Homily For The 5th Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year A.

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Isaiah 58:7-10; Psalm 111:4-9; 1 Corinthians 2:1-5; Matthew 5:13-16.

“LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE!”

By: Rev. Fr. Charles Onyeka Ezejide.

·       Before we begin this reflection, I beg you to say a prayer for me, thanking God for the privilege of ministering on his altar with my feeble hands as a Catholic priest for the past 11 years. Today, 7th February, marks my priestly ordination anniversary.

·       Today is a beautiful day the Lord has made, and we who are counted among the living must be grateful and count ourselves lucky and glorify God with all our heart and mind.

·       In the spirit of gratitude and glorifying God, there is no better way to do that than to obey God’s commandments and to live in peace with ourselves and our neighbours. In fact, if we are indeed grateful to God for all our unmerited favours, then we must become in the world the light of the world and the salt of the earth.

·       The responsorial psalm of today (Psalm 111:4-9), reminds us of our responsibilities as Christians by clearly stating that “the good man is a light in the darkness for the upright” (Ps. 111:4). Indeed, every Christian is called to be good and to be good means that our light must shine so that others may see and glorify God. Not that we are better, but our light must shine so that others may see and emulate us. Our lives and virtues become a challenge for others to take their Christian commitment seriously.

·       The gospel reading (Matthew 5:13-16) reminds us that we are the salt of the earth and light of the world. The place of salt and light in our daily existence as human beings cannot be underestimated. Salt is used to add flavour and for preservation. In other words, every Christian called to be the salt of the earth is called to add value wherever he/she is found and to preserve Christian morals and values from corruption.

·       Also, as lights of the world, we are called to be shining examples wherever we are. Since light cannot help but shine to dispel darkness, we too must let our shine, our life must be an open book worthy of emulation, and that light that radiates from us must dispel the darkness of sin, wickedness, jealousy, gossip, backbiting, character assassination and all sorts of vice.

·       Dearly beloved in Christ, we may want to ask ourselves how we must go about letting ourselves be salt of the earth and light of the world. The first reading answers the question. The first reading (Isaiah 58:7-10) reminds us of our responsibilities, which are: “to feed the hungry, give shelter to the homeless, clothe the naked, fight for the oppressed” (Is. 58:7). We could say that our Christian commitment is deep and practical.

·       When we do these, we become true lights to the world and salts to the earth, then “your integrity will go before you and the glory of the Lord behind you. Cry, and the Lord will answer; call, and he will say, I am here” (Is. 58:8-9). These are all we stand to gain by letting our light shine not through words of mouth but through our authentic witnessing.

·       Friends in Christ, it is really challenging to let our light shine in today's world of today. A world of darkness and secularism that has come to put God and Christianity on trial, a world full of betrayal, distrust, malice, and anger. But we must, like St. Paul in the second reading (1 Corinthians 2:1-5), know that on our own we cannot do it; we must rely on the power of God. It is not human intelligence or being smart, but purely the grace of God.

·       To be salts of the earth and light of the world is not something to boast about; it is not a matter of flowery speeches, but to witness to Christ, and this comes from deep-rooted knowledge of God and conviction in the power of God. No wonder St. Francis of Assisi calls on all Christians to “preach the gospel always, but when necessary, use words” This simply means that our lives of testimony are easier to emulate than our words of preaching.

·       My dear brothers and sisters, Jesus is indeed the light of the world, and we who are called to follow him must become lights dispelling darkness and instilling the reign of the kingdom of God wherever we are.

·       We pray for the grace to remain conscious of our Christian identity in the world and not allow the darkness of sin to dim the light of Christ in us and to allow that light of Christ to illumine us and bring about positive change in the world through Christ our Lord, Amen!

·       Happy Sunday!!!

 


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