Christ the King. What does it mean?

Yesterday was the Feast of Christ the King. Here is what was written by Fr. John Bustamante in his "A Vicarious Descant," Assumption Grotto News (October 31, 2021):

Today is the Feast of Christ the King as instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925 in the encyclical Quas primas. In accordance with the directives regarding this feast day, after Mass will follow the Act of Consecration of the Human Race to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Our Collect prayer today is:

Almighty and everlasting God, who in Thy beloved Son, the King of the whole world, has willed to restore all things, mercifully grant that all the kindreds of the nations that are divided by the wound of sin, may be brought under the sweet yoke of His rule. Who liveth and reigneth ....

Pope Pius XI crealy taught what the Kingship of Christ means. He shows that while this Kingship is spiritual, it is a grave error "to say that Christ has no authority whatever in civil affairs ..." (#17). In paragraph 18 we read:

[Thus] the empire of our Redeemer embraces all men. To use the words of Our immortal predecessor, Pope Leo XIII: "His empire includes not only Catholic nations, not only baptized persons who, though of right belonging to the Church, have been led astray by error, or have been cut off from her by schism, but also those who are outside the Christian faith; so that truly the whole of mankind is subject to the power of Jesus Christ." Nor is there any difference in this matter between the individual and the family or the State; for all men, whether collectively or individually, are under the dominion of Christ. In him is the salvation of the individual, in him is the salvation of society. "Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given to men whereby we must be saved." He is the author of happiness and true prosperity for every man and for every nation. "For a nation is happy when its citizens are happy. What else is a nation but a number of men living in concord?" If, therefore, the rulers of nations with to preserve their authority, to promote and increase the prosperity of their countries, they will not neglect the public duty of reverence and obedience to the rule of Christ. What We said at the beginning of our Pontificate concerning the decline of public authority, and the lack of respect for the same, is equally true at the present day. "With God and Jesus Christ," we said, "excluded from political life, with authority derived not from God but from man, the very basis of that authority has been taken away, because the chief reason of the distinction between ruler and subject has been eliminated. The result is that the human society is tottering to its fall, because it has no longer a secure and solid foundation.

The very last encyclical Pope Pius XI promulgated was titled, Ingravescentibus malis or "Ever increasing evils." In this last encyclical, Pius calls upon all mankind to turn to Christ by calling upon the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, saying:

More than once have We asserted -- and We recently repeated this in the Encyclical Letter Divini Redemptoris that there is no remedy for the ever-growing evils of our times except a return to Our Lord Jesus Christ and to His most holy precepts. Truly, only He "hath the words of eternal life" (Cf. John 6:69), and individuals and society can only fall into immediate and miserable ruin if they ignore the majesty of God and repudiate His Law .... [A]nyone who studies with diligence the records of the Catholic Church will easily recognize that the true patronage of the Virgin Mother of God is linked with all the annals of the Christian name. When, in fact, errors everywhere diffused were bent upon rending the seamless robe of the Church and upon throwing the Catholic world into confusion, our fathers turned with confident soul to her "alone who destroys all heresies in the world" (Roman Breviary), and the victory won through her brought the return of tranquility .... Therefore why should We supplicate Our Heavenly Mother in this manner with due disposition and holiness? We desire very earnestly, Venerable Brethren, that the Holy Rosary should be recited in a special manner in the month of October and with increased devotion both in the churches and in homes. And so much the more must it be done since the enemies of the Divine Name -- that is, those who have rebelled against and denied and scorned the Eternal God -- spread snares for the Catholic Faith and the liberty due to the Church, and finally rebel with insane efforts against divine and human rights, to send manking to ruin and perdition. Through efficacious recourse to the Virgin Mother of God, they may be finally bent and led to penance and return to the straight path, trusting to the care and protection of Mary.

The Month dedicated to Our Lady of the Holy Rosary has drawn to a close, but let us all have been renewed in our fervent prayer of the Rosary and continue to pray the Rosary as often as we are able.

May be turn to our Blessed Mother whose Immaculate Heart is the "cause of our joy" and make our urgent pleas that she guide our nation back to God and may we put our confidence and trust in the Lord Jesus' most merciful Heart.

Our month of prayers for the Holy Souls of Purgatory begins tomorrow, November 1. A plenary indulgence, applicable only to the Holy Souls in Purgatory, is granted to those who visit a cemetary and pray, even if only mentally, for the departed on each of the first eight days of November.

In two weeks, beginning November 12, we will have our annual 40 Hours Devotion. Please consider visiting our Lord for Adoration after the morning Mass until 6:00 PM on Friday and Saturday. The Friday morning Mass will be followed by Exposition, the Litany of the Saints, and a Procession in the church. Likewise, the Sunday Close of 40 Hours will be at noon with the Litany of the Saints and a Procession in the church, followed by Benediction....