Shikrot Mpwi - Sunday Synopsis with Fr. Justine J. Dyikuk

 Trinity Sunday: Year B - May 27, 2018.

Readings: Deuteronomy 4:32-34; Responsorial Psalm Ps 32:4-6,9,18-20,22; 

Romans 8:14:17; Gospel Matthew 28:16-20.

Theme: Our Union with the Father, the Son and the Spirit

Introduction

Trinity Sunday provides us with one of the reasons why Catholics make the Sign of the Cross. It is not surprising to see altar servers, knights, footballers and even celebrities making the Sign of the Cross which is a trademark of Catholicism. As a spiritual insignia which defines and promotes our faith, the Sign of the Cross opens up reflections about the Blessed Trinity. It is truism that there are three divine persons in one God – God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. It implies one God, three eternal persons which demonstrates that the Father is not the same person as the Son - the Son is not the same person as the Holy Spirit - and the Holy Spirit is not the same person as Father. As it were, each of them has a will and speaks to each other and to people. The use of word “person” implies that each person of the blessed trinity is separate in self awareness, speech, will and expression. We shall take a look at the readings in the light of today’s take-home message. 

Summary of the Liturgical Readings

The first reading (Deuteronomy 4:32-34) presents us with the encounter between Moses and the people of Israel in which he told them in unmistaken terms that: “the Lord is God indeed, in heaven and above as on earth beneath, he and no other.” He maintained that they should keep his laws and commandments so as to enjoy and prosper in the land that the Lord gives to them. The text is indicative of a triune God who reigns “in heaven and above as on earth beneath.”

In the second reading (Romans 8:14:17), St. Paul emphasizes that everyone who is moved by the Spirit is a son of God. He goes further to state that the Spirit that God gives is not a spirit of timidity but that which makes us cry “Abbah Father!” he makes the point that our spirit and that of God works in unison enabling us to bear witness as God’s children. What is more, Apostle Paul reiterates that we are heirs of the Kingdom sharing in his sufferings so as to share in his glory.

The Gospel reading (Matthew 28:16-20) recounts the Great Mission Christ gave his Apostles and how this divine mandate was to be executed in the name of the trinity: “Father, Son and Spirit.”  What is of particular interest is that St. Matthew tells us that Jesus charged them thus: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” The Great Mission had a Trinitarian authority behind it. Besides, the apostles were assured of divine endorsement, divine assistance and the fact that God would be with them until the end of time.  

Pastoral Punch-lines

1. There are Three Divine Persons in One God: The trinity does not constitute three separate gods or separate beings. They are three distinct persons yet, one indivisible God. As such, in taking about the trinity, the words, coeternal, coequal and co-powerful are crucial to the substance of the Godhead. As human beings we are called to a unity of purpose in defending the values of life and human dignity. As a Church such, we are reminded about our universality and our shared-spiritual heritage.

2. God the Father is the Creator of the World: All monotheistic religions teach that God created the universe. The penny catechism teaches that created the world and all it contains. As Creator, it is in him that we live and move and have our being. He is not done with creation as he keeps all things in being. Our faith teaches us that God’s Fatherhood cuts across every tribe, tongue, people and nation. This is an important message for us in a world that is fragmented by racial, religious and ideological divides.

3. God the Son is the Redeemer of the World:  The popular John 3:16 says it all: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” Here, we recall three redemptive epochs in human existence – original state of blessedness in the Garden of Eden where Adam and Eve enjoyed the bliss of God, fallen humanity when they sinned by eating the forbidden fruit and restored humanity when Jesus came for a rescue mission. We must daily seek to be redeemed and truly so.

4. Trinity Sunday Proclaims God’s Liberating Mission: Trinity Sunday provides us with the example of Jesus whose liberating mission he has left with the Church. We are challenged to appropriate Jesus’ manifesto by keying into the fight for the oppressed, those unjustly detained and others under the yoke of slavery and sin as well as Christians who are persecuted like Leah Sharibu.

5. Today’s Liturgy Celebrates the Hypostatic Union: Since Jesus who is truly God and truly man, as the theology of the hypostatic union teaches, we are left with the legacies of one who was God yet emptied himself to take up the place of a slave. This calls for humility amongst Christians.

Shikrot Mpwi - Sunday Synopsis with Fr. Justine J. Dyikuk

Pentecost Sunday: Year B - May 20, 2018.

Readings: Acts 2:1-11; Responsorial Psalm Ps 103:1-24,29-31,34;

 Galatians 5:16-25; John 15:26-27; 16:12-15.

Theme: Let the Fire of the Holy Spirit Come Down Again

Introduction

Friends in Christ, today is Pentecost Sunday. Pentecost comes from the Greek Pentekoste which means fiftieth. It was the second of the 3 most important annual feasts in Jewish Calendar which occurred 7 weeks after the Passover and was primarily a feast of thanksgiving for harvest; first fruits of wheat crop were offered to God on that day. It later came to be associated with the giving of the law to Moses on Mount Sinai. All Jews at home and in the diaspora were expected to attend. Thus, there was no fitting day for the descent of the Holy Spirit than this. This dramatic event we hear in our first reading the Acts of the Apostles 2:1-11. This is the birthday of the Church.

It is a celebration of the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Blessed Trinity. The word “Holy” means sacred, awesome and usually associated with God’s majesty. “Spirit” comes from the Hebrew word “ruah” which means breath, air or wind; it connotes the transcendent newness of him who is personally God’s breath, the divine spirit. What comes to mind is the encounter between Jesus and Nicodemus (John 3:5-8). The two words “Holy” and “Spirit” are divine attributes common to the three divine persons namely, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says, “The Holy Spirit is the proper name of the one whom we adore and glorify with the Father and the Son.”

On this day, we celebrate the titles of the Holy Spirit. The titles of the Holy Spirit are: Paraclet or Consoler – John 14:16; Spirit of Truth – John 16:13; Spirit of Promise – Gal. 3:14; Eph. 1:13; Spirit of Adoption – Rom. 8:9 and Spirit of Glory – 1^st Pet. 4:14. The symbolism of fire which dropped on the heads of the apostles today designates the “…transforming energy of the Holy Spirit’s action. At contest at Mount Carmel, the prophet Elijah’s prayer “arose like fire-burned like a torch” and brought fire down from heaven on the sacrifice. That is why the Holy Spirit which changes/transforms whatever it comes in contact with (Kings 18:38-39). The forerunner of Jesus, John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit and the power of Elijah. He prophesized: “...he will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire (Luke 1:17;3:16). Incidentally, Jesus says: “I have come to bring fire to the earth and how I wish it were blazing already…” (Luke12:49).

Summary of Our Readings

The first reading (Acts 2:1-11) recounts the Pentecost event. He discloses how Christ’s Passover was fulfilled with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in forms of tongues of ‘fire’ which strengthened and empowered the disciples for the Great Commission of Evangelisation. According to St. John of the Cross, “the symbolism of fire is retained in the Church as one of the most expressive images of the Holy Spirit’s action.” Aside from being the birthday of the Church, the Pentecost event reveals the marvels of and the unification of the Church, the body of Christ.

The second reading (Galatians 5:16-25) states that indulgence is the opposite of the spirit. St. Paul gives, fornication, gross indecency and sexual irresponsibility; idolatry and sorcery; feuds and wrangling, jealousy, bad temper and quarrels; disagreements, factions, envy; drunkenness and orgies as inordinate indulgent behaviours which are opposite to living the life of the spirit. On the contrary, the Apostle lists what the spirit brings as: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trustfulness, gentleness and self-control.  

Shikrot Mpwi - Sunday Synopsis with Fr. Justine J. Dyikuk

Seventh Sunday of Easter, Year B: World Communications Sunday –May 13, 2018. 

Readings: John 17:11b-19.

Introduction

Friends in Christ, today is the Seventh Sunday of Easter and World Communications Sunday  – This is a day which the Holy Father gives a theological appreciation of technological advances in media with a view to reminding the world that the media should be used in the service of evangelisation. Media workers and Directors of Social Communications are expected to use this occasion to advance the course of human communication as a major component of digital communications while showcasing the Church’s view of what good communication is about. This Sunday’s reflection is weaved around the Holy Father’s message for this celebration.

Review of the Holy Father’s 2018 WCS Message

1. Fake news appeals to peoples stereotypes and common social prejudices even as it exploits instantaneous emotions like anxiety, contempt, anger and frustration;

2. Fake news relies on a manipulative sue of the social networks and the way they function;

3. Fake news is a sign of intolerant and hypertensive attitude which leads to arrogance and hatred as the end result of untruth;

4.  The most radical antidote to the virus of falsehood is purification by the truth;

5.  For Christians, truth involves the whole of life because it carries the sense of support, solidarity and trust;

6.  Truth can be found when people work at everything that encourages communion and promotes goodness;

7.  Truth flows from free relationships between persons and listening to one another;

8.  Truth can be recognized by its fruits namely, those things which promote informed and mature reflection leading to constructive dialogue and fruitful results;

9. The best antidote to falsehoods are people who listen and are engage in sincere dialogue geared towards peace as well as those who are attracted by goodness and are ready to take responsibility for how they use language;

10.  Promoting peace journalism entails viewing peace as the true news which promotes truth and is at the service of humanity.

Application/Ten Takeaways from Pope Francis’ 2018 WCS Message

In line with Pope Francis 2018 World Communications’ Day Message in which the Holy Father charges us to beware of fake news and propagate journalism for peace, as Catholics and media workers, the task ahead entails that we:

1. Stay clear of fake news because it deals with disinformation based distorted data meant to deceive and manipulate the reader;

2. Uphold communication as part of God’s plan for us and an essential way to experience fellowship;

2. Resist the symptomatic condition of twisting the truth by being faithful to the pursuit of goodness;

3. Create educational programmes aimed at helping people to interpret and assess information provided by the media and take an active part in unmasking falsehood;

4. Commence institutional and legal initiatives aimed at developing regulations for curbing fake news on the one hand and promoting journalism for peace on the other;

Shikrot Mpwi - Sunday Synopsis with Fr. Justine J. Dyikuk

Sixth Sunday of Easter, Year B – May 6, 2018.

Readings: Acts 10:25-26,34-35,44-48; Ps 98:1-2-3ab.3cd-4(R.2);

1 John 4:7-10; Gospel – John 15:9-17.

Theme: The Universal Language Love!

Introduction

Beloved in Christ, our reflection this Sunday shall dwell on love and its universal dimension. As we continue proclaiming Christ-crucified, the Church urges us to allow love to conquer all. We live in a society where there are a lot of anti-love and anti-life activities. In Nigeria, the incessant maiming of unsuspecting members of the public by suspected killer herdsmen has killed love and left it without a name. Perhaps what is responsible for this ugly state of affairs is the debased idea of love and lack of looking up to the divine to perfect us in love. This is why we shall reflect on “The Universal Language Love” which is capable of conquering all.

Summary of the Readings

The first reading from the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 10:25-26,34-35,44-48) recalls the conversion of Cornelius and his household. What is instructive about the reading is that St. Peter revealed to the crowd in Cornelius’ house that God has no favourites – he noted that “anybody of any nationality who fears God and does what is right is acceptable to him.” This implies that God loves everyone irrespective of his or her creed, colour, gender or status. The reading further disclosed how the Jews were astonished at the way the pagans received the Holy Spirit and began to speak in tongues. It also recounts how Peter gave orders for the pagans to receive baptism stressing that they begged him to stay with them for some days after their conversion and acceptance into the family of the early Christian community.  

In the second reading (1 John 4:7-10) St. John charges us to love one another since God loved us first. He maintains that everyone who fails to love cannot claim to know God.  The text discloses how God’s love for us was made manifest in his Son, Jesus who came to the world so that we might have life through him. It surmises that Jesus was sent to the earth to be the sacrifice that would our sins away. 

The Johannine gospel (John 15:9-17) often referred to as “the gospel of love” reechoes the theme of love when it emphasized how Jesus tasked his disciples on love. He says: “Love one another as I have loved you.” He also maintains: “No greater love can a man have than to lay down his life for his friends.” He reiterated that he has made us his friends because he has made known to us what he learnt from the Father. Accordingly, he stressed that we did not choose him – rather he chose us and mandated us to go forth and bear fruits, fruits that will last. He assured that whatever we ask, we will receive – he surmised: “What I command you is, love one another.”   

     

Dimensions of Love

The two dimensions of love are, vertical and horizontal. In the gospel of Matthew (Mtt. 22:34-40), Jesus says: “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second resembles it: You must love your neighbour as yourself.” He further stressed: “On these two commandments hang the whole law and the Prophets also.”  As it relates to the gospel of today, this teaching has vertical and horizontal dimensions: 

a). Vertical Dimension of Love: Loving God with all our hearts, souls and minds translates into the vertical dimension of love. This also relates to agape which we shall explain. It is crucial for us to understand that it is in him that we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28). Therefore, in the words of St. Paul, as individuals and members of the Church, we must not let anything like death, life, angels, rulers, things present, things to come, powers, height, depth and anything else in creation, to come between us and the love of God in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:35-39).

b). Horizontal Dimension of Love:  Philial love fulfills the demands of the love of nieghbour which our liturgy challenges us to embrace. For instance, the popular parable of the Good Samaritan tells us who our nieghbour is – Rather than get stuck on the lethal radar of erotic love, we are challenged to demonstrate real and active love to our family, friends as well as our foes. In Amoris Laetitia or The Joy of Love - Pope Francis’s Apostolic Exhortation on the beauty, joy and love of marriage and the family, the Holy Father reminds us that God is throwing an open invitation to us to develop an unwavering capacity for love because our world is hungry for love, joy, peace, justice, spirituality, sincerity, fidelity and moral upliftment. This leads us to the types of love.

Various Types of Love

a). Philia: Philia is the love which exists between parents and their children, children with their parents and kids with their siblings. This stems from the natural bond that exists in a family. As a family word, philia is the brotherly or sisterly affection which unites us with one another in a unique way (Rom 12:10).

b). Eros: Erotic love stems from concupiscence of the flesh which St. Thomas Aquinas identifies in his Summa Theologica as one of the causes of sin. Aquinas makes the point that we are induced into sin through inordinate desires - The lust of the flesh includes sexual permissiveness and vain desires. The devil excites within us the concupiscence of the flesh so as to commit sin. The “lust of the flesh,” appears in two more significant passages of Scripture - the temptation of Eve in the Garden (Gen 3:1-6) and the temptation of Christ in the wilderness (Matthew 4:8-10). St. Paul warns us to “cast off the works of darkness” (Rom 13:12) and make no provision for the desires of the flesh. Paul’s warning that we should shun concupiscence of the flesh is timely.

c). Agape: This is the love of God. It is often sacrificial. As the purest love, agape is the kind of love that Christ demonstrated by the manner of his life, death on the cross and his resurrection. All that Christ asks of us is: “Love one another, just as I have loved you.” (Jn.15:12). Little wonder on several occasions, Jesus would “took pity on his people” and satisfy their hunger (Matthew 14:13-21). 

Pastoral Application/Lessons

1. Just as Cornelius and members of his household listened to the rhythm of love and embraced conversion, we are challenged to listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit whose fire is capable of encapsulating us in a divine encounter that can change our lives permanently for good.

2. St. Peter’s take that God has no favourites because he loves people of everyone nationality who do what is right and acceptable to him urges us to throw the dividers of humanity such as race, gender, status and culture into the pit of hell and seek new connectors like compassion, kindness and forgiveness which unite humanity everywhere.

3. G-8 countries, represented by the Jews must learn to ensure equity and justice in sharing the earth’s resources with less developed nations often seen as pagans – since the pagans too are God’s children, they too deserve baptism – the temporal goods of the world.

Shikrot Mpwi - Sunday Synopsis with Fr. Justine J. Dyikuk

Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year B – April 29, 2018.

Readings: Acts 9:26-31; Ps 21:26-28,30-32; 1 John 3:18-24; 

Gospel – John 15:1-8.

Theme: Be My Disciples!

Introduction

Friends in Christ, on the Fifth Sunday of Easter, we are charged to be disciples of Jesus who are charged to push the frontiers of Church’s mission of evangelisation to the ends of the earth. Our reflection, titled “Be My Disciples” shall fall within the scope of the Easter Season. We shall highlight the liturgical readings with a view to drawing pastoral lessons as a spiritual meal.

Summary of the Readings 

In the first reading (Acts 9:26-31), we are told how Saul, a new convert to the Christian faith preached fearlessly in Jerusalem after Barnabas had introduced him to the Saints and explained how God arrested him at Damascus. The reading indicated how the Hellenists were determined to kill him which made the brothers to take him to Caesarea and then to Tarsus – it also noted how the Churches throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria lived in fear of the Lord and filled with the Holy Spirit, continued to spread the God News.

The second reading (1 John 3:18-24) charges that our love must not be only in words but in action as well – “Only by this can we be certain that we are children of the truth and be able to quieten our conscience in his presence” the text says. It assures that whatever we ask God, “we shall receive, because we keep his commandments and live the kind of life that he wants.” It surmises that “whoever keeps his commandments lives God and God lives in him.”

The message of the gospel (John 15:1-8) invites us to discipleship by being grafted on Christ, the vine. Jesus says: “It is to the glory of my Father that you should bear much, and then you will be my disciples.” Jesus reveals himself as the true vine, and his father as the vinedresser. He further discloses that “as a branch cannot bear fruit all by itself but must remain part of the vine, neither can [we] unless [we] remain in [him].”

Shikrot Mpwi - Sunday Synopsis with Fr. Justine J. Dyikuk

Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year B: Vocation/Good Shepherd Sunday – April 22, 2018.

Readings: Acts 4:8-12; Ps 117:1,8-9,21-23,26,28-29; 1 John 3:1-2; 

Gospel – John 10:11-18.

Theme: Of a Name and the Good Shepherd!

Introduction

Dearly beloved in Christ, today the Church celebrates Good Shepherd Sunday otherwise known as Vocation Sunday. On a day like this, we pray for an increase in priestly and religious vocation. We equally pray for parents who have embraced the vocation to the married life so that God may help them to nurture their children in the faith in a manner that these kids would grow to embrace service to God and humanity in the Church. It is not out of place to pray for missionaries who have left home and everything to follow Christ that God would renew the zeal of their missionary mandate so that they may not grow weary in the sacred task of evangelisation. 

With these prayerful sentiments in mind, we shall reflect on the theme: “Of a Name and the Good Shepherd.” Our reflection shall touch on the impact of the name of “Christ” and the role of ministers of the Word and Sacraments as true shepherds of souls. It shall call all to embrace holiness given the fact that everyone is a shepherd in his or her capacity.      

Summary of the Readings

In the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 4:8-12), we are told how Peter filled with the Holy Spirit dared the rulers and elders of the people by empathically stating that they healed a crippled man by the name of Christ. He reiterated thrice that it is “by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene…by this name and by no other that this man is able to stand up perfectly healthy…” He surmised thus: “For all the names in the world given to men, this is the only one by which we can be saved. This is a pointer to the fact that there’s something in a name. We shall come back to this!

St. John tells us in the second reading (1 John 3:1-2) that although what we are to be in the future has not yet been revealed, he assured that when it is revealed, we shall be like him because we shall see him as he really is. What is instructive is that the sacred text calls us to reflect about the love the Father lavished upon us “by letting us be called God’s children” noting that “that is what we are.” Again, the point about name comes out strongly because it suggests that the name we enjoy is “God’s children.”

The gospel text (John 10:11-18) brings out the theme of Vocation/Good Shepherd Sunday. In it, Jesus reveals his name twice as “The Good Shepherd.” He goes ahead to state that unlike the hired man who deserts the sheep in the face of danger, the Good Shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. Jesus insists: “I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father.” Because he knows each of his own and calls them by name, he reveals that other sheep of his who are not of this fold listen to his voice. He stresses that the command given to him by the father is that of love which necessitates freely laying down his life for his sheep. 

Practical Lessons

1. Today, Pastors of souls are charged to remember that leadership in the Church must reflect the image of the Good Shepherd, who lays down his life for his sheep (John 10:1-18).

2. Priests are reminded to be true shepherds by managing themselves, the structures and the resources of the Church and society entrusted to them, well.

3. Priests and Religious have the mandate to mentor the young ones by becoming life couches who would be role models for the young.

4. The lay faithful are urged to recall their baptismal commitments in the light of embracing the vocation to the married life which is a catalyst for vocations to the priestly and religious life.

4. Parents are charged to fulfill the demands of Vocation/Good Shepherd Sunday by nurturing their children in the faith and urging them to embrace the priestly and religious life.

5. Children are tasked to look up to Jesus the Good Shepherd who loves and cares for them while sharing their motivation and interest to join the service of the Lord with their friends, parents/guardians and pastors.

Shikrot Mpwi - Sunday Synopsis with Fr. Justine J. Dyikuk

Third Sunday of Easter, Year B – April 15, 2018.

Readings: Acts 3:13-15,17-19; Ps 4:2,4,7,9; 1 John 2:1-5; Gospel – Luke 24:35-48.

Theme: The Post-Easter Mandate and the Call to Repentance!

Introduction

Beloved in Christ, our liturgy calls us as a Post-Easter People to reflect on repentance as a necessary recipe for salvation. In doing this reflection, we shall scan the readings on the basis of theological, pastoral and practical lessons while indicating how it applies to our daily lives. It suffices to say that the Post-Easter period challenges us to demonstrate the demands of the Easter Season in terms of living out the values of the season and propagating the gospel to the ends of the earth.

A Resume of the Readings

In the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 3:13-15,17-19), the early Christians were charged by St. Peter to repent and turn to God so as to have their sins forgiven. What is more, the Apostle Peter went memory lane to state how the events all began – he further stressed that it was the God of the Israelites, namely the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob who glorified Jesus whom they handed over to be killed. He also mentioned how Pilate hand the chance to save the anointed one but did not which resulted in the accusation and condemnation of a just and innocent man who was murdered in place of a murderer. 

Peter emphasised that the Good News is that God raised him from the dead – a resurrection which they were witnesses to. He stressed that these events happened in fulfilment of prophesies of old that the Christ would suffer and so enter into his glory. This was the reason he insisted on the call to repentance to receive God’s forgiveness. 

In like manner, in the second reading (1 John 2:1-5), St. John charges us to stop sinning. He, however, stressed that if anyone commits sin, he has the opportunity to repent because we have an advocate with the father. Again, the theme of repentance comes out strongly. The Apostle, therefore, maintained that we must keep the commandments and accept the truth of the gospel noting that when we admit the truth, “God love comes to perfection in us.” 

The gospel of Luke (Lk. 24:35-48) records the appearances of Jesus to the Apostles on their way to Emmaus - how they recognised him at the breaking of the bread and how he appeared to the collage of Apostles with the greeting “Peace be with you” – How he showed them his hands and his feet; how their hearts were filed with joy and how he ate with them. 

After reiterating what he told the Emmaus-disciples, we are told that he opened their eyes to the scriptures and said: “So you see how it is written that the Christ would suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that, in his name, repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be preached to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.” He surmised thus: “You are witnesses to this.” Again, the theme on the call to repentance comes out prominently. What then are the types of repentance?

Types of Repentance

1. Personal Repentance: This is a personal inner conviction that comes from an interior disposition that I have wronged my nieghbour or sinned against God. Without this realisation, it is difficult for anybody to acknowledge sin, seek repentance or reform. This is the first step in seeking repentance.  

2. Communal Repentance: Here, a group of persons who have hurt others may seek ways of making amends. The communal dimension of repentance demands that we seek reconciliation with other communities we have hurt or ask for God’s intervention as a community during famine or pestilence. This calls for fraternal correction (Matthew 18:15-19).