The Feast of Christ The King.

Many nations have come and gone down through the centuries. Led by men and women who believed that they were king over the known universe. All these dominions have failed and disappeared, many leaving no trace of their ever having being, Whilst some like the Romans have left evidence of their presence in the world.

When God's chosen people were living under the rule of the Judges, they cried out to the prophet Samuel to give them a King  so that they could be "like the other Nations".
 Samuels sons were not walking the same path as their father and the people  wanted a "king" to rule
over them.  Reluctantly,  Samuel spoke to God about their desires. God warned the people of Israel
through the prophet  what would befall them if they chose a human King rather than staying true to his Kingship.

He told them kings would take their sons to become soldiers and to make weapons of war and they would be made to work in his fields.Their daughters would be taken to be cooks, bakers and makers of perfume. They would grab all the best land and crops, moreover he would demand a tenth from all their crops and flocks. All this pleading was to no avail. The people stubbornly insisted on being ruled by a king, who would fight their battles for them. Again, Israel failed to see how God had already fought their battles and had gone out before them.
 Now, what God warned of came to pass. Down through the ages the kings took the men and women, their sons and daughters, their best fields and meadows and a tenth of all they grew and of all their flocks. Many times over the years the people cried out for God to take away their bad kings, but The
Lord was not listening, at least not for the moment.

In 1925 the world was recovering from the effects of the First World War. It was lurching from one
major crisis to another. In Italy Mussolini took control of the government. Hitler  published his famous book Mien  Kampf and formed the S.S. In Greece an army General seized power by a military coup. It was into this climate that Pope Pius released his encyclical Quas Primas ( in the first) to counter the rising secularism that he could see creeping into people's heartsThe Pope gave out one message loud and clear Jesus Christ is King and Lord of all.
The Holy Father wanted to remind the world that there could not be two "kings." We needed  to place our trust in the one who had proved his faithfulness.

On this last Sunday of the year we are called to contemplate the coming of the " Son of man"
Today's feast reminds us that once again God "hearkened" to his people  and raised up a new "King." One man who sought not his own glory but came to give glory to God. One who did not try to obtain
 everything for himself but actually gave a complete outpouring of himself for the needs of
others.Wherever he went he taught how to serve others, to love not only those that are easy to love
but those whom we may consider our enemies. His teachings turned the religious beliefs of the time on their heads, and he challenged the leaders to open their minds and hearts to his words.
Some listened and took on board what he said. Many did not, and called out for his demise. This King  unlike those that went before and some that have come after him has stood the test of time down through the Centuries.

God presented us with this new King, his Son. A King whose Kingdom is not of this world, who is above and beyond all human politics. One who is eager to be our King so that we may be his people.


Within our families, today is a good day to get the children making and decorating crowns. These can be worn, or made out of clay and hung on some branches or used as name places at dinner time. If
you have a statue of Jesus maybe during family prayer time a simple prayer and crowning of Jesus can take place. Here are some fun ideas I found on pintrest to help inspire you!