HOLDING UP THE HAND OF MOSES

HOMILY FOR THE 29^TH SUNDAY OF THE ORDINARY TIME, YEAR C

Rev. Fr. Ezekoka Peter Onyekachi

Child of God, I would not know your reaction when you encounter difficulties. I may not also be able to decipher your response when people throw stones at you. You know what? Permit me to offer you this simple formula: when people throw stones at you (and already it is presumed that the stones gave you some bruises), just put up a smile, and convert those stones to become stepping stones to better jumps and greater heights, rather than weeping and allowing those stones to become stumbling blocks for you. With these words, I usher you to our weekly food for the soul.

A boy mistakenly fell into an ancient dry well. He shouted for help, but help was nowhere to meet him. He looked around and discovered that there were many block-structured stones scattered all over the floor of the well, and at both ends of the base was a flowing water passing continuously through the base of the well. He furthermore discovered that on the sides of the well (up to its mid) are holes which do not permit the flowing water to fill the well. Only those stones scattered on the floor could fit in to the holes so as to allow the flowing water to fill the well to the brim. This the boy realized. He smiled. He then firstly blocked one end of the holes at the base so that the water will no longer pass through. He had thought to himself: if only I can slot in these stones into these side holes, then this water (which has no outlet now) will carry me out of the well.

This was a tedious work to do and requires much dexterity, persistence and skill. He once more shouted to see if any help would come, but there was none. He finally decided to go through the pains of this work before he dies of hunger. He picked up the stones and started fixing them into their holes. As he did this, the water brought him up (since he was a good swimmer and had learnt to hold his breath underwater). On reaching the middle of the well, the work was done. The water became now more intense since the outlet holes were all covered. He now only had to remain on the water with his breath withheld, and so was he saved. He persisted in his work and what his intelligence and struggle offered him made him to be saved. How many times do we seek for help from far away when the Lord has already provided some form of help around us to assist us scale through our difficulties? In our prayer life, how many times have we given up just because we had expected a solution or an answer within a specified period and never got it?

The staff of God...

In the First Reading (Exodus 17:8-13) today, we encounter a strong character, Moses and how he made use of his God-given power and initiative. One thing is very mind-opening about this passage. Moses’ action and decision in holding up his staff does not come from his interaction with Yahweh, who had before now instructed him on how to lead the people. Moses had cried out to God when the people demanded for water (in the preceding pericope: Exodus 17:1-7), but in this case, he did not cry out; he rather decided based on his knowledge of God. Moses had discovered that there is power in his staff, for before now Yahweh had always reminded him of how powerful that staff is. It was this staff that Moses took in his hands when he was returning to Egypt to rescue his people in Exodus 4:20. Indeed, this staff had become synonymous with the power of Moses. With this same staff, Moses struck the Red Sea and it was divided (in Exodus 14:16). With this same staff, Moses struck the rock (Exodus 17:5), and water flew out. The staff signified the miraculous power of God. In it lay the palpable sign of God’s presence with the Israelites in sojourn. Moses had discovered this. He has so related with God that he was sure that his decision to raise the staff will bring Israel success. Now, seeing that there was an attack on his people, he said to his assistant (cf. Exodus 24:13): “...go out and fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” Joshua did this and God manifested his power to the Israelites. As Moses held up the staff in his hands, the Israelites prevailed, but if he lowers it, the Amalekites prevailed. In the staff is victory. In the staff is power. In the staff is dominion. With the staff, you become a winner, and not a loser. With the staff, you become a victor and not a victim. But you must have to do something extra: Hold up the staff and never let it down.

Holding up the hands of Moses...

Something happened as the hands of Moses grew weary. Its weariness would mean a defeat of the Israelites. What did they do? They took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. Aaron Who Represents The Source Of Priesthood (The Priesthood Of Aaron) And Hur Who Represents The Source Of Governance (Governed The People Together With Aaron When Moses Grew Weak) Spells Out Clearly How Important It Is For The Priest And The Governor To Constantly Hold Up The Hands Of Moses. They Ought To Be Of Support For The Victory Of The People They Are Leading. The hand of Moses became a symbol for continuous victory. The steadiness of those hands in being up assures Israelites a steady win; and not winning some and losing some. They were bent on winning throughout. They never gave Amalekites any opportunity to win at some periods. Christians must be bent on winning throughout. We must never give the devil any opportunity to strike, and then having been stricken rise to wage further war. We need to make sure that our winning remains steady. For the devil prowls round like a roaring lion seeking for someone to devour; stand up to him, strong in faith (cf. 1 Pet 5:8-9). Let us not offer any chance for our adversaries to defeat us. We must act like Aaron and Hur in support of fellow Christians, praying for one another and praying with one another. As a community, we conquer. Igwe bu ike.

And the Amalekites were won...

With the hands of Moses steadily up, Joshua overcame the Amalekites with his sword. They were won. The children of God became victorious. Indeed, I am sure that the eye reading this homily must become victorious. We must be victorious over the devil, over its pumps; indeed, over the current situation that we have found ourselves in our dear country. I assure you today that it is well. Rise up, take up your mat and walk home in joy. You have won.

But what is my staff as a Christian?

As a Christian, my staff is prayer. The staff of Moses for us is the gift of prayer. That is our weapon against the devil. As Catholic Christians, there are also so many instruments to make us sharpen this staff (prayer): the rosary, the Stations of the Cross, the Divine Mercy, etc. These devotional prayers are there for us to sharpen our weaponry for the battle against evil. Prayer is our staff. In our Holy Bible too are very many prayerful chapters and verses that help us to enrich our arsenal and load our weapons. The Scripture is inspired and is profitable in making us righteous men. These are few words from the Second Reading today (2Tim 3:14-4:2).

The Lord says in 2 Chr. 7:14: if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. And in Psalm 122:6, we are exhorted to pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Nigeria). We must watch and pray that we may not fall into temptation (Mtt. 26:41). St. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians to pray without ceasing (1 Thess. 5:17). And the apostle James enjoins us to pray for one another (Jas 5:16). Indeed, we cannot ever over-emphasize the need for persistence in the prayer life of the Christian. Every Christian must pray. It is our staff. The staff alongside the hand of Moses signifies prayer, whereas holding up the hands of Moses signifies persistence in our prayer. We ought to pray and never lose heart (Luke 18:1). We see this in the first sentence of the Gospel Reading today (Luke 18:1-8). Jesus tells the parable of the Persistent Widow to his disciples to teach them the necessity of being importunate in our prayers. We must persist in prayer; and so we defeat.

To wrap up this soul food, we go back to our story of ‘the boy in the well.’ Just like the boy, we encounter difficulties in life. And many times, we keep looking out for help where help may not easily come from. We shout and shout for help whereas God has already provided us with the necessary help we need. We need only to look around ourselves and our environment to discover what God has provided. Having discovered this, effort is still needed to help ourselves come out of the difficulty. The problem sometimes is that our eyes are turned towards others to think for us, work for us and then come to our rescue. We can do these things by ourselves. We have all it takes to relate individually with God. God can hear the prayers of every one of us. We pray and work; for it is actually in working that we have demonstrated our lives of faith and prayer. Never grow tired of prayer and good works. Both go hand in hand. I thus end with these words of the Scriptures: I desire then that in every place every person should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarrelling (cf. 1Tim 2: 8). This is God’s desire for you. It is also my desire for you as I strongly belief that you will not cease to hold up the hands of Moses. May you have a fruitful week ahead. God bless you.