[RCL] 2 Samuel 23:1-7; Psalm 132:1-13 (14-19); Revelation 1:4b-8; John 18:33-37 Happy Christ the King Sunday! Here we are on Christ the King, on the very cusp of Advent. Part of the supposition of this day is that everyone might have a working knowledge or direct experience of kings. In this modern age, very few…

This sermon is being written the day after the massacre of eleven congregants of the Jewish temple in Pittsburgh. As we approach the end of our Christian year and focus on the reign of Christ the King, we ponder this event and many other events of violence and terror, the mayhem and madness that stalk…

For most of us, living as we do in a republic, imbued with democratic values, the very concept of monarchy seems remote and eccentric. True, some of us enjoy watching or reading about the latest headlines about the House of Windsor. But in an election year, even the beautiful Duchess of Cambridge or her husband…

“What’s in a name?” the Bard asks. At first sight, the title Christ the King seems to us moderns a bit antique. After all, we have just elected a president. We even elect our bishops and rectors. There is something else rather odd about the title given to Jesus in today’s feast. The word “christ”…

“Where is he who is born king of the Jews?” the magi asked. That question alerted Herod to the presence of a rival in his midst. To eliminate the rival he had his soldiers kill all children in an entire region of his realm. “Are you the king of the Jews?” Pilate asked Jesus mockingly….

It is an extraordinary scene. Into the room swaggers the representative of the dominant nation on earth, wearing the uniform that spells power and authority. He probably sinks languidly onto his couch. As the local focus of Empire, this man is burdened with the daily responsibility of ruling probably the most difficult of the colonies….

When we think of kings and queens, we easily link the thought to tyranny or scandal. Living in a republican democracy, it is difficult for us understand what possible connection there might be between Jesus and monarchy. After all, Jesus was “meek and mild.” He was so humble that he rode a donkey into Jerusalem…

It is the Franciscans, followers of Saint Francis of Assisi, who have led the church to designate this last Sunday of the Christian year the Sunday of Christ the King, celebrating the ultimate kingship of Jesus in our lives. Celebrating the fact that we are a people who like Jesus choose to live in God’s…