Weekly Reflection

Great joy for us today as we celebrate Christ as the Lord and king of all creation! The exile experience was a very sad one for the people of Israel, living outside their homeland. The Prophet Ezekiel compares this to a situation of scattered sheep without a shepherd. From this chaos, Ezekiel proclaimed a message of hope by reassuring the people that God is a powerful king who will gather his people and protect them. St. Matthew reminds us today that Jesus is that King that we have been waiting for. He is king now and king forever. He requires that we live as good citizens of his kingdom here on earth. To reign with him in his everlasting kingdom, he will require that we give an account of our stewardship to the extent that we assisted our neighbour in need. Happy Solemnity of Christ the king everyone!

Harvest of Divine Fulfillment…Christ is sufficient for us. I bring you very special greetings my dear parishioners of St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church, Iyiabi, Asaba, as we celebrate our harvest thanksgiving today. May God’s name be praised and glorified, both now and forever. The last couple of weeks have been busy with various harvest activities building up to this final day. May God accept this special offering of this final day and grant divine fulfillment to all our good heart desires, amen. I wish us all a grace filled harvest celebration and we pray that God in his goodness may grant divine fulfillment to all our noble heart yearnings. We look to the future with so much hope of showers of blessings from heaven for God to grant success to the work of our hands.
Harvest of Divine Fulfillment…Christ is sufficient for us!

One poor widow was rewarded for her generosity, another was praised for her generosity. The case of the first poor widow reminds us that when God wants to bless us, he asks for something. (cf. John 4:10) By sharing the little she had, because she wanted to give food to the prophet who was hungry, she was no longer in want. The other widow too was poor. Her two little coins were insignificant in the face of many rich people contributing to the treasury, yet she was bold enough to give the little she had. The Master again sported her and held her as a model of generosity. Dear friends, our little acts of kindness to the Church and the needy in the society counts so high in the presence of God. May God receive our gifts, bless them and return them to us a hundred fold. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Jesus in response to the Scribe says, the first commandment is; love your God and the second is love your neighbour as yourself. The two complement each other and both are the greatest of all commandments. No amount of sacrifice can replace the commandment of love. To love is to live. To love is to serve God. We love God when we love our neighbour. To refuse to show love to a neighbour is to refuse to love God. No wonder these two commandments were later reduced to one when our divine Lord stated, no greater love than these that a man should lay down his life for his friends. The neighbour now becomes supreme. My neighbour is then the God I cannot see with my naked eyes. To love him is to love God. This is the first, the second and the greatest commandment. Happy Sunday Everyone!

This week dear friends, we shall have an opportunity to celebrate the triumph of God’s grace in His saints who reign with him in heaven. In similar vein, we are called to remember those who are still on their way to God’s kingdom on account of debts yet to be paid. While we rejoice with the saints, we pray too for the souls in purgatory. The Church offers plenary indulgence applicable only to the souls in purgatory to any of the faithful who: 1. On one of the days from 1-8 November visits devoutly a cemetery or who simply prays mentally for the dead. 2. On All Souls Day visits a church or chapel with devotion and there recite the Our Father and the Creed. A partial indulgence, applicable only to the souls in Purgatory, is granted to any of the faithful who: i. recites devoutly lauds or vespers of the Office of the Dead, or the invocation, Eternal rest grant unto them o Lord…

The scramble to occupy places of honour in the new community being founded by Jesus was an opportunity for him to teach his disciples some lessons about leadership. Christian leadership is for service. It is from this Christian understanding of leadership that other spheres of leadership should be rooted. The first and the greatest in the community is to be known and respected based on the service given to the community. Our Divine Lord on the eve of his passion washed the apostle’s feet. When he was asked the reason for doing this, he responded, “If I your Lord and master have washed your feet, you too should wash each other’s feet.” (John 13:14) With this affirmation, our divine Lord has extended the obligation of service to everyone. Our value and relevance to each other is on the basis of the help and service we render to one another. Happy Sunday Everyone!

A rich young man approached Jesus with the question, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” The young man is apparently good as well since he has from his earliest youth, tried to live according to God’s commandments. Yet, Jesus insists that there is a higher commandment than the young man seems to have neglected. It is the command that bids him to care for his needy neighbour since he is a man of great wealth. Jesus invites us today to extend our hands of fellowship to the needy members of our community. This is how to store our treasures in heaven where neither mots nor thieves can reach. (Matt. 6:20) Love of God and love of neighbour are exalted as the highest commandments by Jesus. He calls this a new commandment. (Jn. 13:34) He invites us to do this and eternal life is ours. Happy Sunday Everyone!

The question presented to Jesus by the Pharisees was on the legality or illegality of divorce. In other words, is one allowed to divorce or not? The response given by Jesus is a call for them to go back to the very beginning of creation to see again how God made things. He made them male and female and the female was made from the man. God’s original plan for marriage and the family is unity and stability. All married couples are invited to strive within all available means to foster understanding which helps them to stay and live together in harmony and peace. While the woman is invited to play her role as the helpmate to the man as assigned to her by the Creator, the man must see and respect the woman as his missing rib since she was formed from that. May God bless our families with peace and happiness. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Dear friends, our Divine Lord invites us today to live our lives as not to cause scandal for other people or to mislead them by the way we are acting. Christian life is not lived in isolation as St. Paul writes, “none of us lives for himself only and none of us dies for himself only.” (Romans 14:7) As such, parents must make their Christian lives shining examples for their children to emulate. The little ones are mostly found in the families where they are nurtured and groomed. Everyone within the family, both parents and elderly ones are to ensure that every obstacle to sin or misleading these little ones is removed. Our Lord is not advocating physical amputation of parts of the body, but rather negative influences that may cause us and others to fall. May the Good Lord renew us in our families today. Happy Sunday Everyone!

In a world torn apart by leadership tousles, Jesus proposes a model of leadership that is reliable. The greatest must be the servant of all. Thus he tried to contrast leadership by Christians and leadership by pagans as he said, “you know that among the gentiles the rulers lord it over them, and great men make their authority felt. Among you this is not to happen.” (Matt. 20:25-26). Leadership is for service. It goes with childlike simplicity and humility in caring for all as in caring for a child. The leader is to be guided by wisdom from above which St. James says is “pure, gentle, peaceable, open to reason, full of mercy, bears good fruit, sincere and righteous.” May God guide and inspire our leaders to lead us after the mind of Christ our master and Lord. Happy Sunday Everyone!

To the question, “who do you say that I am?” Peter answered, “you are the Christ.” The word Christ, is from the Greek word Christos meaning “the anointed one”. My dear friends, Jesus invites us today, to have a personal relationship with him. This personal relationship will stem from our personal encounter with him. God has anointed him with power to save you and me from the clutches of the evil one. He has come to give us the fullness of life. This he did to the extent of shedding his own blood on Calvary. With this a new door of God’s grace is opened to you and me. I invite you today to personally encounter him at the table of the Word and that of the Eucharist. May God bless you all and happy Sunday Everyone!

My dear friends in Christ, I invite you today to join me in thanking God for his goodness to me these past 20 years of my priestly life. “How can I repay the Lord for his goodness to me? The cup of salvation I will raise, I will call on the Lord’s name.” (Ps. 116:11-12). The Lord says, “be strong, fear not.” (Isaiah 35:4). It’s obvious this God has been there all these years. It is for this reason we gather to thank him today. My dear parishioners and friends, as we celebrate today, let us take strongly these words of the prophet Isaiah, “be strong, fear not.” To these, let us add the words of our Divine Lord, “in the world, you may find trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (Jn. 16:33). Thank you all for coming to celebrate with me today. May God richly bless you all. Thanks for your generosity to our Church. May God richly reward you from the abundance of his riches in glory.

The scriptures make ample reference to Israel as God’s chosen people with the promise of special inheritance. Down through the ages, the people of Israel boast of this divine inheritance. They pride of being the apple of God’s eye. But what makes a nation great or special? The Book of Deuteronomy says that the people of a great nation are wise and understanding. Secondly, their God is very close to them and answers them whenever they call on him for help. Finally, the strength of a great nation lies in their constitution - that is their statutes and ordinances. (Deut. 4:6-8) These statutes and ordinances teach them to practice true religion that entails reaching out to the poor and needy. (James 1:27) These statutes and ordinances reside in our hearts, for from the heart comes every good or evil deed. May God exalt our nation as we strive for greatness through our constitution. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Dear friends, we are invited in our liturgy today, to make an important decision in our relationship with God. Moving from ordinary bread to the body and blood of Christ as food and drink leading to eternal life was a difficult teaching for the disciples of Jesus. Some of his followers walked away for fear that he was planning to make them cannibals. He tried to test the conviction of those who remained and they insisted they wanted eternal life and He has the words that will take them there. Similar invitation was sent out to the people of Israel by Joshua who already decided with his family and they too chose to serve God. Jesus invites us today to come together with our families, reverencing Christ and clothing ourselves in love that binds all things together. Remember that one day within the house of God is better than a thousand elsewhere. (cf. Ps. 84:10) Happy Sunday Everyone!

Moving from physical bread, Jesus leads us to the greater mystery of understanding his body and blood as real food and real drink that gives lasting satisfaction. This invitation is coming to us at a time when there is so much hunger for physical food in our world. We live in a world where there is so much wealth yet many live in abject poverty. Even those who have so much at their disposal sometimes are insatiable. Wisdom prepares a table for the humble and the ignorant, inviting them to come and eat and be satisfied. Jesus indeed is the living bread that satisfies the ravaging hunger and thirst in our world. His is the food of angels that nourishes our physical lives here on earth and finally nourishes us to eternal life. As we partake of the table of the Lord this day, may our hunger for earthly things vanish and longing for heavenly things increase. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Today dear friends, our divine Lord said to the Jews that they will be taught by God. Jesus tells the Jews that he is the bread come down from heaven. Haven fed them with the bread of life which he says is his own body, he now proposes to feed them with the Word of Life. His teaching is the Word of Life. Those who listen to him and go by his teaching will have life. To listen to him is to be taught by God and that is choosing life. May the teachings of Jesus renew us in faith and bring us new life. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Dear friends in Christ, our Divine Lord invites us today to work for the food that leads to eternal life. Man’s life on earth seems like an endless struggle. He wakes up early in the morning and works until the evening fades. He stores up treasures and the wants keep piling high everyday. Alcohol fails to satisfy the ravaging thirst. The hunger remains even after eating the choicest meal. The Good Lord asks us today to purse for a while and see where all these toils are leading to so that we don’t work in vain. He wants us to change the direction of our toils. Remember the God of work who alone gives rest to our weary souls. As we work for the wellbeing of our bodies, let us remember the greater work for the salvation of our souls. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Dear friends in Christ, our Divine Lord, through the miracle of the multiplication of loaves, reminds us that God does not only care for our spiritual wellbeing, but also cares for our physical nourishment. “For he satisfies the thirsty and feeds the hungry with good things” (Psalm 107:9) This same God still feeds us today with his body and blood that we may be eternally satisfied. He invites us today to join in the campaign to end hunger in our world. This requires charity from all corners. The charity of the little boy whose bread was the original starting point of the miracle and the generosity of not letting anything waste by picking up the scraps that resulted in twelve baskets. In between these two, we may identify the spirit of sharing by all who were present. Let us pray that through our efforts and divine assistance, hunger may vanish in our world. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Dear friends, our divine Lord today calls us his friends. He says, you are now my friends, you are no longer slaves. Because we are his friends, he invites us to keep his commandment in order to sustain this friendship. What is this commandment? It is simply to love one another as he has loved us. This command to love is the secret he has received from his father and has revealed to us. It is the sacrificial love that moves us to think of the welfare of our brothers and sisters at all times. With this love, we shall bear fruit and all that we ask his Father to give us will be granted to us. With this love also, the world will see us and recognize us as God’s children. I wish you all a happy Sunday as we share God’s love with one another.

Dear friends in Christ, today, Jesus reassures us that his saying, “I am with you always, even to the end of time” remains true even in our own day. He demonstrated this when he sent the twelve out with authority to do the things that he himself was used to doing. The authority is to be used in teaching and bringing succour to those who were experiencing various forms of afflictions from unclean spirits. My dear friends, God continues to extend his love to us today through the ministry of our priests and evangelists. He renews us daily through the sacraments, especially the Holy Eucharist that perpetuates his presence among us. The blessings we receive are dependent on how much we open up our hearts and homes to receive the Word of God. May we continue to be renewed through the ministry of our priests. Amen. Happy Sunday Everyone!

My dear friends, Jesus continues to teach and grant healing to those who come to seek God’s help from him. He never turns anyone away. His regular responses are, “your faith has healed you.”(Mk. 5:34) “You have great faith.” (Matt.15:28) However, even a little faith is sufficient to receive favour from him. (Matt. 17:20) What this means is that God is always willing and ready to help us. (Matt. 8:3) God does not exclude anyone from receiving his blessings. Someone may however exclude himself. He came to his own city and they called him a carpenter’s son and got very little. St. John says that He came to his own and his own received him not, but to all who received him, he gave power to become children of God. (Jn. 1:12) May God bless us as we open our hearts to little signs of the revelation of God’s closeness to us everyday. Happy Sunday Everyone!

My dear friends in Christ, today our Divine Lord assures us that we are made for a healthy and happy life in Christ. The book of Wisdom says that God created us to enjoy an immortal life. Righteousness assures us of this immortal life. Good deeds never die and man’s immortality is based on his effort to live the good life. During this struggle for the good life, our lives may be tormented by sickness and other forms of diseases. The Good Lord assures us that in our effort to seek help from our earthly physicians, we should still remember the heavenly physician that heals body and soul. Even if our earthly doctors fail, we should not give up hope but turn back to him who has no room for an impossible case. May the God that healed the woman with the issue of blood, grant us healing from all our infirmities. Amen. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Dear friends, we are invited today to encounter a caring God who is always very close to us in the midst of the storms of life and is ever ready to calm the turbulent waves that threaten our peace. The disciples in their scare asked him, “do you not care if we perish?” He responded by first of all rebuking the wind by asking it to calm down. He also went further to rebuke his disciples for their lack of faith. Of course, if their faith was as tiny as the mustard seed, they too can rebuke the wind. (cf. Matt. 17:20). The Lord reassures us today that he cares for our safety at all times. He therefore invites us to live with that confidence especially when we are faced with serious dangers. As children of God and friends of Jesus, he has also given us the power to rebuke any force or spirit that fights our peace and safety. May the Good Lord calm the storms in our lives. Happy Sunday Everyone!

My dear friends in Christ, two parables of God’s kingdom, remind us of how God cares for us. One planted a see in the earth and goes to sleep. Night and day the seed grew and produced fruits. How this came about, he really can’t explain. The other planted a very tiny seed like the mustard seed. He comes back to see a very big tree. The two parables call us to reflect on the invisible hands of God caring for his earth in order to take care of his people. It is a reminder that the successes we have attained in life, are not solely on our own efforts but the strong invisible hands of God blessing us. We are therefore to cultivate two attitudes, that of thanksgiving to this Great God and that of generosity to our brothers and sisters. To whom much is given, much is expected. As God blesses us with the fruit of the earth, let us remember to bless him as well through our acts of generosity. May God bless you all and happy Sunday Everyone!

Dear friends in Christ, today, our Divine Lord invites us to identify with his family. He wants to make us his brothers and his mother. In response to those who brought the message to him that his mother and brothers were looking for him, he pointed out the importance of the new family he was creating. He equally gave condition for anyone who wishes to belong to this new family. The condition lies on common interest and goal and common obedience. Those who listen to the Word of God and keep it are my mother and brothers. Jesus is the Word of God. To treasure him and what he teaches makes us members of his family. We pray that the word of God may continue to unite us in our parish as members of the family of Jesus. Happy Sunday Everyone!

We celebrate today, dear friends, another special gift of God to us, the gift of His body and blood as food for our souls. This gift he gave to us during the last supper with his disciples when he took the bread and said to them, ‘this is my body, take and eat’ and also, ‘this is my blood, take and drink’. His body and blood now become food for our souls for he has also said, he who eats my body and drinks my blood, has life in him but he who fails to eat my body and fails to drink my blood has no life in him.(Jn. 6:53-54) May we be renewed through the body and blood of Christ. We specially congratulate our children who are receiving this special food for the first time today. May Christ who now lives in you continue to rejuvenate your lives. Amen. Happy Corpus Christi Sunday Everyone!

Dear friends in Christ, today, we celebrate the mystery of the Godhead. It is a celebration that invites us to reflect on the nature of the Christian God who though One, reveals himself in three persons, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. God the Father created the world by speaking the word which became man and we have the Son our Lord Jesus Christ. Before the Son’s Ascension, he promised us the Holy Spirit who too descended on the day of Pentecost to renew the world. today, the Lord sends us on a mission to go and make disciples for him. This mission will entail teaching the people what we have learnt from Christ, spreading the news about his authority and baptizing them in the name of the Trinity. We pray today that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit will abide and remain with us forever. Happy Sunday of the Most Holy Trinity Everyone!

Dear friends, today we celebrate the fulfillment of the promise of Jesus to send us an advocate who will intercede for us before His Father and will teach us everything. We like the apostles are gathered in our own Jerusalem for this fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit. He is called the Spirit of Truth since he will lead us to the complete truth about our relationship with God. The Spirit will teach us how to speak a new language which is universal – the language of love. This language cuts through all language or racial barriers. The Spirit will shower us with such gifts as: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Now that the Spirit has given us all these, Jesus invites and commissions us to go and tell the world about it. Happy Pentecost Sunday Everyone!

My dear friends in Christ, the period between the Ascension and Pentecost is a period of intense prayer for the Church. It is the period that the apostles stayed back in Jerusalem waiting for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Today, Jesus leads us in that prayer by praying for the unity of all his followers. He invites us to join in that prayer for the unity of Christian believers all over the world and also for those who have not yet accepted him. Divided Christendom is a wound on the body of Christ that is already scarred from the agony of the Cross. Division among believers is also scandal to the world. Christ invites us to further work and foster collaborative efforts that will further unite believers in Him throughout the world. May the Holy Spirit fall afresh on us and renew the face of the earth. Happy Sunday everyone!

Dear friends, today we celebrate the joyful occasion of Christ’s return to the Father after the completion of his earthly mission. From eternity he existed with His Father but came down to earth to fulfill his earthly mission. He has gone back to prepare a place for us. this celebration reminds us that the earth is not our permanent home. He wants us to fix our gaze in heaven like the men of Galilee with the hope of immortality in our minds. We are called to live well now. God gives us promises of divine protection from the evil of the present time. We are all called to go and spread the message of Christ’s ascension into heaven. Happy solemnity of the Ascension Everyone!

Dear friends, our Divine Lord today calls us his friends. He says, you are now my friends, you are no longer slaves. Because we are his friends, he invites us to keep his commandment in order to sustain this friendship. What is this commandment? It is simply to love one another as he has loved us. This command to love is the secret he has received from his father and has revealed to us. It is the sacrificial love that moves us to think of the welfare of our brothers and sisters at all times. With this love, we shall bear fruit and all that we ask his Father to give us will be granted to us. with this love also, the world will see us and recognize us as God’s children. I wish you all a happy Sunday as we share God’s love with one another!

My dear friends in Christ, today our Divine Lord says that he is the true vine, his father is the dresser of this true vine while we are the branches. He invites us to remain connected to this true vine in order to continue to bear good fruits and not soared grapes as was the case with the false vine. Pruning of dead branches which can be likened to pruning of the dead spiritual parts of our lives can help us bear much fruits. We are connected to the true vine when we take out time to listen to his words and by renewing ourselves with the sacraments. The fruits that come from our connection with the true vine are fruits of the spirit which consists of, charity, joy, peace, patience, understanding, kindness, fidelity, gentleness and self-control. (Gal. 5:22) All these can only come when we remain attached to the true vine for cut away from him, we can do nothing. Happy Sunday Everyone!

“I am the Good Shepherd” says our Divine Lord. Today dear friends, we are invited to celebrate the good shepherd. The scripture right from the Old Testament presents the image of the shepherd among the people of Israel. The shepherd is like a good king who cares for his people. The prophets, particularly Ezekiel lamented the failure of human shepherds in caring for the people and said that God himself will now take care of his flock. In Jesus, we see the fulfillment of this prophecy with our Divine Lord taking full charge of our safety and other concerns. As our shepherd, he knows us and our needs. He cares for us and ensures our safety. He feeds and clothes us. With him we are protected and defended when danger comes. Today, he assures us of his unending love for us and invites us to remain under his care for that is where we can find safety. May Christ the Good Shepherd protect and defend us always. Happy Good Shepherd Sunday Everyone!

Our Divine Lord continues to renew joy in his disciples through his appearances after his resurrection. It is at the centre of this Easter joy that we join our mothers today in the celebration of the Mother’s Day. We say congratulations to all our Mamas. May God preserve and strengthen you as you carry out the special task that God has given to you as mothers. Look up to the great women of faith in the scriptures. Look up to our Mother Mary as the ideal mother who trusted in God and prayerfully treasured things in her heart. Fathers, love our mothers and care for them like St. Joseph cared for Mary. Children, respect your mothers and care for them at old age. May today’s celebration of Mothers’ Day rekindle peace, joy and happiness in our homes. May God bless our mothers and all our families.

My dear friends in Christ, for eight days now, our Divine Lord has been appearing to his friends and announcing the joyful news of his resurrection to them. He has appeared to the women, to Simon, to Cleopas and his friend. Today, he has appeared to the Eleven with special greetings of supernatural grace. The risen Lord breathes a new breath of supernatural grace into his disciples. It is the breath of new life and recreation. God in Christ was making everything new through his resurrection. He greets them with peace. The risen Lord is with us today with special greetings of peace as we celebrate the supernatural mercy of God that forgives us our sins and totally restores us in Christ. May we all continue to enjoy this peace of Christ through the healing effects of the sacrament of reconciliation. Happy Divine Mercy Sunday Everyone!

My dear friends in Christ, the period of waiting is over. He has risen as he promised. We can now say, thanks be to God for giving us the victory through our Lord, Jesus Christ. We are Easter people and alleluia is our song of joy. His death is our ransom from death and his resurrection is our rising to new life. Having been buried with Christ through our Lenten observances, he now invites us to a new life of grace that God offers us. It is a life of breakthrough as the tomb could not hold him back, so he has shattered all barriers that prevents us from enjoying the privileges of God’s children. Welcome to the Easter Season and enjoy and overflow of God’s blessings. Happy Easter Everyone!

My dear friends in Christ, I welcome you to the Holy Week. Our Holy Week activities begin with the Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, where he will suffer and die to save us. Let us join the crowds as they welcome him into Jerusalem, as a victorious king, cheering him to glory waving our palm branches. Our Divine Lord invites us, not to abandon him, but to join him at the table of his Last Supper with his disciples. Having fed us with this Food of Life, let us join him on his way to Calvary where he will be crucified and die. If we die with him, we are sure to rise with him on the night of his resurrection. This week is the centre of our Liturgical Year and the Triduum is the climax. Let us keep vigil with him on the night of all nights. I wish you all a gracefilled Holy Week and Happy Easter Celebrations!

Dear friends, our Divine Lord finally declares that his hour has come. At the wedding at Cana, he said to his mother that his hour had not yet come. What is this hour? The hour is the moment when he will fulfill the ultimate goal of becoming man. It is the moment to become the grain wheat that will fall to the ground and die in order to yield abundant fruit. It is the hour to go to Calvary. He invites us to be part of this mission through the sacrifices we make for the wellbeing of our brothers and sisters. Let us now prepare to go to Calvary that we might die with him in order to rise with him to glory. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Right from the very dawn of creation, we see love being displayed. A beautiful world was made by a generous God. Sin and evil destroyed this beauty and man lived in chaos and darkness for many generations. God who is always taking the initiative, in his love again, sought to liberate man from the bondage of evil cast over the face of the earth. He sent his only son who just announced to Nicodemus that he has come to free us by dying on the cross. He invites us to look up to the cross, not with pity but in thankfulness to God who has shown us the greatest love. The cross of Christ has the power to free us and save us from whatever threatens our peace. He equally invites us to show love to our brothers and sisters by bringing Christ to them. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Our Divine Lord has visited the Jerusalem Temple since he was a young boy and has been fascinated by the beauty of the Temple. In one occasion when he stayed back after the Passover feast, he has responded to the parents who came searching for him, “why were you looking for me?.... Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” (Lk. 2:29). Coming back at this time, Jesus was not happy with the state of the temple and with what was going on. He responded harshly and ordered that his father’s house should be accorded the respect it deserves. The Church is God’s house. The Church is a house of prayer. The Church is our Father’s house. Jesus invites us today to honour our Father’s house by building and decorating it with the honour and the beauty it deserves. May God answer our prayers in his house of prayer. Amen. Happy Sunday Everyone!

We are invited dear friends, to the mountain of the transfiguration. It was an encounter that gave the disciples a taste of divine glory that surrounds their master. It was an experience of beauty, serenity and tranquility that they felt being with Christ on the mountain. Peter’s exclamation, ‘Master, it is good for us to be here’ is an expression of satisfaction being with Christ. He wanted the experience to be permanent by his desire to build tents. The psalmist says, “I rejoiced when I heard them say, let us go to God’s house.” (Ps. 122:1) Jesus invites us today to experience the joy, peace and happiness that his presence gives. Let us go rejoicing whenever we have an opportunity to be in his presence. Remember also, that we can’t outdo God in generosity, as Peter’s desire to build him three tents was overtaken by the cloud that overshadowed them. Enjoy the glory of God’s presence today and do something for God. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Dear friends in Christ, Mark invites us to embark on a forty days’ journey into the Wilderness. This Lenten season is a season we make a special journey with Christ. Drawing closer to God through prayer, penance and almsgiving comes with its own temptations. Jesus accompanies and strengthens us in our spiritual resolves during this period of Lent. Let us make the gospels our rule of life. May the angels minister to us at the end of this great season. Happy first Sunday of Lent and may God make this season a grace filled one for all of us.

The plight of lepers during Biblical times was so degrading. The leper is meant to shout, “I’m unclean” while walking along the street so that no one comes close to him. In fact, lepers are judged to be cursed by God. To heal someone who has leprosy is like raising someone from the dead. This leper would have heard about Jesus and his powers to heal any kind of disease. It is surprising how he took this one chance so light by saying to Jesus, “if you want to, you can make me clean”. Jesus says, I want to, be clean and went ahead to touch him. We see the deep compassion of God towards us in any state we find ourselves. He is ready to take any risk to bring us good even to the extent of risking his own life. May God make us completely clean in body and soul. Happy Sunday Everyone!

I have come that you may have life, life to the full (Jn. 10:10). The desire of Jesus is to give us a healthy and happy life. As he went about preaching, he extended healing grace to all who came to him with their sicknesses and diseases. He invites us today to come to him with whatever ailment that has weighed us down or depressed us. “Everyone is searching for you” (Mk. 1:37) were the words of the apostles to him. Are you one of those searching for him or staying aloof? Jesus says to his disciples, “let us go to the next town” (Mk. 1:38) The next town of course is our town. Let us open the doors of our hearts to welcome him like Peter’s mother-in-law and be healed of fever. May Jesus give us a healthy and happy life today. Happy Sunday everyone!

At the healing of the man with an unclean spirit, the people said, “What is this? A new teaching!” Yes! The teaching of Jesus is new because it carries authority that commands healing on his listeners. Jesus comes to give us new life. This new life is found in his teaching and in the wholeness he brings to the sick that come to him for healing. Our Divine Lord reminds us about this newness in such sayings as, “I give you a new commandment.”(Jn. 13:34) “You have heard it was said, but I say to you.”(cf. Matt. 5:38) St. Paul finally reminds us that, anyone in Christ Jesus is a new creation. The old is gone. (II Cor. 5:17) May we enjoy new life in Christ as we listen to him speak to us through the scriptures. Happy Sunday Everyone.

My dear friends in Christ, today we celebrate the Sunday of the Word of God. It is a Sunday especially dedicated to appreciate and honour the word of God contained in the Bible as divinely inspired and revealed to us by God as good news. The Bible indeed is the mind of God in human language. St. Paul says, “all scripture is inspired by God, and profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (IITim. 3:16-17). St. Jerome says that ignorance of the scriptures is ignorance of God. Jesus says, the time has come, the kingdom of God is here, repent and believe the Gospel (Mk. 1:15). The Gospel indeed is the power of God to save everyone who believes in it. (Rom. 1:16) Happy Sunday Everyone as we enjoy the Word of God today.

John pointed out the Lamb of God to two of his disciples as they saw Jesus walk pass them. They immediately left John and followed Jesus. Andrew saw his brother Peter and said to him, ‘we have found the Messiah’, and he took Peter to Jesus. Samuel ran to Eli and said, ‘here I am for you called me’. But Eli said to him, that it was God who was calling him and he should say instead, ‘speak Lord for your servant hears’. Dear friends, there is always someone to lead another to encounter God. We already know Him and have a regular encounter with him in the Word and the Sacraments. He invites us today to go out and seek to bring many sons and daughters of God that stray and live in confusion of which path to follow in life. May God’s grace lead us to be true disciples of Jesus. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Today, dear friends, we recall one of those very special visits to the Baby Jesus, the visit of the Magi as we fondly call them. They came from afar, through the guidance of a star, to pay homage to the Baby Jesus. Their journey was highly symbolic as a spiritual journey of the soul searching for God. More importantly also are the three gifts presented to the new born child. Gold was presented to honour the child as a king, frankinsense to honour His Divinity and myrr to honour his humanity destined for death. At the sight of the child, their hearts were filled with great joy as in one who has found a great treasure. Their journey back home was as new people renewed by the new born king. May the light of Christ shine always on us. Happy Solemnity of the Epiphany Everyone!

Dear friends in Christ, today we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. It is a simple family built on strong faith in God and obedience to God’s command from the very beginning of their togetherness as a family. We are invited today, not just to imitate them, but to make Jesus the centre of the affairs of our families and from him derive lasting peace. This day offers us also an opportunity to wish ourselves a happy New Year. We ask the Good Lord to bless our families with peace and joy while praying that all our noble aspirations for 2024 will be brought to a successful fulfillment like the yearnings of the old Simeon. Happy New Year 2024 to you all and may God bless your families.

The angel Gabriel greets Mary and announced to her the joyful news that she will be the mother of God’s Son. She said yes to God. For unto us, through her who has found favour with God, a son is born and a son is given to us. His name is Emmanuel, ‘God with us.’ Dear friends, God indeed has taken our flesh and become man like us. God has visited his people. God indeed is now so close to us. We can now see God again, talk to him and touch him. It is a time for us to celebrate and to rejoice for if God is with us, who can be against us. I wish you dearest friends in Christ, a very happy Christmas celebration and a gracefilled 2024 in advance.

Dear friends, Angel Gabriel has been getting so busy with multiple messages of good tidings. Mary has found favour with God and will give birth to God’s Son. Zechariah’s prayer has been heard and her aged wife who is Mary’s kinswoman has conceived a son. It is a period of great rejoicing for us as the message “do not be afraid” keeps resounding for God has given Gabriel a message of great tidings for us. He is on his way to announce to us that good news that we have been waiting for. The biggest of this news is that ‘God is with us’. The favour that Mary found with God is also the favour of all her children. Let us hasten to Bethlehem to welcome this child. Happy Sunday Everyone!

Today dear friends, St. John introduces to us a man whom he said was sent from God. A messenger’s rank in calculated by the status of the one sending him. When people were wondering about the identity of this messenger and were almost identifying him as the Messiah, they sent people to ask him to identify himself. He called himself a voice. When the voice spoke, he said we should make straight the way of the Lord. The Lord dwells in our hearts and this heart must be made ready for him. Our hearts must be freed from all encumbrances and made ready for God to come and dwell. We pray that Christ may be reborn again in our hearts and our homes. Happy Sunday everyone!

The Lord invites us today to stay awake as we await His coming. The Second Coming of Christ is certain as Jesus uses various parables and images to raise our consciousness about it in the scriptures. The basic question is, when will this coming be? The scriptures say, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son of Man, but only the Father knows. (Matt. 24:36) The invitation of Christ is that we should be prepared by staying awake as we await this great coming. It is staying awake and watching in prayer. Recall Jesus meeting his disciples sleeping in the Garden of Gethsemane said to Peter, “So, could you not stay awake with me for one hour?” (Matt. 26:40) It is an invitation to stay awake and watch in prayer (Matt. 26:41) We pray that the Bridegroom finds us watching in prayer when he comes. Happy Sunday everyone!

Congratulations dear friends as we begin a new liturgical season today. We are invited to be vigilant, that is to stay awake and pray. The gospel reading compares us to servants whose master had assigned certain tasks to before embarking on a trip. The master on his return will require that each of his servants gives him an account of his stewardship. The day of the master’s return is not known. My dear friends, God is our Master and this Master never travels. He is always there looking after us. Let us go on doing our religious and civic duties everyday and leave nothing undone each day. May God’s ever abiding presence renew our joy and peace as we look forward to that great birth that transforms everything. Happy Sunday everyone!