Homily For Saturday Twenty-Ninth Week in Ordinary Time Year B, 26th October, 2024

Readings: Eph.4:7-16, Ps 122 , Luke 13:1-9
Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

NOW IS THE RIGHT TIME TO REPENT LESS WE PERISH

With the ugly situation in our country today, there is no doubt that both the poor and the rich are testifying to it suffering in our society. Hence, we can feel the struggles, the scarcity of food and resources, the kidnappings, the killings, the flooding, the tears, and the disappointments that people are passing through every day. Some people are losing hope in themselves and even in everything they do as they run up and down seeking solutions.
 
The poor are seeking daily bread, upliftment and favour; the rich are seeking protection and good health, while the evil ones are taking advantage of the situation to destroy the little hope and faith of the people. All these are signs from God who gives us the opportunity to repent from our sinful ways of life.
 
This is what Jesus is telling us in our Gospel passage today when he said: “Do you suppose the Galileans who suffered like this were greater sinners than any other Galileans? They were not, I tell you. No, but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did. Then with a parable of the barren fig tree, Jesus demonstrated how God has made every moment of our lives an opportunity for us to repent and be fruitful.
 
This is clear when he said in the parable, “Look, for three years now I have been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and finding none. Cut it down: why should it be taking up the ground?” “Sir,” the man replied, “leave it one more year and give me time to dig round it and manure it: it may bear fruit next year; if not, then you can cut it down.” 
 
Such is God’s patience with us for he gives us the opportunity to turn away from our sinful and ugly ways of life. Repentance is the key message of this Gospel, for Jesus makes it clear that those who suffered and were killed were not worse offenders than others; rather, he uses the opportunity to call us to repentance. Note that the purpose of this message is not for condemnation but for redemption.
 
This is what St. Paul is emphasizing in our first reading saying: we shall not be children any longer, or be tossed one way or another and carried along by every wind of doctrine, at the mercy of all the tricks men play and their cleverness in practising deceit. But if we live by the truth and in love, we shall grow in all ways into Christ, who is the head by whom the whole body is fitted and joined together.
 
Dear friends, this call for repentance shows us that it is not too late for us to repent, for this may be the last opportunity. Because we can never tell what will happen in the next moment. We can never tell who is the next to die, and we can never know the form it will take, or where it will occur. All that matters is for us to repent now that we still have the opportunity.
 
Therefore, let us repent now, for repentance helps us to be well-disposed in life and for death. It helps us to live right and at peace with God and with one another. It gives us the courage and confidence to face any situation without fear of death.
 
LET US PRAY: Almighty, ever-living God, You are the author of our lives, freedom and salvation; all we have are yours. Thank you for being with us in our daily troubles, struggles, fears, tears, hope and joy. May you provide for the poor, console the troubled, heal the sick, protect and put simile on the faces of your children today and always. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a blessed and safe weekend.

Homily For Friday Twenty-Ninth Week in Ordinary Time Year B, 25th October 2024

Readings: Eph.4:1-6, Ps 24, Luke 12: 54-59

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

WHY HAVE WE FAILED TO INTERPRET THE TRUE SIGNS OF THIS PASSING WORLD?

As a human person, we often try to discern the events happening around us in order to predict what can be the outcome of such events in the future. We often read the signs of nature in order to predict what will happen in the future.

Little wonder Jesus, while rebuking the crowd in our Gospel reading today, said: when you see a cloud looming up in the west, you say at once that rain is coming, and so it does. And when the wind is from the south you say it will be hot, and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the face of the earth and the sky. How is it you do not know how to interpret these times?

Here, Jesus condemned the ugly attitudes of the crowds for they can read the signs of nature and so predict the future, but now out of jealousy and selfishness, they have failed to recognize the truth by refusing to acknowledge in Jesus one who comes from God, one who speaks God’s word and acts in the power of God. So Jesus rebuked them for such a hypocritical attitude. In the second aspect of the Gospel, Jesus is asking us to put things right while there is still time.

Thus, St. Paul, in our first reading, implores us to lead a life worthy of our vocation. To bear with one another charitably, in complete selflessness, gentleness and patience by preserving the unity of the Spirit, knowing that we are one Body, one Spirit, sharing the same hope in one Lord, one faith, one baptism in one God who is Father of all.

Dear friends, there are so many signs around us today. How are you interpreting the signs of this passing world, the signs that tell us that this world is passing by? What is our disposition towards these signs? Can we identify the signs of our time? How can we understand and interpret them? Are we reading the hand of God in what is going on around us, especially in our country, societies and our families? How are we responding to these signs? What do we think Jesus would do if he was living with us now? Today, Jesus is calling us to discernment. We have to discern our actions towards the signs we see in our world today.

Though it is very easy to condemn the ugly situation going on in our country, societies and families, are we learning anything from it? Are we having any sense of guilt and repentance? Why allow this evil to linger in us by getting into endless arguments and deception when we already know what is right?

Why waste so much time arguing about unnecessary things while missing out on the main points that are more basic and challenging? I think it is time we come back to the real issues, which are justice, honesty, transparency, equity, love and respect for human life and property. These are the things we all need to put right at all levels and sectors we find ourselves.

LET US PRAY: Almighty God, in every event that happens to us, you said, has your mark on it. Help us to discern the signs of our time, in order to embrace your will for us and to follow you wherever you may lead us as we struggle to overcome the ugly situation in our country, societies and families. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. May God protect and keep us safe always.

Homily For Thursday Twenty-Ninth Week in Ordinary Time Year B, 24th October 2024

Readings: Eph.3:14-21; Ps 33; Luke 12: 49-53

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

WHY WILL HE BRING DIVISION INSTEAD OF PEACE?

The way things are going in our societies today, we need to think twice about our faith as Christians and whether we are ready to live out our faith in the midst of the ugly situation in our country today. The hostility, brutality, persecution and influential power of the things of this world, which have eaten deep into the minds of our leaders, are quite disturbing, for things are getting tougher, and we need to do something about it.

Therefore, if we are willing to live out our Christian faith and obligations, then we need to make a radical decision towards our discipleship in a personal and radical way, for these days, it is not enough to say am a Christian, we must convincingly and radically practice our faith by following the example of our Lord Jesus.

Little wonder Jesus in our Gospel passage today, takes his discourse on discipleship to a radical and difficult level when he said: 'Do you suppose that I am here to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. From now on, a household of five will be divided: three against two and two against three; the father divided against the son, son against father, mother against daughter, a daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law, a daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.

Here, Jesus does not directly intend to cause tensions and divisions in family life, but he wants us to accept the consequences that come with the truth of the Gospel teaching, more importantly, when it comes to living out the Gospel message radically, especially in a situation where our family values have been thrown out of caution as a result of secularism, individualism and excess desires for worldly pleasures and possessions, thereby neglecting the things that lead us to God.

So, these hard words of Jesus can only be understood in the light of our life experience because there are moments when we have to make radical and difficult choices as disciples of Jesus. These moments may wield the sword of division or separation among those people and things which are so dear to us.

However, Jesus does not endorse us engaging in armed conflict, but he warns that we have to struggle to put him first before family ties, knowing that divisions will surely occur as people have to decide to be for or against God. Hence, he states that the cost of discipleship extends to one even losing his life. Because following Jesus demands the sacrifice of all that one has.

None of us can become his true disciple if we do not give up our excess desire for worldly pleasures and possessions and pay our unreserved loyalty and allegiance to God over all other competing loyalties in our lives, including family, self-interest, and possessions. Little wonder St. Paul in our first reading prayed for us to grow strong in faith and love of God our Father whom every family, whether spiritual or natural, takes its name

Dear friends, we are called today to make a radical decision to sincerely and faithfully live out our Christian faith and morals. But how much are we willing to let go for the sake of our faith in God? Why are we finding it difficult to follow Jesus? What are habitual desires and possessions that are holding us from making this radical decision today? It is time to come to God with all our hearts, for tomorrow may be too late.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, the excess desire for the pleasurable things of this passing world have weakened our hearts towards you, give us courage and grace to let go of our ugly desires and attitudes, so as to hold firm in our faith despite losing people and things that are dear to us, as we ask you to heal and transform our nation once again. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a fruitful day.

Homily For Wednesday Twenty-Ninth Week in Ordinary Time Year B, 23rd October 2024

 

Readings: Eph.3:2-12, Isaiah 12, Luke 12: 39-48

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

WHY MUST WE STAND READY?

Oftentimes when I observed how people devote time and energy to rigorous preparation towards achieving their goals. I realized that adequate preparation is the secret and foundation of every successful event. Then I said to myself, if we can go to this length of rigorous periods of preparation just for things of this passing world, it will be even more demanding when it has to do with preparing for eternal life.

Therefore, if we can devote such time and energy towards our spiritual life, which we often neglect, we will be more awake and prepared for the day of the Lord. This is what Jesus is telling us in our Gospel passage today when he said to his disciples: “Be quite sure of this, that if the householder had known at what hour the burglar would come, he would not have let anyone break through the wall of his house. You too must stand ready, because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.’

Then he used the parable of faithful and wise steward to make this point clearer. He concluded by saying: when a man has had a great deal given him, a great deal will be demanded of him; when a man has had a great deal given him on trust, even more will be expected of him.’

In this passage, we have two commands at the beginning and the end, which are not quite the same. The first command is based on God’s coming at a “day” when you do not know, and the second has to do with managing the responsibility entrusted to us. For, just like the householder’s ignorance of the time when the thief would come is the reason why he does not watch.

Thus, our ignorance of the day and time should be the reason for our watchfulness in order to prevent being robbed. So, the image of the thief is chosen to illustrate the unexpected approach of the second coming of Christ, which will be a great surprise to those who are asleep as they will be robbed of Heaven and even their earthly treasures.

Hence, Jesus commanded us to stay awake, because we do not know either the day or the hour when the Lord will come. And St. Paul, in our first reading, says: I, who am less than the least of all the saints, have been entrusted with this special grace, not only of proclaiming to the pagans the infinite treasure of Christ but also of explaining how the mystery is to be dispensed. So, how are we managing the responsibility entrusted to us, especially the responsibility of managing our lives and also the lives and properties entrusted to us on a great deal of which great deal is expected from us?

Dear friends, as managers of God’s resources, we must stand ready to avoid being robbed of our earthly and heavenly treasures. We must be courageous, wise, patient and prudent, knowing that our lives as Christians demand that we should be alert. We should be prepared at all times and be ready to make sacrifices like faithful and wise stewards.

We should be watchful for we know neither the day nor the hour when the Lord will call us. Hence, we are reminded today that this world is passing away, so we need to stay awake and be ready as we look into our inner being and our interior life to embrace the life of holiness and self-control that will help us to be more prepared.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, we often fail to listen to your warnings concerning the things of this passing world and the need for us to stay awake and be ready for your coming; give us the grace and wisdom to be well prepared to stand before you whenever you call us. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Peace be with you.

Homily For Tuesday Twenty-Ninth Week in Ordinary Time Year B, 22nd October 2024

Readings: Eph.2:12-22, Ps.84:9-14, Luke 12:36-38

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia

WILL YOU BE READY WHEN THE LORD SHALL COME?

There are two most important events in our life as a human person. One is well known, prepared and constantly celebrated, that is, our birthday. The other, which is the ultimate, is not known and less attention and preparation is being made for it, that is, the day of our departure from this world.

So, Jesus, knowing how important this day is, instructed his disciples in our Gospel passage today, saying: “Be like men waiting for their master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as he comes and knocks. It may be in the second watch he comes, or in the third, wait for him, for happy are those servants if he finds them ready when he comes.”

Here, we have a scenario which illustrates the unexpected approach of the coming of Christ, which will be a great surprise to those who are asleep as they will be missing out on the heavenly joy and also be deprived of their earthly treasures. But for those that shall be found awake and ready, the Lord's coming will be a happy day, while for those that are not prepared, it will be very dreadful. Thus our ignorance of the day and time of his coming is the reason for our watchfulness, so we must be awake and ready at all times.

And St. Paul, in our first reading, made us know that we are no longer aliens or foreign visitors: we are citizens like all the saints and part of God’s household. We are part of a building that has the apostles and prophets as its foundations and Christ Jesus himself as its main cornerstone. For this reason, we should be more prepared and ready for that glorious day of the Lord.

Dear friends, will you be ready when the Lord shall come? For we are called today to be ready. We are called to repentance. We are called to embrace the new life the Lord is offering us. We are called to a life of constant struggle towards perfection in order to embrace the Lord whenever he comes. Therefore, preparation is the key word. Let us not be deceived when the world suggests to us that the day of death is not coming soon so forget who we are, and then, the day and time will take us by surprise.

Rather, let us be like those wise servants who are prepared at all times for the coming of the master. Thus, we must change our disposition, especially as regards our attitude towards the things of this passing world, in order to embrace more of the things that will lead us to our heavenly kingdom, for we are nothing but travellers in this world.

LET US PRAY, Lord God; today, you ask us to be ready for your coming; increase in us the desire to be prepared and ready for that inevitable event of death so that whenever it comes, it will not be a shock to us, we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. It's a lovely day, may God bless your efforts and grant success to the works of your hands.

Homily For Monday Twenty-Ninth Week in Ordinary Time Year B, 21st October, 2024

 

Readings: Eph 2:1:10, Ps.100, Luke 12:13-21

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

IF THE LORD SHOULD MAKE DEMANDS OF YOUR SOUL TODAY, YOUR WORLDLY POSSESSIONS, WHOSE WILL THEY BE?

There is no doubt that the material things of this passing world are very necessary for our well-being. They are gifts from God and he alone gives us the right to them. But what we possess is meant to help us grow in our relationship with God and our neighbours, not to separate us from them, because if we are not careful, too much love for material possessions can be an obstacle on our way towards God’s Kingdom. Little wonder Jesus, in our Gospel passage today, warns us against covetousness and excessive attachment to worldly possessions. This he greatly emphasized with the story of the Rich Man’s Harvest.

In this story a rich man who, having had a good harvest from his farm, thought to himself, “What am I to do? I do not have enough room to store my crops.” Then he said, “This is what I will do: I will pull down my barns and build bigger ones, and store all my grain and my goods in them, and I will say to my soul: My soul, you have plenty of good things laid by for many years to come; take things easy, eat, drink, have a good time.” But God said to him, “Fool! This very night, the demand will be made for your soul and this hoard of yours, whose will it be then?

Here, Jesus tells his disciples about the need to live a life of detachment. He used this story to teach his disciples and all of us about the futility of worldly desires and their pursuits. Thereby showing us the foolishness of human greed, as well as pride and ego. For in this man, we see the uselessness of human selfishness, covetousness and excess desire for worldly possession.

He constantly focused only on himself, saying I will do this, I will do that, ‘my goods, my fruits, my barns, my soul, etc, without any interest or room for his neighbours or the poor. He has no thought of God, nor his servants. If he had looked a little beyond himself, he would have seen many places where he could have bestowed his crops. Thus, there is a need for us to constantly prune ourselves from excess love for material possessions of this passing world.

The fact remains that material possessions in themselves are good, for we would not survive for long without them, but excess attachment to them at the expense of eternal life is grade-one suicide. No doubt, it is difficult to give out or share our possessions, but the ones who give up everything are the ones who receive more in this life as well as in heaven.

For St. Paul tells us in our first reading that we all, like those in the past, are living sensual lives, ruled entirely by our physical desires and our ideas; so we that by nature we were as much under God’s anger as the rest of the world. But God loved us with so much love that he was generous with his mercy: when we were dead through our sins, he brought us to life with Christ.

Dear friends, if the Lord Should call us today, what becomes of our souls and our worldly possessions? Today, detaching and sharing what we possess with others, especially the poor, is a sure way to find life, peace, and happiness. And Jesus is telling us that it will be difficult for us to enter his kingdom when we choose to attach ourselves to the riches of this passing world. Though material possessions are gifts from God, and he alone gives us the right to have them, what we possess is not meant to separate us from God; rather, they should help us to grow in our relationship with God and our neighbours.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, we are living in a world where materialism is the order of the day; help us to learn how to live a life of detachment and prune us always from the sin of covetousness and pride; we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a blessed week.

Homily For Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B, 20th October, 2024. World Mission Sunday

 

Readings: Isaiah 53:10-11; Ps. 33; Heb. 4:14-16; Mark 10:35-45

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

WHAT IS YOUR DISPOSITION TOWARDS THE MISSIONARY MANDATE OF CHRIST?

The true sign of a healthy Church is seen and established by the missionary activities carried out by the people of God. This is a fact we all must understand because going on a mission is an important aspect of our Christian faith.

So, today, we celebrate the World Mission Sunday, which began in 1926 by Pope Pius XI in his encyclical letter Rerum Ecclesiae. To mark the 98th World Mission Sunday this year we are presented with the theme "Go and invite everyone to the banquet" (cf. Mt 22:9). So, the “banquet" explains a celebration of community, an open dialogue of faith, and a testament to our commitment to welcome, first and foremost, our brothers and sisters on the margins of society.

Here, we are called to reflect on the missionary mandate that Jesus gave us, thereby reminding us that we are called to be missionaries, professing our faith to the whole world, telling them about the truth and love of God which we have found in Jesus Christ our Lord.

As Christians, all of us, by virtue of our baptism, have received this mission from Jesus. It is not reserved for any group of persons such as the clergy, religious or missionary societies. But every baptized person is obligated to be part of the missionary activities of the Church by witnessing with our lives and by supporting the missionary activities which we are called to do today and always.

But why must we go on a mission? The reason why we must go on a mission and also support missionary activities is that we are beneficiaries of missionary sacrifices of others who had experienced the awesome gift of God’s love and goodness and made them known to us. Secondly, we have, in so many ways, experienced the love of God and his benevolence, so we must extend the same to others.

But the most important reason why we must go on a mission is to establish and constantly renew the knowledge of God’s Kingdom in the hearts of humanity as Jesus commanded us to do. We need to let humanity know about the salvation our Lord Jesus has won for us by revealing the awesome love of God for all humanity.

We will understand the importance of this missionary mandate when we reflect on the ugly attitudes of most people in our societies today and how we are so obsessed with the love of power. People are ready to do anything just to grab power and sustain it. People kill, kidnap, blackmail and condemn others because of their ambition to hold power and sustain it. This ugly attitude of humanity is well displayed in our Gospel passage today when the two sons of Zebedee requested Jesus that he should promise that they should sit one at his right hand and the other at his left in his kingdom.

This unfortunate request was made while Jesus was telling his disciples about his passion and death. But instead of reflecting on the seriousness of the words of Jesus, they were busy quarrelling over who grabs power as most people do today, especially in our country, Nigeria, where many people are suffering and cannot afford their daily meals, but some are busy enriching themselves with the resources of the nation.

Little wonder when the other ten disciples heard about the request made by these two sons of Zebedee, they were indignant with the two brothers. Perhaps because they had misinterpreted Jesus’ teachings about the Kingdom and presumed that it would be a kingdom in which they would have honour and prestige like most people think today.

But Jesus called them and said, ‘You know that among the pagans the rulers lord it over them, and their great men make their authority felt. This is not to happen among you. No; anyone who wants to be great among you must be your servant, and anyone who wants to be first among you must be your slave, just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Dear friends, what is your disposition towards the missionary mandate of Christ? How are you contributing to this mission? As we carry out this missionary mandate, we must know that true greatness is found in sincere and humble service to others and not in ambition for power nor by plotting against others.

This ugly attitude is what we often experience in our families, societies and our country today. Where people do all kinds of evil in order to grab power and sustain it. But this should not be the same with us, for we heard what prophet Isaiah in our first reading today said about Jesus: by his sufferings shall my servant justify many, taking their faults on himself. And since he offers his life in atonement, he shall see his heirs, he shall have a long life and through him what the Lord wishes will be done.

Therefore, I don’t know what your experience has been as regards the missionary mandate of Christ. I don’t know which of the characters in our readings can best describe our attitude towards this mission. Are we like the sons of Zebedee? Is our attitude like that of the ten disciples? Is our attitude like that of the pagan rulers who lord it over others? Whichever category we fall in, we must change and have the right disposition which is a call for sacrificial love for God and for humanity.

Today we are called to be humble like Jesus, who came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. For he is the supreme high Priest who has been tempted in every way that we are, though he is without sin. Let us be confident, then, in approaching the throne of grace, that we shall receive mercy from him and find grace when we are in need of help as we heard in our second reading today.

Therefore, as missionaries and leaders, we should see ourselves as servants and not seek after status beyond our reach or plot the downfall of others. Remember, ambition can be a good thing but only if it is kept in check and if pursued for the right reasons, that is, to serve others.

 LET US PRAY: Lord God, as missionaries, we are often consumed by excess love for power, which we often misuse and abuse. As we listen to your teaching today, may we learn to use the power and authority entrusted to us in humble service for the common good of all. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a fruitful Sunday celebration.