[This Sunday] we are celebrating the Solemnity of Christ the King and the Church invites us to contemplate the kingship of the Redeemer that emerges very forcefully from the lives of the saints...
Their witness shows that the Crucified One truly "lives and reigns for ever and ever". Yes, he is "the Living God", "the Lord" and he reigns in the lives of men and women of every place and time who accept him freely and follow him faithfully. His Kingdom, "a kingdom of justice, love, and peace" (Preface) will only be manifested fully at the end of time.
If it is assessed according to the criteria of this world, Jesus' kingship can appear "paradoxical". Indeed, the power he exercises does not fit into earthly logic. On the contrary, his is the power of love and service that requires the gratuitous gift of self and the consistent witness to the truth (cf. Jn 18,37).
This is why the Lord gave his life as "an immaculate victim of peace on the altar of the Cross" (Preface), knowing that only in this way could he redeem humanity, history and the cosmos from the slavery of sin and death. His Resurrection attests that he is the victorious King, the "Lord" in heaven and on earth and under the earth (cf. Phil 2,10-11).
The creature who more than any other is associated with Christ's kingship is Mary, whom he himself crowned Queen of heaven and earth. The saints... looked to her as their constant model. Let us also turn our eyes to her, so that she may help us "reign" with Christ to build a world where peace may "reign".
We must pray tirelessly to obtain this great gift that is peace: a gift for which humanity has so great a need... May Mary, Queen of Peace, intercede for us with her divine Son, immortal King and Lord of peace.
