CV NEWS FEED // On the last Sunday of the liturgical year, the Catholic Church celebrates the Solemnity of Christ the King.
According to the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB), the feast was instituted by Pope Pius XI with the publication of his encyclical Quas primas (“In the First”) in 1925. The aim of the encyclical then was to “remind us that while governments come and go, Christ reigns as King forever.”
At the time he published the encyclical, Pope Pius XI warned that “manifold evils in the world were due to the fact that the majority of men had thrust Jesus Christ and his holy law out of their lives.”
“As long as individuals and states refuse to submit to the rule of our Savior,” he added, “there would be no really hopeful prospect of a lasting peace among nations.”
Describing the historical context for the encyclical, the USCCB states:
During the early twentieth century, in Mexico, Russia, and some parts of Europe, militantly secularistic regimes threatened not just the Catholic Church and its faithful but civilization itself. Pope Pius XI’s encyclical gave Catholics hope and—while governments around them crumbled—the assurance that Christ the King shall reign forever.
The feast is often celebrated with public processions and Eucharistic adoration, ending with a prayer of consecration to Christ the King and Benediction. This tradition is especially prominent in historically Catholic countries, such as Poland.
Poland officially declared Jesus Christ to be King of Poland on the day of the solemnity in 2016. The ceremony was attended by Polish President Andrzej Duda at the Church of Divine Mercy in Krakow.
According to Catholic Culture, “a plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who on the solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, publicly recite the Act of Dedication of the Human Race to Christ the King (Iesu dulcissime, Redemptor); a partial indulgence is granted for its use in other circumstances.”
“Religious freedom for many people means that we can believe whatever we want in private, but when we enter the public square or marketplace, we may not speak of anything that relates to our faith,” the USCCB continued adding:
“However, the Church acknowledges the reign of Christ, not only privately, but publicly. This solemnity encourages us to celebrate and live out our faith in public.”
