2024.11.25
Jesus Christ is the faithful witness to these things, the first to rise from the dead, and the ruler of all the kings of the world. All glory to him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by shedding his blood for us. ~ Revelation 1:5 (New Living Translation, adapted)
Yesterday was the end of the church year, our very own New Year’s Eve, also known as Reign of Christ Sunday, which is deserving of noisemakers, funny hats, a toast to the year to come, and kisses all around. Of course none of that silliness occurs, and much more often the church celebrates Thanksgiving four days early instead of The Reign of Christ. The origins of Reign of Christ, also known as Christ the King Sunday go back to the 5th Century CE with Cyril of Alexandria. He understood that “Christ has dominion over all creatures, a dominion not seized by violence nor usurped, but his by essence and by nature. It will be fulfilled at the end of time when the kingdom of Jesus will be established in all its fullness to the ends of the earth.” Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast of Christ the King in 1925 in response to growing secularism and secular ultra-nationalism. It is a good reminder for us today.
Reign of Christ Sunday is usually usurped in the USA by our National Holiday – Thanksgiving Day. While Thanksgiving USA style isn’t a Jewish or Christian holiday, the notion behind thanksgiving goes way back, long before Plymouth Rock and Pilgrims. It starts in the 4th chapter of Genesis when Cain and Able make thank offerings to the Lord. It continues throughout the scripture. The Jewish religious calendar included 8 feast days: the Sabbath, Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, Pentecost, Trumpets, Atonement, and Tabernacles. Jesus’ first miracle according to the Gospel of John was turning water into wine at the wedding feast in Cana Jesus had a reputation for hanging out at parties with sinners and drunkards.
In the last book of the Christian Bible, there will be the greatest wedding feast ever, attended by countless multitudes from every corner of the world and the Lamb of God – the Lord Jesus. The wedding guests will feast and make merry for seven days. That will be at the end of time as we know it when the Reign of Christ is fulfilled. All will be made well, death and sadness will be no more, and our light will be God. That will be the best Thanksgiving Day, ever.
It won’t be about any particular nation. Multitudes will be present, and I can guarantee that the diversity of that group will give us all pause. In this time of heightened anxiety, it is easy to get stuck in worries about today and tomorrow. I find it helpful to remember that it won’t be a president or a general or a Wall Street wizard who reigns. It will be Jesus, who befriends the least, the last and the lost, the one the angels called “Prince of Peace.”
On Thursday, as our family celebrates Thanksgiving Day, I am going to focus on the little and big ways that I see glimmers of that reign. The signs are there, as surely as the sun rises and sets. ~ Anne
Wayfinding 