution to the drama. He represents suffering humanity, hanging with Christ upon the cross, with all of its problems and its bitterness. “Are you not the Christ?” he begins. This is a remarkable way of addressing Jesus! We can easily forget that this thief in fact affirms that Jesus is the Christ! Then he continues, “Well, go ahead and act like Christ! Save yourself and us as well!” This cry of pain from the thief on the cross echoes the cry that comes from each one of us. It often happens in moments of difficulty that we address heaven saying, “Do something for us! Why do you refuse to help us! What kind of God are you?” Again Jesus refuses to respond.

The good thief represents the suffering humanity that trusts in the providence of God and believes that this suffering will lead to something better. He alone does not ask to be taken down from the Cross.

Finally the good thief enters the scene, reprimanding the other thief for his harsh words to Jesus. “Have you no fear of God at all?” he says. “You got the same sentence as he did, but in our case we deserved it: we are paying for what we did. But this man has done nothing wrong.” Then the good thief goes on to say something sublime, even whilst recognizing that he has merited his terrible end. “Jesus,” he says, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom.” This man is engaging with Jesus on a personal level. Alone, of all the people in this drama, he does not ask to be taken down from the cross. He recognizes that Jesus, in his silent suffering, is rooted in a different kind of kingdom and he asks to be taken along into that other reality. The bad thief had demanded, “Save yourself and save me as well.” The good thief, by contrast, says “Go to your kingdom, and bring me with you”. What each of these two men ask of Jesus is completely different, yet similar. Both ask that their situation be changed, but one asks for instantaneous change whilst the other is open to the future. The latter is open to the possibility that this terrible situation will lead to something better.

Christ responds to the only one who looks beyond this worldly kingdom to a kingdom of a different sort. He assures the thief that today they will be together in paradise. Christian abandonment to God in suffering brings paradise into the present.

Now, finally, Christ speaks. After the entire drama has played itself out against the backdrop of his silence, the king of the universe opens his mouth to speak. During the torture and the insults he said nothing. His only response is to the man who has just spoken, the only man who sees through the current situation to a future of a different sort. But what a curious reply from Jesus! “Indeed, I promise you, today you will be with me in paradise.” That future will be realised this very day. This is a feature of Christian abandonment to God in suffering. We abandon ourselves to God, accepting that the Lord in his providential love will ease our pain at the right time. But this abandonment brings us a measure of peace already in the present. The Christian is familiar with the notion of a sort of future paradise that is already making itself felt today. The situation of suffering has already been transformed from within. For the good thief, the tunnel of darkness becomes a tunnel with light at the end. The suffering is still there but the light is there also. Now he knows where he is going. For the other thief, by contrast, everything remains as absurd as before.

What kind of king is Jesus? He is a king who does not take away our cross. Instead he gives us paradise through the cross

Let us look at the heart of this text. Who is our saviour? Who is our king? He is someone who does not take us down from the cross but yet gives us paradise. The Lord does not take our cross away unless it is part of his plan, but it is a certainty that he will give us paradise through the cross! For the good thief, the cross was the place where he found Jesus. Paradoxically, the worst moment of his life, the tragic and humiliating end of his earthly existence, was the place where he found glory. What sort of king do we have? A king who does not necessarily eliminate suffering from our life, but one who will certainly take us through that suffering to heaven.