Homily for Thursday Twenty-Eighth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 13th October, 2022

Readings: Eph 1:1-10, Ps. 98, Luke 11:47-54

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

WHY DO WE OFTEN SET TRAPS TO CATCH INNOCENT PEOPLE WHO SPEAKS TRUTH?

Today in our Gospel passage Jesus continued with his reproach on the Scribes and the Pharisee for hardening their hearts from the teaching of Jesus, and therefore behaving like their ancestors. Little wonder, Jesus in his reproach said: woe to you who build the tombs of the prophets, the men your ancestors killed! In this way you both witness what your ancestors did and approve it; they did the killing, you do the building. But the scribes and the Pharisees began a furious attack on him and tried to force answers from him thereby setting traps to catch him out in something he might say.

Here, Jesus was speaking to the people on the ugly attitudes and wickedness of humanity well manifested by the Scribes and Pharisees in the various occasions when we ought to obey the Lord but preferred to live and act in accordance to our own selfish and proud attitudes. Hence by reproaching us, Jesus is reminding us that this is not the right path for us to follow, instead, we should be more faithful and pay more attention to God’s words and teachings which he had repeatedly communicated to us through the prophets, of which we often rejected and also killed the prophets. In a similar way, Jesus despite all the signs and wonders he had done for humanity we still refused to have faith in him. 

Little wonder, St. Paul in our first reading says: blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all the spiritual blessings of heaven in Christ. For he chose us in him before the foundation of world, that we should be holy and spotless, and to live through love in his presence. Telling us how much God loves us and how necessary it is for us to listen to him.

Dear friends, why do we often feel bad to hear people telling us the truth? Why do we often set traps to catch up with the innocent people because they are telling us the truth we don’t want to hear? Today we are called not to be like the Scribes and Pharisees, who out of pride and selfishness rejected the words of Jesus and sort to kill him. Rather, we should be more humble and disposed towards the words of God we hear everyday. We should make efforts to transform our lives and faith more closer to that of Jesus. We should stop opposing and setting traps for people because they are telling us the truth or refuse to follow our opinion. Let us stop building on the past ugly and evil attitudes of people who have gone before us just like the scribes and Pharisees.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, out of pride we often wish to eliminate those who correct us. As you reproach this our ugly attitudes of pride and selfishness today, may we be filled with the longing for true holiness and humility, we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Do have a blessed day.