Solemnity of
Christ the King, Cycle B
Celebrant: As we await the
fulfillment of God's kingdom in glory, let us offer our prayers to our Almighty
Father.
Deacon/Lector:
That the Church, the communion of
saints growing together in holiness, may be a reflection of the heavenly kingdom
on earth, we pray to the Lord.
That the pope, bishops, and all
Church leaders may reflect God's truth and love to the world by the integrity of
their lives, we pray to the Lord.
That as our nation observes Thanksgiving, we may renew our sense of
dependence upon God for our freedom, our security, and for all we need, we pray to
the Lord.
That all nations may honor Christ
the King as the only Lord and giver of Life, and in His name, abolish the
practice of abortion and euthanasia, we pray to the Lord.
That parents may strive to be
good role models for their children, and that youth may be open to God's call to
priesthood and religious life, we pray to the Lord.
That those who have died may come
to share in the heavenly banquet with Mary and all the saints, we pray to the
Lord.
Celebrant: Heavenly Father, we
ask your continued blessings on our community. May You always reign in our
hearts and in our midst so that we may reflect your love to all people. We
ask this in the name of the only Savior and King, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Bulletin Insert
Click here for the
Spanish translation of this bulletin insert
Consistent Ethic of Life
“The meaning of a consistent
ethic is to say in the Catholic community that our moral tradition calls us
beyond the split so evident in the wider society between moral witness to life
before and after birth. Does this mean that everyone must do everything? No!
There are limits of time energy and competency. There is a shape to every
individual vocation. People must specialize, groups must focus their energies.
The consistent ethic does not deny this” (Cardinal Joseph Bernardin,
Address at Seattle University, March 2, 1986).
Homily Suggestions on
Pro-life Themes
Dn 7:13-14
Rv 1:5-8
Jn 18:33b-37
Two
ways of approaching the theme of the sanctity of life on the Feast of Christ the
King are to approach it in the light of Christ’s dominion over human life, and
in the light of his victory over sin and death.
Christ’s Kingship is all about his dominion. All of today’s readings reflect
that. The ultimate question in the debate over abortion and euthanasia is a
debate about dominion. It’s not so much a question of when human life begins or
ends, but a question of to whom it belongs. The only answer in the light of the
Word of God and the Kingship of Christ is that human life belongs to God – not
only because he made it, but because he redeemed it in Christ. Dr. James McMahon
was an abortionist in Southern California and performed partial-birth abortions.
When asked by the American Medical Association news how he justified doing it,
he admitted that the baby was a child, but then said there was a more important
question, “Who owns the child? It’s got to be the mother,” he explained. This
idea that some people own others, though rejected long ago in the slavery
debate, resurfaces in the abortion debate, and flatly contradicts the Kingship
of Christ and the dominion he exercises over human life.
He is
King also because he has conquered the power of evil. The Alpha and the Omega
lives and reigns before all other life came to be, and after all death will be
destroyed. He holds the keys of death and has robbed it of its power. In the
light of that victory, we who work to build the Culture of Life are really
proclaiming a Kingdom that has already been established in place of the kingdom
of death. That vanquished kingdom still echoes through the land – through evils
like abortion – but no longer has the final word. Our culture can be delivered
from its power because Christ has already accomplished that delivery – we simply
have to announce and apply it, through the many facets of the ministry of the
Church and the pro-life movement.
This
Kingship over evil manifests itself in us when, despite powerful temptations
(such as those that afflict a person tempted to abort a child), we can and do
choose what is right and good – we always have the power to choose life, no
matter what the circumstances.
Liturgical Resources
