📜Epistle (Col 1:12-20)
Brethren: We give thanks to God the Father, who has made us worthy to be partakers of the lot of the saints in light: Who has delivered us from the power of darkness and has translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love, in whom we have redemption through his blood, the remission of sins. Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For in him were all things created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominations, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him and in him. And he is before all, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he may hold the primacy. Because in him, it has well pleased the Father, that all fullness should dwell; and through him to reconcile all things unto himself, making peace through the blood of his cross, both as to the things that are on earth and the things that are in heaven, in Christ Jesus our Lord.
✝️Gospel (Jn 18:33-37)
At that time, Pilate said to Jesus: Art thou the king of the Jews? Jesus answered: Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or have others told it thee of me? Pilate answered: Am I a Jew? Thy own nation, and the chief priests, have delivered thee up to me: what hast thou done? Jesus answered: My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would certainly strive that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now my kingdom is not from hence. Pilate therefore said to him: Art thou a king then? Jesus answered: Thou sayest that I am a king. For this was I born, and for this came I into the world; that I should give testimony to the truth. Every one that is of the truth, heareth my voice.
🤔Reflections
🗝️The dialogue between Christ and Pilate reveals the paradoxical nature of divine kingship. When Jesus declares, "My kingdom is not of this world," He does not deny His sovereignty over the world but clarifies its origin and character. His power derives not from military force, earthly conquest, or popular acclaim, but from Truth itself. Saint Augustine elaborates on this distinction: "Hear, then, you Jews and Gentiles... hear, all you earthly kingdoms: I do not stand in the way of your dominion in this world... What do you fear? My kingdom is not of this world. Come without fear to the kingdom that is not of this world; come by believing, and do not be cruel by fearing" (Saint Augustine, Tractates on the Gospel of John, 115). The kingship of Christ does not compete with earthly kingdoms; it transcends and judges them. The feast instituted by Pius XI in the encyclical Quas Primas was a direct response to the growing secularism that sought to confine faith to the private sphere. The Church reaffirms that Christ's kingship must be publicly acknowledged, for His Truth is the foundation of justice and social peace.
🌌The Epistle to the Colossians provides the cosmic foundation for this kingship. St. Paul describes Christ not merely as a moral or spiritual king, but as the ontological principle of all creation: "All things were created by him and for him." He is the "firstborn of all creation" and the "Head of the Body, the Church." This universal primacy is what gives Him the right to reign. His throne is not of gold, but the Cross, and His scepter is the Truth. The "peace" He establishes "through the blood of his cross" is the reconciliation of all things with God. St. Thomas Aquinas teaches that Christ's kingship is exercised supremely in His Passion, for it was there that He conquered sin and death, reclaiming the dominion over humanity that sin had usurped. The Catechism of the Catholic Church echoes this truth, stating that "the kingdom of Christ is already present in mystery in the Church" and that His lordship extends over all history until its final manifestation (CCC 668-671). The kingship that Pilate questions in the Gospel is revealed in the Epistle in its divine glory and creative power.
❤️🔥Jesus' final statement, "Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice," is both an invitation and a challenge. To be a subject of Christ the King means to belong to the truth and to live in accordance with it. This reign begins within the soul, in the submission of the intellect and will to God. It implies a constant struggle against the lie of sin and the false promises of the world. The peace of Christ, mentioned in the day's liturgy, is not a mere absence of conflict but the "tranquility of order" (Saint Augustine, The City of God, XIX, 13), which is only possible when God occupies the center of personal, family, and social life. In celebrating Christ the King, the Church calls us to enthrone Him in our hearts, to bear witness to His Truth in our actions, and to work so that His law of love and justice permeates all structures of society, thus anticipating on earth the definitive Kingdom of heaven.
🌍See English version of the critical articles here.
Brethren: We give thanks to God the Father, who has made us worthy to be partakers of the lot of the saints in light: Who has delivered us from the power of darkness and has translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love, in whom we have redemption through his blood, the remission of sins. Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For in him were all things created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominations, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him and in him. And he is before all, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he may hold the primacy. Because in him, it has well pleased the Father, that all fullness should dwell; and through him to reconcile all things unto himself, making peace through the blood of his cross, both as to the things that are on earth and the things that are in heaven, in Christ Jesus our Lord.
✝️Gospel (Jn 18:33-37)
At that time, Pilate said to Jesus: Art thou the king of the Jews? Jesus answered: Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or have others told it thee of me? Pilate answered: Am I a Jew? Thy own nation, and the chief priests, have delivered thee up to me: what hast thou done? Jesus answered: My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would certainly strive that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now my kingdom is not from hence. Pilate therefore said to him: Art thou a king then? Jesus answered: Thou sayest that I am a king. For this was I born, and for this came I into the world; that I should give testimony to the truth. Every one that is of the truth, heareth my voice.
🤔Reflections
🗝️The dialogue between Christ and Pilate reveals the paradoxical nature of divine kingship. When Jesus declares, "My kingdom is not of this world," He does not deny His sovereignty over the world but clarifies its origin and character. His power derives not from military force, earthly conquest, or popular acclaim, but from Truth itself. Saint Augustine elaborates on this distinction: "Hear, then, you Jews and Gentiles... hear, all you earthly kingdoms: I do not stand in the way of your dominion in this world... What do you fear? My kingdom is not of this world. Come without fear to the kingdom that is not of this world; come by believing, and do not be cruel by fearing" (Saint Augustine, Tractates on the Gospel of John, 115). The kingship of Christ does not compete with earthly kingdoms; it transcends and judges them. The feast instituted by Pius XI in the encyclical Quas Primas was a direct response to the growing secularism that sought to confine faith to the private sphere. The Church reaffirms that Christ's kingship must be publicly acknowledged, for His Truth is the foundation of justice and social peace.
🌌The Epistle to the Colossians provides the cosmic foundation for this kingship. St. Paul describes Christ not merely as a moral or spiritual king, but as the ontological principle of all creation: "All things were created by him and for him." He is the "firstborn of all creation" and the "Head of the Body, the Church." This universal primacy is what gives Him the right to reign. His throne is not of gold, but the Cross, and His scepter is the Truth. The "peace" He establishes "through the blood of his cross" is the reconciliation of all things with God. St. Thomas Aquinas teaches that Christ's kingship is exercised supremely in His Passion, for it was there that He conquered sin and death, reclaiming the dominion over humanity that sin had usurped. The Catechism of the Catholic Church echoes this truth, stating that "the kingdom of Christ is already present in mystery in the Church" and that His lordship extends over all history until its final manifestation (CCC 668-671). The kingship that Pilate questions in the Gospel is revealed in the Epistle in its divine glory and creative power.
❤️🔥Jesus' final statement, "Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice," is both an invitation and a challenge. To be a subject of Christ the King means to belong to the truth and to live in accordance with it. This reign begins within the soul, in the submission of the intellect and will to God. It implies a constant struggle against the lie of sin and the false promises of the world. The peace of Christ, mentioned in the day's liturgy, is not a mere absence of conflict but the "tranquility of order" (Saint Augustine, The City of God, XIX, 13), which is only possible when God occupies the center of personal, family, and social life. In celebrating Christ the King, the Church calls us to enthrone Him in our hearts, to bear witness to His Truth in our actions, and to work so that His law of love and justice permeates all structures of society, thus anticipating on earth the definitive Kingdom of heaven.
🌍See English version of the critical articles here.