Reflection on John 17: 1-11

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Tuesday, May 26, 2020

The entire Gospel of John 17 is the most extensive and profound recorded prayer of Jesus. The whole chapter is his prayer for his early disciples and for those who would believe in him through their work of preaching. Jesus said the prayer at the conclusion of the Last Supper with his disciples. So, in a sense it is a farewell speech primarily addressed to his Father and only secondarily to his disciples. Although it is a prayer, it also contains within it Jesus’ theology of death: Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son…, his soteriology (theology of salvation): Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and the One whom you sent, Jesus Christ. If the disciples were attentive, not distracted by the impending events, or by family issues or by what becomes of them after their Master leaves, they would have heard Jesus state once again what their mission would be and what they ought to be doing after his death: As you sent me into the world, so I sent them into the world (17:18). 

Soteriology is an entire semester course in any Catholic theological institute, as such, it is not something that we can exhaust in a few minutes sermon. But after all is said and written about salvation, we all know it is centered on these words of the Lord: Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ (17:3). In those words Jesus clearly states that his Father is the only true God, and he Jesus, the only Redeemer of humanity. The God of Jesus Christ is not one God among many. Any other gods are counterfeits and products of human imaginations. To know this God does not mean to know about him. It is not to have the greatest intellectual grasp of God that anyone is capable of having. It is rather to know him by experience. To know God or Jesus Christ is to develop an intimate personal relationship with the Father and the Son, and of course, with the Holy Spirit. So, eternal life means being in an ongoing relationship with God, knowing him as two people who are profoundly in love know each other. Entering into union with God means sharing in his life, and that is what it means to have eternal life. 

What else is salvation apart from a living relationship with God? Although this relationship was first initiated and sustained by God, but we must do our bit. We must continue to grow in faith in God, continue to deepen our love for Jesus Christ and continue to bear the fruits of the Holy Spirit. And how do we accomplish this? By doing what John 17 tells us that Jesus did— prayer. It was our Founder, St. Alphonsus who once said, “If you pray, you will certainly be saved; if you do not pray, you will certainly be damned.” Prayer, more than any other activity links, connects and wires us directly to God. In prayer, we discover God and discover ourselves. Prayer tells us the truth about ourselves and reveals to us how much we need God. Remember to visit Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. 

Ascension: The Translation of Earthly Reality into the Heavenly Dimension

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

 Feast of the Ascension of the Lord 

St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, Brooklyn Center, MN

Transferred and Celebrated on May 24, 2020

It is believed that the Ascension of the Lord took place from the Mount of Olives. It was there that the eleven disciples, acting on the instruction of Jesus, gathered together to wait for him. But why on a mountain? Why did Jesus ask his disciples to come to the mountain? Why did he ask them to wait for him on the mountain? You know, mountain can sometimes symbolize a hinderance or an obstruction, something that stands between you and your dream. However, in biblical terms, mountain is a place of intense encounter with God. It is the meeting place between humanity and divinity. It is said that when we go up, God comes down. In the Old Testament, we read that Moses received the Law, the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai (Exodus 19:20-24). As such, it became a symbol of God’s covenant with Israel. On Mount Carmel, Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to determine whose sacrifice would be accepted (1 Kings 18). In the New Testament, Jesus delivered the amazing Beatitudes sermon on the Mount, reminding us of the image of Moses who received the Commandments on Mount Sinai (Matthew 5). Before his arrest and crucifixion, Jesus prayed on the Mount of Olives (Luke 22:39-49). The Transfiguration of Jesus happened on a mountain— Mount Tabor (Matthew 17:1-9; Mark 9: 2-8; Luke 9:28-36). Before the multiplication of loaves, Jesus was seated on a mountain and surrounded by his disciples. The temptation of Jesus occurred on the Mount of Temptation (Matthew 4:8). His last post-resurrection appearance also occurred on a mountain (Matthew 28:16-20. Yet, upon seeing Jesus on this mountain, the disciples doubted even as they worshipped him. But without minding his disciples doubt, Jesus approached them and declared, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” 

Sisters and brothers, does this declaration remind you of a particular significant event in the life of Jesus? Yes, it reminds me of Jesus’ temptations by the devil. Matthew’s Gospel 4 tells us that after Jesus had fasted for forty days, the devil approached him and urged him to turn some stones into loaves of bread. But Jesus rejected him by telling him that one does not live on bread alone but on the word of God. After that, the devil took Jesus to the holy city and made him stand on the parapet of the temple and then challenged him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down” (4:5). Then quoting Psalm 91, the devil called Jesus' attention to God’s promise to send his angels to protect him and prevent him from crash-landing. Responding to the second temptation, Jesus reminded the devil the words of the Scripture that says, “…you shall not put the Lord, your God to the test” (4:7). After failing twice to make Jesus yield to him, the devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence. Then he said to Jesus “All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me” (4:9). By this time Jesus has had enough. So, he rebuked him and said, “Get away, Satan. It is written: the Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve” (4:10). 

Now, it is not a mere coincidence that after his death and resurrection Jesus would ask his disciples to meet him on a mountain, and right there on the mountain he would declare that all power in heaven and everything— power, pleasure, wealth, honor, fame, control etc. that the devil offered him in exchange for his relationship with his Father has been given to him. As we can now see, what the devil offered to Jesus for Jesus’ loyalty to him was far much less than what he got now. For his faithful obedience to his Father, all power in heaven and on earth is now his. Interestingly, immediately after his declaration, he commissions his disciples and drops a heartwarming promise that should gladden our hearts: “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20).

Beloved in Christ, too often we read the Ascension as the moment when Jesus “went away,” when he left us on our own and went to heaven, where we hope to join him some day. But the Ascension is not Jesus going away, rather it is Jesus assuming his position as the leader of the Church’s life. When we talk about Christmas, Good Friday, Easter etc. we easily understand what they mean, but not Ascension. Ascension should not be seen as Jesus' escape from a wicked world. It should not be interpreted as Jesus' flight from the people that persecuted and killed him. He has not ascended to detach from us. His Ascension is not a platonic escape— a running away from prison and heading to a higher world. For the Greeks, salvation is an escape from this lower world considered a prison to a higher world of ideas. In platonic sense, heaven and earth are two distinct world detached from each other. But that’s not the biblical understanding of heaven and earth. For Ancient Israel, heaven is the realm of God and angels, and earth is the realm of human beings, animals and plants. However, they are not in a radically separate metaphysical spaces; rather heaven and earth impinge upon each other. They interlace and interrelate and touch upon each other in all sorts ways. So, the purpose of salvation is not so much to escape from the wicked world, rather the transfiguration of earth by heaven. In the Our Lord’s Prayer, Jesus prayed and said, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” This prayer comes out from his deep Jewish sensibilities. In that prayer, he did not pray for an escape from the earth, but rather the coming together of heaven and earth: Lord, may you reign here as you reign in heaven. It reiterates the words of Prophet Isaiah, “Lord, may your glory cover the earth, as the water covers the sea.” Even the resurrection of Jesus is not the escape of his soul from his body. All the accounts of the resurrection highlights how embodied the Risen Jesus is. Standing before Thomas, he obliged him to touch him and to see his wounds. In Luke’s Gospel, he eats and drinks with them after he rises from the dead. He also told them that he is not a ghost and that a ghost does not have bones and flesh. All of these communicate to us the Jewish sensibilities. 

The Ascension of Jesus therefore is not a space trip up to the sky. It is rather the translation of this earthly reality into the heavenly dimension. Notice that the Ascension of Jesus is followed by Pentecost— that is, the descent of the Holy Spirit. With the Ascension of Jesus, something of the earth goes up in the heavenly realm, and with Pentecost, something of heaven comes down to the earthly realm. Now the Church is the mystical body of Jesus; it is that community that has been transfigured by Christ by his heavenly power. Our job therefore is to continue his work of bringing earth and heaven together. What does a good preaching do? It unites heaven and heaven. What about great Christian arts? They link heaven and earth. What does a great singing in church do? It goes up and harmonizes with that of the angels in heaven. Our task now is to continue to do what Jesus did. As we do them, let’s remember he is personally with us. 

Prayer After Communion

Soul of my Savior, transform me

Body of Christ, heal me

Blood of Christ, sanctify me

Jesus crucified, make me die to sin

Risen Lord, rise in me, wake me up from spiritual slumber and make me a firebrand disciple

Eucharistic Christ, may something change in me. May something good happen in me. May I become less of me, and more of you whenever I receive you. Help me become what I have received. 

©Rev. Marcel E. Okwara, CSsR

St. Alphonsus Catholic Church 

Brooklyn Center, MN

Wednesday, April 29, 2020

Reflection on John 14:7-14

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Saturday, May 9, 2020

In today’s Gospel, Jesus said, “If you know me, then you will also know my Father.” In his earlier conversation with the Pharisees, he also told them, “If you knew me, you would know my Father also” (Jn. 8:19). In John 10:14, Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me.” Jesus certainly knows his disciples. He knows us. He knows both our strengths and weaknesses. The challenge now is on us to also know him although we cannot know him as much as he knows us. But what does it really mean to know Jesus? In biblical language, to know someone is not a detached knowing but to know the person by experience and to have an intimate relationship with that person. Our knowledge of Jesus therefore should be both intellectually highly concentrated and experientially highly potent as well. On how we can experience Jesus, I turn our attention to the encyclical letter of Pope Paul VI titled, “Mysterium Fidei.” This letter was published in the Fall of 1965 just as the final session of Vatican II was underway. In his letter, Pope Paul VI talks about the various modes of Christ’s presence in the Church. 

First, he said that “Christ is present in his Church when she prays, since it is he who prays for us and prays in us and to whom we pray as to our God.” This means that whenever we gather to pray, Jesus is among us and we can encounter him and experience him in our prayers. 

Secondly, the Holy Father said that “He (Christ) is present in the Church as she performs her works of mercy…because it is Christ, performing those works through the Church, who continually assists men with his divine love.” So, when the Church does its great work with the poor, it is Christ present who is performing those works through the Church. 

Thirdly, “He (Christ) is present in the Church as she preaches, since the Gospel is preached through the authority of Christ.” 

Fourthly, the Pope said, “In a manner still more sublime Christ is present in His Church as she offers in his name the Sacrifice of the Mass…and as she administers the other sacraments.” So, when the priest baptizes, it is Christ who baptizes; when the bishop confirms, it is Christ who is confirming, and when the priest ministers the anointing of the sick, it is Christ who anoints and who heals. At Mass, it is Christ acting, Christ speaking, Christ sharing his life. Going further Pope Paul VI said, “However, there is still higher, more sublime and indeed unsurpassable manner Christ is present in his Church. It is the Eucharistic Presence.

Beloved, if you want to encounter and experience Jesus do the following:

Pray

Be involved in works of charity

Read the word of God, the teachings of the Church and listen to the word proclaimed

Receive the sacraments 

Receive the Eucharist reverently and believe in your heart that the same Jesus born of Mary, who preached powerfully, worked signs and wonders, who suffered, died and rose is truly and really present Soul, Body and Divinity in the Eucharist. 

Reflection on Divine Mercy

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Sunday, April 19, 2020

Fellow companions of Christ, Today is the Feast of Divine Mercy. God’s mercy is something we should seek for and ask for every split second, every minute, every hour, every day, every week, every month, and every year. To the glory of God, on April 30, 2000, on the same day he canonized St. Faustina, St. Pope John Paul II established the second Sunday of Easter as a special day to celebrate the feast of Divine Mercy. For those who do not know St. Faustina, she was a 20th century Polish nun to whom Jesus appeared and asked for a special feast day devoted to Divine Mercy be celebrated on the Sunday after Easter. The Psalm and Gospel reading for the liturgy on that day should focus on mercy, on forgiveness offered by God for those who are truly sorry for their sins. In her diary, she recounted the Lord’s request: My daughter, tell the whole world about my inconceivable mercy. I desire that the feast of Mercy be a refuge and a shelter for all souls, and especially for poor sinners. On that day the very depths of my tender mercy are open. I pour out a whole ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the fount of my mercy.

Divine Mercy Sunday is a day when many Catholics go to confession. But due to coronavirus pandemic, many may not be able to go. However, drawing from the long teachings of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis said: “If you cannot find a priest to confess to, speak directly with God, your Father, and tell him the truth. Say, Lord, I did this, this, this. Forgive me. And ask for pardon with all your heart. Make an act of contrition, and promise God, “I will go to confession afterward, but forgive me now.” The pope added, “And immediately you will return to a state of grace with God. You can draw near to God’s forgiveness without having a priest at hand. Think about it. This is the moment.” 

Sisters and brothers, I am offering this Mass for each of us. Today is a unique day to receive the boundless and limitless mercy of Jesus Christ. I offer this Mass for all your intentions. May our merciful God protect us against COVID-19 and all other diseases out there. I offer this Mass for the conversion of all seiners. May we now turn to God as we begin the Mass.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus appeared alive to his disciples. In this Gospel, the resurrected Christ did two things before his frightened disciples: first, he showed his wounds, and then says, “Shalom,” which means “Peace.” Why is the showing of the wounds so important? By showing his wounds, Jesus presses them and everyone not to forget what we did to him. The author of life came, and we killed him. Great message! So, to all those people in our society who brag and say, ‘I am okay, you are okay,’ and ‘Everything is fine with me,’ please, do not believe such the next time you hear someone says it. The wounds of Jesus are the sign of our own spiritual dysfunction. When the risen Lord showed his wounds he is asking us not to forget it. 

But after showing his wounds, what follows it? Not vengeance! If you are watching a Hollywood or Nollywood movie of a poor man who has been betrayed, denied, abandoned by all at the moment of truth and was put to death, and after a few days he rises from the dead, would you not expect that he is going to unleash vengeance on those who betrayed and put him to death? As for the Risen Jesus he said, “Shalom!” (Peace). The word “Shalom” sums up what God intended for his people from the beginning. What sin has interrupted is “Shalom.” What sin has disrupted is peace— that is well being at every level. To those who had denied, betrayed, and abandoned him, he offers the word of forgiveness and peace. We killed God, and God returned in forgiving and redeeming love. The terrible disorder of the cross (the crucifixion of Jesus) is addressed not through more disorder, not through more violence, not through greater aggression, not through an explosion of divine vengeance but through a radiation of divine love and redeeming mercy. Check this out! Jesus visited his disciples who contributed to his death by their denial, betrayal and abandonment and did not unleash his anger or rebuke them in disappointment. In contrast, he speaks words reconciliation and compassion. 

So, what does this mean to us? It means there is no sin that God in principle cannot forgive. There is finally nothing that can separate us from the love of God. St. Paul said in his letters to the Romans that I am certain that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither heights nor depths or any other power can separate us from the love of God. How does Paul know that? Because we killed God, and God returned with forgiving and redeeming love. Because he met the risen Jesus who showed his wounds and said “Shalom.”

As we celebrate the feast of Divine Mercy, I urge all and sundry to embrace and accept the mercy of the one who, although was betrayed, denied and crucified, he returned with redeeming mercy, love, compassion and friendship. Do not allow your sins to stop you from going to God. 2 Chronicles 7:14 says, “If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

The Summary of “The Risks— Know Them— Avoid Them”

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Thursday, May 14, 2020

If you are one of those who find reading tiring and boring, please make an intentional effort to read this piece. It is educative and helpful as well. Reading and applying the principles outlined in this summary of a well researched work will no doubt protect you, your household and the rest of the society. We all know that the culture or habit of reading does not naturally come to everyone; consequently, I tried to summarize in this writing the original work titled, “The Risks— Know Them— Avoid Them” written and published by Professor Erin Bromage. Who is Professor Erin Bromage? He is an Associate Professor of Biology at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. He joined the Faculty of the university in 2007 where he teaches courses in Immunology and Infectious diseases, including a course on the Ecology of Infectious Disease which focused on the emerging SARS-CoV2 outbreak in China.  

In his article, which has been read by more than 13 million people, Dr. Bromage lays out places where people get infected with coronavirus. As States and nations reopen their economies, he wants you to know the risks involved as you go about your daily activities. To start with, he says he understands the reasons for wanting to reopen the economy, but insists that, “if you don’t solve the biology, the economy won’t recover.” According to Prof. Bromage, 90% of all coronavirus infections are happening in:

1. Home
2. Workplace
3. Public transport
4. Social/ religious/ sporting events (like choir practice, indoor sports, birthday parties, funerals
5. Restaurants

Like me, you may be shocked that home is the number one place that people get infected. How is this possible? Professor Bromage says it happens when, “A household member contracts the virus in the community and brings it into the house where sustained contact between household members leads to infection.” Since people contract the infection in the community, the question then is: Where in the community are people contracting the infection? People contract the virus from workplaces, from using public transport, by attending social and religious gatherings and by going to restaurants. Prof. Bromage reminds its readers that “In order to get infected you need to get exposed to an infectious dose of the virus; (and) based on infectious dose studies with other coronaviruses, it appears that only small doses may be needed for infection to take hold.” He warns us to be extremely careful when using public bathrooms (restrooms) because they “have a lot of high touch surfaces, door handles, faucets, stall doors” where the risk of being infected is high. Even flushing the toilet can release many droplets of the virus in the room. 

In addition, Prof. Bromage states the following:

A single COUGH releases about 3,000 droplets in the atmosphere and these droplets travel at 50 miles per hour. So, when someone around you coughs, RUN AWAY! 

A single SNEEZE releases about 30,000 droplets with droplets traveling at up to 200 miles per hour. A lot of these droplets are small and can travel great distances. If someone sneezes without covering their mouth, call the cop! (LOL!) 

Check this! In an infected person coughs or sneezes, the droplets in a single cough or sneeze may contain as many as two hundred million virus particles which can be released and spread into the atmosphere. This means that one sneeze or cough of an infected can be quite dangerous, perhaps even lethal. 

Even breathing can be problematic too. A single breath releases 50-5000 droplets. But Prof. Bromage cautions that most of these droplets are low velocity and can easily fall to the ground. However, speaking increases the release of droplets. So, if you must talk to someone, practice social distancing and make the conversation brief. If you spend more than 10 minutes talking face to face with someone who is infected, Professor Bromage says you could potentially be infected. 

• In conclusion, your sneezes and coughs can expel so much virus that you can infect a whole room of people. 
• Therefore, “do your part and WEAR FACIAL MASK to reduce what you release into the environment.” 
• It is also vitally important that symptomatic people stay home and in isolation if they live with others. 
• Avoid attending any indoor activity with poor air circulation and high density of people. 
• Reconsider attending any gathering where large number of people is expected. 
• Stay away from someone who is speaking very loud, who is yelling and screaming because that person is an active insecticide. 
• If you are about to enter a store and you notice that it is crowded, turn away. If it is not possible to do so, do not stay in that store for more than 10 minutes. 
• If you must use a public restroom, consider using hand gloves. If none is with you, make sure you wash your hand with running water and soap immediately you exit the restroom.

May God our wonderful healer and protector strengthen our immune system to be able to resist this virus and other diseases out there. Amen. 

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) and Prophecy Priests

- Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

An assembly of Catholic Bishops in a given country/territory is usually called an Episcopal Conference or a Conference of Catholic Bishops. In Nigeria, this assembly is called the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN). It is a forum wherein the archbishops and bishops of the 54 ecclesiastical jurisdictions among other things speak with one voice the authentic teaching, prophetic and pastoral ministry of the Catholic Church in Nigeria. Now, it is important to point out that at this assembly, individual bishops do not relinquish their immediate authority for the governance of their respective dioceses to the conference. However, with one voice, they speak and promote the greater good which the Church offers humankind. Of course this greater good is always drawn from the universal law of the Church.

In the past and present, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria has provided leadership to Catholics and non-Catholics alike in matters of faith and moral, and offered good counsel to political leaders as to what proper governance of the nation entails. During the dark days of military junta, especially the disastrous regimes of Generals Ibrahim Babangida and Sani Abacha, the voice of the Catholic Bishops’s Conference was the voice of hope for all Nigerians. Catholics and non-Catholic looked to them to speak and lead. One of such times, although not in any way comparable to the bloodshed and misrule of the past has come. If there is one vital moment when I wish the Conference can speak eloquently with one voice, it is now. The current trend of political prophecy and predictions by Catholic priests requires a focal attention of the Conference. If the Conference has spoken before about this matter, it has to speak again, and may be this time include serious sanctions on any disobedient priest. I don’t know if this is canonically possible, but something has to be done. Not later, but now.

There are a few lessons I wish the Nigerian Church can learn from the American Church, and one of those is that what happens in one diocese is not the problem of that diocese but the problem of all the dioceses. The issue of priests and prophecies requires the attention of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria. What happened in Enugu Diocese recently cannot and should not be left to the bishop of Enugu Diocese to resolve. We have seen time and again that he is not able to enforce the law of the Catholic Church when it comes to priests’ involvement in politics. I am not advocating for political indifference when it comes to politics and political decisions. I am not saying that priests should become oblivious to policy matters that affect them and their flock. But as the Archbishop of Lagos, Martin Adewale said recently, any political comments should be made “from the point of view of principle, principle that should guide elections, principles that should guide political actors, principles that should guide relationship between government and people. The priest who believes he has the gifts of prophecy has to test whatever that has been told to him in the light of the scriptures, in the light of the teachings of the Church and in terms of the authority that has been given to the leaders in the Church.” Moreover, the celebration of the Eucharist, which is the sum and summary of our faith is not the place for political predictions. It is not the place to "anoint" and "crown" politicians. It is not the place to raise one politician over another, or to endorse one and reject the other. The Mass is the most sacred, most revered and most holy event. To turn it into an event where politicians with questionable characters come for endorsement is a sacrilege against the Holy Eucharist.

Deep in my heart, I believe that the time has come for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria to take up this matter. It is possible they had in the past discussed it at their meetings, but since “the bird that cried before is still crying,” an outside onlooker like me is left thinking that may be a consensus is yet to be reached on what to do. The issue of priests and prophecies is causing problem among Catholics and non-Catholics in the country and therefore should be handled by the Bishops’ Conference. These prophecy priests (you are free to call them abracadabra priests) are taking the Catholic Church in Nigeria to a scary path we have never been before. My hope is that after the dusts have settled, after all the outcry, the outrage, the praise, the condemnations, the celebrations, that the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria can seriously begin to address this matter. If it warrants the involvement of the Nuncio (the Pope’s representative in Nigeria) and the Holy See to put a halt to this embarrassing and disgraceful saga, let them bite the bullet and do it.

The recent political prophecy is not for the benefit and wellbeing of souls, rather an enrichments of pockets. It has no relevance to the proclamation of the good news of Jesus Christ. It does not move the kingdom of God one inch. It rather exposes our faith to public ridicule. A Catholic priest does not need to dabble into this kind of abracadabra just to demonstrate that he is an anointed man of God. Every priest is an anointed man of God not because of prediction he makes but by the laying on of hands by a Catholic Bishop and recitation of prayer of consecration.

God bless you!

Reflection on John 14: 1-14

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Saturday, May 9, 2020

Beloved in Christ, in this Gospel Jesus boldly declares, “I am the way and the truth and the life.” Previously he had said in John 8:28, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I AM…” In John 13:19, he also says, “From now on I am telling you before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe that I AM.” There are other places in the Gospel where Jesus speaks and acts like God. No other religious figure or founder or a spiritual leader would speak in the manner that Jesus does. The Buddha could say he found a way that he would like to share with his followers, but Jesus said, “I am the way.” Mohammed could say that God, Allah, has communicated the final message of truth  to the world through him, but Jesus said, “I am the truth.” Confucius could insist that he had discovered a new and uplighting mode of life, but Jesus said, “I am the life.” So, if we believe that Jesus is who he said he is— the way, the truth, the life, the I AM— Yahweh in human flesh, then we are obliged to give our whole lives to him. There should be no sitting on the fence. It is either we are with Jesus or we are against him. Jesus wants us to make a choice in a manner that no other religious founder does.

Additionally, no other religious founder ever made a direct connection and link between them and God. In today’s Gospel, Jesus said, “If you know me, then you will also know my Father.” And when Philip urged him saying, “Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us,” Jesus did not go into an elaborate theological description of the Father, but simply said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” And shortly after that, he also said, “Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me…” This Gospel passage and many others are the foundation and the starting point of the whole course in Trinity in major seminaries and theological colleges. I am not going to go there because this is not the place for it. 

“If you know me, then you will also know my Father,” Jesus said. In his earlier conversation with the Pharisees, he also told them, “If you knew me, you would know my Father also” (Jn. 8:19). In John 10:14, Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me.” Jesus certainly knows his disciples. He knows us. He knows both our strengths and weaknesses. The challenge now is on us to also know him although we cannot know him as much as he knows us. But what does it really mean to know Jesus? In biblical language, to know someone is not a detached knowing but to know the person by experience and to have an intimate relationship with that person. Our knowledge of Jesus therefore should be both intellectually highly concentrated and experientially highly potent as well. On how we can experience Jesus, I turn our attention to the encyclical letter of Pope Paul VI titled, “Mysterium Fidei.” This letter was published in the Fall of 1965 just as the final session of Vatican II was underway. In his letter, Pope Paul VI talks about the various modes of Christ’s presence in the Church. First, he said that “Christ is present in his Church when she prays, since it is he who prays for us and prays in us and to whom we pray as to our God.” This means that whenever we gather to pray, Jesus is among us and we can encounter him and experience him in our prayers. Secondly, the Holy Father said that “He (Christ) is present in the Church as she performs her works of mercy…because it is Christ, performing those works through the Church, who continually assists men with his divine love.” So, when the Church does its great work with the poor, it is Christ present who is performing those works through the Church. Thirdly, “He (Christ) is present in the Church as she preaches, since the Gospel is preached through the authority of Christ.” Fourthly, the Pope said, “In a manner still more sublime Christ is present in His Church as she offers in his name the Sacrifice of the Mass…and as she administers the other sacraments.” So, when the priest baptizes, it is Christ who baptizes; when the bishop confirms, it is Christ who is confirming, and when the priest ministers the anointing of the sick, it is Christ who anoints and who heals. At Mass, it is Christ acting, Christ speaking, Christ sharing his life. Going further Pope Paul VI said, “However, there is still higher, more sublime and indeed unsurpassable manner Christ is present in his Church. It is the Eucharistic Presence.

Beloved, if you want to encounter and experience Jesus do the following:

1. Pray
2. Be involved in works of charity
3. Read the word of God, the teachings of the Church and listen to the word proclaimed
4. Receive the sacraments 
5. Receive the Eucharist reverently and believe in your heart that the same Jesus born of Mary, who preached powerfully, worked signs and wonders, who suffered, died and rose is truly and really present Soul, Body and Divinity in the Eucharist. 

Reflection on John 10:11-18

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Monday, May 4, 2020

Fellow pilgrims of heaven, in this Gospel Jesus identifies himself as the good shepherd: “I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me.” The intimacy between Jesus, the Good Shepherd, and his faithful sheep is the reason why there is mutual knowledge. It is most convenient that the lover and the beloved should know each other. They are not strangers but friends: “I no longer call you slaves because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told everything I have heard from my Father” (John 15:15). The good shepherd recognizes which sheep belong to his flock, and the sheep themselves will recognize, out of the many voices of distraction, the voice of their good shepherd. When the good shepherd speaks and calls, his flock of sheep will recognize his voice. 

But what is that leads, moves and motivates people to accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior? When people read the Bible or approach the Sacrament, what is it that appeals to them? Some of us got attracted to Jesus due to our family background. I am probably a Catholic Christian because I was born into a practicing Catholic family. Some others became Christians because someone preached to them or showed them good example. But the chief and deeper reason why people are attracted to the Lord is that when he speaks, he calls and beckons. His voice is the voice of love and friendship. It’s the voice of a lover inviting his beloved into a love relationship. He does not scare or frighten, rather, he appeals. 

As the lost sheep, it feels really good and really assuring to hear the voice of one who knows us through and through and who comes to our rescue. This good shepherd lays down his own life for us, so that we may find our way back to God, back to safety, redemption and life. 

Thank you, Jesus! 

Reflection on John 10:1-10

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Sunday, May 3, 2020

Beloved in Christ, in this Gospel Jesus recognizes himself as the sheep-gate when he declares, Amen, amen, I say to you, I am the gate for the sheep… I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. Does this mean there is no other gate and no other access to the Kingdom and to God the Father? The answer is YES! Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life (Jn. 14:6). But does this mean that non-Christians will not be saved? The answer is No! Although non-Christians do not acknowledge Jesus as their Savior and Redeemer, the Church teaches that the quest of their human spirit for truth and goodness, and in the final analysis for God, is inspired by the Holy Spirit. Now, the Holy Spirit is the Third Person in the Blessed Trinity. Although he is a unique person in the Trinity, just as the Father is,  and the Son is, the activity of the Holy Spirit is also the activity of the Father and the Son. Therefore, every work and activity of the Holy Spirit in other religions is also the work and activity of the Father and the Son. Neither Father, nor the Son, nor the Holy Spirit has a personal and private pet project. Every work of the Father, or the Son or the Holy Spirit is the work of the Blessed Trinity. The unity of the Trinity is demonstrated in the work they do. Non-Christians may not now acknowledge Jesus as Lord and Savior or accept his redemptive sacrifice on the cross, but if they diligently and sincerely practice what is good in their religious traditions and follow the dictates of their own conscience, when they meet God on the last day, they will finally know that Jesus is the Redeemer, the Gate, the Way through whom we have access to the Father. They will finally come to know that it is the precious Blood of Jesus that saves.  Speaking on Salvation and Other Religions, Pope John Paul II said, “It will be in the sincere practice of what is good in their own religious traditions and by following the dictates of their own conscience that the members of other religions respond positively to God’s invitation and receive salvation in Jesus Christ, even while they do not recognize or acknowledge him as their Savior.” 

When I was growing up in Nigeria, a strong wave of pentecostalism was sweeping many towns and cities in Nigeria. Historical fact submits that pentecostalism started around 1910 in Nigeria, but it seems it was in the 80’s and 90’s that this wave got stronger. The theological foundation of the message of these pentecostal preachers and their members was: unless you are born again, you cannot be saved; Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Their view of “born again” entails an abandonment of one’s previous religious faith and joining what they called “Bible believing church,” which means, their own church. During this time, even Catholics and other mainline church members were told that they were not Christians, not born again, and so, were hell-bound. As such many Catholic weaklings left the Catholic Church and joined these Pentecostals and later claimed that they have seen the light. Non-Christians were told that unless they become baptized in the Holy Spirit and are born again, they will not be saved. Of course, this exclusivist view of salvation is not supported by the Catholic Church.

When we talk about salvation, we should avoid two extremes. One is the exclusivist claim that only baptized Christians can be saved. This view is extremely harsh, discriminatory and does not take into account the universality of God and also does serious damage to efforts to stop tensions and conflicts between Christians and non-Christians. At the Second Vatican Council, one of the principle documents of the Council, The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium highlights the nature, role and guidelines of the Church, and also speaks about Muslims. After considering the People of God who profess faith in Christ, and the Jewish people, the document goes on to declare that: “God’s plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, first among whom are the Muslims: they profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, who will judge all human beings on the last day” (Lumen Gentium 16). In Nostra Aetate, On the Relation of the Church with Non-Christian Religions, the Church states it “has a high regard for the Muslims. (Because) They worship God who is one. They submit themselves to God’s will as did Abraham…Though they do not acknowledge Jesus as God, they revere Him as a prophet. They also honor Mary, His Virgin Mother…” 

Another extreme to be avoided, which unfortunately is more prevalent today is the conviction that one’s religion does not really matter as long as one finds himself or herself on a spiritual path. This view undermines the special place and uniqueness of Christianity. While Christianity may be seen as one religion among the many, it is however, God’s ultimate and final project for humanity. The word of God tells us that “In times past, God spoke in partial and various ways to our ancestors through the prophets; in these last days, he spoke to us through his Son, who he made heir of all things and through whom he created the universe, who is the radiance of his glory, the very imprint of his being, and who sustains all things by his mighty word” (Hebrews 1:1-3) In no other religion is God made flesh. In no other religion did God died and rise. In no other religion did God give himself in the elements of bread and wine but in Christianity. With Jesus Christ, something unimaginably new has entered the world. With Jesus Christ, something greater than Abraham, greater than Jonah, greater than John the Baptist dwells among us. With Jesus Christ, something that is profoundly pleasing to God and also redemptive was given to us. Check this out! Other religions emphasize the quest of the human spirit for truth and goodness and God. But Christianity is chiefly about God’s longing for us: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life” (Jn. 3:16). Again, “While we were still sinners Jesus Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8). Why? Because of God’s urgent longing to reconcile with us and to be one with us. The Catholic Church acknowledges that the founders of other religions achieved a deeper religious experience with the help of the Holy Spirit, which they  later  handed on to others their experience in the form of doctrines, rites, and precepts. But the uniqueness of Christianity is that God himself is the founder. Through Jesus Christ, God gave everything to us. God certainly gave something and left something in other religions; however, through the Son of Man, God gave everything. God abandoned himself totally. God allowed himself to be humbled and humiliated so that he can exalt and redeem us. What is exceedingly pleasing to God can only be found and experienced in Jesus Christ and in Christianity.