March 01, 2020: Homily for the First Sunday of Lent. Year (A)

Readings: Gen. 2:7-9, 3:1-7; Rom. 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11

Combating our Temptation

On this first Sunday of Lent we reflect on God’s intention for mankind; that man should live in peace and harmony with him, the creator, humanity and nature. The book of Genesis, though more theological than historical, presents us with the story of God’s relationship with Adam and Eve. This is a story of friendship and love; of grace and abundance. In the garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had everything: their needs were met at the snap of the finger. The had a perfect friendship with God who was just a stone’s throw away. They would take a walk with God in the garden in the cool of the evening, and be engaged in a heart to heart conversation, as they enjoyed the beauty of creation. But things did not work out as God intended for too long. The devil made its ominous entrance and man discovered that he was no longer prepared to be subservient to God; he wanted to be like God. With this temptation, sin found its way into the garden and caution was thrown to the wind. Man became his own worst enemy - trying to be what he was not. Temptation on its own is not a sin. To be attracted to something or someone is neither good nor bad. But how we react to temptation gives a sinful dimension to it.

Lent is our way of dealing with sin. The Collect at Mass on Ash Wednesday set the parameter for the season: “Grant, O Lord, that we may begin with holy fasting this campaign of Christian service, so that, as we take up battle against spiritual evils, we may be armed with weapons of self-restraint.” Our journey into Lent began at the incarnation when God became man in the flesh. For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, not to condemn the world but so that through him the world might be saved. (Jn. 3:16). Or like St. Paul put it, “For just as through the disobedience of one person the many were made sinners, so through the obedience of one the many will be made righteous. The law entered in so that transgression might increase but where sin increased, grace overflowed all the more.” (Rom. 5:19-20). To the Church in Corinth he wrote: “For our sake, God made him to be sin who knew no sin so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Cor. 5:21). “Sin” therefore, “is an offense against reason, truth, and right conscience; it is failure in genuine love for God and neighbor caused by a perverse attachment to certain goods. It wounds the nature of man and injures human solidarity… Sin is an offense against God: “against you, you alone have I sinned, and done that which is evil in your sight.” Sin sets itself against God’s love for us and turns our hearts away from it. It is disobedience, a revolt against God through the will to become “like gods,” It is love of oneself even to contempt of God. In this proud self-exaltation, sin is diametrically opposed to the obedience of Jesus which achieves our salvation” (CCC 1849-1850).

Today we are presented with Jesus’ temptation in the desert. With this temptation, Jesus teaches us how to act when we are tempted. We fall into temptation due to the manipulations of the tempter. To tempt Jesus, the devil used his knowledge of the Bible. Jesus also used the Scripture to beat the devil hands down.  He countered the devil point by point and commanded him to get out of His sight. The devil ran away with his tail in between his legs. The best way to fight temptation is to fortify ourselves with the word of God.

 The devil manipulated Eve in the same way: “Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?” He cast doubts on God’s directives and offered her counter logical explanation: “You certainly will not die! No, God knows well that the moment you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods who know what is good and what is bad.” (Gen. 3:4). The devil made the woman an offer she could not refuse. Her mind turned away from God: she wanted to be like God. She imagined the benefits of the fruit: “The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom. So, she took some of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” (Gen. 3:6). The devil always gets us at our weakest point. He comes in when we are sick, hungry, lonely, sad, defenseless, depressed, jobless, moneyless, poor and desperate. He comes with false and empty promises to take care of us, if only we would do his bidding. Sadly, many people fall into his traps!

Jesus shows us today how to face temptation. We must be prayerful, we must fast and give in charity. We must know the bible and develop new ways to counter the antics of the devil. Christ went into the desert to fast and pray for strength and for a sense of direction. He surrendered his will to the will of God and fortified himself with the word of God. With this he was able to face the devil. One does not live by bread alone, but by every world that comes forth from the mouth of God; and again, it is written, “You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test”. And finally, “Get away, Satan! It is written: The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve.” (Mt. 4:4,7,10). We fall into temptation when we do not know how to fortify ourselves. Lent gives us that golden opportunity to do battle with the devil. We must give alms, fast and pray if we are to face the temptations of our daily lives. We must learn to be humble, forgiving, compassionate and merciful and the devil will stay far away from us. May God help us to enter into this season of grace with commitment and the desire to change for the better. Amen!

Assignment:

1.    How do you prepare Lent? To combat the temptation of the devil, Jesus relied on the word of God. There are 40 days from today to Easter Triduum. I propose that we read the Gospel of Luke and the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans. Luke’s Gospel has 24 chapters while the Letter to the Romans has 16 chapters. Read Luke’s Gospel from March 1 to March 24 and the Letter to the Romans from March 25 and round it up on April 9. What a wonderful way to enter into Easter Season.

2.    During Lent we must give alms. When we give alms, we see ourselves as God’s stewards, entrusted with many blessings. We must therefore, share what we have with others. Our gifts are meaningful when it hurts. Then we are giving sacrificially.  Please support the missions of the Missionary Society of Paul. Pick up a table calendar and give whatever you can each month to provide fresh water, feed the hungry, educate a child in the mission or train a Seminarian for the missions. What you give up for Lent should benefit others.

3.    During this Lent, let us be available to people around us. Let us share a smile and may our parting words be ‘May God bless you.” Amen.

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP

February 23, 2020. Homily for the 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time; Year A.

Readings: Lv. 19:1-2, 17-18; 1Cor. 3:16-23; Matthew 5:38-48

We Are Called to Be Holy

“All Christians in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of charity.” (CCC 2013). This is a universal mandate extended to everyone. We are not called to be holy as we think we should be holy, but as holy as God is. Our understanding of holiness should be based on God’s way and not ours. “…Not what I will but what you will.” (Mk. 14:36). “Be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy” (First reading). We must respond to this call without any reservation. In his Introduction to the Devout Live, St. Francis de Sales reminds us, “Wherever we find ourselves we not only may, but should, seek perfection.” He stressed: “At the creation God commanded the plants to bear fruit each according to its kind and he likewise commands Christians, the living branches of the vine, to bear fruit by practicing devotion according to their state in life.” We are created in the image and likeness of God to know, love, serve and worship God in this world so as to be happy with him in the next. Our existence on earth will only be meaningful if we behold the beatific vision of God at the end. Hence, our choices should be geared towards our final home with God in heaven. So, we must be holy!

What is holiness? Holiness means sacredness or purity. It is often used to describe things that are consecrated or dedicated and set apart for the service of God. It is living in communication with God and others. It comes from God alone, so people and things can only be holy if they are related to God. Because of our desire to seek God and all that pleases Him, we must let go of everything in order to have a life with God. St. Paul stated this clearly thus: “I even consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things and I consider them so much rubbish that I may gain Christ and be found in him…” (Phil. 3:8-10). “In order to reach this perfection” the Catechism teaches, “the faithful should use the strength dealt out to them by Christ’s gift, so that …doing the will of the Father in everything, they may wholeheartedly devote themselves to the glory of God and to the service of their neighbor. Thus the holiness of the people of God will grow in fruitful abundance, as is clearly shown in the history of the Church through the lives of so many saints.” (CCC 2013).

The Gospel reading today makes sense when seen from the background of the call to holiness. The teaching of Christ in the Sermon on the Mount shows the Christian how to pursue a life of holiness. Responding to this call means “You shall not bear hatred for your brother. Take no revenge and cherish no grudge.” (Lev. 19:18). “Offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other one as well. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow. Love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you.” (Mt. 5:38-45).

This reminds me of a story about a preacher who was confronted by someone after preaching on turning the other cheek. The young man asked him, “Is it true that if I strike you on the right cheek you will turn the left as well for me to strike.” The preacher answered in the affirmative. The young man immediately struck the pastor on the right cheek. The pastor turned the left cheek as well, to which the young man struck again with a deadly blow. The pastor then lifted the young man up and dropped him on the ground. The young asked him why he did that, to which the pastor responded that Christ did not tell him what to do after turning the other cheek, so he took his initiative. Christians do not look for an easy way out because they have no alternative. They look for options because it is always right to do what is right, and not doing what is right is not an option. Christians know that by hurting others they hurt themselves. Bearing grudges, harboring grievances and planning revenge are holding a big fire in our heart which will soon ignite, burn and consume not only ourselves but everything in its path. We hurt ourselves each time we are abusive, disregard, look down and act maliciously towards others.

“When we hate our enemies, we give them power over us – power over our sleep…power over our blood pressure, power over our health and happiness. Our enemies would dance for joy if they knew how our hatred tears us apart. Our hatred is not hurting them at all. It only turns own days and night into a hellish turmoil.” (Anonymous) Jesus knew all these and so he wants us to use the power of love and conquer our enemies. They cannot take the pressure of our love for too long; but will buckle under the enormity of our love and so we are called to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. Love will always release a chain reaction of love. Responding with love toward those who wrong us benefits both parties far more than does a response of hate.

May we respond to a call to holiness and so love as we are loved! Amen.

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP.

February 16, 2020. Homily for the 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A.

Readings: Sirach 15:15-20; 1Cor. 2:6-10; Matthew 5:17-37

The Burden of Our Choices

Today is the 6^th Sunday in Ordinary Time. Next week, precisely on February 26^th we begin the season of Lent with Ash Wednesday. It is fitting indeed that we make a choice today. “If you choose you can keep the commandments, they will save you; if you trust in God, you too shall live; he has set before you fire and water; to whichever you choose, stretch forth your hand. Before man are life and death, good and evil, whichever he chooses shall be given him.” (Sirach 15:15-17). In the Book of Deuteronomy God urged the children of Israel to keep his commandment and enjoy a long life in the promised land. He told them that his command was not difficult for them to observe but was something very near to them, “already in your mouths and in your hearts; you have only to carry it out” (Deut. 30:14). In verse 15, he says: “Today I am giving you a choice between good and evil, between life and death.” He gave them a choice between God’s blessing and God’s curse. To stress the seriousness of the choice, God invites, in verse 19, the heaven and earth to witness the choice that they were to make.

One of the most sacred gifts God has gifted us with is Free Will. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “God created man a rational being, conferring on him the dignity of a person who can initiate and control his own actions. “God willed that man should be ‘left in the hand of his own counsel,’ so that he might of his own accord seek his Creator and feely attain his full and blessed perfection by cleaving to him.” (1730). With our free will, it is expected that we choose the path that would lead us back to God. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. We have often chosen to deviate from God, choosing ourselves rather than our Creator. We have used this gift of freedom, many times to our detriment; to destroy and kill rather than to love, respect and protect others. Yet God still respects us and will never take that gift away from us.

Today’s readings remind us of God’s intention in giving us free will. “The eyes of God are on those who fear him; he understands man’s every deed. No one does he command to act unjustly, to none does he give license to sin.” Again, he reminds us “If you obey the commandments of the Lord, your God which I enjoin on you today, loving him and walking in his ways and keeping his commandments, statutes and decrees, you will live and grow numerous, and the Lord, your God, will bless you in the land you are entering to occupy.” (Deut. 30:16). Our choices have repercussion and consequences; we are responsible to every choice we make. When we refuse to obey God’s Commandment, we do so to our detriment and we will pay the price for it. “If, however, you turn away your hearts and will not listen but are led astray and adore and serve other gods, I tell you now that you will certainly perish…” (Deut. 30:17-18).

This brings us to today’s Gospel. Jesus is the fulfillment of the law. We must not only obey the law but personalize and internalize it. God gave us the law for a purpose, to guide our way of life on earth and ensure a peaceful cohabitation with others. The law of Mosses finds its completion in Jesus. Hence, he says, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” (Matt. 5:17). It is therefore, in our best interest to obey the law of God. No wonder the Psalmist prays in today’s Psalm, “Instruct me, O Lord, in the way of your statutes, that I may exactly observe them. Give me discernment, that I may observe your law and keep it with all my heart.” (Ps. 119:33-34).

The law of God, fulfilled in Christ, makes us morally strong, upright and honest. It makes it possible for us to live a life of integrity, to give and keep our words and to speak the truth at all times.  No wonder Mark Twain said: “Speaking honestly is better. It takes a lot of stress out of our lives. If you tell the truth you don’t have to remember anything, but if you don’t tell the truth you have to remember what you said.” Proverbs 10:9 stresses this point thus, “The man of integrity walks securely, but he who takes crooked paths will be found out.” Herein then lies the punishment of those who do not obey the law of love.

The choices that we make place obligation on us. If we make good and positive choices we reap a bountiful benefit but if we make bad choices we will certainly end up with bad consequences. We have to choose to forgive those who hurt us or be stuck with the toxic feeling of hatred each time we see the object of our apprehension. Christ wants to spare us this and so he instructs us to tread the path of reconciliation. He gives us simple rules or a manifesto of his kingdom – the beatitudes. He warns, “I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” Let us pray, once again, with the Psalmist: “Be good to your servant, that I may live and keep your words. Open my eyes, that I may consider the wonders of your law.” Amen.

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP