By Ed Foley, November 23, 2025
I can’t say I every imaged it would be part of my prayer life
But in preparation for this homily, over the past couple of weeks
I have been praying through the Bill of Rights from the U.S. Constitution.
While unorthodox, it seems both homiletically and historically timely.
Before this meditative exercise I was aware
that the Bill of Rights comprised
the first 10 amendments of the constitution,
voted into existence just 4 years after the constitution was drafted
And the motivation for its creation? in the language of Thomas Jefferson:
The Bill of Rights is
“what people are entitled to against every government on earth”
in order to prevent government overreach.
Having never seriously studied the Bill of Rights,
I was a bit surprised that while ranging over 10 amendments
it actually outlines 24 individual rights
from freedom of religion to
freedom of the press.
The one that took me by surprise was the 9th amendment
which basically states that people have rights beyond those listed in the Constitution.
It made me wonder whether the constitution protected the right
to be treated with dignity?
Today we celebrate what I consider a somewhat odd feast
with unusually explicit political overtones.
It was created in 1925 during a period of significant political upheaval
with the rise of fascism, communism and aggressive nationalism.
Concerned that the supremacy of state or party
was eroding religious values and virtues,
Pope Pius XI wanted to stress that true authority belongs to Christ and that Christian principles should inform public life.
While the underlying theology is certainly solid,
I yet find the title quite problematic.
It might have been understandable in Europe after World War I
with the demise of so many monarchies
but I don’t think it translates well at this moment
in our country’s history, especially
with millions on the streets literally calling for “No more kings.”
While musings about how this feast might be interpreted today,
I was struck by the growing data confirming that totalitarianism
Is not only on the rise globally but even domestically.
It made me wonder whether Jesus would be on the streets
joining one of those marches?
And if so, what kind of sign would he be carrying?
Because he is never remembered as instigating civil disobedience
– recall that famous “give to Caesar what is Caesar’s” line –
I cannot imagine him carrying any placard that supported
violence, rebellion, or antigovernment hatred.
He wasn’t that kind of citizen or even wannabe king.
My mental designing of the Jesus placard in a no king march
was assisted by a homily written over a decade ago
but that I just stumbled upon a few weeks back.
It was composed by an Irish Dominican friar,
So at least for me it carries both a cultural and religious imprimatur.
The focus of his evangelical musing is the concept of “dignity.”
The trigger for that focus is a throwaway line from Mass
that we blithely invoke at the beginning of every Eucharistic Prayer
I say, “the Lord be with you” and you say “and with your Spirit”;
“Lift up your hearts” – “we lift them up to the Lord”
Now here it comes …
“Let us give thanks to the Lord our God” – “It is right and Just.”
Ok – that was fun,
and the issues of righteousness and justice are great topics
But you might be asking where the idea of “dignity” figures in.
Ah … it’s in that dead language they call Latin
It is right and just in Latin is “Dignum et justum est”:
it is proper to affirm the very dignity of God in Christ.
And despite the fact that the vehicle is a dead language,
I assure you that the dignity of God in Christ is not a dead idea.
There is a difference between being a dignitary and having dignity.
Take the example of Nicolae Ceaușescu, former General Secretary
of the Romanian Communist Party and the country’s head of state.
Among his many honors, in 1968
he was given the Legion of Honor by Charles de Gaulle
and a decade later created a
Knight Grand Cross of the Most honorable Order of Bath
by Queen Elizabeth herself.
And to top it all off he was actually nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize.
Certainly a dignitary, but decidedly one without dignity:
despite all of the honors, he was an iron-fisted authoritarian
whose repressive policies erased basic freedoms
and economic mismanagement resulted in widespread poverty.
He was eventually overthrown, tried and executed by his people.
And, at least the British were embarrassed enough
to withdraw their honors from this dishonorable man
although it was only weeks before his execution.
The feast of Christ the King could sound like a theological attempt
by the church to turn Jesus into a dignitary:
nothing could be further from the truth.
He was no VIP, not invited to state dinners with monarchs,
had no publicity machine touting his prestige,
and certainly didn’t have the stomach for nominating himself
for any honors except for being a child of God.
He was a dusty Galilean Rabbi who befriended the unwashed,
idling away his time with adulterous women, outcasts of every stripe,
and uneducated fishermen. Jesus was no dignitary.
On the other hand, he didn’t need to be one,
Since he was the very embodiment of dignity itself.
And what does it mean to have dignity?
According to Catholic Social teaching, it means that every human
is intrinsically valuable, honorable, even lovable,
since we are all made in the image of God,
though we seldom if ever live up to that daunting vocation.
The first born of all creation was not only made in God’s image;
He was the very incarnation of God’s image,
honorable in every manifestation of his humanity:
from the time he was a precocious adolescent
debating with scholars in the temple,
to his experience as a defensive foreigner
trying to fend off a tough Syrophoenician mother
to his tireless attempts to curb the instincts of his apostles
hoping for a military take over
to standing before high priests and Roman governors
accusing him of blasphemy and sedition.
And then there is this morning’s unthinkable gospel depiction
incarnate dignity spat upon, flogged, stripped, and crucified,
suspended in midair between life and death
between a mother’s love and the jealousy of rivals
between gospel and government
publicly executed in the company of common criminals.
Yet even in this terrible beauty the Jesus dignity never waned.
Human dignity, while an irretractable gift from God
is still a fragile human commodity.
Such was painfully demonstrated in a famous 1971 investigation
known as the Stanford prison experiment
led by psychologist Philip Zimbardo.
The experiment involved 24 male college students
and took place in the basement of Stanford’s psychology building
which was reconstructed to simulate a prison environment
with cells, a prison yard and even solitary confinement.
12 of the students were randomly chosen to be inmates
and the other 12 as prison guards.
The experiment was originally planned to last for 2 weeks
but was terminated after just six days
due to the extreme and distressing behavior
exhibited by the participants.
Only 24 hours into the experiment
the guards began to exhibit abusive behavior
like inflicting physical punishments such as push-ups
and locking some in a small closet which served
as solitary confinement.
By day 2 the harassment escalated
with guards employing whistles to awaken prisoners,
force stripping them of their clothing
and using fire extinguishers to assert authority.
By day 4 the environment had grown so oppressive
that incidents of emotional breakdown by prisons were frequent.
Finally, at the insistence of Christian Maslach,
then a graduate student
and later a well-known psychologist
Prof. Zimbardo halted the experiment.
While this now classic study has been endlessly scrutinized
and various results vigorously debated
one conclusion is clear: Human dignity is fragile
and the lack of accountability
quickly descends into dehumanizing behavior.
So I am left wondering:
what kind of placard Jesus would be carrying
if he joined in a “no kings” march?
While not presuming to read the mind of the Only-Begotten,
given his own record on human rights and continued affirmation
of the dignity of the marginalized of every stripe,
my guess is that this sacred placard would simply read:
“You are a child of God.”
Of course Jesus would probably get arrested by ICE.
After all, with his dark skin, beard and heavy accent,
He would quickly be targeted as an outsider.
But that certainly would not dent his own dignity,
nor his care for every ICE agent as well,
telling each of them in turn, “You are a child of God.”
This is not the Church’s equivalent of “no kings” Sunday,
But “the different King” Sunday:
one that upholds the royal dignity
of the crucified Christ
and every one of his sisters and brothers
especially those who continue to be crucified
through deprivation of clean water and decent food
through deprivation of freedom of movement
and freedom from harassment
through deprivation of access and security
of respect and common human decency
of the dignity bestowed on each of us
as beloved children of God.
In baptism each one of us was anointed
Priest, prophet, king.
That is not an invitation for us to assert our royal heritage
as some kind of spiritual advantage,
But a commission to anoint this bruised and battered world
To affirm in every exchange, in every glance to every member
Of this global village
“I acknowledge your dignity”
“I recognize your value”
“I embrace you as sister and brother,” for
“you are a child of God” … through Christ our Lord.
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