DAILY HOMILIES #Children

Mary and Joseph brought the baby Jesus to the temple to do what the law prescribed. They knew that Jesus is God, yet they obeyed the law, presenting God to God. In other words, they knew there was no need to bring the baby Jesus to the temple, but in humility (not wanting to appear like the special ones in their community), they followed the law.

Even if you are not involved, blame yourself. Ask these questions: “What if it is my fault that so and so happened? Where did I go wrong? What should I have done better?” These questions are particularly helpful if you are determined not to repeat the mistakes of others.

If we claim to be children of God, there are certain things we should never do, whether or not anyone is watching us. As children of God, we should never be ashamed or afraid of living righteously. On the other hand, we should not assume that everyone is a child of God.

To shame Goliath, God chose David. To shame those mocking Hannah and Elizabeth, God gave them children. Avoid laughing at others. Avoid labelling people with their condition. Do not write off anybody as good for nothing; you are not God.

In today’s Nigeria, even a child of primary school age has mastered the game of corruption, dishonesty and deception. If we don’t watch it, the evils of the next generation will make the evils of the present time seem like “the good old times.” We must start telling ourselves: “I am the problem of Nigeria; if I don’t change, Nigeria cannot be better.”

A parent once asked a priest: “At what age do I start teaching my child how to pray?” In return, the priest asked, “How old is your child now.” She replied: “He will be four years in two months.” “Then you are four years late already,” said the priest. We do our children a great disservice when we do not allow them to attend catechism classes, but we want them to receive the sacraments.

Applying today’s Gospel passage to the concept of parenthood, we can interpret the parable of the sower in this way: The soil represents the parents. While some parents provide a nurturing ground for their children to blossom, others are like rocky, thorny or roadside paths. Not minding the “nature-nurture argument”, we can never underestimate the importance of proper upbringing.

Can you change your feelings toward your enemies? What if you decide no longer to talk about them in a negative light? What if decide to remember only those good things they did to you and not the painful ones? What if you start praying for their conversion and deliverance rather than for God to destroy them?

Believe that you will get what you ask for even before you start praying. Jesus draws an analogy with a child asking his father for bread or fish saying that if we who are evil can be trusted to give our children what they ask for, how much more, God. To remind us that God is really a Father, Jesus taught us to begin our prayer with “Our Father who art in heaven.”

Jesus does not condemn the desire to be great, instead, he brought a little child into the midst of the disciples to illustrate that true greatness is not really about lording it over others but serving them and bringing oneself down in humility.

Silence helps to refine our hearts. For instance, we tend to listen more when we are silent, we tend to hear more and understand life better, we get to see the bigger picture and we get to look beyond our immediate problems. If God forced Zachariah to be silent, how much more would we profit if we decide to embark on silence voluntarily.

Our Gospel passage today contains a lot of names; these are the ancestral line of Judah. Not every person in this genealogy was outstanding, in fact, some of them were terrible sinners who did unthinkable things. What does this tell us? That God can work through anybody. Stop looking down on yourself. Every saint had a past and every sinner has a future. Say Yes to God today and let your past pass.