Ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time A Reflections- Fr. Michael U. Udoekpo

Ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time Year A: Reflections – Fr. Michael U. Udoekpo

Readings: Deut 11:18, 26-28, 32; Ps 31: 2-3, 17, 25; Rom 3:21-25, 28 and Matt 7:21-27

 

Jesus, the Rock and Foundation of our Salvation

We are few days away from Lenten Season which begins with Ash Wednesday.  Our Bible readings and reflections are intensely shifting  to  an invitation for us to build our lives around Jesus the Rock of our salvation. We are invited to listen to the Word of God very closely and at the same put them into practice. Our interior and verbal prayer lives must be accompanied with deeds of spiritual and material works of mercy on  any given circumstance we may happen to find ourselves: at school, at home, offices, factories, on the road and here in church community.

This challenge goes back to the time of Moses.  We recall at Moab, during his farewell address to Israel, in the first reading of today, Moses stresses the need to keep those covenant laws, including the Ten Commandments (Exod 20–23) which has its vertical and horizontal dimensions.

Moses reminds the community that those laws written and given to him by God (Deut 5:16-22), which he had taught Israel (Deut 5:31), and was also put and carried around in the Ark of the Covenant (Deut Deut 10:2) is now written in their hearts (Deut 11:18-19). These laws, Moses says we must be careful to do and live them (Deut 11:32).
 These laws are the injunction of love of God and neighbors: worshiping God alone, honoring our parents, seniors, teachers even ourselves, temples of the Holy Spirit, respecting our brothers and sisters,  together with peoples of all walks of life, “Jews and Gentiles," men and women, children and adults, including their properties and opinions.

Jesus the new Moses was so conerned with interior life prayer and faith put into good deeds that he declares in today's Gospel  (Matt 7:21-27), that “ Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord will enter the Kingdom of God, but only the one who does the will of my Father in Heaven.”
For Christ,  our spirituality need not remain on the level of lip services, externalism but in combining our deep faith in Jesus with works of charity that still remain very challenging to all of us today.    In the case of our children, this precepts could be lived by not  talking back to  our parents or by not disrespecting them or be mean to our friends and neighbors. We can live the teachings of Christ by not stealing or throwing stones on the glass windows of our neighbors or abusing drugs, alcohol and ourselves sexually or cheating on exams and home works.
Especially as Lent approaches it can be lived  faithfully by all kinds of works of charity and mercy directed towards our brothers and sisters.  As Paul would put it "the person is justified by faith in Christ apart from works of the Law" (Rom 3:21-25,28).   This is the faith that motivates love, forgiveness, mercy and acts of charity.

Being his style Jesus concludes his message today with the parable of two identical houses built at the same time in the same neighborhood (Matt 7:24-27). But the only difference between them came when the testing time of wind, heavy rain and flood arrived. One of them stood firm because it had a solid rocky foundation, the other fell because it was built on a sandy foundation. Jesus call the builder of the first house, “wise person,” while the builder of the second house he calls a “fool.”

The truth is that the wise person obeys the teachings of Christ and lives it. While the foolish person does whatever he /she likes. He/she does not listen to God. A wise person lives and practice faith, hope and charity. He/ she does not measure truth base only on his/ her limited self-driven view points but by the parameter of the Gospel. With the foundation of deep rocky faith, he/she resists temptation, illness, slander and all kinds of injustices. Without faith, without our foundation in Jesus it will be too easy for us to be swept by temptations like the house built on sand. I have seen people before who are sick,  some have lose  their jobs and loved ones, many persecuted unjustly, yet they would still keep their smiles and the strengths of faith endurance, because they have Jesus as their Rock and Foundation.

Let us pray at this mass that as we get ready to begin Lent we may deepen our personal relationship with Jesus, build our homes on a solid rock, by the way we listen to the word of God and act upon them.

Peace be with you!

  

Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time C- Reflections, Fr. Michael U. Udoekpo

Eighth Sunday of the Year C; Reflections by Fr. Michael U Udoekpo

Readings: Sir 27:4-7; Ps 92:2-3, 13-14, 15-16; 1 Cor 15:54-58 and Luke 6:39-45

Speech Reveals Character

Speech is one of the gifts from God. Like any other gifts it could be used wisely or abusively.  It can be use to build the community. It can also be an instrument of destruction and negative criticism. Ben Sira and Jesus today recommend prudence in the use language in everyday life and how we judge our neighbors openly or secretly. I want to add to inordinate use of speech, our other actions and negative silence. These exercises reveal our true character.

By their fruits we shall know them. Ben Sira from his wisdom writings addressed to daily and practical human problems of his time first of all reveals his character. Definitely, he was a wise man. He was a man and teacher of faith. He loved God, the Scriptures and his faith tradition.  For challenging imprudent speeches he must have been very charitable in his use of speeches and someone who would think and reflect before he speaks. Even when he was not using language, his life style and silence merits him the honor of a man of integrity, honesty and diligence.

With challenges of Hellenism he was aware of human suffering even in the course of doing Good or living the faith.. He taught perseverance and trust in divine justice.

And believes that, “the text of what the potter molds is in the furnace, so in tribulation is the test of the just. The fruit of the tree shows the care it has had, so also does ones speech discloses the bent of one’s mind,” (Sir 27:4-7).

Or put differently by Lukan Jesus (Lk 6:39-45),

“A good tree does not bear rotten fruit, nor does a rotten tree bear good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit. For people do not pick figs from thorn bushes, nor do they gather grapes from brambles. A good person, out of the store of goodness in his heart produces good, but an evil person out of the store of evil produces evil, for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.”

This calls for a Christian’s reevaluation of who we are truly called by Jesus to be.  We want to be good trees. We want to bear good fruits.  There is always a clear mark of differences between religious zeal, counseling, corporal / spiritual works of mercy and harsh judgment of our neighbors.

No one wants to spend his or her whole time on gossips, backbiting and criticising others uncharitably. We do not want to spend all our time pointing at the splinter in our neighbors’ eyes while there is a wooden beam sitting in our own eyes. These are not what we have in our storage. Rather we want to show that we are filled with love, sense of friendship, faith and the decency that Christ and Ben Sira have taught us by their examples.

 We want to be that good natured trees of Psalm 1 that bear good fruits of love, good will, prudence, with constructive words towards our neighbors, since “out of the fullness of heart the mouth speaks” (Lk 6:45).

Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time B: Reflections, Fr. Michael U. Udoekpo

Eighth Sunday of the Year B Reflections- Fr. Michael U Udoekpo

Readings: Hos 2:16b, 17b, 21-22; Ps 103:1-2, 3-4, 8, 10, 12-13; 2 Cor 3:1b-6 and Mark 2:18-22

Groom’s Love, Christ’s Love

Today we celebrate the Love of God. In the pages of the Holy Scriptures from the Old to the New Testament this Love of God is expressed in different ways.  In the Old Testament God is always a metaphorical spouse of Israel (Isa 54:4-8; Jer 2:2).

For example in the first reading of today Prophet Hosea uses the imagery of unfaithful wife, Gomer to describe the unfaithfulness of the kings and the people of northern Israel of his time, in the 750s BC. Some were unfaithful to God. And some had also inflicted injustices on their neighbors, especially on their poor and weak fellow citizens.

For Hosea just as a loving and caring husband or partner would forgive  his or her unfaithful partner, God’s love for is quite if not more intense as well.  I was taking a ride a while ago with a young African American Lady attorney from DC to Baltimore area. One of the questions she put to me was “Father, what is the teaching of the Church if a wife or a husband cheats on his or her partner”? My answer was a long one. But the summary was that the Church teaches that such a cheating and unfaithful act is wrong no matter who does it, wife or husband. The church also teaches the need for repentance and forgiveness. I also wanted to know from her why upon all the questions in the world she picked that particular question. She told me she was once cheated upon by her husband, but she still loves him.

In fact, partners in history have also suffered pains and traumas  caused by unfaithfulness of their loved ones. It’s always a very painful and difficult thing to deal with. But many have also shared with me that the love they had had for them cannot be abandoned.

Similarly in Hosea, God is like a husband who has been offended by and unfaithful wife, Israel or vice versa. But this love is never shaken. He/she continues to love her or him. God loves us and “espouses us forever,” (Hos 2:16-22) as a groom to the bride.

Allegorically, this image of God as a loving bridegroom is seen in Christ Jesus who loves us and the Church. We read this in Matthew 22:1-14(the wedding feast), Matthew 25:1-13(the ten virgins) and the very popular one in Ephesians 5:22-32.

And Mark in today’s Gospel does the same. He adopts the spousal imagery of Christ to the life situation of his community when he says, “Can the wedding guest fast while the bridegroom is still with them” (Mark 2:18-22).

Like the presence of the groom at the wedding, the ministry of Jesus brings us joy and happiness, forgiveness and newness of life. It is metaphorical new wine and new garment, new evangelization, renewed preaching and renewed zeal for the Word of God.

 It is the good news of God’s victory over the power of Satan and darkness. It is a new covenant of love to everyone, including our enemies. Remember, Jesus ate with sinners and tax collectors and with the Zacheaus  of his time. From the South He drank water from the Samaritan women from the North.  And taught universal charity in the story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37. In John “everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Whoever is without love does not know God, because God is love (1 John 4:7-20). And there is no greater love than that of Christ who laid down his life for us his friends (John 15:13).

He wants us to do the same with people with meet on the way, loving them, everyone as God, Israel’s Groom, has first loved us.  As St. Paul would put it today, Jesus, the new prophets and the Church’s Groom wants us, our lives to be a "Letter of Recommendation" to the world (2 Cor 3:1-6). Such that people; men, women and children could see our lives, words and deeds and be able to give glory to God.

Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time A Reflections -Fr. Michael U. Udoekpo

Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time A Reflections by Fr. Michael U Udoekpo

Readings: Isa 49:14-15; Psalm 62:2-9; 1 Cor 4:1-5 and Matt 6:24-34

Does God really care about us?

 The lessons of the readings of this Sunday particularly that of Matthew’s Gospel and Paul both are hidden in the lessons from the first reading, Prophet Isaiah Chapter 49:14-15, that God’s affection for us is greater than the love a Mom has for her child.  In Matthew Jesus stresses the danger of possessiveness, acquisitiveness, greediness, and pursuit of perishable treasures. He stresses the need not to be over anxious about things in this life (Matt 6:24-34). And Paul defenses his ministry against negative criticism and underlines the need for Christians to remain heaven focus through how we live here on earth with one another.

 Christ says, “No one can serve two masters” (Matt 6:24). You and I know that sometimes possessions and wealth can distract us from serving God, from giving God our complete obedience. If we want to use the example of service here, an employed staff, worker or servant is expected to be completely dedicated to his or her duties. This had been the rules even from ancient times and that of Jesus.

Christ went on to say, “Do not worry about tomorrow.” Do not be anxious about your life, food, house, what to wear. For the poor and the destitute in Matthew’s community this must be have been a very tough sermon to assimilate at first hearing.   Is it possible for anyone poor or rich to stay without worries about anything at all in life, be it food, roof over their heads, or jobs with good benefits that are sometimes not easy to come by?  Or is it just enough for us to remain lazy at home with the imagination that God will walk into our door and dress us up  like the grasses in the field and with beautiful colors like  those birds there in the sky?

In our relationship with God, in as much as Jesus is not encouraging laziness, Jesus wants us in our various positions in this life, rich and poor to be completely and wholeheartedly trusting in God without limit, confident that the Heavenly Father would always provide for us in the most difficult worrisome situations of our lives.

What are your worries? Human worries will always be there. But we have to surrender them to God, recognizing His care.

For example, the other day I took a cap ride from the airport to our parish. The lady cap driver was a mother of two children, all boys. As soon as she knew that I was a Catholic priest, and cheerful, she was very relaxed, opened up to me. And our conversation from the city ride to Holbrook was on her two lovely boys, Catholic baptized and how smart they are. Two boys never for once talked back to their father nor to her. She said she was very closed them. And they were very closed to her. Her greatest worries were actually not food, nor what to eat or wear, but she was going to be by herself when they two children would leave for college.

 You see, not all worries are about food and clothing. Anxiety is never monopoly of the poor. Many worry about their children, their health, their love ones, the exams they had just taken, will I pass or not. Some worry about their investments. There have been rich people with a lot of money and property   who cannot go to bed at night because they are constantly worried that they would lose all their money to thieves, fraudulent individuals or to stumbling and crumbling in stock market. And they would return to the level of material poverty. Some cannot go to bed because they are worried they will lose whatever power they think they have.

There are some families that are like the Corinthian community Paul was addressing today’s in the Second Reading (1 Cor 4:1-5),  overtaken by quarrel, envy, jealousy, negative criticism, possessiveness, controlling and talking back loudly to one another. If you are from such a family or community I am sure it worries you when you are driving back home from work or school.

We all have these worries. It is a darkness part of our lives. Sometimes the darkness might be so intense like in the case of those who returned from exile in the first reading, to embrace a devastating community with harsh economic and political realities. Some thought God had forsaken them.  There moments we want to know where God is!  The truth of the matter is that He has not forgotten us. Just as a good mother would not forget her nursing child God will never forget nor forsake us in our worries and difficulties(in our search for peace in our homes, for the healing our loved ones, for that job to come our way, for a better understanding of ourselves in  our homes, parish community, and work environment).  Even should a nursing mother forget her baby God will never forget us.”  In fact, God’s affection for us is even stronger than the love of a mother nursing to her baby (Isa 49:14-15).

 And if God could care for plants and birds, God cares for us all the more. God will always be there for us in every circumstances of our lives provided we belief and trust in Him.

Reflections Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time C- Fr. Michael U. Udoekpo

Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time C: Reflections by Fr. Michael Ufok Udoekpo

Readings: 1 Sam 26:2, 7-9,12-13,22-23; Ps 103:1-4, 8,10,12-13; 1 Cor 15:45-49 and Luke 6:27-38

Trials of Supernatural Endurance

The story in today’s first reading is a powerful faith story. It is a story of how we can love. A story of how we can be merciful unto one another. A story of how we can endure hatred and difficulties. It is a story of how vunerable we can also become sometimes, even when we presume we have it all. It is a story of how we can respect consecrated persons and things. It is a story of how we can respect one another the temple of the Holy Spirit.  It is a story of how we can forgive including those we know are not on our side.

Saul, from the tribe of Benjamin, the first King of Israel, because of David’s popularity became envious of David. He sought to kill.  David fled from Saul’s army to the wilderness of Ziph with his friend Abishai. David as God would have it discovered where Saul was hiding and sleeping in the other side of the camp. His body guard and commanders including Abner were also asleep. All the deadly weapons that Saul and his military had were laying helplessly to their own detriment. In fact, Saul’s spear was stuck to the ground next to his neck and head.

Abishai, David’s friend suggested that the available spear be used to nail him to the ground for  immediate slaughter, but David for the second time spared Saul’s life, for he was God’s anointed.

Saul’s sins against David did not make Saul less anointed king of Israel. Sparing Saul’s life shows us how we can endure with God’s grace trials and all forms of injustices in this life, and how we can forgive and forgive in this life ( Matt 18:21-22).

I am positive that at least once in our life time we may have offended our neighbors before. And there are times at once we may have felt offended also. David teaches us to forgive and pardon during those circumstances.

St. Paul in Romans 12:17-21 says,

“Do not repay anyone evil; be concerned with what is noble in the sight of all. If possible, in your part, live at peace with all. Beloved do not look for vengeance, but leave room for the wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” Rather if your enemy is hungry feed him/her; if he is thirty give him something to drink, for by so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head. Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.”

David really had a great heart. And David’s greater Son Jesus had a great heart of love of mercy and forgiveness. Jesus taught us how to pursue the right thing the right way not the wrong way.  In Luke 4:5- 8 Jesus refuses Satan’s short cut to the cross. He never works miracles to promote himself except, God. He updated the commandment of revenge to forgiveness.

In the Gospel of today (Luke 6: 27-38), He updated the rule of love of those who love you to that of love everybody including our enemies. We are to bless those who curse us and pray for those that have maltreated us as well as be charitable in passing judgment on our neighbors.  Christ also wants us to do to others what we would love done to us- the golden rule (Matt 7:12). Like David and Saul the foundation of this is God’s love. In John 13:34 he says, “I give you a new commandment, says the Lord, love one another as I have loved you, (to the cross).”

 Since we are Christ’s own let us pray at this worship for the greatness of the heart of love, endurance, mercy and forgiveness to those who have offended us, and forgiveness from those we have offended.  And may we always seek for an opportunity to love rather than to revenge.

Peace be with you!

Reflections Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time B-Fr. Miichael U. Udoekpo

Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time B: Reflections by Fr. Michael Ufok Udoekpo

Readings: Isa 43:18-19, 21-22, 24b-25; Ps 41:2-5, 13-14; 2 Cor 1:18-22 and Mark 2:1-12

Bringing Christ’s Healing Touch to the World

In the last few Sundays we saw Jesus consistently doing good, healing people, including the illness of Simon’s mother-in-law. He went on to heal the lepers in Mark 1:40-45. Today Christ the new Prophets continues to forgive sin, to love and show comfort. Particularly he heals, forgives and wipes out the offenses of the paralytic brought to him by four men (Mk 2:1-12) at Capernuam.

We have so much to learn spiritually and pastorally from this healing gathering in Capernaum as well as from the liberating journeys of Israel from the dryness and paralyses of exile we have heard in the first reading from the Prophet Isaiah.

When Isaiah says today, “Remember not the events of the past, the things of long ago, consider not, see I am doing something new,” What is God telling Israel/ us through Isaiah? I want to believe that is all about God’s saving role in the life of Israel; God’s role in liberating Israel from the Egypt, the wilderness experience, the journeys through that desert which was fundamental to the existence of Israel.

Even after the liberating hardship from the desert’s journeys they found themselves again in the wilderness of exile in Babylon. Though liberated from exile how to get home became a problem as well. It was frightening. They needed words of comfort from Isaiah. It is sometimes hard for us to appreciate what a scary prospect this journey from Babylon to Israel must have been for them especially for the young ones who were born in Exile, Babylon would have been the only home they knew. We are talking about more than 900 miles on foot from Babylon to Israel on a stony dusty road. This will take months and months. But God was on their side wiping away their sins and guiding them throughout their dangerous journeys from Babylon to Israel.

The dangers and the hardship of exile can be compared with dangers of   illnesses, paralysis and even the dangers of sins that put a barrier between us, God and our neighbors. The Four friends of the paralytic knew that Jesus was there in Capernaum. Most of them also thought that being bed-ridden were as a result of sin (Jn 9:2). They also had knew with faith that it was Jesus alone who could heal and at the same time forgive sins.

 It must have been heavy to carry this man on the stretcher. Plus their faith, the unroofed the roof to make sure the sick man was brought to receive healing and forgiveness from Jesus. When Jesus saw the faith of the four friends he forgave the paralytic and cured him body and soul.

What a moving healing scene. Our Christian faith is not just reasoning but living. Faith has no boundary it can break through all kinds of barriers, including that of hatred to love, exclusiveness to inclusiveness. With faith we can also help our spouse, friend, brother, sister, parents and children to see the beauty of the forgiving power of God in the sacrament of reconciliation and in union with Christ in other Sacraments.

The four faith-filled friends who carried this stretcher represent who we are called to be, namely our brothers and sisters keepers. We are call to recognize how dependent we are on one another, and to assist one another in different areas of lives, seeking peace, justice, and working for the common good. We are call to offer good suggestions to our needy friends in our different professional circumstances; in the church narthex, hospitals, schools, offices, and homes.

And may the healing touch of Christ upon us today enable us to bring Christ’s forgiving and loving presence to the rest of the world.

 Peace be with you!

Reflections Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time A- Fr. Michael U Udoekpo

Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time A: Reflections by Fr. Michael Ufok Udoekpo

 Readings: Lev 19:1-2, 17-18; Ps 103:1-2,3-4,8,10,12-13; 1 Cor 3:16-23 and Matt 5:38-48

 Charity towards Everyone

I was born in the time of the Vatican II, just like many of you in this Congregation. But I have also seen that, there are many of you who were born before the Vatican II council. This group would testify that there have been a lot changes, updating, innovation and renewals, particularly in the areas of liturgical teachings and laws in the Church to meet the needs of the time. And culture. Remember, there were times priests were celebrating the Holy mass backing the congregation. But today Masses are celebrated facing the people. There were times Scriptures at worship were read only in Latin. Today we can read it in English. Different nations and cultures can also read it in their native languages. Thanks be to God!

Remember there were times women and the minority were not allow to vote at elections in this country. But today those laws have been changed around.  In other parts of the world where cast- system and dictatorship style of government are practice, many are beginning to realize the need for and update.

Why I am saying this? I am saying this because of today’s Bible readings. The Book of Leviticus 19:17-18, part of the Holiness Code (Lev 17–26) says “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But Jesus today, in Matthew’s Gospel says “love your enemy” (Matt 5:44), no retaliation, be charitable to all.   The Book of Exodus 21:24-25, quoted even by Jesus, said, “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth,” but Jesus says, “offer no resistance to one who is evil.” (Matt 5:38-42).

 What we must  bear in mind  as we reflect on these Bible passages is that just as we have laws in the church and in the society today been constantly reviewed or updated the ancient society also needed laws that were been constantly reviewed, innovated and updated to regulate it. Every Society beginning from the time of Moses, Paul and Jesus needed laws and ethical principles to regulate it. They needed an acceptable way of dealing with those who disrupt it.  For examples  laws in the book of Exodus were constantly updated in Leviticus, in Deuteronomy, in Nehemiah down to the time of Jesus. Think of what our society would have been without laws against running the red light or robbing a bank.

The retributive ethics of the Covenant Code, ‘an eye for an eye or a tooth for tooth” that Christ is working on today from Exodus 21:24-25 was not meant to promote revenge and retaliation. Rather they were meant to protect the citizens against un-proportional, illegitimate and unending retaliation. They were meant to say if a “fly perches on your food you don’t need to attack the fly with an atomic bomb or AK47.  Otherwise you might cause more damage than the fly. I remember the last Russian –Georgia war the language of disproportional use of force was constantly used on the media. But for Christ, charity must overcome the thought and the acts of retaliation and violence and disproportionate wars not meant to dissuade attacking enemies and acts of terrorism.

Christ also takes up the Holiness ethics of the first reading, Leviticus 19:18, which says, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” And “neighbor” here  is  referring to a fellow Israelite, since a different attitude was required towards those other nations that were hostile to them (see Deut 23:1-3). Certainly during the time of Christ these laws were also changing. But Jesus teaches us today to take a different spiritual and moral steps and a refined position with regard to our relationship with everybody including those we do not like so much or those we know do not like us. Christ is telling us today that everyone is your neighbors, love them. We see the true Christian definition of a neighbor in the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 29-36. We see this in the encounter of Jesus with the Samaritan women in John chapter 4:4-42. This is what faith does. This is what the water of baptism does.

Sometimes without faith and prayers, Christ invitation to holiness of life of non revenge and violence or practice of charity to everyone sounds frightening and impossible.  They are possible with the grace of God. And we can do this in many little ways.

Christ did not come to abolish the laws, but to fulfill them. He rather came replacing s violence, racisms, discriminating love with his mission to the corss (Luke 23:24), teaching us how to love and forgive all including those who persecute the church or ill-treat us. It is uncharitable if we rush to  rashes judge our neighbors, “temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor 3:16-23)  or put up a stone face or domineering behavior, becoming absorbed  in our personal limited opinions, and world-views in place of openness, a warm smile, or select those we say “good morning” to. Or engage in gossips, negative criticism, retaliations or spread falsehoods about our neighbors. For Christ this will be a pagan way of travelling. And none of us would want to travel that low road.

Let us pray at this Mass for a deep life of universal charity with perseverance in faith to be holy as our Heavenly Father is Holy.

Peace be with you!