Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe

Ezekiel 34: 11-12, 15-17;

1 Corinthians 15: 20-26, 28;

Matthew 25: 31-46;

Today we celebrate Christ as our King. The readings invite us to reflect on the kind of king He is, and what it means for us to claim that we belong to His Kingdom. Ezekiel suggests that human leaders have proved utterly unwilling to govern by God's principles, so that Lord Himself will come to lead us.

It's in the light of a merciful king and judge that we should read today's Gospel, and see it as a message of hope for the humble. The good seem surprised at their own goodness - "When did we do these things" they ask... "we only went to work every day, did our job, we only peeled the potatoes, cooked the dinner, did the washing, worked for our family, helped the old lady down the road ... but anyone would have done that much." Jesus answers, "in doing that, you fulfilled fulfilled the second great commandment of the Law insofar as you did it to me in that other person. Now, receive the heritage of the Kingdom prepared for you."

When we come to be judged, it might not just be an exam about the carrying out of our religious duties, but more about our relationships with others how we treated them, how kind, merciful and forgiving we were. In our own modern setting, did we really carry out the Beatitudes sharing with others, welcoming them into our circle, sheltering the cold and the hungry, care for or visit the sick or oppressed? No time for excuses about forgetting S.C.I.A.F. or Mary's Meals, the victims of the war between Russia and Ukraine, Israel and Palestine, earthquakes or tsunami disasters. In other words, did we really love those around us with the same intensity that we love God?

All God is likely to ask of us is whether or not we responded to the situations which presented themselves to us to the best of our ability.

It's all too easy for us to exclude and condemn divide people into "them" and "us." And when we do so, consciously or unconsciously, we tend to treat them in different ways. Those we love, those we like, those we think of as "one of us" we look favourably on, and we're always willing to be kind to them, share with them, care for them, help them in time of need. Whereas the others, those we don't think we have anything in common with, those who are "different" from us, we tend to keep away from, ignore and be unwilling to do anything to help them out. As the preface of today's Mass reminds us, we are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people set apart to do something wonderful for God. But so are all those around us, whom God also calls to live out those royal duties and responsibilities in our world to the best of our personal ability.