Allocution, November 20, Feast of Christ the King
(Singing)
Today, Sunday, November 20, all Catholic Churches celebrate the Feast of Christ the King and we listen to the Gospel according to Saint Luke, chapter 23, verses 35 to 43.
(Gospel)
Perhaps the thief who said, “Jesus, remember me when you come to your kingdom,” would hear in some way or another that there was a preacher of a kingdom. Chapter 13 of the Gospel according to Saint Matthew explains this kingdom through the parables of the sower, the tares, the mustard seed, the yeast, the pearl, the treasure. When Jesus speaks of the Kingdom of God he is speaking of the force that God’s actions have among men. He speaks to them, he continues speaking to them, he opens their ears and when he listens, we as human beings can improve in all the senses of personal, family, ecclesial and social life.
The Kingdom of God, which is not a territory but the life of love, transforms everything. But the Kingdom of God is made present through the efforts of the little ones, apparently insignificant: the Virgin, the carpenter Saint Joseph, the shepherds, the Apostles and many other people that the Gospels tell us about. Jesus asks God the Father: “Your kingdom come.” The Kingdom of God is not fully achieved and it is what should encourage us to never rest, not to resign, not to stop, not to lament, but to continue announcing the Gospel, teaching the catechism, practicing the works of mercy; then one day we will experience the surprise and joy that can invade us when we discover that God is a Father and never abandons his children and we can grow in Faith and love.
Perhaps the good thief heard all this from comments that came to the prison from the street or perhaps from a good person who announced to the inmates the good news of the Kingdom of Christ. And the good thief looked at the sign on the cross where Christ was: “Jesus of Nazarene, king of the Jews,” written in Hebrew, Latin and Greek. The good thief said to himself: “This is the king I want. The king who trusts me despite my evil, the king who welcomes everyone with affection, the king who suffers with me innocently.” The good thief had also heard that the kingdom would come to its fullness in the house of heaven, so he shouted: “Remember me when you arrive at your kingdom,” and Christ responded: “Today you will be with me in paradise.”
We too can say to Christ today: “Remember me now that you are in your kingdom; remember me so that from now on I can live in your kingdom; Remember me so that your kingdom may be present in my home, my family, my neighbors, my friends… and as it is a kingdom for everyone, also in my enemies. We pray with the Universal Church in the Anaphora of First Reconciliation:
“Help us prepare for the coming of your kingdom, until the hour when we stand before you holy among the saints in heaven. With Saint Mary the Virgin, Saint Joseph and the Apostles and with our deceased brothers we entrust you to your mercy. Then, in the new creation, freed at last from all corruption, we will sing to you the Thanksgiving of Jesus Christ, your anointed one who lives forever.”
We pray with Saint Anselm:
“Today you will be with me in paradise. I believe, oh Lord, I firmly believe that where you want and where you are, there is paradise and that to be in paradise is to be in communion with you. The thief, turned into a venerable confessor of the Faith and a glorious martyr, remained with you for all that day, for all that today and then for all eternity. How beautiful it is to be with you and how blessed are those who remain with you! They are truly in paradise, they are truly in the kingdom, those who are with you by virtue of Faith and love. Your cross, oh Lord!, promises paradise and gives paradise. That is why I humbly adore your cross, I adore you on the cross and the cross in you. I worship the cross because of him who hangs on the cross; I adore him whom the thief adored and I beg him as he begged him: “Lord, remember me when you come to your kingdom.” Recognize in me, Lord, this prayer as you recognized it in the thief; Receive this prayer from your servant as you received it from that servant of yours. Remember me from your kingdom, as you remembered him from the cross… Amen.”
(Singing)
Pope Francis, in a wheelchair, tells us about the kingdom of Bahrain:
“The spirit is a source of joy. The sweet water that the Lord wants to make flow in the deserts of our humanity, amassed with earth and fragility, is the certainty of never being alone on the path of life. In fact, the spirit is the one that does not leave us alone, it is the comforter. He encourages us with his discreet and beneficial presence, he accompanies us with love, he supports us in struggles and difficulties; animates our most beautiful dreams and our greatest desires, opening us to the wonder and beauty of life. That is why the joy of the spirit is not an occasional state or an emotion of the moment, nor is it a kind of consumerist and individualistic joy, so present in some cultural experiences today. On the other hand, joy in the spirit is that which is born from the relationship with God, from knowing that, even in the difficulties and dark nights that we sometimes go through, we are not alone, lost or defeated, because he is with us and With it we can face and overcome everything, even the abysses of pain and death. Keep it. Even more, multiply it. And do you know what is the best way to do this? Giving it. Yes, that’s right, Christian joy is contagious, because the Gospel makes it come out of itself to communicate the beauty of God’s love. Therefore, it is essential that in Christian communities joy does not decline and is shared, that we do not limit ourselves to repeating gestures out of routine, without enthusiasm, without creativity, otherwise we will lose Faith and become a boring community, and that’s bad. It is important that in addition to the liturgy, particularly in the celebration of the mass, source and summit of Christian life, we circulate the joy of the Gospel, also through dynamic pastoral action, especially for young people, the family and vocations. to priestly and religious life. Christian joy cannot be kept to oneself. Only when we circulate it does it multiply.”
(Singing)
Tradition has it that there was a fourth Wizard King who arrived late to the appointment with the other three to help an old man. He traveled on his own to Bethlehem, but the Holy Family had already left for Egypt, where he tried to look for them to no avail, as he always got involved helping someone in need. Having returned to his place of origin, the three Wise Men told him everything about the baby Jesus and in his heart he promised to find him. When after 30 years he heard what was said about the Prophet of Galilee he wanted to see him. Unfortunately, he never arrived at the right time, as he always had to attend to the miseries he encountered along the way. Finally, as an old man, he managed to see Jesus going up to Golgotha, and he said to him: “All my life I have looked for you without being able to find you.” Jesus answered: “You didn’t need to look for me because you have always been by my side in my kingdom of love. Now come with me to enjoy the fullness of the Kingdom of Heaven in the glory of God the Father.
(Singing)
One day, a wise and pious man cried to heaven asking for the Kingdom of Heaven to become a reality on earth. That man led a group of missionaries who prayed for World Peace to ensure that borders did not exist and that all people lived happily. The question I asked was: What is the key, Lord, for the world to live in harmony? Then the heavens opened and after a magnificent roar the voice of God told them: “comfort.” All the missionaries looked at each other, surprised and surprised to hear such a term from God’s own voice. The wise and pious man asked again: “Comfort, Lord, what do you mean by that? God responded, “The key to a loving world is like say, give. That is, as I gave to you, give to your neighbor; As I said, give yourselves Faith; As I said, give yourselves hope; As I said, give charity; As I said, give without limits, without thinking about anything other than giving. Give to the world and the world will be a paradise. Let us live, then, this key word: as-di-dad.
(Singing)
We pray with Bishop Víctor Manuel Fernández, Archbishop of La Plata, Argentina: “Come, Holy Spirit, spirit of hope. When it seems like all is lost, see the spirit of hope; When you believe that everyone is selfish and self-serving, you see a spirit of hope; When you feel like it’s not worth starting something new, see the spirit of hope; When I think I can no longer change, come spirit of hope; When you believe that nothing beautiful can be expected from life, you see a spirit of hope; When it seems to me that the civilization of love is nothing more than a utopia, see a spirit of hope; When I feel that I can no longer do anything for family peace, see a spirit of hope; When I get tired of fighting, come spirit of hope.”
(Our father)
Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with you, blessed are you among all women and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death… Amen.
We bow our heads to receive the blessing. At the end of each invocation we pray: Amen.
May the God of all comfort arrange your days in his peace and grant you the gift of his blessing… Amen.
Free them from all disturbance and strengthen their hearts in building the kingdom of love… Amen.
So that, enriched by the gifts of Faith, Hope and Charity, they may abound in good works in this life and achieve their fruits in eternal life… Amen.
And the blessing of Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit descend upon you and remain forever… Amen.
(Singing)