Today we celebrate Christ the King Sunday, the last Sunday of the church year. Initially instituted during in 1925 by Pope Pius XI on the last Sunday in October in response to the increasing secularism of countries worldwide, since 1970 Christ the King Day has since been observed on the last Sunday before Advent, which starts the new Church Year. The purpose of this festival is to acknowledge Jesus Christ as the “King of all kings,” celebrating Christ’s messianic kingship and sovereign rule over all creation.

As the last Sunday of the Church Year, Christ the King Sunday is the conclusion of the Church’s liturgical journey through the life of Christ and the Gospel message. Its purpose is to celebrate the coming reign of Christ as King of the Earth and his completion of the renewed creation that marks the fullness of the Kingdom of God. That hope is born from the entire life of Christ and his teachings that have been celebrated in the seasons of the Church Year during the past twelve months. In celebrating the Reign of Christ the King, this Sunday also provides an appropriate bridge to the new Church Year that begins the following Sunday on the first Sunday of Advent with an emphasis on hope and expectation, the longing for the coming of the Kingdom of God amid the darkness of a sinful world.