March 29, 2020. Homily for the Fifth Sunday of Lent Year A

Readings: Ez. 37:12-14; Rom 8:8-11; John 11:1-45

Jesus Wept!

The readings of the Third, Fourth and Fifth Sundays of Lent in Year A, are specially chosen for scrutinies. “The Scrutinies are rites for self-searching and repentance and have above all a spiritual purpose. They are meant to uncover, then heal all that is weak, defective, or sinful in the hearts of the elect; to bring out then strengthen all that is upright, strong, and good.” (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults). This was clearly seen in the story of the Samaritan woman (Third Sunday of Lent), who came to the well to draw water in John 4:5-42. From her interaction with Jesus, she discovered that Jesus is the Messiah who came to give us everlasting life through his words. Jesus told her: “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again; but whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst; the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” In the story of the man born blind, John 9:1-41 (Fourth Sunday of Lent), we discovered that we are all blind; hence, we must accept our blindness, our faults and our shortcomings and go to Jesus for a cure. Christ warns: “If you were blind, then you would not be guilty; but since you claim that you can see, this means that you are still blind.” Let us therefore, ask Christ to open our eyes so that we may see him as our Savior, our Lord and our God. In today’s Gospel reading from John 11:1-45, we see Jesus at the graveside of his friend, Lazarus. Christ wept for him and then raised him to life again. Jesus tells us: “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.”

Since we are observing social distancing and are unable to celebrate public Mass with the attendance of the parishioners and celebrate the third scrutiny today, the readings are adaptive to our current situation. In the first reading, Ezekiel promised the people that God had not abandoned them. He is with them always to rescue and bring them back to the land of Israel. “O my people, I will open your graves, and have you rise from them, and bring you back to the land of Israel.” God promised to pour out his spirit on the dead bones and restore them to life again. In the Gospel Jesus wept for Lazarus before he brought him back to life. He told those standing by to untie Lazarus, who came out of the tomb “tied hand and foot with burial bands, and his face was wrapped in cloth, and let him go.”

Why did Jesus weep for Lazarus? Showing emotions, like crying or laughing, can humble and bring us closer together as human beings. We shed tears when we are personally touched by the object that provoke us to tears. Tears shed for the passing of loved ones or tears shed amid tragedy can be said to be tears shed for humanity. When Jesus wept for Lazarus, he expressed his humanity in a very special way that elicited comments from the crowd. “See how he loved him.” The tears of Jesus identified him with our human weakness. Jesus wept because Lazarus, his friend, whom he loved, was dead. Christ felt sad for the pain that death caused those he loved. His tears demonstrated that he is not a stranger to our pains, loss, deprivation and our need for comfort, companionship and love. Christ assures us, through his tears, that it is all right to cry and be empathic, but not to weep as those without hope. He is always in our midst. He may be delayed in coming to our aid, but he will surely come. His delay may be “for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” He will reach out and touch us and bring solace to our pains. Hence, he restored Lazarus to life, even after shedding tears for him.

When faced with sad and frustrating situations, such as now, with the coronavirus pandemic and being locked-down for days, we wonder when it will all end. The news is sad and gloomy with more and more people being infected and the number of deaths growing with the day, we weep for ourselves and cry out to God. This is the time to see Jesus weeping with us. Let us be consoled that the Christ who weeps with us, knows what to do for us, to draw us out of darkness of despair to the light of his love. His love and concern for us will triumph over our sadness, pain and loss. We have to trust him enough to entrust our worries and anxiety to him. The book of Proverbs cautions us that “Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.” (Prov. 12:25). And Peter urged us to “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (1Peter 5:7). While Paul encourages us: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:6-7). 

The God who does the impossible will do the possible for us at our hour of despair and worries. We must do what Mary and Martha did - send words to Jesus, then wait for Christ to show up and then run out to welcome him, hoping that he will cry for us and with us. After weeping he will ask us, where have you kept him? What is the problem? How can I help you? Once these questions are asked, we know that our miracle is close at hand. He will call out in a loud voice and restore us to wholeness. He will call for us to be untied, released and set free. Christ needed others to untie Lazarus. He wants us to cooperate with him to set ourselves free from our bondage. We are grateful to doctors, nurses, scientists, paramedics, all health care providers and men and women of good who have joined hands together to fight this pandemic. We must do our part to stay at home so that we may flatten the curve of this virus. We must be set free from our shackles, our frustrations and our doubts so that Christ may give life to our brokenness.

May we never give up hope for we know that after Good Friday comes Easter Sunday. We will fight and subdue this virus. For we know we are not alone. “…the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4). We pray that Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who is our life and our resurrection may stand by us so that we may be set free from the clutches of coronavirus and restore our world to normalcy once again. Amen.

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP

March 22, 2020 Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Lent; Year A

Readings: 1 Samuel 16:1, 6-7, 10-13; Ephesians 5:8-14; John 9:1-41

Who Sinned?

This is extraordinary time indeed! Today is the fourth Sunday of Lent – Laetare Sunday. Public Mass is not celebrated with parishioners in attendance today. We are still in lockdown, keeping social distancing, to slow down the spread of coronavirus pandemic. At this Mass celebrated for you, my parishioners, without your physical presence, I can see your faces, I know where you sit. I can call your names during my reflection. I know those who will laugh at my jokes and those who would not get it right-a-way. I can see those taking down notes and those nodding their heads and those who are not. Since you are not physically present, I am only left with my imagination. Know that you are always in my mind and prayers. I miss you a bunch! 

Coronavirus has entered our lives and changed the way we live, the way we interact, and the way we love. Who sinned? The other day I went grocery shopping, I was surprised that, there was no bread, water, banana, milk, toilet paper and eggs on the shelf. Panic buyers had bought more than they needed and cleared the counter so that the rest of us had nothing left. The basic things needed by all were bought by a few. Who sinned? The virus has made us greedy, selfish, lonely, and forget one another. Who sinned? When faced with national disaster, natural disaster, sickness and devastation, we ask: who sinned? We are quick to find faults and point accusing finger. But are we asking the right question? Christ reminds us that our thoughts should go beyond the one who sinned. “Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!” (Lk. 13:4-5).

So, to the question: “Who sinned?” Jesus answered, “Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him.” In the face of serious disasters, such as coronavirus, our question should not be ‘Who sinned?’ we should rather open our eyes to see how the glory of God would be made manifest. The readings of today point us away from darkness of sin to Christ the light of the world, as seen in the cure of the man born blind. Christ came into the world to drive away the darkness that envelopes us, so that we may be bathed in his light. May be we have been too complacent to the extent that we cannot see Christ in our midst. We must therefore, open our eyes and wake from our spiritual blindness, so that Christ may shine forth in our lives. In the second reading St. Paul reminds us to “Live as children of light, for light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness and truth… awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”

We are all blind in one way or the other. Our blindness may be physical, moral or spiritual. Physical blindness, like that of the man born blind, may be our inability to see with our eyes. But that does not mean the blind person is disabled. When we are deprived of one sense, like sight, touch, smell, taste or hearing, other senses are heightened and enabled to fill in for the lost one. We can be morally blind when we cannot see our defects or when we are in denial of them. Spiritual blindness may be caused by inability to see Jesus in our lives, due to ignorance, hatred, anger, superstition or cynicism. Today, Jesus cured the blind man of his physical and spiritual blindness. He also healed the blindness of those around him and convicted those who felt that they could see. They were blind and refused to recognize Christ in their midst. They were blinded by their hatred of Jesus and projected that hatred to the man now healed of his blindness.   

God is able and capable of healing our blindness. He can raise us from obscurity to greater heights, as he did for David in the first reading. Christ came to cure our blindness, physical, moral or spiritual. But we must go to him. This, again is the process of coming to faith in Christ. Before Baptism, we were in darkness but after baptism, we are washed in the water of rebirth and anointed, like David, and raised to the exalted position of king. Our understanding and knowledge of Jesus must grow exponentially, like the man born blind, from seeing Christ simply as a man (the man called Jesus made a clay and anointed my eyes.), to a prophet (He is a prophet.”), and finally Lord (“I do believe, Lord”).  

Being a disciple of Jesus may cost us everything. The blind man had to surmount many social difficulties. He endured insults, abuses, ex-communication and abandonment by his parents. But he had a simple faith: he obeyed Jesus. He went to the pool and washed his eyes. His obedience was rewarded with the gift of sight, a symbol of his faith. He was able to confront the powers that be: “If he is a sinner, I do not know. One thing I do know is that I was blind and now I see. I told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples too?” “This is what is so amazing, that you do not know where he is from, yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if one is devout and does his will, he listens to him. It is unheard of that anyone ever opened the eyes of a person born blind. If this man were not from God, he would not be able to do anything.” The man with his newfound faith is now a disciple of Jesus. This is what we are called to do during this fourth Sunday of Lent as we move towards Easter.

The question for us today is: “Are we blind, or do we claim that we can see?” Christ warns: “If you were blind, then you would not be guilty; but since you claim that you can see, this means that you are still blind.” If we refuse to acknowledge our shortcomings and open our eyes to see those in need around us, we condemn ourselves to darkness and deprive ourselves of the gift of faith and the light of Christ. Are we blind to our faults? Do we find it easy to blame others and ask the question: “Who Sinned?” The greatest of our faults is to be conscious of none. The time is now to pick up our bible and read. Confession is still an option for Catholics. Let us learn to be less cynical but trust in the goodness of people. To do this is to recognize that Jesus is always in our midst. He wants to cure our blindness. The problems in our lives are never insurmountable for Jesus. It is not ‘who sinned?’ but so that the works of God might be made visible through us. Amen!  

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP

March 15, 2020: Homily for the 3rd Sunday of Lent; Year A

Readings: Exodus 17:3-7; Romans 5:1-2,5-8; John 4:5-42

Jesus and the Woman at the Well.

“Image is nothing. Thirst is everything. Obey your thirst!” This is a TV marketing campaign on Sprite. The ad calls us to drink to our fill, the sugared-up fizzy, lemon-lime beverage that, frankly speaking, is capable of killing us. Scientists warned in 2015, that fizzy drinks caused a death toll of 184,000 adults per year. Today’s readings speak of water and how important it is for life. The human adult body has up to 60% of water. According H.H. Mitchell, Journal of Biological Chemistry 158, the brain and heart are composed of 73% water; the lungs are about 83% water. The skin contains 64% water, muscles and kidneys are 79%, and even the bones are 31% water. This explains why water is so important to us. The lack of it can cause death through dehydration. We need water for so many other things besides. The book of Exodus today relates how the children of Israel were disgruntled over their lack of water and how Yahweh heard their groaning and provided fresh water for them. Their ingratitude was met with God’s generosity in keeping to his promise. He chose them to be his own and he will always stand by them. As a reminder of their constant nagging and forgetfulness of God’s mercy and generosity, Yahweh called that place Massah, meaning testing place, and Meribah, meaning a place of quarrel.

In today’s Gospel from John, we see Jesus with a woman at the well in the heat of the afternoon. Jesus was tired and hungry from his journey. He sat at the well to rest and wait for his disciples who had gone shopping in the city. And there came the Samaritan woman. For obvious reasons, she went to the well in the afternoon to fetch water. Women usually go to the well in the morning and evening. She went in the afternoon, perhaps, to avoid meeting with other women; could be because of her life style. She may have been an object of gossip and ridicule in the city, as such, she tried to avoid other women as much as possible.

The Samaritan woman may have gone through a lot in her life and so was thirsty – not for water, but acceptance, love, meaning and happiness. She was lonely and tried to obey her thirst for anything. The men in her life did not satiate her thirst, she has had five already and the 6^th one was not her real husband. She tried to hide that fact from Jesus: “I do not have a husband.” She was a lost soul, but a very interesting one at that. She was suspicious of Jesus and his request for water, but she was prepared to engage Him all the same. She brought up issues of concern to her, even the racial and spiritual ones: “How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?” She challenged Jesus’ assumptions: “Sir, you do not even have a bucket and the cistern is deep; where then can you get this living water?” She confronted Jesus’ claim and questioned his authority: “Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us this cistern and drank from it himself with his children and his flock?” She called Jesus’s bluff: “Sir, give me this water, so that I may not be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.” She stood up to Jesus on religious matters and put him on the defensive: “Sir, I can see that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain; but you people say that the place to worship is in Jerusalem.” At last, she capitulated after learning from Jesus; she showed that, though her moral life may not mean much, her religious knowledge was flawless, she was not without hope: “I know that they Messiah is coming, the one called the Christ; when he comes, he will tell us everything.” When she heard that Jesus was the expected Messiah, she forgot what brought her to the well in the first place, she has now received the water of life: “the woman left her water jar and went into the town and said to the people, “Come see a man who told me everything I have done. Could he possibly be the Christ?”” She seemed to have said with the Psalmist: “As the deer longs for streams of water, so my soul longs for you, O God. My being thirsts for God, the living God.” (Ps. 42:2-3). She had a steady and progressive understanding of Jesus, from ‘Sir’, to ‘Prophet’ and finally to ‘Messiah’. she is now a disciple and ready to spread the good news of salvation. She is no more ashamed of being seen in public but was ready to face her future, knowing that the Messiah was on her side.

The encounter between Jesus and the woman at the well mirrors a process of coming to faith, underscored by the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). The Samaritan woman was predisposed to receive the message of salvation; Jesus created enabling environment to bring that about. Today is first Scrutiny for those preparing to receive the Sacrament of initiation at Easter. The readings present us with the background that opens us to the Sacrament of Baptism. “Lent provides believers the opportunity to review their baptismal commitment. The Church community is making this Lenten pilgrimage alongside those preparing for reception into the faith. The waters used in their induction are the actual living waters Jesus shared with the now happy woman at the well.” (The Priest Magazine, pg. 51)  

Like the woman at the well, we are to be thirsty for the living water. May we come close to Jesus, listen to his words, receive him in the Eucharist and allow him to refresh us with the water of life in the sacrament of reconciliation. Though Moses struck the rock and water flowed for the children of Israel to drink, they were thirsty again. They failed to see the God who journeyed with them, every step of the way. They would soon find fault and grumble against God again and again.  May we not be quick to satisfy our thirst with anything and everything. It is not everything that will satisfy us. Like the woman at the well discovered, Jesus will always fill us with abundance, so that we will never be thirsty again. We must trust Jesus. Our thirst can only be satisfied by God. St. Augustine knew this when he said: “Our hearts are made for God, and they will not rest, until they rest in God.” Yes, our human hearts have spiritual thirst and we must satisfy them with spiritual food. The Samaritan woman was thirsty for love, understanding, peace, joy and community and she found all these in Jesus. “We are thirsty for joy, and happiness, and the greatest joy can only come from the freedom that Jesus gives us – freedom from fear, worry, anxiety.” (Ignite Your Spirit by Fr. John Pichappilly).  

Let us listen again to the words Jesus said to the woman at the well: “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again; but whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst; the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Let me conclude with the prayer of the first scrutiny:

“All-merciful Father, through your Son you revealed your mercy to the woman of Samaria; and moved by that same care have offered salvation to all sinners. Free us from the slavery of sin, and for Satan’s crushing yoke exchange the gentle yoke of Jesus. Protect us in every danger, that we may serve you faithfully in peace and joy and render you thanks for ever. Amen.

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP

March 08, 2020: Homily for the Second Sunday of Lent, Year A

Readings: Gen. 12:1-4; 2 Timothy 1:8-10; Matthew 17:1-9

Move and be Transformed

Today is the second Sunday of Lent. We are called by God, in the first reading, as Abram was, to move from where we are to the land he would show us. “Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk and from your father’s house to a land that I will show you.” (Gen. 12:1). This call implies three things: (1) God’s free choice, (2) God’s mission and (3) God’s promise. We must respond to God’s call and go on his mission if we must receive his promise.

(1) God’s choice: God calls us, not because we are good, or what we have done or what we own, but because he loves us. “It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain” (Jn. 15:16). To Timothy, Paul said: “He saved us and called us to a holy life, not according to our works but according to his own design and the grace bestowed on us in Christ Jesus before time began.” (2 Tim.1:9). Isaiah reminds us, “But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, and formed you, O Israel: Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name: you are mine.” (Is. 43:1). God’s call is based on his mission: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nations I appointed you.” (Jer. 1:5). God has a mission for everyone, the mission that is connected to our call.

(2) The mission: God’s mission for us may entail sacrifices. It may mean leaving our safe environment, the familiar, the known, the tested and the tried to the unknown, unfamiliar and the untried. It may demand speaking different languages, eating different foods and being with people of different cultures, races and creed. I am sure Abram went through these and more. He moved and left behind a prosperous commercial area to settle in a land that was relatively primitive and underdeveloped. Paul told Timothy, “Bear your share of hardship for the Gospel.” (2 Tim. 1:8). For Abram’s mission, God would establish a new covenant with him. “Walk in my presence and be blameless. Between you and me I will establish my covenant, and I will multiply you exceedingly.” (Gen. 17:1-2). God would later change his name to Abraham and make him a father of a multitude of nations.

As Christians, we have a mission to love our family, our community, our job, our church and our friends. Our mission is determined by our relationship with God. The closer and more intimate our relationship is with God, the stronger would our commitment be to those we are called to serve. God is constantly calling us to move from our emotional stagnation, our social ineptitude, our moral decadence, our spiritual stupor, our psychological blindness, our religious laziness, our mental slavery and our physiological sloppiness and experience a transformation brought about by our obedience to God’s will. Our mission here and now is to wake from our sleep, to have a change of heart, a redirection of our steps towards God so that we may receive our reward - salvation. St. Paul exhort us: “And do this because you know the time; it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep. For our salvation is nearer now than we first believed; the night is advanced, the day is at hand. Let us then throw off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us conduct ourselves properly as in the day, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in promiscuity and licentiousness, not in rivalry and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the desires of the flesh” (Rom. 13:11-14).

(3) The promise: “For I know well the plans I have in mind for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare, not for woe! Plans to give you a future full of hope. When you call me, when you go to pray to me, I will listen to you. When you look for me, you will find me. Yes, when you seek me with all your heart, you will find me with you, says the Lord, and I will change your lot.” (Jer. 29: 11-14). God promised to be with his chosen people, he is faithful to his promises. In Abram’s case, God promised him posterity. Before the promise was made, Abraham was 75 and his wife, Sarah was 65, both of them were childless. Yet, in the fulness of time God visited them and gave them a child who became the father of nations, as promised.

This brings us to the Gospel of today. Today we reflect on the Transfiguration of Christ on Mount Tabor. Christ had to move up to be transfigured. He left the known to the unknown and there found a blessing, a confirmation and affirmation of his identity and mission. On this scene were Peter, James and John. We will meet them again in the garden of Gethsemane. They, who witnessed the glory of Christ on the mountain top, would also witness his agony at the garden. Now they are prepared to face the scandal of the cross. Jesus called them to be in communion with him, to see his glory and splendor on that beautiful mountain. He will call them again for support during the lowest point of his life, as he would struggle to do his father’s will. He will need them to pray with him and be prepared for their own mission as well.

Before the transfiguration, there was a lot of argument about the person of Christ. Who was he? Was Christ in doubt of his identity and mission as well? In the 16^th chapter of Matthew’s Gospel he asked his disciples at Caesarea Philippi, “Who do people say the Son of Man is.” This may have been a hot topic at the time. But at the Transfiguration, God answered this question definitively in the presence of Moses, (the law) and Elijah (the prophets), “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” (Mt. 17:5).

Jesus was called by God and given a mission and a promise as Abraham was. His mission was confirmed, and his blessing assured. His mission was to save the world and for his blessing – the resurrection. “Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2:9-11).

On this Sunday of Lent, God equally calls us to move from the known to the unknown. To move away from where God is not present, from darkness, selfishness, evil, pettiness, sin, division and backwardness to the land of light, peace and joy. We are called to be transformed and transfigured to a new existence; to belong to a community of God’s people. “But you are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may announce the praises” of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” (1Peter 2:9). We must listen to the voice of Christ and walk with him day by day, taking on his ways of thinking, speaking and relating to people. We must leave our selfish ways and take up Christ’s selfless ways. We must die to ourselves and live for others. We must so obey God that we would say with Paul, “I live now not I but Christ lives in me.” (Gal. 3:20).

So, my friends, look around you, perhaps there are some habits you may want to leave behind as you move: like drunkenness or being engrossed in pleasure-seeking, or quarreling and tearing people apart. Or laziness that creates problems in your family. Tell Jesus in prayer that you are ready to move and leave all those vices behind. Move then to the land that God will show you. In that land, promises await you, so that like Peter you will say: “Lord, it is good for us to be here.”

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP.