To Whose Kingdom do You Belong?

Part I - To Whose Kingdom do You Belong?

"The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, 'Look, here it is,' or, 'There it is.' For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you." (Luke 17:20-21)

To whose kingdom do you belong? That of the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of the Evil One? There is no middle ground, "Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters." (Matthew 12:30) We must choose a side, an encampment. Can this be done nominally - or by name only? What if one claims to be part of God's Kingdom but doesn't live it? To be a part of God's Kingdom means to fight for it. We fight for it by our everyday actions. If we choose to sin and give in to it we are doing the work of the Kingdom of the Evil One. "The Kingdom of God cannot exist alongside the reign of sin." (On Prayer, Origen). Again, I ask, to whose kingdom do you belong?

I don't want anyone to fall into despair because they observe that their life may not be acting for the growing of God's Kingdom. Rather, take it as a place to grow! We all will fall into sin from time to time, but simply giving up and saying "I'm only human; I'm bound to sin," will be giving in to the ways of the Evil One. I encourage you to fight against this and try to make the Kingdom of God present in yourself and more present in this world. For we do not have to wait until heaven to witness the Kingdom of God! "For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you."

Let today, the solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, be a time to reflect upon to whose kingdom we belong. If somebody were to look at your life and say whose kingdom you were a part of, would they be able to say that the Kingdom of God was within you?

Part II - The King Right Before Our Very Eyes

"A certain man was once thrown into prison. He there suffered so much from hunger, thirst and cold that at last he was almost dead. One day the king determined to pay a visit to the captive, in order to find out how he bore his sufferings. Having put off his royal apparel, he went in disguise to the prison and asked the poor man how he fared, but the prisoner, being very sad and melancholy, scarcely deigned to answer him. When the king had gone away, the jailor said to the criminal: "Do you know who was speaking to you? It was the king himself." "The king!" exclaimed the captive. "O wretch that I am! If I had known that I would have thrown myself at his feet and clasped his knees, and I would not have let him go until he had pardoned me. Alas! What a favorable opportunity I have lost of freeing myself from this dungeon." It was thus the poor captive lamented in anguish and despair, but all was unavailing."

"I think, dear Reader, you understand the meaning of this story. The sufferings of this captive represent the wretchedness of man's condition on this earth. Our true country is Heaven, and as long as we are living on earth, we are captives and exiles. We are far from Jesus Christ, our King; far from Mary our good Mother; far from the Angels and Saints of Heaven; and far from our dear departed friends. But very many Christians are also, in another respect, like the captive of whom I have spoken. They do not know Jesus Christ, their true King, who not only visits them, but dwells very near them. "But," you will ask, "how can Jesus Christ dwell near them without their knowing Him?" It is because He has put on a strange garment and appears in disguise. Our Lord Jesus Christ abides in two places: in Heaven, where He shows Himself undisguised, as He is in reality; and on earth in the Blessed Sacrament, in which He conceals Himself under the appearance of bread. ... Yes, the Blessed Sacrament, or Holy Eucharist is the true Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, Our Lord, who is truly, really and substantially present under the outward appearances of bread and wine."

The above quotations are the first two paragraphs to Fr. Michael Muller, CSSR's book titled The Blessed Eucharist (well worth the read). In it he presents the Catholic doctrine of the Blessed Eucharist and explains the reverence do to it and how we can and should spend time with it. I chose to include this passage today because it includes the imagery of the king in the story and relates it well to the role of Our Great King in Heaven. He is here among us for us to see and even CONSUME. Yet so many of us lack the reverence due to the King of the Universe and don't realize the truly mind-blowing gift that He offers us - Himself.

Part III - Conclusion

This is a great solemnity for us to grow in our realization of just how great and loving our Creator is. Hopefully this can be a day of much growth as we continue to contemplate God's infinite majesty. "Behold, your King!" (John 19:14)

Ave Crux, Spes Unica