3rd Sunday in Advent, Year C; 15th December 2024)

 He who is near, comes to live among us: He will free our life from the weeds that compromise it, He will guard the good wheat so that it matures and bears abundant fruit. Happy Sunday!

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(Zephaniah 3:14-17; Is 12:2-6; Phil 4:4-7; Luke 3:10-18; 3rd Sunday in Advent, Year C; 15th December 2024)

On this third Sunday of Advent, which the liturgical tradition defines as "Gaudete", starting from the Pauline invitation to always be happy, joy seems explosive and uncontainable. It is expressed first of all in the many imperatives that we hear in Zephaniah: "rejoice"; «shout for joy»; «rejoice and acclaim». "Sing and rejoice", we pray with Isaiah in the responsory of this liturgy of the Word. We have already said it: even the apostle Paul, ("I repeat it to you”) insistently urges a joy that must "always" characterize the life of believers. The vocabulary of joy today is therefore multiple and varied, it is colored with different verbs and adjectives, but its motivation is only one: the closeness of the Lord, his coming among us, his remaining among his people. “The Lord your God is a mighty savior among you,” announces Zephaniah (3:17). Paul echoes him: "The Lord is near" (Phil 4:5).

Luke's Gospel passage seems to act as a counterpoint to this joyful and sunny luminosity, which once again shows us the figure of John the Baptist, with his radical and demanding announcement: John, in fact, presents the Coming One as the one who (holds in his hand the shovel to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn; but he will burn the straw with unquenchable fire" (Luke 3:17). The contrast, however, is only apparent. We can even discern in these words of the Baptist the tone of promise rather than that of threat. He who comes is a powerful savior, Zephaniah announces, and his salvation manifests itself as liberation: he burns and eliminates everything in our life that is weed, chaff, straw; while he collects and eliminates, he safeguards the good wheat the soil of our existence will be able to produce.

Yes, we know it well: our life is often marked by many contradictions, which intertwine with each other to form a tangle that, alone, we cannot untangle. We too have the experience, described by Paul in the Letter to the Romans, of not being able to do the good we would like and, on the contrary, doing the evil we do not want to do (see Rom 7:14-25). We must recognize our inconsistencies, falls, inability to complete the paths of spiritual life that we design with such generosity. Here then is the happy news that the Baptist proclaims; he who is near, comes to live among us, brings with him this promise: he will free our life from the weeds that compromise it, he will guard the good wheat so that it matures and bears abundant fruit. Also, for this reason the Baptist presents Jesus as "stronger than me". If the baptism in water that he imparted was only a sign to recall the need for penance and conversion (that path of sanctification that we desire to follow but which often leaves us with the bitterness of our failures and the emptiness of our failures) the baptism in the Holy Spirit and fire will have the strength to accomplish in us what, left to ourselves and our vain voluntarisms, we are unable to bring to a successful conclusion.

Thus, John responds to the crowds who question him, and his answer goes far beyond the question, offering a deeper and more decisive look. To those who ask him: "What should we do?", John does not limit himself to indicating some signs of conversion, to be placed in ordinary life, so that the word of God and the newness of the Gospel take shape and flesh in it. He also announces that what everyone must do finally becomes possible precisely because he who comes, makes himself close to our lives with all his power of salvation. Yes, the Lord is close: he is close to our weakness with his strength, he is close to our sin with his forgiveness, he is close to our desire with his promise of fulfillment, he is close to the tangle of our inconsistencies with his word which gives order and transparency to our lives.

The announced joy then produces some fruits in us: it frees us from fear (do not fear), Zephaniah announces - since we can hope for a fulfillment that does not come from us but is given to us from above; it makes us lovable: “may your lovability be known to all”, exhorts Paul - because it allows us to be simple and transparent, no longer tangled up in our vain efforts and in our inconsistencies; It makes us people capable of hope and expectation. Thanks to John's preaching, in fact, "the people were waiting" (v.15). Joy generates waiting and waiting is filled with joy. Evangelical joy, in fact, is never just the enjoyment of what we know or what already satisfies our desire: it is always waiting for him who comes to surprise our life with a gift greater than our own hope. And it is an expectation in which our joy mixes with the very joy of God. Zephaniah, in fact, in addition to announcing our joy, reveals to us the very joy of God: «he will rejoice over you... he will rejoice over you with shouts of joy" (3:17). God rejoices over us. This is true joy, its truest and most stable foundation. We rejoice because God comes among us; but even before that, it is God himself who rejoices in dwelling among his people. Our deepest happiness lies in recognizing with amazement that God desires nothing more than this: to share his joy with us. 

+ John I. Okoye

3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, 21st January, 2024

 “Until now you have been a fisherman, now you will become a fisherman of men. There is a change, even a radical one, that does not destroy what you have always been but rather makes it mature to its fullness.” May the good Lord in this holy Mass give us the grace to live the life worthy of our call as Christians. Happy Sunday!

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(Jonah 3,1-5.10; Psalm 24 (25); 1 Cor 7,29-31; Mark 1,14-20; 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, 21st January, 2024)

“The time has become short,” writes the apostle Paul to the Corinthians (1 Cor 7,29). “The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand,” Jesus proclaims in Mark (1,15). Jonah also brings Nineveh an announcement regarding time and its end: "Forty more days and Nineveh will be destroyed" (Jonah 3,4). This attention to time, which dominates the liturgy of the Word on this Sunday, is closely connected to the theme of choice. The time is approaching, and our decision is urgent, which cannot be postponed.

For Paul, the brevity of time changes our relationship with the world, with history, and with the relationships we weave in it. Since Jesus died and rose again, the world has been transformed. His figure passes not because it dissolves into nothingness, but because it is transfigured in the promised fulfillment. The world takes on a new figure: from being the only horizon in which our life is called to play out, it becomes a prophetic sign of a future world, which we certainly still have to wait for, but which already descends into our history, becomes present in it, like a yeast that transforms it, giving it a new meaning. Even the world we know, the relationships we live in it, the commitments we take on, everything must become a sign of something else, that is, of that kingdom of God which, as Jesus announced while walking through the streets of Galilee, is now finally "near" (Mark 1,15). Then there is a "how" that wedges itself between us and reality. “From now on, let those who have wives live as if they had none; those who cry, as if they were not crying; those who rejoice, as if they did not rejoice; those who buy, as if they did not own; those who use the goods of the world, as if they did not use them fully" (1 Cor 7,29-31). We need to understand this "how" well so as not to misunderstand it. It does not mean that what we experience loses depth, and meaning, is no longer worth anything, or that we even have to interrupt the relationships - even marital ones - that characterize our existence. On the contrary, the Apostle's invitation is to continue living what we already live, but by replacing it in a broader gaze - which goes beyond our horizon and manages to glimpse the promised fulfillment, which gives a new meaning to every aspect of our life, existence. The kingdom of God is now so close to our lives that our lives can no longer remain the same. If I cry I know that someone will console my tears forever. If I rejoice, I know that this joy, which over time is always provisional and precarious, will become full and definitive on the coming day. If I possess goods, I know that the true good to be desired is another. Even the love between a man and a woman becomes a sign of that love that will be complete and timeless in the love of God and in the communion of saints. This is the real decision to be made, the conversion to be lived. The Ninevites, in the first reading, convert from their evil works, because they accept Jonah's warning, and above all because they believe in God. They begin to believe in a God who does not punish, but uses mercy. Their conversion corresponds to the conversion of God himself, who "repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them and did not do it" (Jonah 3,10). It is not that God waits for our behavior to decide how to behave towards us. Rather, it is our conversion that allows us to know what God's authentic face is. If we turn to good, we encounter the God of good, who turns his gaze of benevolence and mercy towards us. Remaining prisoners of the logic of evil prevents us from knowing this face of God and from experiencing his love for him.

Every conversion is, radically, going out of oneself to turn to God and thus receiving a different look at reality, and learning to judge everything according to the logic of that "how" announced by Paul, and being able to discern the proximity in every reality of the Kingdom that becomes truly close to the most ordinary and everyday places of life, to your throwing your nets into the water as you already did yesterday and the day before yesterday. There the Lord comes close and then your life changes, because before your eyes his word opens up a different horizon: "Come after me, I will make you become fishers of men" (Mark 1,17). The newness of God, the unparalleled beauty of his promise, matures within your own life, in your everyday life, to make it different from within. It is not another role that is imposed on you from above, with force, almost with violence. It is rather a new shoot that the Lord slowly matures in the ancient trunk of your life. Until now you have been a fisherman, now you will become a fisherman of men. There is a change, even a radical one, that does not destroy what you have always been but rather makes it mature to its fullness.

Time is short: we have to decide. Jesus passes by and “immediately” calls James and John, just as a moment earlier Simon and Andrew “immediately” left their nets to follow him (see verses 20 and 18). Right away! There's no time. We must convert and believe now. With this awareness: converting to Jesus and believing his word means making his promise explode within our lives, which opens up to an unexpected horizon. The world is transfigured by the light of the Kingdom that now inhabits it, thanks to the gift of God that brings it close to us; thanks to our followership that make us welcome him. + John I. Okoye

FOURTH SUNDAY OF EASTER YEAR A, 30TH APRIL 2023

 
We pray through the fruits of this Holy Sacrifice, that we receive the grace to always fix the gaze of our mind and heart on Jesus, the good shepherd. It is He who will transform our life through the glory of his resurrection. Happy Sunday!

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(Acts 2,14a.36-41; Psalm 22 (23); 1 Peter 2,20b-25; John 10,1-10; 4th Sunday of Easter, Year A, April 30, 2023)

In the heart of the Easter season, the liturgy invites us, every year, to fix the gaze of our mind and heart on Jesus, the good shepherd. More exactly, he is the beautiful shepherd, as John defines him in his account. Beautiful in the sense of an exemplary shepherd, and therefore true, reliable, credible. In Greek - the word which the evangelist rendered - beautiful is kalos, a term built on the same root from which the verb “to call” (kaleo, in Greek) comes. It is a verb on which all of today's biblical readings seem to insist.

In the Gospel, John writes that the handsome\good shepherd calls his sheep, each one by his name, and leads them out (John 10,3). And the sheep, recognizing his voice, listen to him and follow him. They can do this because they recognize that it is not only the sound of his voice that calls them but also the beauty of the shepherd, the beauty of his life. The sheep know his voice not only in the sense that they know how to distinguish it from other voices - such as those of thieves, brigands, or mercenaries -, they also know it more deeply. They listen and understand that it springs from a beautiful\genuine life that it is totally delivered\donated, like gift, in love, so that all of them could have life, and have it in abundance. In the passage that we read this Sunday, the evangelist alludes to this, but he says it more clearly only in the verses that immediately follow: The good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep (John 10,11; cf. also John 10, 15.17-18). This is the beautiful shepherd that calls the sheep and the sheep know how to listen to, recognize and follow and allow themselves to be attracted by him. He is no other than the one (as Peter recalls in his First Letter) who suffered for you and who bore our sins in his body, on the wood of the cross (1 Peter 2,21.24). By his wounds, we have been healed! Healed and transformed, this is so because letting oneself be attracted by the voice of this shepherd means, Peter insists, accepting his example and following in his footsteps. And here, in the context of this letter, the verb to call still resonates strongly: To this you were called (1 Peter 2,21), that is, to do good, even at the cost of having to bear with patience some unjust punishment (1 Peter 2,20). However, this is not just any kind of patience, much less painful or passive patience. It is rather the patience of love that continues, with perseverance, to love and to do good, even when faced with adversity, misunderstanding, and hostility, which often expose one to violence and rejection.

What are we to do, brothers? (Acts 2,37), the crowds of Jerusalem ask in the Acts. Repent … (replies Peter) for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, for the promise is for you and for your children and for all those whom the Lord our God is calling to himself (Acts 2,38-39). Converting doesn't mean adjusting one's life and behavior a little. There is a more radical transformation that is required of us: to truly believe in God's promise, which preserves his desire to make us, through the gift of the Spirit, more like his Son. Receiving baptism in the name of Jesus Christ in fact means, in addition to accepting the forgiveness of sins, allowing oneself to be clothed by him, so that the beauty of his life may radiate and shine through in our existence as well. Also in Acts, in Peter's words, the verb “to call” resounds brightly as the Lord calls people to himself. (Acts 2,39). The Lord calls us to believe in this promise: in the Spirit we are given through whom we are clothed with the very beauty of the handsome shepherd whose voice we recognize and whom we follow with trust. He, John reminds us, that Jesus is not only the shepherd but also the door. In the temple of Jerusalem, there was a door designated of the sheep, through which the animals were led to be sacrificed. Now, Jesus solemnly affirms that he is the true door, but a different door, because it does not lead inside, towards sacrifice, but outside, towards communion with the Father, interwoven no longer with observances, precepts, sacrifices, yokes, and heavy burdens to carry, but with mutual knowledge in love. The shepherd calls his sheep by his name, because he knows them one by one; the sheep follow him because they know his voice. Now, it is mutual knowledge (a sign of a profound communion in love) that becomes the sole foundation of the relationship with God. And the sheep must no longer be led to sacrifice, because it is the shepherd himself who gives them life, in abundance, through the gift of his own life. It is the shepherd (no longer the sheep) who passes through the door, making himself a lamb, and a sacrificed lamb. Among the negative figures to whom Jesus controversially contrasts himself, there are not only thieves and brigands but also strangers. Now, every extraneousness that could characterize our relationship with God is demolished: mutual knowledge and communion in love are possible and are implemented in the gift of himself. The shepherd comes to give us his life and this gift, which precedes us, allows us to listen to his voice and to let ourselves be called by him, in turn giving our lives to him and to our brothers and sisters. It is in this mutual exchange, of a gift that is accepted and paid for, that we can savor life, and life in abundance for that matter, letting the beauty of him shine through. 

+ John. I. Okoye.

(graphics  by Chukwubike OC)

Solemnity of Corpus Christi, June 14,2020

May the participation in this Sunday's Eucharistic celebration offer us not only the opportunity of a life of communion with the Blessed Trinity, but also the graces to be docile to the will of God in our lives.

Happy Sunday!

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(Deut 8,2-3.14b-16a; 1 Cor 10, 16-17; John 6,51-58: Solemnity of Corpus Christi, June 14,2020)

On this Sunday we celebrate the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ. The readings of the Mass do not tell us about the institution of the Eucharist, but speaks about the Eucharist in other ways. The first reading speaks of manna, which is a prefiguration of the Eucharist. In the second reading, Paul speaks to us of communion with the Body and Blood of Christ. The Gospel presents the last part of Jesus' discourse on the bread of life.

In the second reading, Paul reminds the Corinthians that the Eucharist gives us communion with the Body and Blood of Christ: Is the cup of blessing that we bless, not, perhaps, communion with the blood of Christ? And the bread that we break, is it not a communion with the body of Christ? The answer to these questions is obviously in the affirmative: the consecrated chalice contains the Blood of Christ; the consecrated bread gives us communion with the Body of Christ. It is a profound mystery, a mystery of love, a real mystery of communion. Communion means intimate, profound union. Jesus wanted to offer us communion with himself, the Word of God incarnate; that is why he offered us communion with his Body and his Blood. This communion is not only the union of each of us with Jesus, but also the union with one another. The Eucharist is the source of love, not only for God, but also of fraternal charity. Paul says: Since there is only one bread, although we are many, we are one body: in fact we all participate in the one bread. In this participation in one bread, the profound union of all believers is realised. Let us welcome this extraordinary gift from the Lord. It was an unimaginable thing that everyone could communicate in the Body and Blood of Christ, but Jesus realised this miracle, a miracle of infinite love.

The first reading speaks to us of manna, that is, of the food given by God to his people while they were crossing the desert and not finding the nourishment necessary to survive there. [God] fed you with manna (says Moses to the people) that you did not know about before and which even your fathers had never known. Manna is an extraordinary element that arouses people's surprise. The very name manna means an unknown thing, because in Hebrew it is a question: What is this?=man hu. This is the food prepared by God for his people, who needed it so much to cross the desert. Deuteronomy shows us that manna had a symbolic meaning. It was not only a gift from God, but it was also a revelation: he wanted to make people understand that man does not live only on bread, he lives on what comes from the mouth of the Lord. The manna came from God; in a sense, it came from the mouth of the Lord. But what comes, most authentically, from the mouth of the Lord is his word, law and commands, all of which are an expression of his love and which put man on the path of love. Jesus took up this phrase from Deuteronomy to answer the tempter in the desert, who suggested that he turn the stones into bread: Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God (Matt 4, 4). That is to say, the most important thing for living well is docility to the word of God, welcoming the Word, which illuminates us, shows us the way forward and also gives us the strength to follow it. So, in the time of the Exodus, God worried about giving his people food, and at the same time gave them a very important teaching. The Eucharist is the real manna. In the discourse after the multiplication of the loaves, Jesus says to the crowd: It was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it was my Father who gave you the true bread from heaven; for the bread of God is that which descends from heaven and gives the life of the world (John 6, 32-33). After giving material food to people who were unprovided for in a deserted place, Jesus explains the profound meaning of this miracle: he had to announce a greater miracle, a greater divine gift, that is, the gift of the Eucharist, which is more essential for life. Jesus declares: I am the living bread which came down from heaven. The Jews neither understand nor accept this revelation, and say: How can he give us his flesh to eat? They do not understand that Jesus announces here a mysterious gift: he does not speak of his concrete flesh to eat, but wants to announce a sacrament, which is truly his Body and his Blood and which communicates life to us. Jesus does not, immediately explain that he intends to speak of a sacrament, but insists on the need to eat his flesh and drink his blood: In truth, in truth I tell you: if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of man and do not drink His blood, you will not have life in you. It is about a vital necessity. Jesus underlines it, repeating it several times. You will not have life in you. Jesus does not speak of physical life (and it is possible to live even without receiving the Eucharist) but of the true life, of the life of the soul and spiritual life, which unites man to God forever. Jesus, immediately, specifies it: Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life. Here, it is not a question of physical life, which necessarily has an end, but of the eternal life, which begins on earth and continues, after death, in heaven. It is the life of union with God in love. The condition for having this life is eating the flesh and drinking the blood of Jesus in the Eucharist; having this mysterious contact with the incarnate Word of God. Jesus knows that we are not pure spirits, but human persons, people who live and express themselves through the body, and, therefore, he wanted to give us intimate contact with himself through communion with his Body and his Blood. Then he reiterates: My flesh is real food, my blood is real drink. This is not on a physical level, but on a spiritual level, that is, on a very important and profound level. Jesus explains that this sacrament perfectly unites with him. This can be described as mutual interiority: Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I in him. This is an amazing formula. We are led to think that whoever eats the Eucharist receives Jesus in himself; instead Jesus says first: Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me. We dwell in Jesus and Jesus in us. These are the two dimensions of the Eucharist. Through this means we are introduced into the Body of Christ, we dwell in him, we become cells of his Body. And, on the other hand, he lives in us, as Paul says: It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me (Gal 2,20). This is the wonder of the Eucharist, which brings about a perfect union in love: we receive Jesus in ourselves and, at the same time, we are inserted in him. Somehow what happens in our relationship with the atmosphere happens: we are in the atmosphere and, at the same time, we breathe it, that is, we inspire the air inside us. As the Father, who has life, sent me and I live for the Father, so also the one who eats me will live for me. The relationship we have with Jesus is a participation in his relationship with the Father. Jesus lives for the Father, that is, he receives his life from the Father and directs his whole life to the glory of the Father. The expression: I live for the Father has a twofold meaning: through the Father and for the glory of the Father. Similarly, the Eucharist makes us live for Jesus in both directions: he comes to us to communicate his life of union with the Father and, on the other hand, teaches us to direct our life for the glory of the Father, that is, for the manifestation of his love. The Eucharist is a wonderful treasure. We must meditate and contemplate this extraordinary gift: a gift from the whole being of Jesus, who puts himself at our service not only by washing the feet of the apostles, but also by giving himself to us as food and drink. It was not possible for him to become our servant in a more complete way than this. The Eucharist is the source and summit of Christian life, because it is the greatest manifestation of Jesus' love for us. And this manifestation reaches each and every one of us. It is not a generic gesture, valid for all men, but an action in which Jesus manages to have a very personal contact with each of us. All these put us in joy, thanksgiving and give impetus to all our lives. Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist, have mercy on us! Happy Solemnity of Corpus Christi! +John I. Okoye
(graphics  by charles )

Solemnity of the Most Blessed Trinity: 7th June 2020

 May our profession of faith in the mystery of the Most Blessed Trinity obtain for us, through this Sunday's Eucharistic celebration, forgiveness of our sins, thereby making us worthy to share in God's love and to manifest same in our interaction with our neighbours.

Happy Sunday! 

DOCTRINE AND FAITH


(Exodus 34,4b-6.8-9; 2 Cor 13,11-13; John 3, 16-18: Solemnity of the Most Blessed Trinity: 7th June 2020)

Today we celebrate the feast of the Holy Trinity: God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. When one thinks of the Trinity, for the most part, only the aspect of the mystery comes to mind: there are three and they are one, one God in three Persons. Instead, today's liturgy draws our attention to the aspect of love that is expressed by the mystery of the Trinity. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are one, because God is love: The Father gives everything to the Son; the Son receives everything from the Father with gratitude; and the Holy Spirit is like the fruit of this mutual love of the Father and the Son. The texts of this Mass speak a lot on the theme of love. They do not speak so much of the three Persons - there is only one sentence in the second reading which mentions the three Persons: the Lord Jesus Christ, God and the Holy Spirit, and the mention is in reference to love.

Today we celebrate the feast of the God of love. This feast can give us great joy, because it offers us a very positive perspective. God is not conceived as a solitary single monolith, but as the union of three persons in love. These persons are also full of love for all creatures and, in particular, for us men.

The first reading, taken from the book of Exodus, expresses a surprise, because the revelation of the love of God comes after a very serious sin on the part of the people. The covenant has just ended, and the people already become unfaithful to God. Since Moses has gone away and did not return, the people asked Aaron to make for them a visible god who can be honoured with idolatrous ceremonies. Aaron consented to the people’s request. Descending from Sinai, Moses realised this very serious sin and broke the tables of the covenant (boards on which the conditions of the covenant with God are written) and which, therefore, represent the covenant. But despite this very serious sin of the people, God, through the intercession of Moses, decided to forgive them. He invited Moses back to Mount Sinai with two other stone tablets similar to the previous ones, to receive his law again, this fundamental gift that allows man to have a privileged relationship with him. Moses then asked God to reveal himself, to show him his face. And God revealed his being as full of mercy and love: The Lord stepped before Moses proclaiming: The Lord, the Lord, merciful and compassionate God, slow to anger and rich in grace and faithfulness. This definition of God manifests his merciful love: a love that conquers sin, covers and eliminates it. There can be no clearer revelation. We have a God who renounced destroying sinners but, instead, wants to manifest his love in an even more profound and surprising way on the occasion of sins.

The gospel completes this revelation, because it shows how God revealed his mercy. John affirms: God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die, but have eternal life. The world is bad, men are sinners, God could come to judge this world and, therefore, destroy evil and chastise sinners. Instead he loves the world, despite its sin, and sends into the world what he holds most precious: his only-begotten Son. Not only does he send him, but he gave him to the world: God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son. We know what this giving entails: God gave his only-begotten Son to erase the sins of men with his sacrifice, to save sinners by his death. God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but so that the world would be saved through him. The gift of God is his Son, born for us, lived for us; the Son who dedicated himself with such generosity to heal the sick, forgive sinners, welcome everyone and teach the divine truth to illuminate all our existence. Responding to the love that comes from the Father, the Son gave his life for us. He himself says: The Son of man did not come to be served, but to serve and give his life in ransom for many (Matt 20,28 ff). God-love was manifested in this way. 

Whoever believes in him is freed from sin, and so does not go to meet the second death, but obtains eternal life, the life of communion with him. Eternal life, in fact, is precisely being partakers of divine love in heaven. Man was created by God to be loved by him and so that man also in turn will love him. We must allow ourselves to be penetrated by this profound doctrine which is manifested, above all with the cross of Jesus. It is on the cross that God gives his Son in the most possible generous way. It is on the cross that Jesus loves us and delivers himself for us. It is on the cross that he obtains participation in the eternal life, which is communicated to us by the Holy Spirit given to us. Thus the three divine persons are present in the mystery of the cross: the Father, who gave his only begotten Son with such generosity; the Son, who perfectly fulfilled the Father's plan; the Holy Spirit, fruit of the cross of Jesus, who comes to transform our existence and make us partakers of divine life, that is, of divine love. The Evangelist continues: Whoever believes in him is not condemned; but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he did not believe in the name of the only begotten Son of God. Sinners who believe in Jesus obtain the forgiveness of their sins and the strength not to commit serious sins anymore. But, those who do not believe refuse the salvation offered and thus condemn themselves. It is not God who lacks love, but is the sinner who insists on not accepting this love, and thus condemns himself. He neither believes in the only begotten Son of God nor in the love shown on the cross nor in the gift of the Holy Spirit.

In the second reading Paul addressed these exhortations: Be glad, strive for perfection, take courage from each other, have the same feelings, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you. In the expression, the God of love and peace, again we have a revelation of God as love, and merciful love, who proposes reconciliation and, through it, peace. Paul said: It was God who reconciled the world in Christ to himself (2 Cor5,19). And the first words of the risen Jesus were not words of condemnation for the sinners who made him die cruelly, but, Peace be with you! (John 20,19.21.26). Christ's love is revealed with the gift of peace. And Christians live in peace, in brotherly love, which manifests itself, as Paul said, with the holy kiss: Greet one another with the holy kiss. The Christian community must be a community full of love. In every Eucharist (outside the COVID-19 pandemic time) we are invited to exchange a sign of peace: a handshake, which expresses affection and union. Paul concluded his letter to the Corinthians with a threefold wish of thanks, in which he names the three persons of the Trinity: The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with all of you. 

This final greeting of the letter is one of the usual formulas for the initial greeting of the Mass. The liturgy specifies: The love of God the Father, to indicate even more clearly that it is a Trinitarian formula. The three terms that are associated with the three divine people are terms that express love. The love of God the Father, for the Father this term is very clear. God the Father is the source of love, and he passes his love through the Son to communicate the Holy Spirit to us. In the term, the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, Grace here means generous love. Offering something like grace means offering it for free. The expression, the communion of the Holy Spirit, indicates communion in love. The Holy Spirit unites us in divine love. And we are full of joy, because we receive from him this current of love, which enables us to overcome all difficulties and progress constantly in union with Jesus and in the love that comes from the Father. The solemnity of the Holy Trinity is the feast of God-love, which should fill our hearts with joy and, what is more, open them to a life that is truly docile to the love that comes from him. The Christian vocation is precisely welcoming divine love which is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Love comes from the Father, it is communicated to us by Jesus in his sacrifice which the Holy Mass renders present and has as its goal communion in the Holy Spirit. Let us then gratefully welcome this revelation, and try to realise it more and more each day: in the life of prayer, family life and work life. May Glory be to the God of Love! Glory be to the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, now and ever shall be, world without end. Happy Solemnity of the Most Blessed Trinity! +John I. Okoye

(GRAPHICS  BY Chukwubike)

5th Sunday of Easter, Year A, May 10, 2020

May God grant us, this Sunday, the grace to welcome our Christian vocation with enthusiasm, confidence and courage, so that contributing to the growth of the church, we may be worthy of the peace and joy of the risen Christ, and equally, of a place in God's house.

Happy Sunday! 

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

(Acts 6: 1-7; 1 Pt 2,4-9; Jn 14: 1-12; 5th Sunday of Easter, Year A, May 10, 2020)

On this Sunday the liturgy offers us very beautiful texts. In the Gospel, taken from the discourse after the Supper, Jesus tells us that he goes to prepare a place for us in the Father's house and reveals the Father to us. The first reading shows us the organisation of the early Church and the way they dealt with the problems that were then arising. The second reading tells us about building the spiritual home for a holy priesthood.

What we can admire, first of all, in the Gospel is Jesus’ delicacy. He wished that the disciples' hearts should not be disturbed. The Passion was close. Jesus knew that this event was going to cause a great upheaval for the disciples, but he took care to preserve them from a prolonged disturbance, and said: Let your hearts not be troubled. Have faith in God and have faith in me too. Then Jesus showed his delicacy in the way he spoke of his passion, of the paschal mystery. It is a tragic, shocking mystery, but he presented it with familiar, simple, attractive images: I am going to prepare you a place in the Father's house; when I have gone and I have prepared a place for you, I will return and take you with me, so that you too may be where I am. It is a nice thing for Jesus to prepare a place for the disciples. But how will he prepare it? He will prepare it, precisely, through his sufferings, passion and, of course, his resurrection. Here we can understand that the place that Jesus prepares for us is in his tortured and then resurrected body. By now we are all members of his body, because he has prepared a place for us in it. We can say that the place that Jesus prepared for us is his heart. He allowed his heart to be pierced, because, in a certain sense, we could enter it, because this heart of his was given to us. We can, therefore, admire the delicacy of Jesus' love and, at the same time, his generosity, because the preparation of the place was a very expensive action for him. But an action performed with immense love. John says: After having loved his that were in the world, he loved them to the end (John 13, 1), that is, to the point of preparing a place for them. On the other hand, Jesus presented himself as the way to reach the Father. He says: About the place where I go, you know the way." Thomas asks him: Lord, we do not know where you are going and how can we know the way? Jesus replies: I am the way, the truth and the life. Again, we see that Jesus is all for us: He is the destination of where we are going, and at the same time the way by which we can reach the place. Infact, we must follow him as we follow a path and imitate him. We imitate him if we live in love, because Jesus is the way for he loves us till the end. Jesus shows generous love. This type of love is not easy to achieve. Love attracts us, but generous love frighten us, because it is costly. However, Jesus gave us the grace to go forward on this path of generous love with all the strength that comes from his passion and resurrection. Then Jesus explained that through him we can know the Father. Philip tells him: Lord, show us the Father and it is enough for us. Just as Moses asked God to show him his face, so Philip asked Jesus to show the Father. God replied to Moses: You will see my back, but you cannot see my face (Exodus 33,23). Direct revelation of God is impossible for man. But now we can see the face of the Father in the face of Jesus: Whoever has seen me has seen the Father, says Jesus. If we want to know God, we must contemplate Jesus: contemplate him for a long time, listen to him, and then follow him. In that way we know God better, and so God is revealed to us in his glory, which is a glory of love. The greatness and goodness of God are revealed to us by Jesus’ paschal mystery and his face. Jesus then told us a very surprising thing: those who believe in me, will perform the works that I do and I will make them greater, because I go to the Father. To understand this statement, one must also read the continuation of the sentence. That is, the next two verses of the Gospel: ... and whatever you ask in my name, I will do it, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me something in my name, I will do it. It is true that the disciples did more great works than Jesus, because Jesus limited his ministry to Palestine. In fact, only rarely did he leave there. The apostles extended their ministry to many nations; therefore, they did a broader work than Jesus. And the work of the Church continues to be a work broader than that of Jesus, but in reality the work of the Church is the work of Jesus himself, of the risen Jesus. This is how Jesus' discourse in the Gospel continues: Whoever believes in me, will do the works that I do and will do greater works, because I am going to the Father and whatever you ask in my name, I will do it, for the Father to be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it (John 14, 12-14). Therefore, everything is the work of the risen Christ; the disciples are his instruments, provided that they pray. And all of us are called to carry out the work of Christ in a more modest but real way in our life. Every Christian has the vocation to do the work of Christ, in union with him through prayer and love. Therefore, we must have great ambitions in our lives; we must do divine works in union with Christ. In our life - family life, work life, human relationships - we must do a divine work and gradually transform the world according to the Father's plan, thanks to our prayer and union with Jesus in generous love.

All of these can be called priesthood, as Peter did in the second reading. He said to Christians:  hold on to Christ, a living stone, rejected by men, but chosen and precious before God, you too are used as living stones for the construction of a spiritual building, for a holy priesthood, to offer acceptable spiritual sacrifices to God through Jesus Christ. This is a splendid presentation of the Christian life! We are all called to cling to Christ, the living stone. The risen Christ is (as Ps 118,22 says) the stone rejected by men, which has become the cornerstone, because it was chosen, and precious before, God. In his paschal mystery he has become the living stone, which is the foundation of everything in the building. And whoever believes in Christ is also transformed into a living stone, for the construction of a spiritual temple, that is, a non-material temple, but animated by the Holy Spirit. The whole life of the Christian must become an offer to God, a priestly offer, because it is made to God through Christ. Peter calls these offerings spiritual sacrifices pleasing to God, through Jesus Christ. This is our Christian vocation: to offer spiritual sacrifices or, better still, to make spiritual offerings, because it is not about mostly painful, mortifying things, but about the normal activities of life, which are transformed thanks to our union with Christ who died but rose from the dead. The Apostolate of Prayer teaches its members to make the daily offering with this spirit, to be united with the paschal mystery of Christ. It is a question of offering our daily actions, so that our lives may be united to Christ, lived in divine charity. So, humbly, a splendid work was done, an inconspicuous work, that has a wonderful value before God.

In the first reading we saw how the spiritual building of which Peter spoke was built little by little. It is the Church. In the Acts of the Apostles we saw how difficult circumstances had helped to advance its construction. In the early Church there were Jews who spoke Hebrew or, rather, Aramaic - and other Jews who had been to the Hellenistic nations and spoke Greek. The latter are called the Hellenists. There were some rivalries between these two categories of Christians, and at some point discontentment arose among the Hellenists towards the Jews. Every day, there used to be a distribution of food for the widows, which at that time were numerous (men at the time did not have a long life). The discontentment was caused by the fact that, according to the Hellenists, their widows were neglected in this daily distribution.

Faced with this situation, the Twelve convene the group of disciples and established a division of apostolic work. They maintained for themselves the main responsibility, which is not the material one, but the spiritual one: It is not right that we neglect the word of God for the service of the canteens. The apostles must dedicate themselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word, because this is the main task of the Church. However, there were also material things to be organised. And then the Twelve propose to choose seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom for the works of charity, Luke does not yet call them deacons, but they were, so to speak, the predecessors of the deacons in the Church. Thus this decision brought a solution to the problem that has arisen and constituted progress in building the Church. The text says: The word of God spread, and the number of disciples in Jerusalem multiplied greatly. God's grace is fruitful. Even in our day there are problems in the Church that need to be solved. The clergy cannot and should not do everything. It seems, increasingly, urgent to involve the lay faithful in the activities of the Church: not only in material things, but also in the works of charity and education. In this way, the building of the spiritual house will be able to erect and glorify God, gradually, transforming the world. All the texts of this Sunday invite us to welcome our Christian vocation with enthusiasm, confidence and courage. It is a splendid vocation. We all have our own vocation in the Church; we must do divine works in union with Christ. Everyone must make spiritual offerings pleasing to God; therefore, it must contribute to the building of the Church. Thus the peace and joy of the risen Christ will fill our hearts. +John I. Okoye

(pictures by chukwubike)

18TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME 04 TH AUG 2019

As you participate in today’s Eucharistic Celebration, may you be nourished with the grace to be in intimate relationship with Christ from whom you will learn not only the true worth of earthly riches but also how to use them profitably for the welfare of your neighbors and for your own salvation.  Happy Sunday +John I. Okoye

DOCTRINE AND FAITH 
(Ecclesiastes 1,2;2,21-23; Colossians 3,1-5.9-11; Luke 12,13-21)

The first verse of this short reading, Ecclesiastes 1,2;2,21-23, sets a tone that may appear to some to be an exaggeration. The construction vanity of vanities is the way the superlative is expressed in Hebrew. The word, vanity itself means breath or vapour. It denotes transitoriness or the lack of substance. It is from this that we get the idea of meaninglessness. We should not conclude that the author is suggesting that something is necessarily meaningless in itself, since breath is certainly very important. It is the transitoriness that is of concern here. Therefore, just as some have translated the phrase as Meaninglessness of meaninglessness ... Everything is meaningless, one might also read it as Transitoriness of transitoriness. . . .Everything is transitory. Qoheleth is less a name than an occupational title. The occupation of the author is generally understood to be that of teacher or preacher. This is not an insignificant point, given the position of importance accorded the teacher in ancient Israel. In order to make his point, Qoheleth  not only employs the superlative form, he repeats it and then restates his appraisal: All is vanity! Qoheleth provides an anecdote to illustrate the point he is making. According to conventional Wisdom teaching, one should be able to enjoy the fruits of one's labor, provided it was done in a fitting manner. Good work should be rewarded. The man described here laboured with wisdom and knowledge and skill. There is no question about his right to take pleasure in the fruits of that labor. However, here the transitoriness is found in life itself. It seems the man does not live long enough to enjoy his goods. Furthermore, these goods will go to one who did not earn them, so there is a double inequity.

In Colossians 3,1-5.9-11, Paul begins his discourse with the indicative/imperative form: You have been raised with Christ, so act as risen people. He contrasts heavenly reality with earthly existence. The things above are the things of God, things that are essential for salvation, things with ultimate meaning. They belong to the realm of the redeemed. Paul encourages the Colossians to seek the higher things not in order merely to discover them but in order to live by them. Paul in exhorting the Colossians to set their minds with intent and determination on the things of heaven offered three reasons as basis for it. First, they are now joined to the risen Christ. Second, Christ's life is the new source for their own lives. Third, joined to the risen Christ, they will share in his ultimate manifestation in glory. This manifestation is a future event. Until then, they live hidden in Christ. This does not mean that their Christian way of life will go unnoticed. Quite the opposite! It will be seen by all, but it will not be esteemed by the world because the Christians will not be living according to the values of the world. They will have to wait until Christ is manifested in glory before the value of their lives is acclaimed. Until then they will have to accept misunderstanding, vilification, even persecution. However, when Christ appears, they will be vindicated. Paul goes even further in his censure of the things of the earth, identifying them with moral depravity. He lists some of the vices to which believers are inclined despite their new existence in Christ. The exhortation directs the Christians to die to a sinful way of living. Of the vices listed, four are of a sexual nature, the fifth is more general, and the last is contrary to truth and love, the basis of life in common. All are regarded as earthly desires because they are deviations of concerns of this world-sexual behaviour, the use of material goods, and the truth about the foundation upon which society is based. If the Colossians set their minds on the things above, they will engage in earthly affairs in the proper manner. The transformation the Colossians have undergone is characterised as putting off the old self and putting on the new, as one would change clothing. Paul combines this metaphor with the notion of renewal of the self that was originally made in the image of God (cf. Gen 1,27). Sin distorts the way one manifests the image of God; transformation in Christ renews it. Finally, Paul insists that in this new way of living there are no distinctions that feed bias or discrimination, whether that bias be based on race, religious origin, gender, culture, or social status. In Christ it makes no difference whether one is a Greek or a Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian or civilised, slave or free. While the actual distinction does not fade, the bias that accompanies it has dissolved. There are no longer such separations. Christ is the exclusive and determining force in all. 

In the gospel pericope of Luke 12,13-21 Jesus is approached by a man who wants him to act as arbiter between himself and his brother. The dispute is over inheritance, but what follows shows the real issue is greed. Jesus uses this encounter as an occasion to teach a lesson about the futility of a life spent in amassing material possessions. The man in the parable Jesus uses to illustrate this point is judged by God to be a fool, someone who has not learned the important lessons life has to teach. The rich man is not censured because of his wealth. Nor is he criticised for not attending to the needs of those less fortunate than he. His foolishness is much deeper; it is the attitude of greed that underlies his actions. Such an attitude determines how he values his wealth and what he will do with it. His life consists in amassing more and more. His folly is evident in the fact that he stores his grain without safeguarding it from decay. This point is important for the parable. It is an example of how goods that are not used will not last. The only way he makes use of his wealth is to indulge in a life of hedonistic excess (cf. Isa 22,13; 1 Cor 15,32). The man's death is not a punishment for his greed. It is simply the end of his life of excess. It points out the futility of that life. He spent it collecting what does not last and what is thereby ultimately valueless. Before he told the parable Jesus already alerted the crowd as to its meaning: One's life does not consist in possessions. Possessions do not last. At death they are passed on to another, and there is no way of knowing whether that other person will use them well or not (cf. Ecc 2,19). Jesus draws out the moral of his story. It is foolish to devote one's life to amassing goods and to be bereft in what matters to God. Jesus is not specific here about what matters to God, but it is dear it is not material possessions. 

The readings for this Sunday pose a fundamental question that can be stated in several ways: To what do we commit ourselves? Where are our hearts? What is most important in life? The Wisdom character of these questions cannot be denied. Wisdom  tradition occupies itself with the basic questions of life: What is the meaning of life? Where do we find our fulfilment? These are questions all women and men of every time and place and culture ponder. The disciples of Christ, we Christians of today, are no exception to this questioning. However, they and us will be identified as disciples in the way they answer. Both the first reading and the psalm response speak about the transitoriness of life. It is all we have, and it is so fragile, so fleeting. It seems we just learn what living is all about and then our lives begin to diminish. We don't have the time to enjoy what it is we have discovered. What frequently keeps us from living life fully is the thought that we can only do so if we have accomplished particular feats, gained a certain reputation, and secured desired goods. While there is nothing wrong with any of these goals, there is no guarantee they will deliver the fulfilment we expect of them. And if we have denied ourselves and others the joy of real living in our attempts to obtain them, we have been wasting the life given to us. The time we have in this life is not only transitory, it is also fleeting. It flies by. When we realise this, we may fear that in the end we will have nothing to show for our lives. How sad to think such thoughts! They show we have not learned the most basic lesson of life, which is: Life is to be lived! Living creatures live on the fruits of the earth. This is certainly true of human beings. We need food and water to survive; we need material for clothing and shelter. We are artists, and so we use the elements of the earth to reproduce it in new and creative ways. We are toolmakers, and so we use the stuff of the earth to make life more comfortable. The goods of the earth are not only good, they are essential for our survival and advancement. However, they do not satisfy the deepest longings of the human spirit. They do provide us with pleasure and challenge, but they cannot shield us from the transitoriness of life itself. In the face of such impermanence they are ultimately worthless. When the fruits of the earth are not used to enhance the life of the earth, they lose their value; they spoil and even decompose. Life itself is the far greater good; goods only enhance life. Recognising the transitoriness of life and the vanity of goods, we come to see that the only reality worthy of our total commitment, the only reality not transitory or vain, is our relationship with God in Christ. Though made of dust and thus subject to perishability, we are joined with Christ and promised imperishability. Having died to the vanities of this world, having taken off our old selves with their evil desires, we can now live in this world with a new self, in generosity rather than greed, with openness to others rather than religious or gender or social biases. In our commitment to Christ we will discover that we can transform what is transitory in life by giving it away in love. If we can live in this way, life is anything but vanity! Let us pray in the liturgy of today for the grace to be in intimate relationship with Christ from whom we shall learn not only the true worth of earthly riches but also how to use them profitably for the well fare of our neighbours and for our salvation. Happy Sunday! +John I. Okoye

Graphics (Pictures) added by Chukwubike OC  may not  correspond with the  readings  but with the current affairs in the diocese

7th Sunday of Year C, 2019

Through the Eucharistic celebration of this Sunday, may your life be modeled in the image of Christ, and may you show mercy and compassion towards all, especially those you regard as enemies. Happy Sunday +John I. Okoye

DOCTRINE AND FAITH 

(1Samuel 26,2. 7-9.12-13.22-23; 1 Corinthians 15,45-49; Luke 6,27-38; 
7th Sunday of Year C, 2019)

The story of the first reading contrasts the respect in which David held the anointed of the Lord with the murderous intent of Saul. Although David was the one hunted, Saul was the one caught. The king had an army of three thousand men, while David had one companion. It is clear that God had delivered Saul into David's hand. Still, David did not raise his hand against the king. The king's spear was part of the royal regalia. It was more than a weapon. It was a sign of royal rank. When stuck in the ground, it marked the location of the royal tent. The ultimate disgrace would be to die by one's own spear. This is precisely what Abishai suggested. Abner had failed in his responsibility to protect the king. Furthermore, the very fact that David and Abishai were able to enter such a large camp without being detected could be credited only to God's intervention. Abishai offered to administer the blow so David would not have to live with the guilt of having killed the king. One might think that David would be justified in killing the man who sought to kill him. However, by taking the symbol of royal rank he chose to shame his enemy rather than assassinate him. Despite the fact that Saul was out to kill him, David refused to harm the king, for he was still the one chosen by God to lead the people. The fate of God's anointed one was in God's own hands. Though clearly favored by God, David does not take advantage of this favor. Judgment is in God's hands, and He alone will reward or punish each one according to his/her righteousness (sedeqah) and faithfulness ('emet).

In the second reading, Paul continues the discussion on the resurrection that we have followed the previous Sundays. Today he contrasts the ordinary human body with the resurrected body that believers will receive. He does this in several ways. First he draws a clear distinction between the first man, Adam, and the last Adam, Christ. In the second creation narrative Genesis 2,7, the first man became a living being (nepesh hayyah). In contrast, those possessing the spirit of the risen Christ have life through him, thus making him a life-giving spirit. Adam received life, while Christ gives it. Still  contrasting Adam and Christ, Paul states that Adam, the first man, was out of the earth, made of its dust, while the second man, the Lord Jesus, by his resurrection was from heaven. Finally, those who come from the dust, as did the first man, will have natural bodies like that of the first man; those who are joined to the risen Lord will have resurrected bodies, as has the Lord. The passage ends with Paul playing on the idea of being made in the image of another. Just as being made of dust we bear the image of the first man, who was made of dust, so sharing in the resurrection of the Lord we bear the image of the last man, the one who was raised from the dead. 

Jesus' Sermon on the Plain, begun in the gospel for last Sunday, continues today. The primary focus of this instruction is love (agape),specifically, love of one's enemies. This injunction to love is stated in four different but parallel ways: Love your  enemies; do good to those who hate you; bless those who curse you and pray for those who mistreat you. In each case the disciples of Jesus are told to act toward their enemies in a way exactly opposite to the way they themselves are treated. In other words, they are not to retaliate in kind. Furthermore, it is not enough that they refrain from retaliation; their love should not be mere passive acceptance. Rather, they are called to active love of those who do not love them. Four examples of how this love is to be carried out are then given. Whether attacked or insulted by the blow on the cheek, one must be willing to be extravagant in one's resistance to retaliation. This same extravagance is illustrated in one's willingness to surrender even an undergarment when an outer cloak is taken. The disciples are told to give unquestioningly when asked and not to demand re­turn of items taken. Such behavior may appear to be excessive, but it illustrates the extremes to which one must be willing to love enemies. What has come to be known as the Golden Rule appears elsewhere in negative form: What is hateful to you, do not do to others. The negative form admonishes us to refrain from evil, while Jesus' positive, open-ended version (Treat others as you would like them to treat you) is a call for active love. Three examples for living out this Golden Rule are given, each demonstrating that there is no credit in simple reciprocity. The disciples must surpass others in loving, doing good, and in lending. As children of God, they must model their love after the love God has for all, even for those who have turned away from Him. The disciples are called to be merciful (oiktirmon) as God is merciful. The word is closely akin to the Hebrew word meaning compassionate (rahum), the attitude of loving attachment a mother has for the child of her womb. Here that loving attitude is attributed to God, who is referred to as Father. Characterizing God in this way radically reinterprets the meaning of God's fatherhood. It is represented as lavishly loving and unselfishly attentive to others. Finally, the way the disciples treat others will be the standard for the way they are treated by God. If they do not judge or condemn, they will not be judged or condemned. If they forgive and are generous, they will be forgiven and will receive generously. While we may be extravagant in our loving, the goodness of God far exceeds even the greatest human beneficence. 
In toddy’s liturgy, the schooling of the disciples continues. Here we see that such schooling is intent on changing the way we think as well as the way we act. Perhaps one of the most difficult lessons to learn in this area is forgiveness of those we consider our enemies, those who have wronged us. As challenging as this may be, the gospel calls us to an even higher standard: we must be merciful as God is merciful. If such perfection can become a reality in our lives, we will be able to forgive. Paul assures us that we can indeed attain such perfection, not by ourselves but through the power of the risen Lord, whose image we bear. Paul plays with the theology of creation. In the beginning we were made like the first Adam, earthly, limited, weak, concerned about the things of this world, and committed to our own well-being. Now we have been fashioned after the image of the second Adam, Christ, the risen Lord. Being like Christ, we become godlike, empowered with his saving power, transformed with him into new beings. It is now in our power, which is really the power of the resurrection, to be merciful as God is merciful. In the risen Lord we experience a mystical trans­formation. From now on all our actions can flow from this new reality. Transformed by the power of the resurrection, we are capable of unprecedented good works. We can live without retaliation; we can render good for evil. We can be prodigal in our generosity toward others; we can relinquish any rights of proprietorship we might enjoy. We can live with others without unfairly judging them. We can be like God, boundless in our forgiveness. When we are transformed, God becomes the source of our spiritual power, the model after whom we pattern our lives, the incentive that spurs us on, and the ultimate goal of all our works. The works themselves are not mere external performances done out of obligation. They are visible manifestations of a deep inner reality, of the transformation/conversion that has taken place in our lives. Schooling for discipleship results in total transformation in Christ. May we, therefore, assiduously pray in today’s Eucharistic Celebration for the grace to be totally formed into the image of Christ! Happy Sunday! +John I. Okoye
(graphics by chukwubike oc)