Education in Faith
This week marks the end of the liturgical year. Next week, with the first week of Advent, we begin the new liturgical cycle. It is fitting that the Church concludes the liturgical year with the celebration of Christ the King. Jesus tells his closest friends that he is the Messiah, the One chosen to come and lead Israel into a new way of life. Only, their idea of a messiah king is different. They are waiting for a Jewish political leader who will take over the nation and destroy their enemies, then persecute them the way the Jews have been persecuted by the political powers of their time. The ways of Jesus are different. He is a ‘king’ of nonviolence, forgiveness, unconditional love and service.
The Lord’s Prayer we pray at Mass every Sunday includes this line: ‘Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven’. What does it mean for the Kingdom to come to earth, the same way it exists in heaven? What would that look like?
What part do you play in bringing to this world the Kingdom Jesus has in mind? Are you playing your part? It takes courage to play your part. What have you done that was courageous for the Kingdom of Jesus?