Grace to you!
 
There are two broad approaches to growth in the spiritual life. There is the approach that focuses on what evil or bad behavior to avoid. There is the approach that is driven by what good to do. 
 
The first approach is classified under the negative way in fundamental theological thoughts. It begins with the assumption that we have to avoid evil. It grows from the deeper concern that evil must have to be rejected. 
 
So, when one focuses on this, one would have to measure one’s attitudes and behavior based on the stipulations of the law. For instance, when one is in a hurry going to work and is approaching a red traffic light, one would think of what the law says. Should I proceed or not proceed? Should I drive through the red light or not? What determines what not to do is what is stipulated by the law or the policy. This is not that simple, but I try here to represent this view in the simplest possible way. 
 
You would notice that this negative way does its functions. Without it, there will be a lawless society. Without it, one wouldn’t even know what the basic expectations in our relationships could be. In the organization, one wouldn’t know the metrics for improved performance or somehow, the measure for determining quality service delivery. 
 
But a life and spirituality based on this would not go too far. It would, for sure, not be rich in generous love and charity. In cases of dilemma or crisis, it would be depressingly stressful. It would lead to an utterly legalistic way of life and deprive us of the sweetness of holy creativity and affectionate relationship. 
 
In leadership, it would be an utterly static position which does not give room for creativity and innovation. Go back and check, organizations that hardly innovate or create do not grow. 
 
For all its worth, no one likes sleeping on the bed of law’s regulations. For all its worth, no co-creator (you and I) of the Creator would live without exploring the beautiful opportunities for the practice of charity. We become co-creators in doing and living of the seed through which life is born or regenerated. This seed is love, the charity that makes us live like God who is love. We want to live the law but not to be led by the law. We want to fulfil the law and breathe life into it because we are in love. 
 
The second approach takes the first to a more pleasant attitude. It is the approach that believes one becomes better by doing good. Evil is overcome by the practice of virtue. One could avoid evil as much as one wants, but without the practice of the opposite of that evil, the evil will continue to stick around and seriously distract the moral will. 
 
The Blessed Lord shows us this dynamic in his conversation with the so-called rich aristocrat (Mt 19:16-22). The man asks to know how to inherit eternal life. Without focusing on the problem of his mind-set, which makes him think he can earn eternal life by his own works alone—a topic I have reflected on somewhere else—, I want us to pay attention to the way the Lord responded. 
 
First was to propose to the man what he was used to doing. It is the evil to avoid. Notice the Lord tells him to avoid this and avoid that. The man responds he has done so since birth. But the man knows that what he had been doing hasn’t made him any better. Something was lacking. He wanted to build a moral life of avoidance, but he was certain in his heart the avoidance approach wasn’t enough. Being on the defensive wouldn’t guarantee victory in the line of battle. 
 
So, the Lord told him what was lacking. It is the ability to allow oneself to become a doer of good. One has to do something in order to change something evil. One has to practice virtue in order for vice to be overcome. One has to be proactive. 
 
It is symbolized in the Lord’s answer to“sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me” (Mt 19:21). For me, this implies the walk from avoidance approach, the negative way, to giving away of some values for a higher course, the positive way. And then, this is followed by service to others, “give to the poor”; and then commitment to the Lord, “come follow me.” 
 
There are three things involved here. One is the selling. The other is the giving. And yet the third is the following of the way of the Lord. The “selling” doesn’t mean the Lord wants us all to sell off our belongings or assets to live in the monastery and make a perpetual vow of poverty. This would be a myopic way of reading the Lord’s message. The “selling” has to do with the willingness to detach and give of ourselves in service. 
 
These three—the selling, the giving and the following—are processes in the practice of virtue. One has to detach. One has to serve others. One has to be a committed disciple of holiness. It is in doing these that one can mature in the depth of spiritual wealth and holiness. 
 
By following the Lord, and the Lord taking the lead, we find the home which the soul is searching. That home is God’s life. Anyone who follows the Lord receives the life of the Lord. The person receives it anyway because the person is following it anyway. 
 
So, do you want to be perfect, simply follow the Lord. 
 
Praying for the grace to do so. 
 
God love you. God bless you.
 
Fr. Maurice Emelu
 
[Monday Week 20: Jgs 2:11-19; Mt 19:16-22]
 

Grace to you!
 
In today’s reflection, I share a few thoughts on the Lord’s guide on Christian leadership. I draw from Matthew 18:1-5. 
 
One of the things we deal with as adults is the desire to be recognized. It is the ambition to be first. 
 
In itself, it is a good thing. The student who works hard and is studious wants to be the top of their class. The entrepreneur who is diligent and bold wants to have a competitive advantage. For the pastor in the church, the need to be the best at pastoring is real and desirable. 
 
When seeking promotion, for instance, or when bidding for a contract, one is literally competing. One is persuading the hirer that one’s position is better than other competitors. One may not be thinking about this reality, but it’s happening anyway. 
 
Churches grow. Institutions thrive because they know how to compete. So, competing isn’t a bad thing, in church or in society. 
 
The Lord knows where adults lead, they have to deal with their individual egos. They have to grapple with their idiosyncrasies, one of which is the line between excessive ambition, and prudence and humility. They have to balance their desire to be first with the Christ model of humility and simplicity of heart. 
 
The disciples of Jesus are like us. They dealt with the same human weaknesses and temptations. As the Gospels of Mark and Luke indicate, it was their debate among themselves concerning who was the greatest that led Jesus to teach them his model of Church leadership, using the child as a symbol (Mk 9:33–37 and Lk 9:46–48). 
 
The Gospel of Matthew 18:1-5 skips this background and focuses on the Lord’s message, a message which biblical scholars Newman and Stine (1992) in their A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew, called “a handbook for Christian discipleship” (p. 557). Many biblical scholars see the teachings in Matthew 18 as the discourse on the Church. The Navarre Bible commentary (2005) notes this is so because “they are a series of instructions on the way in which his Church is to be administered” (pp. 125-126).
 
So, what is the style of leading that is consistent with the way of the Lord? The symbol of the child speaks to that style. Observing the child, one notices that though they compete, they have a pure understanding of winning. It isn’t an excessive arrogant ego. It isn’t necessarily about status—the concept of status is hardly conceptualized by the child. It is simply about winning for the sake of winning. It is a winning in which they do not think or will ill of others. The child wins for the pure joy of winning for the team. 
 
For sure, we can’t become like children in the literal sense. It isn’t possible to unwind the clock. But the Lord asks us to embrace the grace of humility and simplicity of heart. 
 
Key here is humility and simplicity of heart. It is the unassuming positionality in which what drives the leader is, as the founder of servant leadership model, Robert Greenleaf says, the desire to serve first; and by serving, lead.  
 
I tell you, if our organizations would operate by this principle, many who collaborate with us would be inspired. Bottomline would be better for everyone. 
 
I pray for the spirit of childlike leadership in our churches. Amen. 
 
God love you. God bless you. 
 
Fr. Maurice Emelu
 
 
[Tuesday Week 19 Ordinary Time: Dt 31:1-8; Mt 18:1-5, 10, 12-14]

Grace to you! 
 
Drawing from Genesis 15:6, I reflect on Abraham’s faith example and use it to relate to our faith life. 
 
I noticed sometime that has a significant meaning to me in understanding the life of Abraham, the father of faith. It is the report about him in Genesis 15:6. Scripture notes: “He (Abram) believed the Lord, and he reckoned it to him as righteousness.” 
 
Earlier, from Genesis chapters 12 to 14, God had spoken to Abraham three different times. During those times, God directed him what to do. Abraham didn’t make any request from the Lord who had spoken to him. He simply obeyed and did as God directed. 
 
I was wondering if I were Abraham, and I had the opportunity to be visited by God in that manner, what my response would be? Well, I see God every day in a special way during the Eucharistic celebration. What is my response? I encounter God during my prayerful moments too. During those moments, am I engaged in listening conversation or is it a one-way download of my petitions? Do I pray to get things from God or to become Godly? 
 
It is striking to note that Abraham didn't make any request to the Lord who had spoken to him, though he was in dire need. He simply obeyed God and followed God’s directives. It was in Genesis 15:3 that Abraham made a personal request for the first time, saying that he has no offspring. 
 
This is a fascinating example from a man who had personal needs but chose not to place his personal concerns before the need to obey the Lord. God sees a heart that is obedient amidst personal burdens. Let not our personal needs be an obstacle to listening to the voice of God and doing God’s will. Do God’s will first, and other things will fall in their right place. 
 
Observe, too, that Abraham’s justification was based on his believing in the word of God. Yet he produced fruits by doing what God, in whom he believed, commanded. 
 
The Lord Jesus Christ, warning against the deceit of counterfeits, false prophets, tells us that we can know the true prophets by their fruits: “You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? So, every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit. A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits. (Mt 7:16-20)
 
Faith or true belief or confession must be authenticated by fruitful faith-life. Saint Paul calls it faith working through charity (Gal 5:6). 
 
Often when people assess believers, the litmus test isn't whether they profess their faith. It is that they live their faith. They bear fruits of the Holy Spirit. 
 
Scripture gives us some list of those fruits. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law” (Gal 2:22-23). 
 
To possess these fruits is to live a blessed, fruitful faith-life. The deepening of our faith is fruitfulness because it is those fruits that make our faith a vehicle for divine praise. As the Lord admonishes us, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Mt 5:16). 
 
Praying that our faith will mature in charity, shining like brilliant light in the dark. Amen 
 
God love you. God bless you. 
 
Fr. Maurice Emelu 
 
[Wednesday Week 12: Gn 15:1-12, 17-18; Mt 7:15-20]

Grace to you!
 
Drawing from the Lord’s message in Matthew 7:12-14, I reflect on the blessings of not taking shortcuts in life. 
 
Standardized tests are tricky. In my opinion, they are the best, as well as the worst of assessments. One could easily have a perfect score or score a zero. A careless mistake, an opportunity for an A is blown. Completely.
 
I recall when I was preparing for the GRE exam. One of the caveats in taking the Math part of the exam was being careful not to jump to conclusions and choose a particular answer that seems correct at face value.
 
Those who design the tests are shrewd. They throw in answers that, at face value, look like the correct answers, but they aren’t. So, my instructor advised, “The first answer that jumps out at you, even before you start solving the problem, is likely wrong.” 
 
There is wisdom in the old English idiom: “Not all that glitters is gold.”  
 
You see that glittering opportunity. It’s irresistible. Very inviting. Tantalizing. It seems you have it before you even worked for it. Be cautious.  
 
Did it come too easy? Ironically, it’s often unsustainable. Things that come by hard work endure. 
 
When they say, inventors stumble into a discovery, it doesn’t mean they while away time as the discovery shows up right at their door. It’s in the process of hours of research, thinking, hard work; series of trials and errors, that the surprising discovery emerges. 
 
You wouldn’t presume the so-called 10,000-hour rule for a world-class level of performance popularized by Malcolm Gladwell is easy. Despite objections to this rule, it’s pretty common sense that in life, nothing comes on the sofa of comfort except momentary satisfaction. Solid accomplishment comes through sacrifices and hard work. 
 
This principle isn’t simply social, cultural and educational. It is, more importantly, spiritual. In reality, it is ingrained in the DNA of nature by the Creator that what one sows shapes what one reaps. Speaking of the ultimate blessing, heaven, the Lord Jesus said, “Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few” (Matthew 7:13-14).
 
The closer one is to the cross, the closer to blessedness. Farther away one is from the cross, the closer to ruined opportunities. So, get up and get to work. Or rather, keep working. Keep sacrificing. Invest in time and time will invest in you. 
 
Praying that God will give us the grace of smart and hard work plus commitment to follow through. Amen. 
 
God love you. God bless you.
 
Fr. Maurice Emelu
 
 
[Tuesday, Week 12, Ordinary Time:  Gn 13:2, 5-18; Matthew 7:6, 12-14] 
 

Grace to you!
 
One of the results of the revelation of God through us who are born in Christ is that we become agents of divine reconciliation. This is spurred by the love of Christ. As Saint Paul says, "the love of Christ urges us on" (2 Cor 5:14).
 
For that love, we open our hearts to love the unlovable, and our hands with the palms of peace. 
 
Reconciliation is both horizontal and vertical. It flows from Christ to us and from us to others, building a web of sons and daughters who are born of God in Christ. 
 
If, as a believer, you look around your house, your street, your neighborhood and the wider society, and you don't feel a burden to be an agent of peace and reconciliation in your own little way, you may not have realized this crucial aspect of your call as a believer. 
 
It is not because of social justice that we want a just world, but because of a just and loving God that we are obligated to fight for social justice. Our active involvement in social justice is equally inspired by our true love for one another—we’re brothers and sisters. It isn’t about good PR. It isn’t about showing off a posture of moral superiority or a façade of social responsibility. It is because we want to love as we are loved in our Creator. We walk in the footsteps of Christ. We believe in true love of one another. 
 
For instance, as a Catholic coming out of the confessional, that sacrament of reconciliation, aren't you inspired to be an instrument of reconciliation yourself? If we hear those words from the Lord, “I forgive you,” aren’t we to speak the same words to others who offended us? 
 
A man who avoided going to Confession shared how he discovered inner peace. “At the confessional,” he said, “I was reminded through the clear voice of conscience that I too should bring others to my reconciled heart.” For years, he avoided Confession because he was not ready to forgive some people who terribly hurt him. This deprived him of inner peace. After many years of painful struggles with the inner voice, he finally decided to get back to true reconciliation sacrament. He made the best confession of his life. And having being fully reconciled, he became an activist of true reconciliation for others. “The peace I feel within is unrivaled,” he said. 
 
Once healed, aren't we to facilitate the healing of our brothers and sisters who are living under the shackles of division, resentment, hate, unforgiveness and social injustice? Aren’t we called to be agents of divine reconciliation, to make the world a garden of reconciled and forgiving persons? More blessed is the heart that loves and forgives than the heart that is pregnant with bitter resentment and hate.  
 
Shout it out, "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has passed away, behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation" (2 Cor 17-19). 
 
If you are hurting, prayers offered for healing. If you are causing others pain, prayers for repentance. For both, prayers for a loving and reconciling heart. Amen
 
God love you. God bless you. 
 
Fr. Maurice Emelu
 
[Saturday Week 10 A:  2 Cor 5:14-21; Mt 5:33-37]

 Grace to you! 
 
Watching parents gaze on the face of their newborn baby conveys a mood of aesthetic elation. Even for the most straight-faced parents, the excitement of having a new babe is as loud as cymbals. "She looks like me." "Not really, she looks more like me." Dad and mom cue back and forth as if a better semblance means more share of the joyous moment.  
 
There is a proverb from my native Igbo language that says, "To have seen the child is to have seen the parent." How true. The child is truly the "glory" of his or her parents because the child reveals the signature of both parents’ genetics. 
 
Consider being born of God, a birth that is of Spirit because God is Spirit. Consider also being “deified” in such a way that the perfection you long for is in some measure born within you. Such would be a splendor, glowing all over you. Won’t it?
 
When God gave us the law and spoke through the prophets, God was preparing us through the Word in text for the glory to come. As the Word of God, Christ himself came among us, we see the fullness of that glory. 
 
And if Jesus Christ dwells in us through the power of his spirit granting us new life (2 Cor 3:6), we realize a new code is configured in our mortal body, the seed of eternal life. We can then move from one degree of glory, the imperfect, to another, Christ Himself, the perfect glory, who is Spirit (2 Cor 3:18).
 
The splendor of believers is Christ. The permanent splendor of the human race is Christ (2 Cor 3: 10-11). To be born of Christ and live the life of Christ is to be in splendor. It's this splendor that theologians call the ultimate beauty. 
 
Hence, when people see us, they see the glory because to have seen the true believer is to have noticed that face of Christ in whom he or she is born. Isn’t the Christian’s call to be like Christ, and live the life of Christ? Isn’t this life our salvation? Now I know why the first systematic Church theologian Saint Irenaeus said, "The glory of God is living man." 
 
A question for us to ponder: "Do people see Christ in me, my words and actions and/or inactions?" 
 
We are God's glory. Let the splendor shine. Could it be why Jesus reminds the believers that our righteousness must exceed those who have not received the full splendor, the fulfillment of the law and the prophets? (Mtt 5:17-20) 
 
Those begotten of God must therefore show the splendor of truth, the splendor of goodness and beauty, which should set the precedence for the world. If the world needs heavenly splendor, should they not be able to find in the life of those who claim to be believers the mirror of that splendor? 
 
Lord, make us your true mirrors on earth so that in seeing our good works, many will glorify your name. Amen. 
 
God love you. God bless you.
 
Fr. Maurice Emelu 
 
[Wednesday Ordinary Time Week 10: Readings: 2 Cor 3:4-11; Mtt 5:17-19]

 
Grace to you!
 
Our conversation yesterday centered on how to find eternal life. We said it’s in the “Come, follow me” Jesus’ invitation. You may want to go back to that discussion because it’s like an introduction to our reflection today.
 
Holiness. How does this word sound to you? A cliché? A never-realistic word? A special reserve for those in the monastery? 
 
Growing up, I used to identity holiness with only the monks and nuns wearing impeccable and solemn-looking cassocks or habits. This was the imagery from popular literatures on holiness. I thought it wasn’t for anyone. I was wrong.
 
Holiness is for everyone. It’s indeed, the universal call for everyone. These are not simply my words. The Church’s official documents and the Bible state so. Nonetheless, understanding what it means to be holy can be foggy, many times.
 
Sometimes, we suppose it’s in keeping the disciplines of our faith, all the requirements of the law, like the rich young man in the Bible (Mark 10:17-27). I discussed this issue yesterday. We fail to see that morality is a necessary first step to holiness, but not the end. Holiness is a journey towards something, towards somebody. We detach from what takes our gaze from the Lord and attach to the Lord and the Lord’s ways. 
 
Only God is holy, just like only God is good. Holiness belongs to God. If we must be holy, it has to be a journey to God who is holiness itself. It is being immersed in God's life. It is encountering, witnessing as well as living God's saving grace. 
 
Consider visiting the entertainment capital of the USA, Los Angeles, and wanting to spend all day going to the movies. You are in Hollywood and have a taxi head east of Hollywood to go to the movies miles away. Wouldn’t it sound ridiculous that you came to Hollywood Universal Studios but drove farther away from it to go see movies?
 
Holiness has a hub and a circle. Closer to it, and indeed, within it, we find what it means to be holy.
 
God is holy (see Leviticus 11:44-45; 1 Peter 1:16). To be holy is to be in God and to grow in holiness is to walk in the rings of divine circle. It requires leaving everything behind and following the Lord who is all that the soul is searching for (see Mark 10:28-30). In doing so, we are detaching ourselves from all that stand in the way of the Lord. 
 
Fortunately, just like we need a vehicle to get to the movies, we need the grace of God to become more intimate in the heart of holiness. We need the grace of God to be able to leave our comfort zone in order to give ourselves to the Lord in service. We realize that it is in doing so we become truly free to serve the Lord and also love and serve one another in the way that is pleasing to God.
 
In effect, if we want to be holy and grow in holiness, let’s avail ourselves of the opportunity to come closer to God. All our activities, relationships, and services for the common good should draw us closer to God. It is then that all we do is sanctified. Walking in the footsteps of the Lord wherever we are and in whatever we think and do, all by God’s grace, is living a holy life. 

You know where to find God in the most unique way. You know where God has made himself perpetually present in such a way that you can see him, touch him, and be with him—the Church in worship; more importantly, in the Eucharist.
 
Praying for the grace of holiness of life. Amen. 

God love you. God bless you.
 
Fr. Maurice Emelu

[Tuesday Week 8 Ordinary Time of the Year: Readings Sir 35:1-12; Mark 10:28-33]