Bethlehem! The mere sounding of the name of this ancient city brings joy to the Christian heart. What place on earth, by its mere mentioning, can evoke such happy sentiments within us?

The name of Bethlehem has been familiar and dear to us since childhood. Among the first things we were taught is the story of God’s birth occurring there on a winter’s night 2,000 years ago. When we hear the name “Bethlehem,” we think of the happiest memories of our lives in the time spent with family celebrating this chief event of world history. Indeed, time itself is measured by it—BC, “Before Christ,” and AD, the “Year of Our Lord.”

Hundreds of years before the birth of the Messiah, it was foretold to take place in the little town called Bethlehem. The prophecy of Micah states: “But you, O Bethlehem Eph’rathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days” (Micah 5:2). The old Hebrew name for Bethlehem, bêth lehem, means “House of Bread.” The Arabic form of the same name, bêt lahm, means “House of Meat.” So, the Lord Jesus chose to be born in a city suggesting that He was both Bread and Meat (flesh). As He said, “…and the Bread that I will give is my Flesh for the life of the world.” (John 6:51).

It is astounding that the name of the town in which Christ was born involves the particulars of both the Hebrew and Arabic language, as well as the Old Testament prophesy Micah. In other words, even if we were to imagine that the Apostles were (for some reason) making up the entire Nativity account, this impious thought cannot account for the prophecy of Micah or the Eucharistic connotations in the name Bethlehem in both the Hebrew and Arabic languages. The truth of the Eucharist was alluded to for over a millennia prior to the birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Bethlehem: what a fitting place for the Bread of Life to be born! The Lord Jesus from His very birth associated Himself with bread as He lay in a manger filled with grains for the animals to eat. At Christmas, see Him there lying in a grain-filled manger at a place called the House of Bread. Show your love for the newborn King by increasing your devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and by making frequent visits to Him in the tabernacle.

Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast of Christ the King in his encyclical letter, Quas Primas of 1925, in response to the growing secularism of society where political movements were seeking to remove religion from the public square, especially in Europe. Christian nations and cultures ought to never separate their identity and political ideals from their Catholic roots.

The encyclical was written in the aftermath of World War I, which saw the fall of the Hohenzollerns, Romanovs, Habsburgs, and the Osmans. In contrast, Pius XI pointed to a king “of whose kingdom there shall be no end.” Furthermore, he wrote: “…[T]he Word of God, as consubstantial with the Father, has all things in common with him, and therefore has necessarily supreme and absolute dominion over all things created.” In Matthew 28:18 Jesus himself says, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” In Revelation 19:16, Christ is recognized as “King of kings and Lord of lords.”

This feast points to the end of time when the kingdom of the Lord Jesus will be established in all its fullness, to the ends of the earth. And so, it is fitting on the last Sunday of the liturgical year, before we begin a new year in Advent, we honor Christ as our King who at the end of time will come in glory where all will be subject to Him.

A Prayer to Christ the King
Found on www.Catholic.org

Christ Jesus, I acknowledge You as King of the universe.
All that has been created has been made for You.
Make full use of Your rights over me.

I renew the promises I made in Baptism,
when I renounced Satan and all his pomps and works,
and I promise to live a good Christian life
and to do all in my power to procure
the triumph of the rights of God and Your Church.

Divine Heart of Jesus,
I offer you my efforts in order to obtain that all hearts
may acknowledge your Sacred Royalty,
and that thus the Kingdom of Your peace
may be established throughout the universe.

Amen.