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Title: |
Quas Primas
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Descr.: |
On The Feast Of Christ The King
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Pope: |
Pope Pius XI
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Date: |
December 11, 1925
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To
Our Venerable Brethren the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops,
Bishops, and Other Ordinaries in Peace and Communion with the
Apostolic See.
Venerable
Brethren, Greeting and the Apostolic Benediction.
1.
In the first Encyclical Letter which We addressed at the beginning
of Our Pontificate to the Bishops of the universal Church, We
referred to the chief causes of the difficulties under which
mankind was laboring. And We remember saying that these 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; that
these had no place either in private affairs or in politics: and
we said further, that as long as individuals and states refused to
submit to the rule of our Savior, there would be no really hopeful
prospect of a lasting peace among nations. Men must look for the
peace of Christ in the Kingdom of Christ; and that We promised to
do as far as lay in Our power. In the Kingdom of Christ, that is,
it seemed to Us that peace could not be more effectually restored
nor fixed upon a firmer basis than through the restoration of the
Empire of Our Lord. We were led in the meantime to indulge the
hope of a brighter future at the sight of a more widespread and
keener interest evinced in Christ and his Church, the one Source
of Salvation, a sign that men who had formerly spurned the rule of
our Redeemer and had exiled themselves from his kingdom were
preparing, and even hastening, to return to the duty of obedience.
2.
The many notable and memorable events which have occurred during
this Holy Year have given great honor and glory to Our Lord and
King, the Founder of the Church.
3.
At the Missionary Exhibition men have been deeply impressed in
seeing the increasing zeal of the Church for the spread of the
kingdom of her Spouse to the most far distant regions of the
earth. They have seen how many countries have been won to the
Catholic name through the unremitting labor and self-sacrifice of
missionaries, and the vastness of the regions which have yet to be
subjected to the sweet and saving yoke of our King. All those who
in the course of the Holy Year have thronged to this city under
the leadership of their Bishops or priests had but one aim -
namely, to expiate their sins - and at the tombs of the Apostles
and in Our Presence to promise loyalty to the rule of Christ.
4.
A still further light of glory was shed upon his kingdom, when
after due proof of their heroic virtue, We raised to the honors of
the altar six confessors and virgins. It was a great joy, a great
consolation, that filled Our heart when in the majestic basilica
of St. Peter Our decree was acclaimed by an immense multitude with
the hymn of thanksgiving, Tu Rex gloriae Christe. We saw men and
nations cut off from God, stirring up strife and discord and
hurrying along the road to ruin and death, while the Church of God
carries on her work of providing food for the spiritual life of
men, nurturing and fostering generation after generation of men
and women dedicated to Christ, faithful and subject to him in his
earthly kingdom, called by him to eternal bliss in the kingdom of
heaven.
5.
Moreover, since this jubilee Year marks the sixteenth centenary of
the Council of Nicaea, We commanded that event to be celebrated,
and We have done so in the Vatican basilica. There is a special
reason for this in that the Nicene Synod defined and proposed for
Catholic belief the dogma of the Consubstantiality of the Only-begotten with the Father, and added to the Creed the words
"of whose kingdom there shall be no end," thereby
affirming the kingly dignity of Christ.
6.
Since this Holy Year therefore has provided more than one
opportunity to enhance the glory of the kingdom of Christ, we deem
it in keeping with our Apostolic office to accede to the desire of
many of the Cardinals, Bishops, and faithful, made known to Us
both individually and collectively, by closing this Holy Year with
the insertion into the Sacred Liturgy of a special feast of the
Kingship of Our Lord Jesus Christ. This matter is so dear to Our
heart, Venerable Brethren, that I would wish to address to you a
few words concerning it. It will be for you later to explain in a
manner suited to the understanding of the faithful what We are
about to say concerning the Kingship of Christ, so that the annual
feast which We shall decree may be attended with much fruit and
produce beneficial results in the future.
7.
It has long been a common custom to give to Christ the
metaphorical title of "King," because of the high degree
of perfection whereby he excels all creatures. So he is said to
reign "in the hearts of men," both by reason of the
keenness of his intellect and the extent of his knowledge, and
also because he is very truth, and it is from him that truth must
be obediently received by all mankind. He reigns, too, in the
wills of men, for in him the human will was perfectly and entirely
obedient to the Holy Will of God, and further by his grace and
inspiration he so subjects our free-will as to incite us to the
most noble endeavors. He is King of hearts, too, by reason of his
"charity which exceedeth all knowledge." And his mercy
and kindness(1) which draw all men to him, for never has it been
known, nor will it ever be, that man be loved so much and so
universally as Jesus Christ. But if we ponder this matter more
deeply, we cannot but see that the title and the power of King
belongs to Christ as man in the strict and proper sense too. For
it is only as man that he may be said to have received from the
Father "power and glory and a kingdom,"(2) since the
Word of God, as consubstantial with the Father, has all things in
common with him, and therefore has necessarily supreme and
absolute dominion over all things created.
8.
Do we not read throughout the Scriptures that Christ is the King?
He it is that shall come out of Jacob to rule,(3) who has been set
by the Father as king over Sion, his holy mount, and shall have
the Gentiles for his inheritance, and the utmost parts of the
earth for his possession.(4) In the nuptial hymn, where the future
King of Israel is hailed as a most rich and powerful monarch, we
read: "Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever; the scepter
of thy kingdom is a scepter of righteousness."(5) There are
many similar passages, but there is one in which Christ is even
more clearly indicated. Here it is foretold that his kingdom will
have no limits, and will be enriched with justice and peace:
"in his days shall justice spring up, and abundance of
peace...And he shall rule from sea to sea, and from the river unto
the ends of the earth."(6)
9.
The testimony of the Prophets is even more abundant. That of
Isaias is well known: "For a child is born to us and a son is
given to us, and the government is upon his shoulder, and his name
shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, God the mighty, the Father
of the world to come, the Prince of Peace. His empire shall be
multiplied, and there shall be no end of peace. He shall sit upon
the throne of David and upon his kingdom; to establish it and
strengthen it with judgment and with justice, from henceforth and
for ever."(7) With Isaias the other Prophets are in
agreement. So Jeremias foretells the "just seed" that
shall rise from the house of David - the Son of David that shall
reign as king, "and shall be wise, and shall execute judgment
and justice on the earth."(8) So, too, Daniel, who announces
the kingdom that the God of heaven shall found, "that shall
never be destroyed, and shall stand for ever."(9) And again
he says: "I beheld, therefore, in the vision of the night,
and, lo! one like the son of man came with the clouds of heaven.
And he came even to the Ancient of days: and they presented him
before him. And he gave him power and glory and a kingdom: and all
peoples, tribes, and tongues shall serve him. His power is an
everlasting power that shall not be taken away, and his kingdom
shall not be destroyed."(10) The prophecy of Zachary
concerning the merciful King "riding upon an ass and upon a
colt the foal of an ass" entering Jerusalem as "the just
and savior," amid the acclamations of the multitude,(11) was
recognized as fulfilled by the holy evangelists themselves.
10.
This same doctrine of the Kingship of Christ which we have found
in the Old Testament is even more clearly taught and confirmed in
the New. The Archangel, announcing to the Virgin that she should
bear a Son, says that "the Lord God shall give unto him the
throne of David his father, and he shall reign in the house of
Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no
end."(12)
11.
Moreover, Christ himself speaks of his own kingly authority: in
his last discourse, speaking of the rewards and punishments that
will be the eternal lot of the just and the damned; in his reply
to the Roman magistrate, who asked him publicly whether he were a
king or not; after his resurrection, when giving to his Apostles
the mission of teaching and baptizing all nations, he took the
opportunity to call himself king,(13) confirming the title
publicly,(14) and solemnly proclaimed that all power was given him
in heaven and on earth.(15) These words can only be taken to
indicate the greatness of his power, the infinite extent of his
kingdom. What wonder, then, that he whom St. John calls the
"prince of the kings of the earth"(16) appears in the
Apostle's vision of the future as he who "hath on his garment
and on his thigh written 'King of kings and Lord of
lords!'."(17) It is Christ whom the Father "hath
appointed heir of all things";(18) "for he must reign
until at the end of the world he hath put all his enemies under
the feet of God and the Father."(19)
12.
It was surely right, then, in view of the common teaching of the
sacred books, that the Catholic Church, which is the kingdom of
Christ on earth, destined to be spread among all men and all
nations, should with every token of veneration salute her Author
and Founder in her annual liturgy as King and Lord, and as King of
Kings. And, in fact, she used these titles, giving expression with
wonderful variety of language to one and the same concept, both in
ancient psalmody and in the Sacramentaries. She uses them daily
now in the prayers publicly offered to God, and in offering the
Immaculate Victim [that is, Christ in the Holy Eucharist]. The perfect harmony of the Eastern liturgies
with our own in this continual praise of Christ the King shows
once more the truth of the axiom: Legem credendi lex statuit
supplicandi. The rule of faith is indicated by the law of our
worship.
13.
The foundation of this power and dignity of Our Lord is rightly
indicated by Cyril of Alexandria. "Christ," he says,
"has dominion over all creatures, a dominion not seized by
violence nor usurped, but his by essence and by nature."(20)
His kingship is founded upon the ineffable hypostatic union. From
this it follows not only that Christ is to be adored by angels and
men, but that to him as man angels and men are subject, and must
recognize his empire; by reason of the hypostatic union Christ has
power over all creatures. But a thought that must give us even
greater joy and consolation is this that Christ is our King by
acquired, as well as by natural right, for he is our Redeemer.
Would that they who forget what they have cost their Savior might
recall the words: "You were not redeemed with corruptible
things, but with the precious blood of Christ..."(21) We are no longer our own
property, for Christ has purchased us "with a great
price";(22) our very bodies are the "members of
Christ."(23)
14.
Let Us explain briefly the nature and meaning of this lordship of
Christ. It consists, We need scarcely say, in a threefold power
which is essential to lordship. This is sufficiently clear from
the scriptural testimony already adduced concerning the universal
dominion of our Redeemer, and moreover it is a dogma of faith that
Jesus Christ was given to man, not only as our Redeemer, but also
as a law-giver, to whom obedience is due.(24) Not only do the
gospels tell us that he made laws, but they present him to us in
the act of making them. Those who keep them show their love for
their Divine Master, and he promises that they shall remain in his
love.(25) He claimed judicial power as received from his Father,
when the Jews accused him of breaking the Sabbath by the
miraculous cure of a sick man. "For neither doth the Father
judge any man; but hath given all judgment to the Son."(26)
In this power is included the right of rewarding and punishing all
men living, for this right is inseparable from that of judging.
Executive power, too, belongs to Christ, for all must obey his
commands; none may escape them, nor the sanctions he has imposed.
15.
This kingdom is spiritual and is concerned with spiritual things.
That this is so the above quotations from Scripture amply prove,
and Christ by his own action confirms it. On many occasions, when
the Jews and even the Apostles wrongly supposed that the Messiah
would restore the liberties and the kingdom of Israel, he repelled
and denied such a suggestion. When the populace thronged around
him in admiration and would have acclaimed him King, he shrank
from the honor and sought safety in flight. Before the Roman
magistrate he declared that his kingdom was not of this world. The
gospels present this kingdom as one which men prepare to enter by
penance, and cannot actually enter except by faith and by baptism,
which, though an external rite, signifies and produces an interior
regeneration. This kingdom is opposed to none other than to that
of Satan and to the power of darkness. It demands of its subjects
a spirit of detachment from riches and earthly things, and a
spirit of gentleness. They must hunger and thirst after justice,
and more than this, they must deny themselves and carry the cross.
16.
Christ as our Redeemer purchased the Church at the price of his
own blood; as priest he offered himself, and continues to offer
himself as a victim for our sins. Is it not evident, then, that
his kingly dignity partakes in a manner of both these offices?
17.
It would be a grave error, on the other hand, to say that Christ
has no authority whatever in civil affairs, since, by virtue of
the absolute empire over all creatures committed to him by the
Father, all things are in his power. Nevertheless, during his life
on earth he refrained from the exercise of such authority, and
although he himself disdained to possess or to care for earthly
goods, he did not, nor does he today, interfere with those who
possess them..(27)
18.
Thus the empire of our Redeemer embraces all men. To use the words
of Our immortal predecessor, Pope Leo XIII: "His empire
includes not only Catholic nations, not only baptized persons who,
though of right belonging to the Church, have been led astray by
error, or have been cut off from her by schism, but also all those
who are outside the Christian faith; so that truly the whole of
mankind is subject to the power of Jesus Christ."(28) Nor is
there any difference in this matter between the individual and the
family or the State; for all men, whether collectively or
individually, are under the dominion of Christ. In him is the
salvation of the individual, in him is the salvation of society.
"Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no
other name under heaven given to men whereby we must be
saved."(29) He is the author of happiness and true prosperity
for every man and for every nation. "For a nation is happy
when its citizens are happy. What else is a nation but a number of
men living in concord?"(30) If, therefore, the rulers of
nations wish to preserve their authority, to promote and increase
the prosperity of their countries, they will not neglect the
public duty of reverence and obedience to the rule of Christ. What
We said at the beginning of Our Pontificate concerning the decline
of public authority, and the lack of respect for the same, is
equally true at the present day. "With God and Jesus
Christ," we said, "excluded from political life, with
authority derived not from God but from man, the very basis of
that authority has been taken away, because the chief reason of
the distinction between ruler and subject has been eliminated. The
result is that human society is tottering to its fall, because it
has no longer a secure and solid foundation."(31)
19.
When once men recognize, both in private and in public life, that
Christ is King, society will at last receive the great blessings
of real liberty, well-ordered discipline, peace and harmony. Our
Lord's regal office invests the human authority of princes and
rulers with a religious significance; it ennobles the citizen's
duty of obedience. It is for this reason that St. Paul, while
bidding wives revere Christ in their husbands, and slaves respect
Christ in their masters, warns them to give obedience to them not
as men, but as the vicegerents of Christ; for it is not meet that
men redeemed by Christ should serve their fellow-men. "You
are bought with a price; be not made the bond-slaves of
men."(32) If princes and magistrates duly elected are filled
with the persuasion that they rule, not by their own right, but by
the mandate and in the place of the Divine King, they will
exercise their authority piously and wisely, and they will make
laws and administer them, having in view the common good and also
the human dignity of their subjects. The result will be a stable
peace and tranquillity, for there will be no longer any cause of
discontent. Men will see in their king or in their rulers men like
themselves, perhaps unworthy or open to criticism, but they will
not on that account refuse obedience if they see reflected in them
the authority of Christ; God and Man. Peace and harmony, too, will
result; for with the spread and the universal extent of the
kingdom of Christ men will become more and more conscious of the
link that binds them together, and thus many conflicts will be
either prevented entirely or at least their bitterness will be
diminished.
20.
If the kingdom of Christ, then, receives, as it should, all
nations under its way, there seems no reason why we should despair
of seeing that peace which the King of Peace came to bring on
earth - he who came to reconcile all things, who came not to be
ministered unto but to minister, who, though Lord of all, gave
himself to us as a model of humility, and with his principal law
united the precept of charity; who said also: "My yoke is
sweet and my burden light." Oh, what happiness would be Ours
if all men, individuals, families, and nations, would but let
themselves be governed by Christ! "Then at length," to
use the words addressed by our predecessor, Pope Leo XIII,
twenty-five years ago to the bishops of the Universal Church,
"then at length will many evils be cured; then will the law
regain its former authority; peace with all its blessings be
restored. Men will sheathe their swords and lay down their arms
when all freely acknowledge and obey the authority of Christ, and
every tongue confesses that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory
of God the Father."(33)
21.
That these blessings may be abundant and lasting in Christian
society, it is necessary that the kingship of our Savior should be
as widely as possible recognized and understood, and to the end
nothing would serve better than the institution of a special feast
in honor of the Kingship of Christ. For people are instructed in
the truths of faith, and brought to appreciate the inner joys of
religion far more effectually by the annual celebration of our
sacred mysteries than by any official pronouncement of the
teaching of the Church. Such pronouncements usually reach only a
few and the more learned among the faithful; feasts reach them
all; the former speak but once, the latter speak every year - in
fact, forever. The Church's teaching affects the mind primarily;
her feasts affect both mind and heart, and have a salutary effect
upon the whole of man's nature. Man is composed of body and soul,
and he needs these external festivities so that the sacred rites,
in all their beauty and variety, may stimulate him to drink more
deeply of the fountain of God's teaching, that he may make it a
part of himself, and use it with profit for his spiritual life.
22.
History, in fact, tells us that in the course of ages these
festivals have been instituted one after another according as the
needs or the advantage of the people of Christ seemed to demand:
as when they needed strength to face a common danger, when they
were attacked by insidious heresies, when they needed to be urged
to the pious consideration of some mystery of faith or of some
divine blessing. Thus in the earliest days of the Christian era,
when the people of Christ were suffering cruel persecution, the
cult of the martyrs was begun in order, says St. Augustine,
"that the feasts of the martyrs might incite men to
martyrdom."(34) The liturgical honors paid to confessors,
virgins and widows produced wonderful results in an increased zest
for virtue, necessary even in times of peace. But more fruitful
still were the feasts instituted in honor of the Blessed Virgin.
As a result of these men grew not only in their devotion to the
Mother of God as an ever-present advocate, but also in their love
of her as a mother bequeathed to them by their Redeemer. Not least
among the blessings which have resulted from the public and
legitimate honor paid to the Blessed Virgin and the saints is the
perfect and perpetual immunity of the Church from error and
heresy. We may well admire in this the admirable wisdom of the
Providence of God, who, ever bringing good out of evil, has from
time to time suffered the faith and piety of men to grow weak, and
allowed Catholic truth to be attacked by false doctrines, but
always with the result that truth has afterwards shone out with
greater splendor, and that men's faith, aroused from its lethargy,
has shown itself more vigorous than before.
23.
The festivals that have been introduced into the liturgy in more
recent years have had a similar origin, and have been attended
with similar results. When reverence and devotion to the Blessed
Sacrament had grown cold, the feast of Corpus Christi was
instituted, so that by means of solemn processions and prayer of
eight days' duration, men might be brought once more to render
public homage to Christ. So, too, the feast of the Sacred Heart of
Jesus was instituted at a time when men were oppressed by the sad
and gloomy severity of Jansenism, which had made their hearts grow
cold, and shut them out from the love of God and the hope of
salvation.
24.
If We ordain that the whole Catholic world shall revere Christ as
King, We shall minister to the need of the present day, and at the
same time provide an excellent remedy for the plague which now
infects society. We refer to the plague of anti-clericalism, its
errors and impious activities. This evil spirit, as you are well
aware, Venerable Brethren, has not come into being in one day; it
has long lurked beneath the surface. The empire of Christ over all
nations was rejected. The right which the Church has from Christ
himself, to teach mankind, to make laws, to govern peoples in all
that pertains to their eternal salvation, that right was denied.
Then gradually the religion of Christ came to be likened to false
religions and to be placed ignominiously on the same level with
them. It was then put under the power of the state and tolerated
more or less at the whim of princes and rulers. Some men went even
further, and wished to set up in the place of God's religion a
natural religion consisting in some instinctive affection of the
heart. There were even some nations who thought they could
dispense with God, and that their religion should consist in
impiety and the neglect of God. The rebellion of individuals and
states against the authority of Christ has produced deplorable
consequences. We lamented these in the Encyclical Ubi arcano; we
lament them today: the seeds of discord sown far and wide; those
bitter enmities and rivalries between nations, which still hinder
so much the cause of peace; that insatiable greed which is so
often hidden under a pretense of public spirit and patriotism, and
gives rise to so many private quarrels; a blind and immoderate
selfishness, making men seek nothing but their own comfort and
advantage, and measure everything by these; no peace in the home,
because men have forgotten or neglect their duty; the unity and
stability of the family undermined; society in a word, shaken to
its foundations and on the way to ruin. We firmly hope, however,
that the feast of the Kingship of Christ, which in future will be
yearly observed, may hasten the return of society to our loving
Savior. It would be the duty of Catholics to do all they can to
bring about this happy result. Many of these, however, have
neither the station in society nor the authority which should
belong to those who bear the torch of truth. This state of things
may perhaps be attributed to a certain slowness and timidity in
good people, who are reluctant to engage in conflict or oppose but
a weak resistance; thus the enemies of the Church become bolder in
their attacks. But if the faithful were generally to understand
that it behooves them ever to fight courageously under the banner
of Christ their King, then, fired with apostolic zeal, they would
strive to win over to their Lord those hearts that are bitter and
estranged from him, and would valiantly defend his rights.
25.
Moreover, the annual and universal celebration of the feast of the
Kingship of Christ will draw attention to the evils which anti-clericalism has brought upon society in drawing men away from
Christ, and will also do much to remedy them. While nations insult
the beloved name of our Redeemer by suppressing all mention of it
in their conferences and parliaments, we must all the more loudly
proclaim his kingly dignity and power, all the more universally
affirm his rights.
26.
The way has been happily and providentially prepared for the
celebration of this feast ever since the end of the last century.
It is well known that this cult has been the subject of learned
disquisitions in many books published in every part of the world,
written in many different languages. The kingship and empire of
Christ have been recognized in the pious custom, practiced by many
families, of dedicating themselves to the Sacred Heart of Jesus;
not only families have performed this act of dedication, but
nations, too, and kingdoms. In fact, the whole of the human race
was at the instance of Pope Leo XIII, in the Holy Year 1900,
consecrated to the Divine Heart. It should be remarked also that
much has been done for the recognition of Christ's authority over
society by the frequent Eucharistic Congresses which are held in
our age. These give an opportunity to the people of each diocese,
district or nation, and to the whole world of coming together to
venerate and adore Christ the King hidden under the Sacramental
species. Thus by sermons preached at meetings and in churches, by
public adoration of the Blessed Sacrament exposed and by solemn
processions, men unite in paying homage to Christ, whom God has
given them for their King. It is by a divine inspiration that the
people of Christ bring forth Jesus from his silent hiding-place in
the church, and carry him in triumph through the streets of the
city, so that he whom men refused to receive when he came unto his
own, may now receive in full his kingly rights.
27.
For the fulfillment of the plan of which We have spoken, the Holy
Year, which is now speeding to its close, offers the best possible
opportunity. For during this year the God of mercy has raised the
minds and hearts of the faithful to the consideration of heavenly
blessings which are above all understanding, has either restored
them once more to his grace, or inciting them anew to strive for
higher gifts, has set their feet more firmly in the path of
righteousness. Whether, therefore, We consider the many prayers
that have been addressed to Us, or look to the events of the
Jubilee Year, just past, We have every reason to think that the
desired moment has at length arrived for enjoining that Christ be
venerated by a special feast as King of all mankind. In this year,
as We said at the beginning of this Letter, the Divine King, truly
wonderful in all his works, has been gloriously magnified, for
another company of his soldiers has been added to the list of
saints. In this year men have looked upon strange things and
strange labors, from which they have understood and admired the
victories won by missionaries in the work of spreading his
kingdom. In this year, by solemnly celebrating the centenary of
the Council of Nicaea. We have commemorated the definition of the
divinity of the Word Incarnate, the foundation of Christ's empire
over all men.
28.
Therefore by Our Apostolic Authority We institute the Feast of the
Kingship of Our Lord Jesus Christ to be observed yearly throughout
the whole world on the last Sunday of the month of October - the
Sunday, that is, which immediately precedes the Feast of All
Saints. We further ordain that the dedication of mankind to the
Sacred Heart of Jesus, which Our predecessor of saintly memory,
Pope Pius X, commanded to be renewed yearly, be made annually on
that day. This year, however, We desire that it be observed on the
thirty-first day of the month on which day We Ourselves shall
celebrate pontifically in honor of the kingship of Christ, and
shall command that the same dedication be performed in Our
presence. It seems to Us that We cannot in a more fitting manner
close this Holy Year, nor better signify Our gratitude and that of
the whole of the Catholic world to Christ the immortal King of
ages, for the blessings showered upon Us, upon the Church, and
upon the Catholic world during this holy period.
29.
It is not necessary, Venerable Brethren, that We should explain to
you at any length why We have decreed that this feast of the
Kingship of Christ should be observed in addition to those other
feasts in which his kingly dignity is already signified and
celebrated. It will suffice to remark that although in all the
feasts of our Lord the material object of worship is Christ,
nevertheless their formal object is something quite distinct from
his royal title and dignity. We have commanded its observance on a
Sunday in order that not only the clergy may perform their duty by
saying Mass and reciting the Office, but that the laity too, free
from their daily tasks, may in a spirit of holy joy give ample
testimony of their obedience and subjection to Christ. The last
Sunday of October seemed the most convenient of all for this
purpose, because it is at the end of the liturgical year, and thus
the feast of the Kingship of Christ sets the crowning glory upon
the mysteries of the life of Christ already commemorated during
the year, and, before celebrating the triumph of all the Saints,
we proclaim and extol the glory of him who triumphs in all the
Saints and in all the Elect. Make it your duty and your task,
Venerable Brethren, to see that sermons are preached to the people
in every parish to teach them the meaning and the importance of
this feast, that they may so order their lives as to be worthy of
faithful and obedient subjects of the Divine King.
30.
We would now, Venerable Brethren, in closing this letter, briefly
enumerate the blessings which We hope and pray may accrue to the
Church, to society, and to each one of the faithful, as a result
of the public veneration of the Kingship of Christ.
31.
When we pay honor to the princely dignity of Christ, men will
doubtless be reminded that the Church, founded by Christ as a
perfect society, has a natural and inalienable right to perfect
freedom and immunity from the power of the state; and that in
fulfilling the task committed to her by God of teaching, ruling,
and guiding to eternal bliss those who belong to the kingdom of
Christ, she cannot be subject to any external power. The State is
bound to extend similar freedom to the orders and communities of
religious of either sex, who give most valuable help to the
Bishops of the Church by laboring for the extension and the
establishment of the kingdom of Christ. By their sacred vows they
fight against the threefold concupiscence of the world; by making
profession of a more perfect life they render the holiness which
her divine Founder willed should be a mark and characteristic of
his Church more striking and more conspicuous in the eyes of all.
32.
Nations will be reminded by the annual celebration of this feast
that not only private individuals but also rulers and princes are
bound to give public honor and obedience to Christ. It will call
to their minds the thought of the last judgment, wherein Christ,
who has been cast out of public life, despised, neglected and
ignored, will most severely avenge these insults; for his kingly
dignity demands that the State should take account of the
commandments of God and of Christian principles, both in making
laws and in administering justice, and also in providing for the
young a sound moral education.
33.
The faithful, moreover, by meditating upon these truths, will gain
much strength and courage, enabling them to form their lives after
the true Christian ideal. If to Christ our Lord is given all power
in heaven and on earth; if all men, purchased by his precious
blood, are by a new right subjected to his dominion; if this power
embraces all men, it must be clear that not one of our faculties
is exempt from his empire. He must reign in our minds, which
should assent with perfect submission and firm belief to revealed
truths and to the doctrines of Christ. He must reign in our wills,
which should obey the laws and precepts of God. He must reign in
our hearts, which should spurn natural desires and love God above
all things, and cleave to him alone. He must reign in our bodies
and in our members, which should serve as instruments for the
interior sanctification of our souls, or to use the words of the
Apostle Paul, as instruments of justice unto God.(35) If all these
truths are presented to the faithful for their consideration, they
will prove a powerful incentive to perfection. It is Our fervent
desire, Venerable Brethren, that those who are without the fold
may seek after and accept the sweet yoke of Christ, and that we,
who by the mercy of God are of the household of the faith, may
bear that yoke, not as a burden but with joy, with love, with
devotion; that having lived our lives in accordance with the laws
of God's kingdom, we may receive full measure of good fruit, and
counted by Christ good and faithful servants, we may be rendered
partakers of eternal bliss and glory with him in his heavenly
kingdom.
34.
Let this letter, Venerable Brethren, be a token to you of Our
fatherly love as the Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus
Christ draws near; and receive the Apostolic Benediction as a
pledge of divine blessings, which with loving heart, We impart to
you, Venerable Brethren, to your clergy, and to your people.
Given
at St. Peter's, Rome, on the eleventh day of the month of December,
in the Holy Year 1925, the fourth of Our Pontificate.
Endnotes:
1.
Eph. iii, 9. | 2. Dan. vii, 13-14. | 3. Num. xxiv, 19. | 4. Ps.
ii. | 5. Ps. xliv. | 6. Ps. Ixxi. | 7. Isa. ix, 6-7. | 8. Jer.
xxiii, 5. | 9. Dan. ii, 44. | 10. Dan. vii, 13-14. | 11. Zach. ix,
9. | 12. Luc. i, 32-33. | 13. Matt. xxv, 31-40. | 14. Joan. xviii,
37. | 15. Matt. xxviii, 18. | 16. Apoc. i, 5. | 17. Apoc. xix, 16.
| 18. Heb. i, 2. | 19. Cf. 1 Cor. xv, 25. | 20. In huc. x. | 21. I
Pet. i, 18-19. | 22. 1 Cor. vi, 20. | 23. I Cor. vi, 15. | 24.
Conc. Trid. Sess. Vl, can. 21. | 25. Joan. xiv, 15; xv, 10. | 26.
Joan. v, 22. | 27. Hymn for the Epiphany. | 28. Enc. Annum Sacrum,
May 25, 1899. | 29. Acts iv, 12. | 30. S. Aug. Ep. ad Macedonium,
c. iii. | 31. Enc. Ubi Arcano. | 32. I Cor. vii, 23. | 33. Enc.
Annum Sanctum, May 25, 1899. | 34. Sermo 47 de Sanctis. | 35. Rom.
vi, 13.
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