Homily- Friday of the 24th Week In Ord. Time
Yr. B. Fr. Udoekpo, Michael
v 1 Cor 15:12-20
v Ps 17:1bcd,6-7,8b and 15
v Luke 8:1-3
Male and Female- called to Witness Christ’s Resurrection
(1 Cor 15:12-20; Luke 8:1-3)
In the past few days, and weeks we have celebrated the
memorials and feasts/solemnities, including not only of the Assumption of Mary,
the Holy name of our Blessed Virgin Mary and of Our Lady of Sorrows, but in the
coming days and weeks we will celebrate the Feast of the Holy Rosary on October
7, and many more. These generally not only point to the virtues, roles and
participation of Mary in the mysteries of her Son Jesus, but reminds us of the
role of many other women, like her whose stories and virtues are applauded in
the Bible, for God created us, male and female in his own image (Gen 1:26-31)
for a reason, for a purpose, to love and to serve him and to bear witness to
the truth and the resurrection, preached by Paul in the first reading ( 1 Cor
15:12-20).
Along this line,
women, like Mary, I am thinking of women, such as Sarah, Rachel, Rebecca,
Rehab, Ruth, Naomi, Esther, Judith, Deborah, Anna, Martha and the woman with the ointment
of yesterday’s gospel (Luke 7:36-50), who anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped
them with her hair, because of that “great love” in her heart. We can learn
from many women in and outside the Bible who dedicated their lives, witnessing
the Gospel!
Along this line, still are women mentioned in today’s Gospel
(Luke 8: 1-3). Luke 8:1-3 recalls not
only the itinerant character of Jesus’ preaching, teaching and healing, but,
his ministerial entourage including male and female. We are told accompanying,
Jesus “were the twelve and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities,
Mary called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, Joanna, the wife of
Herod’s steward Chuza, Susanna, and many others who provided for them out of
their resources.”
Many of these people including the women mention here
followed Jesus to Jerusalem and witness his arrest, crucifixion, death, burial,
empty tomb, and resurrection appearances, preach by Paul in 1 Corinthian 15 to
the skeptical Corinthian community, influenced by the Alexandrian Jewish
teacher, Apollos- who led the skeptical Corinthians to believe that their souls
were separable from their bodies, hence, their souls being immortal, their
bodies could not be raised at the resurrection, as was the case with Christ!
This is why Paul, narrated step- by –step the mysteries
of the Christ passion and resurrection- all because of our sins and because of
his great love for us. Paul says “if Christ has not been raised, then empty too
is our preaching, empty too, is your faith.”
We are all called, male and female, young and old to
witness to this truth- after the examples of not only Paul and those generous
women mentioned in today’s Gospel, and in other biblical texts. But women like Mother
Teresa of Calcutta and many of our other, hardworking, humble, faithful and
virtuous women in our teaching and pastoral institutions, homes and families,
can continue to inspire us- male and female- to love, to serve, to believe an
to witness the Christ’s Resurrection.
Reflection Questions;
1. What have we learned from those women who accompany Jesus
in his ministry in today’s Gospel ( Luke 8:1-3)
2. What other women, in or outside the Bible and Church’s documents,
can we draw inspiration from?
3. In what ways have we witnessed in the truth of the
mystery of the Resurrection?
4. Do we promote the role and greater participation of women
in our faith, educational, social, political and pastoral communities, and how?
