Reign of Christ
20 Nov 2022
Chaos theory is an interdisciplinary theory stating that, within the apparent randomness of chaotic complex systems, there are underlying patterns, constant feedback loops, repetition, self-similarity, fractals, and self-organization.
I don’t care that much about fractals, but I do believe that, like chaos theory, when you do something in one place it can have significant consequences in other places, far removed from the original event. War in Ukraine causes starvation in parts of Africa and the Middle East. An earthquake in Japan leads to a tsunami on the California coast. We are connected in ways that at first may not seem obvious; it seems chaotic. Christianity is all about chaos theory and we as Christians can make chaos a reality. Chaos means connections and we, as Christians, make those connections from seemingly random events.
Jeremiah might not have been a mathematician or physicist, but he understood chaos theory. He saw his beloved Judah destroyed by rulers who did not follow God and who let the people suffer because of their greed and misdeeds. After Josiah, the last of the “good” rulers, Judah was ruled by several self-centered low lifes. It was the Game of Thrones of its time; replete with greed and intrigue and not any thought to what mattered: the life and wellbeing of the people of God. Good shepherd, not so good shepherd. A good shepherd cares and tends the sheep; a good king cares for and tends to the needs of the people. Jeremiah said that there would come a king who knew God and would rule in a way that people thrived. It is a future promise. In the meantime, nations come and nations go; some, perhaps most, exist for the benefit of the few at the expense of the many.
Fast forward from Jeremiah, in the 7th century BCE, to 1925. Pius XI was the Pope. He was quite involved in the political issues of the day. On the one hand he condemned exploitative capitalism; on the other hand he decried the workings of the Soviet Union and of socialism. Like all of us, he was a complicated and flawed human being. But he saw one thing clearly: Christ is the sovereign over all of us and our recognition of Christ as having dominion over all of us in a primal facet of our faith. Pius XI saw the rise of communism and the rise of fascism, in Germany and in his native Italy as well. He watched Mussolini’s rise to power and the growth of secularism combined with the evils of capitalism, socialism, communism, and fascism. In the papal equivalent of thumbing your nose at someone. He said,
” That the faithful would gain strength and courage from the celebration of the feast, as we are reminded that Christ must reign in our hearts, minds, wills, and bodies (Quas Primas, 33).” In short, Christ must be, as in Celtic Christianity, in every pore of our being. He is our end all and be all. Not the Fuhr, not Il Duce, not the Stars and Stripes or the Union Jack, and not Comrade Stalin.
What then are we saying when we say Christ is King, Christ is the sovereign? We live in a country that has not ever acknowledged a king, although there was an attempt to make George Washington one. But we, like every nation, live with some form of government. All of them are flawed, regardless of what politicians say.
Christ’s reign is not flawed. It is perfect. Jeremiah saw that perfection; he did not name Jesus, of course, but he saw that obeying the teachings and the ways of God were lifegiving for all people. Lifegiving! It is not about blind, hopeless obedience or about constant fear. We do not fear God or obey God in the way that people feared an evil king or ruler!
Jesus was sent because we had lost our way and he taught us a more perfect one. Salvation, meaning health and wholeness, is for all of us. The word is very near us. Our hearts of stone can become hearts that beat with life. The anger and bitterness that consumes can be washed away and replaced by peace and wholeness. Jesus has been proclaiming the year of Jubilee, from the start of his ministry to the moment of his death on the cross. It is a kingdom of servanthood and a reign of mercy, for to love your enemy is the ultimate mercy. Jesus asks God to forgive the thieves crucified with him, both of them. God’s mercy, the reign of Christ, the reign of love, falls on all people. Whether we want to hear it or not, both thieves were remembered. Whether we like it or not, the people we really dislike and curse are as much members of the kingdom as we are. When will we see that and treat each other as members of one body, under one Lord, with one baptism.
This is the day when we are caught between Christmas and Easter. There is tension between the helpless baby born in a backwater town in Judea and the one hailed as King of Kings; between one hailed by angels and visited by the Magi and the one crucified. What does it all mean? How can this be?
It is the great mystery: God is one of us, God, the eternal and omniscient and God the mortal and vulnerable. Jesus the servant and the one who teaches us how we should really live! The world will not be made right until we learn to be servant leaders.
What has Luke given to us?
1. The sermon on the plain where we are told to bless those who persecute you
2. The prodigal son, where forgiveness and love triumph over all
3. Weeds, the seeming unwanted, that grow to provide shelter
4. A feast where the poor and downtrodden become the honored guests.
That may not be what we want to hear, but that is what is demanded of us.
Do we really acknowledge the Reign of Christ?
Are we up to the task?
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