THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD

HOMILY FOR THE FOURTH SUNDAY OF EASTER, YEAR A

Rev. Fr. Peter Onyekachi Ezekoka

Acts 2:14, 36-41        1Peter 2:20-25        John 10:1-10

The well-known Psalm 23 (22), a psalm of David, is a paean to the actions of God as the Good Shepherd. The title of God as ‘Shepherd’ of His people is a motif throughout the Bible from Genesis (Gen 48:24) to Revelation (7:17). In the Psalms and in the Prophets, for instance, God is the shepherd of Israel, he who leads Joseph’s flock (Ps 80:1), and He will keep [us] as a shepherd keeps his flock (Jer 31:10). You may recall that, before he became king of Israel, David wrestled with many challenges including, crucially, the threat to his life posed by King Saul. This threat may well have prompted David, himself a shepherd (cf. Ps 78: 70-72), to compose this psalm of trust in God, who is understood here as the good and faithful shepherd of His flock, the flock embodying the people of God. We human beings are rather like sheep, in the sense that we do not always make the best decisions for ourselves; fortunately, we are assured that, as our Good Shepherd, God never takes His eyes off us. In the New Testament, our Lord takes up this title to describe how committed He is to our welfare and to our well-being. In today’s Gospel, our Lord uses the analogy of Himself as both ‘Shepherd’ and ‘Gate of the sheepfold’ to explain how He pastures us, guides us and protects us. For our part, if we always go through Jesus as the gate to the sheepfold, we will find peace, nourishment and security. Let us unpack this beautiful psalm of David, which begins with the affirmative statement: The Lord is my shepherd.

1. I shall not want; He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me besides still waters (cf. vv.1-2). These comforting verses reveal God to us as our provider: because His provision is perfect, full and gracious, He is capable of providing everything we need. He is God, the Good Shepherd, who leads us, His flock, to lush green pastures rather than arid wastes, and to quiet waters rather than turbulent waters, reviving and strengthening us to give us vitality, to give us life in all its fullness. In our struggles with the vicissitudes of daily life, the Lord invites us to come to Him and ‘lie down in green pastures to be fed’, just as Jesus directed the five thousand to sit down on the grass (cf. Mt 14:19) in order to be fed. In our fallen world afflicted by poverty, pain and strife, we discover to our joy this message of hope about God who provides for His flock.

2. He restores (revives) my soul; he leads me in the path of righteousness for his name’s sake (vv. 3-4). These enthralling words reveal God to us as our sanctifier. He cares for our souls. He quickens the longing of our souls for Him so that they never tire of desiring to be with Him, to love Him, to follow His direction. In our battle against human frailty, the Lord directs us in the way of righteousness: the law of the Lord is perfect, it revives the soul (cf. Ps.19:7); the Lord leads us in the way of uprightness (cf. Prov. 4:11). What a salvific message for souls thirsting for God in our materialistic environment, where sheep scatter distractedly in their pursuit of material satisfaction.

3. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for you are with me, your rod and your staff they comfort me (v. 4). This reassuring verse reveals God to us as our protector. The Good Shepherd protects us and wards off prey, both human and demonic. He denotes Himself as the ‘Gate of the sheepfold’. In our struggle against insecurity, the Lord leads us out like sheep and guides us in the wilderness like a flock (cf. Ps. 78:52) and He tends his flocks like a shepherd, and gathers the lambs in his arms he carries them in his bosom, and gently leads those who are with young (Isaiah 40:11). In an era marred by rancour and insecurity, what a heartening message of protection and peace this is for God’s flock, God’s people.  

4. You prepare a banquet for me in the presence of my enemies (v. 5a). This emboldening declaration reveals God to us as the One who vindicates the righteous, the righteous being those who follow God’s law. In an epoch where abuses of power and travesties of justice abound, we have the assurance of our Lord’s ultimate vindication of those who do what is right in His eyes. Despite our weariness in the face of interminable injustice, calumny and hatred, we are assured that the Good Shepherd will acquit us if we are loyal to Him rather than to the ancient serpent who is called the devil and satan … He casts away the accuser of our brethren (Rev. 12:9-10) and sets us free. If the Son [Jesus] sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:36). For the millions worldwide who endure daily persecution because of their devotion to God, and for those in the West whose freedom to worship is being radically curtailed, this message is one to which we cling in blessed hope.

5. You anoint my head with oil (v. 5bi). This consoling pronouncement reveals God to us as our sacramental Healer. The result of this anointing with oil is the forgiveness of our trespasses, the restoration of our relationship with the Good Shepherd and the healing of our souls. Just as oil serves both to lubricate and prevent corrosion, the Good Shepherd and Guardian of our souls (1Pet 2:25) anoints us to keep us constantly lubricated in His goodness. In our endeavours to combat physical and spiritual ailments, we are reminded [in the Second Reading] by St. Peter that our Lord bore our sins in his body on the tree that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds, we have been healed. The Lord our God anoints us with the oil of gladness beyond our companions (cf. Ps. 45:7). In a time when so many are searching for healing and deliverance from physical and spiritual ailments, we have the absolute assurance of the actively healing presence of the Good Shepherd.

6. My cup overflows (v. 5bii). This announcement reveals God as giving to us in extravagant abundance. God gave the Israelites bread from heaven in abundance (cf. Psalm 105:40). It is life that the Good Shepherd gives us abundantly: I have come that they may have life and have it to the full (John 10:10). In the Acts of the Apostles (the First Reading), the message of God’s open-handed abundance for those seeking genuine fullness of life both here and in eternity attracted an extraordinary number of ‘sheep’ to follow the Good Shepherd, our Lord Jesus Christ. 

7. Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me, all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord, forever and ever (v. 6). These mind-blowing words reveal God assuring us of eternal life with Him! In the end, the soul’s longing and yearning to live eternally with God will be satisfied … and it will be satisfied entirely out of God’s goodness and mercy towards each one of His followers. Whenever we harbour doubts of our worthiness to enjoy eternal life in God, it is helpful to remind ourselves of the eternal desire of the Good Shepherd to lead us, his ‘sheep’, into eternal happiness in heaven. This is the destination to which the Good Shepherd leads us at the end of our physical life here on earth. In a world where the emphasis is solely upon life here on earth - ‘eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die’ and ‘when you’re dead, you’re dead’ – it is incumbent upon us who love God to listen for the voice of the Good Shepherd and to follow His direction, in order to live to the full the eternal life both today and in the hereafter. This is one thing we ask of the Lord; to dwell in His house forever (Ps 27:4).

The representation of our Lord to us as the Good Shepherd gives us an intimation of Who He Is and of the intimacy (in the sense of divine-to-human interconnectedness) of the relationship to which He calls us. The intimate experience of the mystery of His infinite love and eternal desire for our happiness is humbling, while the intimate experience of His goodness and concern for us is overwhelming. In the spirit of this intimate relationship with the Good Shepherd, we pray on Vocations Sunday (which we celebrate today) for pastoral vocations - vocations to the priesthood and religious life. May each one of us, whether lay or ordained, be devoted followers of our Lord, the Good Shepherd. We remember before Him, in a special way today, all the leaders of the Church and of the world, that each and every one of them may be inspired by the example of Christ the Good Shepherd who laid down His life for us, His sheep. Amen. God bless you.

THE JOURNEY TO EMMAUS

HOMILY FOR THE THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER, YEAR A

Rev. Fr. Ezekoka Peter Onyekachi

Acts 2:14, 22-33        1Pet 1:17-21        Luke 24:13-35

Today’s Gospel reading presents us with an account of two men on their way to Emmaus, a village allegedly sited seven symbolic miles from Jerusalem. As they gloomily discussed the recent event of the death of Jesus, the Lord Himself joined them on their journey and walked along with them. During their conversation with Jesus, the men opened up about their feelings of disappointment, their loss of hope and belief on account of the death of the man they thought to be the Messiah, the long-awaited one who would lead them to political freedom from Roman rule. But when the risen Lord dug into the Scriptures to explain to Cleopas and his companion the meaning behind what they foretold - that the Christ would suffer and so enter into His glory - their understanding grew and grew. They were entranced by His teaching and wanted more, and so they invited Jesus to stay with them. Now, when they were having their evening meal, it was at the breaking of the bread that their eyes were opened, and they realised that it was the Messiah Himself who was with them … but He was no longer visible to them. Straight away they upped and returned  to the Eleven in Jerusalem to tell them their story, including how they recognized Jesus when He broke the bread.

The journey to Emmaus was one in which hope and faith were restored. Cleopas and his companion were filled with deep disappointment, emptied of belief in Jesus and consequently were suffering feelings of  hopelessness. How they spoke about the events to each other demonstrated their sorrow that Jesus had proved not to be the militaristic Messiah they wanted Him to be: our own hope was that he would be the one who would set Israel free. Jesus fitted right in with the two men as they walked along, keeping pace with their movements and feelings. He listened to them on their journey so as to become completely one with them. He dispelled the darkness that clouded their spiritual eyesight by exposition of the Scriptures. Alleluia! Their journey to despair ended with the joy of hope, understanding and faith. I put it to you that this outcome is possible in our own spiritual and physical pilgrimage of life.

Of course there are times when we feel disenchanted with the things of God. Our minds fill with multiple unanswered questions about belief, we harbour doubts about the veracity of the things of God because we have so many gaps in our understanding of them, and we become so overwhelmed that we are tempted to take a step back from God. There are other times when our expectations of other people are shattered, especially those expectations that we thought would be beneficial to us! While the experience of Cleopas and his companion is - in many ways – our own today, we can take from it the need to give our full attention to listening actively and attentively to Jesus. He is always present to us, listening to us, speaking to us (if only we will put down our mobile phones and listen) and walking side by side with us, especially in times of worry. God is closer to us than we are to ourselves. God redeems and saves mankind, not by suddenly showing up triumphant in the full flush of victory, but by wrestling with evil throughout our long struggle.

The Emmaus story teaches us a lesson about Christian unity. Before the intervention of the Lord, those two disciples were on the point of isolating themselves from the community of faith. The road they were following out of Jerusalem led nowhere. We can read into the story a journey of self-isolation due to a loss of faith in the Messiah. But - thanks be to God - they made an about-turn and were reintegrated into the Faith following the speedy journey they made after witnessing the breaking of bread. This is also true for us today. Divine revelation is given to us for the sake of unity, never for disunity. Whenever we encounter our Lord personally, our duty is to search out ways of using the fruits of our encounter with the divine to strengthen the unity of the Church. Faith is enhanced whenever there is connection and community. It is rarely enhanced in isolation. It is therefore our bounden duty to help to promote Christian unity under the umbrella of the Church.

Finally, the Emmaus story mirrors the liturgy of the Holy Mass. Let us examine the sequence of that conversation as it pertains to the Mass. At the Introduction of Holy Mass, we are invited to present our petitions to God and to ask for His mercy; Jesus invited the two disciples to talk to Him about their worries and concerns, which they did. During the Liturgy of the Word, we listen and receive teaching; Jesus opened the Scriptures to the disciples by citing and explaining relevant passages. In the Liturgy of the Eucharist, we are nourished physically and spiritually; after the bread was broken, Jesus was no longer visible to them. At the end of Mass, we are commissioned to go forth in peace, glorifying the Lord by our life; Cleopas and his companion returned to Jerusalem straight away in order to give testimony that Jesus was indeed risen. 
In common with these two disciples, we engage with other people to witness to the risen Lord in our lives. In the same way as the encounter Jesus had with His disciples prompted them to witness to Him in Jerusalem, so too the encounter we have with our Lord in the Holy Mass prompts us to witness to Him wherever we are from day to day, whether we are at home, at work, socialising, fulfilling appointments or travelling. The Christian message is never fully ours until it is shared with others. St. Peter, inspired by the Holy Spirit, shared this message with the people of his time on the day of Pentecost. We too, inspired by the Holy Spirit, are called to share the same message - the message that the ransom that was paid to free us from our literally dead-end way of life was paid once and for all by the Blood of Christ, the Lamb without stain, by Christ who is risen from the dead! It is through Him that our faith and hope in God are completely and utterly secure. Let us commit to being heralds of the glorious messages of our Lord’s resurrection and of our redemption. Amen. God bless you.

PEACE BE WITH YOU

HOMILY FOR THE SECOND SUNDAY OF EASTER, YEAR A

Rev. Fr. Peter Onyekachi Ezekoka

Acts 2:42-47        1Peter 1:3-9        John 20:19-31

Let us make the connection between Divine Mercy Sunday and the central theme of Peace which is offered by our Lord in today’s Gospel. Today we celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday, the great day when we remind ourselves of the infinite mercy of God. We celebrate great promises of grace, one of which is the gift of divine peace. I hardly need to remind you that mercy breeds peace. It’s self-evident. The indispensable role that mercy plays in creating peace is undeniable. Whenever and wherever mercy and forgiveness are found, peace endures. All creation yearns for peace. People are always in search of whatsoever or whomsoever promises peace. We need peace. We ache for peace. Peace is so precious to us. The Gospel today reveals to us that Christ bestowed ultimate peace and assurance on the apostles, who were huddled in fear behind closed doors.  

Many of us might be tempted to think that the opposite of peace is war. Not so. The opposite of peace is fear. No one wants to live in fear. The antidote to fear is peace. It is peace that dispels the darkness of fear. The ultimate peace that can dispel absolutely the darkness of fear is that peace offered by Christ Himself. The experience of the Passion of Christ left the disciples of Jesus terrified out of their wits. Proclaiming Jesus in public was impossible, because the Jews and the authorities would have prosecuted anyone caught publicly witnessing to Jesus. The safe option for those disciples was to gather and pray behind closed doors. Now, have a ‘go’ at imagining the scenario: these men, terrified for their own lives now that their Master was dead and buried, had deliberately locked themselves in. They’d have jumped at the slightest sound, wouldn’t they? They’d have listened intently to every single step up the stairs and they’d have held their breath in case someone knocked at the doors. They might even have worked out an escape route in case aggressors broke the doors down. 

The gospels record that, as the apostles sat there in the locked room, Jesus suddenly appeared in their midst. He offered them the traditional Jewish greeting: Shalom - Peace… peace be with you. Shalom is not just wishing someone to have a peaceful state of mind, or to be feeling calm … Shalom goes way beyond that. Shalom is about wholeness in terms of harmony and completeness. This traditional greeting isn’t foreign to Christian liturgy. Shalom channels the reality and assurance of hope and wholeness for us and for other people as we interact with our fellow worshippers. This peace, as projected by Isaiah, is accompanied by healing: peace, peace to the far and the near, says the Lord and I will heal them (Isaiah 57:21) Thus, when Christ offered the apostles His peace, He offered them wholeness over against their brokenness, harmony over against their discord, and healing from their fear. 

Christ added the gift of the Holy Spirit to further the spread of His peace and to create a fertile ground for mercy and forgiveness. He said: receive the Holy Spirit… The Holy Spirit is gifted to bring to perfection in those disciples and in us the work instigated by the gift of peace. Wherever there is mercy and forgiveness, there is an abundance of peace. The Holy Spirit dwelling in us (and in the Church) opens the channel for peace to make its home in us. Our souls experience true peace after encountering Jesus in the Sacrament of Reconciliation because the assurance of God’s forgiveness renews and enhances our inner peace. The Holy Spirit and the sacrament combine to make us channels of God’s peace.

The peace offered to us by Christ assuages any doubts we might have harboured about His divinity, love and power. In our humanity we can empathise with Thomas, who was absent from the fold when the Lord first appeared to the apostles and who doubted their testimony that He had risen from the dead. No-one had done it before, after all! But when Christ came back a week later, He made the first move to dispel Thomas’ unbelief by showing him His wounds. Our Lord didn’t show them to the other apostles – this was the Lord’s special gift to Thomas. He beckoned Thomas over to examine the marks of the nails on His hands and the spear on His side. As a direct result, Thomas not only regained his faith in Who Jesus was and is, but the faith that he had became rock-solid. Within a single conversation that opened with the greeting Shalom, Thomas moved from doubt to faith: my Lord and my God. Thomas had expressed his honest doubts. He refused to pretend that he understood what he did not understand, or that he believed what he didn’t believe. Through his honesty, he received the gift of ultimate, unshakeable faith. Thomas gave us an expression which, right up to today, is used to confirm our faith in the transubstantiation of the sacred species during the offering of Holy Mass. When we, like Thomas, fight our way through doubt to the conviction that Jesus Christ is indeed Lord and God, we attain a certainty that someone who merely takes things at face value never does. What is comforting for every Christian down the ages is that Thomas expressed the initial doubts that we would have expressed under the circumstances, and that we too are rewarded by having the door of ultimate faith opened to us. Blessedness has been extended by Christ to all who believe in Him even without the evidence of their eyes. 

Continuing the theme of the opening of the door of faith by Christ Himself, the early hymn of St. Peter in the Second Reading celebrates new birth in the sacrament of Baptism. The peace that attracts the Holy Spirit, clears doubt in believers, and encourages mercy and forgiveness amongst followers of Christ is sorely needed in the Church today. We get an inkling from the First Reading as to how a community established in peace should live. The disciples held their property and goods in common, worshipped together at the Temple, and broke bread to make Him present in their homes. This is an idealistic portrayal of how every Christian community, be it the family as the domestic Church, or the parish, or the diocese should live, but it is nonetheless an ideal which we should aim for. The peace offered by the risen Lord ought to be experienced deep within the heart of each one of us. The peace offered by the risen Lord ought to ignite in the heart of each one of us a deep sense of unity, love and joy in Him and with others. Shalom. PEACE BE WITH YOU. Amen. God bless you.

5G: MY RESURRECTION STORY

HOMILY FOR EASTER SUNDAY

REV. FR. PETER ONYEKACHI EZEKOKA

Most of us are probably aware of the next step that’s being made in mobile technology. 5G, following on from 4G and 3G, promises far higher internet speeds than previous technologies. People are already marvelling at the 5G download speed, and are looking forward to connecting with a single application to all the smart things in our cities, homes, factories, healthcare facilities and so on. The prospect of 5G making life easier, smarter and more automated is mouthwatering, although its introduction will undoubtedly impact on our lives. Lots of conspiracy theories revolving around 5G technology have arisen. Some people are excited, some people are anxious, while others don’t care either way. Now, who would have predicted decades ago where we would be with mobile technology?

To draw a parallel, the Resurrection faith which we celebrate at Easter supplies us with another form of 5G that impacts massively on our physical lives as well as our spiritual lives. If Christ had not risen from the dead, then is our proclamation vain and our faith is also vain….and you are still in your sins (1 Cor. 15:14.17). An appreciation of the major locations of the physical journey Our Lord made in His Passion may serve to enhance our understanding of the deep spiritual import of the Passion. The events of the Passion and resurrection of our Lord are found in these 5 ‘Gs’ - Gethsemane, Gabbatha, Golgotha, Grave and Galilee. 

The 1^st ‘G’ opened in Gethsemane (Matt. 26:36) where our Lord was in agony, prayed in tears and was disappointed by His disciples. It mirrors for us our own moments of frustration and disappointment over events and persons.

The 2^nd ‘G’ was at Gabbatha (John 19:13), the stone pavement, where our Lord was judged, ridiculed, flogged and finally sentenced to death by crucifixion. It mirrors for us those moments of shame, wretchedness and loss, when the problems facing us appear to be insurmountable.

The 3^rd ‘G’ is Golgotha (John 19:17), “the place of the skull” where our Lord was crucified and died. It mirrors for us those moments when we have been overwhelmed by evil circumstances beyond our control.

The 4^th ‘G’ is the Grave, the tomb of burial (Matt. 27:60), where our Lord’s physical body was wrapped in a linen cloth. It mirrors for us those moments of alienation, restriction and imprisonment (of whatever kind), those times when all hope seems to have been lost.

The 5^th ‘G’ is Galilee. On the first day of the week, early on the morning of the resurrection, Mary Magdalene was given a message by an angel and by the Lord: He has risen from the dead, and now, He is going before you to Galilee; it is there you will see him…Go and tell my brothers, they shall see me in Galilee (cf. Matt 28:7.10).

According to today’s Gospel (John 20:1-9), on the first day of the week when it was till dark, Mary went to the tomb in the early hours of the morning, only to discover that the stone had been rolled away. On seeing that the grave was open, she concluded that the body of the Lord had been removed. She deferred to the authority of Peter and the beloved disciple, John, who ran to confirm her testimony. They saw for themselves that the stone had been rolled away, but unlike Mary, Peter entered the tomb and found it empty. He saw the linen cloth lying on the ground together with the cloth that had been used to cover His head. Like a detective assembling a dossier, Peter noted where the cloths were placed and *how* they had been placed. That was key!

Then the beloved disciple entered, and in that empty tomb he saw and he believed. He believed that Jesus had gone through death and risen to new life. Peter confirmed this resurrection faith (cf. First Reading: Acts 10:34a,37-43) both as a witness to the empty tomb and to the resurrected Jesus who ate and drank with His disciples thereafter. The discarded and folded linens were there not only to prove that the body had not been stolen, but also to indicate that He had cast off the clothing of physical flesh. His Body has gone beyond the need for material adornment. He is no longer in the tomb, constrained in a single location. He is everywhere. All creation now rejoices in the conquest of death and in the new life that the Lord has bought for us as the cost of His own flesh and blood. That particular ‘first day of the week’ became for humanity the ‘first day of the rest of our lives’. We have been reborn in victory over death, and we have been called to rise up and walk in God’s presence for the rest of our days. The Glory of God shines on us. The 5th ‘G’ of Galilee becomes synonymous with Glory, the glory of the resurrection: when I am raised up, says Jesus, I will go before you to Galilee (Matt. 26:32).

As the nominated place for the post-resurrection meeting of the Risen Lord with His disciples, Galilee was flagged up to the apostles and to us today as the place of glory. The meeting took place in joy instead of in tears, in hope instead of in condemnation, and in faith instead of in doubt. The disciples were given a wholly new perspective on, and understanding of, the mission of Christ. The undeniable fact that Christ is risen by the power of the Holy Spirit has a massive impact upon us too. The events of Easter prove to us that Christ is living; living in the Father’s glory but also living in us. St. Paul tells the Colossians (Second Reading: Col. 3: 1-4) and us that you have died, and now the life you have is hidden with Christ in God. The life we live now is the life of Christ in us. It is incumbent upon us that the message of Easter be celebrated constantly within our souls, so that we think, love and act as Christ did.

The Lord is truly risen! The Lord is living and active in every follower who walks in His footsteps.

Happy Easter! May the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ be constantly in our midst. Amen.

THEY WILL SEE ME IN GALILEE

HOMILY FOR THE EASTER VIGIL DURING THE HOLY NIGHT

Rev. Fr. Peter Onyekachi Ezekoka

This Lent may have felt like the lengthiest Lent we have ever experienced. For many of us, Lent has felt like an endless stretch of prayer and fasting and of enforced isolation in our own homes, culminating in the agony of Good Friday. My guess is that this feeling was probably intensified by the boredom and uncertainty created by the current pandemic. But suddenly, tonight, Lent stops. The Gloria fills the air with vibrant excitement, the bells ring out once again, and we stand amazed as the opening prayer assures us of ‘the radiance of the risen Christ.’ And then the Gospel (Matthew 28:1-10) tells us that there was a violent earthquake, for the angel of the Lord descending from Heaven came and rolled away the stone and sat on it. The lockdown situation in which we find ourselves today can actually help us to understand this passage. Imagine for a moment how life will one day return to normal, how people will embrace each other, how we shall return to the Church with joy and relief when this stone of COVID-19 has been rolled away. 

The face of Our Lord was described as ‘like lightning’. Our own faces will reflect our great joy and delight at His resurrection. Oh! When the Lord delivered Zion from bondage, it seemed like a dream, sang the Psalmist (Ps 126:1); then was our mouth filled with laughter and our tongue with singing. The Body of Christ has risen the tomb. He is risen from death. We are saved. Our lives have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowler (Ps 127:7). It is imperative that we thank Our Lord that we belong to this community of faith whom He came to save from sin and death. Thanks be to God that I am a part of the community of faith that has been redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ. Christ is risen! In the beginning was the Word (Jn 1:1), the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, The Lord Jesus Christ through Whom everything was made that was made. From the very beginning Jesus Christ, the Word of God, has possessed the power to raise Himself from the dead. In rising from the dead, His physical body has been transformed. It is incorruptible (meaning that He cannot experience decay), impassible (meaning that He cannot suffer again), ubiquitous (meaning that He is everywhere), agile (meaning that He presents in multiple ways), and subtle (meaning that He acts without restrictions). 

In today’s Gospel, Jesus said to the women: go and tell my brethren to go to Galilee; there they will see me. Jesus wanted to meet up with His disciples (whom He addressed as ‘brothers’) in Galilee. Let me ask you: where do you go back to after you’ve finished your daily labours? Home. What’s the place you miss most when (for instance) you have to travel to a far-off location? Home. Whom do you remember when you’re stressed out by external factors? People … at home. Where’s the place we are being told to stay in order to be safe and healthy? Home. Stay home, stay safe. Am I right? Now we can appreciate the reason why Our Lord told His brothers to come and meet Him in Galilee. Galilee was home to Jesus in His humanity. 

Galilee had a mixed population of Jews and Gentiles, and was home to lots of people from differing backgrounds and cultures. Consequently, the inhabitants were open to change, growth and new ideas. These qualities attracted people with ideas because of the open-mindedness of those who settled in the area. It was in this environment that Jesus began His ministry (cf. Mt 4:12). Galilee was the place where almost all of the disciples of Jesus lived. Although born in Bethlehem in Judaea, Jesus was regarded thereafter as a native of Galilee and He spoke with the local accent. Jesus spent most of His life and ministry in Galilee, and had foretold it as His destination after His rising from the dead: after I am raised, I will go ahead of you to Galilee (Mt 26:32). ‘Going back to Galilee’ meant ‘going home’ for Jesus and His disciples. 

‘Charity’, they say, ‘begins at home’. My dear friends, may I encourage you to accept that tonight, on this Holy Night, the Lord Jesus desires so much to meet you where you live? He desires to meet you right there in your own home, in your personal Galilee. What a great opportunity you have to encounter the Lord Jesus right there in your home this Easter. An encounter with the Lord Jesus will reinvigorate you, encourage you, empower you, and - of course - heal you of your burden of sin. It is Easter! Glory be to God! The glory of the Lord is the light in the midst of our darkness and lockdown. The Lord desires us to experience the power of the resurrection in our own homes. We have been strengthened tonight to face any physical, mental or spiritual earthquake that assails us. How come? Because of our witness tonight to the great spiritual earthquake of the resurrection. Our Lord has risen from the dead out of sheer love for us. We are startled to see that life after physical death is real; that God is real; that Heaven is real. We are utterly transformed by these revelations and assurances. Our hope in God is fulfilled, and our vision for the future on earth and in Heaven is restored. The light and the reality of this night are so magnificent, so glorious, that we find ourselves at peace because we believe in Jesus.  He is risen. Yes, He is. Happy Easter. God bless you.

NOTHING BUT THE BLOOD OF JESUS

HOMILY FOR GOOD FRIDAY OF THE PASSION OF OUR LORD

REV. FR. PETER EZEKOKA

Isaiah 52:13-53:12        Hebrews 4:14-16, 5:7-9        John 18:1-19:42 

I once knew a student whose sole reason for not venturing into Medicine and Surgery as his area of specialization was that he couldn’t stand the sight of blood! Some of us, like that young man, cannot stand the sight of blood either. But here, on Good Friday, we see in Jesus Someone who could and did stand the sight of blood. The sight He saw was His own Blood. Moreover, He offered that Most Precious Blood for our communal and personal wellbeing.

In the Old Testament, blood is viewed as having an aura of sanctity because it is essential for life. The misuse of blood is punishable by death (Lev 17:10) because the soul of the flesh is to be found in the blood (Lev 17:11). Blood is sacred, precious and valuable. According to Lev 8:15; 9:9, the atoning power of every sacrifice lies specifically in the blood of the sacrificial animal. The Mosaic Law holds that, when an animal is sacrificed, its blood has to be sprinkled on those who have been defiled so that the penitents’ flesh is made pure again.  According to the Law, nearly everything requires cleansing with blood; and, as the writer to the Hebrews stated in 9:22, unless blood is poured out in sacrifice, forgiveness is not granted. All of this may sound a bit gory to modern ears, but the point is that the OT linking of lifeblood to sacredness is signposting the ultimate exalted purpose that the sacrificial Blood of Jesus Christ was going to serve.

The death of Christ was enacted as a sacrifice. His sacred, pierced and wounded Body was pinned to two pieces of wood forming a cross, and His Blood poured out as a libation as He died. In the Passion narrative according to St. John, blood and water flowed out of the Body when one of the soldiers pierced His sacred heart with a lance. The separation of water and blood indicated that He was physically dead.

The Blood of Jesus was the supreme sacrificial and atoning offering to God. Christ willingly poured out His human blood to guarantee our justification (cf. Rom. 5:9) so that there is no more condemnation for those who are in Christ (cf. Rom. 8:1). The shedding of His Blood was sacrificial; it was also covenantal. In the OT, without the shedding of blood there was no covenantal bond. It is the Blood of Jesus that bonds us covenantally to God. The sacrificial offering of any warm-blooded animal, or of any man, or even of ourselves, would never have sufficed to pay the debt we humans owe for the sins and offences we have committed against Almighty God. To atone adequately for these, we need to have a perfect, unblemished and spotless sacrifice offered on our behalf. ‘Nobody’s perfect’ we quip as we fail and fall time and again. And it’s true … we’re not. So where will we find Someone who is perfect to atone for us?

The answer is: Jesus the Christ, the sinless God-Man, who became incarnate for us, was born, and who died in human flesh, emptying Himself of His Blood to release us from the shackles of sin and death into the state of grace. 1 Peter 1:18-19 confirms the He paid the ransom for us. Romans 3:25 asserts that His Blood reconciled us to God. Hebrews 13:12 declares joyfully that His Blood sanctifies us. And Ephesians 2:13 reveals that that Precious Blood opens for us the way to the very presence of God!

The Precious Blood of Jesus the God-Man pleads more insistently than Abel’s blood (cf. Heb. 12:24) and it assures our peace (Col. 1:19-20). It was by virtue of His Precious Blood that the enemy – Satan - was completely overcome (Rev 12:11). Worthy is the Lamb; the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honour and glory and blessing (Rev 5:12). Jesus Christ is the Lamb that was slain who, by His Blood, ransomed men for God (cf. Rev.5:9). Indeed, as Isaiah foresaw (Is 53:4), ours were the sufferings He bore, ours were the sorrows He carried.

At this point, it may be helpful to remind ourselves of the three basic functions of blood in the human body. As a body fluid, blood delivers essential substances (including nutrients and oxygen) to the cells, transports metabolic waste products away from the cells and helps to regulate the body temperature. In the spiritual realm, the Blood of Jesus functions similarly to our benefit. The Blood of Jesus delivers essential divine virtues throughout the entirety of our being. These virtues are essential for the maintenance of a good relationship with God and with our fellow human beings. The Blood of Jesus transports away from our lives those vices that harm our souls and cleanses us from all sins (1 Jn 1:7). The Blood of Jesus helps to regulate our spirit so that it is neither lax nor scrupulous, thirsting as it does for God and accommodating other people in the spirit of Christ.

Everyone’s blood belongs to one of four blood groups. I once had a friend who passed over, simply because the blood that matched his own blood group was not available for transfusion. We know it can be life-threatening if someone is given blood from a different blood group. If someone with blood group B is given group A blood, the Anti-A antibodies will attack the incoming group A cells. Sometimes, human beings act like antibodies, attacking one another instead of co-existing peacefully. The Blood of Jesus, however, is a perfect match for every blood group. So, whether you are blood group A or B or AB or O, positive or negative, Blood group J (Jesus) is your perfect match. The Second Reading assures us that we have a supreme high priest who has gone to the highest heaven. In Jesus, there is no Jew or Gentile. In Jesus is peace.

The Precious Blood of Jesus is a perfect match for each and every one of us - the African, the American, the European, the Asian, the Australian, the Scot, and of course, the Nigerian. And you know what? This Precious Blood is readily available to each and every one of us. There is no need to run round like a headless chicken in search of it, because it has been embedded in our souls. All we need to do is to tap into it in prayer and good works, and then to sit back and marvel as it flows in and through us. The Blood of Jesus is the sign of our unity with God and with each other in love and peace. The Blood of Jesus is the most powerful blood in history – which is, of course, ‘HIS-story’! His Blood is the perfect match for us all. On this Holy Day, Good Friday, as individuals and as a worshipping community we have the opportunity to harness the power and efficacy of His Blood in our lives. May the Holy and Most Precious Blood of Jesus, shed for us on the cross, purify us, sanctify us, preserve us, protect us, unite us and bring us peace, now and for always. Amen. God bless you.