By Rev. Fr. Daniel Tetteh Tackie
READINGS: Ezek. 34:11-12, 15-17; 1 Cor. 15:20-26, 28; Mt. 25:31-46
THEME: SHARING IN CHRIST’S KINGSHIP THROUGH THE WORKS OF MERCY
On the last Sunday in the Liturgical Year, we honour Christ the King. It is a timely year-end call, to renew our loyalty to Jesus our Saviour, and to show our love for him in the way that we love our neighbour. Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King by considering readings from Scripture that speak of a Shepherd. This appears on the surface to be a logical disconnect because the king is the highest member of a society in the ancient world while the shepherd is the lowest. However, our Lord, Who is the highest Person in the universe, lowered Himself and became less than a slave. He calls Himself the Good Shepherd and, thereby, shows that on the spiritual plane the offices of King and Shepherd are one and the same.
In today’s First Reading from the Book of Ezekiel, we heard of God’s promise that He Himself would come as the Shepherd of His sheep to seek them out and rescue them from where they have been scattered. In this passage, we perceive the unforgotten love of a King who takes care of His subjects. God said, “I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed my sheep with justice.” [Ezek. 34:16]
Here, we see the justice of the Eternal King who was yet to be proclaimed as the King of kings. Israel was in exile as a result of kings who used their power and authority to exalt themselves. Ezekiel comforted Israel with the vision of God himself coming to be their shepherd king, guiding, defending, and judging among his people.
St. Paul’s message to the Corinthians speaks about Christ, the King of Kings who will turn over his Kingdom to the Father on judgment day. The Gospel is very forthright about the way the true Shepherd, the Son of Man, will himself separate the faithful ones from those unfaithful to God’s ways of justice and mercy on that inevitable Day of Judgment.
Today’s Reading from the Gospel of Matthew discloses to us what will happen just before all of this is accomplished. Jesus will come in His glory with all the angels. He will sit on the Throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him and He will separate the sheep from the goats, the sheep at His right and the goats at His left. To the sheep, those who have persevered in their living faith until the end, Jesus will say, come, you that are blessed by My Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For when I was hungry, you gave me food. When I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink… For as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me. To the goats on His left, He will say, you that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. When I was hungry, you did not feed me. When I was thirsty, you gave me nothing to drink… (Refer to today’s Gospel)
Discerning from the Gospel, what are the lessons for us?
We are not always aware of the good we might be doing. We do not always appreciate how significant our actions are to others or how much our presence means to them. In some ways that can be a good thing, because it can prevent us from becoming too proud, or taking ourselves too seriously. In other ways, it may not be a good thing because we can fail to value something in ourselves that others value much. We may be tempted to give up doing something that people really value because we are unaware of how significant it is. We may think we are doing nothing particularly worthwhile, when in fact we may be doing something of real value.
The “Goats” in the story, by implication, had done all the “pious” things that they thought would earn them their heavenly reward. They went to Mass every day. They said a daily Rosary. They never forgot to say their daily prayers. And they did their best to avoid contact with sin and sinners. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? Well, something very important is missing. The “Goats” had acted well in “avoiding” sin and sinners; but they had done nothing in the area of works of mercy. Jesus is crystal clear about our responsibilities as His disciples. We are to actively participate in the mission of Jesus, reaching out to those in need.
Let us remember that the care we give to others is the care we give to Jesus and this will be the wealth that we will take to the next life. When we sacrifice and practise the corporal works of mercy, we are likely to receive mercy from God. Jesus is King of our lives and his kingdom is coming. When we do not practise sacrificial love for others, Jesus’ kingdom is hindered. But the more perfectly we perform the corporal works of mercy the more perfectly we can hope to hear Jesus say to us, “Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Matt 25:40)
The readings at the end of each Church cycle are all about the End Times. Let them send a warning to shiver up your spine. Do not get caught being unprepared! You know what is expected of you; do it! Amen.
