Solemnity of Christ the King

Jeff Bagnall • 14 November 2024

The first reading is from Daniel, as it was last week. In chapter 7, we have a description of a dream in which there are four beasts who are, perhaps, representative of the four nations that dominated and suppressed the Jewish state. Israel thought of itself as the favourite nation of God and so found this oppression particularly devastating. But in the dream God overcomes the power of these beasts and in their place sets up a human being. This may well have referred to the hoped for the elevation of Israel. The meaning is confused and uncertain, however, because in the original language of Daniel the phrase for the human being (who replaces the beasts) is ‘son of man.’ Though it makes some sense in the context of a dream for a human to replace the beasts, when the phrase is translated word for word it can make one think of a particular individual who might save the people – and it is used in this way of Jesus himself both in our reading ( Chapter 7:13-14 ) and according to the other gospels,. But the extremely interesting notion in our reading, is that it is not just Israel that is favoured by God but absolutely all people; this is a radical vision for the Jewish author in the second century BC – the universality of salvation!

The second reading relates well to the above interpretation of Daniel’s dream. It is from the book of Revelation sometimes called the Apocalypse in Catholic literature – the two words mean much the same. The book begins with what we might see on the dust cover of a book nowadays – something like “This book by John is a revelation he had from Jesus, delivered by an angel; its about what will happen in the near future. It will be a blessing to all who heed its message.” The text goes on in the manner of a letter (in those days the name of the sender first); something like “John to the seven churches in Asia, grace and peace to you from God and from Jesus…” and there our reading ( chapter 1:5-8 ) begins. It follows with a prose and then a poetic statement from God the beginning and end of everything (Alpha and Omega); firstly, praise to Jesus whose life (His blood poured out) has saved us all from sin and, secondly, the announcement of his coming to us all; then a statement that everyone may see His glory, but seeing this can also make one sad. The author doesn’t say why we mourn, but maybe because He was literally pierced and this reveals the sin and inadequacy of us humans that brought it about.

In the gospel Jesus is questioned about His kingdom by Pilate who is, of course, in charge of the Kingdom of Israel at the time. The trial(s) of Jesus are represented in the Gospel of John, with a report of the exchanges between Jesus and the High Priest, particularly about his teaching; then He is brought before Pilate and this is extended considerably in this Gospel, where Pilate wants to hand the matter over to the Jews themselves – these verses are found on the very oldest fragment that exists from the New Testament writings ( see here ). Taking Jesus back inside, the evangelist puts into words an imagined conversation of Pilate with Jesus, which makes up the reading for today ( chapter 18:33-37 ) about the kingship of Christ – what kind of king is He? The reign of Jesus is spiritual, over the realm of truth – the verse following our passage has the dramatic words from Pilate “What is Truth?” This is a most apt reading for this feast day and also climaxes nicely the two previous readings.

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Jeff Bagnall was a lecturer for many years at Craiglockhart College teaching RE to many future Catholic Primary teachers.

5th Sunday of Lent - 2026 - Year A

12 March 2026

The prophet Ezekiel is around at the time when most of the chosen people are in exile in Babylon and have been for a generation. But the international scene is changing and a new leader, Cyrus, will displace the present ruler and he will have a policy of repatriation. However, many of the exiles have settled into their new surroundings and have no guts for returning to what will be the broken city and dilapidated temple of Jerusalem. Having no guts in this sense might well be what the prophet means when he says the bones must come to life again. It is a passage , however, that can be interpreted as foreshadowing the belief that there is life after death and so suitable at this time in our Christian calendar. But in the original it might be a message to us not to get settled in our way of life, but to enliven ourselves to live more Christian lives.

4th Sunday of Lent - 2026 - Year A

by Jeff Bagnall • 5 March 2026

The first reading is extracts from the remembered tales of the early history of the Israelites’ settling down as a nation. At first they were ruled by men called Judges (like military overlords), but then there was a general outcry to have a king like other nations. Samuel was the overall prophet at the time and he warned the people that kings can be troublesome – they raise taxes, commandeer troops, and generally ride roughshod over the people, like the absolute rulers they are; they lead the nation without consultation or consideration of others. But the people still asked Samuel for a king and through him, guided by God, a ruler was selected. He chose Saul who was a fine example of manhood (1 Sam 10:20ff). But, just as the prophet Samuel had predicted he turned out to be a bad leader as king. Today’s reading is about the prophet Samuel being sent by God to choose a better man. The point of the reading for us might well be that ‘better’ does not mean taller, more handsome or any outward appearance. The key message of the reading is that “not as man sees does God see” – God does not regard the outer externals but rather the inner being of the person, and that is how we should try to see. And David, the new king, went down in history as the ideal ruler, so that ever after the people hoped for a new king like David. The genealogies in Matthew’s and Luke’s gospels trace Jesus back to this king David.