Compared to some of the more ancient feasts that go back for centuries, the Solemnity of Christ the King is quite new.

This Solemnity honoring the Kingship of Christ was originally instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925. The Holy Father authorized the institution of this Feast with the publication of the Encyclical Letter Quas primas, translated into English as On the Feast of Christ the King.

Pope Pius XI originally placed the Solemnity of Christ the King on the last Sunday of October, so that the Feast of Our Lord’s Kingship would be followed by the Solemnity of All Saints, which is celebrated on November 1. With the reform of the Roman Liturgy after the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), the Solemnity of Christ the King was transferred from the last Sunday of October to the last Sunday of the Church Year.

This closes the Church Year with a fitting celebration of the victorious and sovereign Kingship of Jesus – an excellent and appropriate end to the Church’s year cycle of Solemnities, Feasts, and Memorials!