Among the many attributes and titles that the past 21 centuries have attached to Jesus is that of King – even though, I think it is safe to say, he would not have chosen the title for himself. Remember that he rejected entirely the suggestion from his early followers that he be crowned their king. That did not at all fit into his plan to serve God simply by starting a person-to-person reform movement within his beloved Jewish religion — a reform, a purification, that would, like a benign infection, eventually change the whole world for the better.
Today, as we celebrate the annual feast of Jesus King of the World, we have some astonishing new material to work into the mix: the lifestyle, the words, and the actions of our remarkable Pope Francis. Shortly after he became pope, while being interviewed by a Catholic magazine and hearing the interviewer keep calling him “Your Holiness”, he said, “Please, call me Frank.”
Can you imagine any king, contemporary or ancient, inviting such familiarity? No way! This pope knows that he is a frail human being just like the millions of us whom he has been ordained to serve. He made that clear when, on his first public appearance, he asked us all to pray for him and to bless him. He did not begin by saying that he would bless and pray for us, as if he regarded himself as a special channel of divine grace and power. No, he was instead admitting his imperfect humanness and his constant need of help from others. What a refreshing new style of leadership that expresses. And how well it paints for us an image of the real Jesus, in contrast to the glorified versions of artists and the devout down through the ages.
Kings don’t wash other people’s feet; they leave such menial work to their slaves and servants. No earthly king says that he has come to serve and not to be served. Jesus presented himself always as the servant of others and invited his followers – expected them – to be the same.
It seems to me that the purpose and the desired effect of our observance of this Christian feast day is that we not merely honor Jesus as in some sense our king, but that we extract from it direction and inspiration for our own lives. And I’d add to that that we should look around for signs of a lessening of power exercised over others and an increase of compassion and love instead.
My first action of every day is to go through the New York Times in search of news of just such kindness. Years ago a west coast football coach was quoted as saying “I’m going to treat these players like they were my sons.”
The grammar’s bad, but the message is terrific. No humiliation, no degradation, no brutality. Just acting as a human being is meant to act toward other human beings. Maybe there’s a rare time & place for the merciless drill sergeant; I haven’t made up my mind about that as yet: I see reasons pro & con. But human dignity and human potential, I think, must always come first.
In that regard, Jesus – whatever title we may want to give him – is our infallible guide. Gentleness, compassion, patience: these are the real strengths of the Christian, the follower of Jesus, King of the Universe. Those strengths are much harder to muster and employ than the knee-jerk reaction of brute force in any of its forms.
Beyond Boundaries 