To Belong to Christ, Witness to His Truth
By Bishop Paul S. Loverde
Herald Columnist
(From the issue of 11/30/06)
The following homily was given by Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde on Nov. 26 on the Solemnity of Christ the King at Holy Rosary Church in Washington, D.C.
Today, the last Sunday of the liturgical year, the Church
celebrates the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe.
In the Gospel we heard the dialogue between Jesus and Pontius Pilate.
“Then Pilate said to him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus
answered: ‘You say it; I am a king. For this I was born and for
this I have come into the world: to give testimony to the truth. Whoever
is of the truth, hears my voice.’”
In this dialogue, Jesus is acknowledging that He is indeed a King, but
not in the way we ordinarily picture kings. His Kingdom is not of this
world. Rather, His Kingdom is made up of those who witness to the Truth
which He is and which He proclaims through the Church. His followers,
then, listen to His voice, and therefore, with “the obedience of
faith,” proclaim and live the Truth. In a word, the members of His
Kingdom are the disciples of Christ’s truth.
So, Jesus is telling Pilate and now us that He is “the Way, the
Truth and the Life.” If we listen to His words, we will walk in
His footsteps along the way, we will know His truth and live it in daily
life, and we will live with His life strengthening and transforming our
efforts to imitate Him. Jesus is telling us as well in today’s second
reading: “I am the Alpha and Omega … , the one who is and
who was and who is to come, the almighty.” If we make Jesus the
center of our lives, the First and the Last to receive our love each day,
we will truly belong to Him and He to us.
The dialogue between Jesus and Pilate leads to a dialogue between Jesus
and each one of us. Jesus is asking each of us: “Who am I for you?
Am I your Way, your Truth, your Life? Am I the love of your heart and
the center of your life? Are you listening to My voice and the Truth I
proclaim? Are you witnessing to that Truth?”
What is our reply to these questions which Jesus asks us today? With all
our strength, let us say to Jesus in response: “You, Lord, are the
love of my heart and the center of my life. Looking back at the liturgical
year which is ending next Saturday, I am sorry for the times I did not
listen attentively enough to Your voice and did not follow You more closely.
In the new liturgical year soon to begin, I promise to listen to You more
clearly, to love You more dearly and to follow You more closely, so I
can witness to Your truth.”
Yes, those who belong to the Kingdom of Christ are those who listen to
His voice and proclaim the truth. In these remaining days of this liturgical
year and throughout the new one which begins next weekend, we must witness
to the truth about life, beginning at conception and ending only at natural
death; the truth about marriage, as the union between one man and one
woman, and only that; the truth about reaching out to the poor and needy
in order to reveal to them God’s love; the truth about God’s
presence and action in our individual lives and in society. Yes, we are
those who belong to the Kingdom of Christ and so, whether convenient or
inconvenient, we witness to the truth, which He is and which He proclaims
through His Church.
The dialogue between Jesus and each one of us began here in the prayer
of the Mass on the Solemnity of Christ the King. This dialogue will be
lived out each day in the real world. “Yes, Lord Jesus, be the King
of my heart! Let me witness to Your truth! Let me love You always and
then do with me what You will. Amen.”
Copyright (c) 2006 Arlington Catholic
Herald
