Homily for Thursday Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 25th August, 2022

 Readings: 1Cor. 1:1-9, Ps.145, Matt.24:42-51

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

STAY AWAKE OR YOU WILL BE ROBBED OF YOUR HEAVENLY GLORY AND EARTHY POSSESSIONS

As a human person, there are two most important events in our life. One is well known prepared and are constantly celebrated, that is, our birthday. The other, which is the ultimate, is not known and less attention and preparation is being made for it, that is, the day of our death. 

So, Jesus knowing how important this day is, instructed his disciples in our Gospel passage saying: “stay awake, because you do not know the day when the Lord is coming. You may be quite sure of this that if the householder had known at what time of the night the burglar would come, he would have stayed awake and would not have allowed anyone to break through the wall of his house. Therefore, you too must stand ready because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

In this passage we have two commands at the beginning and at the end which are not quite the same. The first command is based on God’s coming at a “day” when we do not know and the second is in an “hour” you do not expect, that is to say that it will be uncertain, unexpected and surprising. Just like the householder’s ignorance of the time when the thief would come is the reason why he does not watch. He cannot keep awake all night, and every night, to be ready for him; so he has to go to sleep, and then he is robbed. 

Thus our ignorance of the day and time is the reason for our watchfulness, because we can keep awake all the night of our life just like the householder watches to prevent being robbed. So the image of the thief is chosen to illustrate the unexpected approach of the second coming of Christ which will be a great surprise to those who are asleep as they will be robbed of Heavenly glory and also deprived of their earthly treasures, but the Lord's coming will be a happy day for those that shall be found awake and ready, while it  will be very dreadful for those that are not prepared. Thus, St. Paul in our first reading today saying never stop thanking God for all the graces you have received through Jesus Christ, especially in our teachers and preachers.

Dear friends, today we are called to be ready, we are called to repentance, we are called to embrace the new life the Lord is offering us. We are called to a life of constant struggle towards perfection in order to embrace the Lord whenever he comes. Therefore, preparation is the key word. Let us not be deceived when the world suggest to us that the day of death is not coming soon and so forget who we are, and then, the day and time will take us by surprise. Rather, let us be like that wise servant who is prepared at all times for the coming of the master. 

LET US PRAY, Lord God, today you ask us to be ready for your coming, increase in us the desire to be prepared and ready for that inevitable event of death, so that whenever it comes, it will not be a shock to us, we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. It's a lovely day, may God bless your efforts and grant success to the works of your hands.