November 08, 2026. 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

Readings: Wisdom 6:12-16; 1 Thess. 4:13-14; Matthew 25:1-13

Be Alert and Ready for Your Master’s Return

1.     Today’s readings exhort us to keep the end of our life constantly before us and reflect on it day and night. Hence, we must be prepared because we do not know when the Lord will call us home. The Church has taken the Parousia, or the second coming of Christ in glory at the end of time, seriously. We know for sure that the world will come to an end. Christ tells us, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me. In my father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am, you also may be.” (Jn. 14:1-3).

 

2.     Today’s gospel reminds us to always be prepared, like the wise virgins who took their lamps and oil, ready to meet the bridegroom. Our sacramental and Christian life will fill our flasks with enough oil to be ready for the master’s return. So, I ask you: do you have enough oil in your flask to wait through the master’s long night of delay? Where do you produce your oil? A good and intentional prayer life, a life of humility, compassion, and love would be the factory where we produce, manufacture, and distribute our oil. If we do not wait eagerly for Christ’s coming, we will stagnate and be tempted to indulge in whatever gives us a moment of pleasure. Internet sensations, rubbish posts, too much television, filthy email, and immoral things shared on smartphones, smart TVs, and other devices can easily distract us from waiting for the master’s return. We will lose the discipline to discern what leads us closer to God and what takes us away from God.

 

3.     St. Paul asked us to wake up from our sleep thus: “You know what hour it is, how it is full time now for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed; the night is far gone, the day is at hand. Let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us conduct ourselves becomingly as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh to gratify its desires.” (Rom. 13:11-14). He warned us to wake up from sleep and prepare for the Parousia, when we would enjoy the coming of the Lord together with our deceased brothers and sisters. This is at the heart of the Parousia: “thereafter we shall be with the Lord unceasingly,” full enjoyment of the kingdom with the Lord and with one another.

 

4.     In the gospel, the groom represents the Christ awaited in his Parousia. The midnight hour does not mean a designated time. Rather, it conveys the uncertainty (they are in the dark) concerning the time of Christ’s coming. The two groups of bridesmaids represent those who will and those who will not share in the event. Preparedness is a must for everyone, and it is certainly one reason the Church reminds us of the Parousia in several places in the Eucharistic prayer. If our eyes are on that glorious goal, we are more likely to keep our spiritual lamps lit and ready for the reception.

 

5.     We must have our lamps ready for the master’s return. We must not rush in or wait until the dying minute to prepare for the master by trying to borrow oil from others.  We cannot borrow everything from others. The foolish virgins found it impossible to borrow oil when they discovered they needed it. We cannot borrow a relationship with God; we must possess it for ourselves, nor can we borrow a good character; we must be clothed with it. We cannot always believe in the spiritual capital which others have worked for. We must win or acquire these things for ourselves, because we cannot borrow them from others. The harsh lives that many experienced must be lubricated with the oil of kindness, gentleness, or thoughtfulness. Our can of oil, and how we apply it in the lives of others, is what makes us Christians. 

6.     Like the personified wisdom in the first reading, Christ is searching for us. When we look forward to meeting him, he “graciously appears to us in the way and meets us with all solicitude.” Amen.

 

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP

November 1, 2026. Solemnity of All Saints (Year ABC)

Rev.7:2-4,9-14; 1 Jn. 3:1-3; Matthew 5:1-12 

We are Called to Be Saints

Who is a saint? A saint is a sinner who falls into sin many times and gets back up again. At baptism, we were called to sainthood when we promised to renounce evil and profess our faith in God. We promised to reject Satan and turn away from all forms of darkness or spiritual harm to our souls: sin, dishonesty, bullying, empty promises, false values, materialism, superficiality, and actions that go against God’s will. Then we professed our faith in God the Father, acknowledging Him as the Almighty God, creator of heaven and earth; in Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, who was born of the Virgin Mary, suffered, died, rose from the dead, and is seated at the Father’s right hand. We also profess our belief in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Renouncing Satan and professing our faith in God put us on the path to sainthood. But we often fall into sin and fail to keep our promises to God and ourselves. We need God’s grace and mercy to continually answer the call to sainthood.

Today, we celebrate the solemnity of All Saints, as we think not only of those whose names are recorded in the Church’s martyrology, but also of men and women in our families, our friends, and those we knew who lived exemplary lives and kept the promises they made on the day of their baptism. We especially celebrate those who fail many times under the weight of their sins, had the courage to rise again, change their lives, and keep moving. Through their lives and struggles, they teach us how to be saints and what the path of sainthood looks like. We are grateful to them and pray for their intercession so that we, too, may find the path to sainthood. Today, the Church on earth and the Church suffering rejoice with the Church triumphant and proclaim, as we do every Sunday, “We believe in the communion of saints”.

Matthew’s Gospel presents Jesus as the preacher of good news (11:5), the teacher of the kingdom (5:2), and the one in whom the prophecies of the old dispensation have been fulfilled (8:17). In today’s gospel, Jesus preaches the good news that the kingdom fulfills the Old Testament promises and turns the world upside down. Through him, the poor in spirit, the hungry, the persecuted, the mourners, and the meek will be satisfied; through him the compassionate and the peacemakers will have their reward. They are the sons and daughters of the kingdom.

The second reading highlights the expectant hope the Christian must have while awaiting the Lord’s manifestation. First John points out that God loves us and has made us his children. “See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God. Yet so we are.” (1Jn. 3:1). Yet we await the Lord’s coming to see him face to face. We long not only for his coming at the end of time, but also, and even more importantly, for his coming at the end of our earthly existence, when he will take us by the hand and lead us into that heavenly city.

To access the heavenly city, we must be marked with the seal. “These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” (Rev. 7:14) They won their victory not only by words alone but gained a right to the victorious celebration by washing their robes and making them white in the blood of the Lamb. The number of the redeemed is a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation, race, people, and tongue, and they all acclaim, praise, glory, wisdom, thanksgiving, honor, power, and might. They were praising God because they were protected from death, and they were given a protective shield, which is the name of the living God.

On the solemnity of All Saints, Matthew, 1 John, and Revelation remind us why we rejoice and celebrate this solemn festival here today. Our life is a pilgrimage to the heavenly city. We must fully commit our lives to Christ, make our robes white in his blood, and fulfill our hopes. In him we live and hope to die. We are pilgrims on our way home. The path is found in the beatitudes, and the end is found in heaven. The beatitudes give us a clear path to the kingdom of heaven. The saints lived out the beatitudes that highlight spiritual dependence, comfort in grief, gentleness, a desire for justice, compassion, purity of heart, peace, and endurance in faith. This is what the saints went through: with great persecution and endurance, they won the victory to eternal life. May we follow their lead so that one day we may join the Church triumphant, celebrate the life of grace with God, and sing joyfully before our God.

 

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP.

October 25, 2026. 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

Ex. 22:20-26; 1 Thessalonians 1:5-10; Matthew 22:34-40 

The Law of Love

This week’s readings can be summarized by St. James’ words: “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the orphans and the widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (1:27). Christianity is not a religion per se; it is a relationship. A relationship with the living God, who is in relationship with human beings. The readings stress the necessity of an active, saving God and a human response in the form of love, both for God and for all his creatures. God’s saving love has made us who and what we are. Within us, therefore, is a divine spark, a transcendent principle, a ‘grace’, that makes us capable of a love for others that exceeds normal human dimensions.

The first reading recalls the inhuman condition the children of Israel found themselves in Egypt. The Lord heard their cry, rescued them, and brought them out of the land of slavery to the promised land. Therefore, the children of Israel should treat the strangers among them with kindness. “You shall not molest or oppress an alien, for you were once aliens yourselves in the Land of Egypt. You shall not wrong any widow or orphan. If ever you wrong them and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry.” Israel’s own experience as aliens in Egypt is unique among the nations. Widows and orphans were a special concern in most societies. But there God himself is the divine ‘kinsman’ who will come to their aid. God has saved us in his everlasting love; therefore, we must hold him above every other object and show love and concern for his people.

In the gospel, Jesus is asked about the greatest commandment, 613 of them. Christ summarized them as loving God and loving neighbor. He places love for God first, not because he is worthy of special love, but because our love for others is strongest when it flows from our love for God. That love of God is possible only because his love has first placed that spark, that grace, within us. We must give God total love, a love that dominates our emotions, directs our thoughts, and drives our actions. All religion starts with love, which is total commitment to God.

Our love for God must issue in love for men. St. John reminds us, “If anyone says, ‘I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him, that he who loves God should love his brother also.” (I Jn. 4:20-21). Only when we love God does man become lovable. Genesis reminds us that God made man in his image and likeness. (cf. Gen. 1:26-27). Human love is firmly grounded in God’s love. This is true religion rooted in the loving relationship between God and human beings.

The test of how we love God is demonstrated in how we relate to others in love. How do we receive and relate to people that we are not comfortable with? How have we contributed to alleviating the sufferings of people around us, especially the immigrants, the suffering, the voiceless, those unfairly treated, the incarcerated, and those with special needs? Can we forgive others because God has forgiven us? Do we do unto others as we want them to do unto us? When we remember our humble beginnings, we can easily accommodate others’ insecurities, limitations, and shortcomings. We are who we are today because God was good and gracious to us. We must treat others accordingly. But when we forget, we begin to feel we achieved our greatness on our own. Christ commanded us: “Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn. 13:33, 35).

God will answer our prayers and strengthen our relationship with him if we show kindness to others. By “Releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own. Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed; your vindication shall go before you, and the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say Here I am.” (Is. 58:6-9). 

 

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP

October 18, 2026. 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

Isaiah: 45:1,4-6; 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5; Matthew 22:15-21

Who Is Caesar and Who Owns Him?

The three parables of the last three weeks were directed to the Jewish leaders. In the parable of the two sons (Matt. 21:28-32), 26^th Sunday, September 27, the Jewish leaders appear as the unsatisfactory son who did not do his father’s will. In the parable of the wicked tenants (Matt. 21:33-43), 27th Sunday, October 4th, the wicked tenants refuse to pay the landowner’s rent. In the parable of the king’s feast (Matt. 22:1-14), 28^th Sunday, October 11th, the condemned guests are the ones who refuse to attend. Today, the Jewish leaders launched their counterattacks at Jesus with carefully formulated questions in the full view of the crowd to make Jesus discredit himself by his own words in the presence of the people. Their question was subtle, designed to put Jesus in a dilemma. Palestine was an occupied country, and the Jews were subject to the Roman Empire; and the question was, “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?

 

The factions that confronted Jesus are worth noting. The Pharisees together with Herodian sympathizers. These two were in bitter opposition. The Pharisees were supremely orthodox and resented paying tax to a foreign king as an infringement on God’s divine right. The Herodians, on the other hand, were Herod’s party, the king of Galilee, who owed his power to the Romans and worked hand in glove with them. These two were strange bedfellows; for the moment, they forgot their differences in a shared hatred of Jesus and a shared desire to eliminate him. Any man who insists on his own way, no matter what it is, will hate Jesus. This is a trap because if Jesus says yes, he will alienate many people, including the Pharisees, who resented Rome’s sovereignty. But if he says no, he will alienate the Herodians, who were fiercely loyal to Rome. In this case, Roman soldiers could also arrest him for fomenting rebellion.

 

Jesus outwits them with his answer. He asked for a denarius stamped with the emperor’s head. That coinage was considered the property of the king whose image it bore. He asked whose image was on the coin. They answered that Caesar’s head was on it. “Well then”, he said, “give it back to Caesar; it is his. Give to Caesar what belongs to him; and give to God what belongs to God.” Jesus befuddled them with his answer. Instead of laying down rules and regulations on taxation, he lays down principles. Every Christian has a double citizenship. He is a citizen of the country in which he lives and a citizen of heaven. A country owes its citizens core foundational duties under the social contract, centered on protection, the rule of law, and public welfare. The government must protect the citizens from violence (crime, disorder) and external threats, such as foreign aggression, through military, police, and legal systems. It must establish and enforce fair laws, maintain courts for due process and dispute resolution, and treat citizens equally under the law. Finally, States are to promote general welfare by managing crises such as public health emergencies, regulating dangerous or toxic industries, and building public infrastructure like roads, schools, and health services. Under constitutional and democratic frameworks, a country must respect, recognize, and actively uphold its people’s fundamental rights and liberties, such as freedom of speech, movement, and due process. Citizens, in turn, fund these duties through contributions such as taxes in exchange for the security, stability, and civic framework the state provides. Christians are people of honor; therefore, they must be responsible citizens. Failure in good citizenship is also a failure in Christian duty. They owe Caesar a duty in return for the privileges Caesar’s rule brings them. Christians must participate in their country’s government. Because “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people mourn.” (Proverbs 29:2)

 

In the first reading, God directed a pagan king Cyrus to liberate his people from Babylonian exile and return them to their homeland in Jerusalem. God called him “his anointed,” meaning mashiach, from which our English “Messiah” comes. God calls Cyrus his messiah, a title otherwise given only to someone in Israel, usually the king, or, in later Judaism, to the end-time figure who would usher in the messianic age. God directs all Cyrus’s operations. He even arms him, “Though you know me not.” The reason is that “I am the Lord and there is no other, there is no God besides me.” Whatever happens, at any time, at any place, happens under God’s control. Jesus knew this; he knew that, while Israel was the chosen people, the others did not act independently of God. Everything comes from that God; in its own way, everyone belongs to that God. Nothing exists that is not his. So, Jesus is really saying to his opponents, ‘You can give that coin to Caesar and still be giving it to God.’ For even Caesar belongs to God. God created him, and like King Cyrus, God made him who he is. He belongs to God, though he may not know it. Christians therefore have dual citizenship. A real Christian is at one and the same time a good citizen of his country and a good citizen of the kingdom of Heaven. He will fail in his duty to neither God nor man. As Peter said, he must “Fear God and honor the emperor” (Peter 2:17).

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP

October 11, 2026. 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

Isaiah: 25:6-10; Philippians 4:12-14, 19-20; Matthew 22:1-14 

Many Are Called, But Few Are Chosen!

Today’s gospel tells a parable about a man who prepared a wedding feast for his son and invited people to it. A feast is only worth celebrating with family, friends, and the community. But the participants in this banquet will not be who you’d expect on a royal wedding list. Those invited declined, but the unwilling and the uninvited came. They shared the Lord’s life and love. The first reading describes a banquet of feasting: rich food and choice wines, prepared by the Lord for his people on the mountain of the Lord. Isaiah describes, in rich imagery, what is commonly called the eschatological, or end-time, meal. He brings the people home to the exquisite joy of the final day, when they will be united with the Lord forever. Death will be destroyed forever; there will be no sadness, no sickness, no pain, no suffering, and no misery. We will see God as he is and say, “Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us! This is the Lord for whom we looked; let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us!” (Is. 25:9).

 

On the night before his death, Jesus had a dinner with his apostles. In that supper, Jesus gave his apostles a meal of greater significance. He gave them his body and blood. “The Lord Jesus took bread, and after he had given thanks, broke it and said, ‘This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.” (1 Cor. 11: 23-26). The banquet is therefore the Eucharist, the greatest act of thanksgiving to God. It is a foretaste of the great banquet of heaven, prepared by God for his people.

 

Lessons from today’s readings: The invited guests in the gospel who refused the invitation were the Jews. They were the chosen people of God, the covenant people, but when Jesus, the Son of God, came into the world, they were invited to follow him, but they contemptuously refused. Because of their refusal, the invitation went out directly to the highways and byways; the people there were sinners and Gentiles who never expected an invitation into the kingdom but responded with enthusiasm. They repented and were accepted into the Lamb’s wedding feast. Through Baptism, we became God’s chosen sons and daughters. Unfortunately, we do not always accept Christ’s invitation to be his disciples. We accept the invitation through our way of life, our prayer, and our service to one another. We cannot profess our faith only with our lips; we must also profess it with our minds, our bodies, and our lives.

 

These readings remind us to serve the Lord in joy. The wedding feast celebrates joy. To think of Christianity as a gloomy giving up of everything that brings laughter and sunshine, and happy fellowship is to mistake its true nature. Christians are invited to a joyful fellowship with one another, and they miss joy if they refuse the invitation. Jesus had many opportunities to celebrate. He participated in the wedding feast at Cana (Jn. 2:1-11) and prompted several joyful celebrations throughout his earthly ministry. An angelic decree of immense joy marked his birth (Lk. 2:10); he rode triumphantly into Jerusalem amidst great joy (Mk. 11:1-11), among many other celebrations. A Christian must always show joy in serving God. We should always be joyful in God, no matter what happens around us. St. Paul exhorts us to “Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again; rejoice!” (Phil. 4:4).

Again, we learn that what makes a person deaf to God’s call may not be bad or immoral. Those who refused the invitation had good reasons. One went to his farm; the other went to his business. They went to administer the business of life. Hence, life’s tragedy is that the second best so often shuts out the best; things good in themselves shut out the supreme. We can be so busy making a living that we forget to make a life. Our priorities in life should be our willingness to sacrifice it all to attend the everlasting banquet. We should do whatever it takes to partake in the feast prepared for us. May we never work so hard for the Lord that we forget the Lord of the work! We will not be punished for our refusal, but we will miss the joy of the feast. If we refuse Christ’s invitation, someday our greatest pain will not be what we suffer, but realizing the precious things we missed. God’s invitation is the invitation of grace. Those gathered from the highways and byways could never have expected an invitation to the wedding feast; they did not deserve it. It came to them not because of anything they had done, but because of the king’s wide-armed, open-hearted, generous hospitality. Grace offered the invitation, and grace gathered them in. On our own, we are indeed undeserving.  We are who we are by God’s grace and mercy. So let us accept his loving invitation and say ‘Yes’ to it with our lives. Amen.

 

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP

October 04, 2026. 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

Isaiah: 5:1-7; Philippians 4:6-9; Matthew 21:33-43

Parents will do whatever it takes for their children’s welfare, without caring much about themselves, so long as their children have what they need to grow into responsible adults. They would be disappointed if their children don’t grow up to meet their expectations, or when they take to drugs and become the exact opposite of what they expected; worse still, if they engage in harmful behaviors that will bring shame to their families. Hence, parents would say, “What else could we have done for my children that we did not do? How is it that instead of becoming a responsible and respectable member of society, they have become a criminal and have brought shame to our family?” That is how Isaiah sees the chosen people of God. God brought them out of Egypt with strong hands and fought to drive their enemies away. He gave them an inheritance they did not work for, the land flowing with milk and honey. Yet they turned away from God and followed their own paths. Today’s first reading asks of them: “What more was there to do for My vineyard, that I have not done in it? When I looked for grapes, why did it yield wild grapes?” (Is. 4:4).

Today’s gospel picks up the same theme in the parable of the vineyard and ungrateful tenants. The vineyard owner did everything right. He provided the conditions for a robust harvest. But the tenants were ungrateful. They treated those sent to bring in the harvest with contempt. Last of all, they killed the son of the owner of the vineyard with the intent to take possession of the vineyard. No one should doubt who the parable was directed at. “The vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel” (Isaiah 5:7). The owner of the vineyard is God, and the cultivators are Israel’s religious leaders, who, as it were, had charge from God of the nation’s welfare. The messengers sent successively are the prophets, so often rejected and killed. The son, who came last, is none other than Jesus himself. Here, in a vivid story, Jesus set in motion Israel’s history and doom at once.   

These readings teach us that God trusts and has entrusted the world to us to cultivate on his behalf. He does not look over our shoulders but expects us to deliver at the proper time. “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). Being the object of special favor does not guarantee anything. Personal responsibility is always required, and nothing can substitute for it.

God is patient with us. He wants us to change, do what is right, and be saved. “I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked man, but rather in the wicked man’s conversion, that he may live. Why should you die, O house of Israel?” (Ezekiel 33:11). The master sent messengers. He gave the cultivators chance after chance to respond to his appeal. “It is not the will of your heavenly Father that one of these little ones be lost.” (Matt. 18:14). God’s patience is not eternal; judgment will come if we do not change our ways, repent, and do what is right. In the end, the master of the vineyard took the vineyard from the cultivators and gave it to others. God’s sternest judgment is when He takes from our hands the task he meant us to do. “He will put those wretched men to a wretched death and lease his vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the proper times.” (Matt. 21:41) We are answerable for the way in which we have carried out the task God gave us to do. A man has sunk to his lowest level when he has become useless to God.

In the second reading, St. Paul exhorts us to pursue holiness and not rebel against our creator. We should set our minds on what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, gracious, excellent, and worthy of praise. The anxiety of the task the Lord has entrusted to us should not intimidate us. If we are anxious, we should pray with thanksgiving in our hearts, and the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard our hearts and minds so that we may abide in God and His goodness.

One thing we should not forget, dear friends, is that the readings are the cry of a rejected lover. These readings emphasize God’s tremendous love for his people. And yet the vineyard (Israel and, by extension, all of us) brought forth only wild grapes. We often preferred to go our own way and abandoned the God who loves us and provides all we need. We have often chosen our own path and treated our brothers and sisters with contempt. Unless we change our ways and bear good fruits, God will give our responsibilities to others. We pray that this may never happen to us. So let us pick up our prayer books and rosary beads, return to the Lord, and ask for his mercy. He will forgive and have mercy on us. And so, dear friends, “Let us seek while he may be found; call him while he is near. Let the scoundrel forsake his way, and the wicked man his thoughts; Let him turn to the Lord for mercy; to our God, who is generous and forgiving.” (Is. 55:6-7). May God bless and keep us.

 

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP

September 27, 2026. 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

Ezekiel: 18:25-28; Philippians 2:1-11; Matthew 21:28-32

Be Prepared to Change Your Mind.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells a parable about two brothers with attitudes that were the exact opposite of one another. The first brother seemed rebellious, while the second seemed docile. Their father asked them to go and work in the vineyard. The first son’s response was a definite ‘No’, while the second son’s response was a whimsical ‘Yes’. The first son later changed his mind and went to work in the vineyard, while the one who said ‘Yes’ never went. None of them was perfect, but at least the first son, after deep thought, changed his mind and obeyed his father.

This parable was addressed to the Jewish leaders, who portrayed themselves as the chosen ones. They promised to obey God and keep his words. But their lives were a far cry from their profession. They disobeyed God and rejected the Son of God sent to them and put him to death. But the tax-collectors and sinners changed their minds from following their own ways to accepting Jesus and his teaching. They will enter the kingdom of God long before the Jewish leaders.

In the first reading, Ezekiel reminded the people that those who commit sins will die because of their sins. God’s ways are always fair and just. A virtuous person should be consistent in doing what is right till the end. Therefore, we pray for the gift of final perseverance. This special grace enables a person to remain in a state of holiness and die in friendship with God. It makes it possible to remain steadfast in goodness and grace till the exact moment of death. According to the teaching of St. Augustine, this grace cannot be merited by human effort or good works alone. It is a free, unearned gift from God’s mercy. Therefore, we must cooperate with God’s daily graces and rely on him to avoid mortal sin. The Church views it as the most important grace because eternal salvation depends entirely on dying in a state of grace.

Ezekiel stresses further that if a wicked person “turns from the wickedness he has committed, and does what is right and just, he shall preserve his life; since he has turned away from all the sins that he has committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die” (Ezekiel 18:27-28). Herein lies the power to change our minds from the path of injustice to follow the path that leads to life. Hence, the first son changed his mind and obeyed his father. The second son, on the other hand, refused to obey because he was stuck in his self-righteous attitude. He did not keep to his word.

The second reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Philippians overshadows the first and third readings. It is called the kenotic hymn from the Greek word meaning “to empty out.” Christ emptied himself of all glory and became a slave, a servant in the form of man. Christ’s self-emptying or self-humiliation went so far as to accept obedient death, even death on the cross. Because of this, God gave him a name indicating a role Jesus now exercises that he did not exercise before. The name is Lord. St. Paul encourages the Philippians to strive for unity, to humble themselves for the sake of others. He added, “Your attitude must be that of Christ.” Because Christ’s died on the cross to save us all, we must also “empty ourselves out” for others. Hence, St. Paul exhorts us not to think of our own importance, but to think of ourselves as reluctant servants, sinners, prostitutes, unjust dealers; we must “empty ourselves” and believe in Jesus the Lord. We can do it, because he has made it possible.

Because we are human beings, prone to making mistakes, we must be ready to change our minds and seek God’s mercy and forgiveness for our sins. The best way to do this is to acknowledge our failings and shortcomings and make use of the sacrament of reconciliation. Be faithful to our prayer life and be committed to our families. We must also learn to say “I am sorry” to one another, forgive one another readily, and live in peace with one another. May the Lord of peace enable us to live in peace with one another. Amen.

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP