THE LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST: The Communion Rite – The Lord’s Prayer (4)

The Lord’s Prayer

“For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours now and for ever.”

The Lord’s Prayer in the celebration of the Eucharist concludes with another doxology (a prayer giving glory to God) that permits the faithful to respond to the embolism just recited on their behalf by the priest or bishop celebrating Mass (“Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil…”).

In this doxology we profess our faith in the Lord’s dominion, power, and glory. We asked at the start of the Lord’s Prayer that his kingdom come, and now we acknowledge that his kingdom has already been inaugurated and will never be overthrown, an allusion to what we celebrate at the end of each liturgical year with the Solemnity of Christ the King.

The Roman Missal entitles the Solemnity of Christ the King as “Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe.” “Universe” may tempt us to evoke images of galactic dictators from cheap sci-fi movies, but universe here is used in a much more profound sense: all of Creation was made with the Son in mind, and he is king of all Creation. He is king of everything, so, in that sense, we profess our faith in the doxology that he is the universal King.

The establishment of his Kingdom is not complete until history has run his course and he returns in glory, but now his power and glory will endure forever. The only open question is where we and our loved ones want to be when he returns: in glory with him or forever sealed in the “dungeon” of perdition for not welcoming him or believing in him. Saints and sinners both submit at the end to the dominion of Christ Our King. Let’s pray this doxology at every Mass with faith in his glory, power, and reign and live accordingly.