Homily For Monday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 24th, 2025

 

Readings: Sir.1:1-10; Ps. 93; Mark: 9:14-29

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE FOR THOSE WHO HAVE PUT THEIR FAITH INTO POSITIVE ACTION

Oftentimes, we think that we have faith enough to face whatever challenges that come our way. But the fact remains that we can only know the level and capacity of our faith when we are truly faced with a situation that overwhelms our physical and mental abilities. Then, we will realize that what we think we have as faith is nothing but a shadow of reality. Such was the situation with the disciples of Jesus in our Gospel passage today.

For a man came up to Jesus begging him to deliver his son, who he brought to the disciples, but they were unable to cure him. But Jesus said ‘faithless and perverse generation!’ ‘How much longer must I be with you? How much longer must I put up with you? And he said to the man: ‘Everything is possible for anyone who has faith.’ Immediately the man cried out, ‘I do have faith. Help the little faith I have!’

Then, Jesus said: Bring him here to me.’ And he rebuked the devil, who immediately came out of the boy and he was cured from that moment. Then the disciples came privately to Jesus. ‘Why were we unable to cast it out? Jesus answered, that this kind can only be driven out by prayer.

Here, Jesus gives two reasons why the apostles failed to cure the boy. The first is connected with their own moral condition and disposition as they are only depending on their own personal abilities. Secondly and more importantly is their lack of faith.

Though they had, indeed, shown some faith by making even the attempt at the expulsion of the devil, they had acted half-heartedly and had not displayed that perfect confidence and trust which alone can bring success and make all things possible. Thus, Jesus made them know that in extreme situations faith in our prayers is very necessary towards achieving our desires.

Therefore, If we begin to nurture our faith to grow and strengthen from a small, humble beginning, it will grow to the point that it can help us to perform and achieve greater things and conquer the most difficult situations that, at first, would appear impossible. So faith moving mountains implies the spiritual ability to make difficult and stumbling situations vanish.

This, of course, requires wisdom, humility and sacrifice. Little wonder, we were told in our first that all wisdom is from the Lord, and it is his own forever. The sand of the sea and the raindrops, and the days of eternity, who can assess them? The height of the sky the breadth of the earth, and the depth of the abyss, who can probe them.

Dear friends, if we want to grow in faith, we must cultivate a humble habit in our prayer life. This is important because in prayer we are well disposed to follow the instructions of the Lord. Because, for us to have the faith that moves mountains, we must be well deposed to embrace the power of God in our lives; we must desire to have a personal experience of the power of God at work in the world and acknowledge that in him come our victory over every situation with encounter.

Therefore, we are called to let every moment of difficulties and trials lead us to grow in faith and knowledge of God’s power and authority at work in us.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, faith is your supernatural gift to humanity; grant that we may embrace this gift in humility to be well disposed to move out of our lives the tough mountains that are crushing us on our daily struggles. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a joyful week ahead.

Homily For Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C, 23rd February 2025

  

Readings: 1 Sam. 26:2.7-9.12-13.22-23;  Ps. 103; 1Cor.15:45-49; Luke 6:27-38

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

SACRIFICIAL LOVE: THE MOST DIFFICULT ASPECT OF CHRISTIAN MISSION 

A critical look at what is happening in our world today, it is obvious that the world is in a big crisis. This is because humanity has lost the true meaning of love. For we have abandoned God, who is the source and power of love and created for ourselves a mirage in the name of love. 

Today love has become a tool for selfishness, deception, greed and emotional satisfaction. Thus, it is extremely difficult to practice the genuine love of neighbours and talk more of the sacrificial love of our enemies.

But this is the demand Jesus is making of all his disciples in our Gospel passage today when he said: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who treat you badly. To the man who slaps you on one cheek, present the other cheek too; to the man who takes your cloak from you, do not refuse your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and do not ask for your property back from the man who robs you. Treat others as you would like them to treat you. If you love those who love you, what thanks can you expect? Even sinners love those who love them. 

So, in this Gospel, Jesus gave us reasons why we must choose love over hatred and forgiveness over vengeance. For he made us know that it is natural and universal for human beings to love those who love them. But what makes his disciples different from other people is the ability to love not just everyone but to love their enemies and not take vengeance or bear grudges against one another. By so doing, they will be imitating God, their heavenly Father, who in his compassionate heart shows equal love to both the good and the bad, not because he is indifferent to morality, but because his love knows no bounds.  

Hence, we are called to love and to be loving in all things, for that is the essence of our Christian faith. We cannot be true Christians unless we are willing to love sacrificially in our actions and interactions, in all situations and to everyone, without exception. We must learn to bear with one another and forgive each other as soon as a quarrel begins. The Lord has forgiven us; now we must do the same. 

This is exactly what David demonstrated in our first reading today when he chose to spare the life of King Saul. David could have killed Saul since God had placed his enemy in his mercy. Yet, as we heard, David did not. He even rebuked his fellow men and told them that they could not touch Saul or his men. Although Saul might have fallen from grace and sinned against God, he was anointed by God. 

So, it was not right to kill God’s anointed regardless of the circumstances. Instead, David, even at the risk of his life, spared the life of Saul, for he could have killed him and taken over his throne since he, too, had been anointed to be King. What a magnanimity of heart. Here, David showed not just Saul but all of us what it means to love sacrificially, just like Jesus has instructed us today, who also demonstrated the same thing on the cross.

Dear friends, how many of us Christians are willing and able to follow these instructions of the Lord? How many of us today are ready to follow the examples of the Lord’s disciples? How many are ready to follow the example of David? But all of us have received the love of God, and we have witnessed the love of God made manifest, and now we are all reminded that we have the obligation to show that same love in our daily activities.

 Hence, today we are called to a life of deeper virtue. We are called to a life of sacrificial love. We are called to perfection, we are called to choose love over hatred and forgiveness over vengeance. But when Jesus talks about loving our enemies, he is not telling us to be passive in the face of physical danger or abuse. Rather he wants us to realize that hatred is a dangerous thing and must be handled with great care. Because hatred breeds violence and other things that weaken the human soul. 

The truth is that our enemies are not necessarily those who we are at war with, those making life difficult for us or those we think hate us. But, our real enemies are those whom we choose to hate. And the best way to destroy our enemies is to discover how best we can make them become our friends, not by hating or carrying out vengeance. 

How I wish humanity would embrace this principle of loving and stretching the hands of friendship and peace to our presumed enemies by investing more resources in things that bring about peace and friendship with one another rather than building a nuclear weapon that breeds more violence and hatred in the world. When this is done, then the world will become more peaceful and loving.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, it is difficult and demanding for us to love our enemies, but this is what you are commanding us to do, give us the grace to bear the sacrificial nature of this demand and so become a true sign of your loving presence to those we encounter in life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a fruitful Sunday celebration.

Homily For Saturday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 22nd February 2025 The Feast of the Chair of St. Peter

Readings: 1Pete 5:1-4, Ps.23, Matt. 16:13-19

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

THE CHAIR OF ST. PETER, THE AUTHORITY AND ROCK ON WHICH CHRIST BUILD HIS CHURCH

There is no doubt that the supreme authority belongs only to God, and he alone decides who to endow his authority and also delegates to exercise it among his people. Such is the occasion in our Gospel passage today where the gift of faith given to Peter by God was the rock on which Jesus built his Church and bestowed his authority on him.

 So, today, in a special way, the Church celebrates the Supreme Chair of Saint Peter. A feast that marks the establishment of an organized Christian community under the leadership of St. Peter and his successors (that’s the Popes throughout the ages).

In our Gospel, we heard how Jesus stresses that Peter's faith was a gift from the Father when he said: “Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my Church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

Here, the key represents the authority to open the gate of the Kingdom of Heaven and to judge whether to admit or to refuse. While the expression “binding and losing” refers to the doctrinal decisions and disciplinary power of the office of St. Peter. That is, the faculty to impose and to lift, a guarantee that Peter’s decisions in the exercise of his ecclesial function are valid in the eyes of God. This is because the faith given to Peter by God is the rock on which Jesus built his Church, and that is why, in the iconographic tradition, we see the keys in the hand of Peter.

This gift of faith comes from a personal response of Peter when he professed that Jesus is Christ, the Son of the living God. Hence, our faith requires that we give a personal answer to the question: who is Jesus to me personally? It is not enough to quote the scriptures and the teachings of the Church about our faith or the teachings of other theologians and preachers. Or to respond not only from the head but from the heart that is convinced of what it believes in.

Dear friends, today’s feast reminds us of the need to truly profess our faith in God and be united as one family of God and, by so doing, overcome the ugly events of division, manipulation and multiplication of Churches going on in Christianity today. We are called to really examine our conscience to know where we are as regards our faith as Christians.

Today, we are called to be convinced of who we are and recognize the authority Christ has bestowed on his Church entrusted to St. Peter, of which the get of the underworld shall not prevail against it. To exercise this authority St. Peter in our first reading tells us to be the shepherds of the flock of God which has been entrusted to us: we should watch over it, not simply as a duty but gladly, because God wants it; not for sordid money, but because we are eager to do it.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, all authority belongs to you alone, as you have bestowed on your Church the authority and delegated her to exercise it among your people, may this gift unite us more closely to your Son Jesus, who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen. Have a fruitful day.

Homily For Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 21st February 2025

 

Readings: Gen. 11:1-9; Ps. 33; Mark: 8:34-9:1

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

WHY DO YOU WANT TO GAIN THE WHOLE WORLD AND LOSE YOUR SOUL?

There is no doubt that the material things of this world are so captivating and attractive, and people are so much engrossed in acquiring them at the detriment of things that edify the human soul. People are ready to do anything just to acquire material things in this world.

People are ready to kill, blackmail, kidnap, and even sacrifice parts of their bodies just to gain power, acquire properties and belong to a particular class or level that they feel is influential in society, thereby causing more hostility, persecution and evil in the society.

This really makes me wonder if we are actually learning anything from the lives of those who have passed away from this world. Have we really taken time to reflect on where all of us and the beautiful things of this world will be in the near future?

In fact, I think it is time for us to really think twice about our faith as Christians, whether we are actually ready to live out our faith in the midst of these ugly situations in our societies, which are not stopping soon, for it is getting tougher every day.

Little wonder Jesus, after telling his disciples about his passion and the coming persecution, said in our Gospel passage today: ‘If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me. Anyone who wants to save his life will lose it, but anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it. What, then, will a man gain if he wins the whole world and ruins his life? Or what has a man to offer in exchange for his life?”

Here Jesus knowing what awaits us in this world, takes his discourse on discipleship to a radical and difficult level, especially in a situation where our faith and Christian values have been thrown out of caution as a result of secularism, individualism and excess desires for worldly pleasures, thereby neglecting the things that lead us to God.

Hence, if we are really willing to live out our Christian faith and obligations, then we need to make a radical decision towards our discipleship in a personal and radical way. Not like those in our first reading today, who wished to follow their own selfish desires rather than the plan of God, for they said: “Come, let us build ourselves a town and a tower with its top reaching heaven. Let us make a name for ourselves, so that we may not be scattered about the whole earth. But the Lord corrected this selfish desire by changing their language.

However, these hard words of Jesus can only be understood in the light of our experience in life. Here comes the moment when we have to make radical and difficult choices as disciples of Jesus. It’s time for us to take up our cross in a sacrificial way and follow the Lord. But what is this cross we are called to take up. Taking up our cross could mean faithfully facing our daily challenges with all its difficulties. It could mean accepting who we are and what we have and using them to the glory of God.

The way of the cross is a way of sacrifice, commitment, love, forgiveness, mercy and compassion, which aim towards the good of the other person. It can be a costly service to a loved one who is ill; it can be embracing illness, even terminal illness or other personal weaknesses, but these make no sense except when we relate it with the sufferings of Christ through faith in God. We must let our struggles in life lead us to God’s purpose for us. We must not let the captivating and influential power of things in this passing world make us lose focus on our heavenly kingdom.

Dear friends, we are called today to deny ourselves the pleasurable things of this passing world in order to take up our Cross and follow the Lord. Yes, the material things of this world are captivating and pleasurable, but it is complete foolishness for us to gain the whole world and ruin our lives. Hence, it’s time to make a radical decision to sincerely and faithfully follow Jesus.

But how much are we willing to let go for the sake of following him? Why are we finding it difficult to let go of our excess attachment to worldly things? What are those habitual desires and possessions that are holding us from making this radical decision today? It is time to come to God with all our hearts, for tomorrow may be too late.

LET US PRAY: Gracious God, it is indeed foolishness trying to gain the pleasurable things of this passing world and ruin our lives, give us courage and grace to let go of our excess worldly desires to embrace the Cross of Christ. And as we do this, may the Cross of Christ be for us a shining example in our daily struggles, to hold firm in our faith despite all the sufferings and persecutions we may encounter. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a lovely day.

Homily For Thursday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 20th February 2025

Readings: Gen. 9:1-13; Ps. 102; Mark: 8:27-33

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

HOW CAN YOU DESCRIBE JESUS IN RELATION TO YOUR PERSONAL EXPERIENCE WITH HIM

Following the ugly events of division, manipulation and multiplication of Churches going on in Christianity today, one can not but repeat this fundamental question of Jesus to Christians all over the world: who do you say I am? Jesus addresses this question to all his disciples.

The people are free to believe whatever they want about Jesus, for Jesus has been carefully preparing his disciples to carry on his work so they ought to know better. They have heard His teachings and witnessed his miracles. What they think of Him should be more critical.

Thus, St. Peter spoke up and said to him, ‘You are the Christ.’ And he gave them strict orders not to tell anyone about him. And he began to teach them that the Son of Man was destined to suffer grievously, to be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and to be put to death, and after three days to rise again.

Here, we see how Peter expressed his personal conviction about the personality of Jesus. He did not have to quote any authority, because his response was a clear and sincere knowledge of who he professed Jesus to be. Peter’s gift of faith comes from his personal response about who Jesus is, even though he does not want to associate with the suffering aspect of the life of Jesus, and that was why Jesus rebuked that spirit of fear in him.

Thus, our faith requires that we give a personal answer to the question: who do you say I am? For it is not enough to quote the teachings and Catechism of the Church about our faith or the teachings of other theologians and preachers or to respond only from the head but from the heart that is convinced of what he believes in and is really ready to embrace the will of God.

The fact is that Jesus wants us to develop a divine way of looking at things; he wants us to know him deep down in our souls so that we can truly profess our faith with deeper meaning and conviction. Little wonder God said to Noah in our first reading today: See, I establish my Covenant with you, and with your descendants after you. I set my bow in the clouds and it shall be a sign of the Covenant between me and the earth and every living creature for all generations.

Dear friends, having heard the teachings and works of Jesus in the scriptures and traditions of the Church, the question remains: who is Jesus to you? What is your personal experience of Jesus? When was your spiritual turning point? Do we have a personal conviction about God that is not based on what people told us of him? How has your knowledge of Jesus helped other people to come to faith in Jesus?

The truth is, we can change our religion, churches, even our pastors, friends, residence, car or our physical appearance: heart, clothes, colour, even gender, as some people do today. But if we don't have a personal experience of God that will bring about a change of mind and heart towards loving God and our neighbours like St Peter, we will remain the same and the old experience of unfruitful life will perpetuate itself over and over again

In case you have not personally experienced him, all you need to do is to sincerely seek God in those common events in your life, and you will realize how much God is willing to reveal himself to you.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, you revealed to St. Peter the true identity of Jesus your Son, help us to profess our faith with deeper meaning and conviction. And as we experience the power of your presence, may we embrace more deeply your sacred mysteries. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a fruitful day.

Homily For Wednesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 19 February 2025

 

Readings:Gen. 8:6-13.20-22; Ps. 116; Mark: 8:22-26

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

EXPERIENCING THE HEALING TOUCH OF JESUS

Blindness is one of the most difficult human deformities that deprives one of the ability to exercise some of the characteristics of a human person. So, anyone suffering from such deformity constantly looks forward to a day when he or she will be restored. This is the case with the blind man in our Gospel passage today who some people brought to Jesus and begged him to touch him.

Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. Then putting spittle on his eyes and laying his hands on him, he asked, ‘Can you see anything?’ The man, who was beginning to see, replied, ‘I can see people; they look like trees to me, but they are walking about.’ Then he laid his hands on the man’s eyes again and he saw clearly; he was cured, and he could see everything plainly and distinctly.

Here, we see the compassionate love of Jesus in its historical and physical solidarity with human suffering, which springs from the love of God the Father and constitutes the basis of the Church’s liberating activity, which is rooted in our faith in God.

In this miracle, Jesus did something quite different from his usual ways of healing. He began by separating himself from his present environment and then putting spittle on his eyes, and the healing took place gradually. After the healing was completed, Jesus asked him not to return to the village from which he came.

This is very significant because oftentimes, our problems are caused and compounded by our present environment. So, for significant change to occur, we need to be separated from our present environment. So Jesus is using this opportunity to teach us in order to lead us out of the present environment that makes us blind to the spiritual realities of our lives.

We need to know that the physical activity of the human person can be linked to the present nature of his environment because the physical is controlled by the interior being of the person.

And when the interior being of a person is engrossed in a wrong environment, then, the ugly fruit of this environment is manifested in the physical activity of the person. This can be likened to the situation Noah was struggling with in our first reading today.

God decided to destroy the face of the earth with a flood in order to give Noah a new environment better than the formal environment corrupted by sins. And God said: Never again will I curse the earth because of man because his heart contrives evil from his infancy. Never again will I strike down every living thing as I have done.

Dear friends, are we suffering in any way as a result of the ugly nature of our present environment? Do we know people who are suffering and in need of God’s intervention? Are we spiritually blind by the present activities going on in our environment? We need to be separated from this ugly situation and environment so that we can be restored completely like the blind man in our Gospel passage today.

Let us, therefore, present ourselves and our Loved ones to Jesus, who is always ready and willing to heal us and set us free from the ugly situation we are passing through because the touch of Jesus heals and restores us completely.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, our environment has made us blind both physically and spiritually; as we present our needs before you today, may we experience once again your compassionate love and healing; we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Wishing you God’s favour and blessings.

Homily For Tuesday Sixth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 18th February 2025

Readings: Gen. 6:5-8,7:1-5,10 ; Ps. 29; Mark: 8:14-21

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

LORD GIVE US THE GIFT OF UNDERSTANDING

One of the gifts of the Holy Spirit is understanding, which is the ability to perceive an idea or situation mentally and to know and comprehend the nature or meaning of things. Hence, understanding is a gift of God and it is to be prayed and desired by all.

Understanding has a moral character which one has to seek and learn. Understanding, then, involves the cognitive, the spiritual, and the moral. While human efforts are required, the ability to understand comes from God and the true test of understanding is obedience to God.

This is what humanity in our first reading was lacking; they failed to obey what God had instructed them because they lacked understanding of God and his ways as they continued to sin against God.

Thus, when the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was so great on the earth and that the thoughts in his heart fashioned nothing but wickedness all day long. He regretted having made man on the earth, and his heart grieved. Hence, he planned to get rid of mankind, though Noah found favour in God’s sight and he promised to preserve humanity and other creations through him.

Similarly, Jesus, in our Gospel passage today, was disappointed at his disciples’ inability to grasp what he was saying to them or who he really was. They failed to understand what he was capable of doing in their midst. Hence, he asked them over nine questions, which they failed to understand. We can imagine them asking what is it that we do not yet understand?

But they had been witnesses to two extraordinary events done by Jesus: the feeding of five thousand people with five loaves and four thousand with seven Loaves. Yet they do not seem to have grasped the implication of the miracle they had witnessed nor the divine identity of Jesus who had made it possible.

Thus, Jesus said to them, “Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you not yet understand? Have you no perception? Are your minds closed? Have you eyes that do not see, ears that do not hear? Or do you not remember?” These questions reveal that the disciples are really in need of the gift of understanding, which is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit that is given to us to make sense of what is happening around us all the time.

Dear friends, the fact remains that we all need the gift of understanding just like the disciples in our Gospel today. Oftentimes, we are confused about so many things going on in our lives, even concerning our faith. Therefore, let us ask the Holy Spirit for an increase in the gift of understanding.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, you are the source of all understanding; help us to understand your word today, calling us to embrace love sacrificially; give us the grace to truly love you to understand and follow the examples of our Lord and Saviour who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.