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Sunday 26 November 2023 was marked by the celebration of the feast of Christ the King of the Universe, at the Word of God Retreat Center in Yaounde. It was in great joy that the leaders of the Word of God groups, their deputies and support members lived the celebration of the feast of Christ the King of the universe at the Word of God Retreat Center on Sunday 26 November. It was within the framework of their annual retreat which ended that same day.
Jesus King and good shepherd par excellence
The liturgical texts of the day presented Christ the Shepherd and Christ as King. The first reading, taken from the book of Ezekiel chapter 34:11-12, 15-17, highlighted the attitude of the good shepherd in the figure of Christ who knows his sheep, cares for them and takes care of them. On the other hand, a figure of Christ the King who will come at the end of time to judge and separate the sheep from the goats was presented to us in the Gospel of the day, taken from Matthew 25:31-46. A call for all, therefore, to imitate Christ while living in love, for mercy does not exclude his justice.
The meaning of the feast of Christ the King
Father Alfred Martial NGONO EBOLO, principal celebrant and chaplain of the Word of God groups in the Diocese of Obala, stresses that " the Church, through the celebration of this feast, reminds us that all power comes from God and that the model of this power must be based on Jesus Christ, who exercised his authority in a different way. Contrary to the kingship of the world which serves itself, Jesus is that King who serves. "
A call to be at the service of others
In the homily of the day given by Father Alexandre SOP, International Spiritual Advisor of the Movement of the Incarnation, the quintessence of this celebration is that " Christ is king of the universe, but he is not king in the manner of the world, as he answers Pilate during his trial: I am king but not in the manner of the world. He is a king who rather places himself at the service of his sheep, who takes care of each one of them, who watches over each one; this is the meaning of his kingship. He reigns through love " He thus presents the kingship of Jesus as a kingship of humility and invites the leaders to follow this example. At the end of this celebration, the participants for their part left with the resolution to make Christ the king of their life and to follow his example; " I leave here very happy and I recognize that Christ must be the summit of my life, the king of my life " testifies Gratien OUETHY.
Editing: Lucy Jiokeng
