The Lord said to the congregation
of the sons of Israel, “You shall be holy; for I the Lord your God am holy.” The
readings of today echo the call to holiness, at a time like this, when sin has
eaten deep into every fabric of our society. The voice of Jesus resounds anew, “You,
therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” The call to
holiness and perfection may not be popular among believers today, but the
freshness and strength of the message cannot be denied.
The call to holiness and perfection
takes Christian morality to a realm that can only be sustained by faith in
Jesus Christ. As we embark on this journey to holiness, we begin to realize our
mandate as ‘Image of God’ and live out the grace we have as those redeemed by
Jesus Christ. Since God has shared life with us in Christ Jesus, and bestowed
upon us the riches of his glory, the way to holiness and perfection is now
accessible and available. In the Old Testament, holiness was measured by
keeping the commandments. But in the New Testament, holiness is measured by
following Jesus and living out His righteousness.
Often times, we tend to shy away
when we hear Jesus say, “If any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the
other also…” It appears humanly impossible to do so. But God had already
prepared us in Christ Jesus to follow Him on that path. In the second reading, St.
Paul asks, “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit
dwells in you? Our steps to holiness and perfection must begin with this conscious
realization that the Holy Spirit has made His home in our hearts, and we
recognize Him as the hidden wisdom that directs our thoughts and actions. That
means we are expected to give out a spiritual response, even to what is
done to us physically.
As temples of God, acting from the
hidden wisdom of the Holy Spirit, the responses we give will shock the world, “For
the wisdom of this world is folly with God.” The spiritual response we
give becomes for us an expression of the life of Christ. For we live no longer
for ourselves, but for Him who died and rose from the death (2 Cor 5:15). The
cross of Christ is the ultimate temple of God, where the perfect sacrifice was
offered. Hence, we bear this identity of Jesus, and carry around in our bodies
the temple of the cross so that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our
bodies (2 Cor 4:10).
Meditate on how the Holy Spirit overshadows
the heart that welcomes Him, leaving no room for violence, revenge, and enmity.
He leads us on the pathway of peace, love and reconciliation. This is how we
can ‘turn the other cheek’, ‘go two miles with the oppressor’, ‘love and pray
for our enemies.’ This is not to demonstrate our resilient capability. But it
is the spiritual response we give, “So that you may be sons of your Father who
is in heaven.” This is how we manifest the life of Christ, and walk on pathway
of holiness and perfection. Amen.
Fr Jude Chinwenwa Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic
Church,
Tedi-Muwo, Ojo, Lagos.
Sunday February 19th,
2023.
