Why a feast for Christ the King? Because only in the Kingdom of God, with Christ as King, will we find the peace we are looking for. Pope Pius XI instituted this feast in 1925. The world had just gone through World War I. He wrote in the encyclical Quas primas: “Men must look for the peace of Christ in the Kingdom of Christ…” (1). “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 the end nothing would serve better than the institution of a special feast in honor of the Kingship of Christ” (21).
Jesus said: “For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be” (Mt 6:21). “If to Christ our Lord is given all power in heaven and on earth; if all men, purchased by his precious blood, are by a new right subjected to his dominion; if this power embraces all men, it must be clear that not one of our faculties is exempt from his empire. He must reign in our minds…. He must reign in our wills…. He must reign in our hearts…. He must reign in our bodies and in our members…. If all these truths are presented to the faithful for their consideration, they will prove a powerful incentive to perfection” (33).
Pope Pius XI fervently desired that we turn ourselves to Christ as King so that we may receive the blessings of love, holiness, and peace in our lives. We celebrate the Feast of Christ the King every year at the end of the liturgical calendar to look to the end of time when Christ will return in glory as King to judge all of humanity. “¡Viva Cristo Rey!”
Jesus said: “For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be” (Mt 6:21). “If to Christ our Lord is given all power in heaven and on earth; if all men, purchased by his precious blood, are by a new right subjected to his dominion; if this power embraces all men, it must be clear that not one of our faculties is exempt from his empire. He must reign in our minds…. He must reign in our wills…. He must reign in our hearts…. He must reign in our bodies and in our members…. If all these truths are presented to the faithful for their consideration, they will prove a powerful incentive to perfection” (33).
Pope Pius XI fervently desired that we turn ourselves to Christ as King so that we may receive the blessings of love, holiness, and peace in our lives. We celebrate the Feast of Christ the King every year at the end of the liturgical calendar to look to the end of time when Christ will return in glory as King to judge all of humanity. “¡Viva Cristo Rey!”
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