Jesus Battles the Devil!

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the First Sunday of Lent, Year A

St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, Brooklyn Center

Sunday, March 1, 2020

Temptation is always a suggestion or an enticement to do what is wrong. It is an allurement to seriously consider doing what is deplorable. It is an opinion or a view that rejects the truth, spins lies and tries to use them to our disadvantage. For instance, this common saying, “Heaven helps those who help themselves” has been variously used to persuade people to do what is immoral, sinful and criminal. Some people ignorantly believe that it is in the Bible. Although it sounds pious and spiritual, but the truth is that it is not derived from the Bible. Temptation, in itself, is not a sin or a crime; however yielding to it may be one or both. Temptation is a test of our faith in God and a test of our character as well. Our victory or otherwise defeat in it will determine where we stand with God. 

In today’s Gospel (Matt, 4:1-11), Jesus undergoes the full range of human experience in his threefold temptations. He is about to begin his public ministry, so he goes away to the desert to be alone, to fast and pray for forty days. At the end of the bruising exercise, he was hungry. Aware of Jesus’ immediate need, the tempter comes to him and says, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread.” What is the devil trying to do here? He is using Jesus’ hunger as a way of ensnaring him. God had fed Israel with manna in the desert, and here the devil is challenging Jesus to provide his own bread, thereby taking on God’s own power and also testing Jesus’ own trust in God as Yahweh Jireh (God the Provider). But rather than do the devil’s request, Jesus quotes the Scripture to him: “One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God” (Deuteronomy 8:3). The devil wants Jesus to prove that he was the Son of God by performing acts that would gravely betray that very identity. Nothing is wrong to turn stones into bread, however, if Jesus had listened to the devil, he would have obeyed him. Obedience to the devil is disobedience to God. Jesus knows his identity all too well and does not need to prove it to the devil by doing the devil’s will. Do you know who you are? Do you know that each of us is a beloved of God? If yes is the answer, then don’t worry about what the naysayers, liars and resentful people are saying about you. You don’t need to prove yourself to satisfy them. You may never satisfy them. What they say behind closed doors and in their gossip is not who you are. You are a beloved of the Father. That’s your identity. As long as you are acting as such, you have nothing to worry about. 

Unsuccessful in the first temptation, the devil takes Jesus to the temple and again challenges him: “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written: He will command his angels concerning you and with their hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone.” In the second temptation, the devil also quotes the Scripture (Psalm 91) and misuses the life-giving word that Jesus just affirmed. Jesus is the incarnation of God. He’s Yahweh in human flesh. As such, he has powers to jump down from the temple and be unharmed, but doing what the devil suggested would be putting God to the test, just as the Israelites did in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 6:16). There are some Christians who have unreasonable faith. They are so naive in the practice of their faith to the point of endangering their lives and that of their loved ones. They believe in a god of magic, and not in the God of miracles. God performs miracles and not magic. A story is told of a young man who jumped into a lion’s cage in a zoo simply because the Bible promises that nothing harmful will happen to believers. Now, it is possible his soul went to heaven, but his body was a special lunch for the lions. 

The place of the third temptation is a high mountain where Jesus could see the magnificent kingdoms of the world. I have seen this mountain and boy, what a high mountain it is. To gain power over all these kingdoms, Jesus must prostrate himself and worship the devil, just as the Magi had earlier done to Jesus. But only God is worthy of worship. Jesus knows it and he makes sure the devil hears it from his own mouth: “It is written: The Lord your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve” (Deuteronomy 6:13) .  The devil was biting more than he could chew. He actually wants God to worship him before he can give to God what is God’s own. The devil is a liar, and in this temptation he lies as he always does. The world is not his. The book of Psalm 24:1 says: “The earth is the Lord’s and all it holds, the world and those who dwell in it.” Jesus wants the whole world to acknowledge him as the Lord and Redeemer, but he cannot achieve it by worshipping a false god. It was after his death and resurrection that Jesus proclaimed from a mountain: All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matt. 28:18). As the people of God, are we allowed to pursue our goals by whatever means? Does the end justify the means? Are we supposed to use every available means— good or bad, to achieve our objectives? In today’s Gospel Jesus says No! The devil always offers shortcut, but his shortcut shortens one’s peace and joy. His shortcut is a shortcut to misery, sorrow and eternal damnation. 

Friends, Jesus was tempted with selfish pleasure, fame and power but in each of them, he showed his faithfulness and commitment to his Father. Are those things not what virtually everyone in the world is chasing for, and most times at the detriment of others, their faith and relationship with God? Like Jesus, each of us is also tempted. When the tempter calls you, remember to call on Jesus. If he offers you bread— which represents all the sensual things, remember to seek for the Bread of Life. If he offers you fame, seek for holiness, humility and simplicity. Even though Jesus was God, he did not seek equality with God something to be grasped, rather, he emptied himself, became a slave. He so humbled himself to the point of accepting death on a cross for the sins of the world. Because of his kenosis (emptiness), his humility, his obedience, God greatly exalted his name so high that at the mention of his name every knee bows and every tongue declares that Jesus is Lord (Philippians 2:6-11). If the tempter offers you the shortcut to prosperity, ease and comfort, remember to follow Jesus the Way. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. If you resist and resist and resist, yet, the devil continues to tempt you, muster enough courage, stand up to him and yell: “Get behind me, Satan!”

The Three Pillars of Lent Explained

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Tuesday, February 25, 2020

What Lent Means 

Lent is a penitential period when people come to grips with their limitations, their sins, and their attachments in order to prepare for real communion with God. It is a period of preparation for Easter. Lent is a 40 day period which corresponds with Jesus’ own 40 days in the desert preparing for his own public ministry. The purpose of Lent is to get us ready and prepared for Easter. Pivotal moments like the birth of Jesus and the resurrection of Jesus are something we do every year, and it is imperative we do them adequately prepared spiritually. Moreover, as his followers, it is vital that from time to time we go into the desert. A lot of important things happen in the desert.

For a lot of Catholics, when we hear “Lent,” we think it is giving up chocolate or beer. I am not saying there is no good in giving up whatever we are attached to during the season of Lent, however, Lent is and should be more than just giving up sweets and drinks for 40 days. Traditionally, Lent involves three practices— prayer, fasting (this is where the giving up of sweets and drinks come in), and alms-giving. Lent is about practices, about the things we do. Pray during Lent. Fast during Lent. Give alms during Lent. Engaging in these three activities will help to situate us in this holy season.  

The Pillars of Lent

1. Prayer 

The first pillar of Lent is prayer. According to St. John Damascene, “Prayer is the raising of the mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things from God.” To raise the mind and heart to God means to attend to God and to pay attention to him. It is to be aware of God, to seek communion with God in a conscious way. Raising up the mind with all of our consciousness, our attentiveness, our perception, our intellectual ability to God is prayer. But it is also the raising of the heart to God— our passions, our feelings, our emotions, the longing of our soul. To do that in a very explicit and conscious way is to pray. But how do we pray? There are a wide range of ways we can pray. The greatest prayer in the Catholic Church is the Mass. So, for Catholics who drifted away, who stopped attending Sunday Masses, Lent is a great time to return to the Church and start attending at least Sunday Masses. For regular  and active Catholics, you may consider attending the daily Masses during Lent. Due to other commitments you may have, you can strive to attend, let’s say, twice or thrice of daily Masses during Lent. Whatever you are doing with regard to the Mass, raise it a level. Intensify it! And when you are at Mass, enter more deeply into the Mass. Avoid every form of distraction. Pay attention to every word of the Mass. Listen to the sermons and make sure you go home every day with something. Come to Mass with a notebook and a pen so that you can write down the core message of the priest who preached. Another prayer you can say is the Rosary. The rosary is one of the strongest weapons against the devil and his fallen angels. If you have been away from the rosary for a long time, find it. If you don’t have any, buy one. Start praying it at least once or twice or thrice a week during Lent. If your mind wonders away, bring it back. My recommendation is that you pray it everyday, if you can. You can also pray this prayer: “Jesus, Son of the living God, have mercy on me.” Another one I will recommend is this: “Jesus I love you, all I have is yours. Yours I am, and yours I want to be. Do with me whatever you will.” You can pray any of these prayers over and over again for five minutes or ten minutes or fifteen minutes regularly during Lent. You can even use the rosary to count as you pray them. Allow it to become part of your rhythm of breathing. During Lent, we can also do devotional prayers like Stations of the Cross. Go to your local church and be part of this beautiful prayer. Do holy hour as well. Spend a few minutes with Jesus adoring him in the Blessed Sacrament. Keep him company. If you have nothing to say to him, just sit there quietly for five, ten, fifteen or one hour. He may say something to you. Getting in touch with your own sinfulness is also a form of prayer. Whenever you are before the Lord, confess. I know there is sacramental confession, but even after that, remember to acknowledge before the Lord that you are a sinner. Ask him to help you deal with your inadequacies. I do this all the time. The most regular prayer I say to God is the prayer of confession and seeking for his mercy. Before you sleep, find at a few minutes to review your day. Thank God for all the blessings of the day and beg him for pardon for sins committed and for the good not done, like the works of charity that we ignored. During Lent, we pray with intentionality in order to know Jesus as our Voice. 

2. Fasting

The second pillar of Lent is fasting. Today, a lot of people engaging in fasting for all sorts of reasons. Fasting is becoming popular today— there is intermittent fasting for various health benefits like losing weight, controlling blood sugar, and body building benefits. I have been doing intermittent fasting for quite sometime now. I break my fast sometime around 1 PM or 2 PM. But from religious perspective, we fast during Lent in order to know Jesus as our greatest Treasure. We tend to attach to created things. We make them godlike in our life and take exaggerated importance. When this happens, it is good to sometimes actively detach oneself from them, so as to find what the soul really wants. The soul can easily be caught up in secondary goods that it begins to forget what it really wants. If someone is constantly seeking for sensual pleasure, the person can easily forget that the soul wants something other than that. The human person is longing for God. St. Augustine said that it is only in God that our soul is finally at rest. So, Lent is a wonderful time to set aside all sensual pleasures in order to give the soul a chance to find what it is seeking for, what it is wired for and also to allow a deeper hunger to emerge. Fasting has nothing to do with puritanism, or platonism, or dualism. It does not mean that we Catholics hate pleasure. Christians love the world and everything in it because God loves the world. We love food and drink . However, they can become so dominant that we forget the deepest longing of the heart. So, we fast so as to allow that spiritual hunger to emerge. If we allow our sensual pleasures to dominate us, we start craving for all kinds of things, even things we don’t really need or want. Fasting is a wonderful way to rediscover the deepest and inner yearning of the heart. Like I said before, it is not puritanism or platonism, rather a spiritual cleansing to allow the deepest craving of the heart to come out.   

The minimum requirement of the Church on Catholics in terms of Lenten fasting is to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday and to abstain from meat on all Fridays. Here in America, fasting is defined as one small meal and a couple of snacks. But can we do more than the minimum requirement? Yes we can! There is something about fasting that accomplishes a lot. You cannot go into a spiritual warfare with the devil without adding fasting to your prayer. Jesus himself said that there are certain demons that are expelled only by prayer and fasting. Today, we hardly talk about demons and other possessive spirits. Some of us here don’t even believe that they exist. But when you look around us, what do we see? All sorts of additions. If you are addicted to anything— food, hard liquor, drugs, pornography, masturbation, sex etc I want you, from today to see it as a possession. Your enemy, the devil wants to use your addition to destroy your life, deny you of regular communion with God on earth and deny you of heaven as well. In this holy season, I urge you to fast. Fast from screens like TV. Do not spend your entire day watching TV. Find something in your life that you are giving too much attention to, fast from it and shift your attention to God and God’s matters. During Lent, we fast in order to know Jesus as our Food. 

3. Almsgiving 

The third and final pillar of Lent is almsgiving. But what is the connection between almsgiving and spiritual life? Most people can easily connect fasting and prayer to spiritual life because of their obvious fruits. But what about almsgiving? How does almsgiving help our souls? The heart of the spiritual life is caritas— love, which means willing the good of the other and doing something about it. Almsgiving is a very concrete way to will the good of the other. There are a lot of poor people around us. In the Gospel, Jesus says, “The poor you will always have with you” (Matt. 26:11). We will never be able to eradicate poverty and get rid of the poor around us. They are there to remind us of the injustice in our society, of inequality, and of unbalanced structure of our world. But there is something else they remind us— Jesus in our midst. But if you cannot find Jesus in them, at least say to yourself, “That’s me over there but for the grace of God.” 

In the season of Lent, make effort to help the poor. Give some of your money to them. Give something of value to the poor. Prayer ultimately is meant to give rise to charity and fasting is meant to give rise to charity because it leads more deeply to God who is Caritas (Love) Almsgiving really heightens our sense of solidarity within the mystical body; that we are connected with each other. We cannot say to someone who is suffering that it is their problem. I am not worried about it. No! It’s our problem. St. Thomas Aquinas said that everyone in principle is meant to be part of the mystical body of Christ. So, anyone, and anywhere who suffers is our brother and sister. Almsgiving is one way of demonstrating it in a very vivid way. A few examples for practicing almsgiving during Lent includes giving more money to the church during offertory collection, giving a good tip to that young lady or young man who served your meal in a restaurant, giving money to charity organizations like Mary’s Place, Catholic Charity, St. Vincent de Paul etc. Give generously and do not complain. Abandon yourself to God’s providence a little bit more. Get a charity box or poor box and resolve that for the entire 40 days of Lent, you will daily put a dollar or a quarter dollar in it. At the end of the Lenten season, bring the money to the church for the care of the poor among us. Remember that in the faces of the poor we see Jesus and whoever feeds the poor, clothes the poor, and attend to the needs of the poor is doing all of that to Jesus himself. And Jesus promises that when you come to his Father’s house, he will remember. 

Who is Really Jesus?

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020 Homily 

Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A

Good Shepherd Church, Golden Valley, MN

At a certain point, after his emergence on the public scene, Jesus travelled with his disciples to the region of Caesarea Philippi. Along the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” (Matt. 16:13; Mark 8:27) The disciples did not waste time to give answers, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets” (Matt. 13:14). The answer given by his disciples is the general public wide range of opinions about Jesus. And if we were to take a public opinion poll today about who Jesus really is, we would hear “prophet, teacher, good man, wise man, guru, crazy man, philosopher etc. 

But Jesus was not satisfied with people’s opinion of him, so turned his attention to his disciples, “But who do you say that I am?” (Matt. 16:15). Differently put, you who are closer to me, you who have been with me for quite sometime should have a clearer understanding of who I am than the common people. So, tell me who you think I am. Jesus’ first question had received different answers from from different disciples; but his second question only got one from Peter: “You are the Christ” (Mark 8:29) St. Matthew’s version is broader, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16). 

Jesus did not ask what people think of his teaching or what impression he was making. He asked, “Who do you say that I am?” No other religious figure or founder would ask such a question. No other religious figure or founder would focus on himself. Buddha never focused on himself. He only said that there is a way he discovered and would want you to know it. Muhammad never focused on himself. He said there is a revelation he received and would want you to know it. Confucius did not talk about himself, but about the path he found. Then there is Jesus: “Who do you say that I am?” The entire Gospel hinges on this point. Jesus identity is all it is about. Peter’s confession and declaration: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” is the mystical faith that stands at the heart of Christianity. To believe with all heart and mind this Petrine faith is to be a Christian; to deny it is to be a non-Christian. 

At Caesarea Philippi, Jesus did not ask his disciples what people thought about his teaching, preaching, or the people’s reaction to his miracles. Rather he asked them, “Who do people say that I am?” He was basically asking them, “What is my ontology? What is my being? Who am I? And the New Testament is littered with ontological approaches to knowing and understanding Jesus. A good example is the prologue of John: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (Jn 1:1)… And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among…” (Jn. 1:14). Another example is in St. Paul’s Philippians 2:6: “Though he was in the form of God, Jesus did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.” In those words, St. Paul speaks about the ontological identity of Jesus. And there are a whole lot of references in the New Testament that talk about the being or ontology of Jesus. And let’s not forget that different early Councils of the Church like Nicaea, Constantinople, Chalcedon and many others were also focused on the ontological makeup of Jesus. The Nicene Creed, for instance, did not say anything about Jesus’ teaching or his great miracles, rather about his being: “He is God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father…” These words were the fruits of Conciliar reflection on the being of Jesus which the great Church Fathers like John Chrysostom, Maximus the Confessor, Augustine and many others supported and expounded. And no one will forget the Angelic Doctor and Scholar, Thomas Aquinas, in whose works the ontology of Jesus found its fullness of expression. The ontological approach to Jesus is the approach that takes its point of departure from being; from the being of Jesus.

But since the 18th century, there has been a shift from the ontological approach to Jesus to a more psychological or subjective approach, a more classical to a more modern. With the beginning of Modern Liberal Protestantism, a great figure, Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834) wrote some hugely influential works in which he attempted to reach out to a more modern skeptical audience. Without doubt, he is one of the most important figures in the field of Christology. He is generally regarded as the father of modern liberal Christology. In his works, Schleiermacher inaugurates a more consciousness, or relational or psychological approach to understanding the divinity of Jesus Christ. In one of his major work, he writes, “The Redeemer, then, is like all men in virtue of the identity with human nature, but is distinguished from them all by the constant potency of his God-consciousness, which was veritable existence of God in Him.” So, what is unique about Jesus? According to Schleiermacher, he is like us. He is a human being, but he has a constant and powerful awareness of God. He has a God consciousness that is qualitatively different and unique. 

A closer look at theology from Friedrich Schleiermacher to our time will show that a sizable number of theologians have adopted the Schleiermacher approach to understand Jesus, not from ontological standpoint but from psychological and relational term. I hope this is not getting boring for you, but be patient with me. Some of you may be asking what’s the big deal? It is a big deal because our knowledge of Jesus determines how we relate to him, how we worship him, and how we speak about him. Ideas have consequences. This shift may sound very abstract or arcane to many. However, it has had many negative impact on evangelization, on the way we understand the Church, on our preaching, teaching and practice. The shift from ontological approach to a more relational and psychological approach to understanding Jesus has had a huge consequences on our theology, preaching, and evangelization. Although Schleiermacher approach is more accessible to modern people, but it turns Jesus into a super-Saint. Check this out! If our belief is that, let say, Father Benjamin has God consciousness; Sister Julia has a more God consciousness, and Jesus has the best, the most potent and most superior God consciousness, it reduces Jesus to a mere super-Saint. We all have awareness of God. Sometimes, this awareness, this consciousness is more heightened than other times. The saints obviously have this awareness of God more than anybody. They are saints because of their relationship with Christ the Redeemer. So, if we reduce Jesus to a mere super-Saint, it there means that he too would need a Redeemer. If Jesus were just a super-Saint, is he really the Savior? 

If what we are just talking about is God consciousness, what really then distinguishes Jesus from the Buddha, from a great Hindu, from Muhammad, from a mystic, Sufi, Sage, from Socrates, from Walt Whitman or any great figure who has a heightened and profound religious experience? What really sets Jesus apart from these and any great religious or philosophical figures? I think it is hard to articulate and present. If we even press further, what makes Jesus distinct and different from Saint Francis of Assisi who had a powerful God consciousness? What makes him different from any of the great saints? If Jesus were just a super-saint, why are we particularly focused on him? Why do we evangelize him, speak about him, pray to him, worship him? If someone reads a good work of a Sufi mystic and experiences a really God consciousness, why should we ask the person to follow Jesus? 

Friedrich Schleiermacher’s approach is the triumphant of the immanent approach to understanding Christ. The emphasis on our consciousness of God is a stress on the human side of the equation. It is on our quest for God, our knowledge of God, and our ever-growing awareness of God, and it is not upon the breakthrough of grace, something that God, out of his goodness and love, has uniquely done for the human race. This approach could undermine what God the Father has uniquely accomplished through his Son Jesus Christ, which, on our own, we would never accomplish. No one, no religious figure, no religious founder, no poet, no philosopher or teacher or prophet, no mystic, etc. could ever accomplish what has been accomplished and established ontologically in Jesus. If we believe that Jesus was a super-Saint, it creates a problem for evangelization, teaching and preaching. 

Why should Jesus be uniquely emphasized? Why did so many give their lives in defense of him and his teaching? It is because Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. He is Lord. There is no salvation through anyone else— not Muhammad, Buddha, Socrates, Confucius, Amadioha, etc— but Jesus. There is no other name given to the human race by which we are to be saved but the name of Jesus (Acts.4:12). You can hide yourself under any other name but only Jesus Christ can save. 

Becoming More Like God Our Heavenly Father

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Good Shepherd Catholic Church, Golden Valley, MN

Sunday, February 23, 2020

The purpose of the law is to enable people live uprightly. The law can guide people to live in right relationships.. During Jesus’ time, the laws and the traditions of the people (Judaism) were subjected to different interpretations. There were not only controversies between the Pharisees and Sadducees, but also among the Pharisees themselves. There were basically two schools of Jewish scholars at the time named Hillel and Shammai who had vigorous debates on matters of ritual practice, ethics, and theology. It’s like the argument within the Church today between the conservative/traditionalist Catholics and the liberal/progressive Catholics. One of the issues of the time among these two Jewish groups was how the Jews should relate with their Roman oppressors. As these debates continue, Jesus enters the stage; and through a series of antitheses, he offers his own interpretation on how to live faithfully to God. 

The first law he addresses is the law that governs revenge and retaliation. To his disciples, he says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other one as well.” Is this a hard teaching to practice? YES! But is it possible to live by it? YES! History is full of courageous men and women who practiced and advocated for non-violence. Living by the principle of “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth” will render us all blind and toothless. Powerlessness is a new kind of power. Powerlessness is powerful because it requires extreme restraint or what St. Paul calls “self-control” in the face of provocation. However, this powerlessness is not indifference or apatheia (apathy) It is not hopelessness. It is not turning oneself into doormats. It is not Zeno’s stoicism (Zeno teaches that the path to eudeimonia— happiness is found by accepting the way things are, by not allowing oneself be controlled by emotion or desire for pleasure or fear of pain) or Buddha’s unattchement. This powerlessness is powerful because it charges and motivates you, not to do nothing, but to do something— to forgive and to let go. Jesus teaches us, his disciples to eschew all forms of seeking and taking revenge. When you are insulted, return insults with non-violence. Bless the insulter. Don’t curse out or curse in. 

Another law that Jesus addresses in today’s Gospel is the law of love:  “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father…For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not tax collectors do the same?” The First reading from the Book of Leviticus enjoins Israelites to love their fellow Israelites. Now, loving your own kind, your own race, your own people, your own community, people of the same faith and cultural background can obviously bring about some good— like stability and harmony in the community. But it does not make us any different from anyone else. It does not set us apart for a particular purpose. If we want to be called children of God, Jesus says our love must go beyond all that. We must love all people— friends and foes because they too are children of God. Just as God the Father allows the good and bad to have experience the sun and rain, so Jesus’ disciples are to show love to their enemies and neighbors alike. We become more perfect and more complete when we act in the same manner that God our heavenly Father acts towards others. 

Mark 7:24-30

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

St. Peter Catholic Church, Mendota, MN

In this Gospel, a gusty Greek woman, a Syrophoenician by birth, whose daughter had unclean spirit comes to Jesus and engages him in an argument. Felling to his feet, she begs Jesus to expel the demon that was disturbing her daughter. Rather than do what the woman requests, Jesus said, “Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” Most 21st century women and men will be deeply offended by those comments. But not this woman. Her daughter’s condition is her utmost concern. So rather than take offense, she fired back, “Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.” Her words, filled with faith seals the deal for her: “For saying this, you may go. The demon has gone out of your daughter,” Jesus assured her.” And on getting home, she finds her daughter freed from the demon. 

Sisters and brothers, this Gospel passage is one of the few scenes in the Gospel where someone has the gut to persuade Jesus to do something he doesn't want to do. But how should we read this passage? First, in the story, we see the humanity and divinity of Jesus in full display. The woman’s perseverance in the face of the test that Jesus puts before her is one way to read this Gospel. We can accurately highlights her virtue of persistence and perseverance. The Gospel can also be read by stressing how the woman epitomizes and shines the spotlight on the right and proper attitude towards God— a mixture of meekness and audacity. 

But there is another reading of this Gospel that is not always mentioned, and that is the “other.” The entire Bible speaks earnestly about the “other.” And who are they? They are the poor, the vulnerable, the homeless, the hungry, the widow, the orphan, the stranger and all those who rely on others to take care of them. The “other” include the immigrant at the border and in our community, it includes our elderly dads and moms, it includes children born with autism and other medical conditions that maim them. The “other” also includes the unborn babies and folks around us who have no medical health insurance. The “other” includes that man or woman who stands by the traffic light and holds a sign that says, “I am homeless and hungry, please help me.” Sometimes when we see them, we want to look away and we do look away. As much as we want them to go away, we still see them and the press upon us. We encounter them when we stop at a gas station to fill our tank; we see them when we walk into restaurant to eat or walk into a department stores to shop. We see them along the streets, around our homes, and places where we worship. We want them to go away and not bother us. But they won’t. 

Whenever we encounter the “other,” let’s remember that we are the Body of Christ. We are the Lord’s physical presence in the world. We are Jesus’ disciples. We are the companions of the most Holy Redeemer. So, when people come to us asking for food, water, friendship, love, shelter, freedom, let’s strive not to look away. Even if your instinct tells you to look away, reconsider. And if there is anything you can do to alleviate their suffering, to make their lives better at that moment, please do it. Remember that the whole of the Christian project consists in remembering the “other” and doing something about it. God bless you!

The Weightier Things of the Law

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

St. Hubert Catholic Community, Chanhassen, MN

Sunday, February 16, 2020

After describing his disciples as salt and light of the world, Jesus continues his sermon by explaining how his teaching should be understood. He claims that he has not come to abolish the law or the prophets but to bring about its fulfillment. Although during his three years ministry, he would take some actions that seem to negate the convictions of his Jewish contemporaries like eating with sinners (Matt. 9.11), curing on the Sabbath day (Matt. 12:7-13), refusing to enforce the traditions of the elders on his disciples (Matt. 12:1-8; 15:2). However, his words and actions suggest that he is not in conflict with the law, but with how it is being interpreted. 

The purpose of the law is to enable people live uprightly. The law can guide people to live in right relationships— a virtue stressed throughout the Gospel of Matthew. Though external manifestations of righteousness are important, today’s Gospel shows Jesus going beyond external actions. He goes deeper and considers the interior dispositions of the mind and heart. Through a series of antitheses, he highlights the difference between his teaching about the law and what people have heard about the law. Without abolishing the law, Jesus goes deeper, moving from the external human behavior to the pure heart that motivates action. To the law against killing he says: “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, you shall not kill, and whoever kills will be liable to judgment. But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment…whoever says to his brother ‘Raqa’ ‘You fool’…” will be judged as well. As far as Jesus is concerned, the kind of anger that generates cursing and contemptible words has made the angry person guilty of breaking the commandment. Jesus wants his disciples to eschew resentment, practice self-control and also to forgive from their hearts any wrongs done against them. He wants his disciples to seek for reconciliation first before bringing their gifts to the altar of worship. 

Just as the vices of anger and contemptible speech violate the law against murder, so also lustful thoughts violate the prohibition of adultery. Jesus wants his followers to guard against lustful and immoral thoughts because not doing so can make a person stumble and sin. Whatever could potentially lead to a fall from grace should be avoided. A lustful heart is a breeding ground for all sorts of sexual immoralities. In the area of oath-taking and divorce, Jesus again raises the bar and the standards: “It was also said, whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce, but I say to you, whoever divorces his wife— unless the marriage is unlawful—causes her to commit adultery…” The Torah allowed divorce (Deuteronomy 24:1) which was eventually done for trivial reasons, but Jesus’ teaching, which is more demanding than that of his contemporaries sees marriage as a very serious project. In the last teaching, he says: “Again you have heard that it was said to your ancestors, do not take a false oath… But I say to you, do not swear at all…” He wants his disciples to avoid not only taking false oaths, but taking oaths all together. Any sworn testimony that calls upon God to witness is unnecessary. A disciple of Christ whose words are hardly believed should evaluate himself or herself. 

But sisters and brothers, apart from issuing series of deeper teachings, there is something else that Jesus is doing here. Throughout his ministry, he speaks and acts like God. And whenever he speaks and acts, he does so with an unprecedented authority. In today’s Gospel, he boldly says when speaking about anger, adultery, divorce, oath-taking, “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors…” (Matt. 5:21-48), “but I say to you…” By those words, Jesus is referring to the Torah, the teaching of Moses, the court of final appeal to every faithful rabbi, and he was claiming for himself an authority greater than that of Moses, who was Israel’s most significant teacher and law-giver. He is making a bold claim that says, ‘even though Moses said that, now, I say this.” He is claiming that he is Lord, Yahweh who is moving among his people. That is why St. Peter, his follow apostles, St. Paul and the early Church believed and preached that Jesus Christ is Lord. When some of the early Christians entered the dreaded arena in Rome where many were torn into pieces by hungry lions, all they needed to say to save their lives were two words. “Kaiser Kyrios,” which means “Caesar is Lord.” Instead they proclaimed: “Iesous Kristos Kyrios” (Jesus Christ is Lord) and paid for it with their blood. These men and women followed Jesus, not out of mere preference, but out of conviction. They were convinced that Jesus was who he said he was— Yahweh in human flesh, the very incarnation of God. Peter was so persuaded that when he preached in Jerusalem, he affirmed that Jesus is the stone rejected by the builders which has become the cornerstone. He declared right in the city of political power and commerce that there is no salvation through anyone else. He says there is no other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved except the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean (Acts 4:10-12). Paul was also so persuaded about the identity of Jesus that he insists that the name of Jesus is the most exalted name, that his name is far above every name, that at the mention of the name of Jesus every knee should bend, and every tongue must confess that Iesous Kyrios— Jesus is Lord! 

Folks, Paul was a highly educated man. He knew the Old Testament through and through; and what is fundamental in the Old Testament is Adonai, which means Lord, a term used exclusively for God. So, when St. Paul who knew the tradition in and out said that Jesus is Lord, he knew exactly what he was saying and how strange and radical it was. He was saying that the Jesus crucified is indeed God. He is the Messiah. And if you want to be saved, then get into his boat. 

Gospel MK 6:1-6

Rev. Marcel E. Okwara, CSsR

Church of the Blessed Sacrament in St. Paul, Minnesota 

Wednesday, February 5, 2020

Jesus departed from there and came to his native place, accompanied by his disciples. When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands! Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joseph and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.” So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them. He was amazed at their lack of faith.

As far as we can determine, Jesus was not formally trained in any rabbinic school, nor was he educated to be a temple priest or scribe. He was not a follower of any of the Pharisees, or Sadducees or the Essenes. He was in a way, a layman, an everyday Jew. Because of his commonness, his arrival on the public scene with the powerful messages and great acts of signs and wonders baffled and dumbfounded friends and foes. The Gospel of Mark 6:1-6 said he visited his native place with his disciples after the healing of the man with demonic spirit in Gerasene, the restoration of the health of the woman with hemorrhages and the raising of the daughter of Jairus from death (Mk. 5). On the sabbath day, he was in the synagogue teaching; and people who heard him were greatly astonished. In their amazement they asked, “Where did this man get all this? What kind of knowledge has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands!” Now, rather than be drawn to him, they rejected him. Why? Because they knew him. He was a common carpenter, the son of a common carpenter, and the son of a common woman, Mary. Trapped in their wonderland as for where Jesus got his wisdom, power and authority since it was not known that he received any formal training or followed any of the rabbis, they turned against him. Their rejection and lack of faith made Jesus say, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.”  

But what Jesus’ hometown folks did not understand is that the Nazarene Carpenter with no formal religious education is the Messiah. He does not need to be trained to know. He knows! He does not need to read and study to possess knowledge. He is the Fountain of knowledge. He does not need anyone or any experience to confer wisdom on him. He is wisdom. And throughout his ministry, Jesus speaks and acts like God. He is Yahweh in human flesh. Whenever he speaks and acts, he does so with an unprecedented authority. That’s why at the Sermon on the Mount, he boldly said when speaking about anger, adultery, divorce, oat-taking, retaliation, and love of enemies, “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors…”  “You have heard that it was said…” (Matt. 5:21-48), “but I say to you…” By those words, Jesus was referring to the Torah, the teaching of Moses, the court of final appeal to every faithful rabbi, and he was claiming for himself an authority greater than that of Moses, who was Israel’s most significant teacher and law-giver. He was making a bold claim that says, ‘even though Moses said that, now, I say this.” 

One of the greatest mistakes many make today is to say that Jesus was an interesting person, a good man and probably a prophet or a religious figure like all other religious figures. Jesus is not one among the many. He is not one of the religious figures. For first century Jews the Torah is the highest authority in the land because it was seen as the word of God. The person who can claim authority over the Torah is the person who himself is the author of the Torah. The early disciples of Jesus were convinced that Jesus was who he said he was— Yahweh in human flesh, the incarnation of God. Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit was so persuaded that when he preached in Jerusalem, he affirmed, “…all of you and all the people of Israel should know that it was in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead… He is the stone rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. There is therefore no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved” (Acts 4:10-12). Paul, who was a later convert was also persuaded about Jesus that he said, “…God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue must confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:9-11). St. Paul was a highly educated man. He knew the Old Testament through and through, and what is so fundamental in the Old Testament is Adonai, which means, Lord, a term used exclusively for God. So, when Paul who knew the tradition in and out said that Jesus is Lord, he knew exactly what he was saying and he knew how strange and radical it was. 

Jesus is Lord. He is God. He is Yahweh who is moving among his people. He is not one like Muhammad, or Buddha or Confucius or one of the religious figures. He is not one among the many. Mohammad never claimed to be God. He only said he was a messenger, that he received a message from God. Moses never claimed to be divine. He said he received the law from God and wants to give it to the people. The Buddha never claimed to be divine. He only said he found a way and wants people to follow it. As for Jesus, he never said he found a way, he said, “I am the way.” He never said there is a new mode of life that I found and I want to share it with you. He says, “I am the life.” He never said that there is this knowledge that I unraveled and I want you to know it for it is the truth. He said, “I am the truth.” 

It is because of who Jesus was and is that makes him to compel a choice in a way that no other founder does. It is either you are with him or you are against him. Jesus is God. He is the highest Good. If you believe in him, make him known in every street, village, town and city.  

Salt and Light of the World

Fr. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara CSsR

Homily for the 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Church of St. Rita, Cottage Grove, MN

Sunday February 9, 2020

In today’s Gospel (Matthew 5:13-16), Jesus used two vivid images to describe what it means to be a Christian: “You are the salt of the earth,” “You are the light of the world.” Salt is a very common seasoning, and unless for medical reasons, it’s something we put in everything we cook. Of all the seasonings we use for cooking, salt is the most important. Without it, the food lacks real taste. Salt makes our food tastes better. It is a seasoning that enhances the flavor of the food. It brings out the best taste of food. Jesus wants us to be the flavor that brings out the best in everyone. He wants us to bring out the best in us, and the best in the world. He wants us to give human life a meaning. When Jesus said we are the salt of the earth, what he meant is that we are the seasoning that should spice up life. Life is not all about gloom, doom and fear. Wherever there’s gloom, we are to sow hope, hope in the Lord. We should be the most hopeful people in the world and our hope should be centered on the fact that God knows. Even in the face of trial and tribulation, we can speak with Job in Job 19:25, “I know my Redeemer lives and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.”

In the ancient world, salt was used as preservatives. Before refrigeration and canning became the order of the day, meat and fish were preserved either dried or smoked or it was heaped with salt. Salt was used to preserve meat and fish, to keep them fresh and free from corruption. Jesus wants us to preserve the world from becoming rotten, bad and ill. He wants us to preserve the family, to preserve human life, to preserve the church, to preserve our bodies, to preserve the truth. He wants us to have a certain antiseptic influence on life. We are to influence the world and not the other way round. 

Salt has some medicinal value. It was used as curative. Before modern medicine, salt was used as antiseptic. It was poured into an open wound to clean any impurities. By asking us to be the salt of the earth, Jesus is also asking us to be healer— to heal and cure the brokenhearted, the depressed, the lonely, the hungry, the bereaved, and those who experience the tragedy of life. We should not be indifferent to the pain of the other just because it is not happening to us. When one person suffers, we all suffer. We are the Body of Christ. The tragedy of another should be the tragedy of all. Indifference is not a virtue. Silence is golden but not when you notice discrimination and maltreatment of another person. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere.” We are to spread the message of hope and forgiveness, the message of our Savior who heals all who are hurt and wounded. The best cure we can render to our offenders is forgiveness. Salt also creates thirst. We are called to make people thirst for Jesus, thirst for righteousness and goodness. 

Another image used by Jesus to describe his followers is light: “You are the light of the world” he said. He wants us to shed light on the darkness of the world. The light that shines from us is the light of Christ. We have no light of our own. Psalm 36: 9 says “For you (Lord) are the fountain of life, and in your light we see light.” So what we say or do can brighten or dim the light of Christ. A light is something that is easily seen. A Christian should be seen and known. There can be nothing like secret discipleship. Our Christianity should be visible to all. Christianity should not be visible only in the Church. A Christianity that stops at the church is worthless. A Catholic should be a Catholic in the factory, in the restaurant, in the workshop, in the classroom, in the kitchen, in the office, in the golf-course, in the hospital, in the library, and everywhere. St Augustine once closed his Mass with these words, “I am about to lay aside this book and you are soon going away, each to your own business. It has been good for us to share our common light, good to have enjoyed ourselves, good to have been glad together. When we part from one another, let us not depart from Him.” A light is a guide. We are to be the guide of the nations. Jesus wants us to be a shinning example to others.