26th Sunday of Year B, 26th September, 2021

Through the Eucharist we celebrate today, may we ask God to grant us the grace to be happy for any good deed done by our brothers and not to be envious of him/her.

Happy Sunday!

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

Number 11, 25-29; James 5,1-6; Mark 9,38-43.45.47-48; 26th Sunday of Year B, 26th September, 2021)

Today the Gospel’s current teaching can be useful to us for ecumenism. It is prepared from a passage from the book of Numbers that goes along the same lines. The second reading is about dishonest riches.

In the Gospel, John refers to Jesus: Master, we saw one who cast out demons in your name and we forbade him, because he was not one of us. Jesus replies: Do not forbid him! The Gospel also presents us with Jesus’ other affirmations that show us the importance of knowing how to know when it is necessary to be uncompromising, and when it is necessary to be flexible. This discernment is very important in life. Flexibility is necessary in the case of ecumenism. We must not assume a sectarian/fanatical attitude, which rejects any positive judgment on people who are not part of the Catholic Church; we must recognize that they too receive graces from the Lord. Certainly, we must want them to become part of the Church, however we must not be intolerant, but welcoming to them.

John thinks that one must be uncompromising. He forbids anyone who is not of the group of the Twelve to cast out demons in Jesus. It seems right to him that, in order to use the name of Jesus one must be with him and not independent from him. But Jesus has different opinion, and says to the disciples: Do not forbid him, because there is no one who works a miracle in my name and immediately afterwards speaks ill of me. Who is not against us, is for us. So, he was flexible, welcoming, and uncompromising. He didn’t want to forbid the good that can be done, even if certain circumstances do not seem entirely regular. The same attitude is highlighted in the first reading, taken from the book of Numbers. Moses has to share his duties with seventy elders. The Lord takes the spirit that is upon him and infuses it upon the elders. They then begin to prophesy, that is, to speak in an inspired way, thus demonstrating that they have been chosen by God to lead his people. Two men remained in the camp. They were among the members, but they did not go out to the tent. The spirit also rests on them, who begin to prophesy. A young man is scandalized: these two men were not in the group that went to the tent, and, therefore, they must not prophesy. The young man runs to report the matter to Moses. Joshua says to Moses: Moses, my lord, prevent them! Moses, on the other hand, is welcoming. He is not jealous; therefore, he answers to Joshua: Are you jealous for me? And he adds: Would that all of the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would give his spirit to them now! So, he rejects the feeling of jealousy, and possessive love. The graces of the Lord must not be an occasion for feelings of jealousy, envy, but for attitudes of openness, because they are all graces that go in the sense/direction of love, and universal love. Similarly, Jesus in the Gospel tends towards an attitude of flexibility, of acceptance. Therefore, he says to John and the apostles: Do not forbid him! Then he adds: Anyone who is not against us is for us. A person, even if he is far and united with Jesus as a true disciple, but does good in his name, is with him. He is not against him, because he does good with him. In another passage, however, he says: Whoever is not for me is against me (Matt 12,30). But in this case, it is a personal decision to be taken towards Jesus: one must be for him, otherwise one is against him.

Then, Jesus gives us a teaching on cases in which one must be intransigent. These are the cases of scandal. Scandal means to lead someone to evil. Jesus begins by defending the little ones from all forms of corruption, saying: Whoever scandalizes one of these little ones who believe, it would be better for him to put a big millstone around his neck and throw him into the sea. In our days, we often speak of pedophilia. In itself, this word should have a beautiful meaning, because etymologically it means friendship for children; but in our language it has acquired a very negative meaning: that of inducing children to impure thoughts, attitudes, behaviours and habits. Jesus defends children with extreme vigor: he says that it would be better to suffer the worst of tortures (to pass a big millstone around a person's neck and throw him into the sea) rather than scandalize them. Then he takes other cases in which it is necessary to be intransigent into consideration: If your hand offends you [that is, if it is an occasion for grave sin], cut it off: it is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go to Gehenna, unquenchable fire. If your foot offends you, cut it off: it is better for you to enter life crippled than to be thrown with two feet into Gehenna. If your eye scandalizes you, tear it out: it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than to be thrown with two eyes into Gehenna. Obviously, Jesus uses a symbolic language here, presenting concrete examples of hand, foot and eye. In reality, it is not the hand, the foot and the eye that lead man to evil, but his bad intentions. However, with these examples, Jesus wants us to understand that, when there are circumstances that lead to mortal sin, we must be radical, accepting even the strongest and most painful renunciations. In this regard, we can recall a phrase that Queen Bianca of Castile used to say to her son, Saint Louis IX, King of France: I would rather see you dead at my feet than you commit a mortal sin. A mother who says these things to her child shows that she truly understands the gravity of the mortal sin, and knows that the death of the soul is worse than that of the body. We must have the same conviction. It is really important to know how to be uncompromising when it comes to serious infidelity to the Lord: infidelities that prevent one from entering into eternal life, into eternal communion with God. The things that prevent entry into eternal life are of extreme gravity; so, they must be rejected with an attitude as energetic as ever. Unfortunately, in our days there is a lot of talk about permissiveness, and many bad behaviors are justified. We Christians must be the salt of the earth, we must keep all our flavor; therefore, we must strongly reject all the temptations presented to us by the modern world.

In the second reading, James also uses very strong words against the rich, dishonest, people who exploit the workers: Behold, the wages you have robbed from the workers who have reaped your lands are crying out; and the protests of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. James wants to make these people repent with the threat of divine punishments.

They too must convert and have uncompromising attitude against all forms of dishonesty.
Today's readings offer us significant lessons. We ask the Lord in the Eucharist to give us the strength to be truly uncompromising when necessary and, on the other hand, to be flexible when charity requires it.+John I. Okoye

Graphics by Chukbyke

25th Sunday of Year B, 19th September, 2021

May we through this Eucharistic celebration of this Sunday realise that the greatness lies in the service of our needy neighbour and may God grant us the disposition to always care for our neighbours that

 

DOCTRINE AND FAITH
(Wisdom 2,12.17-20; James 3,16-4.3; Mark 9,30-37: 25th Sunday of Year B, 19th September, 2021)

On this Sunday the liturgy recalls the Passion of Jesus twice. In the first reading, taken from the book of Wisdom, the hostility of the wicked against the just is reported in a very impressive way. In the Gospel, Jesus announces his passion. The Gospel shows us that the disciples do not understand this message from Jesus and do not behave consistently with it. This is a lesson for us who must be consistent with our faith in the crucified and risen Jesus.
The evangelist tells us that Jesus and his disciples were going through Galilee, but he did not want anyone to know, and he instructed his disciples saying: The Son of man is about to be delivered into the hands of men and they will kill him; but he will resurrect after three days. Immediately afterwards, Mark says that the disciples did not understand these words and were afraid to ask for explanations. Jesus' announcement is clear: it is about his passion and his resurrection. But the disciples have other perspectives; that's why his words don't enter their minds. For them the Messiah must be victorious, he must triumph; therefore, he cannot be delivered into the hands of enemies, he cannot be killed. Another difficulty was that the term resurrect was not very clear at that time. We have now a specific word to indicate resurrection from the dead. In the time of Jesus, the terms used were rather vague: there were expressions like getting up, and waking up. These terms could be misunderstood. But the clearest and main hinderance is that the disciples do not accept this announcement at all because immediately afterwards, they discussed who is the greatest among them. While Jesus announced his humiliation - that of being delivered into the hands of men as a culprit, and the even greater humiliation of being crucified, after being condemned - the disciples preoccupy themselves with the aspiration for greatness, they argue over which of them should have the first place. All this is inconsistent: they follow a teacher who does not seek places of honor but wants to serve to the point of giving his life as a ransom for many, yet they aspire to occupy great positions. We too are often not consistent with our faith and live according to human criteria of seeking ambition, greatness and honor. Jesus then gives his disciples and us this teaching: If anyone wants to be first, he must be the last of all and the servant of all (cf. Matt 20,27). This is the gospel principle: greatness consists in serving.  Spontaneously, we do not think so. Our human perspective is that of thinking that whoever serves is at the bottom, is not the first, but the last, while whoever is served is at the highest place in society, and therefore is honored and considered as the first. Instead, Jesus shows us that true greatness consists in serving. In this perspective, those who are not needed are not great, they cannot be the first. To be the first, you have to put yourself in the last place, to serve everyone else. This teaching of Jesus is strong, demanding, but it is also so necessary and so beautiful. Jesus asks us to know how to appreciate service and not honors. A humble servant is greater than a rich man who serves no one and allows himself to be served by others. In society, it is the contrary mentality that continually prevails; but we must know how to reject it and evaluate all things according to this Gospel principle: If anyone wants to be first, he must be the last of all and the servant of all. To inculcate this teaching even better, Jesus takes a child, places him in the middle, embraces him and says to the disciples: Whoever welcomes one of these children in my name welcomes me; whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me. Thus, it makes us understand that service consists in welcoming people and, above all, the humble which include children. Jesus shows immense respect for children, so much so that he identifies with them: Whoever welcomes one of these children in my name welcomes me. All the Church's commitment to the education of children is based on these words of Jesus. She intends to welcome the Lord by welcoming children, placing herself at the service of their life and formation. Jesus then adds: Whoever welcomes me welcomes not me, but the one who sent me. It is not possible to welcome a person more important than the Father. Here Jesus uses the term welcoming, again opposing the mentality of the world. Trying to welcome God does not mean going towards heights and honors, but going downwards and towards humility and undertaking humble services.

The first reading shows us how the human mentality can easily become perverse: instead of welcoming the just and the Lord, it shows itself hostile to the just and tries to suppress them. It is a strange thing, but very real, that those who are bad also take pretexts from the qualities of the righteous to persecute them and to harm them. Let us lie in wait for the just one- says the wicked, because he annoys us and opposes our way of life, he reproaches us for the transgressions of the law and accuses us of the shortcomings against the education received. [... ] Let's put him to the test with insults and torments, to know the meekness of his character and test his resignation. Let us condemn him to an infamous death, because, according to his words, help will come to him. The passion of Jesus was provoked by the wickedness of men. Jesus who did good, who showed himself to be so generous and merciful to everyone, is precisely for this reason criticized, persecuted, accused and condemned. We must ask God for the grace to be freed from this bad mentality, through union with the meek and humble heart of Jesus.
In the second reading, the apostle James exhorts us to have an attitude similar to that of the merciful heart of Jesus. He tells us that we must not be jealous and contentious, which often provoke all sorts of bad actions, but rather, we must behave virtuously in an atmosphere of  peace, meekness, prudence, mercy and  fruitfulness, without partiality, and hypocrisy. Our Christian ideal is that of meekness and humility of heart like Jesus’. We must realize this ideal in our concrete life, in our relationships with the people we come into contact with every day. James strongly criticizes Christians who are not faithful to this ideal. From his words we can understand that in the primitive community some were Christians only in name, but not in fact, and therefore allowed themselves to be guided by their passions. James asks Christians: From what do the wars and quarrels that are among you come from? In the Christian community there were wars and quarrels, and this constituted a scandal. James thus explains the fact: [These wars and these quarrels] do they not come from your selfish and ambition-driven fight among yourselves? Therefore, it is necessary to be truly faithful to the spirit of Christ. Then James exhorts us to pray in the right way, saying: You ask, and you do not get, because you ask badly, to spend on your pleasures. We must not ask for anything to be spent on pleasures, but ask for good, that is, first of all to ask for the grace to make progress in the Christian life, in faith, in hope and in charity. Let us follow Jesus who with his passion has conquered evil and with his spirit of service has overcome selfishness. We must truly follow him, not letting ourselves be deceived by spontaneous human tendencies, which push us in the opposite direction.
Let us ask the Lord for the grace to understand the teaching that he wants to give us today and to be docile to the impulse that comes to us from the Holy Spirit, to always make us more like Jesus who is meek and humble of heart. +John I. Okoye

 

24th Sunday Year B, 12 September 2021

May we in this Eucharistic celebration of this Sunday acknowledge that Christ is the suffering Messiah and to take up our cross daily and follow him.

                    Happy Sunday!

                    DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(Isaiah 50,5-9a; James 2, 14-18; Mark 8,27-35: 24th Sunday Year B, 12 September 2021)

On this Sunday the liturgy presents us with a very important Gospel episode: Jesus asks the disciples what the people think of him, and then what they think of him; and after Peter's confession he announces his passion. This announcement is prepared by the first reading, which is an oracle of the prophet Isaiah about the Servant of the Lord. The second reading, taken from the Letter of St. James, speaks of faith that must manifest itself in works.

After the first part of his public life, Jesus goes to the region of Cesarea  Filippi, a territory North-East of Palestine. Here he asks his disciples: Who do people say I am? His ministry has been very successful; he spoke as no man has ever spoken (cf. John 7,46) and at the same time manifested an extraordinary goodness and an impressive power: he welcomed all the sick and healed many. Therefore, his person raises many questions: people wonder who this character so powerful and so good is. The disciples answer Jesus' first question: for some he is the risen John the Baptist, for others Elijah (Elijah, according to the biblical account, was not dead, but had been taken up into heaven; his return was expected); for others one of the prophets who had a similar fate. So, people are uncertain about the true identity of Jesus. Jesus then addresses a second question to the disciples: And who do you say that I am? Peter replies: You are the Christ. Guided by the Holy Spirit, Peter recognizes that Jesus is the Messiah, the promised king of the lineage of David, the king who was to be the Son of God. God in fact had promised through the mouth of the prophet Nathan: I will be a father to him and he will be a son to me (2 Sam 7,14). The reaction of Jesus to this confession of Peter is unexpectedly negative. He accepts this title, but severely requires his disciples not to tell anyone about him, not to tell anyone that he is the Messiah. This is because he does not want to be a political messiah and be made a king. This was exactly the same motive that led him retire into the mountain after the multiplication of loaves (cf. John 6,15). Indeed, the messianic expectation in the Jewish people was manifested then in a way that did not please Jesus. Without doubt he is aware of being the Messiah, but he knows that the fate of the Messiah is not the one imagined by the people. People think of the Messiah as a triumphant king or, more precisely, as a character who must provoke an insurrection, take power and free the Jewish people by force of arms. Jesus does not intend to favor this image of the Messiah; therefore, he forbids the disciples to reveal that he is the Messiah. At this point he begins to teach that the Son of man must suffer a lot. Son of man is an expression that Jesus often uses to designate himself. And a title that has nothing of triumphalism, but that simply means a man called to a mission, without those military resonances aroused by the title of Messiah. Jesus affirms that the Son of man will have to suffer a lot, be rejected by the elders, the high priests and the scribes, be killed and, after three days, be resurrected. He makes this speech openly. Peter then takes him aside and begins to scold him. Peter does not accept this humiliating fate for Jesus. He too thinks of a triumphant Messiah, not of a man reproached by others, who must suffer, be accused, mistreated and killed; therefore, he cannot accept this perspective. Jesus' reaction is decisive and severe. Peter reproached him; now it is he who reproaches Peter and says to him: Get behind me, Satan! Because you do not think according to God, but according to men. God's thoughts are not like those of men, as the prophet Isaiah tells us (cf. Isaiah 55,8-9). In the case of Jesus, God's thoughts go in the direction of having to face a painful and humiliating passion. But this passion will have very positive effects, of salvation for all men: effects that cannot be obtained by means of a military triumph, with the force of arms. This is God's plan, which had already been indicated, although not so explicitly, in the prophecies and, in particular, in the songs of the Servant of the Lord.

Isaiah's oracles on the Servant of the Lord do not speak explicitly of the Messiah, so they leave room for various interpretations. However, they announce a painful fate for the Servant of the Lord: he must present his back to the flagellators, his cheek to those who tear off his beard, not steal his face from insults and spurs. His is a truly humiliating fate. But the Servant of the Lord says: The Lord God assists me, for this I am not confused, for this I make my face hard as stone, knowing I will not be disappointed. In this humiliating fate, the Servant of the Lord is sure of being assisted by God. Therefore, he does not lose courage, on the contrary he shows extraordinary firmness.

After the announcement of the passion, Jesus gives a general teaching, valid for all those who want to become his disciples: If anyone wants to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me. These are very clear words, which erase all the illusions of those who want to become a disciple of the Messiah to triumph with him and satisfy their own spontaneous human aspirations. Jesus says that one must deny oneself (therefore, renounce one's human aspirations for triumph, success and domination), take up one's cross and follow him. Then from a general rule: Whoever wants to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for my sake and for the gospel, saves it. To understand this important principle of Jesus, we must remember that man's vocation is a vocation to love: God, who is love, created us to communicate his love to us and enable us to live in love. Therefore, man's happiness is not found in selfishness, but in love. Whoever wants to save his life loses it, because he sets out on the path of selfishness, and cannot find true joy in it. On the other hand, whoever accepts to lose his life for the sake of Jesus and his Gospel saves it, because he is decisively set on the path of love: for the love of the Lord, he accepts a difficult fate, a hard fight; he accepts also to lose his life to love, and thus reaches perfect and definitive joy. We must always keep in mind this teaching of Jesus, because our spontaneous tendency is to seek happiness immediately, and therefore to put ourselves on the path of selfishness, which does not lead to true joy. We must always accept to lose our life, that is to renounce our immediate interests, to seek the kingdom of God, which is the kingdom of love, peace and joy.

The second reading speaks of the faith that must manifest itself in the works. James says: What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? May be that faith can save him? Here James seems to take an orientation contrary to that of Paul, who in several passages of his letters condemns an attitude of trust in the works. In reality, his teaching is not contrary to that of Paul, because Paul properly rejects the trust in the works of the law. He never speaks against works of faith; indeed, in a passage of the Letter to the Galatians he says: In Christ Jesus it is not circumcision that counts or uncircumcision, but faith that works through love (Gal 5, 6). This corresponds to the teaching of James, which requires that faith manifest itself in works, produce works of love or if it does not produce works, faith is dead in itself. This teaching of James greatly displeased Luther, who misinterpreted Paul's words, thinking that he opposed all works, whatever they were. With a certain contempt Luther defined the letter of James a straw letter, not realizing however that Paul and James are in full agreement with each other: they both want faith to be operative, that it is not only an ideology, an abstract theory, but a dynamism that transforms all life. This message of James ultimately also corresponds to the teaching of Jesus in today's Gospel. By faith, we are called to lose our life for love, and thus we will get true life, true joy and eternal happiness. The martyrs had the courage to lose their lives for the love of the Lord, and thus they achieved true joy and eternal happiness. We too must always follow this orientation, having a faith that frees us more and more from our selfishness and that puts us more and more on the path of generosity and love. +John I. Okoye 

(graphics  by Chukwubike)