By Msgr. Joseph Prior • Posted November 21, 2025

(See the readings for the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe)

“Today, you will be with me in paradise,” Jesus says to the thief dying next to Him on a cross. The guilty man dying next to the innocent acknowledges Jesus as Lord when he says: “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

It is Jesus’ kingship we celebrate this Sunday on the Solemnity of Christ the King. The unwitting words of Pilate, “Behold your king!” or the inscription he orders for the cross, “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews” are acclamations of God’s reign over the world.

Jesus dies on the cross that we might live, for “God did not send His son to condemn the world but that the world might have life through Him” (John 3:17). His perfect sacrifice of praise, the offering of His life, the emptying of Himself in complete love and trust is the act of obedience that not only heals the sin of Adam but raises Him as king. He has conquered sin. He has conquered death. There is no force in the world that has power over Him. He reigns supreme.

As king, Jesus shepherds us through life to life. His kingship is unique but it has its roots in the kings of Israel, particularly in the line of David. He is grafted onto this line through adoption by Joseph, his foster father. David had shepherded Israel to peace and stability. Under his leadership, the unity of the tribes was maintained, the borders for the kingdom were secured and a general peace existed in the land.

Unfortunately, this was not to last as by the end of his successor’s reign the kingdom broke apart. The Davidic line continued in Judah and lasted until the Babylonian exile. Yet the hope of restoration of the kingship endured. This hope was fulfilled in Jesus, the Christ.

Jesus’ kingship, however, is not limited to the people of Israel. He is king of the universe. His kingdom is eternal and for all peoples. In Him we, as a people, have experienced the saving love of God. The celebration this Sunday invites us to reaffirm His kingship. He is the king, we are His people. The affirmation is a proclamation in word and deed; in words of praise and thanksgiving; in deeds of love and mercy.

Thanksgiving Day is on the minds of many this week as that holiday is soon approaching. The day is one of giving thanks for our country, the bounty of its land, the freedoms we enjoy and the security she offers. The festivities and particularly the meal in which we partake are traditions long developed in our country, our neighborhoods and most particularly in our families. They are well loved and cherished by many.

Perhaps this day, as we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King, we might take inspiration from the effort and energy with which we celebrate Thanksgiving Day, along with its joys and hopes, and channel them into our thanksgiving for Christ, our king.

St. Paul urges us to such thanksgiving in the passage from Colossians from the second reading in Sunday’s liturgy. He writes: “Let us give thanks to the Father, who has made you fit to share in the inheritance of the holy ones in light. 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.”

There is nothing greater for which to be thankful as everything deserving thanks flows from Him who loves us.

Jesus is the king who laid down His life so that we, His people, might live. He gave completely of Himself to manifest God’s love and mercy. Our acclamation of Him is a song of praise and the summation of all our thanksgivings.

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Msgr. Joseph Prior is pastor of Our Lady of Grace Parish, Penndel, and a former professor of Sacred Scripture and rector of St. Charles Borromeo Seminary. Read more reflections by Msgr. Joseph Prior here.