The Feast of Christ the King is, celebrated each year on the last Sunday of the liturgical year, just before beginning the Advent season. The timing of this feast is beautiful and a fitting transition to the liturgical New Year as we turn our hearts not just to the coming Baby Jesus, but to the King who has promised to return in triumph. It’s also a good time to look back and remember all the ways God has provided for us. The timing of this feast is particularly good this year as it falls on the same weekend as Thanksgiving and comes at the end of a particularly troublesome election season. The feast helps us to grow in gratitude, but also calls us to reflect on what it means that we belong first to the Kingdom of God. From the dawn of civilization, kings have arisen who have dreamed of possessing a world-wide dominion, a universal kingdom that would last forever. But despite all their plotting, and pretenses, the great rulers of the earth all proved mortal like anybody else. They had their day in the sun only to disappear.

Dark and gloomy. That seems to be the readings for this Sunday. We hear that the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give out light while the stars will fall from the sky and heaven will be shaken. Why are we hearing this now with Advent just a few weeks away? Maybe one reason is that we might find within ourselves a need for relief from all the turmoil around us. That relief is a simple one, the coming of the Christ Child. Look around us as the media world tries to convince us that purchasing certain products will make us happy and will fulfill our lives and if we don’t have certain items we will be faced with days as bad as today’s readings.

Today’s readings teach us important lessons about faith, sacrifice, and trust in God. By reflecting on these stories, we can better understand our own faith journey and how to live in a way that pleases God. In the first reading today, we see a widow who is struggling to survive. She has very little, but when Elijah asks her for food, she trusts God’s promise and shares what she has. Her trust leads to a miracle, as her jar of flour and jug of oil do not run out. This widow’s faith is an example for us. Even when we have little, we can trust in God’s promises. Her story shows us that God provides for those who put their faith in Him. The second reading for today emphasizes that Jesus is our high priest and greater than any other priest.