Spiritual Essay #3


The feast of Christ the King always occurs on the last Sunday of the Liturgical year. The very next Sunday after the celebration of Christ the King is the First Sunday of Advent. In the Gospel of this day, Pilate asks Jesus if He is the King of the Jews. Since these are the first words spoken by Pilate to Jesus, it seems to be the leading accusation made by the Jews to convict Jesus to death. Jesus' first response is vague but after that initial response His answers are direct. Pilate asks "Then are you a King?" and Jesus replies, "You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice." (John 18:37) It is obvious that Pilate does not wish to get involved in God's Word. He shuns Jesus' response. Baptism brings kingship to believers, a royalty that means everyday service to all who cross our paths, especially the poor. The concept that the Lord came to govern as a sovereign King is firmly implanted in Holy Scripture. In St. Paul's Letter to the Colossians (1:12-14), "He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." And, the passage in 1 Corinthians 15: 23b-27 states this even stronger--"Christ the firstfruits; then, at his coming, those who belong to Christ; then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to his God and Father, when he has destroyed every sovereignty and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death, for 'he subjected everything under his feet.' But when it says that everything has been subjected, it is clear that it excludes the one who subjected everything to him." Daily newscasts and newspaper articles tell us about the deplorable situation of human society. There is a deliberate lack of respect for life. I also pray for the people involved in providing, allowing and encouraging abortion that they may come to see what they are doing and repent! News headlines about advances in biogenetics make me shudder. There is a strong moral implication in what is being suggested. We are trying to play God. Euthanasia of the elderly, already practiced in some countries, is a real threat to us. Doesn't anyone remember the Ten Commandments? Let's follow them. Let's obey these rules before it is too late. Christ the King, I ask Your forgiveness for my sins and for the sins of the world. Let us ask Christ the King for his Mercy and Redemption. Fred Schaeffer, SFO 11/18/2009

The feast of Christ the King always occurs on the last Sunday of the Liturgical year. The very next Sunday after the celebration of Christ the King is the First Sunday of Advent. In the Gospel of this day, Pilate asks Jesus if He is the King of the Jews. Since these are the first words spoken by Pilate to Jesus, it seems to be the leading accusation made by the Jews to convict Jesus to death. Jesus' first response is vague but after that initial response His answers are direct. Pilate asks "Then are you a King?" and Jesus replies, "You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice." (John 18:37)

It is obvious that Pilate does not wish to get involved in God's Word. He shuns Jesus' response. Baptism brings kingship to believers, a royalty that means everyday service to all who cross our paths, especially the poor. The concept that the Lord came to govern as a sovereign King is firmly implanted in Holy Scripture. In St. Paul's Letter to the Colossians (1:12-14), "He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." And, the passage in 1 Corinthians 15: 23b-27 states this even stronger--"Christ the firstfruits; then, at his coming, those who belong to Christ; then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to his God and Father, when he has destroyed every sovereignty and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.

The last enemy to be destroyed is death, for 'he subjected everything under his feet.' But when it says that everything has been subjected, it is clear that it excludes the one who subjected everything to him." Daily newscasts and newspaper articles tell us about the deplorable situation of human society. There is a deliberate lack of respect for life.

I also pray for the people involved in providing, allowing and encouraging abortion that they may come to see what they are doing and repent! News headlines about advances in biogenetics make me shudder. There is a strong moral implication in what is being suggested. We are trying to play God. Euthanasia of the elderly, already practiced in some countries, is a real threat to us. Doesn't anyone remember the Ten Commandments? Let's follow them. Let's obey these rules before it is too late. Christ the King, I ask Your forgiveness for my sins and for the sins of the world.

Let us ask Christ the King for his Mercy and Redemption.

Fred Schaeffer, SFO
11/18/2009