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Wisdom 18:6-9; Psalm 33; Hebrews 11:1-2, 8-19; Luke 12:32-48
Fr. Thomas Oyode
“Christian Faith as Trust in God who is Father”
1. Today’s second reading, from the letter to the Hebrews (11:1-2; 8-9), begins a recurrent catechism on the Christian faith that will continue for few more Sundays. The author gives a classical definition of faith as “the assurance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen”. As a matter of fact I had asked myself while reflecting on today’s readings whether it was possible to talk about faith in our age and time. It is possible but very challenging. I tried to imagine an incredulous audience, a congregation of persons who are troubled and downcast considering the spate of hunger, economic recession, drought, war, crime, corruption, banditry and terrorism. I imagined having before me a people who see the God-talk (faith-talk) as boring because of trauma, failure, betrayal and depression. How does one begin to talk about faith? Interestingly, the conditions and circumstances of the time when the Letter to the Hebrews was written are not much of a difference; the author’s audience was also undergoing difficult and trying times including persecution (cf. Heb. 10:32-34). The author wrote to encourage them to remain faithful to God who is faithful to his promises.2. More than a catechism on the Christian faith, today’s passage presents us with the functional value of faith by using historical examples and personages to shows us how faith functions as a bastion, a pillar for our Christian journey through the challenges of life. It is as if the author means to tell us: _if these persons can do it, you too can do it_. Among the personages proposed by the author, Abraham and Sarah stand out as one shining light. None of the promises made by God to Abraham and Sarah were seen in the concrete and immediate future. From a rational-logical point of view, they were beyond childbearing age when God promised that they would bear a son but they believed in the promises of God who is faithful. On the examples of faith of this couple, a commentary from Pope Francis’ Lumen Fidei (though there are strong reasons to believe that the part here cited was written by Benedict XVI before his retirement) would do.
3. In articles 9-11, the Pope writes, “Hence, if we want to understand what faith is, we need to follow the route it has taken, the path trodden by believers, as witnessed first in the Old Testament. Here a unique place belongs to Abraham, our father in faith. Something disturbing takes place in his life: God speaks to him; he reveals himself as a God who speaks and calls his name. Faith is linked to hearing. Abraham does not see God, but hears his voice. Faith thus takes on a personal aspect. God is not the god of a particular place, or a deity linked to specific sacred time, but the God of a person, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, capable of interacting with man and establishing a covenant with him. Faith is our response to a word which engages us personally, to a “Thou” who calls us by name….The word spoken to Abraham contains both a call and a promise. First, it is a call to leave his own land, a summons to a new life, the beginning of an exodus which points him towards an unforeseen future. The sight which faith would give to Abraham would always be linked to the need to take this step forward: faith “sees” to the extent that it journeys, to the extent that it chooses to enter into the horizons opened up by God’s word. This word also contains a promise: Your descendants will be great in number, you will be the father of a great nation (cf. Gen 13:16; 15:5; 22:17). As a response to a word which preceded it, Abraham’s faith would always be an act of remembrance. Yet this remembrance is not fixed on past events but, as the memory of a promise, it becomes capable of opening up the future, shedding light on the path to be taken. We see how faith, as remembrance of the future, memoria futuri, is thus closely bound up with hope…Abraham is asked to entrust himself to this word. Faith understands that something so apparently ephemeral and fleeting as a word, when spoken by the God who is fidelity, becomes absolutely certain and unshakable, guaranteeing the continuity of our journey through history. Faith accepts this word as a solid rock upon which we can build, a straight highway on which we can travel.”
4. Faith is thus seen as a relationship with a Person, God who is Father and who is really present in our future as much as in our past and present moments. In fact, the Hebrew word for faith is “amen” which means to “uphold” and it is from this that the word “faithful” is derived. In this sense, Christianity can be seen as a relationship between God is who is a faithful Father and the believer becomes an adopted son and daughter of God by faithfulness and trust. Precisely for this reason, today’s opening prayer at Mass asks that God, whom we dare to call Father, may bring to perfection in our hearts the spirit of adoption as sons and daughters of God. Therefore, just as the author of the Letter to the Hebrews wants us to hold on to faith in the face of the challenges of our time, Jesus also says in today’s gospel that there is no need to be afraid for it is the will of the God the Father that we may inherit the kingdom (Luke 12:32-48). If we believe in God who is Father and who is faithful, why do become too anxious about the future? Why do we live in fear? Why do we abandon God and abandon God’s ways to pursue values and ideologies which only increase our sorrow and leave us empty of lasting joy and peace?5. Fear and faith are two parallel road paths and choices before us. The latter takes us through a road dotted with the trees of impatience, vainglory, anxiety, depression, confusion, error and slavery to sin, death and darkness. The path of fear is what pushes us to submit to evil because we want the comfort and enjoyment of the present moments. Fear crumbles us and makes us bend our knee to worship quick success. Faith, on the other hand, takes us along the track where we learn to resign our own will to God and allow him direct the course of our lives and our every day choices. The path of faith is lighted by divine providence (God who provides) and the trees are peace, stability and fulfillment. This is the lamp that Jesus asks us to keep until we arrive at our destination (Luke 12:35), the lamp of faith which keeps love burning and keeps hope alive. In this way, the leap of faith is not leap into some dark void but a gift and a light that God gives us to embolden us as sons and daughters who have a Father that is the Driver. If the Lord is the Driver in our journey then we have him already with us and there is no other way to be ready when he comes for we are always with him and he is always with us.
Fr. Paul Oredipe
Waiting and Watching in Faith, not fear
Do you remember the gospel passage of last Sunday – the rich fool, so much labour and toil for nothing. How can we avoid such an inglorious end? We are told the way in today’s Gospel.
Jesus begins by exhorting us his disciples: “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” He then passes to speak of the main theme and tells us how to become rich in the sight of God: “Sell your possessions, and give alms; provide yourselves with purses that do not grow old, with a treasure in heaven that does not fail, where no thief approaches, and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
The rich farmer in the gospel of last Sunday stored up so many goods, but had to leave them behind in this world. He did not find a way of taking them with himself, a way of transferring ‘his treasure abroad’. There is a saying, a proverb that goes thus: “Who gives to the poor is lending to God”. This is true indeed. If you store up goods for yourself, they will be either spoiled by moths or divided out by your family and friends, who perhaps will squander everything without even a thought for the one who gathered them. Better, much better to find a place for them in heaven where thieves and moths cannot reach. This is the best insurance policy and practice.
The message for us today is: whatever is the number of our years, we have to be prepared at all times. The Lord is calling us to be faithful and steadfast. Any time is a bad time for the unfaithful servant. Any time is a good time for the faithful servant.
As human beings, one of the things we cannot control is time. You cannot store it up. You cannot postpone it. You cannot hold it. It runs and runs waiting for no one. What we can do is to follow it patiently and wisely.
Research and studies reveal that one person dies every second. Since the beginning of this Mass, at least …. x 60 = ….. would have died all over the world. The next second could be yours or mine. We can be called back home any moment from now, even right now (just think of the many cases of cardiac arrest or heart attack and failure). Place and time are unknown – only one thing is sure: none of us will escape.
In the words of a preacher: “the God you cannot escape, why are you running away from him now?” To dismiss the thought of death, pushing it to the back of our minds as something to be faced at a later date, is the type of foolishness Christ condemns in the Gospel. If we live with no thought as to where the journey of life is taking us, (as tourists, rather than as pilgrims with vision and destination) we are neglecting to make elementary preparations for the coming of the kingdom.
To be prepared does not mean to have accomplished everything one wants to accomplish. It means to be true to one’s responsibilities in the present moment. It is not how or when we die that matters, but how we live.
Watchfulness is not an option. Watchfulness is the best option. We must be watchful so that the future does not take us by surprise. We must be watchful in order to master events, rather than being mastered by them. We must be watchful to make sure that we never lose peace, not even in the face of the most terrible trials and adversities. We must be watchful so as to discover God’s writing in the pages of history, to discover the action of the Spirit within us, within people. We must be watchful so that we can finish the last page of the book of our life with a happy ending, and preserve the integrity of our faith, hope and charity, “when he will come.” Watchfulness is not an option, it is a vital need of our life.
In our First reading. we hear of the Israelite ancestors who waited for the deliverance that was promised, and we hear that they waited “in sure knowledge of the oaths in which they trusted.” The people expected deliverance and they lived each day waiting, but also sure of the promise.
The Second reading gives us the rich examples of our ancestors in Faith. They faced their future with simple trust and faith in God’s promises to them. This faith, as the reading teaches us, is “confident assurance concerning what we hope for, and conviction about things we do not see.” These were people like us, and in their stories is something of our own. We search and question and are often fearful, and our tomorrows may feel out of control. In being watchful, one thing we need is Faith. With faith, the future remains so filled with hope and promises, instead of fears and anxieties.
Abraham is the great model and exemplar when it comes to this most important journey. For this is a journey of faith. As today’s second reading tells us, “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; … By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, … For he looked forward to the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” By faith he left home, family, country to enter the land promised by God. It was his faith that led him to the land of milk and honey. A land where, by and with God’s promise he became the father of a great nation, descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sands on the seashore. All because of faith.
How wonderfully comforting are those words of Christ, as he assures us in the Gospel: “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” In His love we are safe. The disciples must have wondered how they could ever achieve the purpose for which Jesus had called them. The forces opposing them were formidable, and the one upon whom they so depended spoke of leaving them. They needed to realize that they were not striving for a political victory, nor working for earthly riches. Their hearts could be where their treasure was, because the treasure was already in their hearts. The kingdom of Heaven is within, and they were to enter into a victory already won.
They were not to be afraid, but neither were they to be complacent. They were to be ready for a climax that could come upon them at any time. Like servants keeping vigil for a master’s return or a householder guarding against thieves, so they were to be prepared for the coming of the Son of Man.
God is a faithful God and His promises are fulfilled. Abraham is the symbol of hope, as is shown in the Letter to the Hebrews, our second reading. At first he lives in the hope and expectation of a son, and God fulfills these hopes by giving him Isaac, in spite of the fact that Sarah, his wife, is past the age and sterile. Then he waits in the expectation and hope of a land and of numerous descendants. Not only does God fulfill his promise, but He also overcomes evil, and with love He attracts and calls the chosen ones to him. He is not only a faithful God, but also a loving Father. Abraham spent his final years waiting – waiting for the land and the descendants God had promised.
In the Letter to the Hebrews, the patriarchs and the great figures of the people of Israel are portrayed as looking for a homeland. The author of the Letter interprets this quest not in a historical, but in a meta-historical way: “They aspire to a better home, that is, the heavenly home.” God himself, who was faithful by fulfilling his promises in history, will be faithful in the hereafter of history.
The Gospel especially tells us about this meta-historical expectation and hope, by using the image of the master, whose return the servants must await in order to open the door when he knocks. From his very birth, man has been waiting for his Master in some way.
As Christians, we must wait without fear, with joy, because “it has pleased the Father to give you the Kingdom,” and God, our Father, will fulfill our expectations. We must wait in an attitude of readiness at all times: “See that you have your belts done up and your lamps lit.”
We live by hope, but all of the history of salvation has shown us, century after century, that the hope placed in God will not disappoint us. God Himself is the Lord of history. And as the responsorial Psalm teaches us: “Blessed the people the Lord has chosen as his heritage.”
Again, as human beings, one of the things we cannot control is time. You cannot store it up. You cannot postpone it. You cannot hold it. It runs and runs waiting for no one. What we can do is to follow it patiently and wisely.
We pray in the words of the Psalm: “Our soul is waiting for the LORD. He is our help and our shield. May your merciful love be upon us as we hope in you, O LORD.” May your eyes enlighten the present reality with the brightness that they have captured looking to the future. When the Master comes, may we be found prepared to enter and dine with him in the eternal banquet of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Rev. Fr. Stephen Udechukwu
How prepared are you?
There are two most important moments in the life of every man. People prepare for one on your behalf while every individual must prepare for the other one. These two moments are the moment of birth and the moment of death. Interestingly, everyone wants to talk about the moment of birth. In fact it is a moment of great joy and because it is a moment of great joy, a woman who is pregnant is called an expectant mother; she hopes and expects joyfully that great day when a child will be borne by her. This same moment is celebrated and remembered almost every year to the extent that failure to celebrate it has brought division, quarrel and fight in many families and relationships. People spend lavishly celebrating this great moment.
Unfortunately, the second most important moment in the life of man is often neglected; it is most times not discussed and because it is not always talked about, many people fail to prepare for this great and maybe painful day. No one wants to die! I remember asking a young boy while preparing this reflection “do you want to die” and he was so quick to respond “eeeh God forbid” and that probably will be the response of many of us. Surprisingly, the bible made more reference to death than birth hence psalm 90:10 says that “our span is seventy and eighty years for those who are strong’. Funny thing is that one can escape giving birth but cannot escape death; a woman can decide to remain childless but has no say when it comes to her death.
Aside from Enoch and Elijah every other biblical character went through the pain/joy of death. Adam the first man in Genesis 5:5 died at the age of nine hundred and thirty years. Genesis 5:8 says that Seth died at the age of nine hundred and twelve while Methuselah died in Genesis 5:27 at the age of nine hundred and sixty nine years and Lamech died at seven hundred and seventy seven years in Genesis 5:31. This is to show that the reality of death is certain no matter how we run away from it; no matter how long we live we must die. In fact, to show the certainty of death one Dr. John Rice says that every architect consciously or unconsciously thinks about death when drawing any house. He went further to say that one rule every architect tries to remember while drawing a house is that “every staircase and every bedroom door must be large enough to pass a coffin”. (Only architects know how true this is…). Since the reality of death is certain, then all our days on earth should be to prepare for it because we do not know the day nor the hour.In our gospel reading last Sunday, we read about the rich fool who was busy accumulating wealth while neglecting God and because he was carried away by his wealth, he was unprepared for his death. Our gospel reading this Sunday drives home the same point of last Sunday in a different and unique way. It comes with three different parables: V. 35-38 talks about the wedding banquet, V. 39-40 talks about the coming thief and V. 41-48 talks about a faithful and unfaithful slave. Jesus tells his followers how they should prepare for their last moment. He says “sell that which you have and give gifts to the needy”. And he continues in V. 33 “make yourselves purses which don’t grow old, a treasure in the heavens that doesn’t fail”. It means that one of the important purses that can only help us before the judgment throne of God is the purse of charity and that is why Luke both in his gospel and in the Acts of the Apostles took out time to emphasize charity. When the people asked John what to do to escape Divine punishment in Luke 3:10-11 John told them “if you have two tunics, give one to the person who has none, and if you have food do the same”. The gift of earthly things builds a great Manson and investment in heaven.
There is so much strife and greed in the world today because many people are not thinking and preparing for death. Because we are not preparing for death, many of us are still being intoxicated by material things which take our peace away. How prepared are you for the last day, when you will breathe your last. If you have ever wondered and meditated on what happens at death, when nothing becomes your own, when you will be naked in the mortuary, when your only room will be your grave, when all the sun and rain will be on you and even when your family spends so much to buy clothes and jewelries for your corpse and use the most expensive casket, thieves will only wait patiently till evening of that day and then they go take everything and sale, then you will take your time to prepare for it; you will realize that the material things of this world are nothing when we don’t use them well. How prepared are you! HAPPY SUNDAY AND GOD BLESS YOU
Fr. Daniel Evbotokhai
Readiness for God’s kingdom
Luke 12:32-48 of today’s gospel presents us with the parable of the faithful servant; a call to be ready for God’s kingdom. In fact the whole of Luke Chapter 12 deals with Christ’s open and fearless speech. Through various parables and examples, Christ prepared his disciples for the world so that regardless of the hostilities and persecutions, they might stand ready for salvation. Let us look at the various examples in today’s gospel for us to understand how we can be part of God’s kingdom.
Do not be afraid: Jesus said to his disciples “Do not be afraid, little flock, for it has pleased your father to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32). Having espoused fearlessly the demands and radical nature of mission to his disciples, it was almost natural for them to be afraid and so Jesus said to them; “Do not be afraid”. Severally, the Bible exhorts us against fear. Christians who live in fear of persecution and hostilities are babies in faith. They will never come to their true manifestation in God. A true Christian is not afraid of persecution and suffering. Paul calls it momentary affliction that produces eternal reward (2Cor.4:17); even when he was told not to go to Jerusalem that he will be killed; he resisted that fear, and insisted on his journey to fulfill his mandate, yet he was not killed in Jerusalem (Acts 21). Beloved, fear is the greatest attack against faith. If we don’t break away from our fears, we cannot come to the fuller manifestation of our gifts for the realization of God’s Kingdom. Those who live in fear are usually defeated before battles. And so Heb10:35 says; “cast not away your confidence for there shall be a recompense of reward.” There is an eternal reward for bravery.
Be Alert: To be part of God’s kingdom we need to be alert. Jesus said to his disciples “Blessed are those servants whom the master finds wide wake when he comes” (Luke 12:37). In this verse, the call to readiness is presented in a parabolic language. To be wide awake is to be alert of God’s gift and demands of his kingdom. Many Christians do not know the demands of God’s kingdom. For them, miracles and solutions are essence of faith. Such Christians are fast asleep; sleeping recklessly like the prostitutes in 1Kings 3:16-27 who slept and misplaced their destinies. Beloved, be wide awake, endeavour to always be in the state of grace; to sleep recklessly is to be in sin and remain obstinate. Let us rise, the day is at hand. Paul says in Rom. 13:12 “the night is far spent, and the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.” Be alert and journey with caution. Many of us have slept recklessly and our homes and hearts have been broken into. Some others like the unfaithful steward have gone their own ways; eating, fighting, drinking and getting drunk. We need to come back to our senses and say like the Prodigal son “I will rise and go back to my Father”.
Be faithful: To be part of God’s kingdom we need to be faithful. Jesus tells us that “Blessed is that servant whom the master finds doing his job when he comes.” For a faithful servant the arrival of the master is not a burden neither is it a calamity. For this reason when we say the “Our Father” during the Eucharistic prayers the priest adds “As we await in joyful expectation, the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” So, for a faithful servant Christ’s coming is a joyful expectation or a blessed hope and anytime is best time. But for an unfaithful servant; Christ coming breeds anxieties and anytime is a bad time. The first reading exhorts us to be faithful; the people of Israel looked at their history and realized that God has always been faithful. Beloved, the Lord is faithful and the time for his coming is unknown; therefore, we should learn to be faithful, watchful and not fakeful. Again, we equally have the example of Abraham and Sarah in the second reading. They believed God’s promise for their lives and took the part of obedience. Despite the contrary suggestions of their appearances they were alert and so in the time of their vitiation they were not caught unawares -Abraham hosted the Angels.
We shall give account for our souls: To be part of God’s kingdom, we must realize that we shall give account for our souls. To whom much is given, much more will be required (Luke 12:48). We are held responsible for what we have. If we have been blessed with wealth, knowledge, time, and the likes, it is expected that we benefit others. When God blesses you; you don’t need to hoard; or build bigger ban, what you need is a generous heart. There is a difference between responsible saving and hoarding. Saving involves faith, but hoarding eliminates faith. Most hoarders who have stockpiled for generations to come have almost render their children irresponsible. Jesus added; “to whom a great deal has been entrusted; much more will be demanded from him”. Let us always remember that our souls will be required of us. Are you ready? Any Christian who accumulates wealth without amassing grace may die foolishly.
Rev. Fr. Evaristus Okeke
“For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Lk.12:34)
Prepare to meet Him
It is often and rightly said that: Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. If we must do anything well, we must prepare. This importance of preparation forms the thrust of today’s liturgy – preparation for the second coming of Christ. It is easier to prepare for the coming of a high personality in the family/society than to prepare for Christ’s coming. Not really because it costs more to prepare for the latter but because, preparing for the former seems more concrete and perceptible to the senses. The coming of the high personality will have a date and time. Whatever does not have date and time is seen as not yet serious; this seems to be our challenge in preparing for Christ’s coming.
The second reading addresses this challenge. It tells us that it takes faith to prepare for Christ’s coming. Faith is perfectly defined as the assurance of things hoped for; the conviction of things not seen. This means that faith enables us to prepare and always anticipate that which has no date and time. Without faith, we cannot do this; without faith, we cannot please God. While we need information to prepare for the coming of man; we need faith to prepare for the coming of God. Any attempt to interchange them is catastrophic. Are we waiting for some signs before setting to receive Christ? Do we stylishly put away any consciousness of Christ’s coming with the slang “God forbid, E never reach my time to die”? Remember, time and date are not expected factors.
The example of Abraham and Sarah is given as evidence that faith is something alive not mere fiction. Preparation for Christ’s coming is not about doing something but about living a life of righteousness. When we live rightly, we are not bordered by when and how he will come, neither will we be disappointed when he seems to be delaying. The good thing about preparing in this manner to meet Christ is that we automatically begin to live heaven here on earth. Beloved, the kingdom of God begins in this world. Only those who have participated here can participate above.
Preparing for death is different from preparing to meet the Lord. In the parable Jesus gave in the gospel reading of today, Jesus was specific about a servant waiting for his master. That we shall die is certain (whether we like it or not, whether we prepare or not). Where the issue lies is whether we shall meet the Master after death. Most times, we prepare for death under the guise that we are preparing for Christ. For instance people struggle to have male children, landed properties, good money in their bank account(s) or good investments, give generously to Church and others, and so on. They do all these so that when they die, their memories will be ever cherished and life will not be difficult for those they will live behind.
I do not say that doing these is entirely out of place; but I do say that they do not count for preparing to meet the Lord because God will not ask us how well we have done any of the above. If we must meet the Lord after death, we must be holy. This means making concrete effort to always avoid sin and to do good. We must live justly and be of help to all and sundry.
The first reading tells us that the coming of the Lord is the salvation of the Just. From the preceding verses, reference was made to Pharaoh’s attempt to kill Moses when he ordered the killings of every male born of the Israelites. In return for this evil, their first born sons were killed “that night” and still more in the raging sea. What this means is that when Christ comes, he will not only reward us for being watchful, he will also destroy our enemy, the devil.
We do not know when the Lord will come; but we are sure of his coming and what he will do when he comes. We are also clear about how he wants us to prepare for his coming. Are we going to keep living in self-deception by behaving as though he will not come, or even if he must come, as though he will tell us when he is coming? Worse still, are we going to merely prepare for death? We have the freedom to choose our line of action but we cannot evade the consequences of our choice. God Bless You!
LET US PRAY
Almighty ever-living God, whom, taught by the Holy Spirit, we dare to call our Father, bring, we pray, to perfection in our hearts the spirit of adoption as your sons and daughters, that we may merit to enter into the inheritance which you have promised. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. AMEN!
