Word to the Wise
Sunday, November 26, 2023 - 34th or Last Sunday in Ordinary Time - A: The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ the King
[Ezek 34:11-12, 15-17; 1 Cor 15:20-26, 28; Matt 25:31-46]"I myself will look after and tend my sheep. As a shepherd tends his flock when he finds himself among his scattered sheep, so will I tend my sheep. I will rescue them from every place where they were scattered when it was cloudy and dark. I myself will shepherd my sheep; I myself will give them rest.....The lost will seek out, the strayed I will bring back, the insured I will bind up, the sick I will heal, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy, shepherding them rightly. As for you, my sheep, says the Lord God, I will judge between onesheep and another, between rams and goats. [Ezekiel] Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through man, the resurrection of the dead came also through man. [ 1 Corinthians] When the Son of Man comes in all his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.....[Matthew]
The full liturgical (official) title of today's feast is OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, KING OF THE UNIVERSE! It's quite a contrast with the image of a shepherd. The first scripture from the prophet Ezekiel emphasizes the shepherd King. The second scripture from St. Paul speaks to a kind of cosmic resolution of all creation at the end of time in the person of Christ. The third scripture, the well known parable of the Last Judgment in the Gospel According to Matthew, seems to combine the two images. Christ is pictured as a king sitting on a royal throne surrounded by angels and separating sheep from goats (which Ezekiel also mentions). It is all a rich mixture of images inviting feelings from awe and comfort to fear and trembling. The old saying comes to mind, "You can run, but you can't hide!"
One may focus on the figure of the shepherd, perhaps recalling Jesus' own image in the Gospel According to John: "I am the good shepherd..." [John 10:11] - a kind and gentle image which also requires firm work - like being a parent or a religious superior! Or one may focus on the monarchical glorious "King of the Universe" and entertain fantasies of the final gathering in the presence of the enthroned Son of Man. These two images may help one to try and escape the image of the judge who confronts us with the way we have treated one another and, without realizing it, treated Jesus Christ himself - a king "disguised" in the person of our neighbor. But the effort to escape will be futile. Jesus is all of these images and more - the Lord of all creation, down to the last microbe and the furthest star. It's a last glorious and daunting reflection before we start all over again next weekend with the First Sunday of Advent!!! AMEN