Anointed King.

The final Sunday in the calendar of the liturgical year before the beginning of the Advent season bears the title of the celebration of Jesus Christ, King of Heaven and Earth, in the Catholic Church.

As we know, the word Christ means “anointed one.” It is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word “Messiah.” In the Old Testament, only kings, priests, and prophets received anointing—the content of their mission points to the importance of the person of Christ. And since every Christian is also anointed, the priestly prophetic and royal mission concerns all the baptized.

Part of the baptism ceremony is the anointing accompanied by the words: “Almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, freed you from sin, reborn you from water and the Holy Spirit, and included you among his people.” Now he marks you with the chrism (oil) of salvation, so that you may be a member of Christ, priest, prophet, and king, and have eternal life.”

What does it mean more precisely? Catechism explains that “the people of God share in these three functions of Christ and are responsible for the mission and service that result from them.” 

The priestly mission means the Christian is responsible for entering into Christ’s work of glorifying God, which is carried out through participation in the liturgy and daily self-sacrifice out of love.

The mission of the prophet means to show the truth of the gospel to the world around by the witness of his life.

But what does it mean to participate in Christ’s royal mission? We can elaborate more on three points on today’s feast of Christ the King.

To rule with Christ means, first of all, to be free from every form of slavery.

“For you have not received the spirit of slavery so that you have to fear again,” writes the apostle Paul in one of his letters. “Do you not know that to whom you enslave yourselves and obey, you are slaves to whom you obey? Therefore, do not let sin rule in your mortal body, so that you yield to its lusts, and do not give your members to sin as instruments of iniquity, but give yourselves to God as the living who have been raised from the dead,” Paul explains, adding: “This freedom Christ won for us. So stand firm and do not allow yourself to be yoked to slavery again.’

“After all, what is so royal as when a spirit subordinate to God rules over its body?” asks Saint Pope Leo the Great. It is also essential to add that the spiritual freedom stemming from participation in Christ’s royal office gives Christians a free distance from political messiahship in any form.

Second, “in a theological sense,” writes Bishop Robert Barron, “a king is someone who directs the abilities and gifts within the community to direct it toward God. It’s like being a general in an army or a conductor in an orchestra: to lead is to coordinate the efforts and talents of a community of people so that they can achieve a common goal.

Thus, a Catholic parent directs his children to fulfill the mission God gave them, educates them, shapes their behavior, controls their desires, etc. A Catholic politician understands the moral dimension of his work and issues laws and guidelines accordingly. A Catholic developer can help by providing the community jobs in a declining neighborhood, etc.”

“The premise of ruling with Christ is to serve him out of love in our neighbors, especially the suffering and marginalized.”

“How does one grow in the capacity to exercise kingly leadership?” asks Bishop Barron, and answers: “It can be done by overcoming cultural prejudices that see religion as a purely private matter, something in the sense of a hobby. Such weakened faith has nothing to do with the Christian mission. According to the Catholic faith, the baptized are responsible for speaking boldly and publicly and being willing to lead by personal example.”

Finally, understanding our participation in Christ’s kingly office can help us become the Gospel of Matthew that we read in today’s liturgy.

In it, Jesus appears as a king who, at his second coming, will sit on the throne of his glory as judge of the living and the dead. Participating in his rule is here expressed thus: “Come, ye blessed of my Father, take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a traveler and you embraced me; I was naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you visited me; I was in prison and you came to me.’

It is clear from these words that the prerequisite for reigning with Christ is to serve him out of love for our neighbors, especially the suffering and marginalized.

Let’s look again at the catechism: “The Church recognizes the image of its poor and suffering Founder, especially in the poor and suffering. God’s people realize their ‘royal rank’ by living according to the call to serve with Christ, who ‘came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.’ For a Christian, serving him means reigning.”