NV-Christ the King

NOVENA TO CHRIST THE KING

What is a Novena?
A novena is a traditional devotion consisting of specific prayers recited on nine successive days. Besides being a form of praise, a novena is frequently offered for a particular intention. The first novena took place in the Cenacle, during the nine days preceding Pentecost, or the coming of the Holy Ghost. As a regular popular custom, this practice began in 12th century Christianity and continues to be beneficial today as a way of praying for healing, protection or other blessings for ourselves or others.

Holy Scripture speaks of Chist being a king and that His reigh shall last for ever. Christ Himself claimed to be a king when questioned by Pontius PIlate just before His cricifixion and death. Christ is king through creation--having made all things, the consequence is that all things belong to Him. Christ is also king by conquest--for by His Passion and Death, He has redeemed us and rescued us from the clutches of Satan and Hell.

In praying this Novena, as in the case of all prayer, it is good to begin by opening ourselves wholeheartedly to God's will, offering a simple act of trust in God's wisdom and in His providential love for us all, that disposes all things for the ultimate benefit of our souls and their salvation.

How to Pray This Novena
This novena will be largely based upon Holy Scripture, the writings of the saints and popes, as well as the works and sermons of various theologians. Each day of the novena is divided into the following parts: (1) a relevant quote from Holy Scripture; (2) quotes from the Encyclical Letter of Pope Pius XI on Christ the King; (3) an occasional quote from a saint or a pope; (4) a Meditation; (5) a Resolution; (6) a Prayer; (7) after mentioning your intention, pray the Our Father and the Hail Mary; (8) a Closing Prayer.

ACT OF CONSECRATION TO CHRIST THE KING

Most sweet Jesus, Redeemer of the human race, look down upon us humbly prostrate before Thy altar. We are Thine, and Thine we wish to be; but, to be more surely united with Thee, behold each one of us freely consecrates himself today to Thy Most Sacred Heart.

Many indeed have never known Thee; many too, despising Thy precepts, have rejected Thee. Have mercy on them all, most merciful Jesus, and draw them to Thy Sacred Heart.

Be Thou King, O Lord, not only of the faithful who have never forsaken Thee, but also of the prodigal children who have abandoned Thee; grant that they may quickly return to their Father’s house lest they die of wretchedness and hunger.

Be Thou King of those who are deceived by erroneous opinions, or whom discord keeps aloof; call them back to the harbour of truth and unity of faith, so that soon there may be but one flock and one Shepherd.

Be Thou King of all those who are still involved in the darkness of idolatry or of Islamism; refuse not to draw them all into the light and kingdom of God. Turn Thine eyes of mercy toward the children of that race, once Thy chosen people: of old they called down upon themselves the Blood of the Saviour; may it now descend upon them a laver of redemption and of life.

Grant, O Lord, to Thy Church assurance of freedom and immunity from harm; give peace and order to all nations, and make the earth resound from pole to pole with one cry: Praise to the Divine Heart that wrought our salvation; to It be glory and Honour forever. Amen.

NOVENA TO CHRIST THE KING

Jesus seeks to be the King and center of all hearts

LITANY OF CHRIST THE KING

Lord, have mercy upon us!
Christ, have mercy upon us!
Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ the King, hear us!
Christ the King, graciously hear us!
God, our Heavenly Father, Who has made firm for all ages Thy Son’s Throne, Have mercy on us!
God the Son, Jesus, our Victim-High Priest, True Prophet, and Sovereign King, Have mercy on us!
God the Holy Spirit, poured out upon us with abundant newness, Have mercy on us!
Holy Trinity, Three Persons yet One God in the Beauty of Thy Eternal Unity, Have mercy on us!

O Jesus, our Eternal King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Merciful, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King extending to us the Golden Scepter of Thy Mercy, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in Whose Great Mercy we have been given the Sacrament of Confession, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, Loving King Who offers us Thy Healing Grace, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, our Eucharistic King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, the King foretold by the prophets, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King of Heaven and Earth, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King and Ruler of All Nations, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King, Delight of the Heavenly Court, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Compassionate toward Thy subjects, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King from Whom proceeds all authority, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in whom, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, we are One, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Kingdom is not of this world, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Sacred Heart burns with Love for all mankind, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who is the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who has given us Mary, the Queen, to be our dear Mother, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who will come upon the clouds of Heaven with Power and Great Glory, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Throne we are to approach with confidence, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary the Mediatrix of All Graces, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary Co-Redemptrix, Thy partner in the Plan of Salvation, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who desires to heal us of all division and disunity, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King wounded by mankind’s indifference, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who gives the balm of Thy Love with which to console Your Wounded Heart, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who art the Great “I AM” within us, our Well-Spring of Pure Delight, Reign in our hearts!

Jesus, King of All Nations, True Sovereign of all earthly powers, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, subjecting under Thy feet forever the powers of Hell, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Light beyond all light, enlightening us in the darkness that surrounds us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Mercy is so Great as to mitigate the punishments our sins deserve, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, recognized by the Magi as the True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Only Remedy for a world so ill, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who blesses with Peace those souls and nations that acknowledge Thee as True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who Mercifully sends us your Holy Angels to protect us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Chief Prince is Saint Michael the Archangel, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who teaches us that to reign is to serve, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Just Judge Who will separate the wicked from the good, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, before Whom every knee shall bend, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Dominion is an everlasting Dominion, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Lamb who will shepherd us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who after having destroyed every sovereignty, authority and power, will hand over the Kingdom to Thy God and Father, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Reign is without end, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose kindness toward us is steadfast, and whose fidelity endures forever, May we serve Thee!

Eternal Father, Who has given us Thy Only Begotten Son, to be our Redeemer, One True Mediator, and Sovereign King, We praise and thank Thee!

Loving Jesus, Sovereign King, Who humbled Thyself for Love of us and took the form of a servant, We praise and thank Thee!

Holy Spirit, Third Person of the Trinity, Love of the Father and the Son, Who sanctifies us and gives us Life, We praise and thank Thee!

Mary, our Queen and Mother, who mediates to Jesus on our behalf, Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, through whom all Grace come to us, Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, Singular Jewel of the Holy Trinity, We love thee!

Holy Angels and Saints of our Divine King,
Pray for us and Protect us!

Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us, O Lord!

The Lord God shall give unto him the throne!
And He shall reign for ever and of His kingdom there shall be no end!

Let us pray:
Almighty, everlasting God, Who in Thy beloved Son, King of the whole world, hast willed to restore all things anew: grant in Thy mercy that all the families of nations, rent asunder by the wound of sin, may be subjected to His most gentle rule. Who with Thee liveth and reigneth in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

FIRST DAY OF THE NOVENA (new meditations posted each day)

Topic to Contemplate:
Antidote to Secularism, Atheism, Communism

Holy Scripture
“Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a Son; and thou shalt call His Name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the most High; and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of David His father; and He shall reign in the house of Jacob for ever. And of His kingdom there shall be no end!” (Luke 1:31-33).

Opening Thought
The Feast of Christ the King is traditionally celebrated on the last Sunday of October. Pope Paul VI went and changed the date to the last Sunday of the liturgical year (or the Sunday before the First Sunday of Advent). Regardless of the date, the Feast of Christ the King, as established by Pope Pius XI in 1925, was meant to be an antidote to Secularism. This heinous state of Secularism, is a way of life which leaves God out of man’s thinking, and then living and organizes his life as if God did not exist.

Pope Pius XI instituted this feast in 1925 to help the Church respond to rising Secularism and Atheism in the world. Pope Pius XI cites the precedent for introducing new feast days into the liturgical calendar: the Church sees a pressing need for the culture around it to be reminded of some particular aspect of the Catholic Faith. The feast of Corpus Christi was instituted when devotion to the Holy Eucharist was waning.

“So, too,” Pope Pius XI notes, “the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was instituted at a time when men were oppressed by the sad and gloomy severity of Jansenism, which had made their hearts grow cold, and shut them out from the love of God and the hope of salvation.” Pius XI cites his reasons for establishing the feast of Christ the King as the widespread prevalence of relativism and anti-clericalism. He desires to remind the world that Christ—and his Church—are truly Lord over all.

The Feast of Christ the King is intended to proclaim in a striking and effective manner Christ’s royalty over individuals, families, society, governments, and nations. This feast can and should be a springboard to re-establishing Christ’s absolute authority and rule in ourselves first of all, and then in our families.

Even Catholics are guilty of Secularism, for even though they know in their minds that God exists, there is little place for God in their hearts, for they live as though God did not exist. Is your family guilty of this? Are some members of your family tending towards this? Have they contracted the fatal disease of Secularism, at least its early stages?

Reading from the Encyclical on Christ King by Pope Pius XI
In the first Encyclical Letter which We addressed at the beginning of Our Pontificate to the Bishops of the universal Church, We referred to the chief causes of the difficulties under which mankind was laboring. And We remember saying that these manifold evils in the world were due to the fact that the majority of men had thrust Jesus Christ and His holy law out of their lives; that these had no place either in private affairs or in politics: and we said further, that as long as individuals and states refused to submit to the rule of our Savior, there would be no really hopeful prospect of a lasting peace among nations.

Men must look for the peace of Christ in the Kingdom of Christ; and that We promised to do as far as lay in Our power. In the Kingdom of Christ, that is, it seemed to Us that peace could not be more effectually restored nor fixed upon a firmer basis than through the restoration of the Empire of Our Lord. We were led in the meantime to indulge the hope of a brighter future at the sight of a more widespread and keener interest evinced in Christ and His Church, the one Source of Salvation, a sign that men who had formerly spurned the rule of our Redeemer and had exiled themselves from His Kingdom were preparing, and even hastening, to return to the duty of obedience.

Meditation
Kings today are an unfamiliar breed. The few that are left have no political power. But, in ancient times, kings were sacred and absolute. They were crowned at their coronation with a special consecration and anointing. And the ancient king set the tone and spirit of his realm. A good king made for a prosperous and orderly kingdom.

That idea is by no means dead today. The influence of a leader is still a powerful factor in modern life. For example, take education. A school takes its spirit from the principal. Does he or she love and respect children? The staff will reflect that spirit in the classrooms.

Take business: Is the owner or manager an honest man or a crook? His employees will be quick to follow his ways.

Take government: Are the leaders people of integrity, dedicated to the good of their country, or are they unscrupulous and on the make? Their kind of government will filter down through the bureaucracy.

The same is true of Christ ― Who is meant to be the leader of a worldwide Christian community, the Catholic Church, into which He wishes to bring every human being. His spirit must be the spirit of the people of His Kingdom. Do you have the spirit of Christ? Or do you have the spirit of the world? The spirit of the world is ultimately the spirit of Satan, or Belial, or the Devil―whom Christ calls “the prince of this world” (John 12:31).

Holy Scripture warns: “What concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath the faithful with the unbeliever? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God! As God saith: ‘I will dwell in them, and walk among them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people!’ Wherefore, ‘Go out from among them, and be ye separate!’ saith the Lord” (2 Corinthians 6:14-17).

Our Prayer
O Jesus Christ, I acknowledge Thee as universal King. All that has been made has been created for Thee. Exercise all Thy rights over me. I renew my Baptismal vows. I renounce Satan, and all his pomps and his works; I promise to live my life as a good Christian. And, in particular, do I pledge myself to labor, to the best of my ability, for the triumph of the rights of God and of Thy Church and Kingdom. Divine Heart of Jesus, to Thee do I offer my poor services, laboring that all hearts may acknowledge Thy Sacred Kingship and Social Reign, and that thus the Reign of Thy Peace be established throughout the whole universe. Amen.

[Mention Intention]

Let us pray:
O Lord our God, Thou alone are the Most Holy King and Ruler of all nations!
We pray to Thee, Lord, in the great expectation of receiving from Thee, O Divine King, mercy, peace, justice and all good things!
Protect, O Lord our King, our families and the land of our birth!
Guard us, we pray Most Faithful One!
Protect us from our enemies and from Thy Just Judgment!
Forgive us, O Sovereign King, our sins against Thee!
Jesus, Thou art a King of Mercy.
We have deserved Thy Just Judgment!
Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us!
We trust in Thy Great Mercy!
O most awe-inspiring King, we bow before Thee and pray;
May Thy Reign and Thy Kingdom, be recognized throughout all the Earth.
Amen.

Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

Final Invocations:
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!

The Feast of Christ the King is traditionally celebrated on the last Sunday of October. Pope Paul VI went and changed the date to the last Sunday of the liturgical year (or the Sunday before the First Sunday of Advent). Regardless of the date, the Feast of Christ the King, as established by Pope Pius XI in 1925, was meant to be an antidote to Secularism. This heinous state of Secularism, is a way of life which leaves God out of man’s thinking, and then living and organizes his life as if God did not exist.

Pope Pius XI instituted this feast in 1925 to help the Church respond to rising Secularism and Atheism in the world. Pope Pius XI cites the precedent for introducing new feast days into the liturgical calendar: the Church sees a pressing need for the culture around it to be reminded of some particular aspect of the Catholic Faith. The feast of Corpus Christi was instituted when devotion to the Holy Eucharist was waning.

“So, too,” Pope Pius XI notes, “the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was instituted at a time when men were oppressed by the sad and gloomy severity of Jansenism, which had made their hearts grow cold, and shut them out from the love of God and the hope of salvation.” Pius XI cites his reasons for establishing the feast of Christ the King as the widespread prevalence of relativism and anti-clericalism. He desires to remind the world that Christ—and his Church—are truly Lord over all.

The Feast of Christ the King is intended to proclaim in a striking and effective manner Christ’s royalty over individuals, families, society, governments, and nations. This feast can and should be a springboard to re-establishing Christ’s absolute authority and rule in ourselves first of all, and then in our families.

Even Catholics are guilty of Secularism, for even though they know in their minds that God exists, there is little place for God in their hearts, for they live as though God did not exist. Is your family guilty of this? Are some members of your family tending towards this? Have they contracted the fatal disease of Secularism, at least its early stages?

Jesus seeks to be the King and center of all hearts

LITANY OF CHRIST THE KING

Lord, have mercy upon us!
Christ, have mercy upon us!
Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ the King, hear us!
Christ the King, graciously hear us!
God, our Heavenly Father, Who has made firm for all ages Thy Son’s Throne, Have mercy on us!
God the Son, Jesus, our Victim-High Priest, True Prophet, and Sovereign King, Have mercy on us!
God the Holy Spirit, poured out upon us with abundant newness, Have mercy on us!
Holy Trinity, Three Persons yet One God in the Beauty of Thy Eternal Unity, Have mercy on us!

O Jesus, our Eternal King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Merciful, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King extending to us the Golden Scepter of Thy Mercy, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in Whose Great Mercy we have been given the Sacrament of Confession, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, Loving King Who offers us Thy Healing Grace, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, our Eucharistic King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, the King foretold by the prophets, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King of Heaven and Earth, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King and Ruler of All Nations, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King, Delight of the Heavenly Court, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Compassionate toward Thy subjects, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King from Whom proceeds all authority, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in whom, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, we are One, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Kingdom is not of this world, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Sacred Heart burns with Love for all mankind, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who is the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who has given us Mary, the Queen, to be our dear Mother, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who will come upon the clouds of Heaven with Power and Great Glory, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Throne we are to approach with confidence, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary the Mediatrix of All Graces, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary Co-Redemptrix, Thy partner in the Plan of Salvation, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who desires to heal us of all division and disunity, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King wounded by mankind’s indifference, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who gives the balm of Thy Love with which to console Your Wounded Heart, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who art the Great “I AM” within us, our Well-Spring of Pure Delight, Reign in our hearts!

Jesus, King of All Nations, True Sovereign of all earthly powers,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, subjecting under Thy feet forever the powers of Hell, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Light beyond all light, enlightening us in the darkness that surrounds us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Mercy is so Great as to mitigate the punishments our sins deserve, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, recognized by the Magi as the True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Only Remedy for a world so ill, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who blesses with Peace those souls and nations that acknowledge Thee as True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who Mercifully sends us your Holy Angels to protect us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Chief Prince is Saint Michael the Archangel,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who teaches us that to reign is to serve,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Just Judge Who will separate the wicked from the good,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, before Whom every knee shall bend,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Dominion is an everlasting Dominion,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Lamb who will shepherd us,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who after having destroyed every sovereignty, authority and power, will hand over the Kingdom to Thy God and Father, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Reign is without end,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose kindness toward us is steadfast, and whose fidelity endures forever,  May we serve Thee!

Eternal Father, Who has given us Thy Only Begotten Son, to be our Redeemer, One True Mediator, and Sovereign King, We praise and thank Thee!

Loving Jesus, Sovereign King, Who humbled Thyself for Love of us and took the form of a servant, We praise and thank Thee!

Holy Spirit, Third Person of the Trinity, Love of the Father and the Son, Who sanctifies us and gives us Life, We praise and thank Thee!

Mary, our Queen and Mother, who mediates to Jesus on our behalf, Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, through whom all Grace come to us,  Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, Singular Jewel of the Holy Trinity,  We love thee!

Holy Angels and Saints of our Divine King,
Pray for us and Protect us!

Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us, O Lord!

The Lord God shall give unto him the throne!
And He shall reign for ever and of His kingdom there shall be no end!

Let us pray:
Almighty, everlasting God, Who in Thy beloved Son, King of the whole world, hast willed to restore all things anew: grant in Thy mercy that all the families of nations, rent asunder by the wound of sin, may be subjected to His most gentle rule. Who with Thee liveth and reigneth in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

SECOND DAY OF THE NOVENA (new meditations posted each day)

Topic to Contemplate: Have You Uncrowned Him?

Holy Scripture
“The Jews cried out, saying: ‘If thou release this Man, thou art not Caesar’s friend! For whosoever makes himself a king, speaks against Caesar!’ Now when Pilate had heard these words, he brought Jesus forth, and he said to the Jews: ‘Behold your king!’ But they cried out: ‘Away with Him! Away with Him! Crucify Him!’ Pilate said to them: ‘Shall I crucify your king?’ The chief priests answered: ‘We have no king but Caesar!’” (John 19:12-15).

Reading from the Encyclical on Christ King by Pope Pius XI
If We ordain that the whole Catholic world shall revere Christ as King, We shall minister to the need of the present day, and at the same time provide an excellent remedy for the plague which now infects society. We refer to the plague of anti-clericalism, its errors and impious activities.

This evil spirit, as you are well aware, has not come into being in one day; it has long lurked beneath the surface. The empire of Christ over all nations was rejected. The right which the Church has from Christ Himself, to teach mankind, to make laws, to govern peoples in all that pertains to their eternal salvation, that right was denied.

Then gradually the religion of Christ came to be likened to false religions and to be placed ignominiously on the same level with them. It was then put under the power of the state and tolerated more or less at the whim of princes and rulers.

Some men went even further, and wished to set up in the place of God’s religion a natural religion consisting in some instinctive affection of the heart. There were even some nations who thought they could dispense with God, and that their religion should consist in impiety and the neglect of God.

The rebellion of individuals and states against the authority of Christ has produced deplorable consequences. We lamented these in the Encyclical Ubi arcano; we lament them today: the seeds of discord sown far and wide; those bitter enmities and rivalries between nations, which still hinder so much the cause of peace; that insatiable greed which is so often hidden under a pretense of public spirit and patriotism, and gives rise to so many private quarrels; a blind and immoderate selfishness, making men seek nothing but their own comfort and advantage, and measure everything by these; no peace in the home, because men have forgotten or neglect their duty; the unity and stability of the family undermined; society in a word, shaken to its foundations and on the way to ruin.

Meditation
There is what is known as a “castle doctrine” (also known as a “castle law” or a “defense of habitation law”) which is a legal doctrine that designates a person’s home as a place in which that person has certain protections and immunities permitting him or her, in certain circumstances, to use force (up to and including deadly force) to defend themselves against an intruder, free from legal responsibility/prosecution for the consequences of the force used. This has led to the well-known axiom or phrase: “A man’s home is his castle.”

Though this may be an interesting concept on the natural level, it should also be applicable on the spiritual level! We may well use certain security methods and tools to physically and materially protect our homes—but what do we do to spiritually protect ourselves and our homes? It is on this level that fences don’t exist; doors and windows are wide open; alarms are not installed or at least not activated; and caution is thrown to the wind. While we most certainly would refuse entry into our homes of a great number of unsuitable and dangerous persons, we nevertheless allow them into the home through the door of TV, internet, movies, books, magazines, newspapers, music, fashion and art!

Christ is King over the Castle of the World and the Universe. He is king because He created all things and He is King because He ransomed us from the slavery of sin, the devil and Hell, by paying the price of the ransom by His Precious Blood. . Firstly, Christ is our King because He owns everyone—He is our creator: “All things were made by Him: and without Him was made nothing that was made” (John 1:3). Secondly, Christ is our King because He has redeemed us, rescued us, ransomed us, bought us back from slavery to sin and the devil by paying the price of the ransom with His Precious Blood: “In Whom we have redemption through His blood, the remission of sins” (Colossians 1:14).

After His arrest, Jesus brought before Pontius Pilate, who asked Jesus if He was the King of the Jews. “Jesus answered Pilate: ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would certainly strive that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now My kingdom is not from hence!’ Pilate therefore said to Him: ‘Art thou a king then?’ Jesus answered: ‘Thou sayest that I am a king. For this was I born, and for this came I into the world; that I should give testimony to the truth. Every one that is of the truth, heareth My voice!’” (John 18:36-37).

“He shall build a house to My Name, and I will establish the throne of His kingdom for ever” (2 Kings 7:13). “God shall reign over the nations: God sitteth on His holy throne” (Psalm 46:9). “The Lord shall reign for ever” (Psalm 145:10). “I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish His kingdom. He shall build a house to My Name, and I will establish the throne of His kingdom for ever. I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a son.” (2 Kings 7:12-14).

Yet there are many households (and parishes and nations) where Christ does not reign, or reigns in name or theory only: “But his citizens hated Him: and they sent an embassy after Him, saying: ‘We will not have this man to reign over us!’” (Luke 19:14). Those who rebel against Christ and His law, or tamper with His law, or compromise or dilute His law, will be punished. “The kings of the Earth stood up, and the princes met together, against the Lord and against His Christ: ‘Let us break Their bonds asunder! And let us cast away Their yoke from us!’ He that dwelleth in Heaven shall laugh at them: and the Lord shall deride them. Then shall He speak to them in His anger, and trouble them in His rage!” (Psalm 2:2-5). “But as for those My enemies, who would not have Me reign over them, bring them hither, and kill them before Me” (Luke 19:27). “For He must reign, until He hath put all His enemies under His feet” (1 Corinthians 15:25).

Does Christ truly reign in my home? Or have I made Christ the King into a King of the Closet? Does Christ reign all the timee, or only when I want Him to reign in some little portions of my life? Do I give Christ the King only lip-service, or do I serve Him with all my heart, mind, soul and strength?

Our Prayer
O Jesus Christ, I acknowledge Thee as universal King. All that has been made has been created for Thee. Exercise all Thy rights over me. I renew my Baptismal vows. I renounce Satan, and all his pomps and his works; I promise to live my life as a good Christian. And, in particular, do I pledge myself to labor, to the best of my ability, for the triumph of the rights of God and of Thy Church and Kingdom. Divine Heart of Jesus, to Thee do I offer my poor services, laboring that all hearts may acknowledge Thy Sacred Kingship and Social Reign, and that thus the Reign of Thy Peace be established throughout the whole universe. Amen.

[Mention Intention]

Let us pray:
O Lord our God, Thou alone are the Most Holy King and Ruler of all nations!
We pray to Thee, Lord, in the great expectation of receiving from Thee, O Divine King, mercy, peace, justice and all good things!
Protect, O Lord our King, our families and the land of our birth!
Guard us, we pray Most Faithful One!
Protect us from our enemies and from Thy Just Judgment!
Forgive us, O Sovereign King, our sins against Thee!
Jesus, Thou art a King of Mercy.
We have deserved Thy Just Judgment!
Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us!
We trust in Thy Great Mercy!
O most awe-inspiring King, we bow before Thee and pray;
May Thy Reign and Thy Kingdom, be recognized throughout all the Earth.
Amen.

Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

Final Invocations:
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!

Jesus seeks to be the King and center of all hearts

LITANY OF CHRIST THE KING

Lord, have mercy upon us!
Christ, have mercy upon us!
Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ the King, hear us!
Christ the King, graciously hear us!
God, our Heavenly Father, Who has made firm for all ages Thy Son’s Throne, Have mercy on us!
God the Son, Jesus, our Victim-High Priest, True Prophet, and Sovereign King, Have mercy on us!
God the Holy Spirit, poured out upon us with abundant newness, Have mercy on us!
Holy Trinity, Three Persons yet One God in the Beauty of Thy Eternal Unity, Have mercy on us!

O Jesus, our Eternal King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Merciful, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King extending to us the Golden Scepter of Thy Mercy, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in Whose Great Mercy we have been given the Sacrament of Confession, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, Loving King Who offers us Thy Healing Grace, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, our Eucharistic King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, the King foretold by the prophets, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King of Heaven and Earth, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King and Ruler of All Nations, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King, Delight of the Heavenly Court, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Compassionate toward Thy subjects, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King from Whom proceeds all authority, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in whom, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, we are One, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Kingdom is not of this world, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Sacred Heart burns with Love for all mankind, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who is the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who has given us Mary, the Queen, to be our dear Mother, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who will come upon the clouds of Heaven with Power and Great Glory, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Throne we are to approach with confidence, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary the Mediatrix of All Graces, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary Co-Redemptrix, Thy partner in the Plan of Salvation, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who desires to heal us of all division and disunity, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King wounded by mankind’s indifference, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who gives the balm of Thy Love with which to console Your Wounded Heart, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who art the Great “I AM” within us, our Well-Spring of Pure Delight, Reign in our hearts!

Jesus, King of All Nations, True Sovereign of all earthly powers,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, subjecting under Thy feet forever the powers of Hell, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Light beyond all light, enlightening us in the darkness that surrounds us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Mercy is so Great as to mitigate the punishments our sins deserve, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, recognized by the Magi as the True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Only Remedy for a world so ill, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who blesses with Peace those souls and nations that acknowledge Thee as True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who Mercifully sends us your Holy Angels to protect us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Chief Prince is Saint Michael the Archangel,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who teaches us that to reign is to serve,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Just Judge Who will separate the wicked from the good,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, before Whom every knee shall bend,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Dominion is an everlasting Dominion,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Lamb who will shepherd us,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who after having destroyed every sovereignty, authority and power, will hand over the Kingdom to Thy God and Father, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Reign is without end,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose kindness toward us is steadfast, and whose fidelity endures forever,  May we serve Thee!

Eternal Father, Who has given us Thy Only Begotten Son, to be our Redeemer, One True Mediator, and Sovereign King, We praise and thank Thee!

Loving Jesus, Sovereign King, Who humbled Thyself for Love of us and took the form of a servant, We praise and thank Thee!

Holy Spirit, Third Person of the Trinity, Love of the Father and the Son, Who sanctifies us and gives us Life, We praise and thank Thee!

Mary, our Queen and Mother, who mediates to Jesus on our behalf, Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, through whom all Grace come to us,  Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, Singular Jewel of the Holy Trinity,  We love thee!

Holy Angels and Saints of our Divine King,
Pray for us and Protect us!

Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us, O Lord!

The Lord God shall give unto him the throne!
And He shall reign for ever and of His kingdom there shall be no end!

Let us pray:
Almighty, everlasting God, Who in Thy beloved Son, King of the whole world, hast willed to restore all things anew: grant in Thy mercy that all the families of nations, rent asunder by the wound of sin, may be subjected to His most gentle rule. Who with Thee liveth and reigneth in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

THIRD DAY OF THE NOVENA (new meditations posted each day)

Topic to Contemplate:
Liberalism Wants Liberation from Christ the King

Holy Scripture
“But His citizens hated Him: and they sent an embassy after Him, saying: ‘We will not have this Man to reign over us!’” (Luke 19:14).

“The kings of the Earth stood up, and the princes met together, against the Lord and against His Christ: ‘Let us break Their bonds asunder! And let us cast away Their yoke from us!’ ” (Psalm 2:2-3).

Reading from the Encyclical on Christ King by Pope Pius XI
It would be a grave error to say that Christ has no authority whatever in civil affairs, since God has given Christ an absolute empire over all creatures committed to Him by the Father, and so all things are in His power. Nevertheless, during His life on Earth He refrained from the exercise of such authority, and although He Himself did not seek to possess or to care for earthly goods, He did not, nor does He today, interfere with those who possess them.

Thus the empire of our Redeemer embraces all men. To use the words of Pope Leo XIII: “His empire includes not only Catholic nations, not only baptized persons who, though of right belonging to the Church, have been led astray by error, or have been cut off from her by schism, but also all those who are outside the Christian Faith; so that truly the whole of mankind is subject to the power of Jesus Christ.”

Nor is there any difference in this matter between the individual and the family or the State; for all men, whether collectively or individually, are under the dominion of Christ. In Him is the salvation of the individual, in Him is the salvation of society. “Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under Heaven given to men whereby we must be saved.” He is the author of happiness and true prosperity for every man and for every nation. “For a nation is happy when its citizens are happy. What else is a nation but a number of men living in concord?”

If, therefore, the rulers of nations wish to preserve their authority, to promote and increase the prosperity of their countries, they will not neglect the public duty of reverence and obedience to the rule of Christ. What We said at the beginning of Our Pontificate concerning the decline of public authority, and the lack of respect for the same, is equally true at the present day. “With God and Jesus Christ,” we said, “excluded from political life, with authority derived not from God but from man, the very basis of that authority has been taken away, because the chief reason of the distinction between ruler and subject has been eliminated. The result is that human society is tottering to its fall, because it has no longer a secure and solid foundation.”

When once men recognize, both in private and in public life, that Christ is King, society will at last receive the great blessings of real liberty, well-ordered discipline, peace and harmony. Our Lord’s regal office invests the human authority of princes and rulers with a religious significance; it ennobles the citizen’s duty of obedience. It is for this reason that St. Paul, while bidding wives revere Christ in their husbands, and slaves respect Christ in their masters, warns them to give obedience to them not as men, but as the vicegerents of Christ; for it is not meet that men redeemed by Christ should serve their fellow-men. “You are bought with a price; be not made the bond-slaves of men.”

If princes and duly elected magistrates are filled with the persuasion that they rule, not by their own right, but by the mandate and in the place of the Divine King, they will exercise their authority piously and wisely, and they will make laws and administer them, having in view the common good and also the human dignity of their subjects. The result will be a stable peace and tranquility, for there will be no longer any cause of discontent.

Meditation
Liberalism, Naturalism, and Rationalism are different aspects of what must be called the Revolution. Right reason, when illuminated by the Faith, sees only harmony and subordination. The Revolutionary reason causes divisions and raises up walls: nature without grace, material prosperity without the searching for eternal goods, the civil power separated from the ecclesiastical power, politics without God or Jesus Christ, the rights of man against the rights of God, and, finally, freedom without truth.

Subjectivism means introducing freedom into the intelligence or mind, whereas on the contrary the nobility of the intelligence consists in submitting the mind itself to its object, that is, in the conformity of the thinking subject with the known object. The intellect works like a camera; it must take a picture of reality as it is, and not seek to change reality. The perfection of the intellect or mind consists in its fidelity to that which is real. It is for this reason that the truth is defined as the conformity of the intellect with the thing. Truth is that quality of thought by which it is in agreement with the thing, with that which is. It is not the intellect that creates the things; it is the things that impose themselves onto the intellect, such as they are. Therefore the truth of what is affirmed depends on that which is; it is an objective thing. The person who is searching for the truth has to renounce himself, to renounce any construction of his own mind, to renounce any idea of “inventing” the truth.

On the contrary, in subjectivism, it is the reason that constructs the truth: we have the submission of the object to the subject! The subject becomes the center of all things. Things are no longer what they are, but what I think they are. In such a case, man creates a truth according to his own personal taste or preferences. This error is called idealism from a philosophical aspect, and it is called Liberalism in its moral, social, political, and religious aspect. As a consequence, the truth will be different according to different individuals and social groups. The truth is then necessarily shared. No one can claim to have it exclusively in its wholeness; it is made and it is sought after without end. It can be guessed how contrary and opposed that is to Our Lord Jesus Christ and to his Church.

Historically, this emancipation of the subject in relation to the object (to that which is) was brought about by four persons. Luther, at first, refused the Magisterium of the Church and kept only the Bible. He introduced the free investigation, starting with a false notion of Scriptural inspiration: individual inspiration! Then Descartes, followed by Kant, systematized subjectivism: the intellect is closed up on itself, and it knows only its own thought. Things themselves are unknowable, we cannot not really know them. Finally, Rousseau: the mind being cut-off from the object it seeks to know, having lost common sense, the individual is left without defense faced with the common opinion. The thought of the individual is going to be dissolved into the public opinion, that is to say, the individual will have to accept what the majority thinks; and this opinion will be created by the techniques of group dynamics organized by the media, which are in the hands of the financiers, the politicians, the Freemasons, etc. Subjectivism, by exalting freedom of thought, results then in the crushing of thought.

The second mark of intellectual Liberalism is evolution. By rejecting the submission to the real and to reality, the Liberal is drawn to reject that idea that some things cannot change; for him there is no stable human nature that is ruled by the absolute unchanging laws set down by the Creator Who does not change. Man is in perpetual progressive evolution or change; the man of yesterday is not the man of today; one collapses into relativism. Furthermore, man himself creates himself; he is the author of his own laws, which he has to refashion constantly according to needs of progress. This evolutionism invades all realms: biological , intellectual, moral, political and religious. Everything is subject to change, even truth. There is no lasting and unchanging authority—everything is a state of change and evolution. What might have been true yesterday, is no longer true today!

For the Faith, this evolution or consant changing spells death. These Liberals and Modernists speak of a Church that evolves and changes, they want an evolving Faith, a changing Faith. “You must submit to the living Church, to the Church of today,” they say. As if the Church of today should not be identical to the Church of yesterday. Those people have no concept of truth, of being. They are Modernists.

Our Prayer
O Jesus Christ, I acknowledge Thee as universal King. All that has been made has been created for Thee. Exercise all Thy rights over me. I renew my Baptismal vows. I renounce Satan, and all his pomps and his works; I promise to live my life as a good Christian. And, in particular, do I pledge myself to labor, to the best of my ability, for the triumph of the rights of God and of Thy Church and Kingdom. Divine Heart of Jesus, to Thee do I offer my poor services, laboring that all hearts may acknowledge Thy Sacred Kingship and Social Reign, and that thus the Reign of Thy Peace be established throughout the whole universe. Amen.

[Mention Intention]

Let us pray:
O Lord our God, Thou alone are the Most Holy King and Ruler of all nations!
We pray to Thee, Lord, in the great expectation of receiving from Thee, O Divine King, mercy, peace, justice and all good things!
Protect, O Lord our King, our families and the land of our birth!
Guard us, we pray Most Faithful One!
Protect us from our enemies and from Thy Just Judgment!
Forgive us, O Sovereign King, our sins against Thee!
Jesus, Thou art a King of Mercy.
We have deserved Thy Just Judgment!
Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us!
We trust in Thy Great Mercy!
O most awe-inspiring King, we bow before Thee and pray;
May Thy Reign and Thy Kingdom, be recognized throughout all the Earth.
Amen.

Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

Final Invocations:
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!

Jesus seeks to be the King and center of all hearts

LITANY OF CHRIST THE KING

Lord, have mercy upon us!
Christ, have mercy upon us!
Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ the King, hear us!
Christ the King, graciously hear us!
God, our Heavenly Father, Who has made firm for all ages Thy Son’s Throne, Have mercy on us!
God the Son, Jesus, our Victim-High Priest, True Prophet, and Sovereign King, Have mercy on us!
God the Holy Spirit, poured out upon us with abundant newness, Have mercy on us!
Holy Trinity, Three Persons yet One God in the Beauty of Thy Eternal Unity, Have mercy on us!

O Jesus, our Eternal King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Merciful, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King extending to us the Golden Scepter of Thy Mercy, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in Whose Great Mercy we have been given the Sacrament of Confession, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, Loving King Who offers us Thy Healing Grace, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, our Eucharistic King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, the King foretold by the prophets, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King of Heaven and Earth, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King and Ruler of All Nations, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King, Delight of the Heavenly Court, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Compassionate toward Thy subjects, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King from Whom proceeds all authority, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in whom, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, we are One, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Kingdom is not of this world, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Sacred Heart burns with Love for all mankind, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who is the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who has given us Mary, the Queen, to be our dear Mother, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who will come upon the clouds of Heaven with Power and Great Glory, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Throne we are to approach with confidence, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary the Mediatrix of All Graces, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary Co-Redemptrix, Thy partner in the Plan of Salvation, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who desires to heal us of all division and disunity, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King wounded by mankind’s indifference, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who gives the balm of Thy Love with which to console Your Wounded Heart, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who art the Great “I AM” within us, our Well-Spring of Pure Delight, Reign in our hearts!

Jesus, King of All Nations, True Sovereign of all earthly powers,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, subjecting under Thy feet forever the powers of Hell, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Light beyond all light, enlightening us in the darkness that surrounds us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Mercy is so Great as to mitigate the punishments our sins deserve, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, recognized by the Magi as the True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Only Remedy for a world so ill, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who blesses with Peace those souls and nations that acknowledge Thee as True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who Mercifully sends us your Holy Angels to protect us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Chief Prince is Saint Michael the Archangel,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who teaches us that to reign is to serve,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Just Judge Who will separate the wicked from the good,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, before Whom every knee shall bend,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Dominion is an everlasting Dominion,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Lamb who will shepherd us,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who after having destroyed every sovereignty, authority and power, will hand over the Kingdom to Thy God and Father, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Reign is without end,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose kindness toward us is steadfast, and whose fidelity endures forever,  May we serve Thee!

Eternal Father, Who has given us Thy Only Begotten Son, to be our Redeemer, One True Mediator, and Sovereign King, We praise and thank Thee!

Loving Jesus, Sovereign King, Who humbled Thyself for Love of us and took the form of a servant, We praise and thank Thee!

Holy Spirit, Third Person of the Trinity, Love of the Father and the Son, Who sanctifies us and gives us Life, We praise and thank Thee!

Mary, our Queen and Mother, who mediates to Jesus on our behalf, Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, through whom all Grace come to us,  Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, Singular Jewel of the Holy Trinity,  We love thee!

Holy Angels and Saints of our Divine King,
Pray for us and Protect us!

Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us, O Lord!

The Lord God shall give unto him the throne!
And He shall reign for ever and of His kingdom there shall be no end!

Let us pray:
Almighty, everlasting God, Who in Thy beloved Son, King of the whole world, hast willed to restore all things anew: grant in Thy mercy that all the families of nations, rent asunder by the wound of sin, may be subjected to His most gentle rule. Who with Thee liveth and reigneth in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

FOURTH DAY OF THE NOVENA (new meditations posted each day)

Topic to Contemplate:
The Old Testament Scriptures Clearly Show Christ to be King

Holy Scripture
“The government is upon His shoulder and His Name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, God the Mighty, the Father of the world to come, the Prince of Peace! His empire shall be multiplied, and there shall be no end of peace! He shall sit upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom!” (Isaias 9:6-7).

Reading from the Encyclical on Christ King by Pope Pius XI
7. It has long been a common custom to give to Christ the metaphorical title of “King,” because of the high degree of perfection whereby He excels all creatures. So He is said to reign “in the hearts of men,” both by reason of the keenness of His intellect and the extent of His knowledge, and also because He is very truth, and it is from Him that truth must be obediently received by all mankind. He reigns, too, in the wills of men, for in Him the human will was perfectly and entirely obedient to the Holy Will of God, and further by His grace and inspiration He so subjects our free-will as to incite us to the most noble endeavors. He is King of hearts, too, by reason of His “charity which exceedeth all knowledge.” And His mercy and kindness which draw all men to Him, for never has it been known, nor will it ever be, that man be loved so much and so universally as Jesus Christ. But if we ponder this matter more deeply, we cannot but see that the title and the power of King belongs to Christ as man in the strict and proper sense too. For it is only as man that He may be said to have received from the Father “power and glory and a Kingdom,” since the Word of God, as consubstantial with the Father, has all things in common with Him, and therefore has necessarily supreme and absolute dominion over all things created.

8. Do we not read throughout the Scriptures that Christ is the King? He it is that shall come out of Jacob to rule,[3] who has been set by the Father as king over Sion, His holy mount, and shall have the Gentiles for His inheritance, and the utmost parts of the Earth for His possession. In the nuptial hymn, where the future King of Israel is hailed as a most rich and powerful monarch, we read: “Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever; the scepter of Thy Kingdom is a scepter of righteousness.” There are many similar passages, but there is one in which Christ is even more clearly indicated. Here it is foretold that His Kingdom will have no limits, and will be enriched with justice and peace: “in His days shall justice spring up, and abundance of peace...And He shall rule from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the Earth.”

9. The testimony of the Prophets is even more abundant. That of Isaias is well known: “For a child is born to us and a son is given to us, and the government is upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, God the mighty, the Father of the world to come, the Prince of Peace. His empire shall be multiplied, and there shall be no end of peace. He shall sit upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom; to establish it and strengthen it with judgment and with justice, from henceforth and for ever.”

With Isaias the other Prophets are in agreement. So Jeremias foretells the “just seed” that shall rest from the house of David ― the Son of David that shall reign as king, “and shall be wise, and shall execute judgment and justice in the Earth.” So, too, Daniel, who announces the Kingdom that the God of Heaven shall found, “that shall never be destroyed, and shall stand for ever.” And again he says: “I beheld, therefore, in the vision of the night, and, behold, one like the son of man came with the clouds of Heaven. And He came even to the Ancient of days: and they presented Him before Him. And He gave Him power and glory and a Kingdom: and all peoples, tribes, and tongues shall serve Him. His power is an everlasting power that shall not be taken away, and His Kingdom shall not be destroyed.” The prophecy of Zachary concerning the merciful King “riding upon an ass and upon a colt the foal of an ass” entering Jerusalem as “the just and savior,” amid the acclamations of the multitude, was recognized as fulfilled by the holy evangelists themselves.

Meditation
In the Our Father we pray “Thy Kingdom come.” And the Nicene Creed proclaims the constant doctrine of the Catholic Church, “He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead.” Does His kingdom extend to my family and home, or are we living autonomously or independently? If we truly have Him come and reign now, then we will not have to tremble later!

He came once in humility and obscurity, riding on an ass and wearing a crown of thorns. He will come again in glory, publicly, riding on the clouds and will decisively put an end to the culture of death, once and for all. It all seems so real, so invincible, the political and military power of great nations and the ideological control exercised by the entertainment industry and the news media. But just recently, the increasing parade of hurricanes and earthquakes remind us of our impotence faced with the forces of nature, so called “acts of God.” Imagine the awesome power of that coming, that final act of God.

Should we be worried? If we are living a life of opposition to God, yes. Hell trembles at the thought of His coming. The stories of the flood and of Sodom and Gomorrah in the book of Genesis are inspired Scripture. They demonstrate what ultimately happens when unrepentant, stubborn sin confronts the holy majesty of God’s righteousness. He will come as King, to deal decisively and violently with evil (remember the cleansing of the Temple?). He will come as judge, to make clear what it is that each person has chosen as their destiny, to call all to accountability for their choices, which are in fact eternal choices with eternal consequences.

But what if you’ve sought to do His will and be His disciple? Then this coming will be an exciting rescue mission. For the king comes as judge for some, but as a savior for others. For those who welcome Him, every tear shall be wiped away. They shall be from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation (Apocalypse 7:9) and will be ushered into a dimension of joy that can scarcely be imagined.

He is no local warlord, no regional ruler. He is the universal King and no one is outside his dominion. And He is no namby-pamby either. Look the mosaic in the apse of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. There Christ the returning King is depicted with rippling muscles. Jesus meek and mild looks in this rendering like someone you definitely don’t want to mess with. The face of the mosaic has a curious quality―one side of His face has a stern look intended for His enemies. But the other side of His face, though strong, is yet tender in compassion for His friends. I don’t know about you, but I think I’d rather be counted among His friends.

Our Prayer
O Jesus Christ, I acknowledge Thee as universal King. All that has been made has been created for Thee. Exercise all Thy rights over me. I renew my Baptismal vows. I renounce Satan, and all his pomps and his works; I promise to live my life as a good Christian. And, in particular, do I pledge myself to labor, to the best of my ability, for the triumph of the rights of God and of Thy Church and Kingdom. Divine Heart of Jesus, to Thee do I offer my poor services, laboring that all hearts may acknowledge Thy Sacred Kingship and Social Reign, and that thus the Reign of Thy Peace be established throughout the whole universe. Amen.

[Mention Intention]

Let us pray:
O Lord our God, Thou alone are the Most Holy King and Ruler of all nations!
We pray to Thee, Lord, in the great expectation of receiving from Thee, O Divine King, mercy, peace, justice and all good things!
Protect, O Lord our King, our families and the land of our birth!
Guard us, we pray Most Faithful One!
Protect us from our enemies and from Thy Just Judgment!
Forgive us, O Sovereign King, our sins against Thee!
Jesus, Thou art a King of Mercy.
We have deserved Thy Just Judgment!
Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us!
We trust in Thy Great Mercy!
O most awe-inspiring King, we bow before Thee and pray;
May Thy Reign and Thy Kingdom, be recognized throughout all the Earth.
Amen.

Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

Final Invocations:
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!

Jesus seeks to be the King and center of all hearts

LITANY OF CHRIST THE KING

Lord, have mercy upon us!
Christ, have mercy upon us!
Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ the King, hear us!
Christ the King, graciously hear us!
God, our Heavenly Father, Who has made firm for all ages Thy Son’s Throne, Have mercy on us!
God the Son, Jesus, our Victim-High Priest, True Prophet, and Sovereign King, Have mercy on us!
God the Holy Spirit, poured out upon us with abundant newness, Have mercy on us!
Holy Trinity, Three Persons yet One God in the Beauty of Thy Eternal Unity, Have mercy on us!

O Jesus, our Eternal King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Merciful, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King extending to us the Golden Scepter of Thy Mercy, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in Whose Great Mercy we have been given the Sacrament of Confession, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, Loving King Who offers us Thy Healing Grace, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, our Eucharistic King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, the King foretold by the prophets, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King of Heaven and Earth, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King and Ruler of All Nations, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King, Delight of the Heavenly Court, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Compassionate toward Thy subjects, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King from Whom proceeds all authority, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in whom, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, we are One, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Kingdom is not of this world, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Sacred Heart burns with Love for all mankind, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who is the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who has given us Mary, the Queen, to be our dear Mother, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who will come upon the clouds of Heaven with Power and Great Glory, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Throne we are to approach with confidence, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary the Mediatrix of All Graces, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary Co-Redemptrix, Thy partner in the Plan of Salvation, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who desires to heal us of all division and disunity, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King wounded by mankind’s indifference, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who gives the balm of Thy Love with which to console Your Wounded Heart, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who art the Great “I AM” within us, our Well-Spring of Pure Delight, Reign in our hearts!

Jesus, King of All Nations, True Sovereign of all earthly powers,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, subjecting under Thy feet forever the powers of Hell, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Light beyond all light, enlightening us in the darkness that surrounds us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Mercy is so Great as to mitigate the punishments our sins deserve, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, recognized by the Magi as the True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Only Remedy for a world so ill, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who blesses with Peace those souls and nations that acknowledge Thee as True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who Mercifully sends us your Holy Angels to protect us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Chief Prince is Saint Michael the Archangel,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who teaches us that to reign is to serve,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Just Judge Who will separate the wicked from the good,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, before Whom every knee shall bend,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Dominion is an everlasting Dominion,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Lamb who will shepherd us,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who after having destroyed every sovereignty, authority and power, will hand over the Kingdom to Thy God and Father, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Reign is without end,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose kindness toward us is steadfast, and whose fidelity endures forever,  May we serve Thee!

Eternal Father, Who has given us Thy Only Begotten Son, to be our Redeemer, One True Mediator, and Sovereign King, We praise and thank Thee!

Loving Jesus, Sovereign King, Who humbled Thyself for Love of us and took the form of a servant, We praise and thank Thee!

Holy Spirit, Third Person of the Trinity, Love of the Father and the Son, Who sanctifies us and gives us Life, We praise and thank Thee!

Mary, our Queen and Mother, who mediates to Jesus on our behalf, Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, through whom all Grace come to us,  Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, Singular Jewel of the Holy Trinity,  We love thee!

Holy Angels and Saints of our Divine King,
Pray for us and Protect us!

Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us, O Lord!

The Lord God shall give unto him the throne!
And He shall reign for ever and of His kingdom there shall be no end!

Let us pray:
Almighty, everlasting God, Who in Thy beloved Son, King of the whole world, hast willed to restore all things anew: grant in Thy mercy that all the families of nations, rent asunder by the wound of sin, may be subjected to His most gentle rule. Who with Thee liveth and reigneth in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

FIFTH DAY OF THE NOVENA (new meditations posted each day)
Topic to Contemplate:
The New Testament Scriptures Clearly Show Christ to be King

Holy Scripture
“Jesus answered: ‘My kingdom is not of this world! If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would certainly strive that I should not be delivered to the Jews! But now My kingdom is not from hence!’” (John 18:36).

Reading from the Encyclical on Christ King by Pope Pius XI
10. This same doctrine of the Kingship of Christ which we have found in the Old Testament is even more clearly taught and confirmed in the New. The Archangel, announcing to the Virgin that she should bear a Son, says that “the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of David His father, and He shall reign in the house of Jacob for ever; and of His Kingdom there shall be no end.”

11. Moreover, Christ Himself speaks of His own kingly authority: in His last discourse, speaking of the rewards and punishments that will be the eternal lot of the just and the damned; in His reply to the Roman magistrate, who asked Him publicly whether He were a king or not; after His resurrection, when giving to His Apostles the mission of teaching and baptizing all nations, He took the opportunity to call Himself king, confirming the title publicly, and solemnly proclaimed that all power was given Him in Heaven and on Earth. These words can only be taken to indicate the greatness of His power, the infinite extent of His Kingdom. What wonder, then, that He whom St. John calls the “prince of the kings of the Earth” appears in the Apostle’s vision of the future as He who “hath on His garment and on His thigh written ‘King of kings and Lord of lords!’.” It is Christ whom the Father “hath appointed heir of all things”; “for He must reign until at the end of the world He hath put all His enemies under the feet of God and the Father.”

12. It was surely right, then, in view of the common teaching of the sacred books, that the Catholic Church, which is the Kingdom of Christ on Earth, destined to be spread among all men and all nations, should with every token of veneration salute her Author and Founder in her annual liturgy as King and Lord, and as King of Kings. And, in fact, she used these titles, giving expression with wonderful variety of language to one and the same concept, both in ancient psalmody and in the Sacramentaries. She uses them daily now in the prayers publicly offered to God, and in offering the Immaculate Victim. The perfect harmony of the Eastern liturgies with our own in this continual praise of Christ the King shows once more the truth of the axiom: Legem credendi lex statuit supplicandi. The rule of Faith is indicated by the law of our worship.

Meditation
Jesus knew the oppressive nature of secular kings, and in contrast to them, He connected His role as king to humble service, and commanded His followers to be servants as well. In other passages of Scripture, His kingdom is tied to His suffering and death. While Christ is coming to judge the nations, His teachings spell out a kingdom of justice and judgment balanced with radical love, mercy, peace, and forgiveness. When we celebrate Christ as King, we are not celebrating an oppressive ruler, but one willing to die for humanity and whose “loving-kindness endures forever.” Christ is the king that gives us true freedom, freedom in Him. Thus we must never forget that Christ radically redefined and transformed the concept of kingship.

The earliest Christians identified Jesus with the predicted Messias of the Jews. The Jewish word “Messias,” and the Greek word “Christ,” both mean “anointed one,” and came to refer to the expected king who would deliver Israel from the hands of the Romans. Christians believe that Jesus is this expected Messias. Unlike the Messias most Jews expected, Jesus came to free all people, Jew and Gentile, and He did not come to free them from the Romans, but from sin and death. Thus the king of the Jews, and of all creation, does not primarily rule over a kingdom of this world, but His kingdom is still to be found on Earth—but primarily in the souls of men, even though His kingdom also forms a visible Church too.

Our Prayer
O Jesus Christ, I acknowledge Thee as universal King. All that has been made has been created for Thee. Exercise all Thy rights over me. I renew my Baptismal vows. I renounce Satan, and all his pomps and his works; I promise to live my life as a good Christian. And, in particular, do I pledge myself to labor, to the best of my ability, for the triumph of the rights of God and of Thy Church and Kingdom. Divine Heart of Jesus, to Thee do I offer my poor services, laboring that all hearts may acknowledge Thy Sacred Kingship and Social Reign, and that thus the Reign of Thy Peace be established throughout the whole universe. Amen.

[Mention Intention]

Let us pray:
O Lord our God, Thou alone are the Most Holy King and Ruler of all nations!
We pray to Thee, Lord, in the great expectation of receiving from Thee, O Divine King, mercy, peace, justice and all good things!
Protect, O Lord our King, our families and the land of our birth!
Guard us, we pray Most Faithful One!
Protect us from our enemies and from Thy Just Judgment!
Forgive us, O Sovereign King, our sins against Thee!
Jesus, Thou art a King of Mercy.
We have deserved Thy Just Judgment!
Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us!
We trust in Thy Great Mercy!
O most awe-inspiring King, we bow before Thee and pray;
May Thy Reign and Thy Kingdom, be recognized throughout all the Earth.
Amen.

Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

Final Invocations:
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!

Jesus seeks to be the King and center of all hearts

LITANY OF CHRIST THE KING

Lord, have mercy upon us!
Christ, have mercy upon us!
Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ the King, hear us!
Christ the King, graciously hear us!
God, our Heavenly Father, Who has made firm for all ages Thy Son’s Throne, Have mercy on us!
God the Son, Jesus, our Victim-High Priest, True Prophet, and Sovereign King, Have mercy on us!
God the Holy Spirit, poured out upon us with abundant newness, Have mercy on us!
Holy Trinity, Three Persons yet One God in the Beauty of Thy Eternal Unity, Have mercy on us!

O Jesus, our Eternal King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Merciful, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King extending to us the Golden Scepter of Thy Mercy, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in Whose Great Mercy we have been given the Sacrament of Confession, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, Loving King Who offers us Thy Healing Grace, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, our Eucharistic King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, the King foretold by the prophets, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King of Heaven and Earth, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King and Ruler of All Nations, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King, Delight of the Heavenly Court, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Compassionate toward Thy subjects, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King from Whom proceeds all authority, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in whom, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, we are One, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Kingdom is not of this world, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Sacred Heart burns with Love for all mankind, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who is the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who has given us Mary, the Queen, to be our dear Mother, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who will come upon the clouds of Heaven with Power and Great Glory, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Throne we are to approach with confidence, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary the Mediatrix of All Graces, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary Co-Redemptrix, Thy partner in the Plan of Salvation, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who desires to heal us of all division and disunity, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King wounded by mankind’s indifference, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who gives the balm of Thy Love with which to console Your Wounded Heart, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who art the Great “I AM” within us, our Well-Spring of Pure Delight, Reign in our hearts!

Jesus, King of All Nations, True Sovereign of all earthly powers,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, subjecting under Thy feet forever the powers of Hell, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Light beyond all light, enlightening us in the darkness that surrounds us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Mercy is so Great as to mitigate the punishments our sins deserve, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, recognized by the Magi as the True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Only Remedy for a world so ill, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who blesses with Peace those souls and nations that acknowledge Thee as True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who Mercifully sends us your Holy Angels to protect us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Chief Prince is Saint Michael the Archangel,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who teaches us that to reign is to serve,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Just Judge Who will separate the wicked from the good,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, before Whom every knee shall bend,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Dominion is an everlasting Dominion,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Lamb who will shepherd us,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who after having destroyed every sovereignty, authority and power, will hand over the Kingdom to Thy God and Father, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Reign is without end,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose kindness toward us is steadfast, and whose fidelity endures forever,  May we serve Thee!

Eternal Father, Who has given us Thy Only Begotten Son, to be our Redeemer, One True Mediator, and Sovereign King, We praise and thank Thee!

Loving Jesus, Sovereign King, Who humbled Thyself for Love of us and took the form of a servant, We praise and thank Thee!

Holy Spirit, Third Person of the Trinity, Love of the Father and the Son, Who sanctifies us and gives us Life, We praise and thank Thee!

Mary, our Queen and Mother, who mediates to Jesus on our behalf, Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, through whom all Grace come to us,  Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, Singular Jewel of the Holy Trinity,  We love thee!

Holy Angels and Saints of our Divine King,
Pray for us and Protect us!

Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us, O Lord!

The Lord God shall give unto him the throne!
And He shall reign for ever and of His kingdom there shall be no end!

Let us pray:
Almighty, everlasting God, Who in Thy beloved Son, King of the whole world, hast willed to restore all things anew: grant in Thy mercy that all the families of nations, rent asunder by the wound of sin, may be subjected to His most gentle rule. Who with Thee liveth and reigneth in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

SIXTH DAY OF THE NOVENA (new meditations posted each day)
Topic to Contemplate: King by Nature & King by Conquest

Holy Scripture
“In Him were all things created in Heaven and on Earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominations, or principalities, or powers―all things were created by Him and in Him. And He is before all, and by Him all things consist. And He is the Head of the Body, the Church, Who is the beginning, the Firstborn from the dead―so that in all things He may hold the primacy” (Colossians 1:16-18)

“Thou wast slain and in Thy blood Thou hast redeemed us to God― out of every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation!” (Apocalypse 5:9). “He is the mediator of the New Testament―so that by means of His death, for the redemption of transgressions, so that they that are called, may receive the promise of eternal inheritance!” (Hebrews 9:15)

Reading from the Encyclical on Christ King by Pope Pius XI
13. The foundation of this power and dignity of Our Lord is rightly indicated by Cyril of Alexandria. “Christ,” he says, “has dominion over all creatures, a dominion not seized by violence nor usurped, but His by essence and by nature.” His kingship is founded upon the ineffable hypostatic union. From this it follows not only that Christ is to be adored by angels and men, but that to Him as man angels and men are subject, and must recognize His empire; by reason of the hypostatic union Christ has power over all creatures. But a thought that must give us even greater joy and consolation is this; that Christ is our King by acquired, as well as by natural right, for He is our Redeemer. Would that they who forget what they have cost their Savior might recall the words: “You were not redeemed with corruptible things, but with the Precious Blood of Christ, as of a lamb unspotted and undefiled.” We are no longer our own property, for Christ has purchased us “with a great price”; our very bodies are the “members of Christ.”

14. Let Us explain briefly the nature and meaning of this lordship of Christ. It consists, We need scarcely say, in a threefold power which is essential to lordship. This is sufficiently clear from the scriptural testimony already adduced concerning the universal dominion of our Redeemer, and moreover it is a dogma of Faith that Jesus Christ was given to man, not only as our Redeemer, but also as a law-giver, to whom obedience is due. Not only do the Gospels tell us that He made laws, but they present Him to us in the act of making them. Those who keep them show their love for their Divine Master, and He promises that they shall remain in His love. He claimed judicial power as received from His Father, when the Jews accused Him of breaking the Sabbath by the miraculous cure of a sick man. “For neither doth the Father judge any man; but hath given all judgment to the Son.” In this power is included the right of rewarding and punishing all men living, for this right is inseparable from that of judging. Executive power, too, belongs to Christ, for all must obey His commands; none may escape them, nor the sanctions He has imposed.

15. This Kingdom is spiritual and is concerned with spiritual things. That this is so the above quotations from Scripture amply prove, and Christ by His own action confirms it. On many occasions, when the Jews and even the Apostles wrongly supposed that the Messias would restore the liberties and the kingdom of Israel, He repelled and denied such a suggestion. When the populace thronged around Him in admiration and would have acclaimed Him King, He shrank from the honor and sought safety in flight. Before the Roman magistrate He declared that His Kingdom was not of this world. The Gospels present this Kingdom as one which men prepare to enter by penance, and cannot actually enter except by Faith and by Baptism, which, though an external rite, signifies and produces an interior regeneration. This Kingdom is opposed to none other than to that of Satan and to the power of darkness. It demands of its subjects a spirit of detachment from riches and earthly things, and a spirit of gentleness. They must hunger and thirst after justice, and more than this, they must deny themselves and carry the cross.

16. Christ as our Redeemer purchased the Church at the price of His own Blood; as priest He offered Himself, and continues to offer Himself as a victim for our sins. Is it not evident, then, that His kingly dignity partakes in a manner of both these offices?

Meditation
Our Lord is King because He is God. Certainly, Jesus Christ is both God and man since He assumed a human soul and a human body. Thus, the human soul and the human body of Our Lord Jesus Christ have become so intimately united to God that they cannot be separated. the Church teaches that by this union of God with human nature, with a soul and with a body, which He assumed, Our Lord Jesus Christ is essentially, by nature ― Savior, Priest and King. He cannot be but Savior, for He alone may say that He is God. He alone is able to say that He is the Priest, the Pontiff ― He who truly makes the link between Heaven and Earth ― and also He alone is able to say that He is the King. He is not king according to the kingships of this world, that is to say, over a given territory and limited to the Earth, to men. Indeed, Our Lord is King not only of the Earth but also of Heaven. This is the first profound reason for the royalty of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and of this we must be convinced in order to see Our Lord as King, our personal King. Our Lord Jesus Christ is our King.

But He is King for another reason as well. Pope Pius XI explains perceptively that Our Lord Jesus Christ is King by conquest. By what conquest? It is because Our Lord Jesus Christ has conquered all by His Blood, by His Cross and by Calvary. Regnavit a ligno Deus, God has reigned from the wood, i.e., from the Cross, Our Lord has conquered all souls, whomsoever they may be, by right ― a strict right. All souls since they are created by God, even if they live for only a moment here on Earth, are, by right, subjects of Our Lord Jesus Christ because He conquered them by His Blood. He wants to save them. He desires to redeem them all by His Blood, His Divine Blood, in order to lead them to Heaven. Yes, Our Lord, by His Precious Blood and by His Cross, is by right Our King. This is the very reason why in the early centuries after the peace of Constantine, when the Christians were officially able to present the Cross in their churches, in their chapels and in other places of worship, they usually represented Our Lord Jesus Christ as a crowned King; crowned with the crown of kings. Christ is surely our King and He is King by His Cross.

We must then consider the principles of this nature of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of this conquest which Jesus has made upon our hearts and our souls by His death upon the Cross. Is Our Lord Jesus Christ daily in practice, in all our actions, in all of our thoughts, truly our King? Pope Pius XI continues in his encyclical to describe the manner in which Our Lord must be our King. He must be the King of our intellects and of our thoughts because He us the truth. Jesus Christ is the Truth, because He is God. Is then Our Lord Jesus Christ truly King of our thoughts? Is it He who truly orients all of our thoughts, our reflections, our intellectual life, in the life of our Faith? Is it truly Our Lord Jesus Christ Who is the light of our intellects? Is He King of our wills?

Our Prayer
O Jesus Christ, I acknowledge Thee as universal King. All that has been made has been created for Thee. Exercise all Thy rights over me. I renew my Baptismal vows. I renounce Satan, and all his pomps and his works; I promise to live my life as a good Christian. And, in particular, do I pledge myself to labor, to the best of my ability, for the triumph of the rights of God and of Thy Church and Kingdom. Divine Heart of Jesus, to Thee do I offer my poor services, laboring that all hearts may acknowledge Thy Sacred Kingship and Social Reign, and that thus the Reign of Thy Peace be established throughout the whole universe. Amen.

[Mention Intention]

Let us pray:
O Lord our God, Thou alone are the Most Holy King and Ruler of all nations!
We pray to Thee, Lord, in the great expectation of receiving from Thee, O Divine King, mercy, peace, justice and all good things!
Protect, O Lord our King, our families and the land of our birth!
Guard us, we pray Most Faithful One!
Protect us from our enemies and from Thy Just Judgment!
Forgive us, O Sovereign King, our sins against Thee!
Jesus, Thou art a King of Mercy.
We have deserved Thy Just Judgment!
Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us!
We trust in Thy Great Mercy!
O most awe-inspiring King, we bow before Thee and pray;
May Thy Reign and Thy Kingdom, be recognized throughout all the Earth.
Amen.

Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

Final Invocations:
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!

Jesus seeks to be the King and center of all hearts

LITANY OF CHRIST THE KING

Lord, have mercy upon us!
Christ, have mercy upon us!
Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ the King, hear us!
Christ the King, graciously hear us!
God, our Heavenly Father, Who has made firm for all ages Thy Son’s Throne, Have mercy on us!
God the Son, Jesus, our Victim-High Priest, True Prophet, and Sovereign King, Have mercy on us!
God the Holy Spirit, poured out upon us with abundant newness, Have mercy on us!
Holy Trinity, Three Persons yet One God in the Beauty of Thy Eternal Unity, Have mercy on us!

O Jesus, our Eternal King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Merciful, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King extending to us the Golden Scepter of Thy Mercy, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in Whose Great Mercy we have been given the Sacrament of Confession, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, Loving King Who offers us Thy Healing Grace, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, our Eucharistic King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, the King foretold by the prophets, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King of Heaven and Earth, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King and Ruler of All Nations, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King, Delight of the Heavenly Court, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Compassionate toward Thy subjects, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King from Whom proceeds all authority, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in whom, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, we are One, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Kingdom is not of this world, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Sacred Heart burns with Love for all mankind, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who is the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who has given us Mary, the Queen, to be our dear Mother, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who will come upon the clouds of Heaven with Power and Great Glory, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Throne we are to approach with confidence, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary the Mediatrix of All Graces, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary Co-Redemptrix, Thy partner in the Plan of Salvation, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who desires to heal us of all division and disunity, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King wounded by mankind’s indifference, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who gives the balm of Thy Love with which to console Your Wounded Heart, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who art the Great “I AM” within us, our Well-Spring of Pure Delight, Reign in our hearts!

Jesus, King of All Nations, True Sovereign of all earthly powers,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, subjecting under Thy feet forever the powers of Hell, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Light beyond all light, enlightening us in the darkness that surrounds us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Mercy is so Great as to mitigate the punishments our sins deserve, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, recognized by the Magi as the True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Only Remedy for a world so ill, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who blesses with Peace those souls and nations that acknowledge Thee as True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who Mercifully sends us your Holy Angels to protect us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Chief Prince is Saint Michael the Archangel,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who teaches us that to reign is to serve,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Just Judge Who will separate the wicked from the good,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, before Whom every knee shall bend,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Dominion is an everlasting Dominion,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Lamb who will shepherd us,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who after having destroyed every sovereignty, authority and power, will hand over the Kingdom to Thy God and Father, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Reign is without end,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose kindness toward us is steadfast, and whose fidelity endures forever,  May we serve Thee!

Eternal Father, Who has given us Thy Only Begotten Son, to be our Redeemer, One True Mediator, and Sovereign King, We praise and thank Thee!

Loving Jesus, Sovereign King, Who humbled Thyself for Love of us and took the form of a servant, We praise and thank Thee!

Holy Spirit, Third Person of the Trinity, Love of the Father and the Son, Who sanctifies us and gives us Life, We praise and thank Thee!

Mary, our Queen and Mother, who mediates to Jesus on our behalf, Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, through whom all Grace come to us,  Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, Singular Jewel of the Holy Trinity,  We love thee!

Holy Angels and Saints of our Divine King,
Pray for us and Protect us!

Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us, O Lord!

The Lord God shall give unto him the throne!
And He shall reign for ever and of His kingdom there shall be no end!

Let us pray:
Almighty, everlasting God, Who in Thy beloved Son, King of the whole world, hast willed to restore all things anew: grant in Thy mercy that all the families of nations, rent asunder by the wound of sin, may be subjected to His most gentle rule. Who with Thee liveth and reigneth in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

SEVENTH DAY OF THE NOVENA (new meditations posted each day)
Topic to Contemplate: The Authority of Christ the King

Holy Scripture
“O Lord―Lord, almighty King! For all things are in Thy power, and there is none that can resist Thy will!” (Esther 13:9).

Reading from the Encyclical on Christ King by Pope Pius XI
The title and the power of King belongs to Christ as man in the strict and proper sense. For it is only as man that He may be said to have received from the Father “power and glory and a Kingdom,” since the Word of God, as consubstantial with the Father, has all things in common with Him, and therefore has necessarily supreme and absolute dominion over all things created.

He reigns, too, in the wills of men, for in Him the human will was perfectly and entirely obedient to the Holy Will of God, and further by His grace and inspiration He so subjects our free-will as to incite us to the most noble endeavors.

Christ Himself speaks of His own kingly authority: in His last discourse, speaking of the rewards and punishments that will be the eternal lot of the just and the damned; in His reply to the Roman magistrate, who asked Him publicly whether He were a king or not; after His resurrection, when giving to His Apostles the mission of teaching and baptizing all nations, He took the opportunity to call Himself king, confirming the title publicly, and solemnly proclaimed that all power was given Him in Heaven and on Earth. These words can only be taken to indicate the greatness of His power, the infinite extent of His Kingdom.

Christ is our King by acquired, as well as by natural right, for He is our Redeemer: “You were not redeemed with corruptible things, but with the Precious Blood of Christ, as of a lamb unspotted and undefiled.” We are no longer our own property, for Christ has purchased us “with a great price”; our very bodies are the “members of Christ.”

Meditation
He is the Law. If the Tablets of the Law were found in the Ark of the Covenant in the Old Testament, they represented precisely Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who today is found in our tabernacles. But today with a tremendous superiority have we the Law in our tabernacles, in our “arks of the covenant.”

It is no longer the cold stones of the Old Testament but rather it is Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself Who is the Law. The Word of God is the Law by Whom all has been made, in Whom all things have been created. He is the Law not only of souls, of minds, of wills, but He is the Law of all nature.

All the laws which we discover in nature come from Our Lord Jesus Christ ― come from the Word of God. It suffices to consider that all creatures follow with incomparable fidelity the laws of God, that they follow physical laws, chemical laws, and all the laws of vegetative nature, of animal nature.

These laws are followed impeccably. And we, too, must follow in a diligent manner, in a free manner, the laws of God inscribed in our hearts. It is precisely due to our liberty that we must attach ourselves to this law which is the path of our happiness, the way to eternal life.

Man has turned away from this law.

Our Lord Jesus Christ must then be ― must again become ― the King of our wills and we must conform our wills to His Law, to His Law of love, to His Law of charity, to the Commandments which He has given us and which He Himself told us encompass all other Commandments: To love God and to love one’s neighbors. Are not these two in fact one and the same Commandment? It is He Who tells us so. Do we then truly conform our wills to the law of Our Lord Jesus Christ? Is Jesus Christ truly King of our wills?

Our Prayer
O Jesus Christ, I acknowledge Thee as universal King. All that has been made has been created for Thee. Exercise all Thy rights over me. I renew my Baptismal vows. I renounce Satan, and all his pomps and his works; I promise to live my life as a good Christian. And, in particular, do I pledge myself to labor, to the best of my ability, for the triumph of the rights of God and of Thy Church and Kingdom. Divine Heart of Jesus, to Thee do I offer my poor services, laboring that all hearts may acknowledge Thy Sacred Kingship and Social Reign, and that thus the Reign of Thy Peace be established throughout the whole universe. Amen.

[Mention Intention]

Let us pray:
O Lord our God, Thou alone are the Most Holy King and Ruler of all nations!
We pray to Thee, Lord, in the great expectation of receiving from Thee, O Divine King, mercy, peace, justice and all good things!
Protect, O Lord our King, our families and the land of our birth!
Guard us, we pray Most Faithful One!
Protect us from our enemies and from Thy Just Judgment!
Forgive us, O Sovereign King, our sins against Thee!
Jesus, Thou art a King of Mercy.
We have deserved Thy Just Judgment!
Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us!
We trust in Thy Great Mercy!
O most awe-inspiring King, we bow before Thee and pray;
May Thy Reign and Thy Kingdom, be recognized throughout all the Earth.
Amen.

Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

Final Invocations:
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!

Jesus seeks to be the King and center of all hearts

LITANY OF CHRIST THE KING

Lord, have mercy upon us!
Christ, have mercy upon us!
Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ the King, hear us!
Christ the King, graciously hear us!
God, our Heavenly Father, Who has made firm for all ages Thy Son’s Throne, Have mercy on us!
God the Son, Jesus, our Victim-High Priest, True Prophet, and Sovereign King, Have mercy on us!
God the Holy Spirit, poured out upon us with abundant newness, Have mercy on us!
Holy Trinity, Three Persons yet One God in the Beauty of Thy Eternal Unity, Have mercy on us!

O Jesus, our Eternal King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Merciful, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King extending to us the Golden Scepter of Thy Mercy, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in Whose Great Mercy we have been given the Sacrament of Confession, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, Loving King Who offers us Thy Healing Grace, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, our Eucharistic King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, the King foretold by the prophets, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King of Heaven and Earth, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King and Ruler of All Nations, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King, Delight of the Heavenly Court, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Compassionate toward Thy subjects, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King from Whom proceeds all authority, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in whom, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, we are One, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Kingdom is not of this world, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Sacred Heart burns with Love for all mankind, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who is the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who has given us Mary, the Queen, to be our dear Mother, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who will come upon the clouds of Heaven with Power and Great Glory, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Throne we are to approach with confidence, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary the Mediatrix of All Graces, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary Co-Redemptrix, Thy partner in the Plan of Salvation, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who desires to heal us of all division and disunity, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King wounded by mankind’s indifference, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who gives the balm of Thy Love with which to console Your Wounded Heart, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who art the Great “I AM” within us, our Well-Spring of Pure Delight, Reign in our hearts!

Jesus, King of All Nations, True Sovereign of all earthly powers,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, subjecting under Thy feet forever the powers of Hell, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Light beyond all light, enlightening us in the darkness that surrounds us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Mercy is so Great as to mitigate the punishments our sins deserve, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, recognized by the Magi as the True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Only Remedy for a world so ill, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who blesses with Peace those souls and nations that acknowledge Thee as True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who Mercifully sends us your Holy Angels to protect us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Chief Prince is Saint Michael the Archangel,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who teaches us that to reign is to serve,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Just Judge Who will separate the wicked from the good,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, before Whom every knee shall bend,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Dominion is an everlasting Dominion,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Lamb who will shepherd us,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who after having destroyed every sovereignty, authority and power, will hand over the Kingdom to Thy God and Father, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Reign is without end,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose kindness toward us is steadfast, and whose fidelity endures forever,  May we serve Thee!

Eternal Father, Who has given us Thy Only Begotten Son, to be our Redeemer, One True Mediator, and Sovereign King, We praise and thank Thee!

Loving Jesus, Sovereign King, Who humbled Thyself for Love of us and took the form of a servant, We praise and thank Thee!

Holy Spirit, Third Person of the Trinity, Love of the Father and the Son, Who sanctifies us and gives us Life, We praise and thank Thee!

Mary, our Queen and Mother, who mediates to Jesus on our behalf, Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, through whom all Grace come to us,  Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, Singular Jewel of the Holy Trinity,  We love thee!

Holy Angels and Saints of our Divine King,
Pray for us and Protect us!

Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us, O Lord!

The Lord God shall give unto him the throne!
And He shall reign for ever and of His kingdom there shall be no end!

Let us pray:
Almighty, everlasting God, Who in Thy beloved Son, King of the whole world, hast willed to restore all things anew: grant in Thy mercy that all the families of nations, rent asunder by the wound of sin, may be subjected to His most gentle rule. Who with Thee liveth and reigneth in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

EIGHTH DAY OF THE NOVENA (new meditations posted each day)
Topic to Contemplate: King and Ruler of Your Mind

Holy Scripture
“And Jesus, coming, spoke to them, saying: ‘All power is given to Me in Heaven and in Earth!’” (Matthew 28:18) … “I am the way, and the truth, and the life! No man cometh to the Father, but by Me!” (John 14:6) … “If God were your Father, you would indeed love me. For from God I proceeded and came―for I came not of Myself, but He sent Me! Why do you not know My speech? Because you cannot hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you will do! He was a murderer from the beginning, and he stood not in the truth―because truth is not in him! When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own―for he is a liar and the father of lies! But if I say the truth, you believe me not!” (John 8:42-45).

Reading from the Encyclical on Christ King by Pope Pius XI
It has long been a common custom to give to Christ the metaphorical title of “King,” because of the high degree of perfection whereby He excels all creatures. So He is said to reign both by reason of the keenness of His intellect and the extent of His knowledge, and also because He is very truth, and it is from Him that truth must be obediently received by all mankind.

The testimony of the Prophets is abundant. That of Isaias is well known: “For a child is born to us and a son is given to us, and the government is upon His shoulder, and His Name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, God the mighty ... He shall sit upon the throne of David to establish it and strengthen it with judgment and with justice.” With Isaias the other Prophets are in agreement. So Jeremias foretells that the Son of David that shall reign as king, “shall be wise, and shall execute judgment and justice in the Earth.”

Scriptural testimony already adduced, and moreover it is a dogma of Faith, that Jesus Christ was given to man, not only as our Redeemer, but also as a law-giver, to whom obedience is due. Not only do the Gospels tell us that He made laws, but they present Him to us in the act of making them. Those who keep those laws, show their love for their Divine Master, and He promises that they shall remain in His love ... Executive power, too, belongs to Christ, for all must obey His commands; none may escape them, nor the sanctions He has imposed. If, therefore, the rulers of nations wish to preserve their authority, to promote and increase the prosperity of their countries, they will not neglect the public duty of reverence and obedience to the rule of Christ.

It would be a grave error, on the other hand, to say that Christ has no authority whatever in civil affairs, since, by virtue of the absolute empire over all creatures committed to Him by the Father, all things are in His power. Nevertheless, during His life on Earth He refrained from the exercise of such authority, and although He Himself disdained to possess or to care for earthly goods, He did not, nor does He today, interfere with those who possess them ... Yet the majority of men have thrust Jesus Christ and His holy law out of their lives―these are given no place either in private affairs or in politics.

Meditation
He must be the King of our intellects and of our thoughts because He us the truth. Jesus Christ is the Truth, because He is God.

Is then Our Lord Jesus Christ truly King of our thoughts? Is it He who truly orients all of our thoughts, our reflections, our intellectual life, in the life of our Faith? Is it truly Our Lord Jesus Christ Who is the light of our intellects? Is He King of our wills?

He is the Law. If the Tablets of the Law were found in the Ark of the Covenant in the Old Testament, they represented precisely Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who today is found in our tabernacles. But today with a tremendous superiority have we the Law in our tabernacles, in our “arks of the covenant.”

It is no longer the cold stones of the Old Testament but rather it is Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself Who is the Law. The Word of God is the Law by Whom all has been made, in Whom all things have been created. He is the Law not only of souls, of minds, of wills, but He is the Law of all nature.

All the laws which we discover in nature come from Our Lord Jesus Christ ― come from the Word of God. It suffices to consider that all creatures follow with incomparable fidelity the laws of God, that they follow physical laws, chemical laws, and all the laws of vegetative nature, of animal nature. These laws are followed impeccably.

And we, too, must follow in a diligent manner, in a free manner, the laws of God inscribed in our hearts. It is precisely due to our liberty that we must attach ourselves to this law which is the path of our happiness, the way to eternal life.

Man has turned away from this law.

Our Lord Jesus Christ must then be ― must again become ― the King of our wills and we must conform our wills to His Law, to His Law of love, to His Law of charity, to the Commandments which He has given us and which He Himself told us encompass all other Commandments: To love God and to love one’s neighbors. Are not these two in fact one and the same Commandment? It is He Who tells us so. Do we then truly conform our wills to the law of Our Lord Jesus Christ? Is Jesus Christ truly King of our wills?

Our Prayer
O Jesus Christ, I acknowledge Thee as universal King. All that has been made has been created for Thee. Exercise all Thy rights over me. I renew my Baptismal vows. I renounce Satan, and all his pomps and his works; I promise to live my life as a good Christian. And, in particular, do I pledge myself to labor, to the best of my ability, for the triumph of the rights of God and of Thy Church and Kingdom. Divine Heart of Jesus, to Thee do I offer my poor services, laboring that all hearts may acknowledge Thy Sacred Kingship and Social Reign, and that thus the Reign of Thy Peace be established throughout the whole universe. Amen.

[Mention Intention]

Let us pray:
O Lord our God, Thou alone are the Most Holy King and Ruler of all nations!
We pray to Thee, Lord, in the great expectation of receiving from Thee, O Divine King, mercy, peace, justice and all good things!
Protect, O Lord our King, our families and the land of our birth!
Guard us, we pray Most Faithful One!
Protect us from our enemies and from Thy Just Judgment!
Forgive us, O Sovereign King, our sins against Thee!
Jesus, Thou art a King of Mercy.
We have deserved Thy Just Judgment!
Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us!
We trust in Thy Great Mercy!
O most awe-inspiring King, we bow before Thee and pray;
May Thy Reign and Thy Kingdom, be recognized throughout all the Earth.
Amen.

Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

Final Invocations:
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!

Jesus seeks to be the King and center of all hearts

LITANY OF CHRIST THE KING

Lord, have mercy upon us!
Christ, have mercy upon us!
Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ the King, hear us!
Christ the King, graciously hear us!
God, our Heavenly Father, Who has made firm for all ages Thy Son’s Throne, Have mercy on us!
God the Son, Jesus, our Victim-High Priest, True Prophet, and Sovereign King, Have mercy on us!
God the Holy Spirit, poured out upon us with abundant newness, Have mercy on us!
Holy Trinity, Three Persons yet One God in the Beauty of Thy Eternal Unity, Have mercy on us!

O Jesus, our Eternal King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Merciful, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King extending to us the Golden Scepter of Thy Mercy, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in Whose Great Mercy we have been given the Sacrament of Confession, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, Loving King Who offers us Thy Healing Grace, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, our Eucharistic King, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, the King foretold by the prophets, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King of Heaven and Earth, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King and Ruler of All Nations, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King, Delight of the Heavenly Court, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Most Compassionate toward Thy subjects, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King from Whom proceeds all authority, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King in whom, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, we are One, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Kingdom is not of this world, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Sacred Heart burns with Love for all mankind, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who is the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who has given us Mary, the Queen, to be our dear Mother, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who will come upon the clouds of Heaven with Power and Great Glory, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Whose Throne we are to approach with confidence, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary the Mediatrix of All Graces, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who made Mary Co-Redemptrix, Thy partner in the Plan of Salvation, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who desires to heal us of all division and disunity, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King wounded by mankind’s indifference, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who gives the balm of Thy Love with which to console Your Wounded Heart, Reign in our hearts!
O Jesus, King Who art the Great “I AM” within us, our Well-Spring of Pure Delight, Reign in our hearts!

Jesus, King of All Nations, True Sovereign of all earthly powers,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, subjecting under Thy feet forever the powers of Hell, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Light beyond all light, enlightening us in the darkness that surrounds us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Mercy is so Great as to mitigate the punishments our sins deserve, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, recognized by the Magi as the True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, the Only Remedy for a world so ill, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who blesses with Peace those souls and nations that acknowledge Thee as True King, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who Mercifully sends us your Holy Angels to protect us, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Chief Prince is Saint Michael the Archangel,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who teaches us that to reign is to serve,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Just Judge Who will separate the wicked from the good,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, before Whom every knee shall bend,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Dominion is an everlasting Dominion,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Lamb who will shepherd us,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Who after having destroyed every sovereignty, authority and power, will hand over the Kingdom to Thy God and Father, May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose Reign is without end,  May we serve Thee!
Jesus, King of All Nations, Whose kindness toward us is steadfast, and whose fidelity endures forever,  May we serve Thee!

Eternal Father, Who has given us Thy Only Begotten Son, to be our Redeemer, One True Mediator, and Sovereign King, We praise and thank Thee!

Loving Jesus, Sovereign King, Who humbled Thyself for Love of us and took the form of a servant, We praise and thank Thee!

Holy Spirit, Third Person of the Trinity, Love of the Father and the Son, Who sanctifies us and gives us Life, We praise and thank Thee!

Mary, our Queen and Mother, who mediates to Jesus on our behalf, Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, through whom all Grace come to us,  Pray for us!
Mary, our Queen and Mother, Singular Jewel of the Holy Trinity,  We love thee!

Holy Angels and Saints of our Divine King,
Pray for us and Protect us!

Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord!
Christ the King, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us, O Lord!

The Lord God shall give unto him the throne!
And He shall reign for ever and of His kingdom there shall be no end!

Let us pray:
Almighty, everlasting God, Who in Thy beloved Son, King of the whole world, hast willed to restore all things anew: grant in Thy mercy that all the families of nations, rent asunder by the wound of sin, may be subjected to His most gentle rule. Who with Thee liveth and reigneth in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

NINTH DAY OF THE NOVENA (new meditations posted each day)
Topic to Contemplate: King of Our Hearts

Holy Scripture
“Behold, the Kingdom of God is within you!” (Luke 17:21).

“May Christ dwell by Faith in your hearts―so that, being rooted and founded in charity, you may be able to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth, and length, and height, and depth of the charity of Christ, which surpasseth all knowledge, that you may be filled unto all the fullness of God!” (Ephesians 3:17-19).

“Sanctify the Lord Christ in your hearts!” (1 Peter 3:15) … “And let the peace of Christ rejoice in your hearts!” (Colossians 3:15).

Reading from the Encyclical on Christ King by Pope Pius XI
Christ is our King ... as well as ... our Redeemer. Would that they who forget what they have cost their Savior might recall the words: “You were not redeemed with corruptible things, but with the Precious Blood of Christ, as of a lamb unspotted and undefiled.” ... Christ as our Redeemer purchased the Church at the price of His own Blood; as priest He offered Himself, and continues to offer Himself as a victim for our sins.

Jesus Christ is not only our Redeemer, but also a law-giver ... He made laws. Those who keep them show their love for their Divine Master, and He promises that they shall remain in His love.

He is said to reign “in the hearts of men,” both by reason of the keenness of His intellect and the extent of His knowledge, and also because He is very truth, and it is from Him that truth must be obediently received by all mankind.

He reigns, too, in the wills of men, for in Him the human will was perfectly and entirely obedient to the Holy Will of God, and further by His grace and inspiration He so subjects our free-will as to incite us to the most noble endeavors.

He is King of hearts, too, by reason of His “charity which exceedeth all knowledge.” And His mercy and kindness, which draw all men to Him, for never has it been known, nor will it ever be, that man be loved so much and so universally as Jesus Christ.

Once men recognize, both in private and in public life, that Christ is King, society will at last receive the great blessings of real liberty, well-ordered discipline, peace and harmony ... “Then at length,” to use the words addressed by our predecessor, Pope Leo XIII, twenty-five years ago to the bishops of the Universal Church, “then at length will many evils be cured; then will the law regain its former authority; peace with all its blessings be restored. Men will sheathe their swords and lay down their arms when all freely acknowledge and obey the authority of Christ, and every tongue confesses that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father.”

We firmly hope, however, that the feast of the Kingship of Christ, which in future will be yearly observed, may hasten the return of society to our loving Savior. It would be the duty of Catholics to do all they can to bring about this happy result.

Meditation
Our Lord Jesus Christ must then be ― must again become ― the King of our wills and we must conform our wills to His Law, to His Law of love, to His Law of charity, to the Commandments which He has given us and which He Himself told us encompass all other Commandments: To love God and to love one’s neighbors. Are not these two in fact one and the same Commandment? It is He Who tells us so. Do we then truly conform our wills to the law of Our Lord Jesus Christ? Is Jesus Christ truly King of our wills?

Finally, Jesus has to be, as Pope Pius XI tells us, the King of our hearts. Are our hearts truly attached to Our Lord Jesus Christ? Are we conscious of the fact that Our Lord Jesus Christ is our ALL ― Omnia in omnibus? Jesus Christ is all and in things. It is He in ipso omnia constant as St. Paul says. In Him all is sustained, in Him we live, in Him we are and we act. It is this that St. Paul explains in his discourse to the Areopagite: “In ipso vivimus, in ipso movemur, in ipso sumus” ― He holds all in His hand.

We must then wonder what the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Joseph must have thought. I believe that there is an admirable example for us. If we truly desire that Jesus Christ be our King we must try to imagine what Nazareth must have been. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. What must Mary have thought of Jesus? What must Joseph have thought of Jesus?

It is incredible! It is a great mystery, an impenetrable mystery of goodness, of the charity of God. To think that He permitted two creatures chosen by Him, to live with Him! For St. Joseph during thirty years, for the Blessed Virgin during thirty-three years, in the intimacy of Jesus, in the intimacy of Him Who is God. It is He without Whom neither Mary nor Joseph could speak, think, nor live. Mary bearing Jesus in her arms, bearing God in her arms! As the Gospel often says it was not she who was bearing Jesus but Jesus who was bearing her. For Jesus was much greater than she, for He is God. Just think what must have been in the soul, will and heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary living with Jesus, seeing Him with His young companions, seeing Him working with St. Joseph.

We also have the joy to live with Our Lord.

Even under the delicate envelope of her body, the Blessed Virgin Mary adored the Living God for she knew ― she knew that the living God was in her womb. She knew this through by the Annunciation by the angel. And St. Joseph knew it perfectly as well.

We, too, know that we have the living Jesus in our tabernacles under the delicate Eucharistic species. Jesus is there! Not only do we have Him in our tabernacles, but moreover in a manner which I would say is almost more intimate than that of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of St. Joseph, when Our Lord gives Himself to us as our spiritual food.

Imagine, that truly in our bodies, in our hearts we bear Jesus ― we bear God who sustains us, for without Him we would not be able to live nor exist nor say a single word nor even think a single thought. And we bear this God in the Holy Eucharist!

Let us ask Our Lord Jesus Christ when we receive Him in us that He be our King ― that He may give us the thoughts of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of St. Joseph; that He may grant us the affections of the hearts of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Joseph, these creatures whom He chose from all eternity to be His guardians, to be those with whom He was to live.

Ask them ― ask Mary and Joseph ― to help us live under the sweet Kingdom of Our Lord Jesus Christ. One day, we hope that we shall be in that Kingdom and that we shall see Him in His splendor and in His glory as we say so often when we recite the Angelus: ut per passionem ejus et crucem ad resurrectionis gloriam perducamur ― in order that by His Passion and Cross we may be brought to the glory of His Resurrection.

Indeed, we also must pass now by the Passion and Cross of Jesus upon the Earth in order that one day we may be able to join in the glory of His Resurrection, this glory which illuminates Heaven, which is Heaven, for God is Heaven. That Our Lord Jesus Christ is Heaven. In Him we will live in the grace of God by the grace of God. If we have Him as our King here on Earth, then we shall have Him as our King for all eternity.

Our Prayer
O Jesus Christ, I acknowledge Thee as universal King. All that has been made has been created for Thee. Exercise all Thy rights over me. I renew my Baptismal vows. I renounce Satan, and all his pomps and his works; I promise to live my life as a good Christian. And, in particular, do I pledge myself to labor, to the best of my ability, for the triumph of the rights of God and of Thy Church and Kingdom. Divine Heart of Jesus, to Thee do I offer my poor services, laboring that all hearts may acknowledge Thy Sacred Kingship and Social Reign, and that thus the Reign of Thy Peace be established throughout the whole universe. Amen.

[Mention Intention]

Let us pray:
O Lord our God, Thou alone are the Most Holy King and Ruler of all nations!
We pray to Thee, Lord, in the great expectation of receiving from Thee, O Divine King, mercy, peace, justice and all good things!
Protect, O Lord our King, our families and the land of our birth!
Guard us, we pray Most Faithful One!
Protect us from our enemies and from Thy Just Judgment!
Forgive us, O Sovereign King, our sins against Thee!
Jesus, Thou art a King of Mercy.
We have deserved Thy Just Judgment!
Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us!
We trust in Thy Great Mercy!
O most awe-inspiring King, we bow before Thee and pray;
May Thy Reign and Thy Kingdom, be recognized throughout all the Earth.
Amen.

Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary.

Final Invocations:
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!
Christ the King, Thy Kingdom come!

ACT OF CONSECRATION TO CHRIST THE KING