As you can see by looking around, this is a very special weekend for many of our children.1 In a few minutes they will be receiving the body and blood of Jesus for the very first time. Since this mass is for them, we have even used the readings taken from the Lectionary for Children so that they might have a better chance of understanding what we are hearing about our Lord today.
The readings for this weekend are also for a special day in our church year. Today we celebrate the “Feast of Christ the King.” This celebration marks the end of the church year. Next Sunday is the First Sunday of the Advent season. Four weeks later we’ll celebrate the “Feast of Christmas.” So, today, as you children look forward to receiving your first communion, you are also asked to think about Christ the King and to prepare for the coming of the Christ-Child.
As usual, I have some questions for you. First of all, did you listen to that first reading we heard today? Did you hear how all of the leaders of Israel gathered around David? And who was David? What did he do when he was still a teenager?
Yes, he killed the giant Goliath and saved his people. And later, when King Saul died, David became king of the Israelites. So now, all of his friends gathered around him. And what did they do? They poured olive oil on his head! The reading says that they did this to show that he was now the king of Israel.
Well, what do you think of that? Would you like to have olive oil poured on your head? Well, I know for a fact, that you did have olive oil poured on your head, even if you don’t remember it. Do you know when that was?
Yes, when you were baptized. Right after the water of Baptism was poured on your head, the priest or deacon smeared the top of your head with olive oil. It was holy oil and it was to remind all of your relatives and the friends of your family who were there that day, to remind them that you were baptized as “priest, prophet, and king.”
There’s a fancy word for that kind of pouring of olive oil on your head. We say that you were “anointed.” And there are two other fancy words that mean the same thing. One of them is in Hebrew and the other one is in Greek. Do you know what the Hebrew word for “anointed” is? Yes, it’s “Messiah.” And the Greek word for “anointed” is “Christos” … or “Christ.” So, we say that Jesus is the “Messiah” or the “Christ,” the “anointed one of God.” Or we can call him: Christ the King, the anointed king.
Now then, do you know of any other kings? I bet that when I say “king,” a lot of you immediately think of “Burger King.” And then there is “King Kong.” Or maybe you remember stories about King Arthur. Did you see that movie on TV a couple weeks ago with Whoopie Goldberg? Times do change, because many of your grandparents probably remember the movie version. Back in 1949 there was a movie called “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court” that starred Bing Crosby. Father Bill might recall the version with Will Rogers and Maureen O’Sullivan. And no, it wasn’t a silent movie. (1931)
Anyway, King Arthur is more of the kind of king I have in mind. Because at one time in history, kings were very important. They were a lot more important than they are now. Over the years they seem to have gotten a bum rap. Except maybe for King Arthur. Back then, the idea was that the king was to be the major protector of the people. He had to defend his people against attacks from enemies. And when he wasn’t protecting them from outsiders, he was supposed to defend the innocent … or be a friend to the poor. Kings back then were supposed to be the best of all possible leaders.
So when we talk about Christ the King, that’s the kind of king we mean. But in our Gospel Reading we heard about “Christ the King” in a somewhat different way. When the Roman soldiers nailed Jesus to the cross, they made fun of him. Above his head they also nailed a sign that said: “this is the king of the Jews.” And one of the men who was being crucified along side of Jesus insulted him even further by saying: “If you’re really the king of the jews, if you are really the messiah, the anointed one of God, then why don’t you save yourself and us, too?”
But the second criminal hanging on the other cross, he believed that Jesus really was the anointed one and he said to Jesus: “Remember me when you come into your kingdom.” In response, Jesus promised him that they would, indeed, be together in that kingdom that very day.
And you know, Jesus makes that same promise to each one of us. He promises that you, too, will enter into his kingdom. You began that journey into God’s kingdom several years ago. You took the first step at the moment you were baptized, although at the time, you probably weren’t actually walking. Most of you began your journey into the kingdom by being carried to those baptismal waters by your parents.
But now you are being asked to continue that journey with your own steps. You walked into your first reconciliation. Right? And in a few moments, you will step up to this altar and receive your first communion. In a few years, you will also walk before our bishop to receive holy oil a second time, when you are confirmed.
In our First Reading about King David, we also heard how he made an “agreement” with the leaders and how he asked the Lord to be their witness to that agreement. Well, in the Lectionary for adults, that word “agreement” is translated as “covenant,” which is the word for a special kind of agreement that God makes with us. It’s that kind of agreement your mother and father made with one another when they got married. And someday perhaps you, too, will make that covenant agreement with someone you love very much. Or maybe some of you may have another special anointing when oil is poured on your hands and you become a priest.
But there is also another time for pouring olive oil on you. It happens to those who receive the sacrament of the sick as was done here at this altar several weeks ago. And finally, there is the last time that holy oil is used, when it’s part of the final anointing, a time for the sacrament once called “Extreme Unction,” the last anointing.
And so it is that there are many opportunities in your life when you may have olive oil poured on you to remind you that, in Christ and with the Holy Spirit, you have been anointed as “priest, prophet and king” just as David was, just as Jesus was. And each time you will be strengthened, once more, for the journey into God’s kingdom. But you don’t have to wait to receive olive oil in order to be strengthened.
Today, in a few minutes, you will be given the first of many times when you can gain the strength of Jesus. You can be nourished with holy food every day of the week, if you want to. You can get the power of the Holy Spirit every Sunday for the rest of your life, if you want to. All you need to do is to continue to receive communion whenever you can. As Father Bill might say: “you can eat the breakfast of champions every day, if you want to.”
Today, the church throughout the world celebrates the Feast of Christ the King. Today the entire church remembers how Jesus is with us as our protector and leader. However, for many of us, we have another way to remember that Jesus, our Christ, is our protector and our leader. On the last Sunday of the church year, we might call him “Christ the King,” but every day, every time we come to this place to be with him, and to receive him in the Eucharist, in the communion bread and wine, we also recall that we journey with, and are under the protection of, “Christ, the Good Shepherd,” who calls each of you to journey with him in the company of your friends and relatives, as you continue on your way to the kingdom of God.
Thirty-fourth or Last Sunday in Ordinary Time (Christ the King); November 22, 1998
2 Sam 5:1-3; Col 1:12-20; Lk 23:25-43 (Children’s Lectionary)
- This is a “children’s” homily, albeit it is really addressed to the adults in the congregation as well. The words, in many cases are “adult” words. However, should children also not be exposed to good, “adult” words? The opening paragraph was modified for the adult-only, early morning liturgy as follows: “This morning’s homily is a little different than what you might normally hear from me on the usual Sunday. This weekend at all of our masses … except for this one at 7:30, many of our children are receiving Communion for the first time. My homily was directed to them. And because I didn’t have the chance to work on two entirely different homilies, you may need to pretend that you are a child again, about to receive your First Holy Communion, which isn’t too bad a memory, I hope. It might even be a very good one: to recapture the excitement of that day.”