SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YR B, 2024 BY FR. MARTIN EKE, MSP

2 Kings 4:42-44; Psalm 145:10-11,15-18; Ephesians 4:1-6; John 6:1-15

According to Leviticus 2:12-15, the first-fruits were to be offered to the Lord. It was in the observance of this Jewish custom that the man in the first reading brought to Elisha twenty barley loaves made from first-fruits and fresh ears of grain. Elisha had one hundred prophet apprentices (sons of the prophets) who were in training to become prophets. Elisha directed his servant, Gehazi, to give the offering to the sons of the prophets to eat. Gehazi, presuming that the offering would not be enough, objected, “How can I set this before a hundred people?” Elisha repeated his instruction that the loaves be given to the people; and Elisha prophesied, “For thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat and there shall be some left over.’” The reading concludes that the men ate and there were some left over as prophesied by Elisha. 

When Jesus raised the idea of feeding the five thousand people, his disciples objected, too. Philip questioned Jesus, “Where can we buy enough bread for them to eat? … Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little.” Andrew wondered, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?” After Jesus blessed the five loaves and the two fish, the five thousand people ate and the left over filled twelve wicker baskets. 

The readings teach us that God multiplies the little we willingly and generously share with one another. Let no one say, “What I have is insignificant, no need presenting it.” Every little drop counts. Let us be like the man in the first reading who brought the offering to Elisha. Let us be like the boy in the gospel reading who brought five loaves and two fish. Let us allow God to use us as he used the man and the boy. Much comes out from what we willingly and generously share with one another. 

We can see in the readings that neither Elisha nor Jesus produced what the people ate. It was the little that was available and generously offered that God blessed and multiplied.

When the widow of Zarephath offered to Elijah from a handful of flour and a little oil remained for herself and her son, God stepped in to multiply, the jar of flour did not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry until the day when the Lord sent rain upon the earth (1 King 17:10-16).

There is no multiplication where people are unwilling to share. What use is a person’s wealth if the person does not allow God to bless other people with his or her wealth? What use is a person’s talent and knowledge if the person does not share them with other people?

The second reading speaks of “unity of the spirit through bond of peace.” If there is unity of the spirit through bond of peace in families, communities, parishes, associations, and organizations, much is achieved. Unity of the spirit through bond of peace enables pooling talents and resources together and results in multiplication of good things. Much is lost where there is conflict and disunity.

In the gospel, Jesus instructed his disciples, “Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing will be wasted.” By this, Jesus teaches us that it is wrong and sinful to be wasteful. It is wrong and sinful for the rich and the privileged to accumulate wealth and live wasteful and extravagant life while there are people dying from hunger and poverty. If what is hoarded and wasted are distributed to the needy, poverty will be reduced to the barest minimum all over the world, and millions of lives will be saved. Wastefulness includes excess consumption of food and drinks, throwing out consumable food and usable items, laziness, time wasting, lack of discipline and restraint in spending money and using resources, and so on.

When the people ate, as the first reading and the gospel reading tell us, there were left over. The jar of flour did not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry for the Zarephath widow and her son. May God also visit us with his multiplying power in our areas of want and need. Amen and amen!

SIXTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B, 2024 BY FR. MARTIN EKE, MSP

 Jeremiah 23:1-6; Psalm 23:1-6; Ephesians 2:13-18; Mark 6:30-34

The time Jeremiah prophesied in Israel was a time of religious and moral crises. The political rulers and religious leaders were deep in corruption and injustice. The poor were neglected and oppressed. The true God was no longer worshipped with seriousness. Worship of foreign gods became a common practice. In the first reading, Jeremiah confronted the rulers and leaders for their derailment: “Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the flock of my pasture … Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, against the shepherds who shepherd my people: You have scattered my sheep and driven them away. You have not cared for them, but I will take care to punish your evil deeds” (Jeremiah 23:1-2).

The first reading, accurately, captures the disturbing situation today in crises ridden countries. The rulers in the crises ridden countries destroy and scatter the people and drive them away. Hundreds of thousands of people are dying of sickness, hunger, poverty, and violence. Thousands of people are fleeing their homelands, and many are dying across deserts, in seas, in captivity, and in detentions. Thousands of people are forced to surrender themselves to the humiliation of human traffickers and the humiliation of seeking refugee status and asylum status in foreign lands. We continue to pray and wait for God’s promise: “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock from all the lands … and bring them back to their folds; there they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will raise up shepherds for them who will shepherd them so that they need no longer fear or be terrified; none shall be missing” (Jeremiah 23:3-4).

We pray to have religious, economic, and political shepherds who will be a fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy; the days when righteous and just rulers reign and govern wisely, and when the people will dwell in security (Jeremiah 23:6).

We pray to have religious, political, and economic shepherds who will be “Repairers of Broken Walls, and Restorers of Streets and Dwellings” (Isaiah 58:12); shepherds who have the mind of Christ; shepherds who break down the dividing wall of enmity and establish peace; shepherds who preach peace to those far off and peace to those who are near (second reading, Ephesians 2:14-18).

Unlike the wicked shepherds during the time of Jeremiah, when Jesus saw the vast crowd, “his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd, and he began to teach them many things.” We pray to have religious, political, and economic shepherds who are compassionate in their leadership.

We pray, too, that we become a fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy since, in one way or another, we have leadership roles in our homes, relationships, churches, associations, work places, and responsibilities. Wherever and whatever leadership role we find ourselves, we pray to be “Repairers of Broken Walls, and Restorers of Streets and Dwellings.” In our leadership roles, we pray, as St. Paul encourages us to have the mind of Christ and be able to break down dividing walls of enmity and establish peace. Wherever and whatever leadership role we find ourselves, we pray to be compassionate like Jesus, who instructs us to “Be compassionate just as [our] Father is compassionate” (Luke 6:36).

Let us pray to become instruments of peace and progress instead of tools of crises and destruction. We pray with St. Francis of Assisi:

“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.”

Amen.

FIFTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B, 2024 BY FR. MARTIN EKE, MSP

Amos 7:12-15; Psalm 85:9-14; Ephesians 1:3-14; Mark 6:7-13

In the first reading, Prophet Amos replied to Amaziah, priest of Bethel, “I am not a prophet, nor do I belong to a company of prophets. I am a herdsman and a dresser of sycamores, but the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel’” (Amos 7:14-15).

In the second reading, St. Paul writes, “In him we were chosen, destined in accord with the purpose of the One who accomplishes all things according to the intention of his will” (Ephesians 1:11).

In the gospel, Jesus sent the apostles “out two by two and gave them authority over unclean spirits.”  Who were they before Jesus called them? Simon Peter, James and John, sons of Zebedee, and Bartholomew were fishermen; Philip was a disciple of John the Baptist; Matthew was a tax collector; Simon the Canaanite is said to belong to the Zealots’ political movement. The background of Thaddaeus, James the Less, and Judas Iscariot is inconspicuous. The apostles were nobodies when they were called.

Prophet Amos, St. Paul, and the apostles, none was ready-made at the time of his call. It was a complete switch and change for each person. Some people are called as instruments of the Good News in the priesthood and in the religious life. Some people are called in various other ministries in the Church. Some people are, also, called to become benefactors and benefactresses of the Church’s missions, parishes, ministries, seminaries, institutions, and programs.

Our world is infested by unclean spirits and diseases. God wants to call men and women whom he will give the authority to drive out demons and to cure the sick. God wants to call generous men and women who will be selfless and self-giving. God wants to call obedient men and women who will be ready and willing to follow the instructions we read in today’s gospel: “Take nothing for the journey but a walking stick, no food, no sack, no money in their belts. They were, however, to wear sandals but not a second tunic. … ‘Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave from there. Whatever place does not welcome you or listen to you, leave there and shake the dust off your feet in testimony against them’” (Mark 6:8-11).

God wants to call men and women who will be able to give up their own plans and embrace God’s plan. God wants to call men and women who will be able to withstand trials and temptations, oppositions, and persecutions as Amos did against Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, and as St. Paul and the apostles who refused to be silenced.

No one is exempt from God’s call. Everyone’s profession or endeavor is his or her call to prophesy, to drive out demons, and to cure the sick. God, also, gives each person the authority he gave to Amos, St. Paul, and the apostles. St. Paul says in the second reading, “God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens, as he chose us in him …” (Ephesians 1:3-4). This means that everyone is blessed with the spiritual blessing, through his or her vocation or profession, or endeavor to be an instrument of prophesy, evangelization, deliverance, and healing.

Let us pray and cast out spirits of reluctancy and discouragement with these words of the Scripture: “Then one of the seraphim flew to me, holding an ember which he had taken with tongs from the altar. He touched my mouth with it. ‘See,’ he said, ‘now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed, your sin purged.’ Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?’ ‘Here I am,’ I said; ‘send me!’” (Isaiah 6:7-8). Amen.

FOURTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YR B, 2024 BY FR. MARTIN EKE, MSP

Ezekiel 2:2-5; Psalm 123:1-4; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10; Mark 6:1-6

Ezekiel was one of the prophets whom God called and sent to prophecy to the people of Israel. The Israelites were rebellious to God and consequently were carried off to exile by the Babylonians. Ezekiel was among the captives. Even while in exile, they remained “hard of face and obstinate of heart.” Yet, God did not abandon them. He never left them without his prophets. In the same way, God has not abandoned our rebellious world and all of us without prophets.

Unfortunately, all over the world, many of God’s prophets are persecuted rather than listened to. There are countless examples of true prophets who are either silenced or killed. Persecutors of the messengers of God close their ears to truths and open their ears only to lies and whatever they like to hear. Instead, false prophets are glorified because they ‘prophesy’ whatever pleases their ‘base,’ their masters, their admirers, their followers, and their listeners. In the gospel reading, Jesus was amazed at the lack of faith of the people of his time. The blatant rejection of truth and messengers of truth by many people and their acceptance of and preference for falsehood and lies of our generation are, indeed, amazing.

St. Paul’s mystical experience narrated in the second reading encourages all God’s messengers not to be discouraged in the face of oppositions and persecutions. God’s assurance is, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weaknesses.” The reading encourages God’s messengers to be calm and strong in times of weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and constraints.

In the gospel reading, Jesus was a prophet among his own people, but they rejected him. “They sneered at him, ‘Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands! Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?’ And they took offense at him.”

God did not go to a foreign land to get a prophet for his people in exile. He called Ezekiel from among the Israelite exiles to prophecy to them. Ezekiel’s people did not listen to him. I guess they would have said to him, “Keep quiet, young man. Where did you get all this? We know when you were born; and we know your parents and relatives who are here with us.”

Do we recognize and listen to God’s messengers in our midst, or do we sneer at them and persecute them? 

The interchange between Abraham and the rich man comes to mind: “[The rich man] said, ‘Then I beg you, father, send him to my father’s house, for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they too come to this place of torment.’ But Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.’ He said, ‘Oh no, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ Then Abraham said, ‘If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead’” (Luke 16:27-31). Most times, God sends his messages through someone among us. Let us listen to the person and not dismiss or persecute the person.

Some people spend so much time, money, and energy, running up and down and seeking for miracle workers, fortune tellers, diviners, dream analysts, palm readers, psychics, spiritualists, and so on to ‘prophesy’ to them. Meanwhile, these same people neglect God’s words in the Bible. They neglect Sunday sermons from their church leaders, good advice from parents, relatives, friends, colleagues, teachers, and so on.

God sends us to be prophets to one another. Let us speak the truth to one another. Let us listen to one another. Jesus says, “I say to you, whoever receives the one I sent receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me” (John 13:20).

You may be the ‘Ezekiel,’ or the ‘Paul,’ or the ‘Jesus’ God has sent to ‘prophesy’ the truth to someone or about a situation. You are encouraged to pray and proceed without further delay. It is not by your power, but by the power of the One who sent you! Let God’s grace be sufficient for you. St. Paul says, “proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient” (2 Timothy 4:2).

We conclude with Moses’ prayer in Numbers 11:29, “Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets and the Lord would put his Spirit upon them all.” Amen.

THIRTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B, 2024 BY FR. MARTIN EKE, MSP

 Wisdom 1:13-15, 23-24; Psalm 30:2, 4-6, 11-13; 2 Corinthians 8:7, 9, 13-15; Mark 5:21-43

Job 1:21, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” John 14:3, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be.” By these two passages and similar ones, we believe that our life and death are in God’s hand.

The first reading states, “God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living. For he fashioned all things that they might have being, and the creatures of the world are wholesome; there is not a destructive drug among them …” (Wisdom 1:13-14). We can infer from this passage that killing and slaughtering of human beings, wars, genocides, holocausts, killing of the unborn, and all kinds of destruction of human life are not God’s making but the work of the devil and his agents. The first reading further states, “But by the envy of the devil, death entered the world …” (Wisdom 1:24). Unfortunately, many people have embraced the vices that lead to the culture of death from the devil instead of the virtues that lead to the culture of life from God. We pray for the conversion of the agents of the devil who inflict our world with the culture of death.

Another kind of death that is caused by the devil is spiritual death, which is why St. Paul writes in Romans 6:23, “The wages of sin is death.” Jesus advises us how to save ourselves from spiritual death. In Mark’s Gospel, when Jesus began his ministry, his first words were, “Repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). In John 6:29, Jesus says, “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent.” If we stop listening to the devil and falling into sin, but believe in Jesus and obeying his commands, we will surely be saved from spiritual death.

St. Paul admonishes us in the second reading, “For you know the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). Jesus differentiates himself from the devil in John 10:10, “A thief [the devil] comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.”

Jesus shows in today’s gospel that he came that we may have life and have it more abundantly. The woman who was afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years wanted her life back. She spent all that she had and suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors but got no cure. She reached out and touched the clothes of Jesus. Her faith was so great that power came out of Jesus, which cured her. “Immediately her flow of blood dried up;” and she got her life back.

Jairus, a synagogue official, also reached out to Jesus and invited him, saying, “My daughter is at the point of death. Please, come lay your hands on her that she may get well and live.” “While he was still speaking, people from the synagogue official’s house arrived and said, ‘Your daughter has died; why trouble the teacher any longer?’ Disregarding the message that was reported, Jesus said to the synagogue official, ‘Do not be afraid; just have faith’” (Mark 5:35-36). Jesus put out those who were weeping, and who ridiculed him, and those who caused commotion. He, then, healed the girl.

No doubt, our world is hemorrhaging from the culture of death. Our society is hemorrhaging from killings, insecurity, inhuman treatment, uncertainty, fear, anxiety, hunger, sickness, and various kinds of hardship and crises. We pray for our own healing and the healing of our society and world.

In our prayer and Eucharistic celebration, we approach and touch Jesus with the hemorrhaging issues in our lives as the woman did. May he respond with his healing power. Let us invite Jesus to our helpless situations, as Jairus did. May he visit us, put out all ridicules and all commotions in our lives, and all that cause spiritual and physical death to us. May Jesus proclaim upon us the words, “I say arise;” and let his words come to fulfillment. Let us arise from sins. Let us arise from afflictions. Amen.

TWELFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B, 2024 BY FR. MARTIN EKE, MSP

Job 38:1, 8-11; Psalm 107:23-26, 28-31; 2 Corinthians 5:14-17; Mark 4:35-41

It is a common human behavior, especially for us believers, to ask God questions in our grieving. Often, we hear some people say, “You should not question God.” Questioning God while grieving is a form of prayer in as much as we entrust every moment of the situation into God’s hand. If we question God with faith, he will surely respond to us, no matter how difficult the situation is.

Many Psalms question God. For example, “How long, Lord? Will you utterly forget me? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I carry sorrow in my soul, grief in my heart day after day? How long will my enemy triumph over me?” (Psalm 13:2-3). Jesus questioned God while he was hanging on the cross, “And at three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” Which is translated, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:35).

Job, in his affliction, cursed the day he was born and questioned, “Why did I not die at birth, come forth from the womb and expire? Why did knees receive me, or breasts nurse me? … Or why was I not buried away like a stillborn child, like babies that have never seen the light?” (Job 3:1-16). Also, in chapter 30:20-21, Job lamented to God, “I cry to you, but you do not answer me; I stand, but you take no notice. You have turned into my tormentor, and with your strong hand you attack me. You raise me up and drive me before the wind; I am tossed about by the tempest.”

The first reading is God’s response to Job. The reading says that “the Lord addressed Job out of the storm …” That is, God responded to Job in Job’s storm and assured Job that he is the Lord over his storm. God assured Job that he was in control despite his storm.

Today’s gospel is the disciples of Jesus experience of a storm. “A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat, so that it was already filling up. Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion. They woke him and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ He woke up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ The wind ceased and there was great calm. Then he asked them, ‘Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?’” (Mark 4:37-40).

Storms in our life distress us, as in the case of Job; or terrify us, as in the case of the disciples of Jesus. Sometimes, we do feel that God is silent as in the case of Job; or that Jesus is ‘asleep’ as in the case of the disciples. The readings teach us that God is neither silent nor asleep. He is in control. The wind and the sea obey him, as the disciples later testified.

Today’s psalm tells us about the sailors “who sailed the sea in ships and traded on the deep waters, saw the works of the Lord and his wonders in the abyss. … Their hearts melted away in their plight. … They cried to the Lord in their distress, from their straits he rescued them. He hushed the storm to a gentle breeze, and the billows of the sea were stilled” (Psalm 107:13-29).

The first reading tells us that God addressed Job from “out of the storm.” God does the same to us. He addresses us out of our storm; but often, we do not listen to him. Rather, our attention is on the waves of the storm, and like Peter, we begin to sink (Matthew 14:30). Let us turn our attention to God with strong faith, listen to him, and wait on him. May he rebuke our wind, calm our storm, and restore us.

St. Paul encourages us in the second reading that we should not be ruled by distress, or fear, or doubt during storms and winds. Rather, let us be ruled by faith in Christ’s love who makes old things pass away and new things begin. May there be rejoicing and celebrations of new things for you and for me. Amen. 

ELEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B, 2024 BY FR. MARTIN EKE, MSP

Ezekiel 17:22-24; Psalm 92:2-3, 13-16; 2 Corinthians 5:6-10; Mark 4:26-34

Today’s readings remind us of a saying: “Bloom where you are planted,” attributed to the Bishop of Geneva, St. Francis de Sales (1567-1622). All the readings speak of planting, blooming, and yielding fruit.

The first reading is Ezekiel’s prophecy about the return and restoration of Israel after the Babylonian captivity. “Thus says the Lord God: I, too, will pluck from the crest of the cedar the highest branch. From the top a tender shoot, I will break off and transplant on a high, lofty mountain. On the mountain height of Israel, I will plant it. It shall put forth branches and bear fruit, and become a majestic cedar” (Ezekiel 17:22-23).

The imagery in the first reading is powerful and of particular importance: The crest (branch) of cedar is planted on a high and lofty mountain, and it becomes a majestic cedar. The branch of cedar does not wallow in self-pity and complains: “Others are planted in rich soil, and I am planted on rock; for that reason, I am unable to bloom and bear fruit.” Rather, it puts forth branches and stretches its roots through the cracks in the rock and finds water and nutrients and survives and bears fruit.

The second imagery is in the gospel reading: “This is how it is with the kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land … the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how. Of its own accord the land yields fruit, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear” (Mark 4:26-28). Note, the seed is scattered (cast, thrown, spreads), not sown! Again, the seed does not become envious and give excuses: “For others, the soil is tilled and plowed, and I am scattered on the land; for that reason, I am unable to bloom and bear fruit.” Rather, of its own accord, it sprouts and grows and yields fruit, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 

The third imagery is also in the gospel: “a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth. But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade” (Mark 4:31-32). The mustard seed does not feel worthless and complain that it is the “smallest of all the seeds on the earth.” Rather, “it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade.” 

A lot of times, it is not what we have that matters but what we are able to do with what we have. Some people have little and achieve much; while some people have much but achieve little or nothing. Someone says, “Life is one percent what happens and ninety-nine percent how you respond.” Another says, “Life isn’t about what happens to you, it’s about how you handle what happens.” Yet another says, “Never let a bad situation bring out the worst in you. Be strong and choose to be positive.” For some people, stumbling blocks are stepping stones to success. While for some people, stumbling blocks are tripping stones to failure. 

You and I are the branch of cedar. We are the seed scattered on the land. We are the small mustard seed sown in the ground. Every aspect of life: family life, vocation, ministry, job, profession, study, business, responsibility, and so on have their difficulties and challenges. We are all encouraged to be resilient, to stretch out, to break through, and to break out. Self-pity, excuses, discouragement, envy, helplessness, and quitting are never a solution. These only result in self-defeat. We must try to bloom where we are planted, whether on rock, or on the land, or in the ground. 

The second reading urges us, “Brothers and sisters: [Be] always courageous … [and] walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:6-7). Those who walk by sight are those who are overwhelmed, disheartened, demoralized, and who quit in the face of the challenges of life. But those who walk by faith are those who have faith in God and who believe in themselves.

We are to make the best out of every situation we find ourselves. Where there is a will, there is a way. Our God who has planted us on a high and lofty mountain, or scattered us on the land, or sown us in the ground will not abandon us. God’s grace dwells with us wherever he plants us. All we need to do is to cooperate with God’s grace. Let us walk by faith: faith in God, and faith in ourselves, and be courageous. We pray with St. Paul, “My God will fully supply whatever you need, in accord with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). Amen.