DAILY MEDITATION (SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22)
MEDITATION OF THE DAY
The Glory of Christ’s Kingship
The feast of the Kingship of Christ sets the crowning glory upon the mysteries of the life of Christ already commemorated during the year…. The faithful, moreover, will gain much strength and courage, enabling them to form their lives after the true Christian ideal. If to Christ our Lord is given all power in heaven and on earth; if all people, purchased by his Precious Blood, are by a new right subjected to his dominion…it must be clear that not one of our faculties is exempt from his empire. He must reign in our minds, which should assent with perfect submission and firm belief to revealed truths and to the doctrines of Christ. He must reign in our wills, which should obey the laws and precepts of God. He must reign in our hearts, which should love God above all things, and cleave to him alone. He must reign in our bodies which should serve as instruments for the interior sanctification of our souls, or to use the words of the Apostle Paul, as instruments of justice unto God (Rom 6:13).
If all these truths are presented to the faithful for their consideration, they will prove a powerful incentive to perfection. It is our fervent desire…that those who are without the fold may seek after and accept the sweet yoke of Christ, and that we, who by the mercy of God are of the household of the faith, may bear that yoke, not as a burden but with joy, with love, with devotion; that having lived our lives in accordance with the laws of God’s kingdom, we may receive full measure of good fruit, and counted by Christ good and faithful servants, we may be rendered partakers of eternal bliss and glory with him in his heavenly kingdom.
Pope Pius XI
Pope Pius XI, whose motto was “the peace of Christ in the Kingdom of Christ,” canonized many saints, including Saint John Vianney and Saint Thérèse of Lisieux. He reigned from 1922 until 1939. [From Quas Primas, 29, 33, 34. Trans. Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with permission of the Libreria Editrice Vaticana. www.vatican.va.]
