As we come to the Feast of Christ the King, Luke’s account of Jesus on the cross offers a striking image of kingship — not one of majesty and triumph, but of mercy and humility. In this moment of suffering and apparent defeat, Jesus reveals the true nature of divine authority: love that forgives, even from the cross. His words, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing,” proclaims a kingship rooted not in power, but in compassion and reconciliation.
Alongside Jesus are two criminals, and it is in this exchange with the penitent thief that the mystery of Christ’s kingship shines most brightly. When the thief turns to Jesus and says, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom,” he acknowledges the crucified man as king. In response, Jesus promises, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
The very word ‘Paradise’, which comes from a Persian word meaning ‘garden’, has echoes of the Garden of Eden. In Persian tradition, when a king wished to bestow a great honour, he would make someone a “Companion of the Garden” — one invited to walk and talk with the king in his private garden. This sheds light on the beauty of Jesus’ promise: the penitent thief is invited into intimate friendship with the divine King, to walk with him forever in the garden of eternal life.
This image also reflects an early Christian belief that the righteous, upon death, are welcomed immediately into God’s presence. If waiting for the ‘Day of Judgment’ is the human condition, perhaps we can see the moment of death as entry into eternity — the human entering the divine, no longer constrained by time and history.
On this Feast of Christ the King, we celebrate a kingdom not of this world — a reign of peace, mercy, and communion with God. Christ’s throne is the cross, his crown is of thorns, and his victory is love that conquers sin and death. To recognize Jesus as King is to open ourselves to that same transforming mercy, and to live as companions of the divine garden — citizens of God’s eternal kingdom.
Fr Stephen Berecz
