Homily For Friday in Second Week of Easter, 21st April, 2023

Readings: Acts.5:34-42; Ps.27; John 6:1-15

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia.

 

DO NOT BE AFRIAD OF EXPRESSING YOUR FAITH IN GOD ANYWHERE YOU FIND YOURSELF

 

Today the persecution account of the apostles continues as the members of the Sanhedrin call for council meeting to decide what to do with the apostles.

So at this council as we have in our first reading, Gamaliel a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin, suggested that the apostles should be left alone on the basis of past experiences of those who claimed to be great but were letter perished when their leader had died, that what is happening now with the apostles might be the same.

 

He advice them to have nothing to do with the apostle, that if their purpose or activity is from human origins it will soon perish. If not, they will not be able to destroy them without fighting God Himself. so,  his advice was accepted; and they had the apostles called in, gave orders for them to be flogged and warned not to speak in the name of Jesus and then released them.

 

However, instead of being depressed, the apostles left the court full of joy that they had been judged worthy of beaten for the sake of the Name of Jesus. Here, they experienced the blessedness that Jesus had spoken of in the Sermon on the Mount when he said: “blessed are those who are persecuted in the cause of right: theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people abuse you and speak all kinds of calumny against you on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven” (Matt 5:10-12).

 

Dear friends, in any situation we find ourselves, we are called to bear witness to our faith in Christ, though this mandate may seem difficult in our world at this moment, but just like in the time of the apostles the grace of God is sufficient for us. Therefore, let us not be afraid of expressing our faith anywhere we find ourselves in the world, for God will surely protect us as He protected the apostles.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, as we proclaim your name to the world especially in this difficult times, give us the grace to rejoice even in the midst of persecution, suffering, sickness or death. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen. May the blessings, joy and favour of the Lord find there way in our lives and in our families.

Homily For Thursday in Second Week of Easter, 20th April, 2023

Readings: Acts.5:27-33; Ps.34; John 3:31-36

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia.

 

LEARN TO BE SUBMISSIVE TO GOD’S AUTHORITY ABOVE ALL OTHER HUMAN AUTHORITIES

 

As the persecution of the apostles continued, the authorities of the Pharisees and the Sanhedrin forbade the apostles from preaching in the name of Jesus as we have it in our first reading today. But the apostles spoke out boldly saying: It is better for us to obey God than men. They stood firm and witness to all what they had experienced. Their testimony was directed by the Holy Spirit, who is given to all those who responded to God with the obedience that comes from faith.

 

So, they continued to preach in name of Jesus and their accusers could not stop them even though they had been strictly forbidden to do so. Such are the grace and courage we receive when we experience the power of the risen Lord. We will not be afraid to witness because we are convinced that Jesus is the One who comes from above, the One whom God has sent to speak the words of God.

 

He is the Word of God who came to bear testimony to what he has seen and heard just as we heard him telling Nicodemus in our Gospel passage, that anyone who believes in the Son has eternal life, but anyone who refuses to believe in the Son will never see life: the anger of God stays on him.

 

Dear friends, as Christians living in a world where our faith is being challenged every moment especially in this ugly situation of wars, corruption, kidnapping, greed and protest everywhere. So,  we must make costly choices of choosing to obey God rather than men and not give in because of persecution, hunger, poverty or our worldly ambition.

 

Everywhere we find ourselves be it in  business, relationship, politics and in family life we have to make decisions about remaining honest, truthful, holy and faithful to our faith and commitments God above that of any human authorities. So, we must be ready to stand firm in the faith we have found in God. We must learn to submit to the authority of the Lord above all other human authorities.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, give us grace and courage to constantly obey You above any human authority, especially in times of difficulty, hunger, strive, sickness, and persecution. Never let us deny You because of worldly pressures and difficulties or be put to shame, as we place all our hope in You. Amen. It’s a new day, be strong be focused for the Lord has promised to be with us till the end of time.

Homily For Wednesdays in Second Week of Easter, 19th April, 2023

Readings: Acts. 5:17-26; Ps.34; John 3:16-21

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia.

 

YOU ARE THAT FACE OF GOD’S LOVE IN OUR WORLD TODAY

 

Often times, when we are passing through difficult times, we feel and think that God does not care about us. We feel that God has abandoned us in this passing world. We even feel that God has no connection with activities of humanity. But this is not true, for our Gospel passage today talks about the relationship between God and humanity that inhabits the world.

 

Telling us that God loves the world and the humanity living in it. He loves it so much that He gave His only Son, who died a shameful and terrible death on a cross for the seek of His love. Yes Jesus is God's love personified in our world.  For God loves the whole world, His love is total and unconditional for everyone of his creatures. This is why we who have benefited from the love of Jesus are the face of God’s love in our world today.

 

This love is what the apostles bears witness to in our first reading today and for this, they were persecuted by authorities. We are told that the main motive for their displeasure was jealousy. The apostles were witnessing what they have experienced and this attracted large crowds to the group. So the authorities out of jealousy had the apostles arrested and thrown into the public jail. But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the gates for them and told them to go back and continue preaching in the temple and bearing witness of God’s love for humility.

 

Dear friends, this is what we are called to do, we have in one way or another experienced the love of God so greatly and personally in our lives. It’s now time to bear authentic witness of this love to all humanity. We are to tell the world how deep God loves them. We are to demonstrate this love to the world and let this love be felt by those who have lost hope in God especially at this time when humanity is struggling with the ugly situation if corona virus.

 

We are the face of God’s love now, we are the channels of His love now. Therefore, let us extend this love in any form, gestures or manner possible to everywhere that it is lacking. A kind word, a single phone call, a text message, an act of forgiveness, a single prayer, sacrifice, patience and any form of generous act shown to anyone around you or as many people you can reach out today, reflect this love of God for humanity through you.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, as we have come to know and experienced Your love for humanity, give us the grace to reciprocate this love in the world by our ways of life using the gifts, talents and resources you have given us. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Peace be with you.

Homily For Tuesday in Second Week of Easter, 18th April, 2023

Readings: Acts.4:32-37; Ps.93; John 3:7-15

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia.

 

THE FRATERNAL LIFE OF EARLY CHRISTIANS WERE THAT OF ONE HEART AND SOUL

 

One of the major problems in our world today is individualism, this no doubt is the cause of disunity, greediness and corruption that is really destroying humanity. To overcome this ugly attitude we need to learn from the early Christian community as recorded in our first reading, which gives us an account of how the company of believers were of one heart and soul deeply united with each other.

 

They bear witness to the central element of their faith, that is, loving God with all their hearts and with all their soul and loving their neighbours as themselves. Thereby bearing witness to the teachings of Jesus. They sold their belongs and brought the proceeds together and distributed them to each according to their need.

 

This was possible because the Holy Spirit unite them together. It is the power of this Spirt that Jesus is talking about in our Gospel passage today when he said to Nicodemus: "The wind blows wherever it pleases; you hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. That is how it is with all who are born of the Spirit”.

 

This great gesture demonstrate what fraternal love really means. No one claimed anything as belonging to him/herself; everything was held in common. This shows us the social life of the early Church. But the question is, do we still have such sharing communities in our Church today? Perhaps we may find such communal sharing in some communities of religious life with vows of poverty and total sharing of resources coupled with a life of material simplicity.  Also, there may be other groups of lay people and some families who try to implement this Christian vision and value. But they are very few.

 

Dear friends, how many families are practicing this great Christian fraternal living? How many societies in our churches are willing to maintain this tradition. This should be encouraged especially at this moment when the world is passing through difficult times, and we are fast losing this our great Christian values of communal and fraternal living.

 

There is need for us to also extend it to the societies were these fraternal Communion and charity have been taken over by individualism, selfishness, corruption and greed. How I wish humanity will learn how to live in fraternal charity like the early Christian, then we will see that the world resources will be enough for everyone. Therefore, let us unite again as one family.

 

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, as we reflect on the attitudes and virtues of the early Church, give us the grace to imitate them as we cultivate the attitude of sharing our material blessings with those in genuine need in our community especially in this difficult moment in our societies, country and the world at large. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Do have a grace filled day.

Homily For Monday in Second Week of Easter, 17th April, 2023

Readings: Acts.4:23-31; Ps.2; John 3:1-8

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia.

 

PRAY FOR COURAGE AND BOLDNESS TOWARDS EVANGELIZATION

 

Threats, intimidation, torture and fear are some of the powerful ways of silencing people from expressing their views, opinion and faith. We can recall how these ugly attitude was use to silence the youths in recent past in our country especially in the ugly event of End-Sars protest which brought about Lekki toll gate shooting and killing of innocent people.

 

These very technics and tools are what the chief priests and the elders used in intimidating the apostles in our first reading today and the same systematic tools prevented Nicodemus from coming to Jesus expect by night as we read in the Gospel passage today.

 

Nicodemus was afraid and ashamed to be seen with Christ because of his colleagues who will possibly threaten him. So he came in the night to seek knowledge. Here he came not to have knowledge about the state affairs, though he was a ruler, but about the concerns of his own soul and its salvation. Though he came by night, Jesus welcomed him and afterward at the passion he proclaimed Christ publicly, hereby demonstrating and teaching us the power of courage.

 

Dear friends, these same courage and boldness were the prayerful request the apostles made to the Lord when they where threatened by the authorities never to preach in the name of Jesus. Now, the disciple knew that powerful forces were arrayed against them. They knew, as well, that Peter and John were determined to continue their witnessing.

 

So they prayed for strength to speak the Word of God with confidence and boldness and asked that in their expression of faith God should accomplish their works with signs and wonders in the name of Jesus. We all need this confidence and boldness if we are to effectively evangelize the people especially at this moment when the world has lost interest in the things of God.

 

LET US PRAY: heavenly Father, as we struggle with the ugly situation of fear, intimidation and torture in our families, societies, country and the world at large, give us the grace, confidence and boldness to proclaim you Word in the power of Your Spirit in order to penetrate the hearts of men and women of our generation. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. May the Joy of the risen Lord be our strength.

Homily For Second Sunday of Easter, The Divine Mercy Sunday, (HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY) 16th April, 2023

Readings: Acts.2:42-47; Ps.118; 1Pet. 1:3-9; John 20:19-31

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia.

 

STOP DOUBTING ABOUT THE RISEN LORD, RATHER BELIEVE IN GOD’S DIVINE MERCY

The event we celebrate today is meant for us to focus our attention once again on the Lord, to ask Jesus for his mercy on us and the whole world especially through his glorious and wondrous passion, which stands as a perfect offering for the redemption of humanity.

 

Little wonder Pope St. John Paul II in the Jubilee Year of 2000, instituted the Divine Mercy Sunday, which is to be celebrated every second Sunday of Easter to remind us that the joyful celebration of Easter season is also a time for us to appreciate once again that our Lord Jesus passed through the worst of sufferings and humiliations in his Passion, Death and Resurrection, and so won eternal life for humanity.

 

Hence, we need to have faith in the Lord and believe that through him there is hope for our salvation. This truly explains the words of Jesus to his disciples when he said: “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe”.  This statement could be a central theme in our Gospel passage today.

 

Here, Jesus said to Thomas: “ Do not doubt but believe… for blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.”  This is because Thomas was lacking in faith and so was doubtful of the Lord’s resurrection but only to be humbled when the Lord himself appeared right before him. Thomas believed and said to the Lord, ‘My Lord and My God’. And the Gospel ended by saying that these are written that you may believe in Jesus and that believing you may have life in his name.

 

This also, is repeated in our second reading today, where we heard St. Peter saying: "You did not see him, yet you love him; and still without seeing him, you are already filled with a joy so glorious that it cannot be described, because you believe; and you are sure of the end to which your faith looks forward, that is, the salvation of your souls.”

 

Here we are told that through our love and faith we have victory over the world and salvation for our souls. So, the purpose of this Gospel is for us, the readers to believe and so enjoy the promised blessing. Today no doubt, Millions of Christians have been strengthened in their faith by reading this Gospel, and millions of others have been brought to faith through it.

 

But, what about you and I who today have experienced the Lord and his mercies, having journeyed with Jesus as long as we have come to embrace the Christian faith? What can we say about our personal encounter and experience of the person of Jesus? Are we really convinced about the faith we profess? Are we still at the level of faith that is based on what we hear or read about Jesus? Or have we really and truly encounter the person of Jesus in such a way that our faith has no doubt anymore, such that we can truly say like St. Thomas "My Lord and My God"?

 

Dear friends, are we still doubting like Thomas, today we are encouraged to believe without even seeing like Thomas. But this can really be very difficult in a world of empiricism, yet we are still called to truly embrace this faith without doubting despite all the ugly human attitudes that are kicking against our faith.

 

That is why, sometimes in our lives we behave like Thomas, in fact Thomas represent all of us who in one way or the other have been doubtful of the presence of God in our lives. No doubt that there are many of us with different experiences at different levels of faith and devotion. But at some point, we may have grown weak in our commitment to the Lord and begin to doubt his presence with us, based on our own experiences, or when we are distracted and tempted by many ugly desires for worldly things that will turn us away from the Lord.

 

More so, we have often placed God aside and forgotten about him, by prioritizing more on other things in our lives. We have often treated him or thing related to him as something not significant. There are times when we doubt the presence of God in our families, societies and even the Church. There are times when we have doubted the presence of God in the Eucharist, in the sacraments and even in the activities of his ministers. Oftentimes, we are doubtful of the mercy of God, his love for us, his power to safe, heal and protect us, as we go seeking for help from other “sources” which will only worsen our situation.

 

Brethren, to be a believer in our world today can be really difficult, so we need to support each other. We need to strengthen our community life especially during this difficult moment in our country and world at large. The first Christians supported one another by praying, worshipping and sharing their resources and the word of God together, as we heard in our first reading today. For the people were loud in their praise and the numbers of men and women who came to believe in the Lord increased steadily. And so many signs and wonders were worked among the people at the hands of the apostles.

 

Therefore, let us unite together as believers, and bear authentic witness to our faith. As we struggle in this dark moment in our lives when God seems far away from the world, let us ask him to help us to remove all forms of doubt, especially in this time when the Gospel is under all kinds of threats by faithless and ignorant people.  Nevertheless, let us ask God for his Divine Mercy in our live, our families, societies and the world at large. Remember, the Lord is indeed merciful, he forgives us freely and generously but we should not take his mercy for granted by dwelling perpetually in sin.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, today we are encouraged to believe without seeing, this can really be very difficult in a world of empiricism, help us especially this trial moment in our world, never to doubt whatever you have revealed through your son, may we rather be steadfast in faith, joyful in hope and untiring in loving you and our neighbours, as the world hope to experience your Divine Mercy once again, through Christ our Lord. Amen. Happy Mother's Day and Happy Divine Mercy Sunday to you and your house hold.

Homily For Saturday in Octave of Easter, 15th April, 2023

Readings: Acts.14:13-21; Ps.118; Mark 16:9-15

Rev  Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia.

 

TO WHAT EXTENT ARE WE READY TO BEAR AUTHENTIC WITNESS ABOUT THE RISEN LORD TO THE WORLD

 

After the resurrection of Jesus, he has appeared to his disciples in different occasions. Today in our Gospel passage, he appeared to the eleven apostles and commissioned them to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation. This is what Peter and John exercised in our first reading today. Here the rulers, elders and scribes were astonished at the great witness shown by Peter and John, so, they tried to prevent them and other disciples from spreading any further the Good News about the risen Lord, by attempting to suppress them through fear and intimidation.

 

However, the disciples  were not ready to give in to fear or pressure, for they were encouraged and strengthened by the Lord through the Holy Spirit, since they were no longer the same people who hide in the fear of the authorities. Instead they openly rejected the orders from the Sanhedrin and continued to carry out the missions which God had entrusted to them. Hence, the mandate of this mission has been repeated in our liturgy throughout this octave of Easter, in order to remind us our mission as Christians. It also gives us the opportunity to review our Easter experience, so as to examine ourselves to know the impact the week has made on us.

 

Dear friends, to what extent have we been able to bear witness to the world about the risen Lord? As disciples of Christ, we are mandated to share the Good News of salvation provided by Christ Jesus to all creation. We are to do so not just in silence, but in words and actions which is seen in our ways of life.

So, friends, what can we do to ensure that the Gospel reached out to all creation? How best can we spread this Good News, especially in this time of difficulty when the world is looking for an answers to the fundamental reality of human life?

 

The answer to these fundamental questions is rooted in our first reading today, where we are made to know that the best way to preach the Gospel today is witnessing by our way of life. Today there are many voices preaching the Good News, but only few are bearing authentic witness to the Gospel. Therefore, let our lives bear authentic witness to the Gospel of the Lord.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, give us the grace and courage to bear authentic witness of your Gospel in a world where people are confused and no longer pay attention to your word. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen. Do have a peaceful weekend.