Homily For Tuesday Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 1st July, 2025. HAPPY NEW MONTH

 

Readings: Gen. 19:15-29; Ps. 26; Matt 8:23-27

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

THE LORD IS STILL WITH US EVEN IN OUR DAILY STORMS OF LIFE

Have you been in a situation where the need to look for a Saviour is highly expected? Such was the case with the disciples of Jesus in our Gospel passage today. It is a story about the disciples' panic and fear of perishing as a result of the heavy storm that is affecting their boat.

With this heavy storm breaking their boat, the disciples could not believe that Jesus was asleep while they were afraid and needed help from anywhere. So they went to him and woke him saying, ‘Save us, Lord, we are perishing!’ And he said to them, ‘Why are you so frightened, you men of little faith?’ And with that, he stood up and rebuked the winds and the sea; and all was calm again. The men were astounded and said, ‘What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the sea obey him.’

This story signifies God's chosen people on a transit of faith, frightened by the guilt of sin and wounded by the waves of the sea, the abode of evil forces and monsters of this world. The boat can be taken as a symbol of the faith of the Church and the people of God struggling with the world’s principalities and powers, while the storm is a symbol of heavy persecutions and suffering by the people of God. And Jesus is saying: Why are you so frightened, you men of little faith.

Today, Jesus is calling us to journey on this boat of life with an unwavering faith and a repentant heart, because the world is being tossed around by the waves of evil forces, the enemies of humanity. And it is only God who can subdue it, for he has promised to restore us back to himself, just like Lot and his family in our first reading today.

For the angels urged Lot, ‘Come, take your wife and these two daughters of yours, or you will be overwhelmed in the punishment of the town of Sodom and Gomorrah and so they escaped the destruction.

Dear friends, the Lord is still with us in our daily storms of life. So why are you so frightened by the storms of this passing world? Why is your faith shaking because of your present situation? Though, I don't know the great storms of doubt and fear in your soul? I don’t know if you are under the power of the evil forces of this world.

I don't know if you are in the town of Sodom and Gomorrah. I don’t know if you are heading to destruction? All I know is that with great faith in God, the heavy storms in our lives will become calm, for Jesus and his angels will surely rebuke the violent storms in our hearts so that we can experience once again the calmness of safety, peace and joy.

LET US PRAY: O God. As we struggle every day to overcome the ugly situation around us, grant that the violent storms and waves of bondage in our lives will end in a wonderful calm that brings peace in our souls, through Christ our Lord. Amen. Wishing you a Fruitful and Joyful Month.

Homily For Monday Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 30th June, 2025

 

Reading: Gen. 18:16-33; Ps. 103; Matt. 8:18-22

Rev.  Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

LEARN TO FOLLOW THE LORD WITHOUT MAKING EXCUSES 

The path to success is so rigorous, strenuous and competitive. The strong pass through it and are celebrated, while the weak will always quit or give up. Hence, a lot of people have not been able to achieve their goal in life because they always have excuses to give. Oftentimes we hear such people saying I want to do this but.., I could have done it but..., I thought of it but… I was almost there but... 

This kind of attitude is what Jesus is addressing in our Gospel passage today, when  one of the scribes came up and said to him, ‘Master, I will follow you wherever you go.’ Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.’ Another man, one of his disciples, said to him, ‘Sir, let me go and bury my father first.’ But Jesus replied, ‘Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their dead.’

Here, it seems as if the Lord Jesus was very harsh when he said that those who have chosen to follow him have no place to call their own or that those who died ought to be left on their own to be buried. This is not the case here; rather, Jesus is emphasising that to be his follower requires serious commitment and sacrifices at all times. 

That following him requires a life of total self-denial, and the man who wishes to follow him most reflects thoroughly what following Jesus would entail. So Jesus made it clear that following him would mean giving up many of the personal comforts that one enjoys.

This is evident in the life of Abraham who was called to detach himself from his family in order to follow the Lord. And having separated himself completely from his family, he was able to relate with God more closely to the point that God can not hide anything from him. So in our first reading today, we heard how knowing about the destruction that was about to come before Lot, his brother, Abraham interceded on their behalf.

Here, Abraham was bold enough to bargain with God, as businessmen or women do when bargaining with a customer. Who could imagine someone bargaining with God who owns the universe? At first, we may think Abraham to be a bit rash to do such a thing. But the truth is that God was actually encouraging Abraham in the virtue of prayer. 

Remember, God took the initiative by revealing His purpose to Abraham, His friend, who was moved to pray, based on what he knew of God’s character, attributes and person. This is possible when we choose to give up everything and follow the Lord. 

Dear friends, for us to succeed in life we need to pass through some rigorous steps and stop making excuses. Sometimes the rigorousness of the paths may seem difficult and impossible, but in the end, they form the experience that will propel us to success and sustain us as well. 

So as we journey through the rigorous path of success in our mission and vocations, let us be encouraged by the life of Abraham, knowing that none of our sacrifices and contributions in the mission of Christ and his Church will be in vain.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, following you requires giving up everything, teach us how to faithfully embrace our vocation and mission in life without making excuses. May we be ever more nourished by your word and find in it the fount of grace to journey the path of life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a blessed week.

Homily For Thirteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time Year C. 29th June 2025. The Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul

 

Reading: Acts. 12:1-11; Ps. 34 ; 2 Tim. 4:6-8.17-18; Matt. 16:13-19

Rev.  Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

EMBRACING YOUR UNIQUE MISSION JUST LIKE SAINTS PETER AND PAUL

There is something deep and unique about every person as regards the master plans of God for humanity. But sometimes it takes personal experience to discover this uniqueness. I don't know if you have ever had an experience that made you think about your purpose on this earth, as you realise the emptiness of this life. A kind of experience that turns pride into humility, sinfulness into righteousness, an experience that changes your perspective about things or people?

This is the kind of experience Saints Peter and Paul, whose solemnity we are celebrating today, had with Jesus on different occasions that made them change their perception of life as they embraced their mission and mandate from Jesus. 

Their very encounter with Jesus brought a great transformation. Thus, Simon left his fishing profession and became a Fisher of men and a preacher of the word of God with a new name, Peter the Rock on which Jesus built his Church, the same thing with St. Paul.

This is evident in our Gospel passage today, where Peter demonstrated an act of faith as he gave an inspired answer to the question about the personality of Jesus. And Jesus stresses that Peter's faith is a gift from the Father when he says: “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 loosing” refers to the doctrinal decisions and disciplinary power of St Peter. that is, the faculty to impose and to lift. This is a guarantee that Peter’s decisions in the exercise of his ecclesial function are valid in the eyes of God. 

And that is why in the iconographic tradition we see the keys in the hand of Peter,  because, the faith given to Peter by God is the rock on which Jesus built his Church. This is what St Peter expressed in our first reading today when he said: “Now I know that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod and from all that the Jewish people were so certain would happen”.

Meanwhile, Paul’s encounter brought true conversion in his life and changed his perspective about Christians with a new identity, changing his name from Saul to Paul. A name indicating his new mission as the Apostle of the Gentiles. Little wonder that the iconographic tradition represents St. Paul with a sword. The image of the sword refers to his entire mission of evangelisation, and that was the instrument with which he was killed. 

No doubt that St. Paul carried out his mission with all his zeal and passion, he is regarded as one of the apostles, and today his works still speak about the effect of his personal encounter with Jesus. Hence, we heard him saying in our second reading: I have fought the good fight to the end; I have run the race to the finish; I have kept the faith; all there is to come now is the crown of righteousness reserved for me, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that Day; and not only to me but to all those who have longed for his appearing.

Thus, the relationship between Peter and Paul is designed by God for the mission entrusted to them. Their lives are symbols of unity in one missionary mandate of Christ. St. Peter was entrusted with the leadership of all the Apostles and the Church, while St. Paul was empowered and entrusted with the mission to the Gentiles (Gal . 2:8). For this mission, they both suffered martyrdom for the faith and their love for God and the mission entrusted to them by Jesus.  

This very sacrificial life of love is what we are celebrating today, as being represented in different images and statues of Saints Peter and Paul as seen in front of Saint Peter’s Basilica, in the seminaries and in parishes, of which they are easily recognizable by their respective attributes: the keys in the hand of St. Peter and the sword held by St. Paul, showing us the fraternal zeal and unity of these two Apostles on their way to martyrdom for the love of Christ. 

Dear friends, like Saints Peter and Paul we must learn to bring our unique mission into one missionary mandate of Christ. This is important following the ugly events of division, manipulation and multiplication of Churches going on in Christianity today. 

Hence, we are called to examine our conscience to know where we are with regard to our faith as Christians, we are called to be convinced of who we are and the need to truly unite together in God and His Church entrusted to St. Peter of which the get of the underworld shall not prevail against it. 

LET US PRAY: Almighty and ever-living God, as we begin our day with the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, create in us we pray, a pure heart and renew a steadfast spirit of true faith within us, so that your Church may truly be united as one. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.  Have a fruitful day.

Homily For Saturday, Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time, Year C, 27th June, 2025. The Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary

 

Reading: Gene. 18:1-15; Ps. Lk. 1; Matt 8:5-17

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

CONTEMPLATING ON THE IMMACULATE HEART OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Biologically, the heart is the main organ in the circulatory system of the human body. It is the structure primarily responsible for the circulation of blood and transportation of nutrients in all parts of the body. This special task uplifts the role of the heart as a vital organ whose normal operation is constantly required. In biblical language, “heart” indicates the centre of the human person where his sentiments and intentions dwell.

Yesterday we celebrated the solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Heart where we embrace God’s infinite love and mercy for humanity and His will for our universal salvation. Following the Sacred Heart of Jesus is the Immaculate Heart of His Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Hence today, the liturgy invites us to venerate the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The Immaculate Heart of Mary is a devotional name used to refer to the interior life of the Blessed Virgin Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for God the Father, her maternal love for her son Jesus, and her compassionate love for all people.

Here we recall Mary’s great love for God, her faith and piety, her commitment to serve the Lord wholeheartedly, and how she loved her Son dearly from the moment of conception, his birth, his finding in the Temple and even up to his passion of the Cross. We contemplate that when Mary followed her Son faithfully as he picked up his Cross and bore that burden to Calvary, she bore and pondered all these sorrows deep within her Immaculate Heart.

This is the event we celebrate today, where we recall how Mary having struggled to understand the mysterious events in the life of her Son Jesus, stored up all these events in her heart. A heart that is propelled by love and filled with genuine faith in God, a heart so pure and contemplative. For such is the immaculate heart of Mary, having been conceived without sin, and pure from any taints of evil and wickedness.

Yet, this loving and caring Immaculate Heart has to endure great sorrows and in the midst of these sorrows she did not stop being loving, compassion and caring to her Son and also to all of us, as she fulfills the mandate entrusted to her by Jesus at the Cross of Calvary saying: Mother behold your son and son behold your mother. By this mandate, all of us are blessed to have been placed under the maternal care of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, a great saint and our role model.

Dear friends, today we are called to imitate and embrace the Immaculate Heart of Mary, whose maternal care we have been commended by Jesus at the Cross of Calvary. So, let us like Mary express our faith in God just like the Roman centurion in our Gospel passage today, who sorts help for his sick servant, he approached Jesus for healing, but when Jesus accepted to come to his home, the centurion hesitates, feeling unworthy of Jesus’ presence in his home, said to him “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only speak the word, and my servant will be healed”.

What a great faith, unlike Sarah in our first reading who doubted the promise of the Lord. But we are truly fortunate to have received such abundant love and compassion from the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary his mother, who is also our loving mother. Let us therefore cultivate a heart that mirrors that of our mother, let us imitate the purity of her heart, let us be caring, loving, contemplative and compassionate in our relationship with one another.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, as we imitate the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary, graciously grant that through her intercession we may be a worthy temple of your glory and make our hearts a loving, caring and compassionate vessel for all through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a fruitful weekend.

Homily For Friday Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (The World Day of Prayer for the Sanctity of Priestly Life)

 

Reading: Ezk.34:11-16; Ps. 23; Rom. 5:5-11; Luke 15:3-7

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

CELEBRATING THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS WHERE TRUE LOVE ABIDES

Today, the Church celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. An event that occurs every Friday after Sunday, in which we celebrate the solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. In this solemnity, the Church invites us to contemplate and celebrate the love of God pouring forth from the Most Loving Heart of Jesus the Good Shepherd, whose heart was pierced for the salvation of humanity.

A great act of love which God revealed through his influences on mystic saints such as St. Gertrude the Great, which was made more obvious through St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in the revelation she had around the 17th century.

In this revelation, the Lord appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque and showed her his heart and the anguish and sorrow which he had for the sins and disobedience of humanity, despite the incomprehensible act of love, compassion and mercy that God has lavished upon us.

Then the Lord said to her: “Behold the Heart that has loved so many men, and yet, instead of gratitude, all I received were ingratitude…” and asking in particular that the Friday after the week in which the Solemnity of Corpus Christi is celebrated should be dedicated to him as the Feast of reparation to the Most Sacred Heart. The Lord also promised St. Margaret Mary that all those who devoted themselves to His Most Sacred Heart with faith will be protected and receive the graces of God.

So, the long development of these revelations led to the devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus as we have it today. Though it was Pope Pius IX who extended and placed this great Feast and Solemnity in its current form and honour.

Moreover, this great feast also marks the occasion of the World Day of Prayer for the Sanctity of Priestly Life, keeping in mind that the priesthood is the product of Christ's sacrificial heart of love for humanity.

Hence, we remember all of us priests who have been called to model ourselves after the life of Christ’s love by giving ourselves to the ministerial priesthood, that we may truly model ourselves and our hearts after that of the Most Sacred Heart of Christ the Good Shepherd.

Let us be filled with love for all humanity while recognising that the priestly life is a very difficult undertaking, especially in our world today. Let us be supported by all, knowing that priests, though humans just like everyone, have their flaws and imperfections, but we are at the same time held up to a much higher expectation to care and guide the people of God.

Meanwhile, in the midst of all our difficulties, challenges, daily temptations and pressures of life, we are called to abide in the loving heart of Christ, for he who abides in love, abides in God, and God abides in him. (1 John 4:7-16). Little wonder, St Paul in our second reading says: The love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, which has been given to us.

For we were still helpless when at his appointed moment Christ died for sinful men. It is not easy to die even for a good man, though, of course, for someone really worthy, a man might be prepared to die, but what proves that God loves us is that Christ died for us while we were still sinners.

Therefore, in this solemn feast our devotion is rooted in the mystery of God’s love; for it is precisely through the Sacred Heart of Jesus that the Love of God for humanity is sublimely manifested in all its effect and power especially for souls thirsting for God’s mercy, for in it we find the inexhaustible source from which we draw the water of life that refresh and revives the thirsty souls of sinful humanity and make us new and alive again.

Hence we are called today to abide in this love of Christ which flows from the pierced heart of Jesus the Good Shepherd, who when entrusted with a hundred sheep, losing one, would leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the missing one till he found it as we heard it in our Gospel passage today.

 In our first reading today we heard the Lord saying: I am going to look after my flock myself and keep all of it in view. I will pasture my sheep, I will show them where to rest–it is the Lord who speaks. I shall look for the lost one, bring back the stray, bandage the wounded and make the weak strong. I shall watch over the fat and healthy. For I shall be a true shepherd to them.

Dear friends, true love is found in the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Good Shepherd. So, every Christian is called to embrace the love of God which he poured out from the Sacred Heart of Jesus, so as to become a wellspring which gives life of love to others. For we ought to be offering life-giving water to a parched and thirsty world.

We are called to embrace that love which propelled Jesus to lay down his life for his friends and also to forgive his enemies, for that is what this solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus represents. We are called to contemplate the mystery of love in the heart of a God who is full of compassion, bestows his love upon humanity through his Son.

Though humanity has rejected his love, but God does not lose heart in the face of ingratitude or rejection by the people he loved and chosen; rather, with infinite mercy he sends his only-begotten Son into the world to take upon himself the fate of a shattered love, so that by defeating the power of evil and death he could restore humanity once again from our slavery of sin and death back into a life of grace and open up his Sacred Heart of love once again for all who wishes to embrace it.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, grant that we, who glory in the loving Heart of your beloved Son and recall the wonders of his love for us, may be made worthy to receive an overflowing measure of grace from that fount of heavenly gift of love which he offers to humanity. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. (Please pray for me today and for the sanctity of all the Priests).

Homily For Thursday Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 26th June, 2025

 

Reading: Gen. 16:1-12,15-16; Ps.106; Matt. 7:21-29

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

LISTENING AND DOING THE WILL OF GOD IS WHAT IS REQUIRED OF US.

One of my favourite hymns in our hymn book says:

In Christ alone my hope is found, He is my light, my strength, my song! This cornerstone, this solid ground, firm through the fiercest drought and storm. What heights of love, what depths of peace, when fears are stilled when striving cease! My Comforter, my All in All, here in the love of Christ I stand.

This hymn draws my attention to our Gospel passage today, where Jesus says: ‘It is not those who say to me, “Lord, Lord,” who will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the person who does the will of my Father in heaven. When the day comes many will say to me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, cast out demons in your name, work many miracles in your name?”

Then I shall tell them to their faces: I have never known you; away from me, you evil men! And he continues, everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on rock. Rain came down, floods rose, gales blew and hurled themselves against that house, and it did not fall: for it was founded on rock.

Here Jesus calls our attention to something very important. He reminds us that it is not enough to hear the word of God; we must put it into practice. It is not sufficient to speak about God, but we must practice what we speak. We are called not merely to hear God’s word but to daily put it into action. Hearing or reading the Word is important, but that is not enough.

We must let the Word of God touch and shape our lives. For it is a waste of time and energy if our lives do not reflect the Gospel we preach if we do not hear the words of Jesus and act on them. The truth is that the houses built by wise and foolish persons may probably look alike. But the difference is the foundations, which can only be revealed when tested by the storms of life as we heard in our first reading concerning Abram’s household as regards Sarai and Hagar.

Dear friends, what are we doing with the word of God we hear every day? What kind of fruit am I bearing? How has the word of God changed my life and the lives of those around me? How has the word of God challenged and propelled me to love God and my neighbours?

The fact remains that, hearing and doing the word of God is building our faith on a rocky foundation, that cornerstone, that solid ground, through the fiercest drought and storms of life, because the fruit of the Word of God in us is seen when tested in the storms of life.

Thus, is my attitude towards the word of God like that of the foolish builder who takes shortcuts for quick results? Or that of a wise builder who spends time digging a secure foundation through constant meditation and practice of the word of God?

Therefore, when we hear the word we must apply it to our daily lives because that's the only way we can feed our soul. Our society has enough hearers of the word, what we need now are doers of the word of God, men and women who will feed their lives with the word of God and from the abundance of their hearts live a life that will influence society positively.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, through your Word we find life and hope in Christ who is our all in all, grant us the grace to be doers of your Word and not just hearers, in order to build our faith on a rocky foundation in Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a blessed day.

Homily For Wednesday, Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time, Year C, 25th June, 2025

 

Reading: Gen. 15:1-12.17-18; Ps.105; Matt. 7:6.15-20

Rev.  Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

LEARN TO DISCERN GOOD PROPHETS  FROM FALSE PROPHETS

 A tree is known to be either good or bad, healthy or sick by the fruit it produces. In the same way, the human heart is known to be either good or bad, holy or sinful, sincere or corrupt by the fruit of our words and actions, rooted in our character. 

Thus, in our societies today, many false influential powers have a grievous effect on our lives coming from various sources under the guise of good but are in fact leading us astray. Every day, many false prophets and teachers are increasing and are deceiving the people. So, there is a need for us to examine these influences.

Little wonder that Jesus in our Gospel passage today said: “Beware of false prophets who come to you disguised as sheep but underneath are ravenous wolves. You will be able to tell them by their fruits. A sound tree produces good fruit, but a rotten tree produces bad fruit. A sound tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor a rotten tree bear good fruit. Any tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown on the fire. I repeat, you will be able to tell them by their fruits.”

Here, Jesus is calling our attention to this ugly situation in our societies today, where false prophets and teachers are deceiving people. He tells us to be careful and discerning to know false prophets from true ones. He made us know that by the fruits they bear we shall know them. 

A true prophet draws what is good from the store of goodness in his heart, while a false prophet draws what is bad from the store of his bad thoughts. Because a man’s words flow out of what fills his heart. So it is not sufficient to speak about God, we must practice what we speak. We must let the Word of God touch and shape our lives so that we can bear good and healthy fruit. 

Dear friends, as God’s prophets what kind of fruits are we known for? The ugly attitude of deception, manipulation, exaggeration, corruption, and flamboyant lifestyle of false prophets and preachers in our societies today can really make it difficult for people to become true and faithful believers in our world today. 

Little wonder that people are scandalised by the actions and behaviour of some preachers and teachers. Some have given up their faith, some are about to give up, some are just confused while a lot of people are just holding on to the little faith they have based on their little personal experience and encounter with the Divine.

Therefore, we must be very wise for many false prophets are operating under the power of the devil. Let us come to Jesus who has promised us the Spirit of truth that will give us a special sign for distinguishing true doctrine and true teachers from the false ones. 

Hence, let us constantly ask the Holy Spirit to give us the grace of discernment to distinguish between good and false prophets and teachers. Let us also be true Christians by our way of life, words and deeds. Let us learn to put our trust in God just like Abram in our first reading today, for God has promised to keep us from falling away from the true faith we have found in His Son Jesus.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, our societies are full of deception, false prophets and teachers, send us the Spirit of truth to discern the truth from the false. May we always stand and witness to the truth we have found in Jesus against all the false influential prophets and teachers in our society today. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a fruitful day.

Homily For Tuesday, Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time, Year C, 24th June, 2025. The Solemnity of the Birth of John the Baptist

 

Reading: Is.49:1-6; Ps.139; Acts 13:22-26; Luke: 1:57-66.80

Rev.  Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

WHAT ARE THE MYSTERIES AND CIRCUMSTANCES SURROUNDING YOUR BIRTH AND YOUR NAME

One of the most significant days in our lives is our birthday, which often comes with joy and praise. And in the mood of joy that a life has been born, one of the things that comes to mind is giving a name to the baby as an identity based on the circumstances surrounding the birth. 

This great and joyful event is what we are celebrating today. The Solemnity of the birth of St. John the Baptist, the only person whose birthday is celebrated in the Church’s liturgical calendar, besides that of Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary, because of his role in the history of the salvation of humanity.

  

This event is very important and necessary, because in it we talked about the name given to him. In fact, the naming of objects and persons is an important ritual found in scripture. We can recall in the book of Genesis (Gen.2:19-20), when God created Adam and gave him the responsibility of giving names to all creation. So the act of giving a name to people has been a traditional event not only in the scriptures but in every human culture.  

On account of this, our Gospel passage today gives us the record of the events of the birth and naming of John the Baptist. From the passage, significant and surprising things happened at the birth and naming of John the Baptist, of which we can identify three unusual features: first, the old woman gave birth. 

Secondly, the child has a strange name “John” derived from the Hebrew name Yochanan meaning " YAHWEH is gracious", a name which no one bears in the family and thirdly, Zechariah's dumbness is taken away on account of giving this name, which brought great joy to the people and they praised God. 

However, such remarkable events caused the crowd to fear and perceive that something different and surprising was happening, things worth remembering. Showing us that, when God names a child, that child is significant in his universal plan for humanity. 

Hence, John’s birth was prophesied by the prophets as we have in our first reading today, to be the last among the prophets, for his role was to prepare the people and to finally proclaim the coming of the Messiah, who will fulfil the long-awaited plan of God for the salvation of humanity. 

This is clear in our second reading, where St. Paul gave us an account of how John, in humility, carried out his mission as he proclaimed a baptism of repentance for the whole people of Israel. And before John ended his career, he said, “I am not the one you imagine me to be; that one is coming after me, and I am not fit to undo his sandal.

No doubt, the mission of John the Baptist was quite challenging as he encountered many obstacles, just like other prophets before him. He faced strong opposition and rejection from the Pharisees, who doubted and challenged his teaching and works of baptism and repentance, in which many people believed in him. 

But John fearlessly confronted some of the Pharisees, calling them wicked, a brood of vipers and hypocrites. He also courageously confronted King Herod with the truth on account of his illegal and sinful relationship with Herodias, his brother’s wife, and this led to his martyrdom and his mission decreased while Jesus's increased.

Dear friends, we all have a significant place in the plan of God. Our names are not just a common ceremony. It is a testimony of God’s plan for us. Why not take out time today to reflect on the meaning and circumstances surrounding our births and our names? For by God’s grace, we will understand better who we are and what our mission and purpose on earth are. 

When we do this, we will faithfully stand for the truth of what we represent and fulfil our plans and purposes, just like John the Baptist, who stood for the truth of his mission and offered it to everyone, whenever and however it would best bring conversion to sinners, even at the cost of his head.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, you created each one of us to fulfil your plan on earth and in our names we bear the mystery of our mission and purpose. Grant us through the intercessions of St John the Baptist, the grace to faithfully and courageously fulfil our mission and purpose in this world. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a blessed and joyful day.

Homily For Monday Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 23rd June, 2025

 

Reading: Gen. 12:1-9; Ps.33; Matt. 7:1-5

Rev.  Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

REMEMBER YOUR INADEQUACIES BEFORE CRITICISING AND JUDGING OTHERS 

One of the ugly attitudes of the human person is the urge to often criticise, judge and condemn others without looking into our own faults. Have we ever experienced a situation where it happened that, while we were condemning other people for their faults, we suddenly realised that our own faults are just as many as theirs, for this does happen often in our relationship with one another.

This ugly attitude is what Jesus is addressing today in the Gospel passage, when he said “ Do not judge, and you will not be judged; because the judgements you give are the judgements you will get, and the amount you measure out is the amount you will be given. Why do you observe the speck in your brother’s eye and never notice the log in your own? Deal

Here, Jesus is referring to the improper and prideful attitudes of many of the Pharisees, the scribes and teachers of the Law and many others like them, whose self-acclaimed righteousness has led to criticism and condemnation of other people. For they have failed to see the log in their eye while seeking to remove the speck in others. But what is this log in our eyes? It is the log of pride, greed and self-righteousness. 

These logs of pride, greed and self-righteousness make us forget who we are and claim who we are not. Pride, as we know, is the first capital sin; it makes us look down on people, and pride makes us blind. It makes us not look into our own lives to see and accept how wrong we can be. This is because we are often controlled by our ego and pride, our human ambitions and desires, for we like to always be in control and superior to others. 

But this is not the same with Abram in our first reading today, who, because of his humility, was called by the Lord for a special mission. For the Lord said to him, ‘Leave your country, your family and your father’s house, for the land I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name so famous that it will be used as a blessing. Such is God’s grace for those who are humble and accommodating of other people's weaknesses. 

Therefore, today we are called to humbly look into our lives and identify all those ugly attitudes of pride in us and get rid of them, so that we can humbly correct and accommodate other people's weaknesses. So instead of pointing out what is lacking in others, we must look into ourselves, and find ways that we can make good use of the opportunities that God has given us to show good examples to others. 

We are to discard all our prideful, wicked and sinful ways of life and replace them with genuine love for one another, with new zeal and sincere commitment to telling one another the truth in all humility.

Dear friends, we are called not to judge, because sometimes that which we judge in others, we are doing worse. Hence, Jesus is challenging us today to think differently about how we live our lives. Calling us to look into our inner being, our interior life, that part of us that we hide from one another. 

Let us purify them in humility, so that we can be pure and free to help others in their struggles with their weakness. Therefore, it’s time to look into ourselves and take away our prideful ways of life, so as to humbly accommodate the weaknesses and faults of others, especially in our families, societies and the world at large, knowing that no one is perfect without the other.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, give us the grace of humility and the capacity to always look within us in order to be more aware of our inadequacies, and so become more gentle in dealing with others, we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a blessed and grace-filled week.

Homily For Sunday of the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi) Year C, 22nd June, 2025

 

Reading: Gen. 14:18-20; Ps. 110; 1Cor.11:23-26; Luke 9:11-17

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

THIS IS MY BODY GIVEN UP FOR YOU AS A SIGN OF MY PRESENCE AND LOVE

Today, the Church celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ also called the Corpus Christi celebration, an event that occurs every Thursday or Sunday after the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. It is a solemn celebration where we reaffirm with great joy our faith in the Eucharistic Mystery of Christ’s love for humanity. Reminding us of God’s infinite gift of love for humanity which was made present in the Person of Christ Jesus under the appearance of Bread and Wine.

The mystery of the solemnity of Corpus Christi constitutes a very important aspect of our Christian faith, which is rooted in the historical and cultural context of the Jewish people's experience with God, of which Jesus is the fullest expression of this experience and revelation.

Hence, St. Paul in our second reading today reminded us of what happened at the Last Supper when he said that on the same night that the Lord Jesus was betrayed, he took some bread, and thanked God for it and broke it, and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this as a memorial of me.’

In the same way, he took the cup after supper, and said, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Whenever you drink it, do this as a memorial of me.’ Until the Lord comes, therefore, every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are proclaiming My death.

With this statement, Jesus instituted the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist and gave his Apostles power and authority to do this in memory of him. This is a very important mission, which the Apostles had faithfully carried out and have passed on to all of their successors, the bishops and the priests of the Church, who have been ordained and have received the same power and authority from the Lord to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

So, at the Last Supper, Jesus presented the Bread and Wine as his Body and Blood, which he offered on the cross as a sacrificial love for humanity and asked his disciples to do the same in memory of him. This is very significant with the event of Jesus feeding about five thousand men with five loaves and two fish in a miraculous way that expressed his deep love for helpless humanity as we have it in our Gospel passage today.

This great act of love as mandated by Christ is what the Church is doing at every celebration of the Holy sacrifice of the Mass, where Christ through the priest who act ‘in persona Christi’ by the power of consecration, transubstantiate the Bread and Wine into his Real Body and Blood and offer it to God His Father as an unbloodied sacrificial love for humanity.

This means that the substance and essence of the bread and wine the priest blessed and offered to God at the celebration of the Holy Mass, have truly become the very Body and Blood of Christ Himself, under the appearance of bread and wine through the mystery of Transubstantiation.

Thus, the word ‘transubstantiation’ from the two words ‘Trans’ which means ‘change’ and ‘Substantiate’ meaning ‘substance or essence’, we can explain the mystery of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist, as the change of the whole substance of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ through the prayer of consecration by Christ through the priest in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Therefore, at every Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, through the power of the Holy Spirit the substance of bread and wine become the real and most precious Body and Blood of Christ Jesus, just in the same way he spoke at the Last Supper saying ‘This is My Body, which shall be given up for you’, ‘This is the Chalice of My Blood, the Blood of the New and Eternal Covenant, which shall be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins’.

This he fulfilled at the Cross in Calvary, where he offered himself Body, Soul and Divinity for the salvation of humanity. Hence, we share in this grace of salvation when we participate fully in this sacrificial offering of God’s love for humanity.

Little wonder in our first reading we heard that: Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought bread and wine; and as a priest of God Most High, who pronounced blessings. Therefore, Christ has come as the High Priest of all the blessings we have received and those that are yet to come.

He has passed through the greater, the more perfect tent, which is better than the one made by men’s hands because it is not of this created order; and he has entered the sanctuary once and for all, taking with him not the blood of goats and bull calves as of old. But here, Jesus offers his own blood, having won an eternal redemption for us, purifies our inner self from dead actions so that we can offer our service to the living God.

The fact remains that in the Eucharist, we are physically and spiritually fed much more than the Israelites in the wilderness, who were fed with manna as we have it in Deut. 8:2-3,14-16, they were given the manna to survive in the wilderness, but Christ gave us the Eucharist not just for us to survive in the wilderness of this passing world but for us to gain eternal life and come to share in his love, for the Eucharist is the real presence of Christ’s love for humanity.

Dear friends, what is our relationship with Jesus in the Eucharist? What is our attitude towards the Holy Eucharist? What is our experience of Jesus in the Eucharist? How has the Eucharist we receive almost every day changed our lives positively? How has the Eucharist influenced our lives to sacrifice for the good of humanity?

How often have we abused the Eucharist and treated the body of Christ without due reverence? How often have we received the Eucharist unworthily? Do we still have that strong desire to receive Christ in the Eucharist? Do we still believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist? Do we still feel the love of Jesus in the Eucharist? The answer to these questions is blowing in the wind.

So, today we are called to embrace the love of God present in the Holy Eucharist, the power of God’s mercy for sinful humanity. We are called to deepen our understanding of the rich mystery of our faith in the Eucharist. We are called to change the way we relate to Jesus in the Eucharist. We are called to strive to worthily receive the Holy Eucharist.

Today, we are called to be grateful for this Sacrificial love of Christ in the Holy Eucharist and form the habit of adoring Christ our Lord present in the Holy Eucharist. We are called to let the love of his presence transform our souls into that purest love that will renew our families, societies and the world at large.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, through the sacrificial love of your Son Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist, grant us the grace to constantly experience your presence within us, especially in the midst of doubt, ignorance, persecution, trials and uncertainties of life. May the Eucharistic Power of love fill our hearts once again and so renew the hatred, greed and corruption in the hearts of sinful humanity. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Happy Sunday to you all.

Homily For Saturday Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 21st June, 2025. The Memorial of St. Aloysius Gonzaga

Reading: 2Cor 12:1-10; Ps.34; Matt. 6:24-34

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

WHY BE ANXIOUS ABOUT TOMORROW LET TOMORROW TAKE CARE OF ITSELF

The activities and life of the human person are always competitive and comparative in nature; that is why we are often anxious to recognise or be recognised as the strongest, wisest, cleverest, or richest. We will always want to know the most beautiful, handsome, most talented and greatest in virtually everything.

Little wonder that the most lucrative business and adventures are found among those activities that are competitive, such as sports, entertainment and politics, because greatness gives more ego to our status, and people are so anxious about them. This anxiousness can sometimes lead to anxiety when people fail to achieve their plans because they have chosen to separate themselves from God.

Thus, this anxiousness that brings about a competitive and comparative way of life is what Jesus is addressing in our Gospel passage today when he said: “You men of little faith? Do not be anxious; do not say, “What are we to eat? What are we to drink? How are we to be clothed?” It is the pagans who set their hearts on all these things.

Your heavenly Father knows you need them all. Set your hearts on his kingdom first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given to you as well. So do not be anxious about tomorrow: tomorrow will take care of itself. For each day has enough trouble of its own.

Here, Jesus is calling us to reflect on our lives and our attitudes towards the material things of this passing world. We often stray from the right path because we are too distracted by our personal ambitions and desires for worldly pleasures and achievements, which are serious obstacles that can prevent us from attaining our salvation, as we end up falling deeper and further into the path of sin, which separates us from God.

Thus, we have to take a stand and choose firmly between serving God or material things, because we cannot serve both God and money, for sooner or later we will love one more than the other, and the anxiousness to acquire more of it may lead us to anxiety. Hence, the Lord tells us not to worry about our lives or other worldly desires, for he shall provide all that we need.

Dear friends, today we are reminded that God cares about us despite all that we are going through. But we have to make sure that we are not distracted by our ambitious desires for worldly things. We must let our focus be on God’s providence.

Little wonder, St. Paul in our first reading tells us not to allow ourselves to be carried away by our pride and ambitions, lest we fall into sin. He also reminded us that the flesh is weak, so we should not yield to its desires and temptations.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, we live a life of comparative and competitive, and these have often led us to be anxious about tomorrow and our future, and when we cannot meet up with these desires, we fall into anxiety. This is because we have chosen to separate ourselves from you. As we listen to your words today, may we not be too anxious about the things of this passing world. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a peaceful weekend.

Homily For Friday Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 20th June, 2025

 

Reading: 2Cor 11:18.21-30; Ps.34; Matt. 6:19-23

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

HAVE YOU IDENTIFIED YOUR ULTIMATE TREASURES OF LIFE

Every day under the terrible scourges of the sun and the noisy street, people struggle to acquire things that they value as treasures of life. The quarrelling and fighting, the early morning rush, the traffic jam, the aggressive words, all just to acquire things of this life, and people are never tired of acquiring properties for themselves and their generation yet to come, forgetting that all these things sooner or later pass away as we expire from this world.

Thus, in our Gospel passage today we are called to reflect on what should be our ultimate treasure and how we can acquire it. For Jesus said: Do not store up treasures for yourselves on earth, where moths and woodworms destroy them and thieves can break in and steal. But store up treasures for yourselves in heaven, where neither moth nor woodworms destroy them and thieves cannot break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Here, Jesus, knowing how humanity is so attached to the things of this passing world, calls our attention to what should be our ultimate treasure. He made us know that the kingdom of God is the greatest and ultimate treasure anyone can and should acquire. For it will be a waste of time trying to store up our treasures in this world, because the world as we know it is passing away, likewise the things in it.

The world is not a safe place to store one’s ultimate treasures. The safest place to store up our treasures is in heaven. For heaven itself is the ultimate treasure that cannot be compared to anything whatsoever we have in this world and it is so precious and great, that it is worth more than our entire life and our worldly possessions and treasures.

Little wonder, St Paul in our first reading tells us that it is a waste of time boasting about our worldly possessions and achievements. For there is nothing to boast about in this passing world. And if there is anything to boast at all, it should be the things that show our weakness.

Therefore, we must do all that it takes to ensure that our focus is on things of heaven and how to acquire them. Because losing it over the temporal pleasure, joy, glory, fame, power and influential things of this passing world will be complete foolishness. For none of them last forever, and what good is it for us to gain the whole world but lose our soul out of God’s kingdom?

Dear friends, the questions we need to ask ourselves today are: where and what is our ultimate treasure in this life? If the Lord should allow us to make a request of what our heart desires, what would you request? How many of us are paying attention to the ultimate heavenly treasures? How many things and searches for the ultimate treasure of our souls?

How many desires to personally discover God in their life knowing that he is the ultimate treasure anyone can acquire in this world? How I wish we would understand the shortness of this life, the emptiness of this passing world and the danger of losing our soul out of greediness for the things of this passing world. Then, we will sincerely desire to experience God personally, because in him lies the ultimate treasure of life. And discovering God personally is the greatest treasure one can ever have.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, the world is full of distractions coming from false treasures of this passing world. Give us a wise and discerning heart in order to give up all our attachment to worldly possessions in pursuit of the heavenly and ultimate treasure of your kingdom. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Peace be with you.

Homily For Thursday Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 19th June, 2025

 

Reading: 2Cor 11:1-11 ; Ps. 111; Matt. 6:7-15

Rev.  Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

PRAYING ACCORDING TO THE MIND OF CHRIST OUR LORD

The key to success is rooted in the understanding of the principles that guide any project or things that one embraces in life. Without a good understanding of the principles guiding any project, one will struggle with little or no success. Hence, it is important to struggle to understand the principles guiding anything we do in order to be successful. 

Little wonder, Jesus knowing how important the act of prayer is to humanity, taught his disciples the principle and pattern of all prayers as we have it in our Gospel passage today, when he said: “Pray then in this way: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. 

Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we also have forgiven all who trespassed against us. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one”.

Here, Jesus, knowing that prayer is an essential part of our faith through which we grow in our relationship with God and become more connected to Him, gave us seven principles that should guide all our prayers. 

This prayer contains a series of statements and petitions in which we affirm our relationship with God, with the people around us and with the world in general. In it contains a statement of faith, obligations and commitment as the foundation through which these seven principles are fulfilled.

The first principle is to acknowledge God as “Our Father”. A call for unity that requires faith, obligation and commitment. Here we acknowledge God not just as my Father, but as Our Father and the ‘our’ includes every single person who lives or has ever lived on this earth. 

The second principle calls us to reverence the name of the Lord as we say: “Hallowed be thy name “Yes, God’s name is holy, no matter what we say or think. However, we make this prayer for our sake more than for His. Because from the holiness of His name comes the root of our faith and strength, we are praying that God’s name be held in deepest respect by people everywhere. 

The third principle calls us to have the vision of God’s kingdom, hence we pray saying: “Your kingdom come”, that is, we pray that humanity should consciously and willingly embrace the love and kingship of God which He is offering us. 

The fourth principle invites us to dispose ourselves to embrace the will of God as we pray, saying: “Your will be done on earth, as in heaven”. This is very important for it helps us to discern and be disposed to pray and live in accordance with the will of God.

The fifth principle calls us to learn how to be contented with what we have against all forms of selfishness and greed as we say: “Give us today our daily bread,” of which God surely provides. The sixth principle calls us to make an examination of conscience and to seek reconciliation, knowing how weak we are; hence, we pray, saying: “And forgive us our trespasses, as we have forgiven those who trespassed against us”. 

Here we make a serious commitment and obligation, asking that the condition for God’s forgiveness of our sins should be based on our readiness to forgive those who have offended us. Finally the seventh principle calls us to have total confidence in God’s providence, protection and guidance as we pray saying: “And do not put us to the test, but save us from evil”, here we acknowledge our weaknesses and our total dependence on God’s help against all the evil forces of this world. 

Dear friends, I have no doubt that we know our Lords prayer, but knowing it is not enough, we have to pray it devotedly, but praying it is not enough, we have to believe in what we pray for, but believing is not enough, we must put it into practice in our daily lives. 

This is because, often, we treat prayer wrongly when we consider prayer as a means to only achieve what we desire, without considering what God desires for us. Some of us spend lots of time reciting the prayers, and yet we do not mean what we say because we have a wrong disposition born from an unforgiving heart, which must be redirected before we can get a positive response from God.  

Therefore, it’s time for us to embrace these seven principles and change our perspective and wrong disposition towards prayers. It is time for us to spend more quality moments in prayer and be connected with God, especially with the ugly situation in our country. We must let our prayers be meaningful and genuine from our hearts. It is time for us to improve the quality of our prayer life by imitating Jesus, who always prayed to his heavenly Father at every possible opportunity. 

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, in prayer we communicate more closely with you, please teach us how to pray for we really do not know how to pray as we ought, we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a favourable day.

Homily For Wednesday Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 18th June, 2025

 

Reading: 2Cor 9:6-11 ; Ps. 112; Matt. 6:1-6.16-18

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

WHAT IS YOUR ATTITUDE TOWARDS RELIGIOUS PIETY AND HUMANITARIAN SERVICES?

There are three principal disciplines that guide all our religious pieties, these disciplines include: almsgiving, prayer and fasting. They can be rightly extended to every act of righteousness and services rendered to humanity. These disciplines have not been properly understood or implemented by people, for most people see these disciplines as an opportunity to display their piety in order to gain cheap human popularity and admiration.

The negative attitude towards these religious disciplines has been greatly adopted by many people, including religious leaders who should know better. Therefore, it is this ugly and negative attitude that Jesus is addressing in our Gospel passage today, when he warns his disciples not to indulge in any form of outward display of their religious pieties so as to attract the admiration of others. Here Jesus presents how we should properly carry out our religious pieties and obligations, and any service we render for the sake of humanity.

Using each of these three spiritual disciplines, he gave us the basic formula, saying that we should not blow trumpets in the streets to draw the attention of everyone when we give alms to the poor. We should not say our prayers in the most conspicuous places so that people will marvel at our holiness and when fasting, we should not put on gloomy and drawn looks so that everyone will know that we are fasting.

Then he calls us not to be like the hypocrites who display their charitable deeds, for they have received their reward. After which he instructs us regarding the secret practice of piety and promises us that God will reward us for any piety practised in secret.

Thus, Jesus calls us to carryout our religious pieties and obligations to humanity secretly, for when it is done in the secret we will receive great reward from God and as recipients of these rewards, we will be surprised, because we have no idea that we did anything remarkable or that anyone noticed our charitable acts. For we certainly did not perform the charity to gain rewards.

Rather, it is the combination of our selfless, sacrificial and unassuming attitudes that opens the channel by which God dispenses His blessings upon us. Little wonder St. Paul tells us in our first reading today saying: “Do not forget: thin sowing means thin reaping; the more you sow, the more you reap. Each one should give what he has decided in his own mind, not grudgingly or because he is made to, for God loves a cheerful giver”.

Dear friends, we are called to cultivate the right attitude towards our religious pieties and carry them out with the right intention and purpose, and not just for any selfish purpose. Therefore, we must have the right disposition and direction towards our religious pieties and shun all forms of worldly interest or rewards, so as not to be distracted by the vanity of the things of this passing world. Let humility, faithfulness, and sacrificial love be the driving force towards all our religious pieties and every other thing we do for the good of humanity.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, strength of those who hope in you, graciously grant us the gift of humility and sacrificial attitude towards our family, religious and societal obligations and responsibilities. May we carry them out faithfully and selflessly with the right attitude and good intentions. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a blessed day.

Homily For Tuesday Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 17th June, 2025

 

Reading: 2Cor 8:1-9; Ps. 146; Matt. 5:43-48

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

WHY SHOULD WE LOVE OUR ENEMIES AND PRAY FOR THOSE WHO PERSECUTE US?

Naturally, people desire to love and be loved, to relate and be in the company of those whom they love. Nobody enjoys being among those who detest them and cause them pain and sorrows.

This is why people naturally sacrifice for those whom they love in order to keep their friendship and companionship. But it takes great love and sacrifice to do good to people who detest us and cause us sorrows and pain, since it is difficult and unnatural to sacrifice for such people.

This sacrificial life of love is what Jesus calls us to embrace in pursuit of the life of perfection. Little wonder he says in our Gospel passage today: “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. If you love those who love you, what right have you to claim any credit? Even the tax collectors do as much, do they not? And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Even the pagans do as much, do they not? You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect”.

Here Jesus emphasises that though 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. For by so doing, they will be imitating the perfection of God our heavenly Father, who shows equal love to all, calling us to a greater life of sacrificial love and virtue towards perfection.

Hence, St Paul in our first reading today says: “It is not an order that I am giving you; I am just testing the genuineness of your love against the keenness of others. Remember how generous the Lord Jesus was: he was rich, but he became poor for your sake, to make you rich out of his poverty”. Such is God’s kindness, mercy, compassion and love to each and every one of us, without exception, even to the worst and most wicked of sinners.

Dear friends, today we are called to a sacrificial life of love and perfection, we are called to choose love over hatred and forgiveness over vengeance. Hatred breeds violence and other things that weaken the human soul, but love unites and heals.

The fact is that, God desires peace for humanity and this peace is what Jesus came to bring in the world, to restore the peace that God intended for all creation from the first day of creation Today all of us are called to offer this peace to the world full of hatred, greed and violence. This we are called to accept and live out day by day in every way we can.

Therefore, it’s time for us to stretch out the hands of friendship and peace to everyone, both friends and enemies alike, by investing more resources in things that bring about peace and friendship with one another, rather than building nuclear weapon that breeds more violence and hatred in the world. For by so doing the world will become more peaceful and loving.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, the cross of sacrificial life of love is so heavy, give us the grace to truly forgive our enemies and strive towards the life of perfection that offers peace, mercy, compassion and love to distressed humanity through Christ our Lord. Amen. Peace be with you.

Homily For Monday Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 16th June, 2025

 

Reading: 2Cor 6:1-10; Ps.97 ; Matt. 5:38-42

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

HOW CAN WE START LIVING A LIFE OF NON-RETALIATION IN A WORLD FULL OF WICKEDNESS

Isaac Newton, one of the most influential scientists, states in his third law of motion that: "For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction." This law describes what happens to a body when it exerts a force on another body. Forces, as we know, always occur in pairs, so when one body pushes against another, the second body pushes back just as hard and in equal magnitude.

This law truly explains the fragile and selfish nature of the human person, which makes it natural and common for human beings to react positively or negatively to things that hurt them. A hot slap given to anyone whether out of anger for the bad thing he/ she has done or just as an act of wickedness and intimidation will naturally trigger in our consciousness an equal magnitude of retaliation and this has been the force behind the law that says: ‘ an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’

This principle was the basis for justice in the Ancient Near East. It was put in place to restrain unlimited blood vengeance. It limited what damages one could expect to what was considered proportional, equal and fair to any unjust act. However, in our Gospel passage today, Jesus offers a new dimension that calls for deeper virtue towards this law when he says: “You have learnt how it was said: Eye for eye and tooth for tooth.

But I say this to you: offer the wicked man no resistance. On the contrary, if anyone hits you on the right cheek, offer him the other as well; if a man takes you to court and would have your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone orders you to go one mile, go two miles with him.”

Here, Jesus declares that the law had no reference to private revenge, that it was given only to regulate natural human conduct, but the Jews had extended it to private conduct and made it the rule by which revenge is taken. They considered themselves justified by this rule to inflict the same injury on others just the way they had received it. Jesus then showed another aspect of the law which is more sacrificial and requires a deeper virtue, in which the old interpretation of the Law will no longer be valid.

 So Jesus reversed the attitude of conniving to see one’s adversary suffer, with the sacrificial attitude of love for enemies. An attitude that does not seek what one can get in retaliation but what one can sacrifice for the sake of peace and love. This attitude makes the disciples of Jesus different from other people since they will have to love not just everyone but also their enemies and not take vengeance or bear grudges against one another. And by so doing, they will be imitating God, their heavenly Father, who shows equal love to both the good and the bad, because his love knows no bounds.

Dear friends, today we are called to embrace a life of deeper virtue. A life of sacrificial love, for when Jesus told his disciples to offer their other cheek to be struck, their cloak when asked for a tunic and to go even one mile further, he is calling us all to a new life of sacrificial love, one that is filled not with revenge or selfishness.

Little wonder St. Paul in our first reading says: We do nothing that people might object to, so as not to bring discredit on our function as God’s servants. Instead, we prove we are servants of God by great fortitude in times of suffering: in times of hardship and distress; when we are flogged, or sent to prison, or mobbed; labouring, sleepless and starving.

Yes, we prove we are God’s servants by our purity, knowledge, patience, holiness and kindness; though looking most miserable and poor, yet we make others rich, and even when it appears we are having nothing, yet we have everything in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Therefore, we are to reject all forms of violence, retaliation and vengeance, but focus all our attention on forgiveness, mercy and peace in a sacrificial way so that through our sacrificial love the world will become more peaceful and loving.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, it is really difficult to live a life of non-retaliation in a world full of wickedness, persecution, and violence. Give us the grace to resist all forms of violence but focus all our attention on the sacrificial love of forgiveness, mercy and peace. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a blessed week.

Homily for Sunday the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity Year C, 15th June, 2025

 

Reading: Prov. 8:22-31; Ps. 8; Rom. 5:1-5; John 16:12-15

Rev.  Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

UNDERSTANDING GOD’S REVELATION OF HIMSELF TO HUMANITY 

Every Sunday that follows Pentecost the Holy Mother Church celebrates the solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, an event that marks the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. So, today our attention is turned to the mysteries of heaven, where we gaze with an eye of faith into the mystery of God’s revelation of himself to humanity.

Therefore, today’s celebration is a special feast that gives us the opportunity to reflect and understand how God has revealed himself to humanity. Hence, today we gaze into the communitarian life of God as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, who live in a communion of love and call us to participate in this love. Thereby reminding us of the marvellous plan of our salvation. 

This, of course, finds its origin in the Trinitarian love of the Father, who sent the Son and the Holy Spirit for the redemption of humanity, of which we have been called to share in this family of love. This family of love is God’s nature that he shares with humanity through the Son Jesus, the Word Made Flesh and the Holy Spirit the promised Paraclete. 

This solemnity reveals to us that “God is love not in the oneness of a single Person, but in the Trinity of one substance”, as we have it in the Preface of today’s celebration. Telling us that God is the creator and merciful Father; he is the Only-Begotten Son, the eternal Word of Wisdom incarnate, who died and rose for us; he is also the Holy Spirit the Paraclete, who moves all things in history, toward their final and full recapitulation. 

That is, three Persons who are ONE GOD by the nature of His Being and Substance as Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. For the Father is love, the Son is love made Flesh and dwelt among us, and the Spirit is love in Action. So, there is wholly ONE purest, infinite and eternal LOVE which is God. The same LOVE is God himself in Revelation to humanity and LOVE which is God in Action with and in humanity. This, of course, is always a mystery, a reality that surpasses human reason without contradiction. 

Thus, in this Sunday’s solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, we celebrate the summary of God’s revelation which was brought about through the paschal mysteries of Christ’s Death, Resurrection and Ascension to the right hand of the Father, and the gracious outpouring of the Holy Spirit. This great mystery of the Triune God can not be totally comprehended by the human mind and language; hence, the Church has called us to live it with deep faith and apply it in our daily lives. 

Little wonder that our readings today tell us about this Trinitarian nature of God in human history. In the First Reading, we heard about the revelation of how God’s wisdom actively participated in the history of creation. For we heard how the Wisdom of God cries aloud saying: The Lord created me when his purpose first unfolded, before the oldest of his works. From everlasting I was firmly set, from the beginning, before earth came into being.

Therefore, Jesus, who is wisdom personified in human nature after his resurrection, instructed his disciples in our Gospel passage today, saying: ‘I still have many things to say to you, but they would be too much for you now. But when the Spirit of truth comes he will lead you to the complete truth, since he will not be speaking as from himself but will say only what he has learnt; and he will tell you of the things to come.

Here, his disciples are being incorporated into the life of the Trinity; we are to go and introduce humanity into this New Life. This is a great act of love which shows us God’s love in action, illustrating that God is not closed or satisfied with his own self-sufficiency, but he is that life of love that wants to communicate itself with his fragile creatures in an open and deep relationship. 

Hence St Paul talking about this new relationship in our second reading, encouraged and invited us to share and participate actively in the communitarian family of love in the Trinity that is now open for all humanity when he said: through our Lord Jesus Christ, by faith we are judged righteous and at peace with God, since it is by faith and through Jesus that we have entered this state of grace in which we can boast about looking forward to God’s glory. Because the love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, which has been given to us. 

  

Dear friends, today’s solemnity invites us to embrace the new life we have found in the Trinity, that new life that calls us to the reality of love that is contained in the mystery of our faith. The One love of the Father, that is made Flesh in the Person of Christ Jesus the Son, and in Action in the Person of the Holy Spirit, in a purely physical unity of which humanity is called to participate. 

Hence Jesus has revealed to us that we are essentially “God’s children”, creatures who live in relationship with the Creator God the Father, and are called to share this relationship with one another. Thereby reaching out to God and to our fellow mankind, in whose life we discover the image of our common love in the Father. 

Thus, in this love comes the model of the human community, originating from the Triune Family to our individual human families down to the society and the world at large, pointing to us that humanity are one, related in the love of God our common Father, through His Son Jesus in the active power of the Holy Spirit. 

This is the faith we have embraced and are called to share with all humility. Therefore, we are called to grow in this mission, knowing that, the Trinity is at the same time unity in love and in mission, the more deep this love dwells in us, the stronger the urge to pour it out and spread it to all, beginning from our families, down to the society and to the ends of the Earth.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, as you reveal the mystery of your nature which is love and calls us to share and participate in it, grant that humanity may come to embrace this loving kindness, and so be united as one family sharing one common Father in love and truth, we ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever. Amen. Have a fruitful Sunday celebration.