John 18:37

Jesus of Nazareth, The King

In John’s Passion account, Pilate says to Jesus, Then you are a king?, to which Jesus replies, You say I am a king….
Jesus and Pilate mean two very different things by “king.” For Pilate, a king would likely represent power in the sense of the ability to lord it over others and make his authority felt, which Jesus warned his disciples against. Jesus, who emptied himself and handed himself over, witnesses that God is Love. True kingship and authority, the love of Father, Son, and Spirit, is to be glorified on the cross.
As the encounter progresses, Pilate is clearly affected by the authority he sees in Jesus, which is substantially different, and infinitely more substantial, than any he has seen in a worldly king or Caesar. It is Pilate who will write on the cross in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek, “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.” It is as if, after reluctantly handing Jesus over to death, Pilate needs to testify in some way to the truth he has met. Jesus has transformed his notion of kingship.
As we celebrate Christ the King, the culminating Solemnity of our liturgical calendar, let us ponder whether and how our life of faith has deepened our understanding of Jesus this past year.
As we prepare to begin a new liturgical year, let us pray to our Lord that our experience of his presence in our lives in the coming seasons may deepen our knowledge and love of Christ the King.

Father Richard Veras is the director of pastoral formation at Saint Joseph’s Seminary in New York.