June 02, 2024; Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Year B)

Readings: Ex. 24:3-8; Heb. 9:11-15; Mk 14:12-16, 22-26. 

Examine Yourself before you Eat the Bread and Drink the Cup

1.     A will is a legal declaration of a person’s wishes regarding the disposal of their property or estate after death. With a legal will, we avoid tension, hatred, jealousy, and rivalry among siblings and family members; therefore, it is a good practice for people to make a will, notarize it, and have a lawyer witness it. The will can be reviewed and updated from time to time. On the other hand, advance directives are oral and written instructions about future medical decisions (for example, when one is unconscious or too ill to communicate). Everyone should have advanced medical directives and inform the medical team when one is admitted to the hospital.

2.     When we look at the institution of the Holy Eucharist, it seems that Jesus Christ, who knew that his life on earth was ending, communicated his wishes to his apostles. Today’s gospel detailed how Jesus prepared his apostles for his death. “While they were eating, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, gave it to them, and said, “Take it; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, and they all drank from it. He said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many. Amen, I say to you, I shall not drink again the fruit of the vine until the day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” (Mk. 14:22-26). He told them, “Do this in memory of me.” (Lk. 22:19).

3.     Dear friends, we gather here today to do what Christ commanded: celebrate his love. We know how important it is to obey and carry out the death wishes of our parents. The celebration of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ reminds us that Christ is with us in the bread and wine we offer in sacrifice to God to become his body and blood through transubstantiation. The Eucharist is the food for our spirit and soul. “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his Blood, you do not have life within you.” (Jn. 6:53). The shedding of his blood on the cross sealed the covenant Christ made with us. Christ is the sacrificial “Lamb who takes away the sin of the world.” (Jn 1:29). In the first reading, Moses sealed the covenant with the blood of an animal, “Then he took the blood and sprinkled it on the people, saying, “This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord had made with you in accordance with all these words of his.” (Ex.24:8). The sacrifice of Moses prefigured Christ’s sacrifice of the new covenant sealed by his blood. He died so that we may have life. He left us a memorial of his passion and death and urged us to eat his body and drink his blood. “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” (Jn. 6:54-56).

4.     Christ prepared a meal for us, but we sometimes prefer to be on a diet. By not receiving the Eucharist, we demonstrate how ungrateful we are to Christ, who loves us dearly. What would prevent us from partaking in the Eucharist? Could it be sins? Confession is available to those not in a state of grace. Christ is ready to forgive and reconcile us to God and one another. Therefore, St. Paul tells us to examine ourselves before approaching the Lord in the Eucharist. It is a sacrilege to receive the Body and Blood of Christ in a state of mortal sin. Paul was emphatic when he said, “Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord. A person should examine himself, and so eat the bread, and drink the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.” (1Cor. 11:27-29).

5.     We examine ourselves by praying and preparing to receive the Lord in the Eucharist. We should come to Church on time, examine our conscience, and be ready to receive the Lord Jesus. We must participate conscientiously at Mass. Going through the readings beforehand puts us in spiritual readiness for the Eucharist. Spend some time in prayer before and after the reception of Holy Communion. When you have communion with the Lord, remember to also have communion with your brothers and sisters. Forgive those who sinned against you if you want God to forgive your sins. At the end of Mass, we are dismissed to carry Christ to everyone we meet. Do not neglect people with low income and those who are in need. Schedule to spend some time with the Lord before the Blessed Sacrament on Wednesdays from 9:30 am to 12:00 noon. Christ is truly present in the Eucharist. May he who waits for us give us the grace to love him in return, now and always. Amen.

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP.

May 26, 2024; Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

Readings: Deut. 4:32-34, 39-40; Rom. 8:14-17; Matt 28:16-20. 

Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations!

1.     Last Sunday, we reflected on speaking our native language. We concluded that we must learn this language in our families from birth. We must see, feel, experience, practice, and then speak it. The family that speaks this language is the family of God and God’s people. The Trinity speaks the language of love. Love was also the native tongue of the Holy Family. All of God’s people must speak the same language. The Acts of the Apostles remind us that the “Community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they had everything in common.” (Acts. 4:32). That was their language. The disciples were called Christians because of how they loved themselves. Christ tells us, “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love” (Jn.16:11). He gave us a new commandment, “Love one another. As I have loved you, so you should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another.” (Jn. 13:34-35). We must speak the language of the Trinity, both as a community and individually. The God of love abides where there is charity and love.

2.     Today, we reflect on the solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. We worship the God who manifests himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. These are not three Gods but three Persons in one God. The Father is the Creator, the Son is the Savior, and the Holy Spirit is the Sanctifier. Though the three Persons have different responsibilities, the responsibility of one Person is the responsibility of all Persons of the Trinity. The Father is not older or younger than the Son or the Holy Spirit; the three Persons are the same in every way. God himself reveals this mystery. We do not seek to understand it as a mathematical equation or calculation but must believe it as a revealed truth. And this is what we profess in the Nicene Creed, “I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified.” The children of Israel believed in one God; hence, Moses pleaded with them to avoid worshipping the Canaanite gods. The Lord of heaven and earth who created heaven and earth and sustains the world in being is more powerful than any created things or the gods of other nations, which are the work of human hands. 

3.     Little wonder why Moses asked the children of Israel, “Did any god venture to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation by testings, by signs and wonders, by war, with his strong hand and outstretched arm, and by great terrors, all of which the Lord, your God, did for you in Egypt before your very eyes?” (Deut. 4:34). We cannot compare God to other gods. For they are, like the Psalmist says, “The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths but speak not; they have eyes but see not; they have ears but hear not, and no breath is in their mouths. Their makers shall be like them, all who trust in them.” (Ps. 135:15-18). 

4.     Today, as always, we acknowledge the God who reaches out to us through the Holy Spirit. Hence, St. Paul reminds us, “Those who the Spirit of God leads are sons of God. For you did not receive a Spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a Spirit of adoption, through whom we cry, “Abba, Father!” (Rom. 8:14). Due to the Spirit poured into our hearts by the Father and the Son, we can call God daddy, Father. It was unheard of to address God as a son would his Father. God is indeed our Father; he and the Son dwell in us through His Spirit.  

5.     Our mission as Christians is to make the God who manifests himself as Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit known and loved. “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” Baptism, in the name of the Trinity, is the manifestation of our faith. Our prayer is Trinitarian. We begin and end every prayer by blessing ourselves in the name of the Trinity. We offer prayers to God the Father, through the Son, and in the Spirit. And so, we must teach all nations about the God who loves us and seeks to create a loving relationship with us. May we experience the loving relationship the Trinity enjoys, a relationship of communion, unity, and respect. 

6.     Let us pray that we may speak the language of the Trinity, the language of love, communion, understanding, peace, and unity. May the Triune God who initiates a relationship and communion with us assist us so that we may live in peace and love with one another. Amen.

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP

May 19, 2024. Solemnity of Pentecost. (Year B)

Readings: Acts 2:1-11; Gal. 5:16-25; John 20:19-23

Speaking Our Native (Tongue) Language

1.     Today is the birthday of the Church. We often think that the Holy Spirit came into existence on the day of Pentecost. That is far from the truth. God is eternally Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and manifests Himself as such. But on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit became the dominant reality in the life of the early Church. It was the source of all guidance. It was the source of courage and power, the counselor, the comforter, and solace in times of difficulties.

2.     There were three great Jewish festivals to which every male Jew living within twenty miles of Jerusalem was legally bound to attend – the Passover, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Pentecost means “The Fiftieth,” or “The Feast of Weeks,” so called because it fell on the fiftieth day, a week after the feast of the Passover. At least as many came to the Feast of Pentecost as to the Feast of Passover. That explains the number of countries mentioned in this chapter; never was there a more international crowd in Jerusalem than at the time of Pentecost.” Pentecost commemorated the giving of the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai. So, it was a holiday for all, and the crowds on the streets would be greater than ever. It was on that day the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles. The disciples experienced the power of the Spirit flooding their beings in a way they never had before. “All filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.” (Act 2:4). 

3.     In verse 11, we read, “Yet we hear them speaking in our own tongues of the mighty acts of God.” With the coming of the Spirit, the crowd heard the apostles, for the first time, speaking out openly about the mighty acts of God. They were now ready to take the gospel to the ends of the earth and witness Christ’s resurrection. The Spirit empowered the apostles to preach the Word of God in a way that struck straight to their hearts in a way that the crowd could understand. It gave the apostles a message that penetrated every heart. It broke their chains of fear and intimidation and enabled them to move freely and courageously among Jews and Gentiles alike, armed with the Word to set the captives free and heal the brokenhearted.

4.     The disciples being understood by all is indicative that the ancient tragedy of Babel (Gen. 11:1-9) is now reversed. The people at Babel had arrogantly tried to “make a name” for themselves by building a tower to the heavens – symbolizing the human attempt to see power, wealth, and security without God. Consequently, God confounded the universal human language into many different languages, making it impossible for them to complete that tower. At Pentecost, the Spirit-given ability of Jesus’s disciples to speak in various languages signifies that God is beginning to overcome human divisions. We received the Spirit at baptism which gave us the power to speak words of wisdom that should be understood by all who hear us. The Spirit empowered us to break the bonds of sin and division and initiate unity, peace, and love in our communities. Has our Spirit grown dull and lukewarm? Why has the Spirit not burned the bad habits of our lives and sowed the seed of love instead?

5.     Instead of spreading gossip that stops us from speaking our native language of love, we ask the Spirit to help us become preachers of God’s marvels. Instead of proclaiming falsehood, may the Spirit assist us in speaking words of truth and honesty. For those who harbor strife, vengeful thoughts, and hatred, may the Spirit enable them to love God and their neighbors. We can only speak the language of love if we learn it from birth. Our parents must have taught us not so much by what they say but by what they do. They must speak the language of love first at home with us through social interactions and relationships. We must see, feel, practice, and then speak it.       

6.     Let us pray that the Holy Spirit will come to us with his gifts of “Wisdom and understanding, counsel, strength, knowledge, and fear of the Lord.” (Is. 11: 2-3). May the Spirit give us his fruit of “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Gal.5:22-23). May the Spirit help us to conquer the indifference in our world so that we may fight the internal battles of “immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, rivalry, jealousy, outbursts of fury, acts of selfishness, dissensions, factions, occasions of envy, drinking bouts, orgies and the like.” (Gal. 5:19-21). And so, we pray: “Come O Holy Spirit, and fill the hearts of the faithful, and enkindle in them the fire of your love, send forth your Spirit, and they shall be created, and you shall renew the face of the earth.” Amen.

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP.

May 12, 2024; 7th Sunday of Easter - Ascension of the Lord (Year B)

Readings: Acts 1:1-11; Ephesians 1:17-23; Mk. 16:15-20 

Stop Staring, Get Back to Work!

1.    William Shakespeare understood life as we see it today. In Merchant of Venice, Antonio tells Gratiano, “I hold the world but as the world, a stage where every man must play a part.” (Act 1 Scene 1). And so, it is for everyone; we step into the scene from birth and play our part till death. The feast of Ascension reminds us that Christ, who died, rose from the dead, and appeared to his Apostles for 40 (43) days, now ascends into heaven, while the Apostles must continue the work of evangelization. The apostles were prepared for this task from the day Christ began his public ministry until now. He told them, “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” (Mk. 1:15). And at the end of his ministry, he commissioned them to “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature.” (Mk. 16:15). We Christians must believe in Christ and witness to him. To be a faithful Christian is to be a missionary disciple. 

2.    As Christ was being lifted, the Apostles looked intently at the sky, wondering what to do next. Angels had to intervene to bring them back to reality. “Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky? This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven.” (Acts 1:11). With that the Apostles recalled the words of Christ. “You will receive power when the holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8). They must prepare themselves for their mission. So, back in Jerusalem, they returned and devoted themselves to prayer while waiting for the Holy Spirit. Aren’t we like that most of the time? Thoreau was right when he said, “We live merely like ants, and our lives are frittered away by details.” We often get caught up in problems and are weighed down by difficulties. We tend to lose direction and find it difficult to see things from the correct perspective. At times like these, we need to recall the vision faith gives us regarding the goals and meaning of our lives. Why are we here? What is the purpose of our lives? Christianity is not standing around waiting for something to happen; it is about making something happen. We make it happen by witnessing the Good News of Jesus Christ through word and deed.   

3.    The feast of Ascension gives us hope, strengthens our mission, and empowers us to bring the gospel of salvation to others. It reminded us of our Baptism when the word of God was placed on our lips by the minister as he said, “The Lord Jesus made the deaf hear and the dumb speak. May he soon touch your ears to receive his word, and your mouth to proclaim his faith, to the praise and glory of God the Father.” (The Rite of Baptism). Jesus also received his mandate at his Baptism. It was then that his mission was revealed. Hence, he said, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, and let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.” (Lk. 4:18-19). The letter to the Hebrews told us, “For this reason, when he came into the world, he said: “Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; Behold, I come to do you will, O God.’” (Heb. 10:5-7). This, too, is our mission: to do the will of God and bear witness to him.

4.    Ascension is about endings and beginnings. Christ’s ministry on earth ended, but the operation of the Holy Spirit in his followers to continue his ministry began. It is now time for us to step up and play our part in the mission of Christ. As he commissioned the disciples, we are now commissioned to “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of age.” (Mt. 28:19-20). Now, the time for preparing his apostles for the mission to build his Church was over, but the time for participation in the expansion of that Church began. We must start witnessing to Christ and carry on his mission to the ends of the earth. But we know that we are not alone. He is with us always in and through His Spirit.

5.    To bear witness to Christ, we must be men and women of prayer. We come to Church to praise God, to hear his word, and to break the bread of his body with our brothers and sisters. But we don’t stand by staring up to heaven. We have places to go and things to do. So, we must stop staring and get back to work! We must leave the Church with fire to preach the word and bear witness to him. Christ has no one else except you and me to continue this mission of love. He has no body but ours, no hands and feet, no eyes and ears, no means to show compassion and love, to show mercy and offer forgiveness, to preach the word and baptize but ours. Our hands must be his hands, our mouth must be his mouth, and we must do the good he must do. If anyone is to die again for others, it must not be Christ but us since we are called to bear witness to him. And so, we pray that we may witness to Christ by celebrating His Ascension into glory and hope to join Christ one day to enjoy life in full communion with God and all the saints. Amen.

Rev. Augustine Etemma Inwang, MSP.