Tuesday of Week 14 Year A St. Benedict. By Tobe Eze

Tuesday of Week 14 Year A St. Benedict.

FIRST READING
Genesis 32:23–33

GOSPEL
Matthew 9:32–38

THEME: WHO ARE WE?

Jacob in the first reading fought with the Lord and after the fight he said one important thing we Christians should always repeat each time we come to God's presence. I will never let you go unless you bless me. We have changed it in our own time to I will never come to you unless you bless me. After the fight the Lord asked him. What is your name? The Lord is asking us today, what are our names. What are our situations? Present them to the Lord so that he will make necessary changes as he did in the case of Jacob in the first reading.

In the gospel reading, Jesus saw the crowd who were like sheep without shepherd and he had pity on them. The question now is. Who are we? Are we the harvest or the labourers? Are sheep or shepherds? All of us are sheep and shepherds. As shepherds people are under us. For instance, parents their children are under them. We are also sheep for we are under people. For instance our political or religious leaders. As shepherds let us not mislead those that are under us rather let us lead them to our master Jesus. As sheep, let us listen to those who are shepherding us for the master and learn from them things that are good.

Again in the gospel Jesus asked us to pray for labourers who are to work in his vineyard. This prayer is manifested today in the life of St. Benedict of Nursia whom the Lord used in establishing monasteries and leading people to the way of eternal life, love and peace.

Let us today ask St. Benedict to intercede for us as the harvests and also labourers of the Lord.

Monday of Week 14 Year A By Tobe Eze

Monday of Week 14 Year A

FIRST READING
Genesis 28:10–22a

GOSPEL
Matthew 9:18–26

THEME: ENCOUNTER WITH THE LORD.

Encounter with the Lord changes life and things. In the first reading, Jacob encountered the Lord and his life automatically changed, he made promises for he became a fulfilled man immediately. In the gospel, Jarius an officer in the synagogue encountered God in the life of his daughter that Christ gave back life and happiness came back to his life and life of his family. The woman who had suffered hemorrhage for twelve years got healed just that she encountered Jesus. Some of us today come to and and go without encountering him. Some of us are like the story of a goat that was always going for morning prayers. The goat always sits at the front. It will continue to stay till during communion it will go. Some of us just come and go like that goat. We come to morning masses and prayers but no impact in us. Let us today follow those who encountered Christ today and encounter him so that our lives will change from bad to good. THANKS.

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A By Tobe Eze

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A

FIRST READING
Zechariah 9:9—10

SECOND READING
Romans 8:9, 11—13

GOSPEL
Matthew 11:25—30

THEME: GENTLENESS IS A VIRTUE.

Last week we were talking about the identity of a true Christian, and in today’s gospel Jesus is telling us about gentleness and meekness of heart which are also identities of a true Christian.

A story was told about a King who was sick. His native doctor came and told him that before you can be cured, that all your relations must die. The King immediately ordered his guards to seize him for his is a wicked doctor. Another doctor came and told the King that before your sickness can be cured, all those who have hands in it must die. The King asked him, so this was caused by human being? He answered him yes. Then, he asked again, who are they? The doctor told him. I am afraid for those who caused this are not far from you. He continued to ask. Then the doctor said again to him. If I may suggest, you better suffer this sickness than to lose your relations but if you want to be healed, their lives may be required. The King did not lock him up because of the way he approached the problem. He did it in a gentle way.

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A By Tobe Eze

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A

FIRST READING
2 Kings 4:8—11, 14—16a

SECOND READING
Romans 6:3—4, 8—11

GOSPEL
Matthew 10:37—42

THEME: SHOW THE CHRISTIAN IDENTITY.

Elisha is a prophet who came after Elijah. Elijah was fighting war against the worship of Baal in Israel, then Elisha was his servant. After the fight and the conquer, Elijah left the work of bringing back the people of Israel back to God for Elisha to do. This was what he was doing when he came to Shunem. The certain woman in Shunem is today showing us the first example of identity of a true Christian.

In the second reading, St. Paul is also reminding us of our identity as Christians. Christ died once to sin and he will not die again we too died for sin through our baptism in Christ Jesus. We should sin no more for we are in Christ Jesus. Those who are in Christ Jesus should be holy for he himself is holy and any unclean thing will not enter the kingdom.

In the Gospel, Jesus is telling us that we should love him above every other thing in this world. During Stations of the Cross, we say this always without even meditating on what we say often. I love thee Jesus above all things! I repent with my whole hearts of having offended thee, never permit me to separate myself from thee again, grant that I may love thee always and then, do with me all thy Wilt. The emphasis is on the first part of it, where we say, we love thee above all things. We always claim that we love God but we hate his creatures especially our fellow human beings. What a contradiction?

12th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A By Tobe Eze

12th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A

FIRST READING
Jeremiah 20:10—13

SECOND READING
Romans 5:12—15

GOSPEL
Matthew 10:26—33

THEME: THE VALUES OF OUR BRETHREN ARE IN OUR HANDS.

There is nothing that pains like betrayal. What happened between Caesar and Brutus is a typical example of what betrayal can do. Caesar on seeing the danger ran to his one and only friend for refuge and he was the one who first stabbed him and he shouted et tu Brute even you Brutus! We can again see act of betrayal in the famous novel of Chinua Achebe Things fall apart. Okonkwo betrayed Ikemefuna who took him as his father.

In the first reading, Jeremiah thought his friends were for him, but they were busy planning another thing for him.   Some whom we trust most are those who betrayal us. Someone will with all heart, mind, soul and body trust us and we will only tell the person. Please trust nobody. Jesus in Matthew 5:37 said. Let your yes be yes and your no be no, anything apart from this comes from the evil one. If no one can trust us, it means our yes is no more yes and no is no more no. Some of Christians when they say, RUN! then know that they mean stop. It was not, it is not and will never be our identity. We are playing with our values much, especially our brethren’s own. Too Bad. Sometimes I begin to wonder if it is better to use opposite instead of using this sentence. This thing I am telling you, do not tell any other person. Because, information that travels fast is the one meant to be kept secret. When one is asked not to say something, that is the one the person will like to talk about. Why? Because people do not know or do not understand again that his brothers, sisters and neighbour's values are in our hands. Someone who trusted you with everything is the one you are using to gossip. Using to win favour. Too Bad. See more

Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ By Tobe Eze

Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ

FIRST READING
Deuteronomy 8:2—3, 14b—16a

SECOND READING
1 Corinthians 10:16—17

GOSPEL
John 6:51—58

OFFER AND ACCEPTANCE WITHOUT CONSIDERATION.

The love of God towards us is unquantifiable. God loves us so much that, a night before his death he instituted the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist and Holy Orders. He instituted the Holy Eucharist and to allow us to partake of it even when he is not with us physically, he asked his apostles to do it in memory of him (Luke 19:22). In the second reading of today St. Paul is making it clearer to us that the bread we break and the cup we bless are body and blood of Christ. During last supper, he said to his apostles, take this all of you and eat it for this is my body which will be given up for you and when supper was ended, he took the cup and blessed it gave it to his apostles saying take this and drink from it for this is my blood, the blood of the new covenant and everlasting covenant, for the forgiveness of sins of many. Do this in memory of me. In today’s gospel, Jesus is telling us that we can only see life in him. He is the only life that we can embrace and we will be sure of everlasting life. Onye obuna riri ma obu nuo obara mu ga enwe ndu maka na ahu bu ihe oriri ma obara mu bu ihe onunu. His flesh and are the best thing that will happen to us. Continue Reading

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity By Tobe Eze

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

FIRST READING
Exodus 34:4b—6, 8—9

SECOND READING
2 Corinthians 13:11—13

GOSPEL
John 3:16—18

THEME: THE LOVE AMONG THE TRINITY.

GLORY BE TO THE FATHER AND TO THE SON AND TO THE HOLY SPIRIT.

BIBLICAL VIEWS ABOUT TRINITY.

In Genesis 1, the Bible said that, when the world was in a formless void, the Spirit was hovering around the water. In the same Genesis, God said let us create man in our own image and likeness. From this statement, it sows that were other persons existing with God that time. If it was only him, he would just say, let me create man in my own image and likeness. The Trinitarian has been into existence from before creation. (Genesis 1:2 and Genesis 1:26).

Why are you Spoiling that Child? By Tobe Eze

Why are you Spoiling that Child?

After that, what next? The kind of moral decadence in our world today calls for alarm. Children are today doing all sort of evils and parents are worsening the whole situation. Come to think of it, when a mother will be telling her daughter that, any day that you prove yourself to me that you are a woman by getting money from these young men or old men (sugar daddies) in exchange of what you have naturally, then I will do anything you need that time for you. Father on the other side, promising the same to his son with the same condition. When I was at your age, I have tested up to 12 girls to know how sweet they are and you are still here like a log of wood waiting for me to do everything for you. These girls help my son.

Parents now buy phonographic videos for their children to teach them how to seduce men and women in the name of home sex education. What type of sex education is that one? We blame schools much before now that there, children learn all kinds of evil and how to misbehave but the whole thing starts now from the root. It is now coming from our different homes and from our parents. To who shall we go? Continue Reading

PENTECOST By Tobe Eze

PENTECOST

Happy birthday to the Catholic Church! Happy birthday to you, who are the body of the Church!

We're all familiar with our own birthdays, and we celebrate them because they mark the day of the year in which we entered into this life. But did you know you have a second birthday?

Because you are part of the body of the Church, Pentecost is the Church's birthday, and yours as well. And like any birthday, it's a cause for celebration.

The word Pentecost is Greek and it means "50th day." Fifty days after Easter Sunday, we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and their followers, and the beginning of their Earthly ministry to make disciples of all nations.

Pentecost – Solemnity By Tobe Eze

Pentecost – Solemnity

FIRST READING

Acts 2:1—11

SECOND READING 1 Corinthians 12:3b—7, 12—13

 GOSPEL

John 20:19—23

THEME: THE HOLY SPIRIT GIVES MANY GIFTS TO US BUT NOT SPIRIT OF FIGHTING.

There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit; there are different forms of service but the same Lord; there are different workings but the same God who produces all of them in everyone. To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit. 

Ọkwanụ ofu Alahaji ka anyị n' achịrị efi. The Holy Spirit of God is a spirit that gives many positive gifts to the people of God. Many persons are now adding are now adding many other gifts saying that they come from the Holy Spirit. Gifts like:

Group learning how to speak in tongues

Gift of falling down at the slit of any prayer

Gift of fighting etc. Continue Reading