O King of the Nations

O King of the Nations, object of their desire, the cornerstone which makes both one, come and save humanity whom you made from the mud. 

We're not used to talking about kings. Or, at least, kings with the power to rule without constitutional impediments. As a student of history, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. While a good king could mitigate the abuses of monarchy to a considerable degree, they were few and far between. Mediocre ones merely exposed the corruption in a system which discouraged people from engaging in their common good and the bad ones, the bad ones were disasters. That is, of course, why most countries either got rid of their monarchs or restrained them by making them subordinate to democratic institutions.

Christ the King is different because he isn't that kind of king. He said as much to Pilate when He said His kingdom was not of this world. This king unites. He is the king of the Nations. That is, He is the king of all people at a time when people were looking for the promised King of the Jews as the answer to the Scriptural prophecies. He is that too, of course, but, just as the Old Testament predicted that the true Messiah will save the Jews and the Gentiles (the Nations) would come to Him for justice, Jesus too attracted non-Jews as well. He doesn't do that by fighting or oppression, but because of who he was and is. He is the object of our desire because of who he is. Even non-Christians find Jesus compelling, even if they don't believe the same things about Him as we do. Like the cornerstone, he can unite us in ways we don't quite anticipate.

And we're back, in this antiphon, to salvation. Have you noticed that most of the antiphons deal with some variation on salvation? They are asking to be delivered, redeemed, released from prison, illuminated when in the dark and, of course, saved. These are Old Testament images, so, likely, they were originally images of national liberation of the Jews from their various oppressors. Yet, I don't think that is all they are. They are also a promising a liberation of ourselves from our bad thoughts and impulses. They look to bridge the divide between us and God which can open up when we get too caught up in ourselves. They too are a call for bringing us back into harmony with God and with our own true selves as God has made us. This becomes clear in this antiphon as we ask Christ the King for salvation because He made us. That seems as a good a reason as any.

Reflection: How can I  unite, not divide, people?