The gospel reading for the first Sunday of Advent in any of the three Cycles of Readings is always taken from the last discourse of Jesus in Matthew, or Mark, or Luke. The readings for the current liturgical year, YEAR A, are taken from the final sermon of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew.

The feast of Christ the King was established by Pope Pius XI in 1925. According to Pius XI, people of his time “…thrust Jesus Christ and his holy law out of their lives,” so that “these have no place in public affairs and politics.” Pius continues,”…as long as individuals and states refuse to submit to the rule of our Savior, there will be no hopeful prospect for a lasting peace among nations.”

I stood in line at a wake last week, watching the parents of a young man in his 30s try to cope with his death. He had struggled with drugs for a good number of years during his young life. And finally, he just couldn’t manage it.