Homily For Tuesday Thirty-Second Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 11th November, 2025. The Memorial of St Martin of Tours

 

Readings: Wis. 2:23-3:9; Ps.34; Luke:17:7-10

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

EMBRACING THE HUMILITY OF A  FAITHFUL SERVANT OF GOD

 

In our society today, the rate people seek rewards for what they have done and some even for what they have not done is quite disturbing. Today it is difficult for people to do things without looking for what they will gain from it. 

In fact, it takes courage to trust people even when they extend their hands of generosity to others because we often think that they have some ulterior motives behind the generosity. But this should not be our attitude as disciples of Christ.

 

Little wonder in our Gospel passage today, Jesus, in the parable of a dutiful servant, corrects some of the wrong thinking and notions about being a disciple and teaches us what our true place and disposition should be. 

In the parable, Jesus compared our relationship with God to that of a master and his servant. Where the servant had a duty to serve his master well and to do what he had been told to do without seeking any compliments. Because the master has no obligation to congratulate or please the servant.

 

Therefore, this tells us that we are “unworthy servants” before our Worthy and righteous God who loves us even in our unworthiness. So disciples should not seek reward for their good deeds. For our obedience to God is required by the very nature of who God is and not something to boast about or seek a reward for, since our obedience to him is that of a son or daughter to a loving Father. 

Little wonder St. Paul in our first reading made us know that God made man imperishable, he made him in the image of his nature; it was the devil’s envy that brought death into the world, as those who are his partners will discover. But the souls of the virtuous are in the hands of God, no torment shall ever touch them.

This is what we see in St. Martin of Tours whose memorial we celebrate today.  He was one of the early bishops of Tours in what is now southern France. He was truly dedicated to his service as the shepherd of his flock, dedicating his time and efforts to take care of the needs of his flock, in particular their spiritual needs. 

He was a champion of true faith amidst several heresies that were rampant at that time, protecting his flock from false teachings and helping to guide them down the right path, leading by example through his own virtuous life. We too can do the same.

Dear friends, today we are reminded that following Jesus requires being a humble and faithful servant of God. Hence, we should do all our good works in humility without any strange attachment. We should do what we can to help others we meet on our way for no reason other than to help for the sake of helping. 

Therefore, as faithful servants, all that is required is for us to act justly, love tenderly and walk humbly before God, without seeking any reward, for that is what we are called to do. Remember that everything that happens to us, whether prosperous or adverse, comes from God so that you neither become puffed up in prosperity nor discouraged in adversity. Thus, in anything you do avoid evil, do good, and seek peace.

 

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, teach us how to be humble and faithful servants, even when it is difficult. Grant us the grace to be faithful and humble servants at any level we find ourselves without seeking rewards. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a faithful day.

Homily For Monday Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 10th November, 2025. The Memorial of St. Leo the Great.

 

Readings: Wis. 1:1-7; Ps.139; Luke 17:1-6

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

THE SACRIFICIAL NATURE OF FORGIVENESS AND FRATERNAL CORRECTION

The fragile nature of the human person has made it clear that we are not perfect, as we are likely to offend one another in any relationship we find ourselves in. As a result of this, there is a need for us to learn how to accommodate one another’s imperfections.

But one of the major challenges we face in most relationships today is the ability to properly accommodate and correct one another especially when one is straying from the norms set up for the good of the relationship.

This is what Jesus is addressing in our Gospel passage today, for he gave us the practical steps we need to follow in order to correct and reconcile with one another so as to build a stronger relationship when he said, Be on your guard for when your brother does something wrong, reprove him and, if he is sorry, forgive him. And if he wrongs you seven times a day and seven times comes back to you and says, “I am sorry,” you must forgive him.’

Here, Jesus made us know that in fraternal correction, we need to forgive in any relationship we find ourselves in, for we are responsible for one another’s welfare, and these steps and stages give room for reconciliation and accommodation.

So, fraternal correction must always be inspired by real charity which is one of the spiritual works of mercy. Though this is never an easy task, especially when one has to bear the sacrifice of forgiveness, because forgiving a very grievous offence is one of the most difficult things to do.

However, forgiving a grievous offence is like recovering a lost treasure that contains: joy, peace, freedom, a healthy mind and healing. But how often do we seek to recover this lost treasure in our lives caused by unforgiveness?

Hence Jesus today calls us to persistently seek reconciliation until we gain our brothers and sisters back whenever they have offended and separated from us. But if they refused to be reconciled, we should pray for their conversion. For in all our proceedings, we should seek direction in prayer, knowing that God manifests his mercy when he transforms people and leads them to conversion.

This helps us to perceive forgiveness as a fraternal correction as Jesus teaches us and turns us from selfish and rebellious individuals into truly loving persons. For we are meant to watch over our neighbours.

This is what Pope St. Leo the Great, whose memorial we celebrate today, is telling us. For he showed us what it means to be a true and dedicated disciple of the Lord, telling all Christians to recognise our dignity and remain faithful and committed to the mission entrusted to them by Christ Jesus.

Dear friends, it is our duty, obligation and responsibility to ensure, in a fraternal charity, that our fellow brothers and sisters, friends and neighbours, colleagues and collaborators are corrected and guided whenever they go astray. For every one of us has the responsibility to strengthen our relationship and be a good example for one another as we work the path towards our salvation.

Therefore, mutual love and fraternal charity are the only ways and processes of fulfilling this obligation. Little wonder today we are told in our first reading to love virtue, you who are judges on earth, let honesty prompt your thinking about the Lord, let us seek him in the simplicity of heart. For wisdom will never make its way into a crafty soul nor stay in a body that is in debt to sin; since the Holy Spirit of instruction shuns deceit.

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, we are rebellious and proud people; we lack the courage and disposition to correct and accept corrections. Give us the grace and courage to correct one another in fraternal charity as we also learn to accept corrections when corrected. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a blessed week.

Homily For Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time Year C, 9th November, 2025. The Feast of the Dedication of the St. John Lateran Basilica

 

Readings: Ez.47:1-2.8-9.12, Ps.46, 1Cor3:9-11.16-17, John 2:13-22

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

UNDERSTANDING THE NATURE OF THE CHURCH AS THE TEMPLE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

 

Today, in a special way, the Holy Mother Church celebrates the Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, which falls on the 9th day of November, and we also celebrate the feast of the dedication of St. John Lateran Basilica in Rome. It is the Mother and head of all the Churches and a symbol of unity for all the Churches in the world with the Roman Church. 

This feast reminds us of our need to live in deep communion with the Pope, the successor of St. Peter, the rock on which Jesus built his Church on which our faith as Christians depends.   However, we should never lose sight of the fact that it is the symbol of the true meeting point between man and God, and Jesus Christ who is the actual temple.

 

Little wonder Jesus in the Gospel passage today points to himself as the temple of God in the world, the one through whom God is present in the world.  Here, he is speaking of the Temple that was his body when he said to the Jews: Destroy this Temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 

Thus, prophet Ezekiel in our first reading today prophesying about this Temple said: ‘Along the river, on either bank, will grow every kind of fruit tree with leaves that never wither and fruit that never fails; they will bear new fruit every month, because this water comes from the sanctuary. And their fruit will be good to eat and the leaves medicinal.’

 

While St. Paul in our second reading, emphasises that the Christian community, the body of Christ, is the place where God is to be truly present in the world. The Church is a spiritual temple and each member of the Church is a temple of the Holy Spirit, a living expression of God’s loving presence in our world today. 

He said: ‘Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anybody should destroy the temple of God, God will destroy him, because the temple of God is sacred; and you are that temple'.

 

So today’s feast of dedication reminds us about our dedication to God by showing us the theological understanding of what Church dedication represents. It reminds us that the Church building is a sign of God’s worshipping community, pointing out that the people should be aware that the holiness of the building depends not on the “blessed stones”, but on the saving words proclaimed in it, the holy sacrifice offered there, the sacraments of salvation celebrate there and the presence of the Holy Spirit who dwells in the hearts of the faithful gathered in the Holy Assembly for worship. 

 

As a temple of God, we are nourished in the Church with the Word of God, calling us to repentance and encouraging us in our daily struggles in life. In the Church, we receive the sacraments of initiation: baptism, and confirmation and are nourished by the Holy Eucharist. In the Church, we come to God with our burden of sin and sickness, and he heals us through the sacraments of reconciliation and anointing of the sick.

 

Also, in the Church, we receive God’s grace and blessings to serve him in different vocations and ministries through the sacraments of matrimony and Holy Orders. In the Church, our Lord Jesus Christ remains present with us in the Holy Eucharist, present in the Tabernacle, in the company of Our Blessed Mother Mary and all the Saints. 

And when we pass away from this world, especially as the temple of God, the Church accompanies us through prayers to our heavenly temple, where we will be united with the triumphant Church in the presence of God, our Loving Father. 

 

Dear friends, now we can understand the nature of the Church Temple of the Holy Spirit and why St Paul says that our bodies are sacred temples of the Lord. This, in fact, is the heart of our own baptismal character, to become temples of God through whom God’s loving presence touches the lives of others. So, today we are reminded that we are a sacred reality, where God dwells, which should not be profaned or used as a material object. 

Therefore, we must preserve our bodies from stains of sin and corruption. We must not let the pleasurable things of this passing world defile our bodies, which by the virtue of our baptism have become a sacred dwelling of the Holy Spirit. For this reason, we must unite together to build up the body of Christ, which is His Church.

 

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, as we celebrate the feast of the dedication of your Church, help us to realize that our bodies are the sacred temple of your dwelling presence and so preserve it always from the stains of sin and corruption. We ask this through Christ our Lord.  Have a fruitful Sunday celebration.

Homily For Saturday Thirty-First Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 8th November, 2025

  

Readings: Romans: 16:3-9.16.22-27; Ps.145; Luke 16: 9-15

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

CAN YOU BE TRUSTED WITH WHAT IS NOT YOURS?

 

One of the difficult challenges people face as regards beginning and sustaining any meaningful thing in our society today is getting people who can be trusted or those who can trust us. 

Today, when we walk through the streets, we observe how people are struggling with the things of this life because of a lack of trust. We can feel their passion, determination and willingness to achieve great things even in the midst of corruption and challenges of life. 

How I wish we could put such energy into working towards the things that edify our souls. But the questions we need to ask ourselves are: can I be trusted with the smallest things in this passing world? How am I using the things of this world?

 

This is what Jesus is telling us in our Gospel passage today when he said; Use money, tainted as it is, to win you friends, and thus make sure that when it fails you, they will welcome you into the tents of eternity. 

For the man who can be trusted in little things can be trusted in great; the man who is dishonest in little things will be dishonest in great. If then you cannot be trusted with money, that tainted thing, who will trust you with genuine riches? And if you cannot be trusted with what is not yours, who will give you what is your very own?

 

Here, we have the continuation of yesterday’s parable of the dishonest steward, which today Jesus explained its meaning and how it can be related to the lives of the people, telling us that we should be careful not to fall into the temptations of money and other worldly pleasures which are trying to lead us away from God and the salvation he has given us. 

Little wonder we heard St. Paul in our first reading saying: Glory to him who can give us the strength to live according to the Good News he preached in which he proclaimed Jesus Christ as the revelation of a mystery kept secret for endless ages, but now so clear that it must be broadcast to pagans everywhere to bring them to the obedience of faith.

 

Dear friends, today we are called to live a life of integrity. Every one of us is called to be good managers and custodians of whatever blessings and resources God has given us, for we are all reminded that we have been called to follow the Lord and to devote ourselves to Him wholeheartedly. Therefore, we must learn to be trusted and ensure that we manage whatever is entrusted to us. 

 

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, as we listened to your words today, may we not be carried away by the things of this passing world. Rather than give us the grace to live a life of integrity and trust in order to develop our societies positively, we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a grace-filled weekend.

Homily For Friday Thirty-First Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 7th November, 2025

Readings: Romans 15:41-21; Ps.98; Luke 16: 1-8

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

DON’T BE SMART ONLY IN THE THINGS OF THIS WORLD BE SMART ALSO WITH YOUR SALVATION

The elements of good and bad seem inherent in the human person; it's little wonder the world involves both good and bad mixed together. This will help us to understand the reason for corruption, greediness, immoral and social decadence in our world today. But even in the midst of all these ugly situations, we are expected to be wise and smart in our dealings with the things of this passing world.

Little wonder, in the Gospel passage today, Jesus tells us the parable of this dishonest steward who, having acted unjustly and having been exposed by his master, went to great lengths to make friends of his master’s debtors to secure his future.

In this parable, Jesus is not telling us to be dishonest, but he wants us to know that we can learn even from this dishonest servant how to prudently use the things of this passing world to gain our salvation.

Thus, Jesus points out that we too should be smart, but not exactly like the dishonest steward, using dishonest wealth to exploit others, as most rich people do today. No, instead we, his disciples, are to use our wealth to win souls for the kingdom and safeguard our own souls.

But more importantly, if we understand the principle that says that everything we own is a gift from God, then we will realise that God is the owner of everything and that we are His stewards. As such, we are to use the Master’s resources to further the Master’s work and not the contrary.

In this context, we are told to be generous with our resources and use them for the safety of our souls and the growth of God’s kingdom. Little wonder St. Paul, in our second reading, says: My brothers, I am quite certain that you are full of good intentions, perfectly well instructed and able to advise each other.

Dear friends, today, we are called to examine our conscience to know where we are with regard to our vocation as Christians. How can we best harness the things entrusted to us so that they can be the source and midst of safeguarding our souls surrounded by sin, corruption and greediness?

We are called today to be wise and smart, for if worldly-minded people can be smart in their dealings, we too should be smarter in our struggles for the salvation of humanity. We should utilize the resources available to us and use them to secure our salvation,

LET US PRAY: Lord God, in our struggles with the ugly situation in our societies today, give us the grace and skills to manage the resources entrusted to us and use them properly for the salvation of humanity, we ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. It’s Friday, wishing you a fruitful day.

Homily For Thursday Thirty-First Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 6th November, 2025

 

Readings: Romans: 14: 7-12; Ps 27; Luke 15:1-10

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

LIKE THE LOST SHEEP THE LORD IS SEARCHING AND WAITING FOR US

It is natural and common for any human person to desire to seek and find any valuable thing he/she have lost. Some people even have sleepless nights over their lost items.

Some can go to any length hoping to recover any of their valuable commodity that is lost. If we can do this just for perishable things of this passing world, don’t we think that God will do even more to save every single soul he created in his own image and likeness?

Little wonder in our Gospel passage today, Jesus, while addressing the Pharisee who accused him of welcoming sinners, tells us the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin, which illustrate the unrelenting love of God for each of us, especially sinners.

In these parables, we see two examples of people searching for what is precious to them. And when they found it their joy was so great. So, Jesus uses these examples to explain to us how God seeks us when we are lost in sin and his joy when our friendship with him is renewed. His searching for us cost him the sacrifice of his Son Jesus Christ.

This can help us to realise how precious we are to him, that he never gives up on anyone except those who choose to be lost. All we need is for us to return to God who is patiently waiting for us.

Thus, St. Paul in our first reading said: the life and death of each of us has its influence on others; if we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord, so that alive or dead we belong to the Lord. This explains why Christ both died and came to life.

Dear friends, are we lost in sin? Have we given up in our struggle with sin? Do you think that our sins are so huge that God cannot forgive us? Do we feel lost now? Jesus is searching for us, he is waiting for us at the confessional.

When was the last time we visited him at the confessional? Just know that he loves us and we are too precious to be lost in this sinful world. Therefore, we must work out our salvation in fear and trembling.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, we are lost in this passing world due to our sins. Seek out humanity once again from the wilderness of sins, so that we may return to you, just like the lost sheep and the lost coin, and so rejoice and praise you once again with the angels. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Peace be with you.

Homily For Wednesday Thirty-First Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 5th November 2025

 

Readings: Romans 13:8-10; Ps.112; Luke 14:25-33

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

THE PRICE TO PAY AS DISCIPLES OF CHRIST

As true disciples of Christ, we must constantly reflect on the nature of our discipleship in order to be aware of the seriousness of the commitment required of us.

This is important as Jesus in our Gospel passage today, takes his discourse on discipleship to a radical and difficult level when he said: ‘If any man comes to me without hating his father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes and his own life too, he cannot be my disciple.

Anyone who does not carry his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. So in the same way, none of you can be my disciple unless he gives up all his possessions.’

Here, Jesus teaches about the cost of discipleship. That there is a price to be paid. However, 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,

This is important 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, 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.

Thus, 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 their life.

None of us can become his 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.

Dear friends, how much are we willing to let go for the sake of discipleship? Do we find it too demanding? In what ways? Is giving up ‘all my possessions’ realistic, and if not, what does this passage mean to me? Whatever my response may be, may God give us the grace to grow in freedom, to be ready to follow and to serve him in a new way.

Also, we should be able to speak to the Lord about the points of difficulty in paying this cost. Little wonder St. Paul in our first reading tells us to avoid getting into debt, except for the debt of mutual love. If you love your fellow men you have carried out your obligation as disciples

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, the excess desire for the pleasurable things of this passing world have weakened our hearts from becoming good disciples, give us courage and grace to let go of our ugly desires, so as to hold firm in our faith despite losing people and things that are dear to us. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Have a fruitful day.