THEME: “THE HOLY SPIRIT”

((Readings: 1^st: Acts 8:5-8.14-17; Ps: 65; 2^nd: 1 Pet 3:15-18; Gos: Jn 14:15-21))

Today is the 6^th Sunday of Easter, and as we approach the feast of Pentecost, our holy mother church is inviting us to start celebrating the coming of an Advocate, the spirit of truth and love, the Holy Spirit. The Gospel today is taken from Jesus´ farewell speech before the ascension. Normally in our African tradition, the last words a person says before his “departure” are very important. The disciples we downtrodden upon hearing, that again their master, their teacher, the risen Lord is going to leave them. To whom shall they Go?

Jesus promises not to live his followers as orphans but rather to send them an advocate on one condition: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” And when you do this, he adds: “I shall ask my Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever, that spirit of truth…”.   The Spirit of God enables us to participate in the life of the risen Jesus Christ. The first reading demonstrates how the Holy Spirit came upon the new converts in Samaria who believed in the Gospel and were baptized by the Apostles. Peter and John placed their hands on the new converts, the sacrament of confirmation so that they too might receive the Holy Spirit.

As we prepare for the Pentecost, today we begin to reflect on the nature of the Spirit of God that we also received during our baptism and confirmation.

• HE IS OUR ADVOCATE (Paracletus)

The title Paraclete comes from the Greek word Parakletos translated as advocate, counselor, or helper. This is a term normally used in courts and refers to the one who stands beside the accused or somebody in difficulties. In the time of Jesus, if one was accused of a crime, and it happened that a well-to-do person (Paraclete) would come forward and stand beside the accused even without saying a word; the persecution would stop immediately and the case was over.  An advocate is someone called in to help in times of trouble or need.

Paraclete means that the spirit would be the protector of the disciples in times of difficulty. The Holy Spirit is always near us and therefore we need not get worried about anything. The Apostles were not threatened nor discouraged by persecutions and difficulties they encountered because the paraclete/Advocate stood with them. No doors could rock them in prison nor could any form of torture stop their mission. No form of difficulty or threat can defeat us when we have the Paraclete.

• HE IS SPIRIT OF TRUTH (Spiritus Veritatis)

Another worry for the disciples was how to remember all the things Jesus taught them. “When the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you in all the truth, he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare, disclose and reveal to you about the future.” (Jn 16:13) The word of God that the Apostles have written down for us and that is being proclaimed right now is true because it has been inspired by the Holy Spirit, the spirit of truth. The Holy Spirit prevents the transmission of error in the Gospel and it reveals to us the hidden mysteries of God for our salvation. Christians have to be very very careful with the false teachings and doctrines from many false prophets of the 21st century who have not been appointed or inspired by the spirit of truth. The spirit of truth will never mislead the followers of Jesus.

• HE IS A BOND OF LOVE

The Holy Spirit is actually the bond of love between God the Father and God the Son. By sending us the Holy Spirit, Jesus enables us to participate in the love we share with his Father.  The presence of the Holy Spirit in us makes it easier for us to love God and therefore to fulfill his commandments. “If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love” (Jn 15:9-11). The ability to love God is tested with obedience to God. The spirit of God gives us the power to love, to be generous, and to serve others. The Apostle Paul, in Eph 4:3-6, calls the spirit as a bond that maintains unity in love among believers and between them and God. Let us pray that God will pour his spirit into us to perfect us in the commandment of love for God and neighbor.

In brief dear friend, during baptism and confirmation, we received the Holy Spirit. He is our advocate in times of difficulties, therefore we should worry not. He the spirit of truth, who teaches us the Divine word and reveals the hidden mysteries to us. He has inspired the Divine teachings with nothing but the truth. He is finally, the bond of love between God the Father and God the Son. This bond of love has been extended to believers through baptism and confirmation. May almighty God renew his spirit in us. Amen

Prayer: Come, O Holy Spirit, and renew the face of the earth, alleluia.

Fr. Antony Muchui, SVD

 HAPPY EASTER!!!  ((Contact our vocation office on +255629269140 or +254792299140))

“May the darkness of sin and the night of unbelief vanish before the light of the word and the spirit of Grace; and may the heart of Jesus live in the heart of all the people. Amen” SVD Prayer

FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER, YEAR A

((Readings: 1^st: Acts 6:1-7; Ps: 32; 2^nd: 1 Pet 2:4-9; Gos: Jn 14:1-12))

Today being the 5^th Sunday of Easter, we continue to celebrate the triumph of the risen Lord. Our liturgical readings describe to us the image of the Church of God. Peter compares this church to a building. The builder is God himself and the building materials are made up of living stones, the people. The building was begun by laying of the cornerstone, a strong foundation that God made for the whole building. This cornerstone is Jesus and the building began with his resurrection. God continued to lay other stones on this foundation and these are the apostles and those who have believed and were baptized. The foundation is sure and strong, the builder is perfect and therefore this house is safe. No matter how many catastrophes, earthquakes, scandals, or problems hit the church of God, it will always remain firm because her foundation which is the risen Lord is firm and strong.

For instance, in Acts of Apostles 6:1-7, a division arose in the early church. There was tension between the Hebrews and the Hellenists. The Greek-speaking widows complained that the Aramaic-speaking widows were given preferential treatment at the daily distribution of food. The struggle for materialism hit hard the stability of the first Christian community. However, this community survived these external forces because the foundation was strong and the builder was perfect. We are the church; the individuals in the family make up the modern church of God.

What are some of the qualities that we can learn from the early Church that made them stand still amidst challenges?

• HOLINESS

The first Christian community met often to pray and break the bread. Peter addresses these people as a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and a people of God’s own.  The Apostles dedicated themselves to the work of preaching the word of God. Proclaiming the word of God was central to their life. The holy spirit animated their life and this fortified the church. We also share the divine life of God; (a) by actively participating in the Eucharistic celebration and properly receiving the body and blood of Christ in the Holy Communion. b) By the worthy reception of the other sacraments.  c) By the meditative and daily reading of the Word of God.  d) By following the guidance of the life-giving Spirit of God, living within us.  e) By communicating with God, the source of life, in personal and family prayers.  We must not allow the care of the mundane and worries of this world to distract us from our basic call as Holy people as the disciples took precautions: “It will not be right for us to neglect the word of God so as to give out food…we will hand over this duty and devote ourselves to prayer and to the service of the word of God”. (Acts 6:3)

• A COMMUNITY OF SERVICE

Another factor that fortified the early Christian community was their unity, solidarity and service to the needy. People contributed together whatever they had and it was distributed fairly to the needy. This was a generous community and nobody lacked the basic needs. People admired them and God added to their numbers making the community grow tremendously. However, when the Apostles realized the work of distributing food to the needy was too much and causing confusion and division, they delegated this duty to seven men elected by people of good standing, full of the spirit and of wisdom, whom they appointed to the task of distributing the food (6:3).  This is the root of diaconate ordination. We must not neglect or take for granted the social and material needs of our brothers and sisters.

• A COMMUNITY OF PROBLEM SOLVERS

The church is unfortunately built with weak blocks, sinners, and imperfect people. A division arose among the first Christians on the basis of materialism. However, the Apostles fixed it immediately by calling for a meeting in which they selected seven deacons to take over the task of food distribution. If the disciples had clanged to their power and authority, it would have collapsed the church. The development of hierarchical structures came to fix the problem at hand. In every community or family, disputes will always emerge because we are human. However, the secret of every community is the ability to develop interior structures to counter problems.

Finally, Jesus assures us today, his fellow priests, of a place in his kingdom. “Let not your hearts be troubled…there are many rooms in my fathers’ house…so that where I am you may be too.” This is a clear indication that by virtue of baptism, we are truly children of God and share in the priesthood and loyalty of Jesus Christ. In addition, Jesus tells us: “I am the way and the truth and the light (Via, veritas, Lucis). Therefore, if we follow him and fashion our priesthood and priestly life after his, we shall all be in where He is now.

In brief, as the church of God, we can not stand if we do not recognize the fact that Jesus is our foundation stone and without him, our struggles are in vain. Our journey is full of challenges and obstacles, but if we rely on the Grace of God in the sacraments, we shall all remain firm as the Church of God. May the word of God be the light to your feet and may the Eucharist strengthen you and grant you the grace you need on your heavenly journey. Amen

Prayer: May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all our hope in you. Amen Ps 32:22

Fr. Antony Muchui, SVD

 HAPPY EASTER!!!  ((Contact our vocation office on +255629269140 or +254792299140))

“May the darkness of sin and the night of unbelief vanish before the light of the word and the spirit of Grace; and may the heart of Jesus live in the heart of all the people. Amen” SVD Prayer

GOOD SHEPHERD SUNDAY

THEME: “THE GOOD SHEPHERD”

((Readings: 1^st: Acts 2:14.36-41; Ps: 22; 2^nd: 1 Pet 2:20-25; Gos: Jn 10:1-10))

The 4^th Sunday of Easter is known as Good Shepherd Sunday and it is the World “Day of Prayer for Vocations.” Today we celebrate Christ, who is not only risen but also a good shepherd who continues to tend and rear his flock. A shepherd is a person who tends or rears the sheep. His job is to protect his flock from wild animals and guide them to good pastures with plenty of food and water. In Old Testament times, a shepherd was either the youngest boy in the village/family or a hired laborer.

In the Old Testament, the image of the Shepherd is often applied to God as well as to the leaders of the people.   The prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel compare Yahweh’s care and protection of His people to that of a shepherd.   “He is like a shepherd feeding his flock, gathering lambs in his arms, holding them against His breast and leading the mother ewes to their rest.” (Is. 40:11).  Ezekiel represents God as a loving shepherd who searches diligently for the lost sheep.  Psalm 23 is David’s famous picture of God as The Good Shepherd: “The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack.  In green pastures you let me graze, to safe waters you lead me.”

There we also bad shepherds in Israel, mostly hired laborers, who neither protected the flock nor led them to good pastures.  Jer. 23:1: “Doom for the shepherds who allow the flock of my pasture to be destroyed and scattered.”   Ez. 34: 2: “Trouble for the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves!  Shepherds’ ought to feed their flock.”

In the New Testament Christ is the Good Shepherd because of his love for the flock. Everyone who is entrusted with the care of others is a shepherd too.  Hence pastors, parents, teachers, doctors, nurses, government officials, etc. are all shepherds. We become good shepherds by loving those entrusted to us, protecting them from physical and spiritual harm, and guiding them in the right path. To be a good shepherd therefore we ought to possess the following 3 basic qualities:

• HE KNOWS HIS SHEEP AND HIS SHEEP HEAR HIS VOICE: The Palestinian shepherds knew each sheep of their flock by name, and the sheep knew their shepherd and his voice. Similarly, Jesus knows each one of us by name “Before you were born, I knew you” (Jer 1:5), He knows our needs, our worries, our pains, our joy, our weaknesses, and our strength.  He loves us as we are, with all our limitations, and he expects us to return his love by keeping his word. Every good shepherd therefore ought to know his flock, be close to them, and accept them with all their limitations. We must build a good relationship with our flock based on love, trust and mutual respect. A good shepherd goes ahead of the sheep and they follow him because they recognize his voice.

• HE PROTECTS HIS SHEEP. “I give them eternal life and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand” (Jn 10:18). A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. Jesus did not allow humanity to perish in their sinfulness, therefore, leaving heaven He entered the sinful humanity and by dying on the cross he paid the price for our sins. Through His Word and the sacraments, Christ is always present to guide and protect us.

 In brief, God is above you to Bless you, below you to support you; before you to guide you to greener pastures, behind you to protect you; beside you to comfort you and inside you to give you strength and joy. As shepherds, we must be ready to protect our flocks from the physical, spiritual, and psychological wolves all the time.  This demand keeps our interest aside for the sake of our flocks. We must be ready to lay down our lives for the sheep (Jn 10:11).

• HE GOES IN SEARCH OF STRAY LAMBS AND HEALS THE SICK ONES. In the parable of the lost sheep (Mt 18:10-14), the shepherd leaves the 99 others on the mountains and searches high and low for the lost sheep. When the shepherd finds the lost sheep, he rejoices over it that the 99 who did not go astray. This is how God will rejoice when a sinner returns to Him than over the many righteous persons who do not need to repent. Our concern as parents, leaders, and the church should be on the weak, sinners, and the lost so that we can bring them back to the flock. May God grant us special grace to love and search for the lost sheep.

As we celebrate Christ the Good Shepherd, we are reminded that we are also shepherds at different levels. As shepherds, we need to know our flocks and love them, protect them, guard them from harm, and search for the lost ones. Let us pray for more vocations (priests and religious) in our church so that we can have more faithful shepherds who will take care of the flock entrusted to them by the Father. As the sheep of God’s flock, let us heed the daily call of Christ our good shepherd who has spoken to us through the scripture.

PRAYER: Good Shepherd, grant me the grace to generously respond to your call. Amen

   Fr. Antony Muchui, SVD

 HAPPY EASTER!!! ((Contact our vocation office on +255629269140 or +254792299140))

“May the darkness of sin and the night of unbelief vanish before the light of the word and the spirit of Grace; and may the heart of Jesus live in the heart of all the people. Amen” SVD Prayer