Following World War I, and on the occasion of the 1600th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, Pope Pius XI established the feast in 1925 with the encyclical “Quas Primas“. There he emphasized the need for civil society to attain “just freedom, tranquility, discipline, peace, and harmony”.

In the liturgical calendar of 2024, next Sunday, November 24th, the Catholic Church will celebrate the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe; also known as the Feast of Christ the King.

This feast is celebrated on the last Sunday of the liturgical year and reminds us that Christ is the true King who must reign in our hearts.

History of the Feast of Christ the King

In the year 325, the first ecumenical council was held in the city of Nicaea, in Asia Minor. There, the divinity of Christ was defined against the heresies of Arius: “Christ is God, Light of Light, true God from true God.”

After World War I, amidst the growth of communism in Russia, and on the occasion of the 1600th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, Pope Pius XI established the feast in 1925 with the encyclical “Quas Primas”. There he highlighted that the best way for civil society to attain “just freedom, tranquility, discipline, peace, and harmony” is for men to recognize, publicly and privately, the kingship of Christ. He also indicated that

Not only do we then exhort to seek the peace of Christ in the kingdom of Christ, but we also promised that for this purpose we would do everything in our power. In the kingdom of Christ, we said: because we were persuaded that there is no more effective means to restore and invigorate peace than to seek the restoration of the reign of Jesus Christ.

In 1969, Pope Saint Paul VI gave the feast its current title: Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe; and moved it to the last Sunday of the liturgical year since the original date of the feast was the last Sunday of October, that is, the Sunday immediately preceding the Feast of All Saints; but with the reform of 1969, it was moved to the last Sunday of the Liturgical Year to emphasize that Jesus Christ, the King, is the goal of our earthly pilgrimage.

The Legionaries of Christ, in communion with Regnum Christi, our spiritual family, celebrate this day in a special way because:

As we approach the solemnity of Christ the King (November 24), we offer preparatory material that centers on the parable of the Kingdom, in which Jesus reminds us that He dwells in each person and that whatever we do to any of His little ones, we do to Him.