Christ Our Hope Is Risen!

 (Homily For Easter Sunday)

     Today we celebrate the great mystery of our redemption, and it launches us into another liturgical season. In the new calendar, Easter season is a journey of 50 days in which we are invited to reflect upon the post-resurrectional appearances of the Risen Lord, the consequences of Easter event in the life of the Church, the gift of the Holy Spirit and the promise of eternal life. The season does not run forty days to Ascension, but now fifty days to Pentecost. This could be linked to the fifty days in which the Israelites enjoyed the fruits of the land. Similarly, the church this season reflects in these fifty days on the fruits of Christ’s Resurrection. As I have opined in my previous reflections, the Event of the Resurrection is foundational to our Christian faith, for its realism gives credence to our faith. As a matter of fact, only in the New Testament we encounter about 213 references on the death and Resurrection of Christ. In fact, in Pauline letters alone we have about 81 references; this in no small way reveals the importance of this event in the life of the Church. In the first reading Peter preached to Cornelius and to his entire household, that “God raised him on the third day”. While in the second reading St. Paul opines that the Resurrection of Christ and the consciousness of this mystery is the foundation of Christian ethics, for this he invites us to seek and look for the things that are above. In the Gospel, St. John seems to centre the whole story on the empty tomb, because it resonates the faith of the “beloved disciple” on the Resurrection, but the credibility of the event is founded more on the apparitions.

          In the first reading (At. 10:34.37-43) we can see that the Easter appearances are revelatory encounters which founded the Church and launched the Christian Mission. Our Easter faith and the credibility of the Resurrection depend majorly on the testimonies of the first witnesses. Indeed, the credibility of the realism of the Resurrection is by no means an irrational leap of faith. In this passage, we heard about the formidable discourse of St. Peter, where he situated the realism of the Death and Resurrection of Christ at the centre of his preaching. The apostles too declared themselves witnesses of the Resurrection: “Chosen witnesses”. They are indeed witnesses, who ate and drank with Jesus after his Resurrection. They had a first hand and direct experience of the Risen Lord. More than that, the apostles are witnesses with their life, for the Resurrection completely changed and radically transformed them. They really demonstrated the reality and the efficacy of Christ’s Resurrection with their life, for later, they all paid with their blood and martyrdom.

     The Gospel of today (Jn. 20:1-9) invites us to join our voices together to that of Mary Magdalene in shouting “Christ my hope is risen”. Upon encountering the Angel, three tasks were given to the women: ●To believe in what Jesus has already said concerning his death; ●To share the message to the apostles and to others; ●And to rejoice (chairete), for the Resurrection is a message of great Joy. We have to affirm with vigour and conviction our faith in the Risen Lord. That Jesus Christ is truly risen is a given fact, a historical fact, indeed the realism of this event cannot be jettisoned. Concerning the realism of the Resurrection, the Gospel makes reference to the apparitions of the Risen Lord to the women, and to the apostles, and as St. Paul would testify, that Jesus appeared to more than 500 disciples gathered together, some of whom were still alive when Paul was writing (cf. 1Cor.15:16). So, the empty tomb alone does not exhaust the question of the credibility of the Resurrection. It remains a pointer, and even more, a reason of our hope and joy. When they could see Him and find His body, Jesus was alive and victorious.

     Besides, in the gospel of John we have two accounts or stories on the Resurrection. The first in the twentieth chapter, while the second in the twenty-first chapter. In the second account, John shows us that the Risen Lord encounters us in our moments of fragility and in the futility of our everyday life (Jn. 21:1-14).The disciples laboured all through the night, but they didn’t catch any fish, when they were already disappointed and weary. They saw a man standing at the bank. He spoke to them in a lovely manner and invited them to go once more to cast the net. “They cast the net and could not get it in again because it was so full of fish” (Jn. 21:6), then the disciples recognized that “it was the Lord” (Jn. 21:7). The Risen Lord can turn our helplessness and hopelessness into an avenue of and for blessing and favour.

     In the Second reading we have two alternative readings (Col. 3:1-4 or 1Cor. 5:6-8) and both of them accentuate the ethical implications of the Resurrection. This is evident in the imperatives: “seek” the things that are above, “set” your mind on them. Drawing the issue further, in the words of St. Paul, we too are spiritually risen with Christ and in Christ, we are buried with him and risen with him (Eph. 2:6; Col. 2:12). With and through our baptism we are made partakers of the gifts of Resurrection: ●We have passed from death of sin to the life of grace. ●We have passed from the condition of death through our original sin, to the condition of being alive in Christ and for Christ. It is upon this consciousness that St. Paul invites us to walk in the newness of life, to which the Risen Christ has put us (1Cor.5:6-8). We are called now to “look up” to the Risen Christ and to where he has ascended to, at the right hand of the Father. That is our goal! Let us take to heart the words of St. Peter thus “For you know that the price of your ransom from the futile way of life handed down from your ancestors was paid, not in anything perishable like silver and gold, but in the precious blood as of a blameless and spotless lamb, Christ” (1Pt. 1:18-19).

     The passage from the epistle letters points out few existential indications on how to render the Resurrection of Christ evident in our life and actions. In the words of St. Paul “Brothers, if you are risen…” (Col. 3:1-4). Indeed, we are risen effectively with Christ in Baptism, we are risen anytime we turn from our sinful ways to the life of grace in God, through the sacrament of reconciliation. Brethren, let us pray and ask God the grace to live and to walk in the “newness of life” following the example of the Risen Christ. For through his Resurrection Christ renews, recreates and restores creation to Himself.

     As a matter of fact, our reflection on Christ’s Resurrection cannot but draw us closer to the total self-emptying of Jesus and as such an entrance into Kenosis, to the extent that he was subjected to all sorts of evil. On the cross all sorts of evil befell on Jesus. How did Jesus die on the cross? He died with the profession of the great Hope: “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit”. Even in the midst of all these evils Jesus did his profession of hope. Little wonder, on Good Friday the Holy Mother Church proclaims the Cross “sign of hope”. Here Jesus transformed the cross to an icon of love and hope. The Resurrection of Jesus is the response of the Father to the hope of Jesus. For St. Paul, Jesus does not only teach us hope, he is our Hope (cf. 1Tm. 1:1). On the other hand, the silence of the Father reveals that the paternity of God is not a paternalistic paternity. Little wonder, his absence during the crucifixion was apparent. Why was it unshakeable the hope of Jesus?  Indeed, because it was founded on the communion with the Father. At the basis of the communion in question, there is the Holy Spirit “Vinculum comunionis.” Jesus dies abandoning himself to the Father who brings the dead to life and calls into existence what does not yet exist (Rm. 4:17).

          Dear brethren in the Resurrected Lord, even in the present economic, moral, political and religious crisis we may be experiencing, together with St. Paul it is my utmost desire to reawaken in you the knowledge of the nature of the hope founded on the God of hope (cf. Rm. 15:13). On discovering this, St. Paul averred: “Our hope will not disappoint us, because the love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given to us” (Rm. 5:5). Therefore, “we should always have our answers ready for those who ask us the reason for the hope that we have” (1Pt. 3:15). Our Hope is Jesus and the Resurrection is the reason for that hope. Yes, Christ among us, is our hope of glory (Col. 1:27).

          In which ever situation we may find ourselves, I repeat we should not give in to sadness and desperation, as the Resurrection is the response of the Father to the cry of Jesus on the cross. The Resurrection is an act of God, indeed God raised Him from the dead (cf. Acts. 2:24; Rm. 10:9; 1Cor. 6:14). Similarly, in the Resurrection of Christ we find the answer to all our questions for meaning. We only have to allow ourselves to be drawn and attracted by Him, as St. John affirmed “They will look to the one whom they have pierced” (Jn. 19:37). Let us look up to Him. The love of the Risen Lord does not leave us indifferent, He Himself confirmed it when He said “when i am lifted up from the earth i shall draw all people to myself” (Jn. 12:32). Let us allow ourselves to be drawn and attracted by the spectacle of the Cross and the Resurrection.

          Beloved in Christ, let us rejoice for Jesus has giving and consumed himself in love and out of love for humanity. He is the Love of the Trinitarian God manifested to us. Therefore, in the Easter season irrespective of our challenges, let us not give room to sadness and depression. Let us rejoice for the Faithful God has raised His Faithful Son from death. Jesus Christ the Crucified-Risen has healed our infirmity of sin. He lowered Himself so that we might rise; he lowered Himself for our salvation. The Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ is an event beaming and anchored on hope. In fact, it is ad rem to affirm that the life of Jesus is a life anchored on hope. His was a life lived in a total abandonment in the hands of the Father. More than anything else, the cross is the icon par excellence of Jesus’ hope, and indeed from his cross we learn how and what it entails to hope. The Resurrection should reaffirm our faith and reanimate our hope in Jesus. The Resurrection is indeed an affirmation that the Cross is only a provisional collocation according to Don Tonino Bello, which means is not a permanent place. Even the common cross that the entire humanity is carrying at this period in her history and your own personal cross is provisional. Jesus through His Resurrection is emptying any form of tomb in our lives, in order to set us free from bondage. As the Father listened to his voice and answered him with the Resurrection, may the Risen-Lord hear the cries and lamentations of the entire humanity and raise us from the death-tomb experience of violence, hatred, war and lack of respect for the dignity of human life. May He restore and reanimate our hope. Amen! Lord in your Resurrection is our hope. A wish of a Continuous Resurrection!! Happy Easter to you all!!!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC)

He Is Not Here! He Has Risen!!

 (Homily For Holy Saturday)

     This according to St. Augustine is the Mother of all vigils, because this night we Christians relive the fundamental event of our faith, the passage from death to life, to life in Christ, the passage from darkness to light. The Risen Lord is the Eternal Light that dispels the darkness of the world, the darkness that obscure our existence. The Liturgy tonight and the different texts chosen for the readings all revolve around the theme of life, of new life springing up from the power of God. The Liturgy of Light and the renewal of baptismal promises intone a hymn to the new man, risen together with Christ. The Easter proclamation focuses on three major themes: the deliverance of Israel in the Exodus, the baptismal deliverance of the new Israel (Christians); the Resurrection of Christ. The biblical readings for the Easter Vigil recall the saving acts of God like: the creation of the world and of humanity (Gen 1), the abundant blessings of Abraham (Gen 22), the liberation of Israel from slavery of Egypt (Ex 14), this is considered to be the most important reading, because the crossing of the Red sea is a type of Christ’s Death and Resurrection, the restoration of Israel (Is 54:55; Bar 3; Ez 36). In the light of all these readings, the resurrection of Jesus is presented as the climax of the proclamation that God indeed is not the God of the dead but of the living. From the New Testament, we see the text from the letter of St. Paul to the Romans (6:3-11), where St. Paul invites them and us to lead a new life, because Christ is risen from the dead by the power of the Father. In the Gospel of Mark (16:1-7), we see the holy women in search of Jesus, and later the involvement of the apostles in the amazing event of the Resurrection.

     The message of the Resurrection of Jesus or better the Paschal mystery in its triple moments: of Passion, Death and Resurrection, is invariably the central nucleus and the predominant theme of the Christian faith. Through His descent into hell we reach truly that amazing and fascinating summit of the event of Jesus. An early Christian story says that Jesus entered the place of the dead with his cross, the weapon of his victory. Having released all those who were inside he decided to leave his cross standing in the centre of hell, a sign that even those who pass that way do not find themselves in a place which is unknown to him. On Holy Saturday, we see the radicality of love that offers itself, even till the extremity of the same love. This is exactly what Jesus did for us.

     Jesus in that great silence lived the solitude of the apparent absence of the Father. Here, the hot-button question resounds: “where is God?” This is the interrogative point of Holy Saturday. But interestingly, to this silence and cry of abandonment by Jesus, the Father will respond with and through the Resurrection. For St. Paul tells us that “God…brings back the dead to life and calls into existence what does not exist” (Rm. 4:17), elsewhere he affirms that God raised Him from the dead (Rm. 10:9, cf. Acts. 2:24; 1Cor. 6:14). And it is today that the unprecedented message reaches us with a profound question “why do you look for the living among the dead?” And here, we hear for the first time the mind-blowing response, “He is not here, He has risen”. Yes! Christ has risen as he said. This event reveals that there is no darkness that cannot be transformed into light, no human misery that cannot be transformed into an avenue of mercy and favor. Dear brothers and sisters, we can never have enough voice and courage to repeat or better to shout aloud that Jesus is risen, but let us allow ourselves to be overwhelmed with joy that springs from this event.

     Reflecting deeply in tonight’s Gospel narrative, according to St. Mark, it is eminent the part the three women (Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome) played. They made a headway to the Tomb, and this fact of going to the Tomb reveals that their hope was shaky. Certainly, they must have placed their trusts in Him, but his death shook the very foundation of their hope and trust in Him. However, they had the courage to go and pay homage to the corpse. The Marcan account reports that on arrival at the grave of Jesus the women were asking themselves: “who will roll away the stone for us from the door of the tomb?” Afterwards they discovered that the stone was rolled back, then they entered the tomb, and saw “a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe; and they were amazed”. And the young man said to them: “Do not be amazed; you seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen, he is not here”. And behold, their reaction was characterized by fear, joy and uncertainty. Here, from the theological standpoint, the white clothing of the young man is suggestive of the fact that it is an angelic figure. Indeed, the women’s response was a typical reaction to an Epiphany: fear, wonder or silence. It is interesting to note that , the young man in white rope proclaimed the Resurrection of Christ, first to the women and invited them to go and “tell the disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him”. Galilee in Mark’s symbolism indicates a place where the proclamation of begins (cf. 1:14-15).

     The phrase: “He is not here”, indicates a new presence, Jesus is alive and active. Mark in fact, accentuates the new life of the Risen Lord. This is also seen in the book of Revelation (5:6) where the image of the crucified and risen Lord was represented with the figure of a Lamb standing that seemed to have been sacrificed. Indeed, the Crucified-Risen Christ is the Living One “I was dead and look, I am alive for ever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and of Hades” (Rev. 1:18). And He alone is capable of transmitting new life to entire humanity. Our Creator God is a God of life. The mystery of the Resurrection is directly linked to the mystery of creation. It is all about life, life to the full.

     Indeed the belief in the Resurrection of Christ is not incumbent primarily upon the empty tomb. The Resurrection is by no means identical with the empty tomb, however, the fact remains that the empty tomb plays an essential role in the New Testament witness of Christ Resurrection. Be that as it may, the empty tomb is a symbol that the appearances of the Risen Christ are not mere spiritualist visions. In and through His resurrection Christ overcome death and opened up man’s destiny beyond the grave and death. Let us pause and ponder a little while on the “Pro Nobis” of this event. In fact, in the second reading from the antique homily in the office of readings this morning, there we see that the phrase “for you” reoccurred several times. Hence let’s ponder on what Jesus has done for us. The Resurrection reveals Jesus as the Redeemer of mankind, and here subsists the “Pro Nobis” of His Death and Resurrection. For with the Resurrection of Christ, man is not only redeemed, but he has a divine destiny. He is called to a continuous resurrection, to self-transformation and social transformation

     The Resurrection impacts the credibility seal on our faith, for without the Person of Jesus, without his death and Resurrection, our Christian faith would not have been credible. For this St. Paul affirms “we preach the crucified Christ” (1Cor. 1:23). In the same letter, he posits: “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is without substance, and so is your faith” (1Cor. 15:14). Yes! Because the centre of our faith is the Person and the Event of Jesus of Nazareth. Christianity without the Crucified-Risen is empty. Without Christ our life will be devoid of meaning, Christ is the reason of our existence. In all, it behoves us to reaffirm with St. Paul that, “Christ has been raised from the dead, as the first-fruits of all who have fallen asleep” (1Cor. 15:20). It is because he rose that we can say “In him we live, in him we move, in him we have our being” (Acts 17: 28). For the realism and credibility of His Resurrection, St. Paul questions, “who can bring any accusation against those that God has chosen? When God grants saving justice who can condemn? Are we not sure that it is Christ Jesus, who died, yes and more, who was raised from the dead, and is at God’s right hand, and who is adding his plea for us?...Can anything cut us off from the love of Christ?...we come through all these things triumphantly victorious, by the power of him who loved us” (Rm. 8: 34.35.37).

     Above all else however, the Easter event restores the disciples and commissions to proclaim openly the saving works of God in Christ, through his Death and Resurrection. And this is a mission which we are called to continue today, as a Church and as individual members. The saving work of the Risen Lord is and will continue to be an ever-present reality in the Christian community.

A wish to you all of a Continuous Resurrection!

He has risen as He has said!!

Happy Easter to you all!!!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC)

 

 

His Passion: The ‘Reality-Show’ Of Our Redemption!

(Homily for Good Friday)

O dear Lord, what can I say to you on this holy night? Is there any word that could come from my mouth, any thought, any sentence? You died for me, you gave all for my sins, you not only became man for me but also suffered the most cruel death for me. Is there any response? I wish that I could find a fitting response, but in contemplating your Holy Passion and Death I can only confess humbly to you that the immensity of your divine love makes any response seem totally inadequate.

      The above words of Henri J. M. Nouwen in his book, A Cry for Mercy, introduces us well into the context of today’s celebration, which culminates in the saving Passion of Our Savior and the Veneration of the Cross, the symbol of our redemption. Our finite human minds cannot comprehend nor explain the enigma of Jesus’ suffering on the Cross. Jesus died to set us free, to raise the fallen humanity, and to save man created in the image and likeness of God. But to do this, something needed to be done. It was obvious that only God can save man, for man cannot save himself. Then the issue is: Can God do this by means of a gesture of benevolence from heaven? But we know that no one has ever seen God. Can it be accomplished through the angels? But the mission of angels is that of a messenger, not a savior. It was only possible through a man who is at the same time God. And behold, God sent his Son Jesus Christ to come and redeem man. For in the Cross of Christ man rediscovers his real identity, his authentic self, his origin and his destiny. He is the unique Savior, only him can save man integrally and radically, in time and in eternity. Thus demonstrating in a most radical way, the extremity of God’s love towards us.    

     In today’s liturgy the pronoun “We” and the adjective “Our” resound in an unprecedented manner, they resound as the unique and authentic motive of the Passion and Death of our Lord Jesus Christ. The first reading (Is. 53:13-53, 12) is insistent on this, when it says: “Yet ours were the sufferings he was bearing, ours the sorrows he was carrying…whereas he was being wounded for our rebellions, crushed because of our guilt; the punishment reconciling us fell on him, and we have been healed by his bruises…Yahweh brought the acts of rebellion of all of us to bear on him” (Is. 53:4-6). In this three verses of the prophecy of Isaiah we can see how many times the words “we and ours” reoccurred. In the Passion account according to St. John (Jn. 18:1-19,42), which has as a background the fourth song of the Servant of Yahweh, however, at the beginning and at the end, it tried to deepen the import of the Passion with two prophetic texts. The first prophecy is the one of the high Priest Caiaphas: “It is better for one man to die for the people” (Jn.18:14), and the second is taken from the prophecy of Zechariah: “They will look to the one whom they have pierced” (Jn. 19:37; cf. Zech. 12:10), this refers to the conversion and the salvation of the nations by means of the redemptive work of Jesus. It was equally at this backdrop that in the second reading (Heb.4:14-16; 5:7-9), the author of the letter to the Hebrews, urges them: “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…he became for all who obey him the source of eternal salvation” (Heb.4:16; 5:9).

     Furthermore, the first reading is suggestive of three important elements to the understanding of Christ’s death: his suffering was innocent, vicarious and redemptive. The second reading, instead, revolves around the High Priesthood of Christ. The author enumerated the characteristics of the High Priest thus: he can sympathize with our temptations and infirmities because of his identification with man in the Incarnation; he prayed for deliverance and he was heard (at Gethsemane deliverance is not an “escape from” but to “save from”), he learned obedience. Indeed, we may well affirm that the Incarnation was so real that Jesus fulfilled the will of the Father, not as an automaton, but through struggle and temptation and an experience of learning.

     Today, we reflect on the Passion narrative of St. John. And each evangelist has his own perspective of the Passion, and at the heart of John’s  narrative is the perspective that the Kingship of Jesus shines through his humiliation. Jesus sets the Passion in motion, for he voluntarily came forward to be arrested. We can see how the temple police who were terrified by his personality fell back. Peter tried to stop the arrest, but Jesus intervened. On the Cross Jesus made his last will entrusting his mother to the disciple and his disciple to his mother. In the Gospel of John, Mary is seen as the symbol of the Church. We may say that the Passion narrative of John elucidates the words of Jesus in John 10:18 “I lay down my life, that I may take it again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord”. For Jesus decides the moment of his death: “He gave  up his Spirit”.

     Today we see an expression of Love displayed on the Cross by our Lord Jesus Christ. It is on account of this that our Lord Jesus said in the Gospel of John (15:13) that “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends”. This is indeed what this Friday stands for. So we thank God it is Good Friday because on this day we received the highest expression of God’s love. On this day, we received superabundance of God’s love. On this day God gave us His most ‘precious possession’, namely His Son. This Friday is good because finally our redemption is accomplished and the price of our sins fully paid (tetelestai). The word “tetelestai” (it is finished, accomplished, fully paid) occurred only in two places  (Jn. 19:28.30), and these are the only two places it is found in the New Testament.

     Through his death Jesus obeyed the Father, in the sense of perdoning his enemies. He submitted whole heartedly to the will of the Father, who does not desire the death of a sinner, but that he repents and lives. Christ accepted to die, in order that his enemies that led him to the Cross might live, hence he forgave them. On the Cross Jesus revealed this profound mystery of God’s mercy and love. He emptied himself and was humbler yet, even to accepting death on a cross (cf. Phil. 2:7-8).

      Through his event on the Cross, Jesus conformed to the will of the Father. Little wonder, it is said of Jesus that: “He was insulted and he did not retaliate with insults; when he was suffering he made no threats but put his trust in the upright Judge” (1Pt. 2:23). He did not put his trust in the Upright Judge so that he will punish his enemies and wrongdoers, but it was for the purpose of saving them, irrespective of their freedom. “He made no threats”, for he was not harbouring in his heart words to oppose his adversaries; he was not looking or considering those that are making him to suffer, but for those he was suffering for. What a Love in its extremity! St. Peter further expressed: “He was bearing our sins in his own body on the cross, so that we might die to our sins and live for uprightness; through his wounds we are healed” (1Pt. 2:24; Is. 53:5).

     At Getsemani Jesus touched suffering with his bare hands and lived it on his flesh. Suffering for him was not a hear-say experience. In fact, he “leanrt obedience through suffering” (Heb. 5:8). Jesus exclaimed “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death” (Mk. 14:34). Jesus lived the highest point of suffering, what the mystics called “the dark night of the Soul”, to the extent that He became sin, “For our sake he made the sinless one a victim for sin, so that in him we might become the uprightness of God” (2Cor. 5:21). When Jesus on the Cross cried out “My God My God why have you forsaken me” (Mt. 27:46), this was because he had the experience of the apparent disappearance of the Father. It was as if the Father left Jesus alone on the Cross, after he must have condemned sin and passed judgement on the world. However, in this traumatizing episode, man could learn what it means to do without God, to reject Him and to Sin. If Jesus could feel his apparent absence on the Cross, what more when we decisively reject or abandon Him ourselves?

     As a matter of fact, we see the total self-emptying of Jesus and as such an entrance into Kenosi, to the extent that he was subjected to all sorts of evil. On the cross all sorts of evil befell on Jesus: ●PHYSICAL EVIL: The death on a cross is the highest form of physical suffering and corporal torturing.●PSYCHOLOGICAL EVIL: Jesus was abandoned by all, he was denied and betrayed. He suffered solitude. We cannot but remember the ingratitude of those who wanted Barabbas instead of Jesus. There was the wickedness of those who gave him vinegar while he was thirst.●MORAL EVIL: The injustice of Pilate who suffocated and sacrificed the truth at the altar of unfounded consensus. The condemnation and death of an innocent.●SPIRITUAL EVIL: Then here comes the pertinent question: where is God? Here we see the seemingly absence of God, and Jesus feels this abandonment: My God, My God why have you forsaken me?

     To us, as we meditate and ponder on and on, on the event of Jesus on the Cross, is as if He whispers to the ears of our heart: “I did not love you, just for joke”. Hence, our meditation on the passion of Christ has to inspire us to contrition and pains for our sins, but also to hope. A word of Hope, for us and for our brothers and sisters, for those that are humiliated, offended, oppressed and those their dignity has been dragged to the mud. This existential experiences bring us closer to the Jesus of Good Friday. However, the Cross of Christ is a Word of Hope! Let us not hide this hope from anyone. For we have this assurance of faith that: “If we have been joined to him by dying a death like his, so we shall be by a resurrection like his” (Rm. 6:5).

      Today being Good or God's Friday, is not a day to express sympathy, no room for passivity, rather his suffering and death should raise questions for meaning in our hearts, and thus lead us to conversion. Today is not the day to admire the courage of the few women that followed Him to the Cross, to condemn the acts of the Jewish religious leaders, Pilate, the crowd and the disciples, or a day to merely sympathize with Jesus, rather it is a day to empathize with Him. It is a day we should allow the reality-show of his death to inspire us like the Centurion to proclaim who He is in our life. For the Centurion: “Truly this man was the Son of God” (Mk. 15:39). It is a day we are called to allow ourselves to be transformed by His saving death. The visible sign or fruit of the death of Christ in our lives should be that of transformation, in every individual and in the sinful social structures of our society.

         For the sake of His Sorrowful Passion, have Mercy on us and on the whole world!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC)

Jesus The New Passover Lamb And The Priest For Love Of Us!

 (Homily For Holy Thursday)

     Today marks the beginning of the Paschal Triduum, and it is indeed a celebration beaming with joy and gratitude for what God has wrought for humanity. In this evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper we gather to open the Paschal Triduum in preparation for the commemoration of the Lord’s Resurrection. Today being Holy Thursday, in a glaring manner we recall Jesus’ act of self-giving, orchestrated in the gift of His Body and Blood; the gift of the ministerial priesthood in the context of the Last Supper, in order to perpetuate his presence in our midst. That fulfills his promise to his disciples “I will be with you till the end of time” (Mt. 28:20). Jesus, indeed, is The Priest of the New Covenant, who unlike the priests of the old covenant offers himself and his blood, and not the blood of animals. The scene around which revolve the readings is the context of the supper where few persons reunited. However, the text and the context reveal that it is not just any supper like others. It is all about a unique supper, of great importance for all the guests. In the first reading, those that reunited were members of an Israelite family, who with the supper celebrate the liberation from slavery in Egypt. In the Gospel, those reunited for the Supper are Jesus and his disciples, and it was a dramatic moment, that pre-announces the Passion. Similarly in the second reading, we see the Christians of Corinth who were reunited first for supper, and later to celebrate the Lord’s Supper.

     Our celebration today culminates in the rediscovery of the essence of Christ’ self-giving (the institution of the Holy Eucharist), the gift of his ministerial priesthood (the institution of the Holy Orders), and in the midst of these he continues to invite us to rediscover the value of service and of fraternal love (as exemplified in the washing of feet). We would like to make considerations on these three events: ●Institution of the Eucharist: Institution here does not mean enactment of a new rite. The institution is the investment of an existing rite with a new and profound meaning. This earthly banquet enacted by Jesus looks forward to the eschatological banquet. We may therefore, affirm that the Eucharist has both backward (the event of the Cross) and forward (eschatological banquet) imports. ●The establishment of the ministerial Priesthood: Be that as it may, the ministerial priesthood and the common priesthood of the faithful derive their priestly character from the nature of the Eucharist. ●The commandment to love: this is exemplified in the episode of the washing of the feet and the words of the Lord that accompanied it. In synthesis, we may well affirm that at the center of our celebration this evening are two symbolic elements: the Table and the Towel. It was at the Table of the Last Supper that God revealed the immensity of the divine love in concrete terms: a Towel and a Table (Bread), that is, in service and in total self-giving. A service orchestrated in a profound humility of washing his disciples’ feet. In fact, the act of kneeling before another, points to the voluntary poverty that Jesus embraces. Through the Table and the Towel He manifested how deep his love for humanity is, it is indeed an extravagant and endless love (cf. Jn.13:1), not just too much love, not just excess love, but endless love!

   In the first reading (Ex 12:1-8, 11-14), we see a fascinating description of the first Jewish Passover meal. In that event it was customary that a lamb has to be sacrificed for each family. Afterwards, its blood was put on the doorposts and lintel of the house to protect and protect its occupants (the Israelites). This served as an identification of the houses where the Israelites were. Then the houses without blood were for the Egyptians and when Yahweh passed over that night the firstborn of the Egyptians were massacred. Here, God promised the Israelites: “The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood I will pass over you” (Ex. 12:13). The first reading therefore, is a narration of how the tradition of the banquet of Paschal Lamb began. It was a memorial sign of the passage from slavery to freedom (called the Passover). While the blood of the lamb protected and saved the Jews during the first Passover, now it is the Blood of Jesus that saves and liberates us. His Blood is the seal of the New Covenant, not the blood of an ordinary lamb. He is therefore, the New Passover Lamb. Be that as it may, we would like to make a few considerations: First, the Passover as an annual memorial of God’s great redemptive act. For a devout Jew believed that when he celebrated the Passover he was actually there coming out of Egypt with his forefathers. This indeed, is a strong realism. This type of realism tailors the Christian Eucharist. Second, the shedding of the blood of the lamb is a sort of prefiguration of the death of the Lamb of God. And for Christians, blood shedding is more than a mere ritual or cultic act, it is above all a moral act (cf. Heb. 10:5-9). Third, the Passover was eaten in haste and expectation. In the same vein, in the course of time, this sense of urgency has been transformed into the great expectation of the Messiah. On the other hand, the responsorial Psalm emphasized on the two aspects of the Eucharist: the sacrifice of thanksgiving and the communion among believers.

     The Gospel tonight (John 13:1-15) narrates an unexpected fact that is only seen in the Gospel of St. John: the washing of feet by Jesus. During their Supper Jesus rose from the table and removed his outer garment, with a towel around his waist and He began to wash the feet of his disciples (Jn. 13: 4-5). This was an incredible scene in the sight of the disciples, for this was the task of slaves. In fact, some biblical scholars have it that, even during that time it was not the slave that washes the feet of the guest; rather the slave brings a basin with water and a towel for the guest to wash by himself. Contrarily, Jesus went lower than a slave. Afterwards, He called the attention of the disciples to the moral implication of what he has done: “I have given you an example so that you may copy what I have done to you” (Jn. 13:15). As such, what should characterize our identity as Christians is the humble service rendered to our brothers and sisters in need. Our presence should be a refreshing, enlivening and cleansing presence. He did not do it just to impress the disciples or to win their admiration; rather he did it in order to show them and to show us the example to follow. The washing of his disciple’s feet is a symbolic act. First, because through it Jesus shows how he bowed down to humanity by means of his Incarnation and his death on the Cross, Christ’s self-abasement. Second, is its moral implication: “I have given you an example, so that you may do as I have done to you” (Jn. 13:15). Jesus has given them and us a model of love: serving others. After washing the feet of his disciples, He asked them: “Do you understand what I have done to you?” (v.12). This question of Jesus still re-echoes even in the Christian assembly after so many years. Have we really understood the import of what Jesus did and how it has to shape our rapport with each other? He is still asking us even in the context of this liturgical celebration: “Do you understand?” We fail to understand when we do not love and care about those around us, when we are self-centered and think that the world revolves around us alone, when we are unable to cultivate and appropriate the virtue and value of humble service.

     Drawing the issue further, a deeper reflection on the feet washing reveals that this gesture of Jesus could be considered from two perspectives: Symbolic and Exemplary. First, the symbolic perspective maintains that the laying aside of his garments by Jesus is a sign of humiliation or better his self-emptying and kenosis (v.3). Second, the exemplary perspective, which is seen in verse 15: “I have given you an example that you should do as I have done to you.” On the other hand, the washing of the apostles’ feet by Jesus can also have other imports; let us pause a little on the words of Jesus: “Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me” (John 13:8). Jesus says to Peter that he will have no inheritance if He does not wash his feet, which implies that Jesus will be Peter’s inheritance but only if Peter allows Jesus to wash his feet. For instance, it can be seen as a symbol of baptism; for when we are baptized, our sins are washed away, Jesus becomes our inheritance. May we also allow Jesus to wash us, to wash our feet, that part of us that is always stained.

     In the second reading (1 Cor. 11:23-26) St. Paul presents a detailed description of the Last Supper. Indeed, it is worthy to note that this is the oldest account of the Last Supper. It was written even before the Gospels, for St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians around the mid 50’s of the first century. Unlike in the Passover meal, in the Lord’s Supper Jesus added two more symbols (Bread and Wine). He took a loaf of bread, said the blessings and broke it and gave it to his disciples saying: “Take, and eat it, this is my body which is broken for you, do this in remembrance of me” (1Cor. 11:24). Similarly, he took the Chalice and said “This cup is the new covenant in my Blood, whenever you drink it, do this as a memorial of me” (1Cor. 11:25). And indeed, with the above words the sacraments of the Holy Eucharist was enacted. As such, Jesus anticipated the sacrifice of himself on the Cross as he handed the Bread and the Cup to his apostles. The hot button message of this old Pauline text is the fact that Jesus is the True sacrificed Lamb, not the animal of the Jewish Passover; but Jesus who is both the “Offering and the Offerer”. As it was in the tradition of the Jews to confirm covenants with blood, now Jesus declares the shedding of his Blood as a confirmation of the New Covenant. For this, St. Paul expressed with a sublime conviction, “Christ loved us and handed himself over for us as a sacrificial offering to God” (Eph. 5:2). Likewise in Paul (as in the Synoptic), the Eucharist looks both backward (to the salvific event on the Cross made present) and forward (to the second coming as anticipated here).

     In all, as we can see, within the context of the Last Supper Jesus instituted the Sacraments of the Holy Eucharist and of the Priesthood (Holy Orders). He passed it on to his apostles: “Do this in memory of me” (Lk. 22:19; 1Cor 11:24). In and with those words Jesus gave us the mandate to continue to celebrate it in commemoration of Him, and that we do each time we celebrate Mass. Here we have to pay attention, for the command “do this” (plural) is addressed to the Christian community as a whole. The Eucharist is an action of the whole church and the eloquent expression of the Eucharistic priestly character (cf. 1Pt.2:1-10; Rev.1:6). He who presides at the Eucharistic celebration is the mouthpiece of the Church’s priesthood. On the other hand, the one presiding exhibits the priesthood of Christ to the Christian community. Jesus instituted this sacrament for the commemoration of his Passion and Death (The One and Living Sacrifice), so that each time we gather to celebrate it, we relive in an unbloody manner the event of Christ, particularly the offering of Himself in a bloody manner on the Cross. It is not by chance that Jesus instituted these two sacraments in the same context, and this goes a long way to reveal that the two sacraments are intimately tied together. Indeed, Jesus is The Real Passover Lamb (the Eucharist) and The Priest (The Priest of the New Covenant) For Love of Us (He demonstrated this in the washing of feet).

Thank you Jesus for the Eucharist, Your Eternal Presence!

Thank you Jesus for the Priesthood, That makes You present in our midst!

Thank You Jesus for calling me to share in your Priesthood!

Lord Jesus, the Eternal High Priest may we never depart from your Eucharistic table and help us to commit ourselves to a life of humble service. The Table and the Towel are signs of liberation; Jesus set us free from every form of darkness. Amen!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC)

The Journey of His Passion: From Jerusalem to Calvary!

 (Homily For Palm Sunday, Year B)

     Today marks the beginning of the Holy Week or the “Great Week”, which will be crowned with the Pasqual Triduum, the culminating point of the whole liturgical year. In this WEEK, the Church celebrates in her Liturgy the great mysteries of her redemption (Passion, Death and Resurrection of the Lord). In the Holy Week God gives us an appointment of an existential and salvific REALITY-SHOW of the ‘Man’ on the Cross. The Cross, therefore, is at the center of this week, but not just as an ordinary instrument, but because of the ‘Man’ on it, who made it a sublime and salvific image. As such, we are called to ‘re-live’ with faith and love these events of our Salvation. In our Eucharistic celebration, we read the passion of the Lord, but prior to that, we celebrated his entrance into Jerusalem (His Triumphant entry), in the midst of acclamations by the people, the shouts of Hosanna that decorously accompanied Jesus, and the road that was decorated with palm fronts. In his triumphant entry we could imagine the presence of people of different calibers, the young and the old, the rich and the poor, all full of expectation, and yet they were not too sure of what was happening, they were pushing and pulling all around him, singing and dancing, shouting and ululating: “Hossanah! Glory to God, hail the King, Son of God, Son of David, Alleluia”. On the other hand, there were also the scribes, friends and opponents who understood better than others where all this would lead to.

     The disciples and the crowd proclaimed Jesus King and he was accompanied majestically, they hailed him as King who comes in the name of the Lord. They hailed Him with Hosanna, because in Jesus’ public ministry, he healed their sick, fed the hungry and performed so many miracles. These wonders he wrought in their midst aroused in them the desire to crown Him King, but afterwards the whole game changed from shouts of acclamation to shouts of elimination. Who would have imagined that the crowd which welcomed Jesus with such excitement and enthusiasm during his entrance into Jerusalem would turn against him with such hostility, as to demand for his elimination and death, from the ululation of Hossanah to the demand of his crucifixion. It is now obvious that those shouts and ululations of Hossanah were superficial.

     The readings of today unify two events: the commemoration of the triumphant entry of Jesus to Jerusalem and the “reality-show” of the Passion of Christ. The first event was remembered with the rite of entrance through the procession with palm fronts; with the proclamation of the Gospel about the entrance of Jesus in the Holy City. And the second event auspicates the reality of Jesus’ Passion. The essence of our reflection and of the events we are celebrating today is not as a result of the desire to remember just the past, but rather to render present today the Event of Christ through and in the liturgical celebration and in our lives. Hence, we are called to enter with Jesus into the drama of his Passion.

     In the first reading (Is. 50:4-7) we see what could be termed the prophecy of Jesus’ Passion: “For my part, I made no resistance, neither did I turn away. I offered my back to those who struck me, my cheeks to those who tore at my beard; I did not cover my face against insult and spite” (Is. 50, 5-6). By means of this prophetic passage we are called to reflect on the third song of the Servant of Yahweh, which serves as a prefiguration of the sufferings of the future Messiah. Even the responsorial Psalm prefigures the Passion of Jesus, in the following words, “All who see me deride me. They curl their lips, they toss their heads” (Ps. 22:7).

     The second reading (Phil. 2:6-11) presents the hymn of St. Paul in his letter to the Philippians, which in no small way illustrates the mystery of Christ’s self-emptying in his death and supreme exaltation. St. Paul speaks of the kenosis (self-emptying) of Christ, “who, being in the form of God, did not count equality with God something to be grasped. But he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, becoming as human beings are; and being in every way like a human being” (Phil. 2:7). St. Paul points to his glorification thus: “And for this God raised him high, and gave him the name which is above all other names” (Phil. 2:9).  In this Christological presentation, the identity of Christ was revealed: Jesus is the Son of God, who in order to save man, became man, through an itinerary of suffering, humiliation and death.

     Indeed, the liturgy of the Palm Sunday presents to us a complete chart of the mystery of our salvation. Let us not forget, that we are called to be active in the whole event, because it was for the sake of man and his salvation that the Son of God passed through this heroic adventure. As such, St. Paul sets out to propose a model we all have to imitate, if man is at the center of Jesus’s Passion, he cannot remain only as a passive spectator. Little wonder, the apostle invites: “make your own the mind of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 2:5). We are invited therefore, to follow with faith and love the passion of the Lord.

     This year we are called to reflect on the Passion of Christ according to the Gospel narrative of St. Mark (MK. 14:1-15, 47). Jesus through and with his Passion realizes the prophecies and the plan of salvation designed by the Father. The Gospel of Mark is believed to be the first gospel to be written. The Passion narrative of Mark is dry and disconcerting. Jesus does not react, he does not talk, he does not utter any word. However, Jesus was not resigned to his fate, rather he gave himself. Mark opens his account of the event leading to the Crucifixion with a sort of contrast between the malice of the mean Jewish leaders and Judas, and the love for Jesus demonstrated by the crowd, especially by one unnamed woman. Let us remember that in the context of Mark’s gospel the initial words are the declaration of Jesus as the Christ (Messiah) and Son of God (Mk. 1:1), which are reconfirmed in the profession of faith of the centurion at the foot of the Cross (15:39). For in the gospel of Mark, it is at the point of total annihilation of the Son of man that his identity is revealed. It is plausible to note that some Scholars so far retain that the account of Mark, even though it doesn’t have much theological re-elaboration, appears more adherent to historical reality.

     In Mark’s narrative, the death of Jesus is not so much considered from the point of view of the Innocent Servant of God, but as an agonizing conflict between the powers of light and that of darkness. Though this is considered to be apocalyptic. The cry of Jesus is considered an announcement of the victory of light over darkness. And the rending of the temple veil is a symbol of that victory. Here, we can allude to the hymn in Philippians 2:6-11 in seeing Jesus as the Redeemer who emptied himself (cf. 2Cor. 8:9; Gal. 3:13). His death leads to his exaltation and triumph over the powers of darkness.

     We can ask ourselves many questions in the light of Christ’s Passion and sufferings. Each one of us can read his own life in the light of the Passion, in order to discover those internal incongruences, contradictions and ingratitude towards God. Let us have a flash back to what transpired during his triumphant entry and during the Passion, here we see once again the power of the crowd. And the truth has to be said that sometimes we behave like the crowd that was ululating HOSSANAH and afterwards demand for His death. It is easy to be part of the crowd that attend morning masses and Sunday masses, to take front seats and places of honour in the church, and when Jesus needs us most, we are no where to be found, we are like the crowd that turned against Him and refused to go with Him to the Cross. In all, let us not fail to recognize and appreciate Him for He died on the Cross for our salvation, and He is always ready to welcome us in his Mercy. The immensity of his mercy cannot but propel us to cry for our sins of betrayal, of denial and of abandonment of Him.

     In the Passion, Jesus prays to the Father: “Abba, Father! He said, For you everything is possible. Take this cup away from me. But let it be as you, not I, would have it” (Mk. 14:36), the prayer of Jesus takes him closer to the Father, it raised him up, and he ascended from the desire “to remove the cup” to the desire of “what the Father wills and not what he wills”. This is what prayer does in our life too, it transcends us and takes us closer to God. Prayer helped him to stand his ground before his terrifying Passion and death. Prayer indeed, transforms our sufferings to avenues for blessing. Through His sufferings every suffering of a Christian becomes a SPIRITUAL THERAPY, for through Him, suffering acquires a sublime meaning and signification. Even as we are plunged into this deadly and dreadful virus in the world today, let us unite our worries, our fears, our questions for meaning, our sufferings, in fact, our passion to His Passion. Indeed, humanity today is experiencing a passion, but it is only with the gaze fixed on the event of the Christ, precisely on His Passion that we will be able to come out of this pandemic. His Passion and Death give meaning to our life, our suffering and our death, and even our present passion.

     The Passion of Jesus should be for us an opportunity for repentance (the repentant thief), an occasion to affirm His identity (the Centurion) and not just as an incident that arouses hostility and indifference in us. So, are we like Judas that betrayed him? Like Peter that denied him? Like Pilate that delivered him to death? Like the stubborn thief that insulted Him? Or like the disciples that failed to keep wake with Him? Instead let’s cue in, in the line of Simon of Cyrene who helped him to carry his (our) Cross, of the women of Jerusalem that mourn for him, of the Centurion who strikes his chest and recognizes him as the Son of God, of the good thief that believed and entrusted himself to Jesus. Does His Passion still move us today? It should move and touch us because our sins inflicted those pains on him. Let it not be a momentary touch or feelings, rather His Passion should move us to flee from our sins and abandon our old ways, for through His wounds we are healed (Is. 53:5; 1Pt.2:21) and made whole.

     In all, may His Passion lead us to the rediscovery of His real identity, and here the gesture and proclamation of the Centurion is superb! “Truly this man was the Son of God” (Mt.27:54; Mk.15:39; Lk.23:47). The pagan Centurion did not recognize his Son ship because he saw the tomb empty, not because he saw shining light, but he discovered this at the heart of the event of Good Friday: Jesus on the Cross, the reality-show! But all does not end here, we can only read and understand this event if we start from the end. Indeed, the Passion of Christ like the Hebrew alphabet is to be read from the end! Have a Grace-filled Holy Week!!!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC)

 

We Want To See Jesus!

 (Homily 5^th Sunday of Lent –Year B)

     Once again, the theme around which revolves the readings of today, is the Cross. No doubt, from the lenses of the Old Testament, we can opine that the Cross is the instrument through which the New Covenant is established; a covenant in which God’s law is written by the Spirit in the heart of man and woman, and not on tablets of stones. Be that as it may, it is upon such consideration, that the responsorial psalm could be seen as a prayer in view of such a renewed heart. Yet in a more practical manner Jesus in the passage of the epistle to the Hebrews offered his Gethsemane prayer. Above all, the gospel captured it vividly well, for the event that gave rise to the renewal of our hearts is the fulfilment of his hour (passion, death, resurrection and ascension). Indeed, his death is like the proverbial grain of wheat, He bears fruit by the surrendering of his life. He surrendered his life to renew us, He gave himself up that we might be taken up, renewed and reinstated. His death restored our life!

     The first reading (Jer. 31:31-34) from the prophecy of Jeremiah talked about a future time when God will make a New Covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. This covenant will be different from the one He made with the people when he brought them out of the land of Egypt. He maintained that the exile was a punishment as a result of the people’s unfaithfulness and infidelity, in breaking the Old Covenant. The old covenant was made at a location namely, mount Sinai. It was written on stone and had to be read to the people from time to time to remind them of God’s ordinances and what He expects of them. Contrarily, the New Covenant is to be located and written in the hearts and minds of each and every one. It is at this backdrop that the prophet looked forward to the advent of a New Covenant, which the Lord will make with his people. In the New Covenant, God will write his laws and ordinances, in the hearts of his people, and no longer on tablets of stone. This dimension of internalization of God’s law made the people to “know” Him. Here, knowledge corresponds with obedience, thus obedience to God’s law. This passage of Jeremiah’s prophecy is believed to be one of the passages in the Old Testament where the New Testament is explicitly mentioned. Indeed, in his experience and journey of faith, St Paul saw the fulfilment of that prophecy in the covenant which was enacted by the blood of Christ, and which in turn gave rise to the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit into the hearts of the faithful (cf. 2Cor. 3:6-7).

     The psalmist in the popular psalm Miserere (51), envisaged Jeremiah’s prophecy into his prayer, whereby under the new covenant the hearts of believers will be inwardly transformed, for the forgiveness of their sins. He says “create a pure heart for me, O God; renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Ps. 51:10). This creation of a pure heart and renewal of spirit is in connection with the New Covenant.

     The second reading from the epistle (Heb. 5:7-9) to the Hebrews is a concatenation of both theological and ethical exhortations. The first deals with the heavenly high Priest, Christ. The author uses the event of Gethsemane to illustrate that truly Christ is the high priest. At Gethsemane Jesus offered his prayer to the Father. And indeed, the prayer at Gethsemane was heard, not that Jesus was saved from death as he prayed, but through and with his death and resurrection he was made perfect. It is important to note here that, “perfection” doesn’t mean moral perfection, rather the attainment of a goal or a destiny. His goal was to become our High Priest. Jesus served as a mediator between God and his people, reconciling them through his self-sacrifice. And finally, the author says he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him- this is the ethical import of this passage- obedience to the W(w)ord of God.

     The Gospel (Jn. 12:20-33) speaks of Jesus in the holy city for the last time. There were many people in the holy city, there were the simple people who gave him a festive welcome shouting “hosanna” (Jn. 12:13), there were the Pharisees and other Jewish authorities who wanted to eliminate him, because for them he was subversive, thus an obstacle to their plans. There were also the Greeks who were curious to see Jesus, they heard of his person and mighty works, the most recent was the raising of Lazarus.

     In today’s Gospel St. John continued his discourse on the theme of the Cross, but this time around he employed the use of metaphors: “grain of wheat” and being “lifted up” to communicate to his listeners about the “hour” of the Son of man. At the beginning of this passage we are told that some Greeks went to Philip and made a request thus: “we want to see Jesus”. And afterwards Philip went and told Andrew, and both of them went to tell Jesus. And upon hearing the request of the Greeks, Jesus began his discourse which is not unconnected with the request of the Greek. Unknown to them he introduced a new way of life, a new logic of existence: “that it is only through death that life comes”. In that bid, Jesus narrated a story about a grain of wheat which was a revelation of his imminent redeeming death and glorious resurrection. They wanted to see Jesus, whether out of curiosity or a quest for more wisdom, their desire in itself is inspiring. And as such, we may well ask: how many of us seek truly to see Him today?

     To that important request of those Greeks, Jesus responded with words dense in meaning and eye-opening. He began to tell them about a grain of wheat and being lifted up. In that bid, he made two great pronouncements: ●That a grain of wheat must die if it has to bear fruit. ●That it is only by being lifted up will Christ draw all men to himself. As if he were to say to them: if you want to understand me, look at the grain of wheat; if you want to see me look at the Cross. Indeed, the grain of wheat and the Cross are the humble synthesis of his personality. As we can observe out rightly in the passage, even though Jesus was talking about his death, the emphasis is not on the verb “to die” rather on the verb “to bear” (to bear much fruits). In the image of the grain of wheat we behold another dimension of the Paschal mystery: Fruitfulness. Indeed, from his death and resurrection the living water of grace, the new covenant, the Easter community emerged. In Him “death has been swallowed up in victory” (1Cor 15:54). Jesus invites us to become grain of wheat, thus to die to our sinful behaviors, pride and false self-image in order to rise to new life in Christ. Therefore, the emphasis is not on death but on life, for through His death we are restored to life. The reality behind the grain of wheat is its capacity to die and germinate, thus producing new life. That is what Jesus did for us. Secondly, to see Jesus we have to look at the Cross, as Jesus opined “when I am lifted up I will draw all men to myself”. Truly we become authentic Christians by attraction. The Cross has a formidable force of attraction. The Cross attracts us not with miracles and signs, but with the beauty of love. Jesus is a victim of love and for love. In his love from his kingly throne on the Cross he will draw all men to himself. More than that, the Father is the propelling force of this attraction, for Jesus says “No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me” (Jn. 6:44).

     Besides, the emphasis of Jesus on the grain of wheat and being lifted up, invariably points to the universality of salvation that will spring up from the Cross Event. The rejection of the gospel by the Jews accelerated the entrance of the gentiles into the sheepfold of Christ. His death and resurrection were necessary so that Pagans could adhere to the faith too. In John’s parlance, therefore, the grain of wheat has to die before it can bring forth fruit and that is the wining of Gentile converts. And the Son of Man has to be lifted up, “lifting up” in Johannine parlance alludes to crucifixion-resurrection. As such, the verb “to lift” in Greek is “hypsòo”, it has a double meaning: elevation on the Cross and exaltation. The verb seems to have been taken from the fourth song of the suffering Servant of Isaiah: “Look, my servant will prosper, will grow great, will rise to great heights” (Is. 52:13).

     Another important element present in today’s gospel is the “hour”. Without mincing words, the “hour” in the fourth Gospel stands to signify the whole event of Jesus’s death tout court, his Passion, Death, Resurrection and Ascension into heaven. It is the hour of the Cross. The hour of the defeat of the prince of this world (Satan) and thus the victory of God. It is the hour of the paschal sacrifice. Death cannot have the last words over Him. The hour of the glorification of the Son of man is connected to his uplifting on the Cross. Unlike in other biblical passages, in this passage, Jesus did affirm that the hour has come. For instance, at the wedding in Cana Jesus said his hour had not yet come (Jn. 2:4), elsewhere when they wanted to arrest him, the evangelist said that “his hour had not yet come no one laid a hand on him” (Jn. 7:30) but in today’s Gospel he says his hour has come: “Now the hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified” (Jn. 12:23), What is this glory that Jesus is talking about? It is his Passion and Death in the parlance of the author of the fourth Gospel. The logic behind this is: “if a grain falls on the ground and dies it yields a rich harvest” (Jn. 12:24). The second reading captured this logic well, for in the words of the apostle, “Although he was Son, he learned to obey through suffering; but having been made perfect he became for all who obey him the source of eternal salvation” (Heb. 5:8-9).

     Towards the end of the Gospel, as Jesus was speaking and praying to the Father a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again”.  Indeed, this voice of the Father serves as a seal to what Jesus was talking about. Let us not forget that in all the important moments in the life of Jesus, there is always this voice from above, the voice of the Father, not only to reveal him, but also to give credibility and seal to his words. For instance, at the episode of his Baptism (Mt. 3:17; Mk. 1:11; Lk. 3:22); at the event of his Transfiguration (Mt. 17:5; Mk. 9:7; Lk. 9:35). Indeed, we can say once again regarding the request of the Greeks, that to see Jesus is to see the Father, for Jesus says “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and still you do not know me? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father” (Jn. 14:9). There is another interesting annotation in the last paragraph of today’s Gospel. Jesus vehemently affirmed that “now the prince of this world is to be driven out” (Jn. 12:31). Who is this prince of the world? It is Satan, to whom St. Paul referred to as the “god of this world” (2Cor. 4:4). But once when Jesus is lifted up he will draw all men to himself, thus he will recover (cf. Col. 1:13-14) all the Children of God as he conquers the Devil. Remember the word of God says “This was the purpose of the appearing of the Son of God, to undo the work of the devil” (1Jn. 3:8).

     Above all else, however, in the school of Jesus, Lent is a season of self-denial for love of God and our neighbors. Jesus denied himself to the point of accepting death on a Cross, a sign of his kenotic love. Therefore, in this season our efforts should not only be limited to the denial or removal of certain dishes, rather let it be creative and fruitful in forgiveness and the resolve to live as those who have received God’s mercy, for we are called to be subjects and objects of God’s mercy. Secondly, another important lesson we need to learn is from the Greeks who sought to see (to know) Jesus Christ. Do we really seek to see him? For his word assured us, “If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me” (Deut. 4:29). The Greeks, the gentiles did and found him. You too can find Him, only if you search for him. Interestingly, with the coming of Lord Jesus Christ we see the inverse movement, it is no longer the people in search of Him, but Jesus is in search of us, for in the book of Revelation He says “Look, I am standing at the door, knocking. If one hears me calling and opens the door, I will come in to share a meal at that person’s side” (3:20). Dear beloved in Christ, as we journey along in our Lenten sojourn, remember “If today you hear his words, harden not your hearts” (Ps. 95:7; Heb. 3:15). Lord Jesus help us to seek you with a sincere heart, Amen!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC)