BE VIGILANT AT ALL TIMES

BE VIGILANT AT ALL TIMES

Fr. Marcel-Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the First Sunday of Advent

Holy Names of Jesus & Mary Catholic Church

Memphis, Tennessee, USA

November 29, 2009

Ephesians 5:14 “Wake up O sleeper and rise up from the dead, and let the light of Christ shine upon you”

Today is the first Sunday of Advent. Advent marks the beginning of a new liturgical year in the Church. The Catholic Church has her own special liturgical year and calendar; and through this liturgical year and calendar, she presents again the history and unchanging mysteries of our salvation, from Creation to the Second Coming, together with the entire life of our Savior Jesus Christ. The Church’s liturgical year is a year of formation; and like students in school, Christians learn about faith, hope and charity. We learn about God’s will and how to do God’s will. Each Sunday and Feast present a special lesson to us for our daily living.

Advent is a lovely season because it emphasizes the Parousia- the Second Coming of Christ. It reminds us that after sunrise, there will be sunset. With the beginning of the season of Advent, we begin a new liturgical year. The First Sunday of Advent is therefore the Church’s “New Year Day.” Advent begins the Christmas cycle.

The word “Advent” means “arrival” or “coming”. Advent reminds us that the Lord is coming. It means that Jesus Christ, our Brother in our humanity and our God in His divinity will arrive or has arrived. The Lord comes to us in different ways:

• In the whole of Gospel of Luke 2, we were told that Jesus came to us at a specific time in history at Bethlehem more than 2000 years ago. This first coming of Jesus is what we celebrate during Christmas. At this time, he came in humility.
• The Gospel of Matthew 24:29-31, speaks of when the Lord, the Alpha and Omega will come to judge the living and the dead. This time he will come in glory.
• The Lord comes to us in grace. He speaks to us in our consciences. In Rev. 3:20, he says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock, if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with me.”
• Again, the Lord comes to us in the Eucharist and in the Word of God proclaimed. In the Gospel of John 6:25-59, Jesus tells us that he is the Bread of life. And in Matthew 26:26-29, Jesus established a constant presence with us. “Take and eat…Do this in remembrance of me.”
• Finally, the Lord comes to us in the person of the beggar, the needy, the suffering, and the oppressed. We must be ready to receive and welcome Him when He comes, however he comes. Remember Matthew 25:40 “Whatsoever you do, to the least of my brothers and sisters, you did unto me.”

Advent is a period of great expectation. It is a wonderful expectation of the coming of our Savior and our salvation. If there is no Savior, there will be no salvation. The Savior brings Salvation, and this salvation is for those who are ready to receive it. The salvation is free, but not cheap. Mark it; Salvation is free, but not cheap!

What shall we do then to be part of this salvation and redeemed people? Jesus provides the answer in today’s Gospel reading when he said: “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap. For that that will assault everyone who lives on the face of the earth. Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Brethren, Jesus says, stay awake! You may be asking yourself, what is there to wake up from? What are we to wake up from? The Lord wants us to wake up from the sleep of the soul. The sleep of the soul is the neglect of the things of God; it is the neglect of our spiritual duties; it is the neglect of our state of life; it is the neglect of virtues. Today, let us examine our lives in order to see how prepared we are because we do not know the time or the hour when we will meet our Lord.

Outside the city of Rome is a little Chapel, and the wall of this Chapel is painted a short sentence: “Quo Vadis, Domine?” Which means, “Where are you going Lord”? Now tradition tells us that it was at that point that St. Peter met Jesus when he was running away from the first Roman persecution. While Peter was running away from Rome, he met the Lord going towards Rome, and he asked Jesus “Quo Vadis, Domine?” “Where are you going Lord?” And Jesus replied him, “I am going back to Rome to be crucified again.” Tradition also tells us that Peter realized that Jesus was talking to him, and he retraced his steps and went back to Rome, and from history we know that he was martyred there for his faith.

The question “Quo Vadis” – “where are you going” is today directed to me, to you, and to us as a Church. And this question is a practical question that we should ask ourselves periodically. Roughly we may divide our lives into three categories: our spiritual life, our intellectual life, and our social life. Applying this question to these three phases of our life, our divine Savior asks us today:

• Where are you going spiritually? Do you pray at all? Do you have the habits of praying or do you leave it to your moods? Do you attend Mass on Sundays regularly? Remember that Jesus says in the Gospel of Luke 18:1- “Pray always and do not loose heart.” Again, in Ephesians 6:18, Apostle Paul says, “Keep on praying in the spirit.” Again, remember the solemn promise of Jesus in the gospel of Matthew 7:7- “ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall found, knock and the door will be opened to you.”
• Quo Vadis? Where are you going intellectually? What books and papers and magazines do you read? What occupies your mind? What thoughts are habitually fostered in your mind? May be you read anything, think anything, or may be deliberately choose books that are contrary to Christian morals and faith. What do we usually think about? Do we spend sometime to read the Word of God. Psalm 119:105 says, “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light unto my path.” And in John 6:63, Jesus said, “My Words are Spirit and they are life.”
• Quo Vadis? Where are you going socially? Are you a scandal to others? Do you seek the company of those who are going to be an occasion of sin for you? Are you giving too much time to social activities? It is very important to remember always that Romans 14: 17 says, “The kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy which the Holy Spirit gives.” And in verse 18, it says, “And when you serve Christ Jesus in this way, you please God and are approved by others.”

Where are we spiritually, intellectually and socially? The Lord says to us today, ‘Wake up from your spiritual slumber.’ St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians 5:14 says, “Wake up O sleeper, and rise up from the dead, and let the light of Christ shine upon you.”

Romans 13:11-12 says “The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over, the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.”

Some of us are still asleep, although we are walking around. And while in deep slumber, we are overtaken by the deeds of darkness, and driven back to Sodom. Our dreams are all about Egypt. Sleeping Christians believed in past glory. They are completely unaware that our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. But today, Jesus calls us to wake up. He wants us to prove once again that our eyes are open, looking unto heaven, waiting for his Second coming. We should not remain in bed when we wake up. Arise and shine in this crooked and perverse generation.

In the book of Revelation 3:1, the Church in Sardis was described by the Lord as follows, “I know your deeds, you have a reputation of being alive but you are dead.” Divine view is different from human view. No wonder 1 Samuel: 16:7 says: The Lord does not look at the things human being look at. Human beings look at outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.

THE CHURCH IN SARDIS was deceived by their reputation; she was deceived by human applause, positive assessment and acceptance. When weighed on human scales, they were found perfect. They were justified by men. Whenever they were singing, praying, clapping their hands and probably dancing inside the Church, the onlookers usually nodded their heads in great admiration, saying, “Yes, their Church is alive and marching forward.” In their Church, they prayed like Elijah, danced like David, preached like Paul and Apollos, performed miracles like Elisha, and sang like the angels. People believed they were alive. But weighed spiritually, they were empty. Jesus scanned their hearts and found that what they had was outward show of piety.

Today, our loving Master asks us to wake up from our sleep. He wants us to come down from our bed of sleep. He wants us to hearken to what Prophet Isaiah says in Isaiah 2:3 “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the Temple of the God of Jacob that he may teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths…”

Rev. 3:2 says, Wake up, strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God.”

And in 1 Thessalonians 5:6-8, Apostle Paul says, “So then, let us not be like others who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled…putting on faith and love as breastplate, and hope of salvation as helmet.”

But if we don’t do anything concerning our spiritual life and our life generally, we may be found wanting when the Lord comes. And in the Rev. 3:3 he warns: “But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.”

Only those who are awake and ready will sing with the Psalmist in Psalm 122: 1, “I rejoice when I heard them say, ‘let us go to God’s house’”.

OUR SECOND CHANCE

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara CSsR

Homily for 33^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

November 15, 2009

A hospital called The Hospice of God in Beaune, France which was founded in 1443 has the picture of the Last Judgment painted by Rogier van der Weyden. The beds in the large hospital ward were positioned in such a way that the patients could see the painting from their sickbeds. In the center was Jesus Christ with the Archangel Michael. This picture of Jesus is not the friendly Jesus carrying a sheep on his shoulders; it was not the picture of Jesus surrounded by kids, it was the picture of Jesus as a Judge. In the picture, there was the Archangel Michael weighing the sins of those seen rising from their graves on a scale. The righteous are seen joyfully entering into God’s Kingdom, while the damned go to everlasting torture. The intention of the painting is so easy to understand. Those who are sick and dying are being warned and being given an all important second chance to prepare to meet the Lord for judgment. But guess what? Only those who have enjoyed the grace and the friendship of Jesus will appreciate this painting. They are the ones that will easily understand this painting. To such people, this painting will make a lot of sense.

All major religions of the world have a sense of judgment beyond this world. There is earthly judgment done by the Judges in various law courts. But there is the final judgment or the Last Judgment which will be done by the Son of Man himself. I have always believed and taught that if the perpetrators of evil should escape earthly judgment, they cannot escape the Last Judgment. At that Judgment, the all knowing Lord cannot be deceived or misled or misguided. Now Christianity and Judaism believe that the Son of Man will come in the clouds to judge. Our today’s Gospel says

“…they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory, and then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the end of the earth to the end of the sky.”

But it is not only biblical religions that teach about a judgment day. Islam teaches that when one dies the angel of death comes with God’s judgment to bring the person either to paradise or hellfire. Hindu, Buddhism and other religions of China talk about being reborn as a moth or a man, prince or a slave. But what determines where one will be reborn is one’s actions on earth. Sinful and evil people will be sent downward chained everlastingly. Whereas righteous people will be sent up. Therefore Nirvana or final nothingness is the hope of humanity according to these Asian religions. It is crystal clear that God has implanted in the heart of every human the notion of accountability. Human life does not go on unceasingly here on earth. There is life after life; there is life after death. Our actions here on earth determines where eternity will be spent. It was William Shakespeare who said that the world is a stage and everybody is an actor. Those who acted lovingly will be shown love hereafter; they will receive love. Those who acted with so much hate and bitterness will be rejected by love. The Igbo tribe of Nigeria describe human life on earth as going to the market or to the shops to buy things. After shopping, one does not stay behind in the shop, he or she returns home. The world is a shopping place, those who buy good will see good; those who buy evil will see evil.

In our Eucharistic Acclamations we profess our faith in Jesus’ coming: “Christ has died, Christ is risen , Christ will come again.” In the Creed we recite every Sunday we profess: “He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.” In the Creed, we profess our belief in a judgment that awaits us. In that judgment we will see the evil effects our sins have caused. We will see the numerous opportunities we had to do good but let slipped by; we will also see the good we did. The words of Jesus in today’s Gospel taking from Mark 13: 24-32 is a reminder of what lies ahead so that we live now with that second chance. Jesus’ first coming as Man and his second coming is one entire act of saving the world. His second coming is the final part of that salvation. The Lord will come again to judge the living and the dead.

“God won’t ask the square footage of your house. He will ask how many people you helped who didn’t have a house.

God won’t ask how many fancy clothes you had in your closet. He will ask how many of those clothes you gave away to those who didn’t have any.

God won’t ask how many material possessions you had. He will ask whether those material possessions dictated your life.

God won’t ask what your highest salary was. He will ask if you trampled over any people to obtain that salary.

God won’t ask how much overtime you worked. He will ask did you work overtime for your family.

God won’t ask how many promotions you received. He will ask what you did to promote others.

God won’t ask what your job title was. He will ask did you perform your job to the best of your ability.

God won’t ask what your parents did to help you. He will ask what you did to help your parents.

God won’t ask what you did to help yourself. He will ask what you did to help others.

God won’t ask how many friends you had. He will ask how many people you were a friend to.

God won’t ask what you did to protect your rights. He will ask what you did to protect the right of others.”

We have a second chance, that chance is now.

Today’s gospel calls us to learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branch becomes tender and sprout leaves, we say that the summer is near. Do not be frightened by today’s Gospel reading. The Lord’s intention is not to frighten us. He is calling our attention to what awaits us. He is giving us a second chance. Today’s Gospel from Mark is both a warning and a comfort. The warning is God’s judgment is coming. The comfort is Jesus does not want us to be unprepared when it happens. He wants us to be ready and well prepared. There is another thing comforting about this message of judgment. Who is the judge? It is Jesus who loves us so much, who promises never to leave us. He is our reconciliation. The judge is the one who said of himself in the Gospel of John 10: 10 “I have come that they may have life, life in its fullness.” The judge is the one who says in John 10: 11 “I am the Good Shepherd who will die for the sheep.” The righteous judge is the one who promised us in John 14: 2-3 that after he had prepared a place for us in his Father’s house, he will come to take us. The Judge is the one who called us friends in John 15: 15. The Judge is the one who promised not to leave us as orphans. The Judge is one who prayed for us in John 17 that we may be in him just as he is in the Father.

This Judge is giving us a second chance by reminding us to be ready. Are you ready? Holy Names, are you ready? Are you ready? Are you ready?

REAL GIFT IS SACRIFICIAL

REAL GIFT IS SACRIFICIAL

Fr. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara CSsR

Homily for 32^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

November, 8, 2009

Today, the Church presents us the beautiful stories of two widows. One gave the only food she had to a prophet, Elijah. The other widow gave the only money she had so that sacrifice could be offered in the Temple and the bills of the Temple paid. We are presented with two remarkable stories of two women who gave everything they had for others. The widow of Zarephath gave the last food she had to Prophet Elijah, and because of her kindness, she never lacked food for the next one year even though there was famine in the land. The widow at the treasury gave her last coins and her offering was considered the greatest by Jesus Christ.

A lot of people who don’t even know much about the Bible would know what you are talking about if you mention the widow’s mite. Christians and non-Christians, Churchgoers and non-churchgoers know about the story of a poor widow in today’s Gospel reading from Mark 12: 41-44. It is a story of great sacrifice.

Jesus had gone to sit quietly opposite the treasury and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury. The treasury is the collection boxes where people throw in money for special purposes like the buying of corn or wine or oil for the sacrifices. They were contributions for the daily sacrifices and expenses of the Temple. Many people threw in quite considerable contributions. The Gospel says “Many rich people put in large sums.” Then a widow appeared. She is not just any widow; she is a poor wretched widow. She put in two mites- two small coins like two cents. But her offering caught the attention of Jesus. Jesus was watching as people put in their money. The rich, out of their surplus wealth made huge donations. But the poor widow, from her poverty, has given all she had, her whole livelihood. Jesus was so thrilled that he called his disciples and said “…this poor widow has put more in than all who have contributed to the treasury.”

The story of the widow at the treasury reminds us again what we already know about Christian discipleship- that God does not need money. He needs us. He wants us. This poor widow did not give God money; she gave herself entirely to God; she gave everything to God. She gave her entire self, her present and her future. She gave the only thing that stands between her and total dependence on the providence of God- two cents. Real giving has a certain recklessness in it. The widow could have kept one coin even though it would not have made much difference, but she gave everything she had. She did not reserve anything. Her action has a profound symbolic meaning. Think about it, this poor widow surrendered and tendered everything she had. What about us? The tragedy here is that there is some part of ourselves that we are yet to surrender and tender to Jesus; there is some part of our time, talent, and treasure that we are yet to surrender to Jesus; there is some part of our activities, some part of our lives which we haven’t yet given totally and entirely to Jesus Christ. There is something we are holding back. We are afraid to give them up because of the fear of the unknown. We don’t have a childlike faith that assures us that if we give them up, if we surrender to Jesus our entire live, our activities, our three Tees- time, talent and treasure that God will take care of us. We are not yet ready to make the final sacrifice and surrender. We are still giving excuses, not yet ready. But these two windows gave everything.

From these two widows, another lesson to learn is that real giving must be sacrificial. What matters here is not the amount of the gift, or the size of the gift. What matters is the sacrifice. Real giving must hurt. Profound generosity continues to give until it hurts. For many of us, the question is not whether we give; the question is whether our giving to God’s work is sacrificial at all. Some of us can afford to spend huge amount in restaurants; some of us can afford to spend our money in some unnecessary pleasures and entertainments. We can spend real money in jewelries, in clothes, in shoes, etc. but not in things that pertains to religion, not in offertory basket.

The stories of these two remarkable widows will only make more sense if we believe that what we do with our money shows what we have in our heart. If you want to find out what you really love, read your credit card bill. No wonder Jesus says in the Gospel of Luke 12: 34 “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” The use of money, stewardship and material things was so important to Jesus that he called his disciples together to tell them about the widow’s gift. The main issue for Jesus was not how much she gave or what she gave. And recognizing the little donation of the widow does not mean that Jesus approves of the conditions that rendered the widow poor. It does not mean that Jesus approves poverty and deprivation. The Lord is saying that what we do with our money either grows our faith or deadens it. What we do with our money can deepen our spirituality or shatter it.

Now when we talk about gifts, some of us may claim that they don’t have enough of material gifts or personal gifts to give to Jesus Christ, but, if we put all that we have and are at our disposal, the Lord can do great things with them and with us. Every child of God has something to give. Every one of us here has something to give. The two widows gave everything they have. What about us?

WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO FOR YOU?

WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO FOR YOU?

Fr. Marcel Emeka Okwara CSsR

Homily for the 30^th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B

October 25, 2009

Today we hear another powerful story of the power of faith and persistence. It is the story of a blind man named Bartimaeus who received healing from Jesus due to his persistence and expression of faith in Jesus to cure him. Bartimaeus believed that the Son of David is able to bring newness into his life. Today’s healing is a roadside healing. It is a roadside demonstration of faith; it is a roadside expression of pity on the side of Jesus.

Today’s gospel taken from Mark 10: 46-52 says that Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and accompanied by a sizeable crowd. As they walked to their destination, the blind Bartimaeus who sits by the roadside begging heard the tramp of their feet and asked what was happening and who was passing. It is important to mention here that Jesus was on his way to the Passover. Now when a distinguished Rabbi or teacher was on such a journey it was the custom that he was surrounded by a crowd of people, disciples and learners, who listened to him as he discoursed while he walked. That was one of the commonest ways of teaching. When Bartimaeus heard the strong movement of people, he knew that an important Rabbi was travelling by the road. He therefore asked who was passing and was told that it was Jesus. There and then, the blind man caused an uproar. He started shouting and screaming loudly “Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me.” But the people around rebuked him to be silent, but the blind man was not ready to let this opportunity pass him by. He therefore shouted even louder “Son of David, have pity on me.” This time, he distracted Jesus. He got the attention of Jesus. “Call him,” said Jesus. When Bartimaeus was brought to Jesus, the Lord asked him “What do you want me to do for you?” Bartimaeus may have been stunned by the question of Jesus; he may have even reasoned “Jesus, are you crazy? Can’t you see I am blind and needed sight? But his answer to the question of Jesus was “Master, I want to see.” At this point Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.” He immediately received his sight and instead of going away, he followed Jesus on his way.

Some people have always wondered why they should pray when God already knows what they want. It is true that God already knows what we need, but in the gospel we just read, Bartimaeus still asked Jesus for help. Any standby watcher would easily conclude that Bartimaeus wants Jesus to restore his sight; still Jesus asked him “Who do you want me to do for you?” It is possible the blind man wanted money; it is possible he wanted a house; it is possible he wanted even a wife or something else. The needs of a blind beggar would naturally be many. But the man wanted something that has been a huge hindrance to him. He wanted the restoration of his sight. Jesus knew everything about people; he knew Judas was going to betray him; he knew about Nathanael under the fig tree (John 1); he knew the woman in Samaria has had five husbands before her present partner (John 4). Jesus knew about Bartimaeus. He didn’t need to be told he needed his sight restored yet he still asked him. Bartimaeus also did not need to tell Jesus about his condition, but by telling Jesus he was preparing himself to receive the gift of having his sight restored. God knows our needs. He knows what we want in life. Prayer is not about informing God what our needs are. He already knows about them. Instead prayer is for our benefit, not God. Prayer prepares us to receive what God wishes to give us.

From today’s powerful story we can see many of the things which we might call the conditions of miracle:

1. The blind Bartimaeus was persistent in his asking. Despite the shout-down and abuse he got from the people around him, he refused to be discouraged. Nothing that time would stop him from coming face to face with Jesus. He was utterly determined to meet the one person who can change his life. He was determined and desperate to encounter Jesus. The more the pull-him-down (PHD) people shout down at him, the more he shouted even louder. At last, he won. He got the attention of Jesus. He got his healing; his sight was restored.
2. His response to the call of Jesus was immediate and eager. As soon as he was told that Jesus was calling him, he threw aside his hindering cloak and ran to Jesus. Bartimaeus did not wait; he rather ran to Jesus the source of life. Many people hear the call of Jesus, but says, “Wait until I have done this,” “Wait until I have finished or accomplished that.” As soon as Jesus called, Bartimaeus did not waste time. Certain chances happen only once.
3. Bartimaeus knew precisely what he wanted- “Master I want to see.” Too often our admiration for Jesus is a vague attraction. The man with a back pain wants the doctor to deal precisely with his back pain. The woman with a toothache wants the dentist to extract the diseased tooth not any tooth. It should be so with us and Jesus. And for us to deal with Jesus that way it requires what most people consciously and unconsciously avoid, that is self-examination. Self-examination makes it possible for us to tell Jesus precisely what we want.
4. Bartimaeus called Jesus “Son of David.” Now the title “Son of David” is an inadequate notion or idea of Jesus. The title was a Messianic title. It regards Jesus as a conquering Messiah, a military Messiah who would lead Israel to national greatness. That was a very inadequate idea of Jesus. But despite Bartimaeus inadequate idea of Jesus, he had faith. His faith made up his inadequate conception of Jesus. As Christians we will never fully understand Jesus. But what is demanded of us is faith. Christianity begins with a personal reaction to Jesus, a reaction of love, a feeling of here is the one person who can meet our need.
5. What did Bartimaeus do after his sight was restored? He followed Jesus along the road. When the Gospels said that someone followed Jesus, it means they became a disciple of Jesus. Bartimaeus may have been a blind beggar by the wayside, but he was a man of gratitude. Having received his sight, he followed Jesus. He did not selfishly go on his way when his need was met. He began with need, went on to gratitude, and finished with loyalty. That is a perfect summary of the stages of discipleship.

GET RID OF IT!

GET RID OF IT

Fr. Marcel Emeka Okwara CSsR

Homily for the 26^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Holy Names of Jesus & Mary Catholic Church

Memphis, TN, USA

September 27, 2009

Many of us have favorite Bible passage. Those who read the Bible have favorite quotes from the Bible. The favorite quotes are the quotes in the Bible that either touch us more deeply or make a lot of sense to us. Some of us have more than one Bible passage that we consider favorite and special. Ask some of us to say our favorite Bible quotation and it is likely none of us will mention the verses we just heard from today’s Gospel:

If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed than with two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life crippled than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. Better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna, where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched (Mark 9:43,45,47).

Now what are we to do with these words from Jesus? What is Jesus actually saying to us in those words? Surely, the Lord is not talking of literal amputation of our hands. He is obviously not asking us to pluck out our eyes, or amputate our foot. Jesus was speaking metaphorically. At that time in Palestine, it was common to speak in this exaggerated way just to make a point. In literature it is called hyperbole. Everyone in this Church can agree that Jesus is not asking us to literary get rid of any or all the parts of the body mentioned in the passage we just read. Now knowing what Jesus is not asking us to do leave us with the question: What then is the Lord saying in that passage? What does he expect from us?

A story was told of a woman who bought a very expensive dress and when she went home her husband said to her, “When you were trying it on why didn’t you say, ‘Get behind me Satan?’” She said, “I did say ‘Get behind me Satan,’ and when I looked at it from behind in the mirror it was just as nice!”

Human life is a life of battle. Within us there is a battle going on. There is a battle going on in the lives of each of us; it is a battle for the lives of each of us. It is a battle between good and evil. At the end of that battle, we will either hear Jesus say “You are mine” or hear Satan say “you are mine.” We thank God for the gift of his Son, Jesus Christ. Through his death on the cross, he has won the battle for us. On the cross Jesus says “It is finished.” He finished and ended the dominion of Satan over us; he finished the over-bearing influence of Satan over us; he finished and terminated Satan’s accusation, pride and control of our lives. With his own life, the Lord offers us salvation. Jesus’ death on the cross is a profound way of saying “You are mine.” Now it is up to us to accept his grace and live as those redeemed by Him. If someone gives you a cheque of $1 million, the money is not yours until you have either transferred the money into your own bank account or has cash it. The salvation that Jesus offers us is free but it is not cheap. It must cost you something. But what it costs us are the things that guarantee peace and happiness.

The words of Jesus in today’s gospel (Mark 9:38-43, 45, 47-48) should not be taken literary. The Lord is not asking us to mutilate our body. Jesus is simply asking us to avoid anything that leads us into temptation and sin. We call that “occasion of sin”. When Jesus says cut off your hand or foot or pluck out your eye if it causes you to sin he is asking us to avoid whatever it is that leads us on to commit sin. Whatever it is that in the long run makes us commit sin, Jesus says avoid it.

For some of us, consumption of alcohol is a trigger that leads to sin. I think we should say the same thing about TV, the internet, some magazines etc. Some TV channels are occasion of sin for us; some internet websites are not only occasions of sin, they are cancerous. They eat up the spiritual organs in us leaving us empty, dry and spiritually dead. Consider the manner with which the virus carried by porn sites eats and crashes our computers, it is the same way those porn sites eats and destroys our defenses making us more vulnerable and more gullible to indulge in some reckless sexual behaviors. Talking about TV, Mother Teresa of Calcutta said “we have a tabernacle to Jesus in the Church and we have a tabernacle to Satan in the home.” Some of the TV channels are tabernacle of Satan. These are what Jesus asks us today to avoid, to get rid of. Going to strippers’ club or Girls gone wild parties is dangerously dangerous and bad for any Christian who is serious with his or her spiritual and moral life as a disciple of Jesus Christ.

Jesus says to us today “Get rid of those things that will deny you heaven. Disengage and dissociate yourself from that relationship that is leading you away from God. Walk out on her or him if his or her relationship with you will lead you to hell. Better go to heaven friendless; better go to heaven without a boyfriend or a girlfriend than with a boyfriend or a girlfriend end up in Gehanna.

Today we hardly talk about hell. We erroneously believe that every one will go to heaven. We convince ourselves that hell is not real. Some argue that a loving Father cannot let his own child suffer in eternal hell. My response is “a loving and obedient son or daughter will not walk away from his or her Father.” Some argue that the teaching of hellfire was injected by the Church to make us comply and that ultimately there is no hell. But even in human society, there are laws, rules, policies that should and must be followed. One cannot graduate from Elementary school, High school, College or University if one did not meet up with all the requirements. Every human institution has laid down policies that must be followed. How come we think that God doesn’t have any? Is God lawless? Is God lax? Who is the origin of human beings’ ability to discover the need of laws, rules, and policies?

Dear friends, God is not lawless. God is not lax. God’s philosophy is not the philosophy of anything goes. If you want to spend eternity with God, you must live like one who wants to go there. Get rid of those things that lead you into sin. Spend sometime in prayers asking God to help you. There is a battle going on in the lives of each of us. It is a battle for the lives of each of us, a battle between good and evil. Through his cross Jesus has won the battle for us but it is up to us now to accept this victory and his grace and live as those redeemed by Jesus. Let us try to avoid occasions of sin and live in the grace of Jesus so that we may hear him say to us at the end, “You are mine.”

God bless you!

THE GREATEST AMONG YOU

THE GREATEST AMONG YOU

Fr. Marcel Emeka Okwara CSsR

Homily of the 25^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Holy Names of Jesus & Mary Catholic Church

Memphis, Tennessee

September 20, 2009

The human society is composed of two groups of people: the society of persons who can do things for themselves and the society of persons who need others to do things for them. We have the society of the influential people and the society of people who are influenced. We have the society of givers and the society of receivers. Children fall under the society of persons who need others to do things for them. They fall under the society of persons who are easily influenced; they are under the society of receivers. A child has no influence at all; a child cannot advance a man’s career nor influence his prestige. A child is not a giver; he is a receiver. A child relies on others to do things for him. A child is the number one dependant. In our calculation, children are primarily receivers and not givers.

In today’s gospel reading taking from the gospel of Mark 9:30-37, Jesus shocked his apostles. The apostles were in a heated disagreement. They were arguing among themselves which one of them was the greatest. But Jesus expressively showed them that what they were after was just a big waste of time. Jesus took a child and set him in the midst. In Palestine at the time of Jesus children were, however, the lowest of the low. And the child that Jesus called up may have been a wondering child. In those days it was common to abandon a child after birth, as a method of birth control, because a family may not be able to feed another mouth. At the time of Jesus, children had no status and were more or less regarded the same way as slaves until they matured. In our time, we place children first, but not in the time of Jesus. So you can imagine what a shock it was for the apostles who were arguing which of them was the greatest when Jesus placed a child before them and said “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all. Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me.”

As I said before, a child is the number one dependant. A child cannot give us things; a child cannot advance any career or enhance anyone’s prestige. In the time of Jesus, children had no status; they were the lowest of the low. By saying “Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me…” Jesus was saying “If you welcome the poor, ordinary people, people with no influence, people with little or no power and wealth, the people who need things done for them, the people who need you more than you need them, you welcome Him.”

Beloved, did you notice the emphasis Jesus made? “Whoever receives one child such as this…” Who was that child? Remember I told you that in those days it is common to abandon a child after birth as a method of birth control. The child in question may be one of those abandoned children who loiter around. The child may have come expecting to be fed. He may have heard that Jesus was feeding people. He may be there to be fed. Jesus took him and set him before us and said “If you accept a child like this, you are great.” Pitching your tent with the society of persons who needs things is what we must seek. Doing that is the path to greatness.

Sisters and brothers, we all want to make friends with persons who can do things for us. We want the friendship of persons of influence who can be useful to us. It is easy to avoid the society of those who inconveniently need our help. Friendship with influential people is materially more rewarding. It is easy to carry on with the wealthy and the powerful while neglecting the simple, humble, ordinary people. It is easy in a public function to seek out the attention of those who are highly placed in the society. But today the Lord urges us to seek out not those who can do things for us, but those for whom we can do things for. The greatest among us are those who seek out the little ones, the little man, the little woman, the neglected child, the not-too dressed guy out there.

Who is the greatest among us? The greatest among us is not the most intelligent among us, although it is good to be intelligent. The greatest among us is not the wealthiest among us. The greatest among us is not the person with the biggest wages. The greatest among us is not the finest and the prettiest. The greatest among us is not the person with the best shape, everything fitting perfectly. The greatest among us is not the person with the most expensive car, living in an exclusive area in a house built with bricks. The greatest among us is the servant of all. The person who looks out for the little guy is the greatest. Mother Teresa said that anybody can be great because anybody can serve. Sometimes the number of the needy people around us can scare us away. Helping every one of them can break us down. Lifting every one of them up might be too heavy for us. But if you look at the mass, you cannot do anything; but if you look at one, you can do something.

If you are not doing anything to serve the Church or the community, would consider doing something to serve the Church, to help the Church? When we serve others, we receive something that money cannot buy. There are treasures that money cannot buy and when we serve others we receive something that money can never buy. Mother Teresa gives an example of this:

One evening we went out and we picked up four people from the street. And one of them was in a most terrible condition. I told the Sisters: “You take care of the other three; I will take care of the one who looks worse.” So I did for her all that my love can do. I put her in bed, and there was such a beautiful smile on her face. She took hold of my hand, as she said one word only: “Thank you” - and she died. I could not help but examine my conscience before her. And I asked: “What would I say if I were in her place?” And my answer was very simple. I would have tried to draw a little attention to myself. I would have said: “I am hungry, I am dying, I am cold, I am in pain,” or something. But she gave me much more, she gave me her grateful love. And she died with a smile on her face.

When we serve we receive something that money can never buy. With the example of Jesus and Mother Teresa before us we can ask ourselves, “What is our attitude to others?” Do we relate with some people and avoid others? Why do we avoid some people? Is it because they have hurt us and we have not yet forgiven them or is it because we are like Jesus’ disciples on the road thinking we are the greatest? Let’s consider the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi:

Lord, make me a channel of your peace,

that where there is hatred, I may bring love,
where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness,
where there is discord, I may bring harmony,
where there is error, I may bring truth,
where there is doubt, I may bring faith,
where there is despair, I may bring hope,
where there are shadows, I may bring light
and where there is sadness, I may bring joy.
Lord, grant that I may comfort, rather than to be comforted,
that I may understand, rather than be understood
that I may love, rather than be loved.
For it is by forgetting self, that one finds,
it is by forgiving, that one is forgiven,
it is by dying that one awakens to eternal life.

"BE OPENED"

“BE OPENED”

Fr. Marcel Emeka Okwara CSsR

Homily of the 23^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Holy Names of Jesus & Mary Catholic Church

Memphis, TN 38107

September 6, 2009

In today’s Gospel taken from Mark 7: 31-37, Jesus healed a deaf man. As soon as Jesus arrived at the district of Decapolis, people brought to him a deaf man who also had a speech impediment. His inability to hear anything may have been responsible for his speech impediment. Jesus did something different in the process of restoring the hearing and speaking ability of the needy man. He took the deaf man away from the crowd, put his finger into the man’s ears, and with spittle, he touched his tongue. Then looking up to heaven from where shall our help comes from, Jesus groaned and said to him “Ephphatha!” which means “Be opened!” According to today’s gospel, the man’s ears opened immediately following the prayers of Jesus for him, his speech impediment was removed and he started speaking with ease.

Did you notice that Jesus did not say to the deaf man “Hear!” or “Speak?” Rather he used the expressions “Be opened!” This is an indication of how we are to live. We are to be opened to the Word of God. Psalm 119: 11 says “Your word I have hidden in my heart that I may not sin against you.” And in verse 105 of the same Psalm 119, the Psalmist declares “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” In the gospel of John 6: 63 Jesus says “The words I speak to you, they are spirit, and they are life.” We are to be opened to the Word of God- the Word that is a lamp to our feet; the word that is a light for our path; the words that are spirit and life; the words that strengthen us to avoid sinning against God. When we open up ourselves to God, when we open up ourselves to the Word of God, God enables us to open up ourselves to each other. We will be able to see Jesus in rags.

I don’t think there is anybody in this Church that is deaf. Deafness is not a problem for most of us here. So today’s healing of the deaf man may not really interests some of us that much. But yet, Jesus uses the expression “Be opened!” Our problem may not be physical deafness. But we may be too busy to hear Jesus. With our ears wide open and able to hear what is said far away, we still are not able to hear the sweet voice of our Lord. Because of this kind of deafness, we are not able to recognize him in the events of our life. Some people are too busy making money that they don’t even have time to enjoy the houses they are so busy working to pay for. Some people are so busy with work, career etc that they don’t spend much time at home with their children. They don’t even have time to be alone with self.

Mother Teresa of Calcutta once gave a speech about her work with the sick, the dying and the orphans in India. Afterwards, someone who seemingly wanted to assist her in her work asked “You have done so much to make the world a better place. What can I do? Mother Teresa smiled and simply said, “Love your children.” The questioner was not pleased with her answer and wanted to raise another question but Mother Teresa interrupted and said, “There are other things you can do, but that is the best. Love your children. Love your children as much as you can. Cater for them, be there for them. Listen to them. That is the best.” Parents give money to their children, pay their tuition fees, provide accommodation for them and other material things but good parents give their children something more. “Be opened” to the needs of your children.

If children live with criticism,

They learn to condemn.

If children live with hostility,
They learn to fight.

If children live with ridicule,
They learn to be shy.

If children live with shame,
They learn to feel guilty

On the other hand when we uplift and encourage children we help them for life:

If children live with tolerance,
They learn to be patient.

If children live with encouragement,
They learn confidence.

If children live with praise,
They learn to appreciate.

If children live with fairness,
They learn justice.

If children live with security,
They learn to have faith.

If children live with approval,
They learn to like themselves.

If children live with acceptance and friendship,
They learn to find love in the world.

We are so busy that life is slipping by at a very fast rate and we need to slow it down. We are so busy that we don’t even see or notice others. We don’t notice the teeming number of the not-haves in our society. As a nation, we seem to be deaf to the crying and mourning of those crying for a helping hand. We seem to have been deafened by the huge and massive wealth in the nation that we seem not to hear the voices of those who have not benefitted from this massive wealth. The unfounded fear of losing capitalism has deafened us and impaired our speech. We no longer speak the language of the Spirit which is love. Those who don’t speak the language of the Spirit- love, have speech impediment. They may be speaking clearly and hearing clearly, but as long as their speech is not the speech of the Spirit, they have speech impediment. If we don’t hear the voices of those on the margins of our society, we are deaf just like the man healed by Jesus today. We need to hear the healing voice of Jesus saying to us “Be opened!”

The healthcare debate going on in the country right now has exposed the bitterness and the evil that lies unchecked in some people’s heart and mind. The healthcare debate has exposed the spiritual and moral deafness of so many people who are deaf to hear the moaning and mourning of those without healthcare coverage. The early month of August was terrible. All sorts of things were said and done. Some people became unreasonably frantic and hysterical because they think that the healthcare reform will affect their status. When that issue was addressed, they became worried that illegal aliens will benefit from the reform as if they are not benefitting from the status quo. With all the wealth in this nation, many seem to be deaf to hearing the wailing voices of those sitting at the corners of our society watching helplessly while the rest of us enjoy. I have seen many rich Americans spend some of their millions in other poor nations. Some of them made names for themselves in doing that. America as a nation too doles out billions to help other poor nations. Don’t get me wrong, those are commending and plausible acts of charity. America is known for its generosity abroad. We have also seen our nation spend trillions of dollars in an unjust war in Iraq. The Washington Post on March 9, 2008 reported that the US government has spent $3 trillion on what it called “a failed war”. As a nation, we can spend any amount to prosecute a war, an unjust war for that matter. But when it comes to reforming our healthcare system so that it could accommodate the not-haves in our society, we call those trying to do that “socialists”. If what President Obama is trying to do is socialism, then I will welcome socialism.

In spite of the gains of capitalism, it has its downsides. As an economic and social system, capitalism is better than communism or socialism. But we should know that just as it creates the rich and the wealthy, it also creates the poor. The poor are citizens just like the rich. No matter what we do, we will always have the poor. Even Jesus in Gospel of Matthew 26: 27 says “The poor you will always have with you…” But it is the duty of any responsible and moral society and its government to cater for the poor. No human government can possibly make all the poor people wealthy, but it can at least lend a helping hand to the poor. It can at least make sure that the rights of everyone including the poor are protected and uphold. The ongoing healthcare debate has exposed the deep deafness of so many people. It should weigh heavily on our moral conscience if in a hospital someone is undergoing a $25,000 surgery while in another room, of the same hospital someone is rejected and denied of the same treatment because of his/her status- because he/she has no health insurance. Let the America that spends billions in helping other poor nations do the same to its citizens. If we are not able to hear the crying voices of help of so many in our society, then we are deaf just like the man cured today by Jesus. We have seen heated and spirited rallies at some of the town hall meetings. Someone who did not know that Africa is a continent injected the idea of death panel in the debate thereby setting what would have been a meaningful debate and dialogue into a show of panic, anger and sheer stupidity. Within all these, there is a background noise of resentment based on race. In the State of Missouri, a black woman was disgraced simply because she was carrying a poster of Rosa Parks. What worried me was the deafness of the crowd. The white man who ripped off the Rosa Parks’ poster the black woman had was applauded. The woman was literarily assaulted. She was later howled away by the police for standing up against her assaulter. Meanwhile in that same room, there were some white folks with posters that referred to the president by the “N” word. But no one seemed to care about that. We have heard some say that the healthcare bill is really not about healthcare, that it’s the president way to get reparations for black people. That is absolutely absurd! It is pure nonsense. What kind of reparation do you have to get sick first in order to get paid? We have heard some say that Obama hates the white people. Some said that white people are experiencing exactly what the black people experienced during the segregation. These kinds of comments suggest deafness and impairment of speech. To kill the healthcare reform, Sarah Palin with a head full of nothing claim that Obama wants to kill grandma. Unprintable names have been given to the president. People are simply throwing out words like socialism, fascism etc and comparing the president with Adolf Hitler. See, when you portray Obama as Hitler, you are saying he is evil. Think of Adolf Hitler. He was not just a fascist, he was a racial fascist. So to portray Obama as Hitler is to suggest that he is a racial fascist. Saying that raises a question like “What particular race is he going to obliterate? And since someone that Rush Limbaugh has said that Obama hates the white people, some white people will begin to think that the president wants to exterminate them. And those who say these things should realize that words have consequences. These are the kind of words that deepen division and hatred in our society. People forget that sickness, suffering and poverty do not discriminate. They are not friends of any race or people. We are all in it together. Anybody can be humbled by sickness and poverty. This is the time we should be facing serious issues that face us as a nation and not engage in racial paranoia. To kill the healthcare reform, some have claimed that it is a healthcare welfare. People are simply being unreasonable because when they hear of social spending for the have-nots like income support, housing support, nutrition support, or healthcare support, they simply think of Black people, Mexicans, and immigrants etc. It is absolutely annoying hearing people say “they want to take from us the hardworking people and give to the lazy ones”. And let me quickly say this, when someone says “Give me back my country, I want the country that the Founders envisioned” please tell the person that the country the Founders envisioned had slavery; there was slave trade and slaves as part of its system. That system cannot be said to be morally perfect and acceptable. We have moved beyond that stage and need to keep perfecting what needs to be perfected.

Sisters and brothers, Jesus healed the deaf man. Sometimes we can be deaf to life, to others and to Jesus. In 1 Kings 19, the story has it that prophet Elijah was in a cave, then he was told to go out and stand on the mountain before God. There was a hurricane but God was not in the hurricane. There was an earthquake but God was not in the earthquake. There was a fire but God was not in the fire. After the fire there was a gentle breeze. Immediately Elijah knew that God was in the gentle breeze so he went out to the entrance of the cave and covered his face. We also need gentle breezes in our life in order to hear Jesus speak to us. If we have noise, yelling and shouting as people were doing in some of the town hall meetings we will not be able to hear the Lord.

Before Jesus healed the deaf man in today’s gospel, he took him off by himself away from the crowd; he took him to a private place, looked up to heaven and then prayed for the man’s healing. We need to step aside sometimes in private with Jesus so that we can hear him speak to us. Be opened so that you can hear the language of the Spirit, and that language is love. True love demands that we think of others especially those at the bottom of the ladder of life. Remember the word JOY. It stands for:

J- Jesus

O- Others

Y- You.

Think of Jesus first, think of others secondly, then think of yourselves. This is the summary of Christian love and life.