Homily For Friday Third Week in Ordinary Time Year A, 27th January, 2023

Readings: Heb. 10: 32-39, Ps.37, Mark 4:26-34

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

 

LET YOUR FAITH IN GOD GROW LIKE THE 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 in our first reading that we will need endurance to do God’s will and gain what he has promised. For we should not be the sort of people who draw back, and are lost by it; rather, we should be the sort of people who keep 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. 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.

 

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, as you sow the seeds of your word in our hearts, give us 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 Third Week in Ordinary Time Year A, 26th January, 2023 The Memorial of SS Timothy and Titus. (Today is My Birthday, Do Remember me in your Prays)

Readings: 2Tim 1:1-8, Ps. 96, Luke 10:1-9

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

 

THE REQUIREMENTS FOR OUR CHRISTIAN MISSIONARY MANDATE

 

The rebellious nature of humanity have always distract  us  from responding to God's invitation to server him and to serve one another, for we have always failed to understand God’s ways of doing things. That is why we often find it difficult to actively participate in the mission of Christ. However, God has not stopped caring and stretching his hands of love to us. In every generation God always send messengers to remind us of his love and plan for humanity.

 

Thus, in our Gospel passage today, we heard how the Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two persons and sent them out ahead of him, in pairs, to all the towns and places he himself was to visit. He said to them, ‘The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest. Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Carry no purse, no haversack, no sandals. Salute no one on the road. Whatever house you go into, let your first words be, “Peace to this house!

 

Here, Jesus  gave us the nature and requirements for carrying out his missionary mandate successfully. So, to continue this great mission he invites his disciples and sent them out, commanding them to see themselves as someone who gives freely of the good they have received from God. Hence, they should offer to others what they have received from God, knowing that it has cost them nothing. This is also applicable to us. We must live a life of detachment that is, in this mission, we  are to depend totally on God's providence. Unfortunately, many of the disciples have to face rejection and persecutions from people, who through their rebellious attitude have refused to believe in God even though He has always been so patient, loving, caring and forgiving us.

 

Concerning this great mission, St.  Paul, while addressing his second letter to Timothy in our first reading today said: I am reminding you now to fan into a flame the gift that God gave you when I laid my hands on you. God’s gift was not a spirit of timidity, but the Spirit of power, and love, and self-control. So you are never to be ashamed of witnessing to the Lord, or ashamed of me for being his prisoner; but with me, bear the hardships for the sake of the Good News, relying on the power of God who has saved us and called us to be holy.

 

Little wonder, today we are celebrating the memorial of SS Timothy and Titus, servants who truly understood what the mission of Christ requires of them. For they were both close collaborators of St. Paul who entrusted to them the care of the flock of the faithful, of which they were regarded among the first Bishops of the Church. They were great servants of God with great commitment and dedication to doing the will of the Lord and suffer martyrdom for their faith and contributed greatly to the growth of the early Church and became good examples to their fellow Christians.

 

Dear friends, what is our attitude towards the missionary mandate of Christ? How have we contributed to this mission? What are we sacrificing for the sake of this missionary mandate? As disciples of Christ, we have received a lot from God without payment; we should learn to give without expecting reward. So we must learn to acknowledge with gratitude all that we have received from God and give freely to others that which we have received. For this act of charity will purify us from pride and self-righteousness, because we are all recipients of God's love, mercy, forgiveness, favour, protection, healing and deliverance. So, we must offer to others these same gifts which we have received. And by so doing we will fulfil our missionary mandate following the requirements that Jesus had given us today

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, today you gave us the requirements and nature of our missionary mandate. Help us to effectively following these requirements just like SS Timothy and Titus, we ask this through Christ our Lord Amen. God bless you.

Homily For Wednesday Third Week in Ordinary Time Year A, 25th January, 2023 The Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul

Readings: Act: 22:3-16, Ps. 117, Mark 16:15-18

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

 

THE GRACE OF TRUE CONVERSION BEGINS WITH PERSONAL ENCOUNTER WITH THE LORD

There is something deep and unique about every person, sometimes it takes personal experience to discover this uniqueness. This is evident in our first reading today as we celebrate the feast of the conversion of St. Paul, an event that prompt me to reflect on my personal experience of God. I am confident enough to tell you that everyday is an opportunity to encounter God through different events that occur in our lives.

 

I don't know if you have ever had an experience that made you realize 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 that Saul had with Jesus that made him realize the emptiness of his life and how wrong he was, fighting against God’s people. For Saul was a young and zealous Pharisee who was deeply involved in the persecutions of early Christians. He was present at the moment when St. Stephen was martyred and stoned to death. Saul was also a leading figure among the Sanhedrin in their attempt to destroy the Church and the followers of Christ, for he went from place to place and carried out violent attacks against the followers of Christ until he encountered the Lord on his way to Damascus.

 

This very encounter brought true conversion in his life and changed his perspective about Christians. This encounter gave him a new identity, changing his name from Saul to Paul. A name indicating his new mission. A mission he so carried out with all his zeal and passion that he is regarded as one of the apostles and today his works still speak about the effect of his personal encounter with Jesus. For his life is a fulfilment of the command of Jesus in our Gospel passage today when he said to his disciples, ‘Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation. He who believes and is baptised will be saved; he who does not believe will be condemned.

 

Dear friends, as we celebrate the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, we are called to reflect on our own conversion. Today like St. Paul, we are called to reflect on our personal experience with God. How have we personally experienced God? When was your spiritual turning point? Do we have a personal conviction about God that does not based on what people told us of him?  Remember that by the virtue of our baptism we are called to share in the same ministry and calling that St. Paul himself had received from the Lord. So, in case you have not personally experience the Lord, all you need to do is to sincerely seek God in those common events in your life and you will realize how much God is willing to reveal himself to you.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, we really need to have a personal encounter of your presence in our lives. As we reflect on the encounter and conversion of St. Paul today, may we experience your presence in a unique way and through this experience discover our purpose and mission in life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Do have a blessed and favourable day.

Homily For Tuesday Third Week in Ordinary Time Year A, 24tn January, 2023. The Memorial of St. Francis de Sales

Readings: Heb. 10:1-10; Ps. 40; Mark 3:31-35

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

 

WHERE DO YOU ULTIMATELY AND TRULY BELONG?

 

To have the feeling for a sense of belonging is fundamental to human happiness and well-being, for it gives value to our life and helps us in coping with some painful emotions. Hence, we often want to belong with one another, to our friends and families, to our culture or from one association to another. However, one of the common and safest place to belong is our families, especially when it is rooted in the love of God and neighbour.

 

So, today in our Gospel passage, Jesus speaks about belonging to his family and his relationship with members of his family when he said: ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven, he is my brother and sister and mother.’ From this Gospel, Jesus speaks of two ways the people around him could be identified as members of his family. Firstly he talks about those who belong to the family of his birth that is, his mother, father and relations. Then his other family which is made up of those who do the will of God.

 

 This family he says, is his true family where doing the will of God is the only way of belonging to this family. This is not to say that Jesus is rejecting his family; to do so would be contradicting his own teaching about loving ones parents and loving ones neighbours. However, Jesus is using this opportunity to emphasize that relationship with God is more important and this should depends on our total commitment to doing the will of God through him. Surprisingly, Mary the mother of Jesus belongs to both sides of the family, for she gave birth to Jesus and also the first to do the will of God when she  said, “let it be done unto me according to your word” (Luke 1:38). For this reason she is the first disciple of Jesus and a model for all Christians.

 

Thus, to be a Christian or a disciple is to enter into the family of Jesus and embrace a new relationship with God and with one another for this is the most important place to belong. All other bonds, including those of blood should be considered secondary. Because, belonging to God is fundamental to our basic relationships, prior to all human relations. Since we belong first to God before belonging to our families, after which we all go back to God where we ultimately belongs, which is determined by how we have been doing God’s will here on earth.

 

Little wonder we heard in our first reading today the need to do the will of God not just follow the laws that will not bring us to God. For the reading says: You did not want what the Law lays down as the things to be offered, that is: the sacrifices, the oblations, the holocausts and the sacrifices for sin, for the Lord took no pleasure in them; and then he says: Here I am! I am coming to obey your will. He is abolishing the first sort to replace it with the second. And this will was for us to be made holy by the offering of his body made once and for all by Jesus Christ.

 

Dear friends, where do we ultimately and truly belong? As Christians, we claimed to belong to God, do our attitudes and decisions show that we truly belong to God? Do we not often commit ourselves to things contrary to the faith we professed in God? Today we celebrate the memorial of St.  Francis  de Sales, a man who truly understood what it means to belong to the true family of Jesus.

 

Though, St. Francis was born in a noble family, but his encounters with the Lord and some questions about the faith eventually led him to seek the Lord more closely through discernment. He later gave up his rights and inheritance after his encounter with the Lord and became a priest and later a bishop. He dedicated a lot of time for the people. He tirelessly involved himself in reaching out to many Christians, including those who have separated themselves from the Church. Today,  we are called to imitate him in life a life that shows what we truly and ultimately belong to God.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, today we are called to do your will always in order to truly belong to that true family of Jesus where love of you and of our neighbour unites us together. Grant that through the intercessions of St.  Francis de Sales, we may learn to do your will and be a good collaborators with others in the mission and vocation entrusted to us. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Do have a blessed day.

Homily For Monday Third Week in Ordinary Time Year A, 23rd January, 2023

Readings: Heb. 9:15.24-28; Ps.98; Mark 3:22-30

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

 

DOT NOT LET ENVEY, JEALOUSY OR PRIDE LEAD YOU INTO SIN AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT

 

One of the gifts of God to us is the gift of discernment, which enables us to know and distinguish between good and evil spirit. This gift is very important to the office of every leader. But it is sad and unacceptable when a leader decided to misused this gift out of envy,  jealousy and ignorance. This is the attitudes of the scribes in our Gospel passage today.

 

For  we heard how Jesus had delivered a man possessed by an evil spirit. The spirit had bound his tongue and made him mute. But when Jesus had cast out the demon from the man and the man spoke, some scribes who watched this great miracle as it happeed said that it was through the power of Beelzebul the prince of demons that he was able to cast the devil out.

 

This is because they were adamant in their opposition against Jesus which were propelled by envy and jealousy. That is why they were unable to look beyond their narrow-mindedness and stubbornness in insisting that their way was the true way while others like our Lord Jesus were wrong. But Jesus as usual used the opportunity to correct them by pointing out the mistakes in their argument. Thus, telling us that it does not make sense for the demons to be fighting one another and so be divided among themselves. Because any house that divides within itself can not stand, and as we know the evil ones are always united in their plans to bring about destruction in human activities.

 

So, it is obvious that the scribes know the truth but were not ready to accept it rather the chose to deny the work of God, that why Jesus conclude the Gospel by saying that: everyone who says a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. From this frightening passage, Jesus reveals to us that sins no matter how grievous can be forgiven, but there is a particular sin that will not be forgiven. That is, the sin against the Holy Spirit.

 

But what is this sin against the Holy Spirit? And why would it not be forgiven? The sin against the Holy Spirit is rooted from ones outright rejection of God’s grace of salvation offered to us through the Holy Spirit‘s incessant invitations, and warnings. This happens when the will of a person is hardened against God’s mercy and goodness. This is so because, it is the sinner himself who rejected God’s forgiveness. And since God respects the freedom which He has given us, for he respects a sinner’s decision to firmly refuse to be forgiven.

 

Dear friends, do not let pride, envy,  jealousy or ignorance lead you into sin against the Holy Spirit. For we are called today not to be like the scribes who out of pride and ignorance denied the power of God over spiritual realities and so sin against the Holy Spirit. Rather we should make proper use of the gift of discernment which the Lord has given us. We must not let envy, jealousy and over ambition make us to deny the truth about the spiritual realities we experience from the Lord. We must not let the devil succeed in sowing the spirit of division among us.

 

We should also ask God to endow us with the spirit of discernment and truth especially this period that we often faced with the ugly and sad attitude of human deception all over the world. Therefore,  let us pay attention to the teaching and correction of Jesus, for we heard in our first reading that Christ brings a new covenant, as the mediator, only so that the people who were called to an eternal inheritance may actually receive what was promised: for his death took place to cancel the sins that infringed the earlier covenant.

 

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, as we struggle everyday with the manipulation of the evils ones, give us the grace to overcome them, may we never be misled by the devil and all of his forces, as they often attempted to sow divisions and dissensions among us. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Wishing you a fruitful week.

Homily For Third Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A, 22nd January, 2023

 

The Sunday of the Enthronement of the Word of God.

Readings: Is. 9:1-4; Ps. 27; 1Cor.1:10-13.17; Matt. 4:12-23

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

 

HOW OFTEN  HAVE YOU ENCOUNTERED AND EXPERIENCED GOD IN HIS WORD

 

On 30th September, 2019, our Holy Father Pope Francis in his Apostolic Letter Aperuit Illis, declared and instituted “A Sunday for the Word of God”, which is to be celebrated every third Sunday in Ordinary Time of the Church’s Liturgical Year. Today being the third Sunday in Ordinary Time year A, we are called to celebrate the Word of God. This is very important and significant since is light and strength of our faith.

 

The purpose of this declaration is to remind all Christ faithful that the Word of God as contained in the scriptures are very vital  and integral in the development of our faith in God. The Word of God in this case does not just refer to the Scriptures as we know it, but also refers to Christ himself as our Lord and Saviour, the Divine Word made Incarnate.

 

Hence our readings today, emphasis on making the word of God the light of our lives. In the first reading, prophet Isaiah talked about the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali, which were conquered by Assyrian in 732BC hereby dwelt in the darkness of oppression. So he predicted how God will liberate his people who live and walk in the deep darkness of oppression, how they will be set free by the great light of God’s glory.

 

These words of prophet Isaiah were fulfilled in our Gospel passage today, where the chosen people of God who dwell in the lands of Naphtali and Zebulun failed to drive out the Gentiles that are in their midst, instead they preferred to live with them in the darkness of corruption, sin and shame. These are the people to whom Jesus brought his ministry of the words of light in the midst of darkness that surrounded them. The presence of Jesus brought them great light.

 

Here, Matthew is saying that God has chosen Galilee of the gentiles, to be the place where His light will shine. And wherever light and darkness are used in scriptures, it connotes the power of good over evil, order over chaos, security over danger, joy over sorrow, truth over falsehood, life over death and salvation over condemnation. Though, Jesus begins his ministry in Galilee, his mission will be extended to the whole world.

 

Hence he called his disciples who will be instruments to extend his mission to the whole world. Jesus’ invitation to become disciples offers them the opportunity to observe him closely on a daily bases. And by doing so, they will learn more from him. In order to become familiar with his ways of doing things. They will unconsciously copy his manner of speaking, his gestures, his dealings with people. They will see how he solves problems and counters opposition. So that gradually, they will become like Jesus in thought, word and deed.

 

This speaks powerfully about discipleship which the people of Corinth failed to understand as we heard in our second reading. Hence they divided the body of Christ into groups of instrumental personnel of Christ, namely: Paul and Apollos. This is due to lack of good knowledge of the scriptures. Thus St. Paul, while reminding them that all were baptized into one Christ said: I appeal to you, brothers, for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ, to make up the differences between you, and instead of disagreeing among yourselves, to be united again in your belief and practice. Therefore, there can only be one loyalty,  that is to Christ alone, who is the Word Made Flesh and dwells among us.

 

Dear friends, the question we need to ask ourselves are: what is my relationship with Jesus the Living Word of God made flesh and dwells among us? What is my experience with the Word of God.  Have I truly encounter the Lord in his Word? What is my response towards the Word of God we hear everyday? How much of this Word dwells in us? How have we experienced and encountered God in his Word? How have I communicated my experience with the Word of God to humanity? How often do I reverence the Lord in his Word? How often have I shy away from speaking about God and his Word in my daily conversations with other people? How often do I obey  the instructions of the Lord through his Words

 

Brethren, the emphasis on the Word of God today is very important to all of us the faithful people of God. For if we are to follow Christ faithfully, we must cultivate the habit of studying the scriptures because the Word of God is our daily sustenance and the source of our strength and faith. We should make the Word of God the guiding principle of our lives.  For in the scriptures we find the strength and courage to promote good over evil, order over chaos, security over danger, joy over sorrow, truth over falsehood, life over death and salvation over condemnation.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, as we enthroned your Word in our lives, our families and in your Church today, grant we pray, that through the power of the Holy Spirit, we may come to discover the power and the efficacy of the scriptures in our lives as individuals, families and community of God’s people. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Do have a blessed and lovely Sunday.

 

 I pray that through the power of the Holy Spirit, we will come to discover the power and the efficacy of the scriptures in our lives as individuals, families and community of God’s people.

Today is my birthday, I thank God for granting me another opportunity to appreciate the gift of my life. Do have a glorious Sunday.🎷

 

 

 

WHAT IS OUR RESPONSE TOWARDS THE WORD OF GOD WE HEAR EVERYDAY

 

Today is the third Sunday in Ordinary Time year A, the Sunday we are called to celebrate the Word of God. This is very important and significant since our Holy Father Pope Francis in his Apostolic Letter Aperuit Illis on 30th September, 2019, declared and instituted “A Sunday for the Word of God”, which is to be celebrated every third Sunday in Ordinary Time of the Church’s Liturgical Year.

The purpose of this declaration is to remind all Christ faithful that the Word of God as contained in the Scriptures are very vital and integral in the development of our faith in God. The Word of God in this case does not just refer to the Scriptures as we know it, but is also refers to Christ himself as our Lord and Saviour, the Divine Word made Incarnate.

 

Hence our readings today, emphasis on the important and significant of the Word of God in the lives of his people. In the first reading, we heard how Jonah was compelled by God to preach his Word to the people of Nineveh. For the scriptures says: that the word of the Lord was addressed to Jonah: ‘Up!’ he said ‘Go to Nineveh, the great city, and preach to them as I told you to.’ Jonah set out and went to Nineveh in obedience to the word of the Lord. He went on into the city, making a day’s journey as he preached saying, ‘Only forty days more and Nineveh is going to be destroyed.’ And the people of Nineveh believed in God; they proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least and repented from their sins.

 

In a similar way, in our Gospel passage we heard how our Lord Jesus went into Galilee. There he proclaimed the Good News from God saying: ‘The time has come and the kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent, and believe the Good News. Then, he called the first four of his apostles who were fisherman and they left everything and followed him and he made them fishers of men as they committed themselves to living and preaching  the Word of God.

 

Here, we see how God has chosen Galilee of the gentiles, to be the place where his Word will be proclaimed so that they will repent and believe in the Good News and by so doing conquer the darkness of sin around them.  For the Word of God conquers evil and sin. It brings order over chaos, security over danger, joy over sorrow, truth over falsehood, life over death and salvation over condemnation. Yes, Jesus begins his ministry in Galilee, his mission will be extended to the whole world. Hence he called his disciples who will be instruments to extend his mission to the whole world.

 

Thus, Jesus calling these fisherman to follow him offers them the opportunity to observe him closely on a daily bases. And by doing so, they will learn more from him. In order to become familiar with his ways of doing things. They will unconsciously copy his manner of speaking, his gestures, his dealings with people. They will see how he solves problems and counters opposition. So that gradually, they will become like Jesus in thoughts, words and deeds.

 

This tells us about the sacrificial nature of discipleship which the people of Corinth failed to understand as we read in our second reading. Thus, we heard St. Paul telling them that our time in this passing world is growing short. That those who have wives should live as though they had none, and those who mourn should live as though they had nothing to mourn for; those who are enjoying life should live as though there were nothing to laugh about; those whose life is buying things should live as though they had nothing of their own; and those who have to deal with the world should not become engrossed in it. Because the world as we know it is passing away.

 

Dear friends, the question we need to ask ourselves are: what is our response towards the Word of God we hear everyday? How much of this Word dwells in us? What is my relationship with Jesus the Living Word of God made flesh and dwells among us? So, the emphasis on the Word of God today is very important to all of us the faithful people of God who have been called to follow the Lord.

Therefore, if we are to follow Christ faithfully, we must cultivate the habit of studying the scriptures because the Word of God is our daily sustenance and the source of our strength and faith. Hence, we are called to make the Word of God the guiding principle in our lives. For in the scriptures we find the strength and courage to promote good over evil, order over chaos, security over danger, joy over sorrow, truth over falsehood, life over death and salvation over condemnation.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, as we enthroned your Word in our lives, our families and in your Church today, grant we pray, that through the power of the Holy Spirit, we may come to discover the power and the efficacy of the scriptures in our lives as individuals, families and community of God’s people. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Do have a blessed and lovely Sunday.

Homily For Saturday Second Week in Ordinary Time Year A, 21st January, 2023 The Memorial of St. Agnes of Rome

 Readings: Heb.9:2-3.11-14, Ps.46 , Mark 3:20-21

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

 

JESUS THE SEAL OF THE NEW COVENANT

 

From the beginning of creation God has always been making covenant with humanity and this covenants are made in different ways and in different occasions. In the old testament, this covenants were often made and sealed with the blood of animals. However, this has to change by the very act of the incarnation of Christ the Lord. Who in accordance with the plan of God to redeem humanity has sacrificed his blood completely for the salvation of all. Thereby doing away with the old covenants sealed with blood of animals.

 

Little wonder, in our first reading today we are reminded of the redemptive work of our Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross. Where as a high Priest, he has offered himself as a worthy sacrifice for our sake and for the forgiveness of our sins. This he did in order to deliver us from death and led us into a new hope and a new life of love and obedient to God.

 

By this redemptive work, Christ has become our high Priest who has taken away the sins of humanity. This he accomplished by pouring out his most precious blood on the cross. His blood which is far more precious than the blood of any animal has replaced the old covenantal seals and has become the new covenantal seal by this singular act of love on the cross. By this act of love,  God calls us to a life of love, obedience, commitment and sacrifice .

 

The response to these acts of love, sacrifice, obedience and commitment to God’s mission is what we see in the life of St. Agnes whose memorial we celebrate today. For as a noble young Roman woman, St. Agnes had many suitors and those who were interested in her, but she rejected them all for she had dedicated and consecrated her purity and virginity to God, and will not allowing any of those men to desecrate her virginity and sanctity. So out of pride and jealousy suitors became very angry at her, and reported her to the authorities as a suspected Christian, since to be a Christian was a crime punishable by death.

 

On account of this, the Roman prefect, named Sempronius condemned her to death and attempted to kill her by various methods. First, the attempts by several men to defile her virginity by force, this of course failed, because they were immediately struck blind before they died. The attempts also to hurt her by other means such as burning on a stake also failed for the flames refused to burn the wood. But eventually she was beheaded by being stabbed in the throat and that’s how Agnes met her end through martyrdom and brought glory to God following the example of our Lord Jesus.

 

Dear friends, in the life of St. Agnes we see one who wished to remain faithful and obedience to God’s command knowing that in Christ Jesus, God has accomplished his redemptive work, for there is no need for any other sacrifices. What is needed is for us to identify ourselves with this covenantal sacrifice especially through our active participation in the celebration of the Holy Eucharist during the Holy Mass.

 

For during the Holy Mass, the very same Sacrifice of our Lord at Calvary is enacted by Christ himself through his priest of which he has entrusted to his Church and his priests, the power and authority to constantly make present to the people this covenantal sacrifice. Therefore, we are called to embrace this sacrificial love of Christ and turn away from our ugly and sinful ways of life in order to embrace this love and mercy with a new heart and be ever more grateful to God for such an act of kindness and compassion.

 

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, we thank you for such great act of love which you have shown to us through Christ your Son who is our eternal high Priest. Grant that through the intercession of St Agnes we may be ever more faithful in following and doing your will, who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen. Do have a blessed and favourable weekend.