The Solemnity of Christ the King, which every Catholic throughout the entire world is celebrating today, is a new thing.  The Church has existed for almost 2000 years, but this Solemnity is less than 100 years old.  It was established by Pope Pius XI in 1925.  He explained his reasons for doing so in an encyclical letter called "Quas primas".

First he explained that throughout history liturgical feasts have been instituted in response to particular needs that arise in the life of the world and the Church (#22).  He gives the example of the feasts in honor of the martyrs, of the celebration of Corpus Christi and the Sacred Heart.

Then he explains which need this new celebration addresses.  Pope Pius XI was writing this encyclical in 1925, when the world was still trying to recover from World War I, which had devastated Europe and shattered modernity's hopes for unlimited progress based solely on human reason.  It was also only a few years after the Russian Bolshevik Revolution, which had given birth to the world's first explicitly atheist totalitarian regime: Soviet communism.  Everywhere the pope looked, he saw human societies abandoning Christian values and trying to build paradise on earth through other means.

However, if humanity had been able to perfect itself by itself, without God's help, then Jesus Christ would never have come to earth.  The fact is, Jesus did come.  He brought his Gospel and his grace to a fallen race, and only by believing in that Gospel and accepting that grace can individuals and societies achieve true and lasting peace and prosperity.

Pope Pius XI instituted today's Solemnity as a way to remind the world that to reject Christ, either in private life or in public life, is to reject our only hope, and to accept him is to accept salvation.   As Pope Pius XI wrote: "...When once men recognize, both in private and in public life, that Christ is King, society will at last receive the great blessings of real liberty, well-ordered discipline, peace and harmony... That these blessings may be abundant and lasting in Christian society, it is necessary that the kingship of our Savior should be as widely as possible recognized and understood, and to that end nothing would serve better than the institution of a special feast in honor of the Kingship of Christ." (Quas primas, #19, 21)

One of the main themes of Pope Pius XI's encyclical is the link between private and public life.  He stresses that Christ truly is the King of the Universe, that he will reign forever, and that the Church on earth is the beginning of his Kingdom.  It is not enough, therefore, for Christians to hold onto their faith just in their private lives.  We must bring Christ and Christian values into culture, politics, and every sphere of society.  If we truly believe in Christ, why would we be afraid of defending and spreading Christian values?  Why would we let ourselves be bullied by secular fundamentalists who try to exclude Christ from culture?

In 1908, the famous English historian and writer, Hilaire Belloc ran for the British Parliament.  His opponents tried to scare off his supporters by claiming that Belloc's faithfulness to the Catholic Church would inhibit him from being objective.  Belloc responded in a speech: "Gentlemen, I am a Catholic. As far as possible, I go to Mass every day. This [taking his beads out of his pocket] is a rosary. As far as possible, I kneel down and tell its beads every day.

"If you reject me on account of my religion, I shall thank God for having spared me the indignity of being your representative."

The crowd was shocked for a minute, and then burst out in applause.  Belloc went on to win that election, and many more.

If Catholics cannot bring Christ's wisdom, goodness, and grace into our society, what do we have to offer?  Our paltry human wisdom? Our own tendencies to selfishness? Our shortsightedness?  If Christ truly is King, which he is, we should not be afraid to spread his Kingdom.

Being followers of Christ the King, as we are, doesn't mean that we should force people into the Church.  That is not Christ's method, and so it should not be ours.  As St. Pope John Paul II said more than once, the Church does not intolerantly impose its beliefs, she proposes them.

But we must be courageous in making that proposal.  We are ambassadors of Christ the King. We represent him to the world.  Through us, his wisdom enlightens culture.  Through us, his grace reaches into every corner of the human community and heals it of selfishness, greed, and injustice.

Our job as ambassadors is simply to be loyal.  That means first of all that we must know the King's desires and priorities.  Do we know them well? Are we constantly striving to know them better?  But an ambassador also must put the King's program into action.  Are we are being active ambassadors? Is Christ's truth and grace reaching more people through us, through our words, deeds, and example?

We are called to know Christ's message better and better, and to deliver it wherever Providence sends us.  Today as Christ comes once again to encourage, enlighten, and strengthen us in the Holy Eucharist, let's renew our faith in this great and eternal King, and let's renew our commitment to spread his Kingdom.