The Present of the Saints, Our Glorious Future!

(Homily for the Solemnity of All Saints)

          As we celebrate all the saints today both canonized and non-canonized, we prefigure the celebration in heaven. Today’s feast reminds us of the continuity and unity between the pilgrimage church on earth and the triumphant church in heaven. The solemnity of All Saints is for each and every one of us an invitation and a reminder to holiness of life, which is the vocation of all the baptized. Our Eucharistic celebration today begins (Entrance Antiphon) with the invitation to joy, which the Church as Mother and Teacher directs to all of us, thus:

                                            Let us all rejoice in the Lord, as we celebrate the feast day in honour of all the Saints, at whose festival the Angels rejoice and praise the Son of God.

    In today’s first reading (Ap. 7:2-4.9-14), John recounts a vision he received about that heavenly celebration of the saints. The words of Apocalypse 7:9-10 are illuminating: “I saw a huge number, impossible to count, of people from every nation, race, tribe and language; they were standing in front of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palms in their hands. They shouted aloud, “victory to our God, who sits on the throne and to the Lamb”. And he was equally told why they are in heaven, “These are the people who have been through the great persecution, and they have washed their robes white again in the blood of the Lamb” (Ap. 7:14). The saints in heaven were faithful to God despite the many hardships and persecutions they had to endure. Little wonder, they have been crowned and graced with white robes. The saints won victory over trials and tribulations through their collaboration with the grace of God. St. Paul captured the efficacy of divine grace when he opined that “what I am now I am through the grace of God” (1Cor 15:10).

    Furthermore, many a times, we are confronted with the question, “why do we pray to the saints?” We pray through the saints because they can help us on our sojourn towards heaven, because they are already there. John saw an earlier vision when he narrated that he “saw golden bowls full of incense which are the prayers of the saints” (Ap. 5:8). So they can intercede for us, and they do intercede for us. The prayers of the saints are powerful. In fact, before the beatification or canonization of a saint there is always a preceding miracle.

          A profound reflection on the Gospel passage (Mt 5:1-12) reveals that the saints are men and women of Beatitudes. Little wonder, at the heart of today’s Gospel the word “Blessed” was repeated for nine good times. The beatitudes are proclaimed by Jesus in a fascinating way. The choice of the Mount by Mathew for this sermon is in line with his conception of these sets of teachings as the new law, which corresponds with the old law given by Moses on Mount Sinai. For Mathew Jesus is the new law giver, the second Moses. Though for Luke the Sermon took place on the plain. Indeed, it has been often observed that the beatitudes describe the life of Christ himself. And as such, in connection to ‘All Saints” it denotes that all saints are those who manifested a Christ-like character as expressed in the beatitudes.

        Be that as it may, the road to sanctity or holiness is the road of the beatitudes. Spiritual poverty or humility and detachment from the things of this world, meekness and the rejection of every violence, bearing pains, thirst for justice, comprehension and mercy towards ones neighbour, purity of heart, spirit of peace: are the roads to holiness. And the saints we are celebrating today teach us by their exemplary life that it is a road that can be plied by all.

          However, we may ask a pertinent question thus: why are these categories of people proclaimed blessed by Jesus? Not because to them Jesus assured success and wealth, but they are blessed because the “Good News” of God’s kingdom has been announced to them, and they were disposed to welcome it, from here springs joy, happiness and blessedness. We too can be called blessed if we welcome the Good news and all that it comports, for by so doing we will be on the road to holiness.

          Interestingly, the second reading (1Jn 3:1-3), invites us to aspire to be were the saints are. So that, there present can become our future. He reminds us that heaven is our destination, and this is the first message emanating from this passage that we have to take to heart, “we are God’s children, but what we shall be in the future has not yet been revealed. We are well aware that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he really is” (v.2). As such, St. John enjoins us: “surely everyone who entertains this hope must purify himself, must try to be as pure as Christ” (1Jn 3:3).

          Above all else however, with the Solemnity of all Saints the Church draws our attention to few paramount messages:

►That Heaven is our destination, as St. John said, “Beloved we are now children of God, and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed we shall see Him as He is” (1Jn 3:2). Analogically, St. Paul expresses that “for now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face” (1Cor 13:12). Really the saints are beholding God face to face. And we hope to do same too!

►The second message comes from the first reading, the fact that we are all called to holiness. St. Peter affirms this when he vehemently posited: “this is the will of God: your sanctification” (1Pt 1:15-16). The conciliar document of Vatican II reminds us equally of this universal call to holiness (LG 40). We are not called to an exceptional holiness, rather we are all (the first reading talks about a great multitude from every nation, race, people and language) called to essential holiness.

 Oratio: We pray that the Saints may continue to intercede for us on our journey of perfectibility, so that we too may become partakers of the saints in light!

May the Saints continue to intercede for us!!

Amen!!!

(Fr. Vitus M. C. Unegbu, SC)

Lord, That I May See!

(Homily 30^th Sunday in Ordinary Time-Yr. B)

When I am down and, oh my soul, so weary

When troubles come and my heart burdened be

Then, I am still and wait here in the silence

Until you come and sit awhile with me

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains

You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas

I am strong, when I am on your shoulders

You raise me up…To more than I can be

     The soul touching lyrics above of Josh Groban captures exceedingly well those existential conditions that bring us face to face with human fragility at one end and the liberating power of God’s grace at the other. In our journey of life, many a times we are faced with existential ups and downs, sometimes we are knocked down and battered by the trials and ordeals of life. However, in those moments of human fragility, we need to be picked up, to be raised up. As such, those moments when our createdness weighs down on us, we need to have a “pick-me-up” experience, and we need Jesus to pick us up. He comes to the aid of our weakness and failures. He did not come only to liberate us of all diminishment, frustration, ailments and sins. He did not come only to show us who we are and who He wants us to be. He came to ask, to invite and to implore us to become liberators of others. This indeed was the motivational force behind Bartimaeus’ prompt decision to follow Him.

     The first reading (Jer. 31:7-9) from the prophecy of Jeremiah is part of the series of four poems that celebrate the return of the Israelites from Babylonian exile. Upon closer look, one discovers that these poems are connected with the prophecy of Deutero-Isaiah. At first Yahweh invites the people to jubilate for He has saved them, He saved them from bondage. This passage reveals Jeremiah’s hope for the restoration of his people, as indicated in the prophecy of the new covenant, which we find in the later chapter. Similarly, like the hymn of return in the prophecy of Isaiah 35, our present hymn emphasizes the presence of the weak among the people that returned, amongst them were the blind, the lame and nursing and pregnant mothers. Be that as it may, we may well presume that it is the mention of the blind in this passage that connects it to the passage of the Gospel about blind Bartimaeus. Indeed, the journey of some of the blind people of Israel to freedom is a preparatio for the healing and restoration of Bartimaeus.

     The Gospel (Mk. 10:46-52) presents the last miracle that Jesus performed before his Passion according to the account of Mark, but also of Mathew and Luke. St. Mark in his account gives the name of this blind man as Bartimaeus, while Mathew and Luke did not mention the name in their own accounts. Jesus performed this miracle along the road that goes from Jericho to Jerusalem, where his supreme sacrifice awaits him. Is all about the story of Bartimaeus, whose identity is characterized by three qualities: blind, beggar and alone. But on this existential dangerous road leading from Jericho to Jerusalem, Bartimaeus had an encounter that changed his whole life. It was his day of total turn-around. His grace was the coincidence of finding himself one day, on the same road with Jesus. And to say the least, this unexpected encounter on that beautiful day changed everything about him. Besides, in Bartimaeus we see three great qualities that led him far: ● First, his belief in God, and trust in Jesus the Messiah, as he was shouting and imploring: “Jesus Son of David” and Jesus recognized his great faith: “your faith has saved you”. ●Second, his conviction in imploring for healing with a loud voice: “have mercy on me” with much insistence, without allowing the crowd or any factor to shout him down, rather he shouted all the more louder ●Third, his decision to follow Jesus after his human (his dignity as man and child of God was restored), social (he entered once again into rapport with others), psychological (he regained his self-concept and esteem) and spiritual (regained his rapport with God) healing, indeed, the healing not only restored his sight, but it equally opened up a new horizon (from a blind beggar to a disciple of Jesus).

     Let us take time to follow the circumstances surrounding this miracle in order to savour its spiritual depth. The story began with the departure of Jesus from Jericho, he was not alone, but with his disciples and a large crowd, then there was also Bartimaeus sitting along the road. He only heard that it was Jesus passing, he began to shout. This presupposes that this is not his first time of hearing about Jesus. He must have heard about Him prior to this context, and for him it was a rear occasion he cannot afford to miss. Upon realizing Jesus’ presence it was as if every gesture, every action he took was excessive. He was not just talking but he was shouting, he shouted even louder when the crowd reacted against him. Interestingly, he started by imploring for God’s mercy: “Jesus, Son of David have mercy on me”. He knew that he needed something more than restoration of sight, he needed also spiritual healing. This was glaring in his supplication literally in Greek “Kyrie eleison”, this for the Greek people is an invitation for spiritual healing. Likewise, at the beginning of the Eucharistic sacrifice it is used to implore God’s healing and purification.

     Then followed the reaction of the “many” in the crowd who tried to shout him down. Of course, they could not succeed because Bartimaeus was intent and insistent on making something out of this encounter. Surprisingly, in the midst of the large crowd Jesus distinguished the voice of Bartimaeus. Jesus stopped and said: “call him”. Now some members of the crowd called him, they developed sympathy for him, “Take heart; rise, he is calling you”. Thus, Jesus teaches the crowd and us today that the sufferings of others should not only stir up just sympathy in us, but empathy. Once again his gestures and actions were excessive, he did not just remove his cloak, but he threw it off, he did not just stand up, but he sprang up and went to Jesus. Jesus’ presence and voice healed him. The healing of Bartimaeus started when he left everything that was sustaining him, and without seeing he started moving towards that voice, that was vibrating on air, because he was guided and oriented by the words of Christ. He received an internal liberation and enlightenment that made him to stand firm and began to walk towards Jesus, even though he was not seeing him, he was following the eco of His voice.

      Here comes the shocking question of Jesus: “what do you want me to do for you?” (v.51). This question must have sounded strange to those around, because it was obvious that the blind man wants Jesus to restore his sight. The interaction between Jesus and Bartimaeus may apparently give the impression that Jesus is unaware or unconcerned of the situation of the blind man. For the question “what do you want me to do for you?” is suggestive of that, it is obvious that a blind man would be asking for sight (though it is not a given, he could also limit himself to ask of a few coins). But the blind man patiently replied, “Master, let me see again”, and indeed he was healed both physically and spiritually: “Go your faith has saved you. And at once his sight returned” (v.52). Jesus knows everything concerning people, everything concerning us, as he knew about Nathaniel under the fig tree (Jn. 1:48) and about the Samaritan woman who had five husbands before her present partner (Jn. 4:18). Likewise, Jesus knows about the condition of the blind man, he knows our conditions too. Whatever we are passing through today is not beyond his knowledge. However, Jesus allowed him to speak out, to voice out his problems in order to prepare his heart for the imminent healing. So, child of God you might have stood alone along the road of life like Bartimaeus, do not give up, insist and persist. The voice of Jesus will re-echo to you: “What do you want me to do for you?”

     The interpretative key to this miracle could be found in the Gospel of St. John in Jesus’ affirmation: “I am the light of the world; anyone who follows me will not be walking in the dark, but have the light of life” (Jn. 8:12). In fact, in his programmatic mission speech, Jesus declared: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, for he has anointed me to bring the good news to the afflicted. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives, sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free” (Lk. 4:18). Jesus has the miraculous power to restore sight to the blind, for he is the light of the world. He came to be the light of our souls and to indicate to us the way to follow. Therefore, humanity needs Him, for without Him man gropes in the darkness of sin and meaninglessness of life. Jesus came to enlighten us and liberate us from our spiritual blindness, from the darkness of sin. Little wonder, the first request of the blind man in today’s gospel: “Jesus Son of David, have mercy on me”. So, we may not suffer from physical blindness like Bartimaeus, but when we are living in the darkness of sin, we need His light, and just like Bartimaeus we should stand at the road of life and implore his mercy. Like Bartimaeus on that dangerous road going from Jericho to Jerusalem, which symbolizes for us the road from earth to heaven, we need to shout, Lord that I may see!

    On the other hand, as Christians who have encountered Jesus, and have been enlightened by Him, we have the duty to enlighten many today who are in darkness, those in search of meaning in life, and those who lack a point of reference in life. We are called to be light to them; in fact as Jesus reminded us “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill-top cannot be hidden” (Mt. 5:14), elsewhere he said “In the same way your light must shine in people’s sight, so that, seeing your good works, they may give praise to your Father in heaven” (Mt.5:16).

     Above all, in this gospel narrative we see majorly three figures (Bartimaeus, Jesus and the crowd). Sometimes we may find ourselves in the shoes of Bartimaeus, in a situation of existential and spiritual need, and upon our effort to get rid of them, those around us (friends, neighbours and relatives) may rebuke us, but insist and persist like our blind friend today, until Jesus hears, distinguishes your voice and stops. And when he stops there begins the encounter that changes life and produces effect. Some members of the crowd were a stumbling block, obstacles to his healing and restoration, they were rebuking him, because he was disturbing their peace. They were Bartimaeus enemies of progress, but he did not give them chance, and that is why his healing came through. Sometimes also we shout at and rebuke the needy and those in difficulties. Jesus teaches us what it means to have a heart that sees and an ear that distinguishes the voice of one who is suffering and in need of help. He does not stop at the level of sympathy (of saying courage, take heart), rather he empathized with him and felt in his shoes. He heals both his spiritual and physical blindness.

     In all, Bartimaeus teaches us in today’s gospel that prayer tailors our faith. There is no true and authentic faith without a persistent and trusting prayer. At the beginning of the episode we were told that Bartimaeus heard that it was Jesus, but at the end he came to know Jesus not only by hear say, but he saw Him with his eyes, and His healing and comforting presence equally propelled him to follow Him. Upon deeper reflection, the message of this passage revolves around the fact that a true and authentic disciple is cured of his Christological blindness, that is the blindness of seeing in Jesus only the miracle worker and not the suffering servant, and Bartimaeus demonstrated this by following Jesus in the way of the Cross. Therefore, in connection with the discipleship of Jesus, Bartimaeus teaches us that at the face of the internal and external difficulties involved in following Jesus, a disciple cannot but recourse to insistent prayer, prayer that is a sign and manifestation of one’s faith. Therefore, today more than ever, we need to rediscover the value of prayer. However, the presence and companionship of Our High Priest gives us courage to continue to journey on the lonely road of life.

     Thus, the second reading (Heb. 5:1-6) consoles us as Bartimaeus was consoled with the empathizing presence of our High Priest who understands our weaknesses and human fragility. from the letter to Hebrews continues in its exposition of the theme of the High Priest of Christ. The passage sets out to give us an assurance of faith as regards the provenience and the purpose of the election of this High Priest: ●The high priest was dully appointed by God. ●He was chosen among men to act as their representative before God in offering sacrifices for sins. ●He sympathizes with sinners.

Oratio: Lord Jesus our Eternal High Priest as you continue to move around doing good, do not pass us by, recognize our voices of supplication in the midst of the noisy world as you did to Bartimaeus. May your healing presence dispel the darkness of our sins and inadequacies. Amen!!

(Fr. Vitus M.C. Unegbu, SC)

Position of Service as opposed to Position of Power!

(Homily 29^th Sunday in Ordinary Time-Yr. B)

     The coming and the involvement of the Son of man in human history, is indeed an event that has in no small way overhauled not only human thinking but also human standards. He came to show us who we really are, to reveal to us that we are full of possibilities, full of potentials and full of God’s glory; endowed with gifts of nature and gifts of grace, yet adopted as God’s children and with a universal vocation to holiness orchestrated in the love of God and neighbour. In the indicative call to love, we are enjoined to care for all, but in the Gospel of today, the two sons of Zebedee wanted to care only for themselves. However, Jesus the Suffering and True Servant did not ridicule their desire; instead he reaffirmed and re-proposed the road to human greatness and good leadership: LOVING SERVICE. Here, the contrast between the way of the world and the way of Christ emerges, while the world seeks greatness and vain glory, Jesus indicates self-giving and humble service as ways to true greatness and good leadership.

      Today’s first reading (Is.53:10-11) is an excerpt from the four fascinating songs about a mysterious servant, who would bring salvation through his sufferings. This prophecy of Isaiah talks about the suffering servant that gave his life as an offering for sin, through his suffering the servant justifies many, and he shall bear their guilt. Most probably this passage of Isaiah’s prophecy is chosen this Sunday, for two reasons: One, to match with Jesus’ preannouncement of his passion and death, thereby revealing himself as the suffering servant of Yahweh. Two, because of the word “many”, as in verse 11 “by his knowledge, the upright One, my servant will justify many by taking their guilt on himself”. As a matter of fact, some exegetes have interpreted the “many” to mean “all”. As such, a universal significance was ascribed to the mission of the Suffering Servant. Though, in the rabbinic interpretation “the servant” was Israel (who waits for God to vindicate him from his sufferings), and not the Messiah. On the other hand, in the Christian connection of this prophecy to the Messiah, to Christ, the word “many” is used to express the universality of Christ’s redeeming mission, and thus, it is upon this backdrop that the first reading dovetails into the message of the Gospel (Mk. 10:45). We may well say that the prophecy of Isaiah corresponds with the teaching of Jesus in the Gospel about his impending passion.

     The episode of today’s Gospel (Mk. 10:35-45) comes after Jesus’ third pre-announcement of his Death and Passion. It is really hard to bear that even after the third pre-announcement of his Death and Passion yet the apostles and disciples are still groping in the dark. . Is as if whenever Jesus talks about his imminent passion and death there is always a contradiction or misunderstanding from the apostles. After the first pre-announcement Peter contested and said “Master, this will never happen to you”, and Jesus replied “get behind me Satan”. After the second, there was a strong discussion among the disciples, as they questioned among themselves, who is the greatest and the most important. Again after the third one, we see the request of the two brothers: James and John, and that is the passage of our reflection today.

     A closer look at each pre-announcement reveals that at the end, there is a moral teaching of Jesus, trying to correct the erroneous opinions, the false expectations and illusions of his apostles and disciples. Frist, at the end of the first pre-announcement Jesus said to the crowd: “Anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it” (Mk. 8:35). Second, after the second pre-announcement, Jesus said to his apostles: “If anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and servant of all” (Mk. 9:35). And indeed, the third situates us well into the context of today’s passage, Jesus reaffirms that the yardstick for greatness has to be measured in a humble service rendered to others. This no doubt, launches us proper into the passage of this day.

     At this point the two brothers (James and John) emerged with some dints of arrogance, as they approached Jesus thus: “Master, they said, we want you to do us a favour” (v.35). Evidently, they must have planned and decided on this before approaching Jesus. On his part, Jesus with profound benevolence responded: “What is it you want me to do for you?” (v.36). And without much ado, they advanced their request: “Allow us to sit one at your right hand and the other at your left in your glory” (v.37)). They requested for a prestigious and privileged position, to be first among all. They wanted to introduce “ima mmadu syndrome” in Jesus’ ministry and mission. Truly, their request confirms their incomprehension and presumption towards the events of Jesus that He announced not too long ago. Jesus was talking about his imminent passion and death, and they were bent on seeking for a privileged position in his glory. What an irony!

     However, that notwithstanding, Jesus tried to demolish their ambitions and bring them hand to hand to the bitter reality that awaits him in Jerusalem. Jesus now responds to them by way of interrogation thus: “you do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I shall drink, or be baptized with the baptism with which I shall be baptized?” (Mk. 10:38). Jesus speaks symbolically of his chalice of pain and suffering, his baptism of blood and martyrdom. And still under the influence of their presumption, they responded “yes we can”, as if they can follow the ordeal of Christ by their mere power alone, without the special grace of God. Then, Jesus retorted: “The cup that I shall drink you shall drink, and with the baptism with which I shall be baptised you shall be baptized, but as for seats at my right hand or my left, these are not mine to grant; they belong to those to whom they have been allotted” (vv.39-40). The request they made does not come by, out of human effort and merit, but it is a gift of God’s grace.

     As it could happen in the dynamics of every group, so it did in the group dynamics of the apostles, for the request of the two brothers infuriated them, “when the other ten heard this they began to feel indignant with James and John” (v.41). Certainly, the indignation of the apostles must have been as a result of jealousy and envy, which hides beneath, a similar ambition to those of James and John. Here, we could see how difficult it was for the apostles to enter into the logic of Jesus and into the design of the Father. They were still steered by human logic, manifested in terms of personal interest, quest for success and vain glory. Jesus turned the lack of understanding of the apostles to a favourable occasion to teach them about the essence of his discipleship. Interestingly, whenever Jesus gives a message about his coming passion he accompanies it with an important teaching to correct the wrong impression, false hopes and illusions of the apostles. In response to the demands of John and his brother James and the reaction (indignation) of the other apostles, Jesus delineated what we could call the Christian difference: “Among you this is not to happen. No; anyone who wants to become great among you must be your servant, and anyone who wants to be first among you must be slave to all” (vv.43-44). Indeed, service should be the password to greatness and not power and command.

          Even today, after so many years of the proclamation of the Good News, we are not immune to the attitude of the two brothers and that of the rest of the apostles. The comportment of many of us Christians today reveals that we have not truly embraced the message of Christ, especially the moments we have preached and sold out the message of a glorious Christianity at the expense of the intrinsic aspect: the Cross. Many preachers and prophets of our day, who preach about a priceless and costless Christianity, are pitching tent with James and John. Thus, the words of Jesus afterwards, are very much valid for us today: “Anyone who wants to become great among you must be your servant, and anyone who wants to be first among you must be slave to all” (vv.43-44). On this, Jesus presents himself as a veritable model: “For the Son of man himself came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (v.45). Jesus concludes this passage by announcing once again the purpose and the mission of the Son of man: to serve and to give (to die) his life for the salvation of many, here “many” stands to indicate for all, though among exegetes opinions are divided.

     In that bid, Jesus made an awareness about the Christian-evangelical conception of power, that is power conceived as a disinterested service to others, it has to do with giving and spending oneself for the good of others, and when necessary giving one’s life for others, this indeed is what Jesus did for us. St. Paul captured it vividly well, when he affirmed that “He emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, becoming as human beings are; and being in every way like a human being, he was humbler yet, even to accepting death, death on a cross” (Phil. 2:8). This introduces us to our High Priest who assumed our human nature to serve and to save us.

     The second reading (Heb.4:14-16) presents Him as the high priest who has passed through the heavens. It proposes the theme of Christ’s share of our common humanity and affirms that Christ is indeed our High Priest. His share of our humanity made it possible for Him to sympathize with our weaknesses, for he has been tempted in every way that we are, yet without sin. The writer called him a Priest because he sacrificed himself for the salvation of many or all. He is the object and subject of sacrifice. For this, we have to hold fast to our profession of faith in Him. The sacred writer makes a clarion call  thus, “let us, then, have no fear in approaching the throne of grace, to receive mercy and to find grace when we are in need of help” (v.16). He sympathizes with our weaknesses because he came to serve, and he did assume the condition not just of a servant, but a slave (cf. Phil. 2:8). A God indeed, at the service of His creatures! (cf. Jn. 13:1-17), a Servant God!

     At the second moment, unfortunately, the leadership principle proposed by our Lord Jesus Christ in today’s Gospel, is yet to be internalized in our hearts individually and in the society at large. This is seen in the type of leaders we have today; leaders who are driven by greed and do not care about the welfare of the people. Greatness for them is in corruption and self-centredness. But today Jesus is giving another approach to power and greatness. Greatness in the parlance of Jesus is love, humility and selfless service. The admonition of Jesus about service could well be re-echoed and situated into the context of the Nigerian politics. To those leaders that have turned themselves to gods, Jesus is saying to you, that real leaders are servants of the people; real leaders are at the service of the poor masses, and not at the service of their pockets, relatives, personal and party interests. The greatness of a leader is not measured by the amount of wealth he has accumulated, but by the capacity to serve, to be a servant-leader. Jesus’ view of a servant-leader has to be re-echoed in the Nigerian political arena today more than ever. Truly, what will save our beloved country is neither the empty clamour for the second term bid of an ailing aged president, nor the yelling of “Atikulated Obidience”. This ought to be a period of discernment in the Nigerian polity, in order to identify the few individuals who have the propensity of remaining or becoming Servant-Leaders. If the politicians in our society follow this evangelical criterion of leadership delineated by Jesus, the world would have been better and greater. Drawing the issue further, if we all are to put this into practice wherever we find ourselves (in our families, in our places of work and in the ecclesial communities), the world would have been a better place than it is today.

      Conclusively, the first reading and the gospel present an overwhelming picture of Christ, the suffering servant as an example and model for an authentic Christian living and leadership. This served for Mark as a reproach to the “misconceptions” that were afflicting his Church at that moment. St. Mark confronts the twin misconceptions in his Church at that time: ●The proclamation of Jesus as a Son of man who is to be crucified in opposition to Christ the miracle worker. ●The presentation of the exigencies of the Christian life and the invitation to take up the cross and follow the Master as opposed to the apostles view of the mission of the Messiah. Indeed, the experience of Mark in his Church may not be completely different from ours today, for the misconceptions about the real identity of Christ and the authentic Christian existence still abound. The gospel of triumphalism and success ideology manifested in the presentation of a cross-less and costless Christianity, backed up with an obsessive tendency towards glory at the expense of the cross triumph. Above all, Christ as the Suffering Servant trod the road of humble service and self-giving to humanity, and as our High Priest he chose to share our common humanity, serving and saving us through His unique sacrifice, in which he is both the offering and the Offerer.

Oratio: Lord Jesus you humbled yourself to assume our human condition without fear of denting your divinity, help us to learn from you to lower and humble ourselves to serve others! Amen!!

(Fr. Vitus M.C. Unegbu, SC)

    

Placed or Misplaced Treasure!

(Homily 28^th Sunday in Ordinary Time-Yr. B)

     The three readings of this Sunday are quite fascinating especially from the perspective of their literally styles, however, they seem not to have a common thread, but in reality it is not so. At the heart of the first reading and the Gospel we are presented with the existential experience of choice making. And on this, we have two figures: King Solomon and the rich young man in their different choices. The first made a sapiential choice while the later made an imprudent choice. In that bid, the common thread that dovetails into the three readings, somehow in a latent and manifest way is that of wisdom and an invitation to a prudential approach to life in general and to riches in particular. The pertinent question we could ask is this: who is not desirous of making money in this world? Who does not desire to have riches, to accumulate material wealth? Indeed, only few people are immune from this avidity. This is what St. John called “the concupiscence of the eyes” (cf. 1Jn. 2:16; CCC 2514), the obsessive desire to possess and behold the things that one sees. In Solomon’s sapiential request he prayed for the wisdom that comes from God in order not to be a victim of this obsessive desire. The rich man of the Gospel instead was carried away by this obsession. In the context of the Gospel passage therefore, wisdom according to Christ signifies the capacity to use earthly riches and wealth without attachment and without seeing the riches as an existential extension of oneself.

     In the first reading (Wis. 7:7-11) King Solomon had to make a choice of God’s gift above all else: Wisdom. While in the Gospel the Rich young man made a choice of wealth in place of Jesus’ offer of His Sequela. Our life daily is made up of many choices. But the singular question we have to grapple with is what do we choose? Solomon declared to have received the gift of Wisdom, as a response to his prayer. This wisdom is not ordinarily a fruit of studies or human intelligence, but a gift of and from God. This Wisdom is a participation in the Wisdom of God. Solomon’s greatness as we can see lies in his preference of God’s wisdom to fame and power. In the human person, the wisdom in question is God’s action in man. It involves seeing, judging and acting in accordance to God’s parlance. Be that as it may, we have two contrasting figures in the readings of today. The rich young man of the Gospel is really a contrast of King Solomon in the first reading. King Solomon placed wisdom before riches, and wisdom here could be linked to the right relationship with God, with human beings and with things. As a matter fact, biblically the tradition of comparing wisdom to material wealth at the expense of the later could be traced to Solomon’s prayer in the first book of Kings (3:6-9). Thus, this comparison is common in wisdom literature. Thus, this passage indeed matches the Gospel periscope of the rich young man.

     In today’s gospel (Mk10:17-30) we are nourished by that wonderful decisive encounter between Jesus and the rich young man. This passage of the Gospel is a continuation of the presentation of the catechesis or instructions of Jesus to his Apostles and disciples, on the significance and exigencies of his discipleship. A holistic consideration of the discourse reveals the novelty of the Gospel of Jesus and the radicality of his request, which has to be welcomed with ponderation and not in a cursory or superficial manner. Today Jesus teaches his followers (us) the right attitude towards riches and reminds us as well that riches are obstacle to true discipleship.

     The rich young man met Jesus and asked him what he can do to gain eternal life. He said: “Good Master, but Jesus retorted “why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone”. Furthermore, Jesus drew his attention back to the commandments, but according to him he has observed them all since his youth. The man in question ran to Jesus with many dreams and aspirations for the future life (eternal life). So many people who met Jesus went away happy, transformed and healed. But for the first time in the Gospel a man met Jesus and went away sad afterwards (Mk 10:22). He went away sad because he had dreams, but he does not have the courage to realize them and to transform them into reality. What is it that changed the whole thing? The words of Jesus: Go, sell all you have, give the money to the poor, then come and follow me. Jesus gave the man a challenge that he was not ready to accept: go, sell, give, come and follow. “Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” (Mk. 10:21). The young man went away sad, at first one would have imagined that he was very close to God, because he seemed to be a very spiritual person, but the outcome of his encounter with Jesus reveals the contrary. In that encounter, Jesus invited the man to follow him, to abandon all, as Peter and the other apostles have done. This was a privilege, and a call of predilection, but the man in question refused to follow him, even though he has been a good person (he observed  all the commandments since his youth, but the words of Jesus saddened him, “he went away sad” (v.22). Indeed, it is true that “no one can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon” (Mt. 6:24).

     Interestingly, Mathew’s version of this passage is quite different. In the Markan version when the young man addressed Jesus as Good Teacher, Jesus reacted: “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone” (Jesus is God and he is therefore good, but he does not want to be flattered). But Mathew substitutes this with “Why do you ask me concerning that which is good? Again, in Mathew’s version Jesus admonished his apostles on the renunciation of wealth and personal discipleship as a counsel for perfection, “If you want to be perfect” (Mt. 19:21). Thus, to renounce wealth and follow Jesus in that special manner is not necessary for salvation (but is necessary for those who want to follow Jesus radically as in special consecration). On the other hand, obedience to the mosaic law alone is not sufficient to gain eternal life. In that bid, the discourse of Jesus on riches opens two prospective: Frist, effective and radical renunciation of all earthly materials to follow Him (for those that received a special call). Second, affective detachment of the heart from earthly material wealth (for all Christians).

     Practically Jesus was telling the rich young man that true treasures are not material wealth and money but persons (the poor). Here, we cannot but remember St. Lawrence (deacon) who at the point of martyrdom presented the poor and needy as the treasures of the Church. The rich man was living the beatitudes of the unsatisfied, cor inquietum. He was searching for something more, but he rejected the real treasure. As we have seen in the Gospel, the rich man has no name, money took away his identity. On the other hand, in the gospel many rich people like: Zaccheus, Levi, Lazarus, Susan and John were mentioned by their names. They had their names because money did not take away their identity. What did they do? They stopped placing their treasure on riches, seeking security from money. They placed their treasure rightly on God. But the young man of today’s gospel lost his identity because of the misplacement of his treasures. He lacked generosity and the spirit of sharing.

     Upon Jesus’ invitation to follow him, the young man walked away embittered, even though he was described as a good man, who has been faithful to the commandments. To his reaction, Jesus turned and said, “How hard it will be for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God” (vv. 24-25).

●Why is it difficult? Because it is difficult for a rich man who is attached to his riches, in which he feels secured, to trust and abandon himself to God. It is difficult for the rich to become aware of his poverty as a creature and his indigence, as such, it is difficult to open up to the gratuitous gift of grace (for he is englobed with self-sufficiency).

●Who then can be saved? They apostles asked in bewilderment, and Jesus replied them: “By human resources it is impossible, but not with God: because for God everything is possible with men” (v. 27). There is need for a rich to detach from his riches and open up to divine grace. But Jesus reminded them that everything is possible to God. Therefore, if a rich man seeks God and follows him detaching from his riches, the promise of eternal life will be made possible. Then, Peter spoke up and worriedly reminded Jesus “Behold, we have left everything and followed you” (v.28).

●Then another question emerges: what will be the recompense of those who like Peter and the apostles have left everything to follow Jesus? To them Jesus assured a hundred fold in the present time and in the future, eternal life, together with persecution (because the disciple has to experience the ordeals of the Master). Jesus promises total recompense, a definitive joy and eternal life.

     Indeed, Jesus profited from the existential experience of this man, to give us an important lesson on riches. He said that wealth and riches are dangerous for one’s salvation, where there is attachment. For they render one insatiable and unconcerned for the needs of others. Jesus does not ask all to follow Him, but to those who follow him (Christians) he requests detachment from riches. A real follower is one who detaches and shares in love. This is the formula of today’s Good news: Detach and Share. Of course, to live detached from riches is not easy, but through God’s grace “all is possible”. Jesus told the rich man “you lack one thing”, and that is his incapacity to detach and share in love. Also for each and every one of us, the words of Jesus still resounds again “you lack one thing or many things”. What is it that you lack? What is it that makes you to put a frown on your face and walk away from God? Where do you place your value and true treasure? Unfortunately, we can see some aspects of ourselves in this man, and thus we may well ask: do we go away sad in the different ways and moments we encounter Jesus?

     The second reading (Heb. 4:12-13) talks about the Word of God, which is very much esteemed in the Old testament, Therein, God’s Word effects what it says (cf. Is. 55:10-11), it has an effective power of realization. And this passage is one of those New Testament passages that try to deepen this Old Testament picture of God’s Word. God’s wisdom is concretely expressed and manifested to men through His Word. The Word of God is “alive and active, sharper than any two-edged sword”. It penetrates into the inner recesses of the human heart. This assertion on the Word of God should be inspirational for all our choices and actions. The “wisdom” of God incarnated is Jesus, the Word of God, the hidden treasure, that a man sells everything he owns to purchase (Mt 13:44). And in the Word of God, his wisdom is fully manifested. Thus, the hearts that prays and are nourished by the Word of God, acquire gradually the wisdom of God; they in the words of St. Paul will make theirs the mind of Jesus (cf. Phil. 2:5).

     In this contemporary culture, the discourse of Jesus on riches will be a real hard nut to crack, for we live in a society that is profoundly materialistic, and the dominant culture is the idolatry of riches and well-being, of hedonism and the satisfaction of one’s desires and instincts. This is the society in which a Christian is called to live and bear witness, he has to do this with a continuous  effort to distance himself from the seduction of riches, learn how to use the earthly goods without becoming a slave to them, and to share his wealth with those in need. Even though Jesus does not ask everyone to leave everything and follow him in the life of special consecration to Him, but he asks all to detach their hearts from riches and renounce egoistic possession of wealth at the expense of the poor. Drawing the issue further, in this invitation of Jesus, consists the wisdom of the heart. The wisdom that king Solomon prayed for in the first reading, of which the psalmist implored in the responsorial psalm, especially in the first stanza.

     The Word of God today, therefore, invites us to adopt a sapiential and prudential approach to life, not only with regards to material wealth, but also in our daily living in general. For in biblical terms, “wisdom” stands to indicate having a balanced rapport with God, with men, with oneself and with things. And also to see and judge things and events in the light of the supreme truth, God and the conformation of one’s life to the will of God. Truly, to be able to do this, we need the constant help of the Word of God, in and through which divine wisdom is revealed. No wonder, the Psalmist also tendered his sapiential request to God, thus: Give us O lord, the wisdom of the heart” (Ps. 90:12b). This is an invocation we ought to repeat often and on. Let us appropriate the sapiential prayer of Solomon and the Psalmist and thus re-echo our voices with theirs in asking: Lord give us the wisdom of the heart!

(Fr. Vitus M.C. Unegbu, SC)

A Helper Fit For Him!

(Homily 27^th Sunday in Ordinary Time-Yr. B)

God didn’t make a woman out of a bone of Adam’s foot, so that he should tread her underground, nor out of a bone of his head, so that she should dominate him; but he made her out of his rib, which is close to his heart, to teach him to love her truly, as his companion. St Bernardina

     In these times when the sacramental bond of the Christian marriage is under attack by many ideologies and currents of thought, when there are many attempts to destroy the inherent values of the Christian marriage and the subtle moves to redefine the family and its values, the message of the first reading and the Gospel passage situates us well into context. The issue of marriage is one we cannot afford to treat with scorn or refrain from, for the future of mankind depends on the family. And as such, let us not be carried away by the human desires and longings about marriage which many a times are self-centred and tend to lower the vision of marriage and as such drift away from God’s plan, rather let us ask ourselves a number of pertinent questions: what is God’s plan about marriage? (cf. Gn.2) What does Jesus say about marriage? (cf. Mt.19:4-6). The institution of marriage has its foundation in the will of God, and not on the desires and longings of man. In all, it behoves us to underscore that marriage calls for moral commitment, especially in this age when marriage is under attack, let us hold on to God’s original plan, as emphasized by Jesus in the Gospel. We cannot but affirm that marriage as intended by God in creation can never be equated with its social institutionalization.

     The first reading (Gn. 2:18-24) starts with words of concern from God towards man “it is not good that he should be alone”. God said: “I will make him a helper fit for him”, this entails that they are equal in dignity. Here God can be seen as a Connector, a Communion-builder. Indeed, the beautiful words of St. Bernardina above expresses this in a fascinating manner. In the narrative as we read, out of the ground God formed every beast of the field and birds of the air, and after that he brought them to man to name. Man gave them names, but none of them was a helper fit for man. Then, God made man (Îs) to fall in a deep sleep, and as he slept, God took one of his ribs. And used the rib to make woman (Îssa), He brought her to the man, and the man said “this at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh, she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man”. As if to say finally “God na now you come”. As such, the reading concludes with the divine binding force thus: “Therefore, a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh” (v.24).

     Existentially speaking, God in his providence intervened in the primordial solitude of man and in the same way; He continues to do same even today. No creature was able to fill that solitude except woman. The fact of taking a rib from man to create woman indicates that they are of the same nature, equal in dignity, thus, woman is not inferior to man; they should complement each other (complementarity). This is the original plan of the Creator. The original plan of God is not “Îs and Îs” or “Îssa and Îssa” (man and man or woman and woman), rather it is “Îs and Îssa”. Therefore, man and woman are called to form a communion of life and of love. Christian marriage establishes a union between husband and wife, a union that is superior to every other union of love, “for this a man shall leave his father and mother…” (Gn.2:24; Mk. 10:7). Secondly, it makes the two to be intimately involved, “and the two will become one flesh” (Gn.2:24; Mk. 10:6). This is not merely a physical union, because in biblical language, “flesh” in Hebrew signifies the person in his totality, body and spirit. Above all else, however, the main thrust of this passage from the book of Genesis is by no means geared towards the subordination of women, rather her complementarity with man. Unlike the animals, she is a real consort, a helper fit for him

     In the gospel (Mk. 10:2-16) Jesus reaffirms the indissolubility of marriage, when the Pharisees came to test him by asking “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” He asked them what Moses commanded them. They immediately answered that “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and to put her away”. In the mosaic law it was only the man that can give the woman a certificate of divorce (cf. Deut. 24:1). Moses had a very good reason to prescribe that law, because before and after the law, men had been accustomed to send their wives away for the smallest reason (badly cooked meal, sickness, disagreement, having fallen in love etc.), as a result Moses had to put them under the obligation of a formal dismissal letter to protect to some extent the right of women. However, one may ask: what of if the wife finds something against the husband, can she also write a bill of divorce and hand it over to him? But unfortunately, this was not stated. Interestingly, while addressing this hydra-headed issue, Jesus did not deny this mosaic law which gives a man the right to divorce his wife. But He did not get himself entangled with it, rather He pointed out that the mosaic law on divorce is as a result of their hardness of heart, and hardness of heart here indicates a stubborn and hardened conscience bent on wilfully disobeying God. Jesus takes rather a strong stand and affirms that marriage should be monogamous, permanent and indissoluble; he made reference to the book of Genesis. This teaching of Jesus on indissolubility and permanence of marriage needs to be re-echoed in our society today, where divorce is gradually being seen as a normal thing. Marriage is an eternal covenant between a man and a woman (husband and wife) made before God.

     At this point, Jesus intervened reminding them that it was as a result of their hardness of heart that Moses gave them the law. Not only that, he went back to the original plan of God in the beginning. And what is that divine original plan “the creation of male and female”, which has a purpose: “for this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh”. The fidelity of the couples to each other is a symbol and reflection of God’s faithfulness to His people, and the faithfulness of Christ to the Church. In fact, fidelity is at the heart of God’s name, He is the “I am” (cf. Ex. 3:14-15), and the name “I am” indicates faithfulness and fidelity. I am for you; I will be there for you. In the wedding promise, is as if the couples say to each other: “I am here for you, I will be there for you”, this indeed is at the heart of the sacrament.

     Afterwards, gave them a sort of advice “What therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder” (or let no man put asiri under as some would jokingly say). The indissolubility of marriage as Jesus opined lies in the “totality and foreverness” of the commitment. And as such, the conjugal union does not survive only on the “Yes” pronounced on the Wedding day, but on the “Yes” that is renewed daily. A wedding lasts only one day, but marriage for the rest of life. Besides, after Jesus’ explanation, yet the disciples remained at sea, because they asked Jesus again about the issue. And in response Jesus made it more profound, that “whoever divorces his wife and marries commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery” (vv.11-12). Thanks however, to the intervention of the disciples, because in response to it Jesus introduced the novelty of His message on this issue. Prior to this time, for the Jews only the man can divorce his wife, but Jesus brought something new: also a woman can divorce her husband. This more than anything else reveals the equal dignity of the human person whether man or woman.

     In his intervention, Jesus raised the dignity of women to its natural level, and afterwards the issue of children arose. This is because in the culture and understanding of that time children like women lacked consideration. Jesus in the case of the children did not let the occasion pass him by. We are told that He was indignant (Jesus was angered over this unfair treatment). What did He do? He welcomed the children, took them in His arms and blessed them. Most probably, as some exegetes assert, those taking the children to Jesus are their parents. On the contrary, in our present time, Jesus is equally indignant over those parents that do not bring their children to Him. And from here arises a question for parents: where do you take your children to? To Jesus or elsewhere? If to Jesus their permanent blessings are assured. The presence of Jesus makes the difference in marriage and in the family.

Oratio: As we meditate on the sacrament of matrimony, let us prayerfully ask Jesus to help us rediscover the values of a Christian marriage and family: love, reciprocity, complementarity, understanding, forgiveness and foreverness etc. We therefore conclude with the following question or rather reasoning on marital love:

Is there anything more beautiful in life than a boy and a girl clasping clean hands and pure hearts in the path of marriage? Can there be any thing more beautiful than young love? Yes there is a more beautiful thing. It is an old man and an old woman finishing their life’s journey together on that path. Their hands are gnarled, but still clasped; their faces are wrinkled but still radiant; their hearts are physically bowed and tired, but still strong with love and devotion for one another. Yes there is a more beautiful thing than young love.  Old love. (Anonymous)

(Fr. Vitus M.C. Unegbu, SC)