Msgr. Anselm Nwaorgu

READINGS: NINETEENTH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME In the gospel of this 19th Sunday in ordinary times, Christ says, “Be like those waiting for their master to return.” We live in a world distracted by urgency and this verse calls us to be people of eternal anticipation; souls lit with the fire of hope, hearts directed to His purpose, eyes committed to noticing his presence in everyday activities, ears attuned to his knock. Some time ago, I ordered a package and when I got the mess

READINGS: EIGHTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME The second reading for this 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time, from Exodus 16, recounts how the Israelites responded to hardship on their journey to freedom—often with complaints and blame. Their reaction challenges us to consider how we face the pain and stress that come with positive change and growth. Growth rarely comes without obstacles. When things get difficult, we’re tempted to retreat, abandon our goals, or blame others. Compla

READINGS: SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME In the first reading of this 17th Sunday in ordinary times, Year C (Genesis 18:16 -33), the very first paragraph reads, “In those days, the Lord said: ‘The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great, and their sin so grave, that I must go down and see whether or not their actions fully correspond to the cry against them that comes to me. I mean to find out.’” Now, why does God need to check things out first before He condemns?

READINGS: SIXTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME The gospel of this 16th Sunday in ordinary times, year C (Luke 10:38-42) narrates the story of Mary and Martha, where Martha was so involved in trying to entertain Jesus that she had no time for Jesus, her guest. This story reminds me of a family I had in therapy, many years ago. The father worked 16 to 18 hours each day and was rarely at home. After some time, the children began to exhibit behavioral problems at school, and their g

READINGS: FIFTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME The gospel of this 15th Sunday of Year C (Luke 10:25-37) tells the story of a Jewish man who fell among robbers and was badly beaten and left half dead on the roadside. A priest and a Levite saw him and did nothing to help; instead, they passed by on the other side of the road. It was a Samaritan man who stopped and saved the man’s life. Now, this is of great significance because Jews and Samaritans were arch enemies as Jews saw Sam

READINGS: FOURTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME The gospel reading of this 14th Sunday in ordinary times, Year C, (Luke 10:1-12, 17-20), tells about Christ sending out his disciples to proclaim the good news of salvation while warning them, “I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves” (Vs 3). What a caution! It is not a very comforting statement, is it? We know what usually happens when lambs find themselves in the midst of wolves; they become lunch. No wonder, Peter h

READINGS: CORPUS CHRISTI Our internet and social media age has made it possible for the self-help industry to blossom, with a barrage of advice and information concerning just about any problem. From the best trick for losing weight to being happier in life, there are hundreds of experts dosing out contradicting advice on any issue under the face of the sun. This industry has prospered because many people are in search of the life they want. Sometimes, we wonder if this is al

READINGS: THE MOST HOLY TRINITY Today, we celebrate the amazing doctrine of the Trinity, a doctrine and a mystery beyond human understanding. How can there be Three Persons in One God? Trying to understand this with our human minds is like trying to empty an ocean into a hole. What is important for us to understand about the Holy Trinity is this: How has God revealed Himself to us from the beginning of creation? Scripture has revealed that we have God the Father, who is the c

READINGS: PENTECOST SUNDAY Before He ascended into heaven, Christ told His disciples not to leave Jerusalem until they had received the Holy Spirit. In other words, they were not to begin their mission of proclaiming the good news of salvation until they receive help from above. He knew that success in their mission was going to be dependent on their ability to walk with the Holy Spirit. This instruction was not just meant for the apostles alone, relative to preaching about

READINGS: THE ACENSION OF THE LORD The American Bishops have moved the Solemnity of the Ascension permanently to the Sunday following Ascension Thursday. So, on this seventh Sunday of Easter, Year C, we celebrate the solemnity of the Ascension of our Lord; a necessary solemnity because it marks the return of Jesus to the Father, the permanent victory over death, the sole opportunity for us to have a defense counselor at the right hand of the Father interceding for us, and the

READINGS: SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER The first reading of this Sixth Sunday of Easter, year C (Acts 15:1-2, 22-29) highlights the difficulty ethnic diversity can cause in a Church. As could be seen in our passage, the Gentile converts to Christianity were being told by some Jewish converts that they had to become Jewish in tradition and rituals to be accepted into the household of the redeemed. Jews and Gentiles have so little in common: different histories, traditions, practices

READINGS: FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER In the second reading of this 5th Sunday of Easter, (Revelation 21:1-5a), we read, “The former heaven and the former earth had passed away” and “The One who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” Life, is an interesting mixture of beginnings, endings, and new beginnings—when we come into this world, when we move away from home, when we get married, when we have a baby, when we become a mother or a father, when all the childre

READINGS: FOURTH SUNDAY OF EASTER In the gospel reading of this 4th Sunday of Easter, Christ calls Himself the Good Shepherd, that His sheep know Him and He knows them, that they follow His voice, and that no one can snatch them away from His hands (cf. John 10). There is the story of this woman from southern Nigeria who had two cows she left grazing in a nearby field. A herd of cows got into the area for grazing. The herd owner enticed the two cows to follow his herd, and th

READINGS: THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER The Gospel for this 3rd Sunday of Easter, Year C, (John 21: 1-19) describes an encounter the apostles had with Jesus, after the resurrection. Apparently, the apostles were not clear as to what the future held for them. So, during this uncertainty, Peter declared, “I am going fishing” and six other apostles followed him. They fished all night and caught nothing. Then, at dawn, something happened. Christ appeared to them and commanded them to ca

READINGS: SECOND SUNDAY OF EASTER One of the main actors in this Sunday’s gospel (John 20:19-31) is the apostle Thomas, the man we have come to know as Doubting Thomas, because he said, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.” What is not frequently appreciated, though, is that Doubting Thomas is also the Confessing Thomas, “My Lord and my God!” It was Confessing Thomas became th

READINGS: EASTER SUNDAY In the 2nd reading of this Easter Sunday, St. Paul concludes with this statement, “Therefore, let us celebrate the feast, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness,but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth (1 Cor 5:6b-8). What Paul, basically is saying is that our celebration of Easter should be a sign of an inner disposition that has no place for malice and wickedness. Malice comes from a Latin root “Malus” which literall

READINGS: PALM SUNDAY There is the story of a professor who was traveling by boat to an island. As the boat set sail, he asked the sailor, “Do you know anything about Oceanology?”, to which the sailor answered, “No Sir”, and then the professor yelled out, “What on earth, then, do you know as a sailor? You will die of illiteracy”. After a while, a heavy wind developed, tossing the boat around, and the sailor, using his expertise, made the situation look worse. Turning to the p

READINGS: FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT In the Gospel reading of this 5th Sunday of Lent, Year C (John 8:1-11), we are confronted with the story of a woman caught in adultery, who was surrounded by unrighteous accusers willing to stone her to death for a crime they were all guilty of, and how they treated her with disgust, humiliation, and shame, her sins laid bare for all to see. But the law required that both parties to adultery be stoned (Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 22:22), yet th

READINGS: FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENT In the first reading of this fourth Sunday of Lent, Circle C (Joshua 5:9-12), we read that the day after the Israelites ate their produce in the land of Canaan, the manna, which God had supplied to feed them during their 40-year journey through the desert to the promise land ceased. Woo, that is an impactful message and says a lot about how life functions and what we should expect from it. Now, for over 40 years, God had miraculously provided

READINGS: THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT This 3rd Sunday of Lent is the beginning of “Scrutiny Sundays” which is part of the process for the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults—the Rite for preparing and initiating unbelievers, non-Christians, and non-Catholics into full communion with the Catholic Church— if a church has candidates. Readings for “Scrutiny Sundays” are taken from Circle A if we are in any other Circle of our liturgical year. The gospel, for this Sunday, therefore,

READINGS: SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT My dear friends, as we continue our Lenten journey, the 2nd reading of this 2nd Sunday of Lent (Philippians 3:17-4:1) tells us not to “follow those who conduct themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ, because their end is destruction; their God is their stomach; their glory is in their shame; and their minds are occupied with earthly things”. It goes on to remind us that “our citizenship is in heaven” (Cf verses 19-21). So, this reading is