Richard Mallory

Dear Friends in Christ,

I use the 2024 commentary by The Rev’d John Dear, Roman Catholic priest and activist entitled The Gospel of Peace: A Commentary on Matthew, Mark and Luke from the Perspective Oof Nonviolence.

On this Christ the King or Reign of Christ Sunday, Matthew’s crucifixion account is front and center. I share with you Dear’s words on the conversation between Jesus and the criminals who were killed with him.

Dear says, “This exchange is one of the most painful, most beautiful, most hopeful exchanges in human history. The dying revolutionary’s last words can become the prayer of every human being. ‘Jesus, remember me when you  come into your kingdom.’ Each of us can ask for this gift, even though we do not deserve it. We can ask Jesus, who now reigns in God’s kingdom of eternal peace, to remember us and welcome us, too. If we pray this with the crucified revolutionary, perhaps we will deepen our nonviolence, turn away from complicity with the culture of violence, and focus solely on the nonviolent Jesus and his reign of universal love.”

I know I was sheltered from the perspective of Jesus as a revolutionary and proponent of nonviolence when I was growing up. I suspect that many can identify with my statement.  Dear makes the connection that has been hiding in plain sight for centuries. His perspective has not been the dominant one across the generations even though it is the one now needed more than ever. Only in the embrace of the nonviolent Jesus is the way to peace, joy, love and fulfillment.

—Richard