First Reading - Ezekiel 34:11-12, 15-17 ©
Responsorial Psalm – Psalm
22(23):1-3a, 5-6 ©
Second Reading – 1 Corinthians
15:20-26, 28 ©
Gospel Acclamation – Mark 11:10
The Gospel According to Matthew 25:31
- 46 ©
(NJB)
The Thirty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary
Time (Year A), The Solemnity of Christ the King
Consider the words of the prophet, this is the divine
injunction: Carry out the will of God, the impetus for
which is in your heart.
Be
forgiving.
Be just.
Be mindful.
Be humble.
Be
watchful.
Be caring.
Look after
the well-being of all who come your way; as you treat the stranger, so do you
treat God, the creator of the universe.
Know this!
God looks
out for everyone, the whole of the flock, humanity, is in God’s care, and God
is determined not to lose a single one of us. God will seek out the lost, bring
back the stray, heal the wounded and strengthen the weak.
As the
psalmist says:
God, the
creator of the universe, God is shepherd to us all.
If we walk
in the ways of God, we will be as a shepherd to our sisters and brothers.
Whatever it
is that we experience of lack, our time in this world is not the end of all
things. It is transitory. If we are hungry, we are hungry only for a time. If
we thirst, it is but for a moment.
Trust in
God and find peace therein. In the end you will be fulfilled.
It is not
only because God loves you that God guides you, but it is for the God’s own
sake that God blesses you.
The power
of death and sin are temporary, it is only God that endures forever, and we are
the children of God, the divine dwells within us.
If God has
set a table before you, share it with the world; turn enemies into loved ones.
Be mindful
of the apostle’s words.
The Apostle
has a deep liking for circular arguments. The reading for today begins in
circularity. Paul insists that Christ must be raised from the dead or his
faith, and the faith of Christians everywhere is in vain, because the faith of
Christians everywhere is not in vain, he says that we must believe that there
is a resurrection, and the risen Christ is the proof of it.
This is not
a reasonable argument. Set it aside, because it has no bearing on the main
point of this passage.
The main
point is this:
Sin and
death enter through the world from a single point in time, and it is another
singularity that brings sin and death to an end.
Adam causes
the fall, Christ lifts creation back up.
The scope
of their work is equal and includes the totality of all living beings: past,
present and future.
Listen to
the apostle; who understand the ways of God. We are created all-together as
one. We are one creation in God. In our failures and our faith we are one.
Remember
this!
God is not
a king, a prince or a lord.
The Church,
following in the way Jesus taught, can never be the extension of a royal
dynasty, and should not be seen as one.
The
reading for today contains much of what is true, and much that is false.
Let
us begin with this:
Jesus
is not a king, nor is he an emperor.
Jesus
is our brother, Jesus is a friend.
The
glory of Christ is expressed in his mercy, you will not find Christ seated on a
throne, commanding armies of angels, with the nations assembled before him.
It
is the duty of all Christians, of all who would follow in the way of
Jesus to reject such images. They lead to fallacies.
What
is true is this:
Our
love and fidelity to God and Christ is expressed in how we treat one another;
rich or poor, weak or strong, right or wrong.
Among
the ancient Hebrews, both the sheep and the goats were integral to their
community, the Hebrews tended and cared for flocks of each. Both the sheep and
the goats belonged to the community..
We
are one human family, we are not sheep and goats, we are never divided by God,
we are only divided by each other.
We
must reject all such efforts to divide us.
In
our human family there is good and bad, there are right and wrong. We are
called on to foster the good, and forgive the bad. We are called by Jesus to
forgive even those who do us harm.
First
Reading - Ezekiel 34:11-12, 15-17 ©
The
Lord Will Judge Between Sheep and Sheep
The
Lord says this: I am going to look after my flock myself and keep all of it in
view. As a shepherd keeps all his flock in view when he stands up in the middle
of his scattered sheep, so shall I keep my sheep in view. I shall rescue them
from wherever they have been scattered during the mist and darkness. I myself
will pasture my sheep, I myself will show them where to rest – it is the Lord
who speaks. I shall look for the lost one, bring back the stray, bandage the
wounded and make the weak strong. I shall watch over the fat and healthy. I
shall be a true shepherd to them.
As
for you, my sheep, the Lord says this: I will judge between sheep and sheep,
between rams and he-goats.
Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 22(23):1-3a, 5-6
©
The
Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
The
Lord is my shepherd;
there is nothing I shall want.
Fresh
and green are the pastures
where he gives me repose.
The
Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Near
restful waters he leads me,
to revive my drooping spirit.
He
guides me along the right path;
he is true to his name.
The
Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
You
have prepared a banquet for me
in the sight of my foes.
My
head you have anointed with oil;
my cup is overflowing.
The
Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Surely
goodness and kindness shall follow me
all the days of my life.
In
the Lord’s own house shall I dwell
for ever and ever.
The
Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Second
Reading – 1 Corinthians 15:20-26, 28 ©
Christ
Will Hand Over the Kingdom to God the Father; So that God May Be All in All
Christ
has been raised from the dead, the first-fruits of all who have fallen asleep.
Death came through one man and in the same way the resurrection of the dead has
come through one man. Just as all men die in Adam, so all men will be brought
to life in Christ; but all of them in their proper order: Christ as the
first-fruits and then, after the coming of Christ, those who belong to him.
After that will come the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father,
having done away with every sovereignty, authority and power. For he must be
king until he has put all his enemies under his feet and the last of the
enemies to be destroyed is death, for everything is to be put under his feet.
And when everything is subjected to him, then the Son himself will be subject
in his turn to the One who subjected all things to him, so that God may be all
in all.
Gospel
Acclamation – Mark 11:10
Alleluia,
alleluia!
Blessings
on him who comes in the name of the Lord!
Blessings
on the coming kingdom of our father David!
Alleluia!
The Gospel According to Matthew 25:31
- 46 ©
I Was Naked and You Clothed Me; Sick,
and You Visited Me
Jesus
said to his disciples: ‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, escorted by all
the angels, then he will take his seat on his throne of glory. All the nations
will be assembled before him and he will separate men one from another as the
shepherd separates sheep from goats. He will place the sheep on his right hand
and the goats on his left.
‘Then
the King will say to those on his right hand, “Come, you whom my Father has
blessed, take for your heritage the kingdom prepared for you since 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 stranger and you made me welcome; naked and you
clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison and you came to see me.” Then
the virtuous will say to him in reply, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and
feed you; or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and
make you welcome; naked and clothe you; sick or in prison and go to see you?”
And the King will answer, “I tell you solemnly, in so far as you did this to
one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me.”
‘Next
he will say to those on his left hand, “Go away from me, with your curse upon
you, to the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was
hungry and you never gave me food; I was thirsty and you never gave me anything
to drink; I was a stranger and you never made me welcome, naked and you never
clothed me, sick and in prison and you never visited me.” Then it will be their
turn to ask, “Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty, a stranger or naked,
sick or in prison, and did not come to your help?” Then he will answer, “I tell
you solemnly, in so far as you neglected to do this to one of the least of
these, you neglected to do it to me.”
‘And
they will go away to eternal punishment, and the virtuous to eternal life.’
The Thirty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary
Time (Year A), The Solemnity of Christ the King
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