From The Deacon’s Desk for November 20, 2022

Dear Friends:

Today is the feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. This feast was instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925 for the universal church in his encyclical Quas Primas. This encyclical and the feast were promulgated by Pope Pius because many Christians (including Catholics) doubted Christ’s authority and his existence. The problem was most prevalent in Europe but was not unknown here either.  

In our country we are not too familiar with royalty and their ways. I dare to say that most of us have no idea how kings and queens ruled and, in some cases, still rule today. The interesting thing I find in this feast is that, while Jesus has full and absolute power and authority, he comes to us as a Servant King, a king who truly cares about his people. He is always with them and is always open to offer forgiveness and love in all circumstances. As far as I know there has never been a king like that except Jesus.

Did you ever wonder what it was like for Jesus as he walked on this earth? Did you ever wonder what he thought as he saw people hurting each other, taking advantage of each other, enforcing their own ideas of right and wrong on those who had no way to defend themselves? I wonder what he thought as the ruling class made him a target of torture and death because he was good to the people around him. Something to think about isn’t it?

My dear friends, we have a different kind of king! He is a king who truly cares about his people, a king who wants to spend eternity with us, his brothers and sisters. I guess you could say “it’s great to be king”!

Peace and All Good!

Deacon Jim