Homily For Saturday after Ash Wednesday, 8th March, 2025

 

Readings: Is. 58:9-14, Ps. 86,  Luke 5:27-32

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

THE LORD HAS NOT COME TO CALL THE RIGHTEOUS BUT SINNERS 

Jesus on account of his mission to save humanity had been calling people from different works of life to be part of his mission, but today’s call and choice of Levi, also known as Matthew, a man identified with sinners because of his work as a tax collector, was quite strange to some people as we have it in our Gospel passage today. 

The call of Levi differs from the call of the other apostles because Levi was a tax collector, a profession that is labelled to be sinful since the collectors extort excess taxes from the people for personal profit and enrich themselves at the expense of their fellow citizens. They are thus held in great contempt. 

However, to follow Jesus, Levi must abandon his ugly but lucrative job. By so doing, he needs to also cut himself off from his old network of friends. So, it seems likely that, in a spirit of joy, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to a great feast in his house, and his fellow task collectors were present. 

But the Pharisees felt bad and offended about Jesus sharing a meal with such kind of people regarded as "sinners". So, they complained to his disciples, but Jesus had to correct this notion when he said: "It is not those who are well who need the doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the virtuous, but sinners to repentance.  

Here, we heard the innermost desire of Jesus for sinful humanity in need of salvation. The call of Levi is like the call of each of us, a choice that demonstrates Jesus' desire for sinners to repent. For all he desires is mercy and not sacrifices, repentance and not pride. 

Jesus is calling us to repentance; he is inviting us to make a fundamental choice for God. Just like Levi, who, though sinner, rose up and followed Jesus at his call for repentance, we, too, are to respond to this invitation without delay. Let Levi be an inspiration and hope for all sinners.

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

The truth is that all of us are sinners who have been privileged to have such a loving, caring, compassionate and merciful God, who is always willing to embrace us and heal us from our afflictions of sin. For we are sinners who have been called to a new existence with God, to embrace a new life filled with God’s grace and free from the corruption of sin. Because God despises our sins, but not we sinners. 

Hence, we are called to let go of our sinful occupation to embrace a more glorious one. For God has promised us through prophet Isaiah in our first reading, that if we do away with the yoke of sin, the clenched fist, the wicked word, if we give our bread to the hungry, and relief to the oppressed, then our light will shine in the darkness, and our shadows become like noon.

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

 

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

Homily on Friday after Ash Wednesday, 7th March, 2025

 

Readings: Is. 58:1-9; Ps. 51; Matt. 9:14-15

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

FASTING WITH THE RIGHT INTENTIONS AND PURPOSE

One of the spiritual exercises during this season of Lent is fasting. That is the willful refrainment from eating for a period of time as a means of getting our minds focused on God our creator while realizing the reality that our lives are not self-sufficient. Fasting helps us realize just how fragile we are and how much we depend on things beyond ourselves.

Fasting is not just about putting on sackcloths and ashes on oneself as were customary in the past to show repentance and regret, but more importantly, fasting must be accompanied by a change of heart from within and not just the outside.

Hence, today, prophet Isaiah, in our first reading, tells us to fast with the right intention and purpose, and not just fasting but also all other sorts of observances and practices during this Lenten season. We must have the right disposition and direction as we move along through this time of purification and repentance.

This Lenten season is a good time for us to reorientate ourselves and our lives as we seek to redress our sins and our past wicked ways of life and embrace once again God’s love and mercy. For that is the kind of fasting that pleases God and yields positive results.

Thus, in our Gospel passage today, the disciples of John the Baptist criticized Jesus and his disciples for not fasting as the Law of Moses has prescribed fasting on certain days as a custom, which they observed with great passion and zeal. The Pharisees fasted and did all that because they wanted to be praised for what they had done, and they liked it when others looked up to them for their piety and commitment.

But Jesus tells his disciples that they should not fast with such intention; rather, fasting must be for a purpose and should be done at the proper time. He said to them: Surely the bridegroom’s attendants would never think of mourning as long as the bridegroom is still with them. But the time will come for the bridegroom to be taken away from them, and then they will fast.

This is because Jesus is the groom, and as long as he is around, it would be inappropriate for his disciples to fast. However, a time will come when the groom will no longer be with them, then they will surely fast, telling us that fasting should be done at the right time for the right reasons.

Moreover, being in a relationship with Jesus is more important because what the bridegroom is to the bride is what Jesus is to the souls of all who believe in him. So Jesus is teaching us that the Kingdom of Heaven is not a matter of ritual or ceremonious fasting or feasting. But it is about building a personal relationship with God, who loves us personally and unconditionally.

Dear friends, we can make the best use of this Lenten season by turning ourselves and our whole being towards God through fasting. We should not let ourselves be distracted by the vanity of the things of this passing world. This is a time we are called to humble ourselves before God and refrain from all the corrupt ways of life, pride, greed and over-ambition which lead us to sin and death. This type of fasting is what pleases God and yields positive results. Therefore, through our fasting let us sincerely repent from our sins and make the best use of this opportunity that God has given to us.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, as we deny ourselves the pleasurable things of this world through fasting, may we open up our hearts to you and sincerely reject all our sinful habits and so embrace the life of holiness. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. God bless you.

Homily For Thursday after Ash Wednesday, 6th March, 2025

 

Readings: Deut. 30:16-20, Ps. 1, Luke 9:22-25

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

COME LET US CARRY OUR DAILY CROSS AND FOLLOW THE LORD

Reflecting on the continuous hostility, persecution and influential powers of the things of this world, I think is time for us to really think twice about our faith as Christians, whether we are actually ready to live out our faith in the midst of these ugly situations in our societies, which are not stopping soon, for it is getting tougher every day. Thus, if we are really willing to live up to our Christian faith and obligations, then we need to make a radical decision towards our discipleship in a personal and radical way.

Hence, concerning this radical decision, we are called in our first reading today, to make choices between life and death, blessing or curse. And we are encouraged to choose life so that we may live in the love of the Lord our God, obeying his voice and following him, for in him consists the true meaning of life. Therefore, we are to choose that one path that leads to life while rejecting those that lead to evil and death.

Similarly, this same choice was presented by the Lord Jesus to his disciples in our Gospel passage today, as he revealed to them what he would have to endure for the salvation of humanity, how he is to be betrayed and made to suffer, crucified and die on the Cross, a most painful and humiliating death. In the end, he said that those who believe in him should take up their crosses daily and follow him. That though they may lose their lives physically in the eyes of the world, they will gain it in the eternal glory that is to come.

Dear friends, as we journey through this Lenten season, Jesus is presenting the same choice to us, for we have to choose between enjoying all that this world has to offer us, all the materialistic pursuits and excess desire for the pleasurable things around us, all the pursuits for excess money, possessions and wealth, the accumulation of vain fame and glory which in reality are separating us from God and Jesus is calling us to turn away from these worldly things and embrace the way of the Cross that teaches us to love, to sacrifice, to embrace peace, to share with one another for in it we attain holiness of life.

Therefore, we are called today to deny ourselves the pleasurable things of this passing world in order to take up our Cross and follow the Lord. It’s time to make a radical decision to sincerely and faithfully follow Jesus. But how much are we willing to sacrifice for the sake of following him? Why are we finding it difficult to follow Jesus? What are those habitual desires and possessions that are holding us from making this radical decision today? Thus, it is time to come to God with all our hearts, for tomorrow may be too late.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, as we decide to journey with Jesus today, help us to make the right choice by embracing the way that leads to life while rejecting our excess desire for the pleasurable things of this passing world which have weakened our hearts towards you. May the cross of Christ be for us a shining example in our daily struggles so as to hold firm in our faith despite all the sufferings and persecutions we may encounter. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a fruitful day.

Homily on Ash Wednesday, 5th March, 2025

 

Readings: Joel  2:12-18, Ps. 51, 2Cor 5:20-6:2 Matt. 6:1-6.16-18

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

COME LET US RETURN TO THE LORD WITH ALL OUR HEARTS 

Every day is an opportunity to return and come closer to God. However, today being Ash Wednesday, we begin a new journey towards our God. It is the day we begin our forty-day Lenten journey that leads us to the joy of Easter. And as tradition may have it, the beginning of Lent is marked with the blessing and imposition of Ash on our forehead. 

This act of putting on Ashes symbolizes our human fragility, filth and mortality, which is in dear need of God’s mercy and redemption. Calling us to remember that we are dust, and unto dust, we shall return but will raise us up again.

So, being a season of sober reflection on the journey towards our God, we are called for a change of attitude and behaviours during this Lenten season. In fact, in our first reading, prophet Joel calls us to return to the Lord with all our heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. Here, he emphasises the phrase “with all my heart”. This means turning to God from the depths of our thoughts and feelings, from the roots of our decisions, choices and actions. 

The prophet further tells us to return to the Lord our God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, rich in faithful love, ready to relent of evil. More so, in our Gospel passage today, Jesus gave us the regulations we need to follow to faithfully return to God as he calls us to be careful not to parade our good deeds before men to attract their notice; by doing this, we will lose all reward from our Father in heaven.

But the question that comes to mind is, with the pleasurable things of this passing world, is it possible for us to truly return to God with all our hearts? I believe so because there is a force, say Benedict XVI, that does not reside in our hearts, but that emanates from the heart of God to us. It is the power of God’s mercy and grace. Therefore, a return to the Lord is possible with God’s grace, which is a reality in our lives only when we let his grace penetrate our inmost being.

Hence, St. Paul tells us in the second reading that we cannot let this holy season pass us by because it is offered to us as a unique opportunity that reminds us about the high cost of the reconciliation offered to us at the cross on which Jesus was hung. Hence, the call to return to God with all our heart in this Lenten journey leads us through the cross, following Christ on the road to Calvary, which demands the total gift of ourselves. 

This call is a way in which we learn every day to come out more and more from our selfishness and our closures, to make room for God, who opens and transforms the heart through constant listening to His Word and making it the light that illuminates our paths. This we do following the three fundamental practices of almsgiving, prayer and fasting as a sign towards the Lenten journey of returning to God with all our heart.  

Dear friends, knowing that we are dust and unto dust we shall return, what is keeping us from returning to the Lord who has the power to raise us up again? What is That ugly attitude that often separates us from our God and from one another? Oftentimes we promise to return to God but lack the courage and discipline to fulfil that promise. So, this season is another wonderful opportunity to make the decision to return to the Lord. 

I don’t know what sin you are struggling to overcome. I don’t know how grievous our sins are? I don’t know how far we have separated ourselves from God? All I know is that God’s mercies are greater than whatever sin we may have committed. All we have to do is make that bold decision to return to him, who loves us so much and is always willing to welcome us whenever we come back to him.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, as we make up our minds to journey towards you these forty days, may your grace be with us to help us utilize the opportunities you are offering us, especially to repent and strive to live a holy life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Wishing you a grace-filled Lenten season.

Homily For Tuesday Eight Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 4th March, 2025

Readings: Sir. 35:1-12; Ps.50; Mark 10:28-31

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

THE REALITY OF LEAVING EVERYTHING TO FOLLOW THE LORD

There is no doubt that the things of this world can be very captivating. The more you are attached to them, the more they consume you. We find it difficult to let go of them or know when we should be detached from them. That is why today, many people are consumed by them since they can not find any reason why they should let go of them. For we see how people can go to any length to acquire properties, treasures, fame, influence and power that will last from the fourth to their tenth generation, without thinking of that which will lead to life eternal. 

This is exactly the mindset of most people today, and this is not different from the disposition of some of the disciples of Jesus. Little wonder Peter in our Gospel passage today, asked Jesus a very important question about sacrificing everything for the sake of following him. 

So, in response, Jesus draws his attention to the fundamental principle of our human existence, when he said to him: ‘I tell you solemnly, there is no one who has left house, brothers, sisters, father, children or land for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel who will not be repaid a hundred times over, not without persecutions now in this present time and, in the world to come, eternal life.

Here, Jesus is calling us to a life of detachment from material things of this passing world. He is reassuring us that all those who have given everything committed their time and efforts, and are making sacrifices for the sake of his kingdom would not be disappointed nor left without rewards. 

Their reward in the end will be truly great, for God remembers those who love him and have given up themselves for his sake. He will guide them and remain with them throughout their journey no matter how tough it may be. Hence, we heard in our first reading that a virtuous man’s sacrifice is acceptable, and its memorial will not be forgotten, for the Lord is a good rewarder; he will reward him seven times over.

Dear friends, today Jesus addressed the very thing that most people are not ready to give up. Those things such as money, houses, credentials, love of power, pride and wealth, beauty and fame. But, if we are honest enough, we will admit that we all have some things we would be very slow to let go of if Jesus should make the demand of them. Those things we so much attached ourselves with and would not like God to ask us to give them up for the sake of following him. 

But the fact remains that, one day we will surely leave everything and go. I mean everything even our greaves. We will surely leave our house, our properties, treasures, fame, influence and power, our wealth and money. We will surely leave our relationships, friends, our job, our habits and attitudes. We will leave our wives, husbands, children, fathers, mothers and families; we will even leave our life, our beauty, handsomeness and everything we so much attached ourselves to. Then we will realize that following God is the ultimate treasure that we need. 

So, whatever we possess that will separate us from our mission of following Jesus and loving our neighbours, today we are called to give them up and come follow the Lord because in leaving them for the sake of the mission, we actually gain all in abundance.

LET US PRAY, Heavenly Father, we are so much attached to things of this passing world, help us to know that excess attachment to our earthly possessions could be an obstacle on our way to your Kingdom. Give us the grace to let go of things that often separate us from you as we learn to share with our neighbours especially the poor. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen Have a fruitful day.

Homily For Monday Eighth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 3rd March, 2025

 

Readings: Sir. 17:24-29; Ps. 32; Mark: 10:17-27

Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

WHAT WILL YOU FIND VERY DIFFICULT TO LET GO FOR THE SAKE OF ETERNAL?

A critical observation of how humanity is so much attached to the things of this passing world with little or no attention to the things that edifice the human soul and lead to eternal life is quite alarming. People can go to any length to acquire properties, treasures, fame, influence and power that will last from the fourth to their tenth generation without thinking of how to acquire that which will lead them to eternal life.

This is exactly the mindset of most people today, and this is not different from the disposition of the rich man and some of the disciples of Jesus in our Gospel passage today, little wonder Peter asked Jesus a very important question about sacrificing everything for the sake of following him after the rich man walked away from Jesus because he could not let go of his riches and follow Jesus.

So, in response, Jesus draws his attention to the fundamental principle of our human existence, when he said to him: My children, ‘how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

Here, Jesus is not condemning human riches, so we should not think that he is asking or demanding that we should surrender all of our wealth and worldly possessions. No, that was not what he intended and we should not interpret the Gospel passage literally. Rather, what Jesus is saying is that we should learn to live a life of detachment in order to follow him wholeheartedly. That means we must put God first and above every other thing. We should not allow our worldly possessions, fame, wealth, influence and power to separate us from God and our salvation.

So, Jesus is reassuring us that all those who have given everything committed their time and efforts, and are making sacrifices for the sake of his kingdom would not be disappointed nor left without rewards. Their reward in the end will be truly great, for God remembers those who love him and have given themselves for his sake. He will guide them and remain with them throughout their journey no matter how tough it may be.

Thus, we should not depend on worldly possession and power for they will rob us of true wisdom. Little wonder, in our first reading today, we were told to return to the Lord and leave sin behind, plead before his face and lessen our offence. Come back to the Most High and turn away from iniquity, and hold in abhorrence all that is foul. How great is the mercy of the Lord, his pardon on all those who turn towards him!

Dear friends, what is the essence of our existence in this world? What does God really require from us in this life? Do you know that without God everything in life is vanity vanishing? So today Jesus addressed the very thing that most people are not ready to give up. Those things such as money, houses, credentials, love of power, pride and wealth. But, if we are honest enough, we will admit that we all have some things we would be very slow to let go of if Jesus should make the demand of them. Those things we so much attached ourselves with and would not like God to ask us to give them up for the sake of following him.

In fact, it might be a good thing today for us to ask ourselves what would be the most difficult thing for us to give up if Jesus should ask us to do so. It might be something we own, like our properties, treasures, fame, influence and power or wealth; it may be a relationship, our job, or our habits and attitudes.

So, whatever we possess that will separate us from our mission of following Jesus and loving our neighbours, today we are called to give them up and come follow the Lord because in leaving them for the sake of Jesus, we actually gain all in abundance. Therefore, let us not be carried away by the beauty of the things of this passing world, for nothing lasts forever. Rather, we should remain steadfast in our faith in God, who has called us to love him and to love one another, for that is all that the Lord has required from us in this life.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, we are so much attached to things of this passing world, help us to know that excess attachment to our earthly possessions could be an obstacle on our way to your Kingdom. Give us the grace to let go of things that often separate us from you as we learn to share with our neighbours especially the poor. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a blessed week. 

Homily For Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C, 2nd March, 2025

 

Readings: Sir. 27:4-7; Ps. 92; 1Cor.15:54-58; Luke 6:39-45

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

LEARN TO REMOVE THE LOG OF PRIDE IN US BEFORE DELETING WITH THE SPECK OF WEAKNESS IN OTHERS

As humans, we are quick to always criticize and condemn other people. We are good at seeing people's faults and mistakes. But has it ever occurred to us that, while we were condemning other People’s faults, we suddenly realized that our own faults are just as many as theirs?

This ugly attitude is what Jesus is addressing in our Gospel passage today when he said: Why do you observe the speck in your brother’s eye and never notice the log in your own? How can you then say to your brother, “Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,” when you cannot see the log in your own eyes? Hypocrite! Take the log out of your own eye first, and then you will see clearly enough to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.

Here, Jesus is referring to that ugly attitude that the Pharisees and the Scribes, and indeed most of us and our so-called leaders today, have decided to embrace. For we have neglected the spirituality behind the natural human traditions and laws to follow the manyy ritual and routine traditions and laws we have created out of our own selfish desires.

Leaders who have the responsibility to lead, guide and teach the people have decided to embrace darkness and falsehood. And the greed, jealousy and wickedness in our hearts have blindfolded us and made us become blind leaders of the blind.

Hence, Jesus told us how we have failed to see the log in our eyes while seeking to remove the speck in other's. But what is this log in our eyes? It is the log of pride. Pride makes us forget who we are and claim who we are not. Pride makes us look down on people. Pride makes us blind. It makes us not look into our own lives to see how we can accommodate other people’s weaknesses. Little wonder pride is the first capital sin.

Therefore, we are called to humbly look into our lives and identify all those ugly attitudes of pride in us and get rid of them, so that we can humbly correct and accommodate other people’s speck of faults and weakness. Little wonder, in our first reading today, we are told that in a shaken sieve, the rubbish is left behind, and so, too, the defects of a man appear in his talk. For a man’s heart is known from his expressions and actions.

So we are called to look into our lives and examine our conscience before we begin to judge people. We must learn to accommodate other people’s weaknesses, opinions, and backgrounds. No doubt that this can be a very difficult thing to do, but this is what we are called to do and should be the right disposition for us to have. So, for this to be possible we must learn to avoid and die to the sin of pride and embrace humility.

This is what St. Paul is telling us in our second reading today when he said: When this perishable nature has put on imperishability, and when this mortal nature has put on immortality, then the words of scripture will come true: Death is swallowed up in victory. Death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting? Now the sting of death is sin, and sin gets its power from the Law. So, let us thank God for giving us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Dear friends, today we are called to die to the self to rise in humility; we are called to look into our lives and examine ourselves to see those ugly attitudes in us that need to be corrected. We need to know if we are in any way behaving like blind leaders of the blind. Are we such leaders who only see the errors and weaknesses of others without looking into our own lives? We are called today to constantly examine our conscience to know what kind of attitude and judgement we give to people.

Hence, in any capacity we find ourselves we must learn to accommodate other people’s weaknesses and opinions, knowing that we also have our own ugly attitude that people have to accommodate. Therefore, we are called to take away our log of pride to humbly remove and accommodate the speck of faults and weaknesses in others. So let us cultivate the right disposition of heart that will make us accommodating, loving, forgiving and tolerant in our relationship with others to lead those entrusted to us safely towards the path of truth and eternal life.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, we are often ignorant of our ugly attitude of pride, which makes us always see the faults of others without looking into our own. Help us to realize that we need to take away the log of pride that makes us blind in order to humbly remove, correct and accommodate the faults and weaknesses of others. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a glorious Sunday celebration.