"Are you the King of the Jews? . . .
My kingdom does not belong to this world . . ."
John 18: 33 - 37
The Word for Sunday: http://usccb.org/bible/readings/112518.cfm
One “Peanuts” comic strip from the 1950’s finds Schroder
playing the piano while Lucy sits at one end listening with admiration, her
face in her hands as her elbows rest on the piano. After a short listen, Lucy proclaims:
“Beethoven! Phoofy! He wasn’t so great.” Schroder replies: “What do you mean he
wasn’t so great?” Lucy replies: “Well, he didn’t get to be King did he? How can
anyone be called great if he doesn’t get to be called King?” Schroder just lays
his head down on the piano and sighs: “Good grief.”
It seems Lucy’s measure of
greatness is what we might say Pontius Pilate felt in this Sunday’s Gospel
passage from the Passion story according to John. That greatness is measured by
power, riches, kingdoms and an adoring population. Beethoven or any of the
classical musicians did not need to be king to be great. No one needs to be of a royal line in fact to
be called great. In fact we might feel the famous line quoted from Lord Acton
in the late 19th century might be timely here: "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute
power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men."
There is some clear historical
proof of this of course but on this Sunday at the end of our liturgical year,
the Church turns our attention to another measure of greatness. Jesus is proclaimed
to be “King of the Universe.” For those
who have had a lust for power such a position and claim would have been a
further hope. Yet, Jesus is a king. In fact he preached on the kingdom of God
numerous times in his public ministry.
He taught many parables on what the “kingdom of God is like.”
So here Jesus stands before
Pilate who sarcastically questions him: “Are
you the king of the Jews?” Pilates greatest fear was not Jesus nor his
followers nor the Jewish authorities but Rome and the Emperor. He was placed in this far eastern region of
the Roman Empire to be sure that everything was under control and under the tight
fist of the Roman military. Any rival “king”
to Rome would imply a revolt against the Roman occupiers and would need to be
immediately eliminated. So, Pilate’s
position and reputation was on the line here. Like Lucy he felt any great king,
measured by the values of this world, would be a rival to his own prominence
and ultimately to that of the Emperor in Rome.
Yet, Jesus does not fall
into the trap. Rather than proclaim himself a king as Pilate questions, he
instead speaks of his kingdom as one not from this world. In so doing he avoids Pilates specific
question about being the leader of the Jews and proclaims himself “king” of a
universal kingdom of the truth; the one whose mission was to tell the world
about God.
All of which makes us wonder what sort of “King” is Jesus? His followers are those who live by the truth
he reveals. His answer to Pilate is
about the nature of his kingdom and those who live by its values. A kingdom divine in origin. “My kingdom does not belong (is not from)
this world.”
The second reading of our Mass from the book of Revelation
says: “Jesus Christ is the faithful
witness . . . and ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our
sins by his blood, who has made us into a kingdom, priests for his God and
Father, to him be glory and power forever and ever.” (Rev 1: 5-6).
This is a ruler who did not call for the blood of others but
shed his own blood for the sake of his flock. He is a ruler who referred to
himself not as despotic king with a lust for power but a Good Shepherd who
would give his life for his sheep. (Jn 10: 11). This is a leader who would
gather to himself the lost, the forgotten, the rejected and abandoned and
invite them to experience infinite mercy, forgiveness and love. He is a teacher
who touched the deepest hunger in the human heart for value, meaning, dignity
and purpose. This ruler shared the power
of forgiveness and mercy with all who would follow him. He rules with the power
of love and mercy and speaks in a way that respects the lost and powerless. He
offers a new vision of God who is a loving and forgiving Father not a heartless
and terrible judge. This way shows the
world the true meaning of greatness and opens up the window to see from whom ultimate
greatness comes.
“My kingdom does not belong
to this world . . . my kingdom is not here.” The power Jesus does claim
is that found in his followers: “Everyone
who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”
It was a strange conversation between Pilate and Jesus and may
have left Pilate more confused than convinced.
But, in the end Jesus’ kingdom is not political or earthly. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, his kingdom
is a kind of proposal from God to renew our vision of authority and power and
to live by the values of his kingdom. It is about God’s desire for humanity;
not about destruction and fear but about resurrection and eternal life.
His truth reminds us that God wills for us that we hear the
voice of his Son. He invites us to unite
ourselves with him and to receive in faith what he offers us. To hear and follow his Word is to hear the voice
of God inviting us to follow his way. The truth of Jesus’ kingdom reveals God’s
absolute love for us and shows us the mark on which to stand in order to live a
full and rich life as we await the next; to join him in his kingdom of light
and peace.
Our celebration of the Holy Eucharist brings us to experience a
taste of this. United in Christ, by our
common baptism and faith, we mark our diversity not as separating nationalities
one from another, or creating rivalries between us but as a reflection of the
beauty of God. We gather to hear the
word of the King and to feast on his body and blood, his very life poured out
for us so that we may do the same for one another.
Do we follow this King with all our hearts as we lay aside our
own agenda of power, control and individualism? What will it take for me to
accept his mercy and forgiveness? Is Christ truly Lord of all my life, in every
part I live?
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