We have finally moved to a new website:
Please update your bookmarks. All information on this blog will be deleted soon.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
New Website
If you have followed this blog and found it interesting or even, hopefully, useful, you might like to know that we are about to launch a new website for the youth ministry of the Irish Province of Augustinians.
The blog, while useful, is quite limited - this new website which will go live during this week will give us a lot more flexibility and also allow us to make the archiving of useful material much easier and hopefully more user friendly.
It would be really helpful to get some feedback on how you have found the blog and also to let me know what you think of the new website
The website address will be given on this blog, probably on thursday if all goes well.
Please support us in this venture as without your input it will never achieve its potential
Possidius
Thursday, December 10, 2009
3rd Sunday of Advent Year C - 13th December 2009
To appreciate our regular Advent readings, it might help to have a split personality. When Paul, for instance, reminds the Philippian community, “The Lord is near!” he’s talking about something quite different from John the Baptizer’s statement, “ . . . One mightier than I is coming.” Though Jesus is the subject of both sentences, the two authors aren’t referring to the same arrival. Luke’s John is obviously talking about the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry; Paul is speaking of Jesus’ Second Coming in the Parousia.
Neither is saying anything about Christmas.We must always remember that Christmas is a relatively new feast. Most in the early church believed there was little reason to celebrate Jesus’ birth. What happened in Jerusalem around 30 CE is at the center of our faith. What took place in Bethlehem around 6 BCE in on the periphery of that faith. Only when people began to put Jesus’ death and resurrection in the background did Jesus’ birth become important.Our current system of configuring years according to before or after Jesus’ birth couldn’t have happened until the fifth century or later. Had someone in the early church been so inspired to date years based on events in Jesus’ life, we today would talk about BJE and AJR (Before Jesus’ Resurrection and After Jesus’ Resurrection).
We really have no idea what the historical John the Baptist said or predicted about Jesus. The only John we encounter in the gospels is the John presented to us by Christian authors. That John evolved into the “precursor” of Jesus - sent by God to prepare Jesus’ way. Scholars constantly remind us that such a picture of the Baptist is more theological that historical. John can only be the Messiah’s forerunner for those who believe Jesus is the Messiah. During the period the gospels were being composed, a good number of Jews thought John, not Jesus, should have been given that title. Our evangelists had one eye on this group when they wrote anything about John. That’s why today Luke has him say, “I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his (Jesus’) sandals.”
For Christians, Jesus is the superior; John the inferior.Yet, listen carefully to John’s response to the crowd’s question, “What should we do?” Sounds a lot like we’d expect Jesus to respond. “Share with the person who has none. . . Do not practice extortion, do not falsely accuse anyone.. . .“ No wonder scholars presume that, before John’s arrest, Jesus was simply proud to be one of his disciples. They both followed kindred spirits. Only after John’s martyrdom does Jesus go public; only then do we discern a distinction between the two.
Following today’s three readings, it wouldn’t at all hurt to imitate our sacred authors and take our eyes off Christmas for a few moments.Paul’s imminent Parousia never quite panned out. But even in spite of his miscalculation, the Apostle knows it’s the “peace of God” which Jesus already brought us that makes all the difference in our lives, no matter when the Parousia takes place.Perhaps Zephania says it best: “Yahweh, our God, is in your midst!” No matter what, God is present to us in the person of the risen Jesus right here and now.All our Christian authors presumed the risen Jesus is in our midst. Our whole life is changed because of that presence. Reflecting on Jesus present in our daily lives is much more significant than reflecting on what happened in Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago.
Friday, December 4, 2009
Second Sunday of Advent - 6th of December 2009
“From shadows and symbols to the truth,” (ex umbris et imaginibus in veritatem): this was the personal motto of John Henry Newman (1801-1890). Since ancient times Christian writers have used this expression, and others like it, to place Jesus in relation to the prophets who went before him. In him there is a coming out into the light after the long night of darkness and half-light; he is “the loving-kindness of the heart of our God who visits us like the dawn from on high” (Luke 1:78).
But the coming of this Light is a more precise event than dawn. The birth of Jesus, though we may not know its precise hour or date or even its year, is an historical event, and so it is precise in principle. Luke seems insistent on pinning it down, in the cumbersome way that people dated events in the ancient world. This insistence on real history sets our faith in contrast with some other profound faiths. In the Rig-Veda, for example, you read:
Like a youthful maiden, Dawn shines brightly forth,
Stirring to motion every living creature.
Divine Fire was kindled for human use;
Dawn created light, driving away the dark.
John's gospel says, “The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world” (1:9), but it is Luke's gospel in particular that paints in the humble details of Christ's birth. And it is Luke's gospel that we are reading on the Sundays of Advent this year.
Light can be contemplated for itself, but its practical purpose is to illuminate a path. Ultimately it is “to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." (Luke 1:79).
Our lives are a practical matter. Thomas Merton wrote, “The spiritual life is first of all a life. It is not merely something to be known and studied, it is to be lived….Jesus lived the ordinary life of the people of his time, in order to sanctify the ordinary lives of people of all time. If we want to be spiritual, then, let us first of all live our lives.”
But the coming of this Light is a more precise event than dawn. The birth of Jesus, though we may not know its precise hour or date or even its year, is an historical event, and so it is precise in principle. Luke seems insistent on pinning it down, in the cumbersome way that people dated events in the ancient world. This insistence on real history sets our faith in contrast with some other profound faiths. In the Rig-Veda, for example, you read:
Like a youthful maiden, Dawn shines brightly forth,
Stirring to motion every living creature.
Divine Fire was kindled for human use;
Dawn created light, driving away the dark.
John's gospel says, “The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world” (1:9), but it is Luke's gospel in particular that paints in the humble details of Christ's birth. And it is Luke's gospel that we are reading on the Sundays of Advent this year.
Light can be contemplated for itself, but its practical purpose is to illuminate a path. Ultimately it is “to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." (Luke 1:79).
Our lives are a practical matter. Thomas Merton wrote, “The spiritual life is first of all a life. It is not merely something to be known and studied, it is to be lived….Jesus lived the ordinary life of the people of his time, in order to sanctify the ordinary lives of people of all time. If we want to be spiritual, then, let us first of all live our lives.”
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
The Murphy Report on Child Sexual Abuse in Dublin
For those interested in the Report of the Murphy Commission on Clerical Child Sexual Abuse in the Dublin Archdiocese follow this link.
This is a damning indictment of the behaviour of many Church figures in their failure to protect children. It makes very tragic reading but it is not something that we can ever allow ourselves to forget.
Just copy the link and paste into your navigation bar
http://www.justice.ie/en/JELR/Pages/PB09000504
This is a damning indictment of the behaviour of many Church figures in their failure to protect children. It makes very tragic reading but it is not something that we can ever allow ourselves to forget.
Just copy the link and paste into your navigation bar
http://www.justice.ie/en/JELR/Pages/PB09000504
Saturday, November 28, 2009
First Sunday of Advent - 29th of November 2009
Luke appears to be the first author of the Christian Scriptures to presume Jesus’ Parousia won’t take place during his lifetime. Paul and Luke’s two gospel predecessors - Mark and Matthew - faithfully held onto the hope that Jesus’ Second Coming was just around the corner. By the mid-80s, Luke has given up that hope. He takes for granted he and his readers will live their whole lives, die natural deaths, and only then experience their personal Parousias.
Once Christians begin to believe Jesus isn’t coming back anytime soon, they’re forced to look at their lives of faith from a different perspective. As a once-upon-a-time assistant high school track coach, I know the difference between sprinters and distance runners. Their training isn’t the same. Luke is attempting to turn early Christians sprinters into marathoners. That’s one of the factors influencing today’s gospel pericope.
Though the evangelist still believes Jesus will return one day, that belief should no longer be the focus of our behavior. Luke continually tries to take the eyes of his readers off Jesus’ Parousia and refocus them on their daily lives. Since they’re going to be “in it” for the long run, he warns them to “be on guard lest your spirits become bloated with indulgence and drunkenness and worldly cares . . . . Pray constantly for the strength to escape whatever is in prospect, and to stand secure before the Son of Man.”
Because of this new emphasis, it makes sense, for instance, that, when in 9:23 Luke copies Jesus’ command from Mark about carrying one’s cross, he adds one significant word: “daily.”
Yet even when Paul composes the earliest Christian writing we possess - I Thessalonians - he also finds it necessary to stress the importance of paying attention to our daily activities. “May
the Lord increase you,” he writes, “and make you overflow with love for one another and for all, even as our love does for you.
Now, my brothers and sisters, we beg and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that, even as you learned from us how to conduct ourselves in a way pleasing to God - which you are indeed doing - so must you learn to make still greater progress.”
In some sense, the only difference between Paul and Luke’s morality is that the former’s community has one eye on giving themselves to one another and one eye on the heavens, expecting Jesus’ imminent return, while the latter is focusing both eyes on their relationships with others.
It should be clear by now that whether Jesus returns in one minute or in one million years (as Teilhard de Chardin suggested), we should be concerned with loving one another.
Even without Jesus in the picture, Jeremiah agrees on the love aspect of life. Active during a period when Jewish kings left a lot to be desired, the prophet looks toward a future in which a better king will appear. At that time, Yahweh will “raise up for David a just shoot; he shall do what is right and just in the land.” Things will be so good during his reign that people will begin calling Jerusalem “Yahweh is our justice.”
Remembering that biblical justice is the way our sacred authors speak about the proper relationships we build with God and those around us, Jeremiah is promising that when that perfect king appears, he’ll follow Yahweh’s lead and concentrate on perfecting those relationships.
No matter what the future holds, unless we’re found giving ourselves generously to others, we’re going to be in a lot of trouble, whether later today, or at the end of our lives.
Once Christians begin to believe Jesus isn’t coming back anytime soon, they’re forced to look at their lives of faith from a different perspective. As a once-upon-a-time assistant high school track coach, I know the difference between sprinters and distance runners. Their training isn’t the same. Luke is attempting to turn early Christians sprinters into marathoners. That’s one of the factors influencing today’s gospel pericope.
Though the evangelist still believes Jesus will return one day, that belief should no longer be the focus of our behavior. Luke continually tries to take the eyes of his readers off Jesus’ Parousia and refocus them on their daily lives. Since they’re going to be “in it” for the long run, he warns them to “be on guard lest your spirits become bloated with indulgence and drunkenness and worldly cares . . . . Pray constantly for the strength to escape whatever is in prospect, and to stand secure before the Son of Man.”
Because of this new emphasis, it makes sense, for instance, that, when in 9:23 Luke copies Jesus’ command from Mark about carrying one’s cross, he adds one significant word: “daily.”
Yet even when Paul composes the earliest Christian writing we possess - I Thessalonians - he also finds it necessary to stress the importance of paying attention to our daily activities. “May
the Lord increase you,” he writes, “and make you overflow with love for one another and for all, even as our love does for you.Now, my brothers and sisters, we beg and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that, even as you learned from us how to conduct ourselves in a way pleasing to God - which you are indeed doing - so must you learn to make still greater progress.”
In some sense, the only difference between Paul and Luke’s morality is that the former’s community has one eye on giving themselves to one another and one eye on the heavens, expecting Jesus’ imminent return, while the latter is focusing both eyes on their relationships with others.
It should be clear by now that whether Jesus returns in one minute or in one million years (as Teilhard de Chardin suggested), we should be concerned with loving one another.
Even without Jesus in the picture, Jeremiah agrees on the love aspect of life. Active during a period when Jewish kings left a lot to be desired, the prophet looks toward a future in which a better king will appear. At that time, Yahweh will “raise up for David a just shoot; he shall do what is right and just in the land.” Things will be so good during his reign that people will begin calling Jerusalem “Yahweh is our justice.”
Remembering that biblical justice is the way our sacred authors speak about the proper relationships we build with God and those around us, Jeremiah is promising that when that perfect king appears, he’ll follow Yahweh’s lead and concentrate on perfecting those relationships.
No matter what the future holds, unless we’re found giving ourselves generously to others, we’re going to be in a lot of trouble, whether later today, or at the end of our lives.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
The History and Political Significance of the Feast of Christ the King
By Mgr. Peter Eliott
When the heroic Jesuit, Blessed Miguel Pro, was shot by order of a dictator in Mexico City in 1928, he held his arms outstretched and cried "Viva Cristo Re!" - "Long live Christ the King!" This was the cry of not a few Catholics in the pre-War era of the last century.
For some it expressed the vision of a totally Catholic society, even a return to "Christendom", the vision of a totally Christian world that prevailed in Europe in the Middle Ages. Such unrealistic ideals failed to gain much ground among Australian Catholic social thinkers, but they still held on to the "social kingship" of Christ. They believed that, in a real sense, we are working to make Jesus the Lord of human society, imbuing society with his ethic of truth, love and justice.
They were inspired by the courageous social teaching of Pope Pius XI, who established the feast of Christ the King. But the Pope's intentions to set Christ's reign against totalitarian ideologies in the 'Thirties were thwarted. The "social kingship" was high-jacked by extremists and opportunists, particularly in France by those who collaborated with the Nazis during the German Occupation (1940-1944). In reaction to such political delusions, the post-War social doctrine of the Church avoided the militancy found in some verses of hymns such as "Hail Redeemer, King Divine!" or "Thee, O Christ the Prince of Ages".
At Vatican II, there were references to Christ's kingdom and his priestly, regal and prophetic roles, but we find no specific teaching on his "social kingship". In the post-conciliar liturgy the reign of Christ has been generalized and spiritualized. Now Jesus the Lord rules in a cosmic sense and in our hearts and lives. That is true and good, but should he not also be reigning in society?
The social reign of the Lord could be "re-visioned" in modern perspectives such as: the teachings of Vatican II, the cultural revolutions, the social teachings of John Paul II, the implosion of Communism, accelerating secularist challenges and the dreams and hopes of the Third Millennium.
A Kingdom of Justice
One common meeting point for a new vision of the reign of Jesus is a concern for justice. In the magnificent preface of the Mass of Christ the King the celebrant proclaims that his is a "kingdom of justice". But justice issues reveal a tension between the "now" and the "not yet" of the Kingdom. Jesus tells us that "The Kingdom of God is among you". Yet he teaches us to pray that the kingdom may come, that God's will may be done "on earth". Then we "wait in joyful hope" for his Kingdom.
We welcome his reign among us, yet we look forward to its coming. We fight for justice, yet we long for that day when justice will be given to the poor, the hungry and oppressed, the suffering. We see only too clearly that Christ does not reign on earth. The lying "lord of the world" (a description of Satan in John's Gospel), reigns through corruption, greed, drug abuse, abortions, racism, wars, exploitation of women, elderly folk and children, contempt for the family, religious persecution etc.
A Scriptural Basis
Amidst these tensions, the Scriptures do find a place for the social reign of Christ. We learn through Revelation that there are at least four visions of the Kingdom of God: the cosmic vision, the inward vision, the social vision and the future vision of the Kingdom. Christians should try to keep these visions together in a healthy balance. To exaggerate one at the expense of the others robs the kingdom teaching of Jesus of much of its richness and depth. First we need to return to the Old Testament, finding in the Hebrew Scriptures the basis of Christ's kingdom teaching.
The God of Israel reigned at a cosmic level. The "Lord" is also the "King of the Universe" in the Passover table prayers that have been adapted in the preparation of the gifts in our Roman Rite Mass: "Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, through your goodness we have this bread/wine to offer….". Through the temple worship God was adored in "enthronement psalms", that still influence our liturgies.
According to the inward vision of the Kingdom, evident in the later Wisdom Literature, the God of Israel ruled as Lord in the heart of each just person, faithful to Covenant Law. At times this was only a "remnant", a faithful minority, and under persecution the faith of Israel had to be guarded in a discreet way. Often those who were faithful were the poorest of the poor.
In terms of the social vision of the Kingdom, God reigned through the corporate fidelity of his chosen People to their great Covenant. By living the Law revealed to Moses in the ten "words" of the Lord (the commandments), Israel accepted the kingship of One who set the terms of the Covenant and yet was always faithful to it, a pattern that is clear in the covenant treaties of the ancient Middle East. Thus, in social terms, God was the real King and protector of the community, no matter whether it was governed by judges or kings.
The prophets affirmed the divine reign in terms of radical social justice for the poor and outcasts and strangers. At a more intimate social level, God reigned in the family through the royal mission of married love, especially by raising children as members of the chosen People.
The future vision of the divine Kingdom developed in two stages, first in the hope of a promised Land, especially as Israel moved from Egypt into the prepared place. Then, after all the twists and turns of living under earthly kings ended in the captivity in Babylon, the people hoped for a new kingdom of Israel, a restoration and triumph, God's vindication of his suffering People, crushed by Syria, Babylon, Greece and Rome. This developed into the prophetic hope of a promised saviour figure, an earthly king sent on a divine mission, the Messiah. In some literature he will be a new David, that is, the ideal king, the true "son of David". In other traditions he is a celestial "Son of Man".
The Messiah King
In the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke) these traditions converge around Jesus of Nazareth and his coming. He reveals his kingship by constantly teaching about "the Kingdom" or reign of God. In certain parables, in his ethical teaching, his warnings and promises of God's future, he reveals himself as the Messiah, the Christ, an anointed King, who is equally Priest and Prophet. Here and in the world to come he is both Son of God and Son of Man. Yet his Kingdom parables bear a subtle theme - the "hiddenness" of the Kingdom, its secret dimension, its sudden arrival, its intangible qualities.
His Kingdom bears the paradox that the "not so respectable" characters of society (prostitutes and racketeers) can storm it by their radical repentance. He reminds his listeners that it belongs to those regarded as "little ones" in the world of his time, women, especially widows, small children, the sick, the lame and the blind. They will take first place in the royal nuptial banquet that features in his teaching and is part of the climax of the whole New Testament library (Revelation 19: 6-9).
The healing miracles draw these little ones into the divine order. The carefully recorded miracles are common to all four Gospels. Undoubtedly historical and essential to any account of the life of Jesus, his many miracles are not conjuring tricks designed to impress or to impose faith. They too herald a new order, the coming of the Kingdom of the true Messiah when all will be set right. In John's Gospel they are the "signs" of the Kingdom, also presented as the fulfilment of Isaiah's messianic prophecy in Luke's Gospel (Luke 4: 16-27).
In John's Gospel Pontius Pilate retorts: "So you are a king then?" (John 18: 37) But Jesus had already said, "my kingship is not of this world". Does that mean it is "otherworldly"? Not necessarily, hence our caution about over-emphasising a inward-looking vision of his reign: "the kingdom of God is within you". In John's Gospel the terms "this world" have a derogatory meaning: "Mine is no worldly kingship." is what Jesus says to doubting Pilate, in fact implicitly contrasting his Kingdom to the ruthless rule of Rome. But there is also the nuance that his kingdom is still to come, the reign of truth. First he must wear a mocking crown of thorns and be enthroned on a criminal's cross. This King must die to gather his people around him. This King is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah's prophecies (Isaiah 53).
His kingship is sealed in Resurrection triumph and particularly in the Ascension. In that "enthronement" event we are called both to look forward to his return and to go out to "all nations" building his Kingdom here. The living Church is the dawn of his Kingdom. Through the Church his Kingdom grows. In every act of love and justice, the gentle dominion of the Lord extends, even among those who, as yet, do not know his name. Christ reigns as we build a just social order, beginning in the family and by affirming the basic right to life itself.
Kings or presidents come and go. What always matters is doing God's will here and now. That means ensuring that the moral law God engraved in our nature is respected and reflected in particular laws.
We return to each of the four visions of the Kingdom. All are realised in Jesus, and we are meant to keep them in a healthy tension or balance: the cosmic vision, the inward vision, the social vision and the future vision.
Jesus reigns as the Word through whom the whole cosmos was created.
He reigns within us, through the grace of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
He reigns in society, wherever justice is done in his name.
He reigns in the future hope of the coming Kingdom, when ultimately all will be handed over to the Father and everything will find its purpose.
For now, our eyes return to earth, to the world around us, to the tension of the "now" but "not yet" that runs through our experiences of life. "Reign! Jesus, reign!" We hear the song of praise soaring to the rafters of a great cathedral - a prayer of love and gratitude. Yet within it is the hope and the plea of the words he taught us: "thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven".
When the heroic Jesuit, Blessed Miguel Pro, was shot by order of a dictator in Mexico City in 1928, he held his arms outstretched and cried "Viva Cristo Re!" - "Long live Christ the King!" This was the cry of not a few Catholics in the pre-War era of the last century.
For some it expressed the vision of a totally Catholic society, even a return to "Christendom", the vision of a totally Christian world that prevailed in Europe in the Middle Ages. Such unrealistic ideals failed to gain much ground among Australian Catholic social thinkers, but they still held on to the "social kingship" of Christ. They believed that, in a real sense, we are working to make Jesus the Lord of human society, imbuing society with his ethic of truth, love and justice.
They were inspired by the courageous social teaching of Pope Pius XI, who established the feast of Christ the King. But the Pope's intentions to set Christ's reign against totalitarian ideologies in the 'Thirties were thwarted. The "social kingship" was high-jacked by extremists and opportunists, particularly in France by those who collaborated with the Nazis during the German Occupation (1940-1944). In reaction to such political delusions, the post-War social doctrine of the Church avoided the militancy found in some verses of hymns such as "Hail Redeemer, King Divine!" or "Thee, O Christ the Prince of Ages".
At Vatican II, there were references to Christ's kingdom and his priestly, regal and prophetic roles, but we find no specific teaching on his "social kingship". In the post-conciliar liturgy the reign of Christ has been generalized and spiritualized. Now Jesus the Lord rules in a cosmic sense and in our hearts and lives. That is true and good, but should he not also be reigning in society?
The social reign of the Lord could be "re-visioned" in modern perspectives such as: the teachings of Vatican II, the cultural revolutions, the social teachings of John Paul II, the implosion of Communism, accelerating secularist challenges and the dreams and hopes of the Third Millennium.
A Kingdom of Justice
One common meeting point for a new vision of the reign of Jesus is a concern for justice. In the magnificent preface of the Mass of Christ the King the celebrant proclaims that his is a "kingdom of justice". But justice issues reveal a tension between the "now" and the "not yet" of the Kingdom. Jesus tells us that "The Kingdom of God is among you". Yet he teaches us to pray that the kingdom may come, that God's will may be done "on earth". Then we "wait in joyful hope" for his Kingdom.
We welcome his reign among us, yet we look forward to its coming. We fight for justice, yet we long for that day when justice will be given to the poor, the hungry and oppressed, the suffering. We see only too clearly that Christ does not reign on earth. The lying "lord of the world" (a description of Satan in John's Gospel), reigns through corruption, greed, drug abuse, abortions, racism, wars, exploitation of women, elderly folk and children, contempt for the family, religious persecution etc.
A Scriptural Basis
Amidst these tensions, the Scriptures do find a place for the social reign of Christ. We learn through Revelation that there are at least four visions of the Kingdom of God: the cosmic vision, the inward vision, the social vision and the future vision of the Kingdom. Christians should try to keep these visions together in a healthy balance. To exaggerate one at the expense of the others robs the kingdom teaching of Jesus of much of its richness and depth. First we need to return to the Old Testament, finding in the Hebrew Scriptures the basis of Christ's kingdom teaching.
The God of Israel reigned at a cosmic level. The "Lord" is also the "King of the Universe" in the Passover table prayers that have been adapted in the preparation of the gifts in our Roman Rite Mass: "Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, through your goodness we have this bread/wine to offer….". Through the temple worship God was adored in "enthronement psalms", that still influence our liturgies.
According to the inward vision of the Kingdom, evident in the later Wisdom Literature, the God of Israel ruled as Lord in the heart of each just person, faithful to Covenant Law. At times this was only a "remnant", a faithful minority, and under persecution the faith of Israel had to be guarded in a discreet way. Often those who were faithful were the poorest of the poor.
In terms of the social vision of the Kingdom, God reigned through the corporate fidelity of his chosen People to their great Covenant. By living the Law revealed to Moses in the ten "words" of the Lord (the commandments), Israel accepted the kingship of One who set the terms of the Covenant and yet was always faithful to it, a pattern that is clear in the covenant treaties of the ancient Middle East. Thus, in social terms, God was the real King and protector of the community, no matter whether it was governed by judges or kings.
The prophets affirmed the divine reign in terms of radical social justice for the poor and outcasts and strangers. At a more intimate social level, God reigned in the family through the royal mission of married love, especially by raising children as members of the chosen People.
The future vision of the divine Kingdom developed in two stages, first in the hope of a promised Land, especially as Israel moved from Egypt into the prepared place. Then, after all the twists and turns of living under earthly kings ended in the captivity in Babylon, the people hoped for a new kingdom of Israel, a restoration and triumph, God's vindication of his suffering People, crushed by Syria, Babylon, Greece and Rome. This developed into the prophetic hope of a promised saviour figure, an earthly king sent on a divine mission, the Messiah. In some literature he will be a new David, that is, the ideal king, the true "son of David". In other traditions he is a celestial "Son of Man".
The Messiah King
In the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke) these traditions converge around Jesus of Nazareth and his coming. He reveals his kingship by constantly teaching about "the Kingdom" or reign of God. In certain parables, in his ethical teaching, his warnings and promises of God's future, he reveals himself as the Messiah, the Christ, an anointed King, who is equally Priest and Prophet. Here and in the world to come he is both Son of God and Son of Man. Yet his Kingdom parables bear a subtle theme - the "hiddenness" of the Kingdom, its secret dimension, its sudden arrival, its intangible qualities.
His Kingdom bears the paradox that the "not so respectable" characters of society (prostitutes and racketeers) can storm it by their radical repentance. He reminds his listeners that it belongs to those regarded as "little ones" in the world of his time, women, especially widows, small children, the sick, the lame and the blind. They will take first place in the royal nuptial banquet that features in his teaching and is part of the climax of the whole New Testament library (Revelation 19: 6-9).
The healing miracles draw these little ones into the divine order. The carefully recorded miracles are common to all four Gospels. Undoubtedly historical and essential to any account of the life of Jesus, his many miracles are not conjuring tricks designed to impress or to impose faith. They too herald a new order, the coming of the Kingdom of the true Messiah when all will be set right. In John's Gospel they are the "signs" of the Kingdom, also presented as the fulfilment of Isaiah's messianic prophecy in Luke's Gospel (Luke 4: 16-27).
In John's Gospel Pontius Pilate retorts: "So you are a king then?" (John 18: 37) But Jesus had already said, "my kingship is not of this world". Does that mean it is "otherworldly"? Not necessarily, hence our caution about over-emphasising a inward-looking vision of his reign: "the kingdom of God is within you". In John's Gospel the terms "this world" have a derogatory meaning: "Mine is no worldly kingship." is what Jesus says to doubting Pilate, in fact implicitly contrasting his Kingdom to the ruthless rule of Rome. But there is also the nuance that his kingdom is still to come, the reign of truth. First he must wear a mocking crown of thorns and be enthroned on a criminal's cross. This King must die to gather his people around him. This King is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah's prophecies (Isaiah 53).
His kingship is sealed in Resurrection triumph and particularly in the Ascension. In that "enthronement" event we are called both to look forward to his return and to go out to "all nations" building his Kingdom here. The living Church is the dawn of his Kingdom. Through the Church his Kingdom grows. In every act of love and justice, the gentle dominion of the Lord extends, even among those who, as yet, do not know his name. Christ reigns as we build a just social order, beginning in the family and by affirming the basic right to life itself.
Kings or presidents come and go. What always matters is doing God's will here and now. That means ensuring that the moral law God engraved in our nature is respected and reflected in particular laws.
We return to each of the four visions of the Kingdom. All are realised in Jesus, and we are meant to keep them in a healthy tension or balance: the cosmic vision, the inward vision, the social vision and the future vision.
Jesus reigns as the Word through whom the whole cosmos was created.
He reigns within us, through the grace of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
He reigns in society, wherever justice is done in his name.
He reigns in the future hope of the coming Kingdom, when ultimately all will be handed over to the Father and everything will find its purpose.
For now, our eyes return to earth, to the world around us, to the tension of the "now" but "not yet" that runs through our experiences of life. "Reign! Jesus, reign!" We hear the song of praise soaring to the rafters of a great cathedral - a prayer of love and gratitude. Yet within it is the hope and the plea of the words he taught us: "thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven".
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