HOMILY OF H.E. MOST REV. JEAN MARIE SPEICH, THE APOSTOLIC NUNCIO TO GHANA, ON THE 90TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION OF THE NOBLE ORDER OF THE KNIGHTS AND LADIES OF MARSHALL
13 November 2016, 33rd Sunday Ordinary Time C
My brother Bishops and priests, Knights and Ladies of Marshall, my sisters and brothers, my homily will be in two parts: first a Message word to the Marshallians and secondly a comment of the Sunday readings.
First of all, I would like to express my heartfelt Congratulations to you, Knights and Ladies of Marshall on this blissful occasion of the 90th Anniversary of the Foundation of your Noble Order. I join your chorus in praising and thanking God for all the blessings He has showered on your society through the years especially the gift of faith and courage that inspired your early founders to establish this Noble Order, taking inspirations from the Catholic spirit of Sir James Marshall especially his significant role in the establishment and growth of the Catholic Church in Ghana and in parts of Nigeria, or in other words, his significant role in the Evangelization.
It is commendable to note that the same spirit of Sir James Marshall in partaking active role in Evangelization is embraced by your Noble Order which is articulated in your Order’s objectives, to be enfleshed and lived in different ways. On this line I would like to invite you to reflect on: What does the Church say of the Role of Laity in Evangelization?
What is specific to the laity’s participation in the task of evangelization is expressed by Vatican II in Lumen Gentium 35: “Christ, the great Prophet who proclaimed the Kingdom of his Father both by the testimony of his life and the power of his words, continually fulfills his prophetic office until the complete manifestation. He does this not only through the hierarchy who teach in his name and with his authority, but also through the laity whom he made his witnesses and to whom he gave understanding of the faith and attractiveness in speech so that the power of the Gospel might shine forth in their daily social and family life.”
In his Post Synodal Apostolic Exhortaion Christifideles Laici, Saint John Paul II emphasizes your role as laity in the work of evangelization and re-evangelization. That by virtue of your participation in the prophetic mission of Christ, your responsibility, in particular, is to testify how the Christian faith constitutes the only fully valid response to the problems and hopes that life poses to every person and society. You can do this by taking up in your daily activities in family, work and society, an integrated approach to life that is fully brought about by the inspiration and strength of the Gospel. You are also invited and encouraged to involve yourselves in the formation of mature ecclesial communities and most of all a testimony of Christian life. (cf. CL 34)
The Post-Synodal Exhortation Africae Munus mentions the specific contributions or role of the laity by its particular groups – men, women and young people – towards the New Evangelization.
To men, you are encouraged to let your sense of responsibility grow to a point where you can make concrete commitment in the Church and help promote reconciliation, peace and justice and to offer enthusiastic and courageous contribution to the transformation of your own milieu and of society as a whole. (cf. AM 53)
To women, you can make a great contribution to the family, to society and to the Church by your many talents and gifts. As Catholic women, you have the role to stand up to defend human dignity, the family and the values of religion when peace is under threat, when justice is flouted and when poverty increases. You are to grow in knowledge of Catechism and the Church’s social teachings, to continue to defend life and support one another. (cf. AM 58 & 59) treasure from God for which the whole Church is grateful to the Lord of life.
To the elders of society, the Church says: Young people should be loved, respected and esteemed. Young people need witnesses and teachers who can walk with them, teaching them to love the Gospel.
To you, young people, you make up the majority of Africa’s and Ghana’s population. This youthfulness of yours is a gift and a treasure from God for which the whole Church is grateful to the Lord of life. keep and love the Gospel being taught to you and share it especially with your peers, that you may become authentic and credible messengers. You are encouraged to be vigilant from all those who propose things to you that will destroy your future and to avoid temptations from ideologies, sects, money, drugs, casual sex, violence, … and not to be discouraged with difficulties, not to give up your ideals but to place Jesus at the center of your lives through prayer, study of scriptures, active participation in ecclesial groups and movements. (cf. AM 61-63)
Finally, I would like to give emphasis on the prayer life and life of witness of you Marshallans as lay evangelizers. As lay men and women, you are called, above all, to holiness which is to be lived in the world. Cultivate your interior life and your relationship with God, so that the Holy Spirit may enlighten you in all circumstances… deepen your union with Christ, so as to know and love him by devoting time to God in prayer and in the reception of the sacraments. Allow yourselves to be enlightened and instructed by God and his word.” (cf: AM 129) May our Mother Mary, Star of the new evangelization help us to bear radiant witness to communion, service, ardent and generous faith, justice, love and reconciliation.
I come now to the second and last part of my homily and I will comment the Sunday readings. Sisters and brothers, today, it is very clear, we must speak about the end of the world and about the meaning of these readings that have been given to us for this Sunday. First of all, we should say, the end of the world, most likely, will not happen in my lifetime. For two thousand years, some people have been waiting for the end of the world. In every age and time, there are people who expect the end of the world to happen very soon, this year, next year, or very soon. So far, it has not happened.
Did early Christians believe in a physical end of the world? Surely, they did, and many of them thought it likely to end soon.
Is there a more spiritual teaching about the end of the world? Yes, and we must pay attention to it. The deepest teaching about the end of the world is not about its physical ending, but about how you and I should be living now.
The Prophet Malachi in the first reading reminds us that at some point we must all come before the Lord and answer for our lives. Many people today no longer believe this. Other people believe that we must answer for our lives in other ways, such as though reincarnation or being born again. We Christians believe that we have only one life and at the end of it, we shall have to account for this life and how we have used it.
Most of us have not used our lives so very well. Lots of the time we want to use our lives well, but we get distracted. Sometimes we get caught up in desires of the flesh. Other times we get caught up in desires for power. Sometimes we are just concerned about what others think of us. The reasons for being distracted from the inner goal of a strong spiritual life in God are numerous.
Today, the readings want to remind us to trust in the Lord. If we trust in God, then the sun of justice will arise with its healing rays. That is to say, we come to recognize that we cannot lead strong spiritual lives just by our own will power. Rather, we must ask God to change us and to help us. What does it mean to be prepared? One of things the being prepared means is that I must be able to stand up for my faith. Probably I shall never be called on to give my life for my beliefs, but I should be willing to do that. What kind of a person am I? This is a question that comes before us on this Sunday. Do I believe in anything? And I willing to stand up for anything? Do I believe in something strongly enough that I would be willing to die for it?
In the Christian understanding of these passages of Scriptures, the final days of the world are always right in front of us. That means that we must be ready to die now, at this very moment. There is never any time to waste. If we need to repent from some sin, now is the time. If we want to thank God for something, now is the time. If we need to forgive someone, now is the time. The Scriptures tell us that now is the day of salvation. Now is the time when the Lord is with us, bringing compassion and love.
Let us celebrate this Sunday as if it is our final Sunday. GOD BLESS YOU. CONGRATULATIONS AND HAPPY FEAST DAY.