Vatican City, 22 November 2015 (VIS) –
On the Solemnity of Christ the King, celebrated on the last Sunday of
the liturgical year, the Pope devoted his reflection before today's
Angelus prayer to the difference between Jesus' reality and that of
the world, referring to the Gospel passage that narrates his
appearance before Pilate, in which He affirms that He is King, but
that His kingdom “is not of this world”.
“This does not mean that Christ is
the king in another world, but rather that He is a different kind of
king”, explained Francis. “Here there is a contraposition of two
types of logic. Worldly logic is based on ambition and competition;
it fights with the weapons of fear, bribery and the manipulation of
consciences. The logic of the Gospel, that is, the logic of Jesus, is
instead expressed in humility and gratitude. It is affirmed silently
but effectively with the force of truth. The kingdoms of this world
are at times sustained by arrogance, rivalries, oppression; whereas
Christ's is a 'kingdom of justice, of love and of peace'”.
Jesus reveals Himself as King in the
crucifixion, demonstrating the “surprising gratuitousness of love”.
While the Cross may seem to some to be a failure, it is rather “the
failure of sin that sin is a failure. In the failure of human
ambitions, there is the triumph of the cross, there is the
gratuitousness of love. … For a Christian, to speak of power and
strength means to make reference to the power of the cross, and the
strength of Jesus’ love: a love that remains firm and complete,
even when faced with rejection, and which is shown as the fulfilment
of a life committed entirely to the benefit of humanity”.
Paradoxically the truth of Jesus is
indeed the challenge posed to him with irony by his adversaries: “He
can’t save Himself!” “If Jesus had come down from the cross, he
would have given in to the temptations of the Prince of this world.
Instead, He does not save Himself so as to be able to save others, to
give his life for us, for each one of us”. … One of the
wrongdoers who was crucified with Him the 'good thief', understood
this well, and pleaded with him, 'remember me when you enter your
kingdom'. This criminal this was a criminal was a corrupt person, who
had been condemned to death for all the brutalities he had committed
in his life. But he saw love in Jesus' attitude and in His humility.
Jesus' majesty does not oppress us, but rather frees us from our
weaknesses and miseries, encouraging us to walk the path of the good,
of reconciliation and forgiveness”.
“Faced with so many lacerations in
the world, so many wounds in the flesh of man, let us ask the Virgin
Mary to sustain us in our commitment to imitating Jesus, our King,
making His kingdom present with gestures of tenderness, of
understanding, of mercy”.
After the Angelus prayer, the Pope
mentioned that yesterday in Barcelona, Spain, Federico de Berga and
25 companion martyrs were beatified. They had been “assassinated
during the ferocious persecution of the Church during the last
century. They were priests, young men who had professed their faith
and were awaiting ordination, and lay brethren belonging to the Order
of Friars Minor Capuchin. Let us entrust to their intercession the
many brothers and sisters of ours who unfortunately in our times, in
many parts of the world, are still persecuted for their faith in
Christ”.
Finally, the Holy Father commented that
on Wednesday he will begin his apostolic trip to Africa to visit
Kenya, Uganda and the Central African Republic, and he asked all
present to pray for this trip, so that it may be a sign of love for
all. “Together, let us ask Our Lady to bless these dear lands, so
that there may be peace and prosperity there”.
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