“TEACH US TO PRAY”

Reflection for 27th Week in Ordinary Time
(Gal 2:1-2, 7-14; Lk 11:1-4)

What a request! Seeing Jesus pray, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray...” We need no other lesson on the importance of prayer. The example set by Jesus is enough. We cannot graduate from the school of prayer. So, the request of the disciple in today's gospel should be the constant yearning of our hearts. Prayer opens new horizons of divine encounter, such that each step in prayer is as good as the first one.

“When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come...’” Thus Jesus taught us to extol God and seek His will in prayer. And this should come first before any human need. Herein lies the sweetness and strength of prayer. Once our prayer seeks God's glory first, every other thing bows accordingly...

But if our prayer is centred around human problems, it easily becomes problematic i.e. our prayer may begin to be heavy and less serene. Result-orientated prayer can be frustrating! Even when the problems are solve, one may begin to forget to pray or may then pray with less enthusiasm. For us to pray constantly and remain consistent in our prayer life, we must learn prayer as taught by Jesus.

The coming of God's kingdom dispels every evil and assures of our daily bread. Let us learn to grow in prayer that the Kingdom of God may continue to increase in us.

Fr Jude Chinwe Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
Holy Family Catholic Church
Festac Town,  Lagos.
Wednesday October 10, 2018.

Mary and Martha

Reflection for Tuesday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time
(Gal 1:13-24; Lk 10:38-42)

In today’s Gospel, Jesus visits Mary and Martha. Mary stood at His feet and listened to His teaching, while Martha was busy with the serving. Mary directed her silence at Jesus in wrapt attentiveness, just as Martha was busy trying to entertain the Lord and to be at His service. Mary and Martha, silence and activity, are sisters! And both are directed at Jesus, though differently. Jesus becomes the link through which our silence and activity draw value and commune.

The sound of Mary's silence could be heard in the voice of Martha as she complained! Silence is power. Her silence was strong enough to move Jesus to appreciation. It was as if her silence drew words from the mouth of the Master. In silent attention we become available and receptive. Thus, Mary achieved in greater measure, through inner disposition, what Martha tried to do for the Lord through externalities.

Generally speaking, listening attentively is an inner job. Silence is the precondition for attentiveness. It involves certain level of self-abandonment in order to accommodate the other. Then the heart and mind are inclined to the other. It takes a lot of discipline.  I have noted in my earlier articles on this topic that silence is not dormancy. It is an act that needs to be practiced. However, it enriches ones inner self, refilling lost strength. If our silence is misdirected,  our inner peace will be unsettled. On the  other hand, if our activity does not flow from our silence, we will easily get worn out. Then, dissatisfaction, jealousy, complain, etc will set in. Could this be the issue with Martha?

“Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things; one thing is needful.” The end point of Martha's serving was to please the Lord. So she ought to be engrossed in the Lord, not in things. But if her inner projection finds its locus in “things” –the servings—then Jesus would be a sort of “means”, or one of the “alternatives” that influence her activity. This implies that she would have had a certain sense of fulfilment in “getting things done” rather than her full purpose being rooted in ‘the joy of the Lord.’ There are many “Marthas” in the Church today...

Mary and Martha, Silence and Activity, now find their centre in Christ Jesus. The contemplation of the face of Jesus fills our soul with such vision and strength to embark on such activity that glorifies God and is life-giving. However, the Master affirms, “Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her.” The sound of silence is louder than words! Silence grasps in apt immediacy what words and action target through things.

As we approach Jesus in the Eucharist today, let us pause and be still. Speak Lord, your servant is listening.

Fr Jude Chinwe Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
Holy Family Catholic Church
Festac Town,  Lagos.
Tuesday October 9th, 2018.

The Neighbour

The Neighbour
Reflection for Monday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time
(Gal 1:6-12; LK 10:25-37)

In answering the proud lawyer, Jesus told the story of the good Samaritan. Through that story, he gave us an ever new understanding of a neighbour. The Jew attacked by robbers could not receive help from his kinsmen and religious leader. But a Samaritan, going outside the commonly held cultural norm, had compassion on him...

Therefore, a neighbour is no more defined by proximity or ideological or cultural similitude. A neighbour is that man or woman we encounter along the pathway of life who helps us in our weakness to be strong. He obstructs his own journey that we might continue ours; and pours his wine and oil that we might be healed. “Compassion” becomes the defining word of neighbour! People might come close to us for different reasons, but he who is in touch with our lowliness to lift us up, is our neighbour.

Then the Samaritan carried the Jew to the inn. In his limited capacity, he canvases for more help from others. His compassion is not short-sighted! Hence, his charity for the Jew is open-ended. “Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.”

A neighbour of sort is precious. It comes at a great sacrifice to build neighbourliness. It is to such a neighbour are we commanded,  “love your neighbour as yourself.” In a world marked with selfishness,  greed and obsessive self-preservation, Jesus' teaching on ‘neighbour’ remains challenging. Now, how do we begin to establish such neighbourliness with everyone we meet? Who takes the initiative since it is easy to love the one who treats us like the good Samaritan?

St Pauls gives us a formula in the first reading. We should be true to the Gospel and not do anything to please people. In other words, whatever action we undertake must be aimed at realizing the gospel truth. Thus, neighbourliness is initiated indirectly when we act directly for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We see then that such a relationship is the work of grace.

Jesus, therefore, is our first and authentic Neighbour!  He is the perfect “Good Samaritan.” He came down from Heaven, alighted from the height of His glory, bent to our fallen state, to lift us up. He poured out for us the wine of His Blood on the Cross that our wounds of sin might be healed. He carried us into the inn that is the Church, and commanded Peter and his successors, “Feed my sheep.” He promised not to leave us orphans, but He continues to supply whatever grace that is needed through the Church's sacraments. And He will come back again...Jesus is my Neighbour!

He has taken the complete initiative and established us as His neighbour.  Our response is to love Him wholeheartedly, and allow our person to be assumed in His. This is how we can love others as we love ourselves—that “self” that has been redeemed by Christ Jesus. We carry around that ‘self' that has Jesus as neighbour.

Fr Jude Chinwe Nwachukwu, C.SS.R
Holy Family Catholic Church
Festac Town, Lagos.
Monday October 8, 2018.

Rejoice that your Names are written in Heaven

(Reflection for Saturday of 26th Week in Ordinary Time Year B)
Job 42:1-3, 5-6, 12-17; Lk 10:17-24

Finally, Job acknowledged God's greatness,  “I know you can do all things...” He realized he was probing thing beyond him, which only God knows. He humbled himself and expressed contrition. He won God's heart, who restored Job to greatness and fullness of life. In the Gospel,  the disciples came back from mission, rejoicing at such authority they exercised in the Name of Jesus. Jesus corrected them, that their only joy should be that they have won God's favour, and have their names written in Heaven. This is the humble path!

God reveals His wisdom to mere children—the humble of heart. The disciples were chosen to see what the prophets longed to see but did not see it. So they must conquer human pride, even in their achievements. Those who humble themselves in Christ Jesus have the Father revealed to them. The humble shall be lifted to greatness. Their names are inscribed in God's heart, and they will have the power to conquer evil.

Humility is power! Through it our names are written in Heaven. This is our joy. It is positive. It is also the joy of the Virgin Mary. Yet, the devil will continue to fall as we match with the Name of Jesus in humility.
Mother of Perpetual Help,  prayer for us.

Fr Jude Chinwe Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
October 6th, 2018.

Surrender to Jesus

(Reflection for Friday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Year B)

As God addressed Job, he realised how little he was before God, who is Almighty! Then he made an art of total surrender to God. “Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you? I lay my hands on my mouth.” In the last days, God has spoken to us through His Son (Heb 1:2). But some towns and villages where He performed miracles and preached would not receive Him; they refused to repent. So Jesus pronounced woes upon them. The unrepentant heart heads to total destruction.

In Jesus God has given us His final word. He has addressed us in words and gestures. Like Job, our attitude in the face of this divine encounter is total surrender. Our ego and needs must succumb to Jesus, recognising that He has the final say!

The temptation to gradually and succinctly withdraw our sentiments from the truth that confronts us leads to hardness of heart, and the rejection of the Good news of salvation. Like the Blessed Virgin Mary,  we must be open to God's word, and surrender to it. Thus we shall attract God's blessings not woes.

Oh Mary, help us.

Fr Jude Chinwe Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R.
Friday October 5, 2018.

“I Know my Redeemer lives”

(Reflection for Thursday of 26th Week in Ordinary Time)
Job 19:21-27, Lk 10:1-12
Memorial of St Francis of Assisi

From the depth of his misery Job recognised that God is alive, and would not fail him. “For I know my Redeemer lives, and at last He will stand upon the earth.” So instead of evoking pity from his friends,  Job longed for God with complete trust that he shall behold Him at last.

This longing for God is transformed into a way of Life in the disciple, sent out to bear witness. Thus Jesus appointed the seventy disciples, and sent them out two by two. He instructed them to be detached from material things, and unnecessary and idle associations. He armed them with the Good news of salvation. “Heal the sick...and say, ‘The Kingdom of God has come near to you.’”

These instructions are forever relevant for all who want to bear witness for Jesus. Like Job, the true disciple is ever conscious of God's presence, and turns his/her heart towards Him. His words of preaching and acts of righteousness express in concrete terms his hidden longing for God. This silent longing for God impels from within. In other words, it is transformed in a force that carries him/her along the difficult pathway of witnessing to Jesus Christ.

Therefore, there's need for us to immediate the footsteps of St Francis of Assisi in following the directives of Jesus today, and detach from material grains. Francis abandoned all comfort to ‘rebuild the house of God.’ The call to witness carries within it the call to be detached from material things so as to be attached to God. This is how we are disposed to be conscious that our Redeemer lives, and are energised to proclaim it, even with our lives.

St Francis, pray for us.

Fr Jude Chinwe Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
October 4th, 2018.

TO WHOM SHALL WE GO!

Reflection for the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B
(Joshua 24:1-2, 15-17, 18; Eph 5:1-32; Jn 6:60-69)
1.0.The Choice
Joshua was quite dramatic. He summoned the tribes of Israel at Schechem and asked them to choose whether to serve the Lord God or the other gods. The people responded that they would serve the Lord God.  Their reason being that the Lord God did great wonders for them. They made a free choice but informed by God's miracles for them. Human beings are always looking for a model; our hearts often tend to incline to something or someone. But we have the inherent capability to choose where to hang our hearts. Those who do not want to worship the One God end up worshipping many gods!

Faith in God is a free choice. In the Gospel many of the disciples of Jesus deserted him because they could not come to terms with the revelation of Jesus Christ as the Bread of life. They chose to walk away, and Jesus respected their choice. He asked the twelve, “will you also go away?” Peter answered on behalf of the rest, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the message of eternal life; and we have believed, and come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”

Peter's choice to remain with Jesus is based on a relationship that grasped his person as the Son of God. The miraculous deeds of Jesus could not sustain the faith of the disciples that walked away. But the acceptance of the person of Jesus kept the twelve on. Their faith was rooted, not just on the miracles nor their human understanding but on the person of Jesus. Thus they accepted his teaching even when they could not understand it all.

2.0. The Gracious Choice
Our choice has a direction! There is always a propelling force or reason behind our every choice. Though the human heart tends to be in constant search, it faces the direction where it perceives its quest to be quenched. Every human choice is influenced by a reason. Thus, the freedom of our choice is directly related to the depth of the reason behind it.

Now the Israelites declared for God because of what they benefited. It was enough reason then for them worship Him. But with time their resolution collapsed. In the fullness of time, God's mighty works have been made manifest in Jesus Christ. He manifested this gracious power even in the multiplication of bread. Those asking for mere physical bread from Jesus missed the point, that in Christ Jesus we have been chosen for God's mighty works. From the foundation of the world, God chose us in Christ Jesus for every heavenly blessings, that we might be spotless before him (Eph 1:4-14). This is God's gracious choice, which in turn gives us the opportunity to choose God through Jesus Christ.

Thus, Joshua and his people were able to choose God because God chose them first as His people. Peter and Twelve chose to stay with Christ since He chose them first.  God's gracious choice,  which worked wonders for them, gave them reason and direction in declaring for God. Maybe that is why only a fool can reject God (Ps 14:1). At the end, God's gracious choice for us must be the underlying reason that propels our choice in Faith. Hence Jesus said, “no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father." It is by grace that we can recognise Jesus as Lord (1 Cor 12:3). It is by opening our hearts to this gracious choice that we can say with Peter, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go, you have the message of eternal life...’ At the end, this gracious choice for God in Jesus leads us into a relationship with Him, where reason and human benefit is sustained by grace. Grace as the last resort, however, does not deny nor downplay reason and human wellbeing, but itself suffices as that which gives direction to our free choice. This is the only way our choice for Christ Jesus can endure. It is the Father that draws us...!

3.0.To Whom Shall we Go!
Our society today is gradually losing direction. Identity crisis leaves its mark almost on every facet of our life. Even the Religious are not left out. Marriage and human relationship are on the fast track of redefinition. We question everything, and quickly jettison what does not guarantee immediate results. In our hearts are impressed the question: To whom shall we go? 

We want to choose the direction of our lives, and choose it in freedom. Sometimes freedom is perceived as amorphous, open to anything. Such idea of freedom of choice will leave our hearts in endless search for identity and worship. Our choice in freedom is responsive. There is already a direction laid down, from which we freely respond to. Faith is defined; our choice to worship follows a directed path. The free choice between married couples for each other is a living example as given in the second reading.

One enters marriage freely. But one only marries in freedom if he/she chooses to marry the one who has chosen him/her. This freedom of choice, sealed in the Blood of the Lamb, is irrevocable. The mystery of marriage is that couples are free but bound together. Each couple plays out his/her role in freedom but modelled after Christ.

Therefore, Jesus Christ is the unifying centre that holds all things in being (Col 1:17). It is to Him we shall go! Those who walk away from Christ, depart from truth. And they will end up walking away from dignity of life and true freedom. Since we have been chosen in Christ for every heavenly blessings, our choice in faith must be centred on the person of Jesus Christ, the True Bread that Satisfies.

Fr Jude Chinwe Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R.ķ
St Louis Catholic Church,
Ekuku-Agbor, Delta State,
Nigeria.
26th August, 2018