Christ the King

This Sunday the Church celebrates the Solemnity of Christ the King. It is an important feast for many reasons two of the most important is that it reaffirms the person of Christ as a Divine person and that the season of waiting will soon be upon us - Advent.

The Gospel text that is used is Luke 23:35-43. This is the passage which contains the famous "INRI" that was in-scripted over the head of Jesus by the Romans. Did we ever wonder what that inscription meant? We basically know it as "Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews." One must remember the Romans had no ulterior motive about Jesus, they put Him to death because of political unrest, the sentence being treason. The Romans could care less whether Jesus called Himself God's Son or made Himself out to be God. However, the inscription INRI means much much more than what is presented in the Roman initials. The Jewish people would have cringed to see it, especially those who plotted Jesus' death.

In Hebrew Jesus the Nazarene (or of Nazareth) King of the Jews would have been Jeshua Hanozri Wumelech Haiehudim. The abbreviated or initialed form would have been JHWH. It could not be clearer, that even while dying Jesus was still revealing Himself to the world as "YHWH," God incarnate. That is why the Jews asked that the sign be taken down, but the Romans refused because they didn't see the Hebrew meaning.

First off, what are the odds that Jesus' name, place of birth, place and time of death, and by the Romans would lead to that inscription being placed at the head of the Cross and that it would read the sacred name of God, "JHWH?" They would be astronomical.

Jesus is truly King of kings. That title may have been used by others, but their message was one of power and control while Jesus' message was about love, forgiveness, and to become more like God.

When we look at the Cross what do we see? Do we see our savior God? Do we see ourselves up on that Cross with Him? When we were baptized that inscription was engraved into us, for we share Jesus' life so intimately we become images of Him. We are not God, but we are like Him, for the very reason that Jesus lives in us through the sacraments. Everything that was His is given to us. If so, let us truly live that inscription so just like the good thief, Jesus will also promise us that kingdom and say to us, "Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."

Fr. John Picinic