BE WATCHFUL FOR THE COMING OF THE KING

                          

                           HOMILY FOR THE FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT, YEAR C

Rev. Fr. Ezekoka Peter Onyekachi

A story is told of three demons who were coming to the earth to deceive men and lure them to Satan, their chief. They were seeking advice from Satan about their plans to tempt and ruin men. The first said, “I will tell them that there is no God.” Satan laughed and said: “that will not deceive many for so many have experienced God in their lives.” The second said, “I will tell them that hell does not exist, so that they can live they way they want.” Satan again laughed even more and said: “men know that there is always a punishment when there is an offence. They will never believe that there is no hell.” The third then said, “I will tell men that there is time; that they should relax and not be in a hurry, for there is always a tomorrow.” The devil smiled to him and said, “go, and you will deceive many by their thousands.” Hey! The most dangerous of all delusions is that there is plenty of time. There is a word known as procrastination. It is a killer of time. It is an unnecessary postponement of programmes which in actually could be done at a time before the scheduled date it has been postponed.

The Gospel Reading (Mtt 24: 37-44) spells it out very vividly how we ought to be constantly prepared and not be deceived by those who may tell us that they know the hour of the coming of the Lord. The danger that lies in such a claim is that the people are rendered lazy in their struggle for heaven. If they know the hour, it is consequential upon man to relax, only to wait for the dawn of the coming to get prepared. We must remember the parable of the foolish and wise virgins. It is therefore clear that speculation regarding the time of the second coming is nothing less than blasphemy, for the man who speculates is seeking to wrest from God secrets which belong to God alone.

We must be careful when we notice ourselves immersed in materialism. It is in such an immersion that we can tend to forego God, and so that time will come with shattering suddenness. Jesus made reference to the story of Noah. Noah prepared himself for the flood and was saved, but others were giving in marriages and feasting and were lost. They allowed the activities of this life (however necessary) to rip them of the activity of heaven. We must never be so immersed in the things of this life that we forget eternity. We need to be found ready at any time, the Lord demands our attention.

To live without watchfulness is a disaster. The weapon of the thief is surprise; and thus, a householder must be constantly on watchful guard against such invasion. The Christian must be watchful with eager expectation for the coming of the Lord who comes with glory and joy. That is what advent season tells us. To make ourselves ready and with eager expectation wait for the coming of the king. The spirit which leads to disaster is that he says that there is plenty of time. Going back to our lead story, whenever we allow ourselves to be convinced that there is plenty of time, it is then that we deceive ourselves. There is no greater deception than the one that delays appropriate preparation for God’s entrance into our lives, or the one that convinces oneself that there can be conversion tomorrow, and not today. There are practical relevancies that the coming of the king must teach us:

1. No one enjoys a person who does not keep to time. How do you feel when someone gives you an appointment, and he/she is late, or worse still fails? How do you feel when a particular worship time is fixed, and the celebrant is late? How do you feel when as a boss, you give your worker some work to do, and then the work is not done, or there are 101 excuses for not meeting up with the time? I once gave my student a punishment to write an article on Procrastination because of the delay manner he carried out his work. After researching and writing the article which he did so well, he told me that it really helped him to know the dangers of postponing things. He wrote well on its dangers. He posits that procrastination leads to doing the right thing at the wrong time. Yes, I agree with him. There is time for everything. A foolish student may decide not to study during the lecture period or the preparatory classes, and decides to study in the midnight when others are sleeping, and by so doing distracts others. Procrastination not only affects the person who procrastinates, but others around.

2. Procrastination manifests unseriousness. When we procrastinate, we are showing unseriousness in our faith, and so project ourselves as unserious people. Many of us postpone conversion. We postpone charity and good works. We postpone prayer time. We postpone peace and unity in our families and communities. See, let me tell you: by the time you know, we are overtaken by events. We do not know the hour that God comes. Only God alone knows. We must run as far as our legs can carry us away from postponing any good work or spiritual lifestyle that we desire. The king must come; but we do not know the hour that he comes. We must be watchful and vigilant so that we can never be found wanting when our king comes. We must live each day knowing that our salvation is nearer to us than when we first began to believe (cf. Second reading: Rom. 13:11-14a).

3. Those who think that there is time are lazy with work. They continue to postpone when to submit their CVs (Curiculum Vitae). They continue to convince themselves that no one can take their place. They are liable to align themselves with the saying that destiny can be delayed, but not denied; and so even if they delay, what will be, will be. They are the ones that will tell you that their positions and connections must wait for them; that even if out of their delay, they miss the opportunity, that it was not ab initio meant for them. I pity these people who believe that there is time. They go with such words: let us relax and merry now for there is tomorrow. The hard truth there is that tomorrow may not actually come; today can be your last. Why not make the decision and act today? Why must you wait for tomorrow to execute what you can achieve today? Why not decide to write JAMB this year, and not wait for next year? Why must you wait for next year to take loan from bank for your business? Why must you wait until you are 30 to further your studies? Why must you wait for examination period to come before you start studying as a student? Make haste while the sun shines.

4. In Politics, we see the attitude of laziness and postponement of work. A leader thinks and executes in time. However, our leaders think, talk, and execute outside of time. Some of their policies and actions appear atemporal. The way they lead appears to me that they think they have eternity to fix things up. Why not start today to construct that road that has become a death trap to your people; they prefer to wait until accident occurs therein? Instead of waiting for the next election, why not achieve and execute your campaign promises in the present tenure? I pity those Nigerian politicians that are already talking about 2019 Elections, where we know that they have done practically nothing in the present tenure. This is heartlessness. People are crying, lamenting, dying out of frustration and poverty; dying out of their inability to give themselves proper health check-ups; dying out of the uneasiness to feed properly; dying out of the stress imposed on their health due to the present condition of the country; and all a leader could do is to talk about the next election. Woe to such a leader! For me, the beast is better than he. To such people, I say: time waits for no man. Nigerians can never wait for you; they can never wait for the next election. Indeed, that next election will even be your doom. Nigerians are ready to expunge and send all of you packing out of those positions. The children of God must be free. We must enjoy what God has given to us, both here on earth and hereafter in heaven.

I therefore urge you, my dear friends to be more watchful for the coming of the king, our Lord Jesus Christ through the way you lead your lives, as I pray God to remove from you the spirit of delay and laziness and bestow on you the spirit of agility and alacrity. You must be a young achiever. You must be a young graduate. You must be a young millionaire. You must be a young doctor (or any discipline of your choice). You must be a young bride. You must be a young groom. Indeed, you must be a listener and doer of the gospel message of our Lord Jesus Christ. I wish you more blessings ahead, and a blessed week. I wish you a favour-filled Advent season. A new year of the Church has just begun. Make use of it now that you can to turn a new leaf. God bless you.  

JESUS, THE KING OF MERCY

 

HOMILY FOR THE SOLEMNITY OF CHRIST THE KING, YEAR C

Rev. Fr. Ezekoka Peter Onyekachi

The Lord has established his throne in heaven and his kingdom rules over all (Psalm 103:19)

As the second person of the Trinity, the eternal son, Christ naturally shares the dominion of God over all. This is a kingship exercised by Christ in His divine nature. However, there is also another type of kingship which is a conferred (cf. Luke 22:29: and I confer upon you a Kingdom, just as my father conferred one on me) and economical kingship exercised by Christ in His nature as Theanthropos (the God-man). This is the mediatorial kingship of Christ. This is the official power of Christ to rule all things in heaven and on earth, for the glory of God, and for the execution of God’s purpose of salvation (it is here that we encounter Christ as the king of mercy). It is inside this mediatorial kingship of Christ that we can comfortably dwell on the regnum gratiae and the regnum potentiae.

THE REGNUM GRATIAE (the Kingdom of grace)

Christ rules over the regnum gratiae. This is a rule established in the hearts and lives of believers. It is a rule that bears directly to the spiritual end of man –salvation. It is administered not by force or external means, but by the word and the spirit, which is the spirit of truth and wisdom, justice and holiness, grace and mercy. This kingship reveals itself in the gathering of the church, and in its government, protection and perfection. And because of these, it is a spiritual kingship because of its relevance to the spiritual realm. It is this kingship for which the Psalmist prays: Your throne O God will last forever, a sceptre of justice will be the sceptre of your kingdom (Ps. 43:6; cf. Heb. 1:8, 9). It is of this rule that the prophet Isaiah says: to us a child is born, to us a son is given. He will be called wonderful counsellor, mighty God, Everlasting Father Prince of peace; of the increase of his government and peace, there will be no end (Isaiah 9:6). And the Prophet Micah says: But you, Bethlehem Ephratah...out of you will come for me one of you who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from old, from ancient times. The Lord will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, his kingdom will never end (Luke 1:33).

The spiritual nature of this kingship is indicated by the fact that Christ is repeatedly called the head of the Church (cf. Eph 1:22; 4:15; 5:23; Col. 2:19). Head in a figurative sense indicates one clothed with authority. In the Second Reading of today (Col 1:12-20), Christ is called the head of the body the Church. This is used in its organic conception (as the chief and most important part of the human body). It is because Christ is the head of the Church that He can rule it as king in an organic and spiritual way. He reconciles to himself all things, making peace by the blood of his cross. He is the king of mercy. A merciful king reconciles and makes peace. These are the prominent demonstrations of a merciful king; this is what Christ is. If you believe in Christ kingship of mercy, then you will not get tired of approaching his throne of mercy as a Christian. So many times, we find it hard to ask God for forgiveness or to go to the sacrament of confession. We are demoralized by the fact of a sin that we repeatedly do, even when we have confessed it over and over again, and have made a firm purpose of amendment. Do not give up, for you have a king of mercy that is willing to accept you, and cleanse you from your sins. Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow, though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool (Isaiah 1:8).

This spiritual kingship of Christ has the following characteristics:

·       It is grounded in the work of salvation: the regnum gratiae originates in the redeeming grace of God. This citizenship of this kingdom is not automatic; for no one gains membership in virtue of his/her humanity. Only those who accept the kingship of Christ have that honour and privilege. Christ paid the ransom for those that are His. Consequently, they now recognize Him as their Lord and King. This is exactly what happened in the Gospel of today (Luke 23:35-43). The thief who recognized the innocence and the kingship of Christ was saved. This is evident in his words: but his man has done nothing... Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingly power (Luke 23:41.42). If we recognize Jesus as our king, his merciful nature overshadows us.

·       It is spiritual: the spiritual nature of this kingship is seen in its all-inclusive character. No one is excluded. It is clear that the kingdom is not an external and natural kingdom of the Jews. I say to you that many will come front the east and from the west, and will take their place at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven (cf. Mtt 8:11.12). It can only be entered by regeneration. They are the poor in spirit, the meek, the merciful, the peacemakers, the pure in heart, and those that hunger and thirst for righteousness. It is in the hearts of people (cf. Luke 17:21), and a kingdom of truth (Cf. John 18:36-37). Have you been regenerated? We must, as Christians allow these virtues to be planted in us by the Church that we may become the sons of the kingdom.

·       It is both present and futuristic: the kingdom eventually consists in the present reign of God in the hearts of men, but at the glorious coming of Jesus Christ this establishment will be perfected, and the spiritual rule of Christ will find its consummation in a visible and majestic reign. Yes, it will be majestic and great signs will accompany the coming of the Lord. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare (cf. 2 Pet 3:10-12).

·        It is closely related to the Church: the kingship of Christ is identifiable with the visible Church. That is why we celebrate Christ as king. He is our king. We are his people. Heaven and earth are the expanse of his kingdom. Surely, Christ will never cease to be the head of the Church, leaving the Church as a body without the head.

THE REGNUM POTENTIAE (the kingdom of dominion)

Christ exercises dominion over the universe. He providentially and judicially administers all things in the interest of the Church. He guides the destinies of individuals, of social groups, and of nations, as to promote the growth, the gradual purification, and the final perfection of the people which He has redeemed by His blood. He protects His own against the dangers to which they are exposed, and vindicates his righteousness by the subjection and destruction of all His enemies. This kingship supersedes all earthly kings, and is there to humble them against pride and subjugation of the people they lead. The king of mercy rules in mercifulness, humility and love. He is there as a proto-typical king for the human rulers and kings.

The First Reading (2 Samuel 5:1-3) was explicit on the human lineage of Christ as the king. David was anointed king over all Israel. His kingdom, great and powerful, became the symbol of the kingdom of peace and justice that God would one day establish on earth. Hence, the Davidic kingship became the lineage that extended to the kingship of Christ. The Davidic kingship was so cherished by God that “the Lord swore an oath to David, a sure oath that he will not revoke: one of your own descendants I will place on your throne” (Ps. 132:11).

The dominion kingship of Christ has the following characteristics:

·       Its power and authority are non-negotiable: the kingship of Christ stands as the most powerful. Its authority is binding on all men as Christ forever is the king of the universe. Our belief or doubt of this kingship does not remove or add anything. Christ is king irrespective of human acceptance. Pilate unequivocally stated: Jesus of Nazareth, the king of the Jews (cf. John 19:19).

·       Its dominion over the evils of the society is clear: David was anointed king after having defeated all his enemies. Jesus, the son of David and the king of mercy also destroyed completely the power of Satan in the lives of men. Satan has no power again. There is now no condemnation for those who are Christ Jesus, because Christ has liberated us and given us strong antidotes against evil. By the name of Christ Jesus, every knee must bend (Philipians 2:10).

·       It is a kingship of one kingdom: this kingship is one that is all-embracing; bringing all the nations as one. Unlike the nations of the world that have their different kings, Christ is the king of all the nations. In this sense, he is above every king; seen and unseen. All things, in heaven and on earth is under one head, the Christ (cf. Phil 1:10).

It is incumbent on Christ as the anointed Christ to establish the kingdom of God, to govern it, and to protect it against all hostile forces. He must do this in a world which is under the power of sin and is bent on thwarting all spiritual endeavours. If that world were beyond Him, it might frustrate all His efforts. Therefore, God invested Him with authority over it, so that He is able to control all powers and forces and movements in the world, and can thus secure a safe footing for His people in the world, and protect His own against all the powers of darkness. These cannot defeat his purposes, but are there to serve them.

Today, we proclaim Christ as the king of mercy; mercy which has been a term in our mouths since the beginning of this liturgical year. We must thus proclaim Christ as the king of mercy. It is in this line that I invite all of us to herald the king of kings and exclusively call out to him as the KING OF MERCY. This week, I wish you a great visitation from this king of mercy. God bless you.

 

THE DAWN OF THE NEW WORLD

HOMILY FOR THE 33^RD SUNDAY OF THE ORDINARY TIME, YEAR C.

Rev. Fr. Ezekoka Peter Onyekachi

 

It is not so surprising that the reading at Mass recently have worn a new tone. This is the tone of an expectation; an expectation of something better, Christ-like, and divine. That is the tone of Today’s Readings. It is a tone which reminds us of the season of Advent; when we expect the coming of Christ in Christmas. Hence, this Liturgical year C is about to be wrapped up, giving way for a new one (Year A). I therefore welcome you to our food soul for the week.

There were two boys who were close friends. They were about to finish their secondary schools, when one asked the other cleverly: Charly, what profession do you want to go for? Charly answered: Dan, I want to go for Medicine. Charles was very surprised and indeed pitied his friend that he was about to go for a profession that takes years of rigorous formation to attain. Daniel on the other hand desired greatly to continue with his father’s business after their graduation, and not to bother himself with tertiary education. He had thought that people aspire for profession so as to be rich and comfortable in the future, but himself had already a rich background, and so need not to go further, for all he needs is to get an average study that can help him interact with business associates. Many years passed. Daniel had become a very rich merchant, while Charles was working as a visiting medical doctor in a private hospital (which was actually bought over by Daniel, his secondary school friend). One day, the only son of the rich Mr. Daniel fell sick, and was rushed to the hospital. All the doctors tried their best but had not enough expertise for such a rare sickness. It was then that one of the nurses remembered the visiting doctor who has manifested great expertise in many tough cases. Doctor Charles was called who quickly rushed in where the boy was and laid his ‘magical hands’ on the sick boy. After some minutes, the nurse assistant came out smiling at everyone. She gave out the good news that the boy was saved. Where is the doctor, shouted Mr. Dan? He just left through the backdoor, replied the nurse. The doctor was about to enter his car when Mr. Dan rushed to thank him. It was then they recognized themselves. Oh, what a day!!! Mr. Dan realized that nothing life-gaining comes easy. He thanked his friend for accepting to become a medical doctor.

Christianity is a life gaining venture. However, for lives to be saved, lives also are lost. Old lives are lost. New lives are gained. To become one of the promoters of this gain, one must be ready to face threatening conditions and situations that can make him/her loose this biological life. Before the new comes, the old will suffocated. Yes, there will be a new world which will replace the old world. There are also signs that will accompany this replacement. And these signs will be terrific, but endurance leads us towards winning. The Gospel (Luke 21:5-19) gives us an exposition of these terrific happenings that can accompany the coming of a new world. Some of the things we have flares for in this life are not needed for the new world. People spoke of the adornment of the Temple of Jerusalem, without knowing that things seen will pass away, while things not yet seen will not pass away. It was a comment on the splendour of the temple that moved Jesus to prophesy. In the Temple, the pillars of the porches and of the cloisters were columns of white marble, forty feet high, each made of one single block of stone. Indeed, to the Jews, it was unthinkable that the glory of the Temple should be shattered to dust.

Yes, the present world will pass away, but the new world can never pass away. Jesus made them to understand this. Jesus reads the signs of history through the eyes of God. That is why he understood well the trouble that will go with the dawn of the new world. However, Jesus spoke of a safety that overshadows the threats of life. Not one hair of your head will be harmed. When we are in Christ, we are sure that our souls can never be lost, even though in the eyes of men, we may have lost our lives. This new world is a world solely with Christ. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation (cf. 2 Cor 5:17)Christ is the initiator; he alone is the king. Only the will of Christ is done; and there is no double will in man. Man possesses then the singularity of doing that which pleases God.

The new world has no evil, for then, evil has been destroyed and annihilated. The First Reading (Malachi 4:1-2a) explicates on how the old world will be wiped away. The old world is a world of sin, of suffering, of injustice, of hatred. This is the world that will be wiped out, and its place will be taken by the completely new reality where only good exists. We must keep waiting for this new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells (cf. 2 Pet 3:13). This new world, we must say has been inaugurated with the death and resurrection of Christ, and it will be completed at God’s own time. But this new world requires a lot of patience, tolerance, and suffering; these must begin inside each one of us.

We must here on earth work hard to create a new world in our lives. We can create a new world in the life of our family members by making sure hatred, evil, calumny, aggression, gossip, envy are expunged, and replacing them with love, goodness, kind words, patience, and acceptance of all. We can create a new world in the life of your friends by stopping to give bad advice, seduction and scandal, and not making effort to pull him/her down; so can we introduce good advice and mutual upliftment. In your business area, you can create a new world by developing the spirit of contentment, sincerity, honesty, and truthfulness; and so have we removed greed, insincerity, dishonesty and lies. In your academic career, the old world can be destroyed by avoiding examination malpractices, distractions so as to replace them with hard work, and concentration. Generally speaking, in our spiritual lives, a new world can be created by detaching ourselves from evil and attaching ourselves to God.

Nothing good comes easy. The new world is good. Hence, the new world cannot come so easy. We must expect some hinges and obstacles as we walk towards this new world. In our normal life experiences, we need a dint of hard work and focus to aspire towards a goal and to make it. Just like our lead story, Charles aspired towards becoming a medical doctor and made it. And it was through him, that God saved the life of his friend’s son. When we create a new thing in our lives by our efforts, we may not know what God wants to achieve through that height reached, in such a way that if we fail to attain that height, we may be hurting someone whom our status needed to have saved. When God gives you a talent, time or treasure to save, work hard knowing fully well that His grace is sufficient for you. In the path towards this goal, we may encounter difficulties; but endurance, patience and more work will catapult us to our purpose. May your own new world shine forth. May your aspiration be made manifest. May all of us too be inhabitants of the ultimate new world. This I wish you as I am pretty sure that the new week comes with blessings for you.

THE RESURRECTION FAITH AS AN EFFICACIOUS RESPONSE TO THE PUZZLE OF EVIL AND HUMAN SUFFERING

HOMILY FOR THE 32^ND SUNDAY OF THE ORDINARY TIME OF THE YEAR, C

Rev. Fr. Ezekoka Peter Onyekachi

When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? (1 Cor. 15:54-55).

Our daily life is filled with very many experiences that make us cry and lament. Where and when can we actually find an answer that can totally clarify the problems associated with the earthly existence? Many have experienced hardship all their life. Many have been sick for several years. Many experience unjust treatments from others. Many are denied justice. Many are ridiculed due to their quest for righteousness. Many are brutally killed. Many are robbed of their precious things and persons. The righteous suffer in the hands of people who disregard the good. Many characters have been assassinated in one way or the other. Many are denied of their life goals due to corruption and nepotism. Many are subjected under slavery due to their past life. Many are abused and tortured for firmness in their belief. We tend to ask: where is God in the face of these experiences? I would not know the experience that you remember as you read this, but what I am sure as a Christian is that there is a time when God will be all in all (1 Cor. 15:28). The Christian faith in the Resurrection is a sure answer to these puzzles that bewilder the human mind and experiences. This we see in the readings of today.

“...but the king of the universe will raise us to an everlasting renewal of life, because we have died for his laws” (First Reading).

“...God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace...” (Second Reading).

“...for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.” (Gospel).

These words are excerpts from the three readings of today. These words point to the state of life beyond our earthly life.

There are some similarities between the First Reading and the Gospel. Both readings speak about seven brothers who died. Both accounts have a woman that the seven brothers share in common. Inherent in these similarities are the differences. In the First, the seven brothers suffered martyrdom for their faith, whereas in the Gospel, the seven brothers died of an unknown cause. In the First, the woman shared by the brothers is their mother who also suffered martyrdom (cf. 2 Mac. 7:40), whereas in the Gospel, the woman is their wife who also died (no cause mentioned) like any other.

The First Reading concerns the Maccabean revolt against rules and lifestyles that are not in tandem with the Jewish laws. Between 167 and 151 BC, the kings of Syria in a bid to unify their empire wanted to stamp out the Jewish way of life. They succeeded in other nations but found strong opposition among the Jews. This opposition was led by Mattathias and his sons, a priestly family from a small village that soon became known as the Maccabees (hammers). They demonstrated reckless courage and faith in the unfailing help of their God. It soon became clear to the champions of the law that political independence was a necessary condition of religious freedom.  This is the context of the revolt of the First Reading. The king compelled the seven brothers to eat the flesh of swine which is unlawful for the Jews (cf. Deut.14:8). Their refusal to such a rule brought them death. They died for their faith. But what was this their faith? It is faith in the resurrection. Faith in the resurrection is one that tells us that life does not end here on earth. It is faith that informs us that when we die for the sake of righteousness, God rewards us with his beatific vision in heaven. The words of the dying brothers are words of encouragement to the suffering Christian. They are words of admonition to the Christians that are undergoing torture, persecution, injustice, and ostracization. Yes, our adversaries and persecutors may think that they are dismissing us from this present, but the king of the universe will raise us up to an everlasting renewal of life. He offers us eternal comfort (2 Thess. 2:16-3:5). When we stand on the enigma to choose between obedience to evil men and to God, the resurrection faith is there to make the option very light for us. The fourth son said: one cannot but choose to die at the hands of men and to cherish the hope that God gives of being raised again by Him.

The Gospel (Luke 20:27-38) provides us with the type of existence experienced by those who have died for the sake of God. Jesus used the opportunity of the indeed ridiculous exemplification of the Sadducees to teach us a very important item of our faith. Those who attain to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels, and are sons of God being sons of the resurrection. The resurrection initiates a novum (newness). It can never be the type of life we live. This novum comes with the future that really counts for man, and not the type that countless. However, we do not try to subdue the importance of such futures that deal with the life of man here on earth; a future which is planable, projectable, predictable, and virtually present in the dynamic presence of the actual moment. The future which offers this total novelty is not planable or projectable or foreseeable (who will be the wife?) and not evolutive (for they will not be known by their marriage status). This future is an absolute future beyond which no other future exists. It is this future that we are tended to. We are beings towards this future. We are bound to this future. So, as children whose future is bound with God, we must be courageous enough to endure the uncertainties of the present life.

1. The faith in the resurrection animates and strengthens Christians in their struggle against evil and its effects of pain in our experiences in life. Evil is shown as that which, in spite of its weight and thickness, cannot manage to ultimately triumph over man. In spite of what we see in history and what we experience, evil can never be victorious at the end.

2. The faith in the resurrection helps us to have something to say, definitively and reasonably, about the misfortune of the human existence of suffering which goes hand in hand with and is most related to the ultimate misfortune of death –the absolute form of evil.

3. With the resurrection faith, pain and death cease to be the last word. Life comes to triumph over death. Good triumphs over evil. Justice triumphs over injustice. Joy triumphs over suffering. We may suffer now; we may die now; but suffering and death have no last word on us. Death must be swallowed up in victory. Then can we ask: O death, where is your victory; where is your sting?

Yes, I believe that after suffering glory comes. I believe that after sowing comes reaping. I believe that after work rest comes. Indeed, I believe in the resurrection. I believe that the bones shall rise again. If a seed I sowed at the beginning of the rainy season can grow and produce fruits, after having decayed, why must I not believe too that even though our bodies may die and decay, that there will certainly be a body which is entirely new; which is totally a novum. This is the resurrected body; that body worn by Christ during the transfiguration event. Am sure too that you believe in what I believe. Hence, if you do, can I hear you shout I believe!!! I wish you a blessed week ahead. God bless you.