November 26

Our Lord Jesus Christ King of the Universe
 

(St. Conrad is celebrated today too)

The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe Story

formerly referred to as "Christ the King," was established by Pope Pius XI in 1925 as an antidote to secularism, a way of life which leaves God out of man's thinking and living and organizes his life as if God did not exist. The feast is intended to proclaim in a striking and effective manner Christ's royalty over individuals, families, society, governments, and nations.

Today's Mass establishes the titles for Christ's royalty over men:

1. Christ is God, the Creator of the universe and hence wields a supreme power over all things; "All things were created by Him";

2. Christ is our Redeemer, He purchased us by His precious Blood, and made us His property and possession;

3. Christ is Head of the Church, "holding in all things the primacy";

4. God bestowed upon Christ the nations of the world as His special possession and dominion.
    

Today's Mass also describes the qualities of Christ's kingdom. This kingdom is:

1. supreme, extending not only to all people but also to their princes and kings;

2. universal, extending to all nations and to all places;

3. eternal, for "The Lord shall sit a King forever";

4. spiritual, Christ's "kingdom is not of this world." — Rt. Rev. Msgr. Rudolph G. Gandas

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Before the reform of the Roman Calendar in 1969, this feast was celebrated on the last Sunday of October.

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Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast of Christ the King in his encyclical letter Quas primas of 1925, in response to growing secularism and in the context of the unresolved Roman Question.

According to Cyril of Alexandria, "Christ has dominion over all creatures, ...by essence and by nature." His kingship is founded upon the hypostatic union. "...[T]he Word of God, as consubstantial with the Father, has all things in common with him, and therefore has necessarily supreme and absolute dominion over all things created."

"From this it follows that to Christ angels and men are subject. Christ is also King by acquired, as well as by natural right, for he is our Redeemer. ...' We are no longer our own property, for Christ has purchased us "with a great price"; our very bodies are the "members of Christ." A third ground of sovereignty is that God bestowed upon Christ the nations of the world as His special possession and dominion. "All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me." (Matthew 28:18)

The feast has an eschatological dimension pointing to the end of time when the kingdom of Jesus will be established in all its fullness to the ends of the earth. It also leads into Advent, when the Church commemorates the arrival of the newborn king.

https://soundcloud.com/user-84758912-221844386/ep-47-st-conrad

https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=175

Prayer:
 

O Christ Jesus,

I acknowledge You King of the Universe.

All that has been created has been made for You. Exercise upon me all Your rights.

I renew my baptismal promises renouncing Satan and all his works and pomps.

I promise to lead a good Christian life and to do all in my power to procure the triumph of the rights of God and Your Church.

Divine Heart of Jesus, I offer You my poor actions in order to obtain that all hearts may acknowledge Your sacred royalty and that thus the reign of Your peace may be established throughout the universe.

Amen.

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Prayer Sung:

JESUS, REMEMBER ME
 

Luke 23:42-43 New American Bible

(Revised Edition) (NABRE)

42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 

43 He replied to him, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

Recipes:
 

Kerststol or Dutch Almond Paste Stollen


This sweet treat is usually served on Christmas in Holland

but we are sharing it today to honor Jesus

Ingredients for Stollen

• Makes 1 stollen of about 800 g

• 250 g all purpose flour (we use French type 55)

• 135 g lukewarm milk*

• 7 g instant yeast or 21 g fresh yeast

• 5.5 g salt

• 1 egg yolk

• 40 g butter, softened

• 15 g ‘sweetener'(orange and lemon zest sugar)

• 180 g dried fruits equal parts, raisins, currants, cranberries, soaked and dried

• 150 g almond paste combined with 1/2 a small egg or one egg yolk 

• melted butter for brushing

• icing sugar for dusting

Directions:

Before you start

1. Prepare your dried fruits by soaking them in hot water for 15 minutes (if you want you can also soak them in water with added rum or other liqueur of choice). Rinse them and leave in a sieve above a bowl to let excess water drip off. Set aside.

2. You need to prepare a mixture we call ‘sweetener’ which gives the dough it’s distinctive and pleasant taste. For this you mix 45 grams of sugar with the zest of 1 unwaxed lemon and one unwaxed orange. You can store this mixture in your fridge, it will keep for a long time.

3. Prepare your almond paste by combining it with half a small beaten egg until completely absorbed, add the egg in stages until you get the right consistency. You can also add only the egg yolk if you want to make it even richer. The almond paste should be lovely smooth and supple, not too wet not too dry. Of course this is a matter of preference. It’s a bit sticky, but this ‘kneading the egg through the almond paste’ job is best done by hand. We like it smooth enough to reach a consistency that allows for the almond paste to be smeared on the bread itself after baking. Set aside.

Making the stollen

1. In a bowl combine half the flour (125 g), all the yeast, the egg yolk and lukewarm milk. Mix well with a dough whisk, cover and let stand for 30 minutes. Then add the remaining ingredients (except for the dried fruits!) and knead for 5 to 7 minutes with a standing mixer or about 10 to 14 minutes by hand. The aim is to get a smooth, supple and satiny, ever so slightly sticky, dough with good gluten development.

2. Now add the prepared dried fruits (if you want you can also add other stuff like nuts and candied peel at this stage) and carefully work it through your dough so it’s evenly distributed. If your fruit mixture is a bit wet you can sprinkle on some flour before adding it to the dough.

3. The ideal temperature of your dough should be around 25ºC / 77 ºF 
    

4. Form the dough into a ball, place in a greased bowl, cover and let it rest for 20 minutes in a warm, draft-free environment. We use our small household oven as a proofing cabinet by preheating it to 30ºC / 86ºF, turning it off before putting the dough in.

5. Flatten the ball into a disc, roll into the shape of a loaf cover and let it rest again for 20 minutes in a warm, draft-free environment.

6. Now flatten the loaf with a rolling pin, making sure to leave the edges a little thicker and also leave the top half of the dough a little thicker than the bottom half. Make a sausage shape out of the almond paste, just a tiny bit shorter than the length of the bread and place it in the middle. Fold the dough in half, making sure the thicker edges land against each other, the top edge lands more on the thinner center section. Now press the dough between the bump of the almond paste sausage and the thicker outer edge down firmly. At this point it is wise to place the stollen on the baking sheet that is also going into the oven, so you don’t have to move or touch the stollen anymore.

7. Preheat oven to 190ºC / 375ºF

8. Now it is time for the final proofing. Depending on the temperature of your dough and surroundings, this should take at least 40 minutes to 1 hour. Make sure the bread is fully risen before it goes into the oven. When you think it has risen enough, use your finger to carefully make a very small dent in the dough. If the dent remains and you feel no resistance at all anymore, the bread is ready to bake, if the indentation disappears, the dough needs more time. With this type of bread, we dare you to take it as far as possible with this final proofing, so the bread will be light and fluffy!

9. Bake the stollen in the preheated oven for 35 minutes until golden brown. Keep a close eye on your stollen, if the browning process goes too quickly you can temper your oven to 160ºC / 320ºF, about 20 minutes into the baking process and/or protect it with some aluminum foil. Leave the stollen to cool on a rack for 10 minutes then brush it with some melted butter. Alternatively you can lacquer it with warm apricot jam. When it is completely cooled you can dust it with icing sugar. We like to eat our stollen with fresh dairy butter.

10. Alternatively you can brush the stollen with an egg mixed with a tablespoon of water and decorate with almond shavings before it goes into the oven. Watch closely again, so the almonds will not burn. Cover the top with aluminum foil when you think they have the right color.

11. Happy baking and merry Christmas!

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PS: Baking to impress? Bake a big stollen by doubling the ingredients. Of course you also have to adjust your baking time. A big stollen will take 45 to 48 minutes to be ready to wow your family and friends! But be sure it fits in your oven. It can be up to 50cm wide!

 

Driekoningenbrood or Dutch King Bread
This bread is made the night of January 5th in Holland but we make French King cake that night
So we are sharing the Dutch King Bread today to honor Jesus,
(On Fat Tuesday the day before Ash Wednesday we make the American King Cake)
 

Ingredients

• 4 c AP Flour

• 1/4 c Sugar

• 1 TBSP Active Dry Yeast

• 1/3 c warm milk (110 F)

• 1 tsp salt

• Zest of one Lemon

• 1 Stick of Butter, melted

• 2 egg yolks

• 1/4 c of almond paste, broken into small pieces

• 1 TBSP of melted butter

Directions:

1. Preheat oven at 375 F

2. Mix in a mixing bowl the Flour Salt & Lemon and set a side

3. Dissolve yeast in the warm milk and sugar 

4. Let the yeast bloom in the milk

5. Once the yeast has bloomed add to the mixing bowl 

6. Add the egg yolks and almond paste

7. Add in the melted butter 

8. Kneed the dough for about 5-8 minutes, until smooth and flexible 

9. Set the dough in an oiled bowl and allow to double in size (this will take about an hour in a warm place)

10. Punch down the dough and shape into a circle, let it rise again for about 45 minutes

11. Once the dough has risen cut a star pattern into the dough to resemble a crown

12. Bake the bread for about 45 minutes or until done. If the bread is browning too fast cover with foil

13. Removed from the oven brush some melted butter on top, once the bread has cooled cover in powder sugar