Ken Sehested
Invocation. “O King of the nations, and their desire, / the cornerstone who makes both one: / Come and save the human race / which you fashioned from clay.” —English translation of lyrics to “O Rex Gentium” (“O King of Nations”), performed by the monks of St. Meinrad
§ § §
Some years ago I was invited to speak at a conference in Brazil. Three young pastors met me at the Rio de Janeiro airport. On our way into town, one pointed out we were about to pass close to the iconic, 124-foot tall “Cristo Redentor” (“Christ the Redeemer”) statue atop the towering Mount Concovado overlooking the city. You’ve probably seen it on television, if not in person.
As we approached, I craned my neck to look up and said, in a soft voice, “Don’t jump. Don’t jump.”
Whereupon the whole car broke out in laughter. I knew then I was with kindred folk.
The campaign to raise funds for the statue was organized in 1920 by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Rio de Janeiro, at least in part as a protest against the growing “godlessness” in the culture.
The protectors of godliness are, in every age and place, constantly warning against the impious, depicting them as chimeras: monsters who refuse to genuflect in the presence of reigning authorities, gnarled creatures who defy nature’s boundaries.
As was asserted by Scottish-English King James I, in responding to dissident pastor (later co-founder of the first so-named Baptist congregation) Thomas Helwys’ rejection of regnant religious authority, said “It would be only half a king who controlled his subjects’ bodies but not their souls.”
Helwys, who died in James’ Newgate prison in 1616, may have been the first martyr for religious liberty.
§ § §
Word. “God is not in his heaven and all’s well on the earth. He is on this earth and all hell’s broke loose!” —Clarence Jordan
§ § §
The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, commonly referred to as Christ the King Sunday (aka Reign of Christ Sunday) is among the newer observances in the church’s lectionary calendar. It was promulgated by Roman Catholic Pope Pius XI in 1925, as a reaction to the perceived growth of secularism, escalating nationalism, and surging anti-clericalism. As it now stands, it is the final Sunday in the lectionary calendar, ushering in a new “year” beginning with Advent.
Numerous other denominations which follow the Revised Common Lectionary also observe the day as the culmination of the annual narrative of Jesus’ birth, life, death, and resurrection.
As is the case with most every liturgical observance, this Sunday’s focus has both redemptive and reactionary overtones and implications.
Obviously, all kingly and lordly language is problematic for upholding the legitimacy of feudal rule in human affairs and the historic subjugation of and indignity toward women. The absolute rule of kings and assorted other potentates is said to be divinely patterned and codified according to heavenly precedent.
As in heaven, so on earth, giving transcendent legitimacy to existing governance. By implication, the notion that “outside the church there is no salvation” became sanction for the church’s exclusive, domineering authority.
It would take many generations of discrimination, oppression, exile, torture, and martyrdom to bring about a democratizing of access to the Holy. Then of course, I’m remembering my conversation with my friend Fr. Gerry, a Glenmary priest, where I was grousing about some irksome statement by the Pope. He commiserated, but then said, “At least we only have one pope; you Baptists have them on every corner.”
§ § §
Hymn of intercession. “Oh Lord remember me / Oh Lord remember me / When these chains get broken, set my body free / Oh Lord remember me.” —”Lord, Remember Me,” Ruthie Foster, featuring the Blind Boys of Alabama
§ § §
Nevertheless, Pius XI’s stipulation of a “Christ the King” observance can also be interpreted in a way that bolsters, rather than hinders, resistance to monarchal privilege and virulent nationalisms of every kind. We can rightfully say that Jesus’ “lordship” undermines and destabilizes every form of lording.
Also in 1925 (when construction of the Christ the Redeemer statue was underway), Adolf Hitler published the first volume of his manifesto, Mein Kampf, where he lays the foundation of his racially supremacist views. This was also the year when 40,000 members of the Ku Klux Klan marched in Washington, DC. Thought at that time to be the largest fraternal organization in the country, they were already using the “America First” slogan, recently retrieved for political discourse.
In this same period Benito Mussolini assumed power as the fascist dictator of Italy. Joseph Stalin had succeeded Vladamir Lenin’s Bolshevik revolution in the Soviet Union. Francisco Franco was rising through the ranks of the Spanish military, on his way to establishing his militaristic dictatorship.
Nationalism was contagious, and authoritarian leadership was epidemic, prompted in part by the chaos and industrialized belligerence of World War I.*
§ § §
Hymn of supplication. “Jesus, Remember Me,” Taizé
§ § §
In John’s Gospel, when Pilate asks him about his kingship, Jesus replies “My kingdom is not of this world” (18:36). The “world” to which he referred was not the earth. Rather, the world is that complex web of relationships built on exploitation, jealousy, fraud, and violence. Jesus added that if it were (based on this world order), “my followers would fight” and violently resist arrest.
A few verses prior, Jesus rebukes Peter’s act of violent resistance. In Matthew’s telling (26:53) of Peter’s impulsive reaction and Jesus’ rebuke, Jesus says he could, if he chose, easily mobilize 12 legions of angels to assure his rescue.
This Sunday’s lection from Daniel’s fantastical prophecy is riveted on the appearance of “one like a human being,” who, on presentation before the Ancient One, was given “dominion” such that “all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him (7:13-14). The New Testament’s take is that this dominion is not like customary human rule, where some are expendable, sacrificed for the sake of the lordly and their minion. Rather, to serve this new Lord entails serving the interests of the forgotten, the forlorn, and the feeble. This kingdom is upside down, inside out, a deconstructed realm reconstructed according to the dictates of peace rooted in justice, Earth reflecting Heaven’s bounty and benefaction.
And in the psalmist’s imagination, the “Lord” shall redeem the land of Promise and become the habitation of the Most High (132: 13-14; see also Revelation 21:3), made manifest in the realm of microbes and molecules, where abundant provision is available (specifically, bread for the poor) and shouts of joy waft eternally.
Indeed, in the testimony of David, this inverted governance is the locus of just rule, ordered prosperity is aplenty, and all shall dwell “like the sun rising on a cloudless morning” from everlasting to everlasting (2 Samuel 23:1-7).
On that Glad Morning, such a realm and such a regent shall throw off the rule of scarcity and stringency. Power brokers will bankrupt. Hoarders will be evicted. “America first” claims will dissipate with the New Day’s arising sun and never be heard of again—and all her victims, restored and rejoicing in the Blessed Countenance.
Laughter will erupt when the mouths of the piety fraudsters are sealed, forever and ever, amen.
§ § §
Benediction. “My heart, my hands, they’re kingdom bound, Glo-ory / Where thorns no longer curse the ground, Gl-ory / Trim the wick, ignite the flame, Glo-ory / My work, it will not be in vain, Glo-ory / Oh, we labor unto glory, Till heaven and earth are one / O, we labor unto glory, Until God’s kingdom comes.” —“We Labor Unto Glory,” The Porter’s Gate
*I am indebted to T. Denise Anderson for historical background from her “November 24: Reign of Christ Sunday,” Christian Century, November 2024.
# # #
