Christ the King C.  November 25, 2007.  Our Lady of Grace 5:15, 9:30.  2 Samuel 5: 1-3.  Colossians 1: 12-20.  Luke 23: 35-43.

Prosperity Theology is a big part of the message of many large Christian Churches today. Sunday morning TV is filled with Prosperity Theology.  A very well known prosperity preacher said, “When you're prosperous in God, you don't have to look for wealth. Wealth looks for you."  He went on say that Jesus' wealth began in the manger when kings gave him gold, and continued as he supported 12 disciples and wore clothes so expensive that Roman soldiers cast lots for his robe.  Prosperity theology seems to confuse winning the lottery with following Jesus.  While Jesus does not condemn wealth and there are certainly passages in the scriptures that point to wealth and prosperity as a possible blessing, the clear teaching of Jesus is that wealth can cloud our vision and keep us from seeing the true meaning of prosperity in God’s eyes.

Jesus said, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.”  (Mark 10:25.)   Jesus said, “If you wish to be perfect, go and sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven, and come and follow me” (Matthew 19:21) Some would say that Jesus died a poor man on the Cross so that we could prosper and we would not have to be poor – since Jesus became poor in our place. To the contrary Jesus says “If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me”. (Matthew 16:24) 

First and foremost, prosperity for the Christian means profound faith and self-sacrificing love for God and neighbor.  Prosperity for the Christian means strength of character and great courage in living the truth and justice of the gospel.  Prosperity for the Christian is not about what we have, it is about who we are in the very depths of our being because we are filled with and transformed by the grace of Christ.  The prosperous Christian is the one who lives and dies for Christ and for others, especially for the poor.

On this feast of Christ the King I would like to share with you the stories of two truly prosperous Christians.  Blessed Miguel Agustin Pro was born into a materially prosperous and religious Mexican family at a time when the Catholic Church was outlawed in Mexico. He fled to Spain to escape persecution and was ordained a priest in Belgium.   He then returned to Mexico to celebrate Mass and care for a small group of Catholics secretly.  When he was discovered Fr. Pro was falsely accused of trying to assassinate Mexico’s president.  Fr. Pro was executed by a firing squad on November 23, 1927.  His last words were “Viva Cristo Rey”. “Long Live Christ the King”.   Fr. Pro died a poor man before a firing squad, and a rich man in the eyes of God and the deeply religious Mexican people. Christian prosperity is about the truth and love we hold in our hearts.

Blessed Franz Jagerstatter was born into a poor Austrian family.  As a young man he seriously questioned his Catholic faith and fathered a child outside of marriage.  He married a farmer’s daughter and they had three daughters together.  His marriage marked a turning point in his faith as he and his new wife studied the Bible and prayed together. He was conscripted into the Nazi Army but refused to report for duty because he saw fighting and killing for Hitler and the Nazi’s as a sin.  His mother and several priest friends tried to get Franz to change his mind about serving in the Nazi Army.  His wife stood by him so that he would not be alone in his decision.  Even the bishop told Franz that deciding whether the war was right or wrong was not his business. Because he continued to refuse to serve in the army Franz was put into prison and endured two months of torture and bullying.  In the end Franz was condemned to death for undermining military morale.  Franz Jagerstatter was beheaded on August 9, 1943 because he refused to serve in the Nazi Army on religious grounds.  In 1997 his verdict of death was annulled by a German court.  Franz was beatified on October 26 of this year in the Cathedral Church of the bishop who told him not to challenge the Nazi’s.   The bishop’s name is not much remembered but Franz Jagerstatter, the beheaded martyr, has prospered to give light and hope to the world.  Prosperity is about who we are in witnessing to goodness and truth.

Jesus did not have an earthly kingdom.  He was born among the poor and he died among the poor.  Yet there was something so powerful about Jesus that a hardened criminal saw his inner goodness, integrity and strength of character. “One of the criminals hanging there reviled Jesus saying, ‘Are you not the Christ?  Save yourself and us.  Show us your earthy power.’” “The other criminal, however, rebuking him, said in reply, ‘Have you no fear of God, for you are subject to the same condemnation?  And indeed we have been condemned justly; for the sentence we received corresponds to our crimes, but this man has done nothing criminal.’  Then he said, ‘Jesus remember me when you come into your kingdom.’  Jesus replied, ‘Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise’”

Yes, Jesus died penniless, powerless and poor.  Yet no human being has ever prospered and endured as Jesus has prospered and endured over the centuries.  As our king he teaches us the way to true prosperity.  Prosperity is about who we are, what we live for and what we would die for out of the grace-filled center of our being.  May we never be deceived by a false theology of prosperity.  May our lives embody the true prosperity Jesus taught us.  For Christ the King we give God thanks and praise.