This weekend is our last Sunday Mass in Ordinary Time and we conclude the Church’s liturgical year and on December 1st Advent begins—and with it the new liturgical year. But this Sunday we celebrate the solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe.

As a solemnity it holds a place of privilege in our liturgical celebrations. The priest wears white vestments—normally used only on special days—and the focus of our worship and praise is, as always on God, but in a particular way we focus on the meaning of the word “king” as it relates to Jesus Christ and our hope for salvation.

For most of us in the United States of America—and indeed in the modern world—“royalty” means the tabloids or royal weddings or something that is usually not part of our daily lives. At least for us Americans, the royals leave little impact on us. This is how the ancients of Jesus’ time felt about their royals also. After all, let’s take a mere minute to think about the Herods and Caesars of that day. They too were mainly “bad” news.

But today we are called to consider the kingship of Jesus Christ. His will not be celebrated as a 60th Jubilee such as Elizabeth II nor will there be coverage like that of William’s and Kate’s wedding, or of Kim Kardashian’s latest escapade. Rather, Christ’s Kingship does have an ever-lasting effect upon our eternal life. Christ’s royal status means: that His Kingship extends beyond this world and into death.

In Luke’s account of the crucifixion of Christ the soldiers taunt Him by saying “He saved others, let him save himself if he is the chosen one, the Christ of God.” Pilate then posted over His head the sign that read: “This is the king of the Jews.” The two criminals who were crucified alongside of Jesus, one on His right, the other to His left also have something to say about this King: one of the criminals joins in on the mockery by the soldiers while the other criminal makes an amazing act of faith: “Jesus, remember me when you enter upon your reign.” This criminal acknowledges that the dying Jesus is indeed a king, but one whose reign extends beyond death to eternal life. Jesus’ answer goes beyond the criminal’s wildest dreams: “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” That “today” echoes the “today” of salvation announced at the birth of Jesus (Luke 2:11), and in the debut in the synagogue of Nazareth (4:21), and at the conversion of Zacchaeus (19:9) in “Today salvation has come to this house.”

Our faith teaches us that Christ has delivered us from the power of darkness, and transferred us into the kingdom of His beloved Son. This implies that we now—right now—share in the inheritance that is to come—eternity with God. Saint Paul wrote of this in a letter to the Christians at Colossae, a people who were surrounded by Caesar worship—Saint Paul affirmed that Christians, even before death, participate in the Kingdom of Christ.

We ask ourselves today “What does Christ the King” mean for me? Does it mean that I know/believe:

• I have been created in God’s likeness and image,

• That I am a beloved adopted son or daughter to God, a brother or sister of Christ,

• That I live in His life today by practicing my Catholic Christian faith to the best of my abilities and God-given gifts, that even in my failures Christ is with me to give me grace to improve and that I need not be perfect but that I am faithful to Him?

• And, do I believe that when I close my eyes to this world, I will open them to the King of the Universe and of the world to come? Advent is a great time to consider these questions and to work on the answer(s).