Jesus Touches The Untouchable!

 (Homily 6^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Yr. B)

     The readings of today presents one of those scorching human conditions and predicaments, that is illness, but in the context of our readings, we are not just talking about illness tout court, but here is all about a terrible and excruciating disease: leprosy. It was a disease that defiles and separates the victim from others and from God, at least judging from the popular belief at that time. But Jesus brought a turnaround situation and overhauled the mindset of the people of his time. He touched the untouchable and he continues to touch those desperate human conditions of our own time, we just need to muster courage, have faith in him and approach him. To that our ugly situation he will also stretch out his hand! Jesus does not frown at the concrete cases of misery in front of him.

     The first reading from the book of Leviticus (13:1-2.44-46) is the beginning and the end of the section on leprosy. The disease as envisaged in this book cuts across what modern medicine classifies as leprosy per se, for it includes other skin diseases. The patient according to the law is required to report to the priest, who has to diagnose the disease, though not as a physician, rather as a minister of Torah. And it is also the priest that confirms his healing, so as to be reinstated to the community. The picture we have of the leper in this first reading is by no means humane. Apart from the physical pain that could come from the illness, the individual also faces the psychological pain of isolation while outwardly bearing all the dehumanizing categorization of one who is unfit to dwell with others, who are free from the illness.

     Secondly, the situation is also spiritually chastising as the leper has to go about crying: Unclean! Unclean!! A situation that is equal to one saying: “I am a sinner, I am a sinner!” Therefore, from the foregoing, it is easy to identify the connection between leprosy and sin. In fact, during the time of Moses it was believed that whoever was infected by leprosy sinned in the first place. And added to these distortions, is the veritable fact that sin creates a barrier between us and God (cf. Is. 59:2), and here comes the spiritual separation. This is where the isolation comes in. Symbolically, we could say that sin has a way of taking us outside God’s camp, just as the lepers had to stay outside the camp of the Israelites. (An example could be the experience of Adam and Eve in Genesis 2). It is against this backdrop that the first reading serves as a background reading for the Gospel narrative.

     In the Gospel reading (Mk. 1:40-45) we are presented with a spectacular reversal of the approach to leprosy by our Lord Jesus Christ. The poor leper had two burdens to carry: his illness and separation from the community. Lepers were to live outside the village or town as a result of the contagious nature of the disease (Lev. 13:46). In the narrative we are told that a leper came to Jesus begging and kneeling said: “If you will, you can make me clean” (Mk. 1:40). From this first scene we see the leper breaking the social norm or protocol which prevented lepers from having access to those who are not lepers. We can also observe that the man did not ask for healing but cleansing in the manner of David after his sin (Psalm 51:2). He was much concerned about his uncleanliness more than his illness. Here he went beyond his physical illness and asked for spiritual rebirth and by that he got everything, both healing and cleansing.

     Now let us look at the reaction of our Lord Jesus Christ to the request of the leper. We are told that he was first moved with pity. God is compassionate about our situations. God is not jubilant over our miseries and failures like some of us could be over the situations of others. Going back to our point of departure, the real leprosy is sin and the real isolation is being cut away from God. Actually a leper experiences three kinds of separation: separation from himself, separation from others and separation from God. In our limitations we often fall into sin and also get disconnected or isolated from God. The episode in the Gospel reading is a pertinent assurance to us that there is a remedy to this situation and this can be found in Jesus Christ. For that to happen the person involved needs to approach Jesus Christ like in the case of the leper. Going to Jesus Christ will offer the individual the opportunity of being touched by the Lord and being reintegrated. For when Jesus healed the leper, he did not just heal his illness, but he restored him to the community. Man is a social being, and thus he has been created for the community. For this, St. Paul emphasized that “we though many, form one single body” (1Cor. 10:17). On the other hand, if we remain unmoved, our situation will not be moved. There were surely many lepers in their settlement but only one decided to come to our Lord. A fascinating point here, is that while Jesus walked away from Capernaum (Mk. 1:38), from healing there, on his way, he could not say no to this leper who really is in need of healing and reintegration to the community. 

     The cured leper was told not to say anything to anyone, but he disobeyed and his cure became a talk of the town. This gave rise to Jesus withdrawal from the country, to the point that Jesus began to hide himself. Mark must have added this annotation against the understanding of Jesus as a mere Wonder-worker. In the passage of last Sunday’s gospel Jesus used command to silence the demon, but today he intended to use it to silence the cured leper. The purpose of this order revolves around the idea of not allowing the signs to obfuscate the ultimate miracle of the cross. Indeed, the real enigma here is that the command of secrecy was disobeyed. For the man goes and talks about his healing freely. We see similar occurrences in (cf. Mk. 1:34; 3:13; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26). This is typical of Mark’s Messianic secret. Upon consideration of this theory at the heart of Marcan Gospel, we have to ask not what was Jesus’ purpose for giving an injunction, he probably knows will not be kept, rather what does Mark intend theologically, by the aforementioned injunction? The answer points to the fact that Mark’s intention was to demonstrate that the messiahship of Jesus is a mystery that cannot be exposed prematurely, for it is to be understood properly and deeply in the light of the cross. But however, it can’t be totally suppressed!

     Extrapolating from the first reading, the priest is the functionary that confirms one a leper, he also confirms one cleansed just as our Lord mentioned in the Gospel reading today. This actually points to the sanctifying office of the priest. The priest stands between God and the people; appropriately called Alter Christus. By asking the leper to go to the priest our Lord Jesus Christ evidently confirms the work of the priest as the eye and mouthpiece of God. This links us to the responsorial psalm (32), which symbolically presents the reality of human weakness, sinfulness and God’s readiness to forgive. In that bid, as the leper goes to the priests, so a sinner comes and confesses his sins to God, through a priest (this is well orchestrated in the second stanza) in order to receive forgiveness and spiritual healing. And as the Lenten season is so imminent, let us make recourse to the Sacrament of reconciliation, for our own healing too!

     Indeed, the leper mustered courage and pleaded Jesus: “If you wish, you can make me well”. He pleaded with every amount of discretion “if you wish”. And Jesus had compassion on him, stretched out his hands and touched him. He touched the untouchable, and touching him he loved him, and loving him he healed him, and after healing him, he restored him. The response of Jesus to the supplication of the leper is so simple and consoling, “I want, be healed”. The hit track of today’s message is that God wants his children healed, he is a gracious and merciful God. His word says in the book of Exodus, “I am the Lord, your Healer” (Ex. 15:26). His word is promise! For the Psalmist experienced his healing touch and proclaimed: “He sent out his word and cured our diseases” (Ps. 107:20). Prophet Isaiah too, confirmed the efficacy of His word thus: “So it is with the word that goes from my mouth: it will not return to me unfulfilled or before having carried out my good pleasure and having achieved what it was sent to do” (Is. 55:11). Jesus demonstrated that our needs of healing and liberation surpass the demands of law and customs. Above all else, taking the Gospel serious will propel us to touch the lepers in our own time, the abandoned, the dejected and rejected. May Jesus heal every form of infirmity in us threatening our full realization as God’s children! And may He surround you with cries of deliverance as in Psalm 32:7. Amen!

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

His Presence Makes the Difference!

  (Homily 5^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Yr. B)

     The readings of this Sunday are beaming with words of hope and encouragement for anyone in a dead-end situation. The readings present the human condition and some of those tributaries of life that do not permit the full realization and freedom of man; ranging from misfortune, sickness and predicaments. But God through his W(w)ord helps us to get through all the difficult and seemingly impossible situations. Job decries for the ordeals of human predicament, but he will later experience the miracle of restoration, and the Mother in-law of Simon experienced healing, all made possible through the presence and the mighty hand of God! The good news behind the screen of today’s message is that God is aware of everything that is happening to us, he knows all that we are passing through.

     Our First Reading today is taken form the book of Job (Job 7:1-4.6-7). The book begins with a prose narrative in which Job, the protagonist, a prosperous father of the family, was subdued by calamities upon calamities. He experienced suffering in all aspects of life: domestic, economic, physical, moral and spiritual. However, one thing striking here is that, suffering here doesn’t and cannot have the same connotation as in Deuteronomy (there suffering is seen as a direct punishment for sin). But in the case of Job, that cannot be applied, for he has been a righteous man. At the end, Job had to grapple with the fact that man’s righteousness gives him no claim upon God.

     In the passage of the first reading we encounter whom we could call the “patron” of suffering: Job. His predicament overwhelmed him to the point of desperation. He lost all that he had and labored for in a twinkling of an eye, including his children and enormous wealth. At a time in this quagmire Job lost hope, he saw gloom in his condition and exclaimed: “My days have passed, and vanished, leaving no hope behind. Remember that my life is but a breath, and that my eyes will never again see joy” (Jb. 7:6b-7). Life for him became empty and without meaning. For him it was as if he was not going to see light at the end of the dark tunnel. But Job did not end his life in suffering. After passing through those turbulent and hard times, God intervened and reversed his condition and thus Job recovered all that he lost, and got even more (Jb. 42:10). And indeed, the book ended happily with the restoration of Job’s fortune.

     One thing striking about Job is that he never gave up totally on God: “In all this misfortune, Job committed not sin, and he did not reproach God” (Jb. 1:22). For in the midst of his predicament he said “I know that I have a living Defender” (Jb. 19:25). Sometimes unlike Job, when we are confronted with challenges we often forget that our Redeemer lives. Our spiritual experience brings to our consideration the fact that God has not promised us total exclusion from the difficulties of life but He has assured us that He will be with us as we pass through them. Often we make the mistake of telling God how big the storm is, instead of telling the storm how big our God is. Job despite all odds still remains the model of and for Christian Suffering, because his moment of all-round misfortune became for him a moment of a personal experience of God. In fact, at the end of his predicament, Job made a spiritual confession thus: “Before, I knew you only by hearsay but now, having seen you with my own eyes, I retract what I have said, and repent in dust and ashes” (Jb. 42:5-6). It is only in this optics that our hard times will draw us closer to God and not the other way round.

     The passage of today’s reading is taken from the early part of the dialogue. After Job must have finished responding to his friends, he was plunged into soliloquy on the miseries of human existence. Indeed, it is not very clear the reason for the choice of this reading today, especially in parallel with the gospel passage. However, we may well presume that Job’s theme on the miseries of human life and existence serves as a background for the healing work of Christ as revealed in the gospel.

     In the Gospel reading (Mark 1:29-39) we are presented with Jesus’ encounter with people with various challenges including the mother-in-law of Simon who was sick with a fever. From the narrative it is very clear that Simon’s mother-in-law and the other people who later came for healing were in hopeless situations. They were experiencing the height of their various challenges and suddenly Jesus Christ came and everything changed. It was as if they were waiting for him to come. Of course those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength (Isaiah 40:31). As we can see, as Jesus left the Synagogue he began to heal and expel demons. Peter’s mother-in-law was the first that He healed. As a result, the whole town gathered at the door of Peter’s house so that he might heal them as well. At the beginning of his public ministry, Jesus passed by all the places that where strong meeting points of the people: the place of work (lake and boat), the place of prayer and assembly (Synagogue), the living house of the people (Peter’s house).

     After the healing at Simon’s house, very early in the morning he escaped to a quiet place to pray. Here Jesus teaches us the need and power of prayer when we are tired and in need of strength. Jesus prays in order to renew and recharge Himself. But before he could finish his morning prayers the disciples sought him out and informed Him that an even larger crowd has gathered with their sick and infirm and that everyone is in search of Him. Indeed, here one could expect Jesus to heal those sick people but He does not. He rather says: “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do” (Mark 1:38). Jesus is not conditioned by the CROWD. This is a great lesson modern day preachers have to learn from Jesus. It is an indication that Jesus came for all mankind, his primary mission is the proclamation of God’s kingdom. Probably, in the mind of Peter it was time for Jesus to do more healings and miracles to satisfy the desires and expectations of the crowd, but Jesus did not succumb to this logic of success and tendency of a prosperous preacher. Peter and his companions came and reported to him: “everyone is looking for you”, but he answered: “let us go elsewhere”. However, the people were looking for him, not because of his person and good news but to satisfy their needs of miracles. You, why do you seek him? For the value imbedded in his Words or for cheap miracles? But what did Jesus really come to do? Jesus, being a spiritually-minded person, refuses to limit His ministry to one place or to encourage the belief of a coming worldly Kingdom of God, responding to Simon, He said: “Let us go the neighboring towns so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.” So Jesus came to do three major things in His ministry: to heal, to pray and to preach.

     Jesus moved on for a purpose, and the phrase we see in the passage: “that is why I came out”, may not just only be referred to his departure from Capernaum, but instead to the entire purpose of his mission on earth. As such, we can say that Jesus regarded the miracles merely as subordinate elements of his ministry. The main purpose of his ministry was to preach. Besides, there is an important common particularity of the Marcan gospel, and that is the silencing of the demons. Mark reported that the demons “knew Him”, for they recognized him as the “Holy one of God” (cf. Mk1:24). But he rebuked and subdued them into silence. As we can see, it was only at the end of Mark’s narrative that the centurion at the foot of the cross could freely confess that “truly this man was the Son of God” (Mk. 15:39). Indeed, the Jesus he sees, the Jesus as such, is the crucified-risen One. At this point, one may begin to wonder the place of the miracles in the gospel of Mark, and maybe by extension to the ministry of Jesus? The most eloquent of all the miracles, the messianic miracle per excellence is the Cross and Resurrection. The other miracles are prefiguration and preliminary acts of healing that foreshadow that ultimate act of healing.

     The presence of Jesus makes the difference. For in his presence, things happen, the sick are healed, lives are changed, demons are cast out and the gospel is preached. He gets involved in our day today activities and shows his interest in our wellbeing and welfare, for this he healed Simon’s mother in-law without anyone requesting for it. He is truly sensitive to our needs. He is the God with and for his people. A proper and close reading of the gospel of Mark reveals that the Jesus of Mark is not distanced from the human reality. He enters into people’s houses (cf. 3:20; 7:24). He is close to the people. He entered into the house of Peter and healed his mother in-law. Even today, he continues to go about doing good (cf. Acts 10:38), he continues to come into our houses as he did to Simon, do we welcome him? Are we ready to welcome him? In the book of Revelation he says “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me” (Rev. 3:20).

     A very close look at the Gospel would reveal a very important thing our Lord did, which connects us to the Second Reading (1 Cor.9:16-19.22-23). We are told that the next morning, after healing the mother-in-law of Simon and others, our Lord Jesus Christ went to a lonely place to pray. While he was there, a lot of people came looking for him at Simon’s place. When Simon and others found him and reported that people were looking for him he said to them: “Let us go on to the next towns that I may PREACH there also”. St. Paul in the Second reading shocked the Corinthians when he declared woe upon himself if he fails to preach the word of God. The preaching of the gospel for him remains a necessity he has no right to boast about, irrespective of all odds, for St. Paul to preach the gospel means to preach Christ-crucified.

     In all, the word of God this Sunday is full of hope and encouragement for us. No matter what you are passing through today, no matter what is facing you or what you are facing, be rest assured that there is no human misery that divine grace cannot transform into avenues of blessings and miracles. Just don’t give up! Hold fast!! Stand firm!!!

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

There Is Power In His Words!

  (Homily 4^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Yr. B)

     The Word of God today revolves around the prophet and the authority imbedded in every authentic prophetic word. When there is a concordance between a messenger and his message, one cannot but accept the credibility and the authority in his word and message. In the case of Jesus, his name corresponds with his message, and His message corresponds with His actions. The name Jesus in Hebrew is Joshua which means “God saves”. Therefore, imbedded in his name are his identity and mission. His words are power-packed for his authority comes from above. He is the Prophet per excellence!

     The first reading from the book of Deuteronomy (Deut. 18:15-20) announces a prophet to be sent after Moses. First of all, who is a prophet? (One who speaks on behalf of the other, somebody’s spokesman) So, a prophet of God is one who speaks on behalf of God or in the name of God. In doing this, he might refer to past or future events. But he is not merely a futurologist (someone who merely predicts the future). Furthermore, it is not enough to speak in the name of God, such an individual must be called by God and backed by His authority too. This brings us to the theme of AUTHORITY.  A prophet does not preach or speak out of his own accord, rather he is under the coverage of God’s authority. In this passage, Moses assured the people of God’s provision of a prophet like him who will speak the word of which he would be given. He therefore instructed the people to listen to him as the words he would be speaking belongs to God. Besides, a prophet is expected to speak only in the name of God and not in his or in the name of other gods. When God says he will raise a prophet for his people, it reveals God’s desire to implant his words in our hearts.

     We may well presume that the prophet referred to in the first reading is Joshua, since he took over from Moses and God also assured him that as He was with Moses his servant, He shall also be with him (Joshua 1:5). This may not be a very wrong guess even though it may not be exact. However, drawing the issue further, we may deem it plausible to say that the prophet in question goes beyond Joshua. In fact, prefiguratively, it accurately points to our Lord Jesus Christ who came as the greatest of all the prophets and spoke in the name of God with authority, as revealed in the Gospel reading. And there we go!

   The Gospel passage (Mark 1:21b-28) presents the episode of the authoritative teaching of Jesus. Jesus as particular to Mark enters the synagogue to teach, and Mark underscores the power of Jesus’ teaching “like someone with authority”. Just as each one of us goes to Church or a place of worship to pray and to have an encounter, similarly, Jesus went to the Synagogue and there he taught them. He taught them with authority, and with the same authority he commanded the evil spirit to be mute. The authority manifested in his teaching gained him the admiration, fame and the amazement of those around. Indeed, he did capture the attention of his listeners. This passage follows the Gospel reading of last Sunday, therein after the call of the first disciples, Mark narrates that Jesus embarked on his public ministry in Galilee. In this narrative, the first episode St. Mark presents is an exorcism (Mk. 1:23-26). Mark emphasized on Jesus’ teaching, but without indicating the content of that teaching. He says that he taught as one having authority. The Greek word for authority is ‘exousia’, which also has the connotation of power, especially in the context of miracle. Indeed, Mark testifies that Jesus displayed both authority and power in his miracles. The exorcism must have followed as a demonstration of the power of Jesus’ teaching with authority. His Word is deed, action-packed!

      Another important point we must acknowledge today is drawn from the healing of the man with unclean spirit as we read from the Gospel passage. We are told that the unclean spirits recognized our Lord Jesus Christ and not only called him Jesus of Nazareth but also the Holy One of God. On our part, as those who hear the prophetic utterances do we recognize the Lord in his word and messages? Jesus teaches and preaches without fear of anything or anybody, not even of evil spirits who know and recognize Him. The evil spirits are afraid of Him, little wonder, the man with unclean spirit cried out: “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are- the Holy one of God!” And immediately Jesus rebuked and commanded him, “Quiet! Come out of him!” To the amazing question of the man with unclean spirit: Have you come to destroy us? Yes! Jesus has come to destroy all that tends to destroy man! We remember the episode where the disciples were sailing in the stormy lake of Galilee, Jesus gave the same command: “Be silent” and immediately the sea was calm (cf. Mk. 4:35-41). The question of the man with unclean spirit reveals once again the words of St. John thus: “This was the purpose of the appearing of the Son of God, to undo the work of the devil” (1Jn. 3:8). One could imagine what the man with unclean spirit was doing in the Synagogue, this is a reminder to all of us, that wherever children of God gather, Satan and his agents come around too, but the Good News is that the presence and words of Jesus are terror to them.

     St. Mark communicates to us that the God revealed by Jesus is a God who brings life, liberation and healing and not death. The episode between Jesus and the man with unclean spirit expresses this fact eloquently. It is interesting the reaction of the man with unclean spirit towards Jesus: “I know who you are”. The crowd described him as one teaching with authority, which is seen in his authority over evil. Yet, the crowd was not able to identify the source of this authority, if not the possessed man who shouted “I know who you are-the holy one of God”. However, his listeners noticed that there was something different from the way, the tone and the style of Jesus’ teaching, compared to that of the Scribes. Jesus speaks and talks from the heart, and as such his words reach the heart of his listeners. His is a heart-to-heart communication. For this, his listeners were able to notice that there is something extraordinary in his teaching.

     In the Gospel of Mark there are twofold questions that permeate the whole corpus and continue to linger, and they are: “who is this man? (Mk. 4:41); what is this? (Mk. 1:27)” The first question arises because of his person and his deeds, while the second as we saw in this Gospel passage is just about his deeds and prodigies. However, these two amazing questions point to the Marcan Messianic secret. These questions continue until the moment of his death, when the roman soldier who witnessed the passion and saw how Jesus died declared: “truly this man was a son of God” (Mk. 15:39). Likewise, we need to recognize who Jesus is. He is not an ordinary person, but the Holy One of God, the Son of God. In the Gospel of Mark we are told that “whenever unclean spirits saw him they would fall down before him and shout, “You are the Son of God”” (Mk. 3:11). Funny enough, the messianic secret of Mark was revealed on a number of times by the evil spirits. Even the evil spirits know and recognize Jesus as the Son of God. Then, what should be the difference between our knowledge of Him and that of the evil spirits? In Greek there are two major words that indicate knowledge: ‘gnosis’ and ‘epignosis’, while gnosis alludes to ordinary, head and idealistic knowledge, epignosis has to do with real, practical and existential knowledge. Thus, unless our knowledge of him is existential and transformational, we risk remaining at the same knowledge level with the unclean spirits. Indeed, it is the real and self-involved knowledge of Him that will gain us eternal life. For this St. John evinces “And eternal life is this: to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (Jn. 17:3). This knowledge has to change our life, else we risk being like the unclean spirits that know Jesus by words of mouth, and not by deeds.

     In the second reading (1 Cor.7:32-35) when some of the Corinthians were worried and anxious about life, St. Paul encouraged them saying: “We must be free from anxiety”. And it is only when we are immersed in the God-experience that we can be relieved from anxieties and worries, whether married or not. St. Paul exhorts us to be conscious of the call from God, so that we can have undivided devotion for the Lord. He praises purity for the sake of God’s kingdom. He emphasizes that married people are taken up by their worries of this world. By that, Paul does not intend to condemn marriage. However, he stresses that celibacy places someone in a better position to serve God.

     Above all else, however, the fascinating and soul southing good news of this day, is that when the word of God inhabits in our heart, when God takes the driver-seat in our life, we too can teach and speak with authority, as an offshoot from an authentic experience with and in Jesus Christ. Beloved there are some areas of our life that we need to dispose for the Lord to destroy, just as the man with unclean spirit cried out “have you come to destroy us?” It is only when he destroys those aspects of us inhibited by evil and vices that we can be free and saved. And as it is suggestive of our responsorial psalm, we cannot but conclude with the words of the Psalmist thus: “O that today you would listen to his voice! Harden not your hearts” (Ps. 95:7-8).

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC)

 

The Nearness of God’s Kingdom And Its Exigencies!

(Homily 3^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Yr. B)

(Sunday of the Word of God)

      The liturgical readings of this Sunday are beaming with diverse hints, ranging from the call to conversion, the consciousness of the presence of God’s kingdom to the existential transformation of those who have received this call and decided to follow Him. The readings enable us to understand that there are no enemies to defeat, to conquer or to dominate, but only brothers and sisters to convert and to transform into friends. There are no situations so desperate as to be stronger than the love of God, that invites us for a change of mind and heart  no matter how far we have strayed. In fact, today as we celebrate the Sunday of the Word of God we are invited more than ever to focus and refocus our attention on His powerful Word that creates, recreates, changes and transforms. Jesus says: “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life” (Jn. 6:63). Little wonder, God’s word brings about change and produces effect. We are therefore called to rediscover the irresistible attraction of this Word.

     The passage of the first reading (Jonah 3:1-5.10) is taken from the context where Jonah carried out his mandate of preaching repentance to the people of Nineveh. This was historically a period not too long from the return of the Jews from exile in Babylon, we can imagine the grudges every Jew bore against those nations that enslaved them, and Jonah was not left out. Little wonder, he attempted to run away from God. Jonah could be seen from the lenses of our contemporary world, as one who refused to pick God’s call or switched off his phone purposefully. One may therefore ask: Why did God ask him to go to Nineveh? Nineveh then was the capital city of Assyria, it was a commercial crossroads, there was an in flux of people, it was also a “sin City”. God sent him to go and preach about repentance or they face destruction. On the account of this, Jonah decided to run away from God’s presence, he walked away on God, the psalmist captured the futility of Jonah’s attempt vividly well when he says “where shall I go to escape your spirit? Where shall I flee from your presence? (Ps. 139:7-12). On the bid to run away, God tracked him down. He has already set out on his journey of escape. And on their way in the sea,  they started experiencing turbulence, he did not deny to be the one, he surrendered himself and he was thrown into the sea and a big fish swallowed him. After three days he was vomited at the sea shore facing the city of Nineveh.

     Viewed from the lenses of the recent happenings in our world today, are we not like Jonah sometimes? We are like Jonah when we think that the Word of God is outdated and meaningless; when we abandon His ways and follow our own human designs; when we tend to put a limit to God’s mercy. And that is the syndrome of Jonah (the attempt to replace God’s logic with human logic), the attempt and tendency to indicate to God who and who not to forgive, the temptation of categorizing certain people to be out of the coverage of God’s mercy. Finally, the author of this book stresses an important fact, and that is that the people of Israel whom he thinks are upright are hard hearted, while the people of Nineveh, even though sinners changed immediately they heard the word of God. Indeed, the people of Nineveh teach us how to be prompt in responding to God’s call, and precisely today, responding to Jesus’ call for repentance.

     In this Gospel passage (Mk 1:14-20) according to St. Mark Jesus started his preaching and ministry with the words “the time is fulfilled”, which is no longer the time of prophecy and of promises, but the time of realization, a time of God’s action. Afterwards, Jesus announces the Good News per excellence: “The kingdom of God is near. Repent, and believe in the Gospel”.  Thus, the central theme of Jesus’ preaching was the nearness of God’s Kingdom, as such with and through the inauguration of Jesus’ ministry, the Kingdom of God has become not only an eschatological, but also an existential reality, a reality indeed to be lived and experienced in the here and now through the value of inclusiveness. We can create the situation or better the reality of the Kingdom of God wherever we are, in as much as the individuals therein are ready to change their ways of life and turn away from the sin of exclusiveness, which brings divisions and discriminations between persons, tribes and nations.

     This exhortation to the fulfilment of time and to repentance is Jesus’ message, most probably taken from John the Baptist, however, with a different undertone. While John says that God was to act soon, Jesus proclaims that God is beginning to act. This is the fulfilment of time that the event in the Old Testament is now beginning to happen. We need to jettison the understanding of the kingdom of God, only as a reward or something we will acquire at the end, as an eschatological possession, and make a spiritual paradigm shift to the understanding of God’s kingdom from the stand point of “being”. We are called to create Kingdom situation where we are by living it out. The kingdom of God thus, is not just a reality that comes at the end, rather it is a reality that should model and transform our lives, our relationships and our world view in the hic et nunc of our existence.

     Furthermore, the call and challenge to repent means more than to be simply sorry for one’s individual sins. The Greek word for repentance “meta-noiein” throws more light on this. “Meta-noiein” literally means change of one’s mind. However, we may well presume that Jesus must have used its Hebrew equivalent: “shub”, which means to turn around 180 degrees, a radical change of mind toward sin, a conscious moral separation from sin. In that bid, re-orienting one’s life or attitude towards God. It is all about making Jesus and His words the point of reference in one’s life. This invitation to repent has within it, a demand of faith. Little wonder, our evangelist added “believe in the Gospel”.

     The passage is closed with a sort of fulfilment of Jesus’ preaching, with the call of the disciples, this indeed, serves as an illustration of what it means to repent and believe in the Gospel. Repenting and believing entails liberation from and liberation for respectively, it has to do with being attached to the person of Jesus and to journey along with him, following him wherever He goes (cf. Rev. 14:4), even to the cross. This second part of the Gospel talks about the call of the first four disciples, who will later become resurrection messengers of the Gospel. As we can see, the call here, occurred as they were going about their daily business (fishing), not during a special moment per se. The call of God is completely gratuitous, “gratia gratis data”. He calls freely and gratuitously and he expects a corresponding action from us: to answer freely and with immediacy too. They left everything and followed him, just like the inhabitants of Nineveh that were given 40 days to repent and they did. They condition for discipleship is to follow Him Here, Now, As you are, but with the prospect and readiness for  a change.

     The second reading (1 Cor 7:29-31) on its part enjoins us to treasure the present time and transform it into a time of grace, by living in the spirit of detachment from the world, with heaven in view. Therein, St. Paul emphasized that the form of this world is passing away. This world and its realities are provisional. St. Paul is not inviting us to despise all material goods, rather to give earthly things their true importance, he invites us not to make the things of this world idols (life, position, wealth). We should have our gaze and attention fixed on the Kingdom of God, which is both an existential and eschatological reality.

     Frankly speaking, the three enemies that hinder the realization of God’s Kingdom are: division, discrimination and exclusion. At the time of Jesus many people were discriminated and excluded, ranging from children, women, and the disabled to those with contagious diseases, and ailments. Little wonder, Jesus came with a message of transformation, a message that should bring about radical change and shift in paradigm. Unfortunately even till today, the presages of these discrimination, division and exclusion are still hunting us. Yet we are still confronted with a veritable question that is still begging for answer: what is the import of Jesus’ message in our society and in our world? What indeed, is the import of the nearness of His kingdom in our societies, countries and our world torn apart by the presages of violence, hatred, war, lack of respect for human dignity and life? What is the import of this message in a country like ours, where human beings are killed mercilessly with impunity? Indeed, we need to re-echo strongly the clarion call of Jesus: “Time is fulfilled. The Kingdom of God is near. Repent, and believe in the Gospel” (Mk. 1:14).

     Yes! Time is fulfilled, not just an ordinary time in the temporal process, but the time of grace, here, for time Jesus uses Kairos and not kronos. Kairos is a time of grace, a special and extraordinary time within time flux, a transformed time in time that transforms people and situations. May the vitality of this transformed time, transform us, our ugly human conditions and our society, even the world at large. May the Eternal Word of the Father transform us ! Amen.

(Fr. Vitus Chigozie, SC)

Are You Ready To Answer When He Calls?

 (Homily 2^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Yr. B)

          In the scriptures we have a list of God’s calls, but today we are made to understand that God’s call is real and personal, he calls by name, and there is need for the human response. A common thread therefore, that runs through the first reading and the Gospel is the theme of divine call and its response. The Scripture is replete with wonderful examples of God’s call and the human response. We cannot but remember the first divine call addressed to man, the call of Adam and Eve into existence (Gen. 1:27); the call of Abraham to go out of his father’s land and people (Gen. 12:1-4); we remember the call of Moses from the land of Midian (Ex.3:4ss); the call of Gideon (Jug. 6:11ss); that of Isaiah (Is.6:1ss); the call of Jeremiah (Jer.1:4-10), and that of Ezekiel (Ez. 2:1-4) and the call of all the prophets. Besides, in the New Testament, we see the mission of John the Baptist that began even before his birth (Lk. 1:8-20). And the climax of all the call is seen in the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ, who personally called and name those he called apostles (Mt. 10:1-4).

          In the first reading, (1 Sam. 3:3b-10.19), we read the episode of the call of Samuel, a call to be a prophet. The call of Samuel is replete with a good number of lessons that will enable us understand fully what it means to be called by God and how we can respond to God’s call. Samuel as a lad was at the service of Eli the priest at Shiloh. His presence in Shiloh was a fulfilment of his mother’s promise to God that if God blesses her she would return the child to God. It is important to note that when she fulfilled the promise, God blessed her again with three other sons and two daughters (1 Sam.2:21). This is unlike most of us who even forget our promises to God talk more of fulfilling them. It is important to note that he was called while he was lying down in the temple where the ark of God was. Samuel was at the service of Eli the priest at Shiloh. His presence in Shiloh was a fulfilment of his mother’s promise to God that if God blesses her she would return the child to God. It is important to note that when she fulfilled the promise, God blessed her again with three other sons and two daughters (1 Sam.2:21). Samuel heard the call of God and with the help and directives of Eli, he responded thus: “speak Lord, for your servant is listening” (1Sam. 3:10). Sometimes when God calls us we do not recognize his voice like in the case of Samuel, we may need somebody to help us (Eli: Priest).

           The responsorial psalm (Ps. 39) reinforces the theme of divine call and its response, therein Christ is pictured as the one responding, “Here am I, Lord. I come to do your will”. The verb “coming” is not to be strictly linked to his Birth (the moment of the Incarnation), for his “coming” is equally connected with his Baptism, the event through which  he embarked on his Messianic mission and to his earthly life, in which he responded consistently and constantly to the Father’s call and will.

          Today we read from the Gospel of John (John 1:35-42), the Johannine version of the call of the first disciples. John in his gospel tried to bring the event of the first call to the ministry of John the Baptist, he bore witness to Jesus. Here, we see an encounter replete and dense with significance. John indicated Jesus to his disciples: “Look there is the Lamb of God” (Jn. 1:36). The title “Lamb of God”, as some biblical scholars have revealed is connected to that of “servant of Yahweh”. Indeed, the prophecy of Isaiah 53 may offer us something more as regards this comparison between lamb and servant. In a nutshell, the central message of this passage is about the readiness to answer the call of Jesus and the disposition to follow Him wherever He goes, predicated upon the positive attitude of the followers or disciples of John the Baptist, who listened to their master, left him and followed Jesus.

          The two first disciples are introduced, John and Andrew from the folk of fishermen. Even though they were fishermen, but one could say that they have been prepared by John to become the disciples of the Great master. After this preparation John indicated Jesus to them. Likewise, for us to have an authentic and life changing encounter with the Lord, we need to prepare our minds and hearts, and activate our internal disposition.

          On seeing them following Him, Jesus asked them the spiritual fundamental question: “What do you seek?” Here, through the help of their master, they made a step towards Jesus, and as we can see Jesus made more steps in condescension towards them. What do you seek? This interrogation should always resound in the heart of every Christian, whether young or old. For it is a question that instils hope and passion for the Lord in us, and at the same time it is a question that puts us back to the right track towards our destination. Let this question resound and reecho once again in our hearts as it did in the heart of those two disciples, what actually do we seek? Why do we seek Him? Unfortunately, many Christians seek him today for imaginary and temporary benefits. Just like that crowd searching for Jesus after the multiplication of bread, “I say to you, you seek me not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves” (Jn.6:26).

        Indeed, to this profound interrogation, Jesus got a wonderful reply from the two disciples: “where do you stay?” Interestingly, in the gospel of John, the verb “to stay” does not mean just a physical habitation. In Greek, it is the same word that is used for the verb “to abide”, especially in the passages that speak about the Son’s abiding in the Father. And Jesus replied, “Come and see”. . Another important verb is “to see”, which theologically entails seeing with the eyes of faith. The Gospel passage further said that they stayed with Him. At their first encounter they called Him Rabbi, but after staying with Him they now said “We have found the Messiah”. In their second encounter of staying with Him, their relationship with Him and their knowledge of Him grew, thus from Rabbi to Messiah. They came to the knowledge of his real identity. It is only in the experience of staying with Jesus, especially in the Blessed Sacrament and in the least of his brothers, that we discover who He really is. Seeing where someone stays or abides shows the truth about that person. And if we take our reflection a little bit higher, we see that the theological abode of Jesus is in the Father, for He says “I am in the Father and the Father is in me” (Jn. 14:10.11). We could say that the two disciples on coming and seeing, discovered Jesus’ relationship with the Father, but most importantly, they discovered that they could be part of this relationship, for in the words of Jesus “On that day you will know that I am in my Father and you in me and I in you” (Jn.14:20). Beloved in Christ, you too can be part of this relationship, why not?

          In the second reading (I Cor. 6:13c-15a.17-20), St. Paul presents us with another type of call this time around: the call to holiness. He reminds us of how to bear witness to Christ. This suggests also the call out of sinfulness. Here the body is presented as the center of moral and spiritual encounter. St. Paul here explains to us that we don’t own our body though it is with us. In fact he calls it members of Christ as well as the temple of the Holy Spirit, bought with a price (Blood of the Lamb). Elsewhere he invites “Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice…do not conform yourselves to the mentality of the contemporary world” (Rm. 12, 1-2). St. Paul exposed some of the ill-behaviors of the Corinthian community. He precisely condemned immoral sexual behavior and to bring them back from their hangover to their gnostic belief, Paul reaffirmed that the Christian experience brings the whole person (body and soul) under the Lordship of Christ.

          In all, the readings of today ought to serve as an invitation to us to dispose ourselves for an authentic and life transforming encounter with the Lord. There is thus need of a personal and experiential encounter with Him, for at long last, the two apostles of the Gospel recognized and believed Jesus as the Messiah, not because of what their master told them, but based on their first-hand personal experience. It is indeed an encounter that connects one not only to Jesus and to the Father, but also to each other, for whoever encounters Jesus cannot contend Him within himself (cf. Jn. 1:41-43; Jn. 4:29), he or she has to make Him known to others. And indeed, the Good News is that Jesus is still inviting us today: Come and See!

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

Epiphany: God Enters Into Human History!

 (Homily for Epiphany Sunday-Year B)

          The feast of Epiphany, is a feast of God’s manifestation to man. Epiphany is from the Greek word epiphaneia which means appearance or manifestation, in this case, the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ as the Savior of the whole world. For through the visit of the wise men, the universal salvific will of the Father is made manifest. Thus, Epiphany is the feast that celebrates the universality of salvation. The feast originated from the Eastern Church; there it was merely a celebration of the Lord’s Baptism. The Baptism of the Lord was interpreted as the first of his epiphanies or manifestation. Historically, when this feast spread to the West, it began to be celebrated mainly as a commemoration of the visit of the Magi. However, in the Catholic tradition it is identified as the feast of the three Kings. More than that, Epiphany celebrates mainly the self- revelation or manifestation of God to the Gentiles (to non-Jews = the Magi), and this is portrayed by the visit of the three wise men in the Gospel, with the gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh. Indeed, at the heart of the Epiphany event, at the threshold of the quest of the Magi are three S’s: see, search and submit. These three verbs were programmatic in the search and encounter of the Magi with the New Born King. They embarked on the journey because they wanted to see Him, and for this desire to see Him, they went in search of and for Him, and when the sought and saw Him, they submitted themselves to Him in adoration. These three action words should characterize as well our own journey of faith.

           The readings of today converge on the theme of the Christian universalism, thus, the universality of God’s salvation. In Mathew’s Gospel, this universalism is represented by the visit of the magi (the pagan world), who came from the East to adore the New Born Baby (Gospel). In their gesture we see the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah: “At his light all peoples will walk” (first reading). On his part, St. Paul (Second reading) was enabled to receive the mystery of God: “That the gentiles now have the same inheritance and form the same Body and enjoy the same promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel” (Eph. 3:6).

          The first reading (Is. 60:1-6) could be divided into two, while verses 1-3 dwell on the fulfillment of (Is. 40), at the return of the exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem, verses 4-6 are about the prediction of the eschatological pilgrimage of the gentiles to Jerusalem after the reconstruction of the city. Besides, verses 1-3 are symbolic of Christ’s event, and as such the message therein supersedes the return of the exiles from Babylon, the Christ event is the salvific event. This idea is further explicated with the imageries of “light” and “glory”. On the other hand, verses 4-6 presents the response of the gentiles to that revelation, fulfilled through the coming of Christ. And the journey and visit of the Magi is symbolic of this response. More still, verse 6 with its reference to “gold” and “frankincense” influenced in no small way the story of the Magi in (Mt. 2:1-12).

          The second reading (Eph. 3:2-3a.5-6) from the Pauline epistle combines the two basic themes of the first reading and the Gospel: God’s revelation (epiphany) and the participation of the gentiles to the Messianic Salvation, thus the universality of Salvation. St. Paul calls it a mystery, “This mystery, as it is now revealed in the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets, was unknown to humanity in previous generations” (v.5). Such mystery consists in the call of the gentiles to participate in the same inheritance and form the same body and to be part of the same promise through the Gospel. God is the unity and the inheritance of all peoples, He reveals Himself to all peoples, Jews and Pagans alike. For this, he affirmed “in that image there is no room for distinction between Greek and Jew, between the circumcised and uncircumcised, or between barbarian and Scythian, slave and free. There is only Christ: he is everything and he is in everything” (Col. 3:11). St. Paul undoubtedly spoke about “a mystery”, something inaccessible to the thought and the intellect of man; something that only God, in his love and freedom can reveal to man. Prophet Isaiah had an intuition of this mystery, when he saw all peoples walking towards Jerusalem in order to render cult to Yahweh, the Lord of the nations.

          In the Gospel reading (Mt. 2:1-12) Mathew presents the episode of the journey and visit of the Magi to the Child Jesus. Mathew regrettably reports that his people did not know when salvation was at hand, but foreigners, the Magi did. The pagans recognized the presence of the Messiah while the Jews did not. It is only in Mathew’s account that we find the story of the three wise men or kings, who came “from the east” to worship the King of the Jews. This account on the Magi’s story gave rise to plausible facts concerning this Divine Child: ►First is the tracing of Jesus’ Davidic descent, which according to the Jews is a qualification for the “messiahship”, “This is the gospel concerning his Son who, in terms of human nature was born a descendant of David” (Rm. 1:3-4a). The importance attached to the infancy narrative of Mathew and Luke throws more light to this. ►Second is the dating of Jesus’ birth (eg. Mathew and Luke) towards the end of Herod the Great’s reign (4.B.C), this too is historically plausible. ►Third, the use of the star as a messianic symbol in the Scriptures, “I see him – but not in the present. I perceive him – but not close at hand: a star is emerging from Jacob, a scepter is rising from Israel” (Num. 24:17). In turn we are also called to become stars that lead others to Jesus. How often do we indicate Jesus to others or enlighten others as a result of our encounter with Him?

          Today’s Gospel in no small way revolves around the adoration of the New Born King by the three wise men, the Magi. In Mathew’s account they observed and followed the star (v.2), which reveals that they had knowledge of astrology. Again, we are told that they came from the east, this implies that they came from Mesopotamia, which according to the Hellenist world is known to be home for astrologists. However, it is worthy to note that this Gospel is not just about the Magi, rather the One who has been born, the King of the Jews. Jesus was born at the fullness of time or better when the time was fulfilled (cf. Gal. 4:4). At that point in time people were longing for the Messiah, despite this longing, which for some was real, and for others was apparent, in today’s Gospel we see different categories of people and their reactions about his birth and presence:

■Herod, the king was blocked by seeing Jesus because of his suspicion. The birth of Jesus meant insecurity for him. Little wonder, he killed whoever he suspected to be a rival. Thus, his reaction towards Jesus was that of hostility.

■The Chief priests and the scribes, this group reacted differently. They were indifferent to the presence of Jesus, they didn’t care. They were busy with their affairs in the temple and legal dealings. Probably, they were afraid of King Herod, little wonder, they handed him the information and remained unmoved. They did not even dare to lead the Magi. They remained unmoved in Jerusalem, but Jesus was found in the poverty of Bethlehem.

■The Magi, were learned people, but their knowledge did not get over their head. As such, their reaction was that of openness and acceptance. The magi represent the whole human race, people of every language and colour who set out to adore Jesus. And in this event, the prophecy that will adore and bring Him gifts is fulfilled (Ps. 72:10). To find Jesus we need to search for Him with faith, to find Him we need to pass through Jerusalem as the Magi did, here Jerusalem stands to symbolize the Church. In that sense, the journey of the Magi is a symbol of an itinerary of faith. When they found Jesus, they adored him and offered him gifts: Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh.

           Be that as it may, the Magi did not present mere gifts to the King; rather the three gifts they offered to Him were replete and beaming with significance: Gold: symbolizes a gift for Kings, denoting his Kingship. It was indeed a sign of their sincere and total love. Frankincense: the ancient people used it for religious worship, and it points to gods and divinity. It is therefore a symbol of the divinity of Christ. The Magi used it to adore Him. Myrrh: in the ancient world myrrh was used to prepare dead bodies. On the Cross Jesus was offered wine mingled with myrrh (cf. Mk. 15:23). And his body was anointed with myrrh for burial (cf. Jn.19:39). For instance, we remember the women that came with myrrh to the tomb of Jesus to anoint his body (cf. Mk. 16:1). This depicts the vulnerability of the human nature that Jesus assumed. This gift is therefore symbolic of Jesus’ humanity

          The prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled in the episode of the arrival of the Magi to Jerusalem, and in turn we could equally say that the Gospel is the fulfillment of his prophecy that “at his light all peoples will walk”, and the Magi did follow the star. Therefore, with the fulfillment of this prophecy, God’s revelation brings to their realization various novelties of great importance: ●That the center of the nations is not a city (Jerusalem) but a person: Jesus, the Messiah and Lord, born in Bethlehem. ●The journey towards this center will not be only for the Jews, but for all, Jews and pagans alike. ●The people will not converge to Jerusalem to render cult to Yahweh in the temple, but in Bethlehem to adore a Baby in the arms of his Mother Mary.

          The passage of the Gospel gives us a wonderful indication on how to locate Christ, the Savior, and that is as the magi have demonstrated, through openness and disposition of heart, with the sincere desire of having the knowledge of the truth without prejudice. Similarly, there are as well obstacles that may hinder us from locating and encountering Christ, the Savior. First, is fear, fear of encountering one who overhauls our life. For if you encounter Christ you have to change your orientation and criterion of judgment.  Second, is servility to the powers that be, as it happened to the religious leaders in the time of Jesus, who were slaves to the political power of Herod. The powers that be today could be ideologies, dominant current of thoughts contrary to the Gospel. Third, is ambition for power, as it happened with Herod, and attachment to the things of this world. We need to liberate ourselves from the things of this world and personal prestige, allow ourselves to be guided and led by the light that comes from above (as the Magi allowed themselves to be led by the star).

         In all, the red thread that runs through the readings of today is the revelation of God in Christ and the universality of God’s Salvation. The Epiphany inaugurates a new direction, a new route. They went home through a new road because they were enlightened by God, and that new way is Jesus. Jesus in the event of the Epiphany gives us a new way and a new direction. He offers himself as the Savior of all, without exception. What have we to offer Him in return? The magi presented Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh. The journey of the Magi might be taken as an expression of man’s religious quest, and as such man as capax Dei, to say it with St. Augustine. The question that should stem from our hearts is whether we still have this religious zeal and quest today? Do we still have the quest for God? What is our own reaction to this New Born King, is it that of hostility, indifference, or concern and love? That of the Magi was love and adoration, even me today I have come to adore him. What of you? Let us join the Magi in this marvelous and admirable Adoration of the New Born King! Come let us adore the leading-Star!! Come let us adore the Light that enlightens all men and makes them one!!! Let us pray asking God to enable us to seek Him with a sincere heart like the Magi, no matter the distance and what it may cost. Amen!

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