Christ the King of the Cosmos

Christ Enthroned, Book of Kells, PD

November is nearly over and Advent is nearing. But before either of those events take place, we pause in the Church Calendar this Sunday to remember that Christ is the King of the Universe. Christ has been considered the King from the very beginning, but it was only in 1925 that Christ the King became an official feast day. Then, in 1969, Pope Paul VI moved the feast day to the last Sunday of Ordinary Time, and changed the name to Christ the King of the Universe.

This is an eschatological feast day, it reminds us that Christ is truly in control. Christ is the King, not Caesar, not the leader of any country or people, not even Satan, the “Prince of this World.” No, Christ is the King, and not just of Christians, or the Earth, but of the entire Cosmos. And while it may not always feel like that is the case, it is nevertheless true. The entirety of reality exists and moves and has its being because Christ, the Word of the Father, has brought it into existence. From every molecule to every spinning galaxy, every atom is in its place because Christ put it there and continues to will it into existence with the Holy Spirit, as the Word of the Father. Every star that shines, every planet that moves in the heavens, does so to “declare the Glory of the Lord.”

And yet, it so often does not feel like this is the case. People die. Murderers are acquitted. Totalitarian regimes kill innocent people. Diseases ravish our vulnerable. It all feels as though if anyone is in charge at all, they are malicious, malevolent, cruel. And we must mourn when evil triumphs. But we must not lose hope. Rather, we must remember that our King has suffered too. He suffered because we suffer. He suffered so we wouldn’t have to forever. He suffered because we made him suffer. He suffered because he loves us. And this gives us hope. We have hope not only that one day, in the Eschaton, all things will be made new and there were be no more tears or sadness, but also that we can continue to strive to make God’s name hallowed, his Kingdom come, and his will done here on Earth as it already is in Heaven. Until he returns, we have work to do.

In honor of the Sacrifice our King has made to make us new, here is the penultimate poem in my book, The Green Man.

"Christ the King"

We crowned you first as king with bloody holly,
The droplets of your blood, they stained the berries.
Next we drove you on bearing our folly,
And jeered not knowing it was our sin you carried.
We nailed your hands to the beam, your arms outstretched,
And nailed your feet to form the Greek letter tau.
We raised you up as one unloved and wretched,
And yet you seek to forgive us anyhow.
Then we pierced your side to make you bleed,
And holy blood and water came raining down,
But with this blood and flesh you wish to feed
Us. You made the Holy Grail out of the ground.
By your five wounds we are washed and clean,
To be more human than we've ever been.