The Last Sunday of Pentecost, Year C
The Rev. Nigel Taber-Hamilton, Rector
Jeremiah 23: 1-6, Psalm 46, Colossians 1: 11-12 Luke 23: 33-43
So Luke's description of the crucifixion (the Gospel reading) is how we would expect to see a king? On a cross? I suppose that's the question that's been asked by opponents of Christianity - and even some of its adherents! - since about five minutes after Jesus was put up on it!
I ask that because of the name given to this day as an alternate to "The Last Sunday after Pentecost": Christ the King Sunday.
The throne's pretty odd, given what we generally think of royalty, isn't it? A cross.
The reading's certainly not what I would have expected - for a day that refers to Jesus as a king - even though this is the reading we do each third year.
Who do we think of most readily, after all, when we think of royalty? The Queen of England? It's a poor comparison, though, isn't it: after all, modern royalty is all about pomp and circumstance and not very much else - a few public appearances here, some official acts there, and that's about it.
Jesus is clearly not a king in that mold.
So what is today about?
I'd say two things, one about the here-and-now, and the other not.
First, if Christ is the King then it's a different sort of kingdom that he proclaims as a present reality. It can't be the familiar one; it can't be a kingdom of power and privilege and social class, nor one where the elites control the destiny of the many.
Rather it's a place where compassion in relationship rules, where selfless community is more important than individual selfishness, and where all are included no matter who they are or what they have done.
All of today's readings draw us to that different understanding of "kingdom." It's certainly a vision that rejects the ideology of empire in favor of what one theologian describes as "a vision of persuasive power and interrelated good", one that reverses the roles usually assigned to royalty and servitude. "
In accepting crucifixion "Jesus refuses to be the master of the world, the mighty monarch, the spiller of blood. His reign subverts our notion of kingship, it subverts our understanding of empire, confronts the way strong nations exercise power against weak ones, denies the right of the mighty and raises up the lowly to become equal partners in a shared human enterprise that places hope above fear, compassion above rigid righteousness, reconciliation above revenge, and love above all." (John Kavanaugh S.J.)
Now that's a revolution, folks - a revolution of love and grace.
And so this day, when we celebrate Christ as King, we're invited, first, to focus on the realities of the present time and space, to proclaim that we Christians have something to say about the here-and-now, a counter-vision of a life poured out in compassion even in the midst of the cruelty and corruption and selfishness of our world. A counter proclamation of our willingness to join with that life poured out for creation, and let it transform us, and through us transform our world.
The second thing today is about is brought out by Jesus' words to the criminal next to him: "today you shall be with me in Paradise".
It was only a few weeks ago that we celebrated All Saints' Sunday - when we honored our Christian ancestors for their witness.
Jesus, from his 'throne' talks about the future, about how we who now live as people of faith will be honored in the same way we have honored our ancestors.
It's a vision of a future that will always be just beyond us while we live in the here-and-now, a vision of hope and joy, a vision of celebration and of community, a vision of embrace and forgiveness - a vision, as Jesus puts it, of "Paradise".
It's because of who Jesus is that his words take on this deeper meaning. What could look like a fools promise - the last empty hope of the Executed Man - take on a much more profound significance because of the identity of the speaker.
So - as this particular Christian cycle draws to a close - it's a good time to remember what this life of ours is all about, as people of faith: It's about now and about then; it's about love and not hate, its about grace and not self-interest, its about the gifts of God for all of God's people.
So as we wrap-up the Thanksgiving weekend here's something else to be thankful for - the gift of this alternative kingdom of love and grace, of joy and forgiveness, of embrace.
Because in the end, today is all about Thanksgiving! Amen
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