The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today, The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, invites us to consider the contrast between Jesus Kingdom and the Kingdoms of the World that are concerned with power and blind loyalty.
In the Reading from 2 Samuel, David is called to be King of All Israel.
a. [5:1–5] 1 Chr 11:1–3. (2 Samuel, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 122 is sung by pilgrims obeying the religious law to visit Jerusalem
* [Psalm 122] A song of Zion, sung by pilgrims obeying the law to visit Jerusalem three times on a journey. The singer anticipates joining the procession into the city (Ps 122:1–3). Jerusalem is a place of encounter, where the people praise God (Ps 122:4) and hear the divine justice mediated by the king (Ps 122:5). The very buildings bespeak God’s power (cf. Ps 48:13–15). May the grace of this place transform the people’s lives (Ps 122:6–9)! (Psalms, PSALM 122 | USCCB, n.d.)
The Reading from the Letter of Paul to the Colossians is a hymn celebrating the Preeminence of Christ in His Person and Work.
* [1:12–14] A summary about redemption by the Father precedes the statement in Col 1:15–20 about the beloved Son who is God’s love in person (Col 1:13). Christians share the inheritance…in light with the holy ones, here probably the angels (Col 1:12). The imagery reflects the Exodus (delivered…transferred) and Jesus’ theme of the kingdom. Redemption is explained as forgiveness of sins (cf. Acts 2:38; Rom 3:24–25; Eph 1:7).
* [1:15–20] As the poetic arrangement indicates, these lines are probably an early Christian hymn, known to the Colossians and taken up into the letter from liturgical use (cf. Phil 2:6–11; 1 Tm 3:16). They present Christ as the mediator of creation (Col 1:15–18a) and of redemption (Col 1:18b–20). There is a parallelism between firstborn of all creation (Col 1:15) and firstborn from the dead (Col 1:18). While many of the phrases were at home in Greek philosophical use and even in gnosticism, the basic ideas also reflect Old Testament themes about Wisdom found in Prv 8:22–31; Wis 7:22–8:1; and Sir 1:4. See also notes on what is possibly a hymn in Jn 1:1–18. (Colossians, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB, n.d.)
The Gospel of Luke presents Jesus' interaction with the “good thief” at The Crucifixion.
* [23:39–43] This episode is recounted only in this gospel. The penitent sinner receives salvation through the crucified Jesus. Jesus’ words to the penitent thief reveal Luke’s understanding that the destiny of the Christian is “to be with Jesus.” (Luke, CHAPTER 23 | USCCB, n.d.)
Rev. Jim Caime, SJ, comments that we know that it does not end on the Cross. Jesus is risen, and the Holy Spirit is with us. But He also shows us that this may be the cost of following Him where He leads. St. Paul calls the cross a “stumbling block” and says that discipleship often makes us “fools for Christ.”
Standing at the foot of the Cross, I understand why. Nothing about Christ’s kingship fits the categories of strength our world admires. Love like this is misunderstood. Mercy like this is mocked. Vulnerability like this appears foolish. And yet it is at the Cross—in what looks like defeat—that the true King is revealed.
Yet even here, our King remains close. He stands with us in the very places where discipleship becomes costly, where love becomes vulnerable, where fidelity requires courage. He has gone ahead of us into all of it—and He invites us to follow, one step, one yes, one moment of trust at a time. (Caime, 2025)
Don Schwager quotes “My kingdom is not of the world,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"Listen, everyone, Jews and Gentiles, circumcised and uncircumcised. Listen, all kings of the earth. I am no hindrance to your rule in this world, for 'my kingdom is not of this world.' Banish the groundless fear that filled Herod the Great on hearing that Christ was born. More cruel in his fear than in his anger, he put many children to death (Matthew 2:3,16), so that Christ would also die. But 'my kingdom is not of this world,' says Christ. What further reassurance do you seek? Come to the kingdom that is not of this world. Do not be enraged by fear, but come by faith. In a prophecy Christ also said, 'He,' that is, God the Father, 'has made me king on Zion his holy mountain' (Psalm 2:6). But that Zion and that mountain are not of this world.
"What in fact is Christ's kingdom? It is simply those who believe in him, those to whom he said, 'You are not of this world, even as I am not of this world.' He willed, nevertheless, that they should be in the world, which is why he prayed to the Father, 'I ask you not to take them out of the world but to protect them from the evil one' (John 17:15-16). So here also he did not say, 'My kingdom is not' in this world but 'is not of this world.' And when he went on to prove this by declaring, 'If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have fought to save me from being handed over to the Jews,' he concluded by saying not 'my kingdom is not here' but 'my kingdom is not from here.'
"Indeed, his kingdom is here until the end of time, and until the harvest it will contain weeds. The harvest is the end of the world, when the reapers, who are the angels, will come and gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin (Matthew 13:48-41). And this could not happen if his kingdom were not here. But even so, it is not from here, for it is in exile in the world. Christ says to his kingdom, 'You are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world' (John 15:19). They were indeed of the world when they belonged to the prince of this world, before they became his kingdom. Though created by the true God, everyone born of the corrupt and accursed stock of Adam is of the world. [But] everyone who is reborn in Christ becomes the kingdom that is no longer of the world. For God has snatched us from the powers of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of his beloved Son (Colossians 1:13). This is that kingdom of which he said, 'My kingdom is not of this world; my kingly power does not come from here." (excerpt from TRACTATES ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 115.2) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 23:35-43 comments that Jesus, our King, came to give us greater gifts than any gift an earthly king could ever give.
When the thief on the cross asked Jesus to remember him, Jesus promised, “Today you will be with me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). Let’s follow this man’s example and honor our King by surrendering our lives to him. Let’s open our hands and receive his overflowing gifts of mercy, love, and forgiveness. Most of all, let’s praise our King for giving us the greatest gift of all: eternal life!
“Lord Jesus Christ, you are my King. I surrender my life to you.” (Meditation on Luke 23:35-43, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments that 2 Samuel presents the episode in which the ten tribes of the North go to David and they ask him to be the king of all Israel. The hymn in 1 Colossians and the concept of “icon” makes the person present. Jesus, in the Nicene creed is generated from the Father. Jesus is presented as the Wisdom of the Hebrew Testament. He is above the choirs of angels which is contrary to Greek consideration of the superiority of spiritual beings. The first fruits are offered to God as Jesus as the fullness of the revelation of God. Jesus made peace through His death on the Cross both eternal and incarnate. In Luke’s Gospel we encounter Jesus and the “good thief” who defended Jesus' innocence. The idea of salvation in Luke is “realized eschatology” that begins with knowing Jesus. Friar Jude comments that the inscription “King of the Jews” is a portion of our celebration of Jesus as King of the Universe.
Fr. Mike Schmitz draws our attention to the cultural division present in the early Church and the origin of the ordination to the diaconate. He also discusses Paul’s frustration with those who didn’t recognize Jesus as the Christ and offers consolation to those who experience this in the hearts and minds of those close to them, as Paul did. Today’s readings are Acts 6, Romans 9-10, and Proverbs 27:10-12.
Father Richard Rohr, OFM, reminds us that when we receive everything as a gift, we can live gratefully, allowing the energies of life and love to flow through us for the benefit of the whole. Our life is not our own; yet, at some level, enlightened people know that their life has been given to them as a sacred trust. They live in gratitude and confidence, and they try to let the flow continue through them. They know that “love is repaid by love alone,” as both St. Francis of Assisi and St. Thérèse of Lisieux have said. [2]
It is important that we ask, seek, and knock to keep ourselves in right relationship with life itself. Life is a gift, totally given to us without cost, every day of it, and every part of it. A daily and chosen attitude of gratitude will keep our hands open to expect that life, allow that life, and receive that life at ever-deeper levels of satisfaction—but never to think we deserve it. Those who live with such open and humble hands receive life’s “gifts, full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over into their lap” (Luke 6:38). In my experience, if we are not radically grateful every day, resentment always takes over. Moreover, to ask for “our daily bread” is to recognize that it is already being given. Not to ask is to take our own efforts, needs, and goals—and ourselves—far too seriously. [3] (Rohr, n.d.)
We ponder the love and sacrifice in the Kingdom of Jesus and seek the guidance of the Spirit as we strive to reject the “Kings” who offer examples of self aggrandizement and greed in deep contrast to the Kingdom of God.
References
Caime, J. (2025, November 23). Daily Reflection November 23, 2025 | Creighton Online Ministries. Creighton Online Ministries. Retrieved November 23, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-november-23-2025
Colossians, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved November 23, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/colossians/1?12
Luke, CHAPTER 23 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved November 23, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/23?35
Meditation on Luke 23:35-43. (n.d.). Word Among Us. Retrieved November 23, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/11/23/1433214/
Psalms, PSALM 122 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved November 23, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/122?1
Rohr, R. (n.d.). Gratitude and Humility. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved November 23, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/gratitude-and-humility/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Jesus, Remember Me When You Come into Your Kingdom. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved November 23, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/
2 Samuel, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved November 23, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/2samuel/5?1
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