Introduction
Over the last couple of weeks I have been getting to know Tomas who has come to the UK from the Czech Republic. I was asking Tomas about his parents and he said they were both in their 70s. It struck me that his parents must have seen rather too much history in their lives.
When they were born they would have been citizens of the new state called Czechoslovakia carved out of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire after the First World War. In the late 1930s Hitler wanted part of what is now the Czech Republic called the Sudetenland which had native German speakers in it. The Western Powers, led by the UK, appeased Hitler at a conference in Munich and said they would not move against him if he took the Sudetenland. So in 1938 Czechoslovakia was betrayed by other democracies. Soon the rest of the country was occupied. After the war it regained some sense of nationhood but was controlled from Moscow by local communists. In the 1960s the government tried to follow a course separate from Moscow but the tanks were sent in. After the fall of the Berlin wall Czechoslovakia became democratic and decided to separate into o two distinct countries - the Czech Republic and the Republic of Slovakia. Tomas' parents have lived through all of this change and impermanence.
In the UK we can't really imagine what it would have been like to live with this type of instability and political change. Very few of us remember any other monarch other than The Queen. We live in a democracy which is stable and which has served as a model for others around the world. Yet we have all seen changes of government and have watched the changes in government and political systems in Europe over the course of our lives.
In 1925 the Church instituted a new feast that of Christ the King in order to help Christians compare and contrast the divine rule of Christ and his unchanging kingdom with the passing realms and governments of our own world. The festival was also designed to remind earthly kings, rulers and governments to whom they were accountable.
The Kingdoms of the World and the Kingdom of God
When we think of Kingdoms and Kings and Queens we think of pomp and ceremony. We think of the rich ritual of state occasions, royal palaces and, sometimes of awesome power. We live in Kingdom ruled by a Queen who has much influence but little power. If we lived in Bhutan or Saudi Arabia we would find a much older version of monarchy where the word of the Sovereign is life or death to those who hear it. We know of many countries around the world which still oppress their people and deny them their rights. These countries exercise a form of power that we thankfully left behind in Europe centuries ago.
Yet this is not the image of Jesus as King nor the Kingdom of God that we see in Scripture. Jesus is a king, but as he says to Pilate, his kingdom is "not of this world".
Judgement
However, today's reading is a little unsettling when we think of the Kingship of Jesus. This reading is not about a gentle "king among us" or of a King in whose presence we would be comfortable. Today's reading is harsh. It is about behaviour being rewarded by judgement; it is unsettling reading. In this passage Jesus talks about judgement and says that we will be judged on how we have treated others - not on how good we were as Christians, or how many Biblical passages we knew, nor if we believed the right things. We will be judged, says Jesus, on how we treated others, because our treatment of others betrays how we treat Jesus himself.
Our modern ears rather react against today's reading. We think of it as being a bit "Old Testament". We don't like to think about judgement - who can blame us! But once we get past our discomfort, we can see that a key theme in Jesus' judgement is justice, and turning the world the right way up.
When I was younger and newly ordained, brimming over with liberalism and enthusiasm - quite a heady combination - I boldly asserted that I didn't really believe in Hell as it didn't fit with my ideas of a God of love. Now, I find I have to believe in the existence of Hell - whether or not people are sent there for a time or for eternity or whether or not they send themselves there - because I realise there is so little justice here on earth for so many of "the least of these" that Jesus refers to.
In the passing realms of our world, there is often no one to hold the leaders and bureaucrats to account for how they behave. Who will hold the Saudis to account for how they suppress their people? Who will hold the military junta in Burma to account for their evil policies? Who will hold the leaders in North Korea to account for the famine which starves their people. Today's reading and the festival of Christ the King reminds us that we all have to face judgement one day before one who is utterly just and who cares for the oppressed and despised.
Our Part in this Justice
Oscar Wilde wrote a beautiful story called The Happy Prince which shows how we can help in the work of our King in turning the world back the right way up.
During his life on earth the prince had lived a very sheltered life. When he died the people erected a statue of him in the main square of the capital city. The statue was covered all over with leaves of gold. It had two sapphires for eyes, and a very large red ruby on the handle of the sword. One cold evening, a little swallow, on its way south, landed at the base of the statue. As he was resting there, a few drops of water fell on him. He looked up and saw that the happy prince was crying. 'Why are you crying?' the swallow asked. When I was alive I saw no suffering,' said the Prince. But from my perch up here I see that there is a lot of unhappiness in the world. I'd like to help but I can't because my feet are fastened to the pedestal. I need a messenger. Would you be my messenger?' 'But I have to go to Egypt,' the swallow answered. 'Please stay this night with me.' 'Very well, then. What can I do for you?' In a room there is a mother tending a sick child. She has no money to pay for a doctor. Take the ruby from my sword and give it to her.' The swallow removed the ruby with his beak, and bore it away to the woman and she rejoiced. The doctor came and her child recovered. "The swallow came back and slept soundly. Next day the prince asked him to stay another night. Then he asked him to take out one of the sapphires, and give it to a little match girl down in the square. She had sold no matches that day and was afraid she would be beaten when she got home. Once again the swallow did as he was asked. As he was running these errands of mercy, the swallow's own eyes were opened. He saw how much poverty and suffering there was in the city. Then he was glad to stay with the prince and be his messenger. One by one, at the Prince's urging, he stripped off the leaves of gold and gave them away to the poor and the needy. Finally he arrived back one evening. But by now the statue was bare, having been stripped of all its ornaments. The night was very cold. Next morning the little swallow was found dead at the base of the statue. The prince had given away all his riches, but he could not have done so without his faithful messenger, the little swallow.
Conclusion
Christ, our King, gave himself totally while he lived on earth. Even as he died he was still giving to those who were receptive. And from his lofty perch in heaven he surveys the plight of God's children on earth But his feet are fastened, his hands tied, and his tongue silent. He needs messengers. He needs us. He has no hands but ours, no feet but ours, no tongue but ours.
And it is his riches, not our own, that we are called on to dispense - his love, his forgiveness, his mercy, his good news. What is involved is helping in simple things, things which are available to everyone - giving a hungry person something to eat, or a thirsty person something to drink, welcoming a stranger, or visiting someone 'who is sick or in prison.
To do things such as these one doesn't have to be either wealthy co talented. All one needs is a warm and willing heart. Every one can do something - yes, even a little 'swallow'.
Prayer
Lord, your servant Mother Teresa said:
"Many
today are starving for ordinary bread.
But there is another kind of hunger -
The hunger to be wanted, to be loved, to be recognised.
Nakedness too is not just the want of clothes,
But also about loss of dignity, purity, and self-respect.
And homelessness is not just want of a house;
There is the homelessness of being rejected,
Of being unwanted in a throwaway society.
The biggest disease in the world today,
Is the feeling of being unwanted and uncared for.
The greatest evil in the world is lack of love,
The terrible indifference towards one's neighbour"
Lord,
warm our cold hearts with your grace,
So that we, your disciples, may produce the fruits of love.
Amen.
This sermon was first preached in the Metropolitan Community Church of Manchester. Click here for further information.