Friday of the First Week of Lent Year B, 26th February, 2021

 Friday of the First Week of Lent Year B, 26th February, 2021

Readings:  Ezek. 18:21-28, Ps.130, Matt. 5:20-26

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

GOD’S MERCY AND JUSTICE

Most of the time, we often find it difficult to understand the way God operates, especially as regards to his relationship with humanity. This is because humanity have failed to understand how God’s mercy and justice are applicable in our relationship with him and with one another. Little wonder, today in our first reading, prophet Ezekiel demonstrate to us how God’s mercy and justice will be a standard for judging humanity. 

Here, he made us to know that those who are righteous, if they fall into sin and wickedness, they will be judged by those same sins they committed, and if found wanting, they will be condemned because of them. On the other hand, those who are wicked, if they repent from their wickedness and act righteously, they will be pardoned and saved because of the righteousness and faith that they have shown through their repentance.

So when the upright man renounces his integrity to commit sin and dies because of this, he dies because of the evil that he himself has committed, for this is God’s justice in action. But when the sinner renounces sin to become law-abiding, honest and holy, he deserves to live. He has chosen to renounce all his previous sins; he shall certainly live; he shall not die, this is God’s mercy in action. For we cannot separate God’s mercy and justice, because they are one and the same. The fact remains that, God is not interested in our past sinful ways, but in our present state of life. 

Hence, Jesus in our Gospel passage today, calls us to a deeper virtue, when he said to his disciples, If your virtue goes no deeper than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven.  That is, we must strive to deepen our virtue towards righteous deeds. We must become agent of peace and reconciliation. We must be a symbol of God’s mercy and justice in a world full of corruption and greed.

Dear friends, we are call today to experience this mercy and justice of God in a unique way. Thus, we have to be vigilant always and strive to be righteous before God and man. Today, we have to make a fundamental choice to live a holy life and never to return to our sinful ways of life. We must struggle everyday to grow in righteousness and never give up no matter the situation we are passing through. We should always reflect on what this justice and Mercy of God really mean in our lives as we strive everyday to remain faithful to God’s commandment of love and peace.  

LET US PRAY, as we struggle everyday towards holiness and perfection, may we be guided by the Holy Spirit and strive to remain towards the path of righteousness and ever to go back to our sinful and ugly ways of life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. It’s Friday, wishing you God’s grace, mercy and favour.

Thursday of the First Week of Lent Year B, 25th February, 2021

 Thursday of the First Week of Lent Year B, 25th February, 2021

Readings:  Esther 14:1.3-4.11.13-14, Ps.138, Matt. 7:7-12

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

ASK, AND IT WILL BE GIVEN TO YOU

Reflecting on our daily experience on the events of life, especially the struggles, the challenges, the disappointments, the cries and difficult situation some people are passing through just to earn a living giving the experience of the ugly situation in our country today. I can’t but recall in our first reading today, Esther’s prayer to God, asking him for deliverance for his people Israel, who were about to be annihilated as a nation by their enemies. 

In this passage, Esther prayed just before she was about to present herself before the King. She was ready to do anything for the sake of the Lord and for her people, and she asked God for strength, guidance and courage as she was about to face the greatest challenge of her life, risking her very life and position for what she was about to do. That is, to plead for the safety of her people before the King. She asked for the Lord to guide her and to give her the courage to face her enemies and to soften the heart of the King. And through her prayers, the Lord guided her to triumph against Haman and all those plots he had made against Israel.

This no doubt, shows us the power of prayer and seeking the will of God before doing anything or taking any difficult decision. Hence, Jesus in our Gospel passage today tells us to “ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. For the one who asks always receives; the one who searches always finds; the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him”. One may say I have been praying for God’s intervention in some ugly situations but it seems as if no answer has been given. The fact is that God answers all our prayers if we are patient with him. For he may not grant us what we want because as a caring Father, he gives us what we truly need, and not what we wanted.

Dear friends, no doubt we are full of energy, zeal and passion, ready to face the challenges and struggles of yet another day. But the question we need to ask ourselves is, what are we doing concerning the present situation in our lives, our family, societies and country?  It may seem as if all hope is gone, but  the Lord is saying to us today, that we should ask, and it will be given to us; search, and we will find; knock, and the door will be opened to us. For the one who asks always receives; the one who searches always finds; the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him. Let us all not be afraid to seek the Lord and ask him for protection and guidance.

But are we willing to trust the Lord and be patient with him? Are we willing to seek the Lord and to make the effort to find him and to follow him wherever he leads us to? Do we have the courage and the love of God, as well as the faith and dedication like that of Queen Esther? Who today has shown us that if we trust the Lord and ask him for anything, he will surely provide for us, and we will have no cause to fear in our struggles of life. So, like Queen Esther let us ask for God’s strength, guidance and courage to face the daily challenges in our life.  Thus, what are the things we need from the Lord? Its time to present them before him. 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, we are struggling with so many ugly situations in our lives, families, societies and the world at large, as we pour out our hearts to you in prayer, may you grant our heart desires and guide our ways today and always. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Do have a fruitful day.

Wednesday of the First Week of Lent Year B, 24th February, 2021

 Wednesday of the First Week of Lent Year B, 24th February, 2021

Readings: Jonah 3:1-10, Ps.51, Luke 11:29-32

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

DO NOT SEEK FOR SIGNS, RATHER BE PREPARED

Oftentimes, when we reflect on our struggle with the ugly situations in our lives, our families, societies and the world at large, we sincerely wish that God should give you a sign from heaven as a way of showing us some definitive guidance or direction towards addressing the situation.  When this signs are not fourth coming we feel bad and begin to question God or even doubt his presence in our lives.  This was the disposition of the crowd in our Gospel passage today. 

Where we heard how those who were listening to Jesus were anxious to know what signs to look out for when the End Times come. But Jesus said to them: “the only sign that will be given is the sign of Jonah. For just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. Hence, Jesus states that no sign will be given except the sign of Jonah.  The “sign of Jonah” in this passage refers to Jesus’ Crucifixion, death, his three days in the tomb and his Resurrection.  Just the way Jonah was three days in the belly of the whale.  

Thus, Jesus in this Gospel was making reference to our first reading (Jonah 3:1-10), where because of the preaching of prophet Jonah, the whole city of Nineveh went into great mourning and repentance before God. Everyone from the King, who issued the order to the whole city and its people to repent from their sins, right down to the lowest among the people, all humbled themselves, tore their clothes and wore sackcloth as a sign of penance. The point here is that  Jesus’ death and resurrection is the sign that will be given.  We should seek nothing other than this sacred mystery of our faith. This is the sign and actions that the Lord Jesus is talking about when he addressed the people who doubted him and demanded miraculous wonders and signs from him.

So, here Jesus strongly condemns those seeking for signs because he wants us to seek him through the gift of faith rooted in the mystery of his death and resurrection. For every question, problem, struggle and confusion in our lives can be addressed when we enter into the great mystery of our redemption. So, seeking a sign other than this would be wrong, in that, it would be a way of saying that the death and resurrection of Jesus is not enough sign for us.

Dear Friends, as we embrace the activities of this Holy season of Lent, Jesus is calling us to repentance for sins make us blind in such a manner that we will continue to seek for signs even when things are clear and obvious in our lives.  But the questions we need to ask ourselves are: what signs are we seeing around us today? How can we interpret the signs of this times, the signs that tell us that this world is passing away? Do these signs make us to dread the second coming of the Lord or do we joyfully embrace it in anticipation? 

Hence, Jesus is warning us today not to waste our time seeking for signs, rather we should be prepared, we should remain firm in faith. He reminds us that he is the only sign that can be given to humanity. Therefore, we should not join the crowds to look for signs especially in times of trials, rather we should seek for wisdom to make things right by turning your eyes to the central mystery of our faith that is the life, death and resurrection of Christ, where every question can be answered and every grace is obtained.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, you are the sign that we seek,  as we embrace your word today give us the grace to recognize that in Paschal mystery of Christ we find the true sign we desired and so obtain the answer and directions to our daily struggles. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Do have a blessed day.

Tuesday of the First Week of Lent Year B, 23rd February, 2021

 Tuesday of the First Week of Lent Year B, 23rd February, 2021

Readings: Is. 55:10-11, Ps.34, Matt. 16:7-15

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

FOLLOWING THE PRINCIPLE AND PATTERN OF ALL PRAYERS

One of the three traditional dimensions of Lenten season is prayer. This is important because it is the means by which we communicate with our God. So we are called today to reflect on the meaning and right principles to prayer as we progress through this season of Lent. 

Little wonder, in our Gospel passage today, Jesus knowing how important the act of prayer is to humanity, taught his disciples the principle and pattern of all prayers 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 evil one”.

Here, Jesus knowing that prayer is an essential part of our faith through which we grow in our relationship with God, gave us seven principles that should guide all our prayers. This prayer contain 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”. This is 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 him. However, we make this prayer for our sake more than for his sake. Because from the holiness of his name comes the root of our faith and strength, so 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 forth 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 and reject 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 serious commitment and obligation, asking that the condition for God’s forgiveness of our sins should 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”, so 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 how to say 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 time we treat prayer wrongly when we consider prayer as a means to only achieve what we desired, without considering what God desires for us. Some of us spend lots of time reciting the prayers and yet we do not often mean what we say because we have wrong disposition born from 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 moment in prayer and be connected with God. We must make our prayers to 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 opportunities. 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, in prayer we build a strong relationship with you, teach us how to pray more devotedly, for we really do not know how to pray as we ought, we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Wishing you God’s favour and blessings.

Monday of the First week of Lent Year B, 22nd February, 2021 The Feast of the Chair of St. Peter

 Monday of the First week of Lent Year B, 22nd February, 2021

The Feast of the Chair of St. Peter

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

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

THE GIFT OF ST. PETER’S FAITH IS THE ROCK ON WHICH JESUS BUILDS HIS CHURCH

The supreme authority belongs only to God, and he alone decides who to endowed his authority and also delegate 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. Thus, today in a special way the Church celebration 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).

For in our Gospel, we see how Jesus stresses that Peter's faith is 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 loosing” refers to the doctrinal decisions and disciplinary power of the office of  St. Peter, that is, the faculty to impose and to lift, a guarantees that Peter’s decisions in the exercise of his ecclesial function are valid in the eyes of God 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 the 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. But 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 underworld shall not prevail against it. 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, all authority belong to you alone, as you have bestowed on your Church the authority and delegate 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. As we begin our day, may your blessings and favour be with us always.

First Sunday of Lent Year B, 21st February, 2021. REPENT AND BELIEVE IN THE GOSPEL

 First Sunday of Lent Year B, 21st February, 2021

Readings: Genesis 9:8-15, Ps.25, 1Peter 3:18-22, Mark 1:12-15

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

                                                                                                   

REPENT AND BELIEVE IN THE GOSPEL

Today is the first Sunday in thisHoly Season of Lent. Lenten season as we know is a period of forty days set aside by the Church for the renewal and rediscovery of oneself, due to our daily struggle against sin and temptations which darkens our spiritual life. So Lenten season is another opportunity for us to reconnect to God, to be reconciled with Him and to find our place once again in God’s loving grace. It is a time for us to turn away from excessive desires for worldly things so as to overcome many temptations we encounter in this world and so focus our attention more closely on God. 

Hence the Church is offering us the opportunity during this Holy season to reflect on who we are, our mission and our purpose in this world.  The Holy season of Lent is a moment of deep reflection, a season that prepares us for that great event of Easter. It is a season when listening to God’s words leads us to develop some inner attitude that helps us becoming more aware of our Christian obligations and dignity. It is a period when the Church invites us to enter into a journey of repentance and penance that will lead us to reconciliation, forgiveness and restoration. 

This Lenten journey is marked in a special way by three traditional dimensions that is: prayer, fasting and almsgiving. These three traditional dimensions were demonstrated by Jesus in our Gospel reading today. Where Jesus filled with the Holy Spirit, was led to pray and fast for forty days in the wilderness and there he was tempted by the devil, just the way Adam and Eve where tempted by the devil, who has planted the seeds of pride and greed in the hearts of humanity.

We can recall that in the beginning of time, God created everything all good and perfect, and He made the first man, Adam and his companion, Eve, to live in the wonderful Garden of Eden. This means that mankind, all of us were actually meant to live with God in the fullness of God’s grace and love, to enjoy the wonders of God’s providence and blessings forever. However, we fell into sin as we were unable to resist the temptations to sin because of pride and greed and so separate ourselves from God’s presence.

But time and time again God has always extend his hands of mercies towards humanity, he always wants to bring us back to himself just as we heard in our first reading today. For when humanity’s sinfulness were so deep God wishes to wipe away humanity. However, Noah having found  favour with God was saved along with his family and other creatures who obeyed the command of God through Noah. So, having wiped away the rest creation along with sinful humanity, God spoke to Noah and his sons saying, ‘See, I establish my Covenant with you: no thing of flesh shall be swept away again by the waters of the flood. There shall be no flood to destroy the earth again.’

Referring to this great and sad event, St. Peter in our second reading tells us that, when Noah was still building that ark which saved only a small group of eight people ‘by water’, God was still waiting patiently, that those who refused to believe may repent. He tells us that the water is a type of baptism which saves us now, and which is not the washing off our physical dirt but a pledge made to God from a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has entered heaven and is at God’s right hand, now that he has made the angels and Dominations and Powers his subjects.

So Jesus, who has come to redirect the hearts of humanity back to God, calls us to repent from our sins and believe in the Gospel he has brought to us, which we promised to uphold in our baptism. When we promised to reject sin  and Satan with all his empty promises and show, while embracing God and his son Jesus who has come to save us from sin and death. Therefore, we are called to imitate Jesus in prayer. For through prayer we make room for God in our lives and express our desire to enter into a deep friendship with the Lord. Hence, it is important for us to spend more time with God just like Jesus, bearing in mind that we cannot live by bread alone, we need the spiritual food of God's Word. Thus, we are called to withdraw from the world in order to encounter God and truly profess our faith in him.  

Dear friends, God is calling us in this Holy season of Lent, to come back to him. The world has taken us far away from him; it's time to come back. Sin has separated us from God; it's time to reconcile with him. Greediness, slot, unforgiveness, love of power and money, over ambition, unhealthy friendship have separated us from God; it’s time to come back to him. It is time to say am sorry Lord, am sorry for having deviated from you. It’s time to let go of hurtful feelings, malice and the bitterness in our hearts. It’s time to say yes to God and no to all the distracting things of this world. 

It’s time to love, to share, to bear with one another's failings. What is stopping us from embracing this opportunity? Is it fear of the future? Or fear of failure or death? 

Fear not, for the Psalmist tells us that God’s ways are faithfulness and love for those who keep his covenant. Thus, God is calling us to repentance; he is offering us a new life. He is offering us the opportunity to gain our life back and obtain the grace to overcome sin and temptations. For he will create a pure heart in us and put a steadfast spirit within us. Don't miss this opportunity; don't let it pass you by.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, as we embrace the events of this Holy season, may you give us the right disposition and fill our hearts with joy, peace and love. For those who find it difficult to live the Christian life, may they learn to draw strength and grace from Jesus so to resist the devil and all of his empty shows. Happy Sunday, wishing you a fruitful Lenten season.

Saturday after Ash Wednesday, 20 February, 2021

 Saturday after Ash Wednesday, 20 February, 2021

Readings: Is. 58:9-14, Ps. 85,  Luke 5:27-32

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

THE CALL OF A PUBLIC SINNER TO REPENTANCE

Jesus who on account of his mission to save humanity had to make choices of people who will be his instruments of evangelizing in the world. No doubt Jesus had been calling people from different works of life to be part of his mission, but today’s call and choice of Levi, also known as Matthew, a man identified with sinners because of his work as a tax collector, was quite strange to some people.

Little wonder in in our Gospel passage today, Jesus called a tax collector named Levi to follow him, and he obeyed, leaving everything behind and followed him. The call of Levi differs from the call of the other apostles, because Levi was a tax collector a profession that is labeled to be sinful, since the collectors extort excess taxes from the people for personal profit and enriching themselves at the expense of their fellow citizens. They are thus held in great contempt. 

However, to follow Jesus, Levi must abandon his ugly but lucrative job. By so doing, he needs to also cuts himself off from his old network of friends. So, it seems likely that, in a spirit of joy, Levi invites Jesus and his disciples to a great feast in his house and his fellow task collectors were present. But the Pharisees felt bad and offended about Jesus sharing a meal with such kind of people regarded as "sinners". So, they complained to his disciples, but Jesus had to correct this notion when he said: "It is not those who are well who need the doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the virtuous, but sinners to repentance.  

Here we heard the inner most desire of Jesus for sinful humanity in need of salvation. The call of Levi is like the call of each of us, a choice that demonstrates Jesus' desire for sinners to repent. For all he desires is mercy and not sacrifices, repentance and not pride. Jesus is calling us to repentance, he is inviting us to make a fundamental choice for God just like Levi, who though sinner, rose up and followed Jesus at his call for repentance, we too are to respond to this invitation without delay. Let Levi be an inspiration and hope for all sinners.

Dear friends, the task collectors were seen as dirty, unworthy, wicked, corrupt and evil people who were generally shunned by the rest of the society. The Pharisees looked down on them and they severely criticized Jesus for eat in the house of Levi. But they failed to realize that just like the tax collectors, they themselves were sinners in need of God’s mercy. 

The truth is that, all of us are sinners who have been privileged to have such a loving, caring, compassionate and merciful God, who is always willing to embrace us and to heal us from our afflictions of sin. For we are sinners who have been called to a new existence with God, to embrace a new life filled with God’s grace and free from the corruption of sin. Because God despises our sins, but not we sinners. And he has promised us through prophet Isaiah in our first reading, that if we do away with the yoke of sin, the clenched fist, the wicked word, if we give our bread to the hungry, and relief to the oppressed, then our light will rise in the darkness, and our shadows become like noon.

Therefore, as Christians during this season of Lent, we should draw ourselves closer to God by asking ourselves how are we responding to God's call to repentance? How are we relating with those we judge to be sinners, what efforts are we making to convert sinners. Remember, we are all invited to follow Jesus along the way of salvation and not to condemn or judge anyone. 

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, despite our sinfulness,  you called and chose us to be instrument of your salvation to all humanity. Through the intercession of St Matthew, give us the grace to make good choices that will help us to respond positively to your call for repentance and evangelization. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Do have a fruitful weekend.