This Sunday marks the end of Ordinary Time; it is the Finish with Christ the King by Gwen Wise
I've been working on this Sunday's celebration all week. I'm looking forward to being home for a change, as we've been traveling so much lately. Our dinner menu is set. I plan on having a special family meal, perhaps inviting some extra guests to partake in this royal dinner.
Then there's decorations and crafts. When I was younger, I used to decorate the family bulletin board for my mother for this feast with a red fabric draped in the background. In front and center was this favorite holycard of mine that I mounted and decorated with calligraphy:
Over it was a cut out crown, decorated with gold glitter. Alongside going down the display were cut-out letters reading "King of Kings". The feast always reminded me of the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel's Messiah. (If you look closely, the image is stained -- this was before I ever heard of acid and archival quality. The tape I used bled through. )
This weekend we'll play with some glitter and glue and make a crown for Christ, and also cut and color this simple image for our centerpiece. And I'll hang up my old decoration for my own family.
I'm teaching a few hymns to my son while we talk and prepare for this feast. To name a few:
- Crown Him With Many Crowns
- All Glory, Laud, and Honor
- To Jesus Christ Our Sovereign King
The one in particular I'm teaching is an old one from the 1940s, For Christ the King, by Daniel A. Lord. It is a march, and is immediately catchy for a young boy with the rhythm and words like "army" and "sword". I have shared copies of the sheet music.
For Christ the King
Chorus:
An army of youth
Flying the standards of Truth,
We’re fighting for Christ, the Lord.
Heads lifted high,
Catholic Action our cry,
And the Cross our only sword.
On Earth’s battlefield
Never a vantage we’ll yield
As dauntlessly on we swing.
Comrades true, dare and do
’Neath the Queen’s white and blue,
For our flag, for our faith
For Christ the King.1) Christ lifts His hands; the King commands;
His challenge, “Come and follow Me.”
From every side, With eager stride,
We form in the lines of victory.
Let foemen lurk, And laggards shirk,
We throw our fortunes with the Lord,
Mary’s Son, till the world is won.
We have pledged you our loyal word.
[Chorus]2) Our hearts are pure, Our minds are sure;
No sin our gleaming helmet taints.
No foeman fierce Our shield shall pierce;
We’re captained by God’s unconquered saints.
Yet peace we bring, And a gentle King,
Whose law is light and life and love.
Mary’s Son, May Thy will be done
Here on earth as it is above.
[Chorus]
This feast marks the last week before Advent. I mentioned in my previous post that we are nearing our liturgical calendar switch. My son is counting down the days on our laminated LTP calendar with a Dry Erase Marker. He has decided to cross out all the days of the year except the few days left in Ordinary Time.
Part of our dinner table discussion will be New Year resolutions. What do we want to focus on during the upcoming Liturgical Year? Decisions don't need to be made until next Sunday, but it's helpful to talk it over with the little ones.
May Jesus Christ our King reign in our hearts forever!
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