FEAST OF CHRIST THE UNIVERSAL KING

The Feast of Christ the King was instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925 as an antidote to secularism, a way of life which leaves God out of man's thinking and living and organizes his life as if God did not exist. The feast is intended to proclaim in a striking and effective manner Christ's royalty over individuals, families, society, governments, and nations.

Today's Mass establishes the titles for Christ's royalty over men:

• Christ is God, the Creator of the universe and hence wields a supreme power over all things; "All things were created by Him";
• Christ is our Redeemer, He purchased us by His precious Blood, and made us His property and possession;
• Christ is Head of the Church, "holding in all things the primacy";
• God bestowed upon Christ the nations of the world as His special possession and dominion.

Today's Mass also describes the qualities of Christ's kingdom. This kingdom is:

• Supreme, extending not only to all people but also to their princes and kings
• Universal, extending to all nations and to all places
• Eternal, for "The Lord shall sit a King forever"
• Spiritual, Christ's "kingdom is not of this world". — Rt. Rev. Msgr. Rudolph G. Bandas

The 1962 Missal of Saint John XXIII, states that " considering the extraordinary form of the Roman Rite, this feast is celebrated on the last Sunday of October."