The feast of Christ the King is ironic because Jesus never acted like a king.

What have been the beautiful ways you have encountered the Lord this past week?  There is a side of us that would immediately think of our moments of prayer and our time in holy places.  Today’s Gospel takes us in a different direction.  We encounter the Lord when we feed and clothe those in need, when we visit hospitals and prisons.

The Gospel describes the Last Judgment scene.  “The king will say to those on his right. ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father.  Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave me food…The righteous will respond, ‘Lord when did we see you hungry and feed you…And the king will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of the least brothers or sisters of mine, you did for me.’”

There is nothing mysterious or difficult to figure out about today’s Gospel.  Each of us will be judged upon our performance of the simple works of mercy we hear in the Gospel.  For me, I need to spend less time behind my desk as the pastor and more time being with people in need.  Please God I will remain people-focused in my priestly ministry.  May all of us be mindful of how we are to wash the feet of God’s poor following the example of Jesus at the Last Supper as He was washed the feet of His disciples.

The Gospel suggests that our leadership in religious organizations doesn’t count for too much before God.  In the last judgment, the only thing that really counts is humble service.

As we gather on Sunday to celebrate the beauty of our liturgy Sunday after Sunday, the Gospel reminds us of the liturgy of life without which all other liturgy in Church has no meaning.  Plain and simple, if we are not focused in the liturgy of life in our service of one another, all other liturgy, no matter how beautiful it is, is pointless.

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King.  This is ironic because Jesus never acted like a king.  He embraced poverty, not wealth. He taught humility, not arrogance.  He emphasized service, not domination.  He chose a cross, not a palace.  Kinship, instead of kingship:  This is what Jesus is truly passionate about.  Kinship with “the least, the lost, and the last.”

Jesus doesn’t even use big words like justice or democracy to explain what is going to be on our final exam.  He simply talks about food, clothes, water, and shelter – the basics of life.  Jesus took his stand with the needy people of this world and said in effect:  “This is where I live.” These are my people.  I belong to them, and they belong to me.  Jesus not only cared about the needy and sought to help the needy. He completely identified himself with the needy.  There was His hunger.

God has no other name than Mercy.  Where is the Lord of the Universe to be found?  He has disappeared among the hungry, thirsty, naked, lost, sick, imprisoned, alien and persecuted of this world.  Our King is hiding in the least of our brothers and sisters.

That’s where you and I belong. This is how we strengthen our trust in God.  It isn’t as if the needy are people who need help, and we are the people who give help.  We all belong to the fellowship of the needy.  Who are the needy?  I am; you are; everyone is.  Today I may help you, but tomorrow I may need you to help me.  We are members of the same family, sharing our love, sharing our resources, sharing our needs.

The primary message of this Gospel account is not to inform about what will happen at the end of time, but to teach how to behave today.  In the words of the writer Stephen Covey, we need to begin with the end in mind.  Jesus is suggesting how we must live.

The prayerful questions we ask ourselves:  In what ways is Jesus the ruler, the king of your life?  How does God’s love inspire us to show mercy?

Presently as we are dealing with the fear and threat that has been generated by random acts of violence, sexual harassment, and terrorist attacks.  Is the message of love and forgiveness professed by Jesus as the Lord of our lives get modified as we are gripped with fear of terrorists?  How safe are we from the threat of senseless violence?  Are we still expected to look with love on those whose hearts may be filled with hate?  Can we welcome refugees with love in our hearts if we are paralyzed by our fear that refugees are a threat to our safety?

We mourn the breakdown of our global family and the violence in so many places when humans created in the image of God choose death instead of life, when they choose revenge instead of mercy.  Yes, we need to ask how is Jesus the king of the culture we live in?  It is we who lose when we allow the venom of hatred and revenge to circulate through our spiritual lives.

Closer to home, is Jesus the king of your family life?  Is each and every member of your family treated with the love that Jesus has for each member of your family?  How much of a commitment do you have for family prayer?  Can you really say that Jesus is the King of your family life if you are too busy to pray together?

At the conclusion of the story of every person on earth, when each is alone with himself and with God, only love will be precious.   And we can never love others unless we feel a certain reverence towards them.  From the Gospel, the life of each one will be considered a success or failure according to the commitment of the person in the elimination of six situations of suffering and poverty:  hunger, thirst, exile, nakedness, sickness, imprisonment.

Again going back to the Gospel, in His last words to us in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus is telling us in advance that when we each stand before our God, we won’t be given a test that will be confusing or difficult.  It will instead involve only the most practical questions:  Did you feed the hungry?  Did you shelter the homeless?  Did you care for the sick?

And our answer will be….