17th Sunday of Year A

May God make you realize the full implication of the call to confirm to the image of Christ in order to bear the appropriate fruit of Christian charity that will be beneficial to your needy neighbour. Happy Sunday! + John I. Okoye

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(1 Kings, 3,5.7-12; Romans 8,28-30; Matt 13, 44-52, 17th  Sunday of Year A)

            In the 2nd Reading, the apostle Paul reveals to us God the Father’s design which he has from eternity predestined/called us to conform to the image of his Son, Jesus Christ. The theme of divine call is common in the Scriptures. The pressing question here is two folds: Who is called? And, to what are they called? In giving answer to the second question, Paul holds that those who are called are called to conform to the image of God’s son. The answer to the first question is proffered by the entire Christian tradition. All are called to conform their lives to the image of Christ, who is God’s first Son also. If believers conform themselves to the image of their elder brother, they will themselves become children of God. It is by being conformed that they will be justified and their justification will be the source of their glorification. Thus, as baptized, we have taken the first step in conforming to the image of Christ. We are already clothed with his image. What remains is the manifestation of this in our daily lives. The readings of today provide indications that could help us in this wise.

                First, we have to give a listening/docile ear to the message of Jesus’ parables about the kingdom of heaven as given in today’s gospel reading. Through the parables of the hidden treasure and the precious pearl, Jesus describes the supreme value of the kingdom of heaven and the attitude believers should have, if they are to attain it. The treasure is the kingdom of heaven, the reign of God, that is finding out what is God’s will in our lives and doing it. It is discovering the proper vocation of communion with God and the love of our neighbours. It is also the realization that we belong to God, that we are cherished and cared for, that we have been called to commit ourselves to the noblest values of the human heart.  The reign of God is the fulfilment of our deepest desires and our most cherished hopes. Nothing in the world can compare with it, and that is why we should be willing to sacrifice in joy everything to attain it. The treasure we find is really a gift that is given. We can neither work to attain the kingdom, nor earn it any way. It is given to us by God; all we have to contribute is to accept it. It is given out of God’s generosity as was in the case of Solomon of today’s first reading. God invites him to ask for whatever he would like. One could hold that the kingdom of heaven is ours for the asking. Unfortunately, we do not do so as we do not always recognize and appreciate its value. It is when the treasure, as the reign of God, is dominant in our lives that we can boast of confirming ourselves to the image of Christ as Paul would exhort in today’s second reading. 

            What will also help us confirm ourselves to the image of Christ is to share the treasure we have discovered. We should follow Solomon’s example in the first reading. Having been given the opportunity to choose any blessing he might desire, Solomon chose to be of service to others. We have discovered the treasure in the   field and found the pearl of great price; we have been blessed with the kingdom of God through our baptism. What we have been given, we must now share with others. We can be assured that it will be with us as it was with Solomon. In giving we will lose nothing. In fact, we gain an abundance of blessings. All things work for good and God is glorified in all. May we, therefore, pray in the Eucharistic celebration of this Sunday for the grace to have the treasures of the kingdom of heaven manifest in our lives and be enthused to propagate the same treasure in our circumstances of lives: in our families, places of work, among colleagues and associates, etc. Happy Sunday! +John I. Okoye

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16th Sunday of Year A-2017

May the Spirit of the good, loving and patient God always explain to you the real and interior meaning of his word so as to enable you remain the wheat of his field and enter into his barn at the end of your life. Happy Sunday! + John I. Okoye 

   DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(Wisdom 12,13, 16-19; Romans 8, 26-27; Matthew 13, 24-43: 16th Sunday of Year A-2017)

            There is often the tendency to think of God as a human being. Insofar as God can only be comprehended in the light of human reasoning, one should be able to understand that God is not human and cannot be expected to act as humans do. Contrary to normal expectation, he is patient and forbearing with everybody. He gives every person ample opportunity for a change of heart. The book of Wisdom, the passage of the first reading of today, presents such characteristics of God. The principal theme of the first verse of this passage is an acknowledgement of the total and exclusive providence of God. Only the God of Israel exercises care and he does so over all. God’s might is the second characteristic discussed in this passage. Divine justice springs from this might; justice requires that righteousness be rewarded and wickedness punished. In spite of God’s infinite power, and precisely because of it, he is mild in judgment and lenient in his actions. In fact, his sovereignty over all things makes him more caring and lenient in his dealings with his creatures. The reading went on to say that God acts thus, not only due to his own nature, but also to teach mortal mankind to be tolerant to one another and less judgmental in their dealings with one another. The reading exhorts people to pattern their treatment of others after God’s treatment of them, to temper their own might with leniency, to regulate their own justice with kindness. God’s kindness in the past gives them reason to hope for mercy in the future. Thus, they are expected to act in the same manner toward others.  
            The psalm of today’s liturgy, Psalm 86, continues the excellent perception of God. God is described as abounding in loving-kindness (hesed), the kind of steadfast love associated with the covenant. The psalmist calls God good and forgiving, most likely because of the way the psalmist has experienced God in the past.  God is recognized as Creator of all and, for this reason receives the homage of all the nations. The psalmist further describes God with the same confessional faith as is found in the account of Moses’s encounter of God at Sinai: compassionate (rahim) and gracious (hannun), slow to anger and filled with kindness (hesed).            Today’s gospel reading presents us three parables about the kingdom of heaven. Those of the mustard seed and the yeast address the unimpressive beginnings of the kingdom of heaven, its gradual and imperceptible growth and the extraordinary yield it will ultimately produce. In the parable on the wheat and the darnel Jesus teaches us the infinite mercy of God and his open-heartedness towards all sinners. In line with the usual human tendency, the servants wanted the master to, immediately, order the darnels be rooted out in order to allow the wheat grow without hindrance. But the master thinks otherwise. The darnel should be given a fair chance for them to prove that they are actually darnels. Moreover, the wheat should also be able to prove their worthiness to enter the master’s barn by their ability to remain untainted, even in midst of the darnels.

    In both the first and gospel readings, especially, the parable of the wheat and the darnel we are meant to understand that the good, merciful and loving God (first reading and the Psalm)  is ever ready to give a chance for repentance, even to the most hardened of sinners. He continues to call us all to turn away from evil deeds. He also expects that we cooperate with him in such opportunities for repentance. Let the sinner see whatever opportunity he has and the good things he enjoys, in spite of himself, as avenues God opens for him to turn away from sin. The virtuous should also not look down on any person, but should rather strive to help the sinner turn back to God. Turning back to God may not be so easy for us mortals or flesh and blood. We, therefore, need the power of the Spirit of God who will not only pray with us and present our prayer to God but will also show us how to relate with the good, loving and merciful God. Jesus explained the parables of the kingdom to his disciples; we have the Spirit to enlighten us about them. It is the Spirit that will help us interpret Jesus’ teachings and will help us be receptive/open to challenges they pose. May we, therefore, pray in today’s Eucharistic liturgy for this Spirit of God. Happy Sunday! + John I. Okoye.

15th Sunday of Year A

May God bestow you with his graces that will enable you not only to have the ears to hear his word but also to put it into work so that you will bear the expected fruit in abundance. Happy Sunday! + John I. Okoye

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(Isaiah 55, 10-11; Romans 8, 18-23; Matthew 13, 1-23: 15th Sunday of Year A)

            One of the prominent features of authentic Christian life is the fecundity that follows from a life-transforming attentiveness to the word of God. For the Christian, the word of God is not just a bundle of statutes and laws that command compliance, it is rather something very real that defines and determines one’s entire life. According to St. Paul, the word of God is something alive and active. The author of the book of Hebrews also attests: The word of God is alive, effective and sharper than a two-edged sword.

    The word of God by itself and in its nature is efficacious and capable of producing good fruit. This is in cognizance with what the prophet Isaiah holds in the first reading of today: As the rain and the snow fall from heaven and do not return without watering the soil, making it fertile, in the same way, says the Lord, will the word that comes from my mouth, not return to me without being effective, without doing what I intended it to do, without completing that thing for which I sent it. Thus, there exists a cause-and-effect relationship between the word of God and what it accomplishes. The word of God is consistent and reliable and human beings are totally dependent on it, as they depend on the nature God created. The word of God is performative or dynamic. By this, it is meant that once God speaks, the deed is done. When God said in the book of Genesis, let there be light, there was light. God’s word is his will. The metaphor of rain and its effect employed by Isaiah assures us that we can be confident in, and therefore, rely on the word of God just as we can place some measure of trust in the working of the natural world. Just as nature produces miracles upon which we can rely and because of which we can survive, so the word of God will effect miracles upon which we can rely and because of which we can live. We can live by the word of God if we are open and receptive to it.             In today’s gospel reading, Jesus identifies the different levels of receptivity to the word of God in the hearts of men. In some hearts, the word of God gains no proper entrance; it is left to settle only at the edge, thereby making no lasting impact on the individual. Others close up to the full indwelling of this word due to the superficiality of their disposition, while some others allow untold cares and worries to stifle the word already sown in their hearts. Yet, there are those who approach the word with the appropriate disposition, and are able to bear fruit in abundance. 
            The word of God remains a fecund seed in itself. However, every seed needs good soil and  apt ambient for it to germinate, grow and bear fruit. This brings us to deduce that the word of God, which Jesus sows in every one of us, needs the good disposition of the spirit to take flesh in us, grow and bear fruits of strong faith and good works. What and what are these good dispositions? The first is: humble disposition to listen. This boils down to mean, to listen to the word of God with openness, avidity, thirst and strong desire to be illumined and nourished by it. It means always listening to it, even when it is not palatable to us, exposes our weakness, condemns our wrong deeds and demands renunciation and sacrifices. Another disposition of the soul required so that the word of God might bear fruit is: constancy and force of will. The word of God proposes to us an ideal of life, a life that is lofty and noble. It is easy welcoming it at first with enthusiasm. It is, however, not so easy, nay arduous, to welcome all the demands and implications of the word of God, allow it to influence our actions and persevere in following the dictates of the word. For our response to the word of God to be effective, it has also to be holistic. By this we mean that we do not pick and choose when to listen to it, we do not listen to it when it is palatable and put a deaf ear when it is making radical demands from us. By being holistic also indicates listening to the word of God as found in the Scriptures, the liturgy, the celebrations of the Sacraments and the living traditions of the Christian community. We listen to God’s word that is sown in many forms and under many guises, in the events of the everyday life, both private and public. In this consideration we note that it makes little difference who sows the seed. God works through both the well recognized and the most unlikely sowers. The sower of the word of God  might be a legitimate leader of the Christian community, the Pope, the Bishop, the Priest etc or one of its otherwise ordinary members; it could be a child or an elder; it might even be someone from the outside; someone with whom we are not familiar, or do not particularly like. God moves through life indiscriminately, sowing the seed prodigally. The soul searching question is: how do we receive it?

 Today we are invited to reflect on how responsive we have been to the demands of God’s word.  Has it been able to touch our lives and transformed it or have we allowed frivolities, superficiality and fear of change to render it inactive, ineffective and unproductive?   What do we do with the word of God we listen to every Sunday, read to us and preached to us? God’s plan for us is revealed in his words, and the way we open up to this word goes a long way to determine how much of the life of God we may hope to have in us. Therefore living the life of God demands that we bear fruits by allowing his word to guide our way of life. Happy Sunday!

+ John I. Okoye

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14th Sunday of Year A

 May the Holy Spirit lead us to the true knowledge of each person of the Holy Trinity that will enable us to bear our Christian burdens with joy, in charity and with ardent hope that  we shall one day enjoy  in fullness the intimacy of the Blessed Trinity. Happy Sunday! +John Okoye 

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(Zechariah 9, 9-10; Romans  8, 9, 11-13; Matthew 11, 25-30: 14th Sunday of Year A)

            To appreciate the message of hope in today’s first reading better, we need to bear in mind that the Israelites of Zechariah’s time were indeed going through a lot of difficulties. Fresh from exile in Babylon, the people were despaired on seeing the city and the temple of Jerusalem in ruins. But prophet Zechariah encouraged them not to lose hope since the Messiah is sure to come with victorious and triumphant power. But who is this Messiah? He is no other than Jesus Christ who in today’s gospel reveals his very identity to us. He speaks to God the Father, calling him Daddy (Abba) showing his mutual closeness to Him. He is the Son of God, the only Son of the Father. Between him and the Father there is a perfect and total communion, all I have are given by my Father. There is also a reciprocal and perfect knowledge between him and God the Father: no one knows the Father except the Son and no one knows the Son except the Father. In the biblical tradition, especially the wisdom, to know something presumes some form of experiential knowledge. To know another implies intimate knowledge of that person. Jesus here indicates that only God can really know him, because only God has this kind of experiential knowledge of him. Correspondingly, only he can really know God, for only he has experiential knowledge of God. If anyone else know God, it is only because Jesus has revealed God to that person. In this sense, Jesus is the mediator of knowledge of God. From today’s Gospel passage, one can summarise Jesus’ identity as the Son of God, the revealer of the Father and the way that conducts to the Father.

     It is, however, important to note that although this Messiah/King will be victorious over all his enemies, he was not going to achieve this victory through the same means as the kings of the earth. He is rather humble and riding on a donkey. This Jesus who is the human manifestation of the divine, is meek and humble. Though divine and, therefore, exalted, Jesus is not proud. On the contrary he is humble. The king depicted in the first reading from Zechariah is humble and full of love and humility, he will banish wars and proclaim peace to the nations, till the ends of the earth. Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem showed that he is the expected Messiah, the peaceful one who, far from the use of weapons of war, would rather conquer human hearts with sympathy and love. He will overturn the burdens of human existence and make the world more habitable. This fact is made clearer in the gospel reading with the following admonition of Christ: Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

   Like the Israelites of Zechariah’s time, we are living in a period marked by distressing situations. Added to the moral depravity we suffer is the brunt of social and economic and political stagnation that has left many confused and bewildered. But, the Lord calls us to himself. He offers us an alternative that will make our burdens lighter and our life more peaceful. He invites us to walk in his footsteps for a change, by living out our lives in kindness, love of all men and humility. By so doing, our undertakings will be much easier and our difficulties more consoling, since Christ would lead the way. Surely, it will be so, if we, as the disciples of Christ, comport ourselves, not as the wise but the simple ones in today’s gospel reading. The wise and intelligent of this world of today are those who feel they are independent of God, self-sufficient, wield absolute power, proudly enjoy positions of prestige, think they can manipulate every person and thing, place their happiness on their wealth and what they are able to achieve and use other people as instrument for their success. The wise are the little and simple ones who depend on God, do not place their security on their wealth or earthly position of power or prestige. Our Christian yoke will be less heavy and very productive if we allow the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Spirit of God (as Paul so indicates Paul in today’s second reading) to lead and guide us. This is the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead, the same Spirit who dwells in every Christian and, therefore, dwells in you and me. Let us from today’s Eucharistic celebration intensify our life in the Spirit, that is to say life attuned to the Triune God. Happy Sunday! +John I. Okoye

grsphics  by chukwubike 

13th Sunday of the Year A, 2017

May the graces of today's Eucharistic celebration fire into flame the spiritual powers bestowed on you at your baptism, thereby making you an instrument of God in the work of evangelising the world in your immediate family, your place of work and in the circumstances of your life. Happy Sunday! +John Okoye

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(2 Kings 4: 8-11, 14-16; Rom. 6: 3-4, 8-11; Matt. 10: 37-42 13^th Sunday of the Year A, 2017)

            One of the greatest gifts God gives to any human being is the gift of the sacrament of Baptism. Baptism is for us, both death and life. Through it we enter into Christ’s death and we die to lives of selfishness and sin. Through it, we rise with Christ to a new life freed from everything that previously held us down. This is what Paul wishes to teach us, in the 2nd reading of today, through the symbolism of baptism by immersion. While the decent into baptismal waters can symbolize Christ’s decent into death, there is another dimension of the water imagery that strengthens Paul’s argument. According to ancient tradition, the cosmic waters were chaotic, therefore, death dealing (Gen 6-9; Job 22,11; Psalm 73,13-14; Isaiah 27,1). To be engulfed by water was to be swallowed up into chaos of death. This symbolism lends itself to describing both the death of Christ and Christians’ baptism. Christ was plunged into the chaos of death; the Christians are plunged into the death of chaos. By the power of God, Christ rose to a new life of glory; by the power of God the Christians are raised to the glory of a new life. As glorious as this new life might be, it requires death to our old ways of living, and this is always difficult. By this, we are called to be disciples, to become new creations, to be prophets in the world. By virtue of our baptism we are called to be sent, to share the gift we have received from God and to witness to the gospel. This can either be, by means of active missionary apostolate or by supporting the course of mission in other different capacities. Among the themes of the readings of today is the call to selflessly offer up our time, talents and wealth for the spread of the gospel of Christ. We have example of this in the story of the Shunemite woman. The woman of Shunem, as the first reading informs us, decided to play host to Elisha, even without knowing whom he really was, for the simple fact that she perceived him to be a man of God. One observes that this Shunamite acted the way she did without hoping for material gain. She went ahead to welcome Elisha as a member of her family, showing that she approved of his mission and was ready to share in it. Interestingly, this woman was only expressing a motherly affection for a man of God, and never imagined that Elisha could be of any help to her. But God, through the mouth of the prophet Elisha, compensated her with a prophet’s reward by promising her a child, her husband’s old age notwithstanding. The woman welcomed a prophet and received the rewards of a prophet as Jesus enunciated in today’s gospel. This demonstrates that God does not allow any one outdo him in generosity.

    Last Sunday, Jesus enjoined his disciples not to be afraid in the proclamation of the gospel, by assuring them that the Father knows their needs and cares for them. In today’s gospel, he seems to be calling the attention of the generality of Christians to the fact that this work of God demands our collective support for its sustenance. He assures us that such show of solidarity goes with its own rewards. Thus, Jesus reminds us that anything done to a messenger of his is as if it were done to him and God. Since Jesus was the agent of God sent into the world to accomplish God’s plan, and since the disciples are agents of Jesus sent into the world to continue that mission, those who are open to the disciples are also open to Jesus and God. Even though hospitality was presumed in Jewish Society of Jesus time, Jesus promises that generosity done to a disciple will not go unrewarded.

    It would not be wrong here to remind ourselves of Jesus’ words in the grandiose scene of chapter 25 of the gospel of Matthew where He states:  any time you have done these things (given assistance to the needy, welcomed people, visited the sick, given food to the hungry etc) to any of the little ones (the aged, the sick, the poor, the marginalized, prisoners, the handicapped) you did them to me. The spirit of generosity, hospitality and openness of heart towards others, especially those in need should really be  proper characteristics of a true and authentic Christian. This is the spirit that should be cultivated, first and foremost, in our families, to be manifested in the mutual love of the spouses and love towards their children regardless of their state of health or performances in the society and also towards other members of the extended family. Such spirit is also to be verified in our parish communities that should be known for their welcoming spirit especially in the offer of assistance to the most needy members.  

            Today, we have to reflect on how much we have been contributing to the advancement of Christ’s mission on earth. Do we encourage and appreciate the efforts of those who have taken this task as their life endeavor? Or are we simply passive, or even go as far as sabotaging the little efforts of these servants of God. As members of Christ’s Body, we are all called upon to work for its sustenance, by assisting those who had to leave their families and other comforts of life in order to commit themselves to the service of God. We can, therefore, offer this assistance through material aid or more importantly, encourage them by our show of love, appreciation, prayers, solidarity and sense of fraternal understanding. Happy Sunday! +John I. Okoye