Homily For Wednesday of The Fourth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 2nd February, 2022

 Homily For Wednesday of The Fourth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 2nd February, 2022.

The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord.

Readings: Mal.3:1-4, Ps.24, Heb. 2:14-18, Luke 2:22-40

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

LET THE LIGHT OF CHRIST PRESENTED IN THE TEMPLE OF OUR SOULS ILLUMINATE THE DARKNESS AROUND US

Today being forty days after the birth of Jesus at Christmas, we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation. A day we are reminded of the event of the Presentation of Jesus in the temple at Jerusalem. This event servers three purposes; the first is the redemption of the first-born male, which according to the law of Moses, was set apart for God. The second purpose is the purification of Mary which is done after giving birth and the third is the Presentation of Jesus into the temple of God which dwells in human hearts. 

Hence, in our Gospel passage today, St Luke explained that Mary and Joseph wished to fulfil all the prescriptions in order to emphasize that Jesus was born into a family of simple people, lowly but of steadfast faith: a family that belonged to the poor of Israel the true People of God. It is important to note that these three purposes that is, the purification of the mother, the redemption of the son and the presentation, aimed at giving account of the presentation of Jesus in the Temple of God which dwells in human hearts. A symbol of the reality  that shows the act of offering the Son of the Most High to the Father who sent him.

 

Hence, this becomes the confirmation of the words of the Prophet Malachi which we heard at the beginning of the first Reading: “Behold”, says the Lord, “I send my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming to purify the sons of Levi. Then the offering will be pleasing to the Lord” (3:1- 4), thereby indicating the role of the child. 

The same child Jesus, who is immediately presented in the Temple, is the same person who, as an adult, would purify the temple of our hearts (Jn 2:13-22). Above all, he would make himself the sacrifice and the High Priest of the new Covenant, as we heard in our second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews. A passage which tells us about the new priesthood instituted by Christ the High Priest. For which he will suffer greatly as prophecy by Simeon in our Gospel passage concerning both the Child Jesus and Mary the Mother when he said: “Behold, this Child is set for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is spoken against, a sword will pierce through your own soul also that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” 

Thus, this is pointing out the salvation which Jesus will bring to his people, that which he embodies in himself, as he passed through the Cross, the violent death by which he was to vanquish death and transform humanity with the sacrifice of his life through love. Hence, he becomes the true Light of the world of which Simeon and Anna proclaimed as a revelation, that Jesus was to be the High Priest of all, who is to absolve and redeem all mankind from their sins. By so doing becomes the true Light that enlightens every man who is born into this world. 

Dear friends, today as we encounter Christ the true Light of the world presented in the temple of our hearts, let us of course, allow ourselves to be enlightened and made radiant by this light. Let us share in its splendour, and so be filled with it’s radiant, so that no one remains in the darkness. Let us bring this Light of Christ into our families and our homes, so that through sharing in his light we may be brought out of the darkness that covers our lives as individuals, families, communities, societies, country and the world at large. 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, as we celebrate the presentation of your Son Jesus today, let the light of his presence dispel the darkness in our lives, in our families, societies and so illuminate our paths as we struggle and journey in faith towards achieving our goals and purposes in life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. God bless you.

Homily For Tuesday of The Fourth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 1st February, HAPPY NEW MONTH

 Homily For Tuesday of The Fourth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 1st February, HAPPY NEW MONTH

Readings: 2 Sam. 18:9-10.15.24-26.30.19:3; Ps.86; Mark 5:21-43

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

PUT YOUR FAITH INTO POSITIVE ACTION AND IT WILL YIELD POSITIVE RESULTS

There is no doubt that people are passing through a lot of difficulties. So everyday we struggle against these troubles and tribulations, and people are doing everything they can to overcome them. But often time, it seems as if we are not making progress because we don’t have enough faith to subdue our challenges and out of fear we fall victim and helpless. The fact remains that, we have faith but we have not been able to actively and radically put it into action like the synagogue official whose daughter had died but came to Jesus for help  and also the woman with a haemorrhage in our Gospel passage today.

In this passage one of the officials came to Jesus and said, ‘My daughter is desperately sick, but come and lay your hand on her and she will live.’ Jesus then rose and his disciples followed him to the official's house. On their way a woman who had suffered from a haemorrhage for twelve years came behind him and touched the fringe of his cloak, for she said to herself, ‘If I can only touch his cloak I shall be well again.’ Jesus turned round and saw her; and he said to her, ‘Courage, my daughter, your faith has restored you to health.’ And from that moment the woman was well again. When Jesus reached the official’s house and saw the crowd making a commotion he said, ‘Get out of here; the little girl is not dead, she is asleep.’ And they laughed at him. But he went inside and took the little girl by the hand; and the girl arose.

Here, the father of this little girl had faith and radically put his faith into positive action, for he confessed great faith in the resurrection. He believed that even Jesus’ slightest touch will restore life in his daughter, likewise the woman with a hemorrhage. This story of the little girl and the woman with haemorrhage has interesting similarities: Both were called “daughter”, both were restored at the demonstration of radical faith in the touch of Jesus. The woman has been ill for twelve years, and the little girl was twelve years old. Both the woman and the little girl have been cut off from normal societal activities. 

On the other hand, there were also differences between them. First the official is an influential man in the community, but the woman is unclean an outcast. The man approaches Jesus boldly, but the woman approaches him timidly. The girl was raised based on the father’s radical faith, the woman was restored through her own faith for she was very sure that the very moment she touched the Lord’s cloak all her troubles were ended, for her body was made whole again. 

This woman and the little girl actually represent the sinful humanity in need of God’s mercy, salvation and restoration. The faith and intercession of the synagogue official signifies the great intercessions of the saints and the people of God towards the restoration of humanity. The woman’s bleeding signifies the iniquity of all humanity who are defiled by the constant shading of innocent blood through violence, wars and abortions, thereby make humanity unworthy of God’s presence. Her reaching out to touch Jesus and her restoration signifies the effort each one of us needs to make to reach out to God in order to be restored and finally the willingness of Jesus to heal all of us just as he had healed the woman from all of her troubles and restored the girl back to life. But this requires that we radically put our faith into action. 

Dear friends, we are called to put our faith into positive action. For if we have no faith in the Lord and refused to put our faith in action, we will suffer and there is no hope for us. I don’t know why we are  often stubborn and often hardened our hearts and minds by refusing to trust the Lord who is so generous and compassion. Today  therefore, we are made to know that, it is not enough to have faith, we must radically put our faith into action no matter the circumstances we find ourselves. For it is through active faith that we can reach out to God in prayers and so obtain what we desired.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, we thank you for the gift of faith, give us the grace and courage to put our gift of faith into positive action that yields positive results. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Happy New Month, do have a fruitful month

Homily For Monday of The Fourth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 31st January, 2022. The Memorial of St. John Bosco

 Homily For Monday of The Fourth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 31st January, 2022. The Memorial of St. John Bosco

Readings: 2 Sam. 15:13-14.30,16:5-13; Ps.3; Mark 5:1-20

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

LORD, LET YOUR PRESENCE DRIVE AWAY THE EVIL FORCES AROUND US

There is no doubt that there is an active presence of evil in the world, which manifest itself in different forms and occasions. This is really obvious in the time of Jesus, for he seemed to have lived in a world of hostility; political and family divisions as well as the conflict between good and evil just like we have in our world today. Thus, everyday is a struggle against the malice of the evil ones, and people are doing everything they can to overcome them.

Hence in our Gospel passage today, we heard how the presence of Jesus terrifies the evil ones which has possessed a man for a long time and have been tormenting the community. This unclean spirits were so fierce that no one could pass that way. So when the man saw Jesus, he ran to him and said: ‘What do you want with me, Jesus, son of the Most High God? Swear by God you will not torture me!’ For Jesus had been saying to him, ‘Come out of the man and they came out from the men and immediately entered the swine and the swine rushed into the lake and perished in the water.

Here, we are called to recognize that the presence of Jesus in the world brings about victory over the evil ones, for demons recognize Jesus as the power of God. And his power over demons is a direct defeat of the evil one. While the restoration of the man possessed, signifies the inauguration of God's kingdom in the world and the healing of God’s people, who had sinned and disobeyed God by abandoning his precepts and laws, preferring instead the wicked ways of life and worldly practices which leads to destruction.

 Just as we heard in our first reading today concerning the crises in the household of King David. For David a great warrior and a man after God’s own heart had been reduced to object of mockery by his own very subjects, because of his sin against God and his neighbour. And the worst of it is that his very son was the instrument of his own destruction. But in all these David still hope in the Lord’s mercy and sees his present situation as a sign of God’s rebuking him for his sins. 

Dear friends, today each and every one of us are called to seek good and not evil, to promote justice and integrity, knowing that no matter how great our sins may have been, God alone has the power to heal us and to bring us back to himself. And Jesus has given us the gift of his presence in the person of the Holy Spirit, which God has bestowed on us in our baptism. In this gift resides the power and authority to confront the evil of this world and overcome it. For Jesus has won the greatest victory for us by setting us free from sickness, evil forces and manipulations of the evil ones. And he desires to be with us as we struggle everyday to overcome the evils in our lives, our families, our societies and the world at large.

Therefore, we should not be afraid to stand firm against the manipulations of the devil, because Jesus will not abandon us in this battle of life. Let us then learn from St. John Bosco whose memorial we celebrate today for despite the challenges and oppositions he faced in life, he remained committed to his work as a priest and made great impacts in the lives the youths of his time and even in our time for through many people who sharing in his spirituality, he founded the Order of the Salesians of Don Bosco, one of the great religious orders in our society today.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, the world is full of evil and wickedness, give us the grace to seek what is good and hate what is evil, and as we struggle everyday to do your will, may your presence be felt and drive away all evil forces in our midst through Christ our Lord. Amen. Wishing you God’s favour and blessings.

Homily For Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C, 30th January, 2022

 Homily For Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C, 30th January, 2022

Readings: Jer. 1:4-5.17-19; Ps. 71; 1Cor. 12:31-13:13; Luke: 4:21-30

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

DO NOT TREAT ANYONE WITH CONTEMPT FOR OUR MISSION IS BUILT ON LOVE

One of the forces that drives the world order today is pride. People can do anything to prove how powerful, influential, popular, wealthy and connected they are before everyone they encounter. To protect these pride and ego, we often look down on people. This is because the society today, treats and respect people based on our knowledge of their background and status, so we fail to look at the image of God found in them or what God is doing through them. This is because our judgment is the product of human wisdom and when our faith is based on this kind of wisdom we are bound to neglect and treat others with contempt. 

This is the situation in our Gospel passage today. For when Jesus came to Nazareth, his own town, where he had been brought up, and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day as he usually did. He taught the people about his mission as prophesied by prophet Isaiah and at the end he said to them, this text is being fulfilled today even as you listen.’ And he won the approval of all, and they were astonished by the gracious words that came from his lips. 

But out of pride and reference to his humble background, they got angry with him when he begins to comment on their prideful ways of life by letting them know that God chose them among the gentiles not to be selfish but to be a light to other nations while referring them to the events of Naaman the leper and the widow of Zarephath . So, in contempt they said, ‘This is Joseph’s son, surely? As they ridiculed him, Jesus said ‘I tell you solemnly, no prophet is ever accepted in his own country. For this reason they tried to kill him.

Here, we see Jesus who preached about love and inclusion, found himself excluded. His listeners were frightened at his message and because of familiarity, he was rejected by his own people who glory in their human wisdom which is based on their knowledge of his humble background, for they lack the effects of true love for him. This kind of ugly attitude and lack of true love is what St. Paul is addressing in our second reading today when he said: Be ambitious for the higher gift which is love, for love is always patient and kind; it is never jealous; love is never boastful or conceited; it is never rude or selfish; it does not take offence, and is not resentful. Love takes no pleasure in other people’s sins but delights in the truth; it is always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope, and to endure whatever comes. Love he said, does not come to an end because God is love. Hence he called us to chose love and not treat anyone with contempt.

Dear friends, today we are called not to treat anyone with contempt and pride for our mission is built on love. And since we  know that pride is the first capital sin, we should not let it deprive us of God’s blessings. Thus, we are called to renounce pride and contemptuous ways of life. And our relationship with Jesus should not be based on this kind of philosophy, rather it should based on our personal experience of the power and love of God in our lives. For it is this personal experience that will help us to embrace his words convincingly and never look down on anyone, but see in all the light of God's presence. 

However, we should not be afraid to embrace our mission to love even when we are treated with contempt for prophet Jeremiah in our first reading encountered the same ugly situation and we can hear the Lord saying to him and also to us:  before I formed you in the womb I knew you; before you came to birth I consecrated you; I have appointed you as prophet to the nations. today will I make you into a fortified city, a pillar of iron, and a wall of bronze to confront the world and conquer it. Therefore, we are called today to be firm in our mission. We should be accommodating and never try to treat anyone with contempt, because anyone can be a potential vessel of God’s blessings to us.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, out of pride and ignorance, we have often treated people with contempt because of their humbled background, help us today to realize that everyone is a potential instrument of your blessings and so learn to love and accommodate people, we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Do have a blessed Sunday celebration. 

Homily For Saturday of The Third Week in Ordinary Time Year C; 29th January, 2022

 Homily For Saturday of The Third Week in Ordinary Time Year C; 29th January, 2022.

Readings: 2 Sam. 12:1-7.10-17;  Ps.51; Mark 4:35-41

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

PRESENT YOUR CHALLENGES OF LIFE BEFORE JESUS AND THE HEAVY STORMS IN YOUR LIFE WILL BECOME CALM 

In this scriptures, we often hear stories of how people struggles with heavy storms as they assailed through the sea. Today our fisherman and the Marine men who are into sea business can tell us better what it means to be on the sea with heavy storms. 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 effecting their boat. 

As this heavy storm is about breaking their boat, the disciples cannot believe that Jesus was asleep while they were afraid and needed help from anywhere. So they went to him and woke him saying, ‘Teacher, do you not care if we perish? And Jesus said: “Peace! Be still!!” And the Storm ceased and there was a great calm. And he said to them, ‘Why are you afraid, how is it that you have no faith. 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 storms are symbols of heavy persecutions and sufferings by the people of God. And Jesus is saying: why are you so afraid, you men of little faith. 

Dear friends, there is no doubt that there is an active presence of evil in the world which manifest itself in different forms. So everyday is a struggle against the malice of the evil ones, and people are doing everything they can to overcome them. Today Jesus is inviting us into his boat of life, thereby calling us to journey on this boat with an unwavering faith and a repented heart, because the world is being tossed around by the waves of the 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. 

This is exactly what we  heard about David in our first reading today, for after David had committed grave sins against Uriah and God, prophet Nathan confronted him about this ugly situation. David felt very remorseful about his actions and asked God for mercy. And this the Lord granted him and promised to restore him and calmed down the storms of destruction in his household. 

Therefore, 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. All I know is that with great faith in God, the heavy storms in our lives will become calm. So, why not present you challenges of life to Jesus, for he will surely rebuke the violent storms in our hearts so that we can experience once again the calmness of his peace and joy.

LET US PRAY: Lord God. As we struggle everyday to overcome the ugly situation around us, grant that the violent storms and waves  of sin and bondage in our lives, our families and the world, will end in a wonderful calm that brings peace in our souls. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Wishing you a fruitful and joyful weekend.

Homily For Friday of The Third Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 28th January, 2022. The Memorial of St. Thomas Aquinas

 Homily For Friday of The Third Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 28th January, 2022. The Memorial of St. Thomas Aquinas

Readings: 2Sam. 11:1-4.5-10.13-17; Ps  51; Mark 4:26-34

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

LET THE WORD OF GOD GROW IN OUR HEARTS LIKE A GRAIN OF MUSTARD SEED

In the scriptures, using a simple story to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson has always been one of the characteristics of Jesus when addressing the people regarding things that are very important. By couching his teaching in parables, Jesus made certain points much clearer to his audience. This is evident in our Gospel passage today where he told us the parable of the mustard seed, using it to describe the nature of God’s kingdom which he came to establish in the hearts of humanity. 

Here, Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to a mustard seed growing from the Word of God spoken to the hearts of his few disciples which will grow and spread to the hearts of all humanity. This analogy focuses on the size of the seed that grows to become a might tree that gives shelter and salvation to all.

More so, Jesus is not just speaking of the size of the mustard seed, but also the faith of the people as that of a mustard seed. Telling us that just as the mustard seed responded to the word of God and grows into a might tree, so will the faith of the people grow into great vessel through hearing and doing the Word of God and so build up the kingdom of God. 

Nevertheless, these two analogies of the mustard seed symbolize the humble beginnings of the Christian faith which is well watered by the Holy Spirit to grow and give life and hospitality to all the people of the world. Hence, in building the kingdom of God, we are  reminded that we can be tempted in different ways just like David in our first reading, who when tempted by the beauty of an innocent woman, failed to control himself and so fall into the sin of adultery which led him to commit another sin of murder as he tries to cover up his sins. This very single mistake caused great damage to the mission of David and in his household.  So we should learn from this costly mistake of David. We should not give in to temptations and lost of the eyes. Rather, we should learn to remain faithful until our souls are saved in our heavenly kingdom. 

Dear friends, we need to let our knowledge of God’s kingdom grow like that of mustard seed, knowing that in the world today we have different kinds of seeds. But the question remains, what kind of seeds are we embracing and watering in our lives today? Are we watering valuable mustard seeds of faith, love, holiness, hospitality, obedience, charity that will lead us to God’s kingdom? Or are we watering weeds that are distracting us from attaining heaven. We must stop watering such weeds, rather let us feed ourselves with valuable mustard seeds of virtues and values. 

For when we feed and water such values, we will grow stronger like the mustard tree where people may find solace and so build up God’s kingdom, just like St. Thomas Aquinas whose memorial we celebrate. For he was one of the famous theologians, who understood what it means to sow the seed of faith in people so as to build the kingdom of God. Thomas is remembered for his great work, the Summa Theologiae and many other contributions, writings and works which still influenced and inspired so many people. Thereby showing us the important of sowing seeds of faith through the Word of God in the life of people.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, as you sow the seeds of your word in our hearts, give us through the intercession of St. Thomas Aquinas the grace to grow it into the mustard tree of faith, holiness and hospitality and by so doing build up your heavenly kingdom, we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Do have a fruitful day.

Homily For Thursday of The Third Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 27th January, 2022

 Homily For Thursday of The Third Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 27th January, 2022

Readings: 2 Sam. 7:18-19.24-29; Ps.132; Mark 4:21-25

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

Put YOUR EARS INTO POSITIVE USE

The ears as we know are organs of hearing which consist of the pinna. It is a gift from God through which we have the faculty of being able to perceive sounds and recognize something in an auditory way. To exercise the faculty of this organ effectively we must learn to use it to listen attentively to information. For the world no doubt is full of noise, echoing different things in our minds through our ears.

But what are we feeding our ears with? How are we use these organs? How has this organ helped us in our spiritual life despite this noisy world? How have we managed the noise in our lives, in families and society which distract us from listening to God? What are the things we hear or listen to? The Word of God we hear everyday how has it develop our relationship with God and our neighbour? 

Therefore, when Jesus said in our Gospel reading today, “he who has ears let him hear”, he is referring to our ability to listen to God's Word and act on it even in the midst of this noisy world. Thus, what Jesus means is that the person who seeks to gain some spiritual insight into what he is saying will have that insight increased when they listen, whereas whoever does not listen to him will end up in spiritual ignorance. To avoid this, we are need to learn from King David, who after Nathan had spoken to him went in and, seated before the Lord and listening to him and he said: ‘Who am I, O Lord, and what is my House, that you have led me as far as this?   

Dear friends, by listening, hearing and following Jesus, we grow in familiarity with his voice and hears him more. And by so doing we make Jesus the light of our lives placed on the lampstand to give light and insight to our souls as individuals, family and society, illuminating all the darkness around us.

 LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, our ears are gift from you, help us to use them properly. And as we carry out our activities today, may our ears hear the consoling words of Jesus guiding and directing us towards the light of his presence. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Remain blessed.