Today we close a church year. Next week Advent begins. Notice the title of this feast: Christ is named King of the Universe, not only of our world. In the Gospel a king says to his faithful followers, “inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” At first Jesus’ disciples thought he would return in glory during their lifetime. But soon they began to understand that the end of time might not be so soon. Then they began to understand His teachings as a path of spiritual wisdom for human living, a path leading them through long lives and beyond, through the centuries and millennia until today. In today’s feast we glimpse God’s comprehensive perspective. God intends our existence from the big bang 13.6 billion years ago until the end of the universe in a distant future science cannot predict. Within this immensity we are given the image of shepherd. Within the immensity of the time of the universe, God promises to shepherd us, even when it is cloudy and dark, and to keep shepherding us until the end of time when even death is defeated. 2020 has been a dark year when we have felt our vulnerability. It has been an anxious year. Perhaps we can feel comforted by considering the shepherd, Christ, Shepherd of the Universe!
– Blog entry by Sister Mary Garascia