Our Lord Jesus Christ The King –
Cycle B
Daniel 7: 13-14; Revelation 1: 5-8;
John 18: 33b-37
“Then
you are a king?”
Jesus
answered, “You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I
came into the world, to testify to the truth.”
Truth,
my friends, is not always easy to comprehend. As we go through life,
we continually look for meaning, searching for answers to questions
that have taunted us forever. And if we are paying attention,
occasionally we are blessed with a new insight that brings us closer
to each other and ultimately, closer to the Kingdom of God.
About
a year ago, my wife's brother, Kenneth, began to feel weak. He had
no energy. He would become winded by just walking across the room.
After many tests, the doctors concluded that his heart was diseased.
He needed a heart transplant.
The
doctors felt that Kenneth was an excellent candidate for the surgery
– other than his heart, he was in good health. That made his
chances for a full recovery much better. The insurance company,
however, did not see things the same way. In their opinion, Kenneth
wasn't sick enough to warrant this drastic and costly procedure.
They refused to cover the expense. Several appeals were filed.
Finally, the insurance company relented and agreed. Kenneth's name
was placed on the national registry list for a new heart. Doctors
inserted a pic line and began giving him medication. Then we waited
… and waited. It was maddening. A few times the pic line became
infected and he was hospitalized while they treated the infection.
This removed Kenneth's name from the registry for a time. On
Saturday, a couple weeks ago, we finally received the news they had
waited so long to hear – a heart was available. Testing was
completed and the surgery was scheduled for Sunday morning.
The
family members piled into vehicles early Sunday morning and headed
for the UK Medical Center in Lexington. My wife has a large family,
so we took up a lot of space in the ICU waiting room. We were all
filled with joy and hope that this day had come. But there was also
another emotion in the room. The day we had prayed for came with a
price. Somewhere, another family was mourning the loss of a young
man; A son who would never graduate from high school; never fall in
love; never give his parents grandchildren. This was the reality
that we found ourselves in that day. Kenneth's chance for new life
was only possible by the untimely death of another.
This
christian faith that we follow also came with a price. Jesus'
suffering, death and resurrection was necessary for our salvation.
If you were raised in a christian home, you've known this for a long
time. But there is a huge difference between knowing it in your head
and feeling it in your heart.
St.
Francis of Assisi parish is a wonderful place for us to gather as a
community. We come here to pray and worship. We come here to learn.
We come here for friendship and for entertainment. We come here to
serve others. Some of you have called St. Francis “home” for
your entire lives. Others, like myself, have only been here for a
brief time. But even in my limited exposure to this parish, I can
see a joy, a closeness that is shared. At St. Francis, we rejoice in
our christian faith and our catholic identities. This weekend, that
joy manifests itself with the baptisms of six children. We celebrate
with the families as we welcome these newest members into our faith
community. But let us never forget the sacrifice that made all of
this possible.
Today
is the final Sunday of our liturgical year, the Feast of Christ the
King. Our Heavenly Father, creator of all, loves us completely and
totally. He loves us so much, that through the incarnation, he
joined with us. Jesus, fully human, experienced love and loss,
doubt and pain, suffering and even death, just as each of us does.
He triumphed over death through the resurrection and ascension into
heaven. The kingdom the power and the glory are His now and forever.
Amen.
Deacon Darryl J. Diemer
Feast of Christ The King
November 25, 2012
