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  TUESDAY 22 AUGUST 2023 FEAST OF THE QUEENSHIP THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY  Liturgical Colour: White. ENTRANCE ANTIPHON cf. PSALM 45:10 At your right stands the queen in robes of gold, finely arrayed. COLLECT O God, who made the Mother of your Son to be our Mother and our Queen, graciously grant that, sustained by her intercession, we may attain in the heavenly Kingdom the glory promised to your children. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. FIRST READING ISAIAH 9:1-6 The people that walked in darkness has seen a great light; on those who live in a land of deep shadow a light has shone. You have made their gladness greater, you have made their joy increase; they rejoice in your presence as men rejoice at harvest time, as men are happy when they are dividing the spoils. For the yoke that was weighing on him, the barb across his shoulders, the rod of his oppressor, these you break as on t...

  HOMILY FOR TUESDAY 22 AUGUST 2023 FEAST OF THE QUEENSHIP THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY  ISAIAH 9:1-6; PSALM 113:1-8; LUKE 1:26-38 I pray for you: May the Virgin Mary, crowned Queen, intercede for us that we may imitate her in faithfully fulfilling the will of God on earth, to join her one day in the heavenly Jerusalem. AMEN Dear children of God, according to Saint Pope John Paul II, in every situation of our life, let us invoke her with trust: Queen of all saints, pray for us! Let us as, children of the Church, above all, renew our devotion to the One whom Jesus Christ gave to us as Mother and Queen. Let us entrust to her intercession the daily prayer for peace, especially in places where the senseless logic of violence is most brutal, aggressive and fiece; so that all people may be convinced that in this world, we must help one another, as brothers and sisters, to build the civilization of love. Maria, Regina pacis, ora pro nobis! Today, August 22, we celebrate the Memorial of ...

 THE FOUR DOGMAS OF MAMA MARIA As we celebrate the Assumption of Mama Maria, we need to be reminded of the FOUR DOGMAS on MAMA MARIA. Marian dogmas state the personal relationship of Mama Maria with God and her role in human salvation. The first is the DIVINE MOTHERHOOD. The divine motherhood of Mama Maria was proclaimed at the Council of Ephesus in 431 AD. Various names are used to describe the role of Mama Maria as mother of Jesus. She is called Mother of God which translates the more accurately stated Greek term Theotokos or Birthgiver of God. The Council of Ephesus holds that the holy virgin is the Mother of God since she begot according to the flesh the Word of God made flesh. This decision was further explained by the Council of Chalcedon (451AD). The dogma of Divine Motherhood becomes an integral part of the Christological dogma. This does not diminish the definitive and binding character of Christological dogma. The second is PERPETUAL VIRGINITY. The Church professes that J...

 HOMILY FOR 15 AUGUST 2023 SOLEMNITY OF THE ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY Revelation 11: 19a, 12: 1-6a, 10ab; Psalm 45:10,11,12,16;  1 Corinthians 15:20-27; Luke 1:39-56 I AM CELEBRATING BECAUSE I AM REDEEMED I pray for you: May you realize all that God has done in your life and may you continue to give glory and praise to God both in word and by the way you live your life! And may you continue to strive to pray and live the response of Mama Maria:  Let it be done to me according to Your will, O God. AMEN Today, we celebrate the Assumption of Mama Maria into heaven. Mama Maria, as the mother of Jesus Christ and the person who is blessed among women (and men), shares in the graces Jesus Christ gave us through His ministry, life, death, and resurrection. The key role of Mama Maria in the earthly life of her Son, Jesus Christ, demonstrates her desire to do what God asks of her. It is fitting that she be the first to experience, in both her soul and her body, the full...

 ‘GIVE TO CAESAR WHAT BELONGS TO CAESAR – AND TO GOD WHAT BELONGS TO GOD’ The response of Jesus Christ to the trap of the Pharisees shows us that, while we cannot cut ourselves off from the affairs of the world, we should never compromise our beliefs and values. MATTHEW 22:15-21 15 The Pharisees went away to work out between them how to trap Jesus in what he said. 16 And they sent their disciples to him, together with the Herodians, to say, ‘Master, we know that you are an honest man and teach the way of God in an honest way, and that you are not afraid of anyone, because a man’s rank means nothing to you. 17 Tell us your opinion, then. Is it permissible to pay taxes to Caesar or not?’ 18 But Jesus was aware of their malice and replied, ‘You hypocrites! Why do you set this trap for me? 19 Let me see the money you pay the tax with.’ They handed him a denarius, 20 and he said, ‘Whose head is this? Whose name?’ 21 ‘Caesar’s,’ they replied. He then said to them, ‘Very well, give back t...

  DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH IV LIST OF THE DOCTORS OF THE CHURCH The first church doctors were declared by Pope Boniface VIII in the 13th century; and they are Saints Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, and Pope Gregory the Great. The first women to be named as church doctors were Saints Teresa of Ávila and Catherine of Siena in 1970 by Pope Paul VI. The following is a list of all the doctors of the church in the order of when they were designated. Five of the Church Fathers who were proclaimed doctor hailed from the Western (Latin-speaking) half of the Roman Empire and they are: St. Irenaeus, around 120 – 200; St. Ambrose, 340-397; St. Jerome, 345-420; St. Augustine, 354-430; and St. Gregory the Great (Pope), 540-604 Four of the Ecumenical Fathers who were proclaimed Doctors came from the Eastern (Greek-speaking) Roman Empire and they are: St. Athanasius, 295-373; St. Basil the Great, 330-379; St. Gregory of Nazianzen, 330-390; and St. John Chrysostom, 345-407. There are eight other Doctors fr...

    DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH III SAINT IRENAEUS AS ‘DOCTOR OF UNITY’ St. Irenaeus was already recognized as one of the early fathers of the church. Born during the 2nd century in what is now Turkey, he served as bishop of Lyons in what is now France; moving from one side of the Roman Empire to the other. He wrote forcefully against a philosophical and religious movement called Gnosticism. Gnosticism is from the Greek word “gnosis”, or “knowledge”, which he saw as a heresy threatening to separate Christians from beliefs handed down by the apostles of Jesus Christ. Gnostic Christians taught that the physical world was created not by God, but by a lesser spiritual being, either in error or out of malice. They rejected the traditional Christian beliefs that material reality and the human body were fundamentally good and held that the body was a worthless obstacle to achieving spiritual perfection. Irenaeus argued against the Gnostics, insisting God created both material and spiritual ...

  DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH II FATHERS OF THE CHURCH, MARTYRS, CONFESSORS AND DOCTORS In each era of confusion and challenge which the Church has faced in history, the Holy Spirit has bestowed on certain men and women, a unique gift of wisdom in living out and passing on the Gospel. And with the varying needs of the age and the natural dispositions of every saint, this gift has taken on many shapes. All the doctors have been authentic teachers and guides of the faith in person and writing, but each of them has helped their generation and the following generations to follow Jesus Christ our Lord with renewed fervor and understanding Eminent Christian writers of the first, second, and third centuries are usually referred to as the Ante-Nicene Fathers. During the era of the Church Fathers, (approximately AD 100-AD 800), eight Doctors particularly stand out and are called “Ecumenical Fathers” because of their widespread influence.  Bronze statues of several of these eight are to be fou...

 DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH I INTRODUCTION This article is meant to enlighten us on what it means to be a “Doctor of the Church”; on those who have been designated this title and why they are given the title of “Doctor of the Church”.  Doctor of the Church (Latin: doctor “teacher”), also referred to as “Doctor of the Universal Church” (Latin: Doctor Ecclesiae Universalis), is a title given by the Catholic Church to saints who recognized as having made a significant contribution to theology or doctrine through their research, study, or writing. So far, there are 37 Doctors of the Church in the Catholic Church. Among them are 18 who died before the Great Schism of 1054 AD. These 18 of them are also held in high esteem by the Eastern Orthodox Church. However, the Eastern Orthodox Church does not use the formal title of “Doctor of the Church”. Among these 37 named Doctors, 28 are from the West and nine from the East. Among these 37 named Doctors, 4 are women (Catherine of Siena, Teresa ...

  EXHUMATION AND THE INCORRUPTIBLES IV ARE ALL INCORRUPT BODIES CONSIDERED SAINTS? Not necessarily. Sister Wilhelmina is not a saint and many may never be. Some Buddhists and Jews also claim that this process can occur. They, too, would not be considered for sainthood under Catholic and Orthodox tradition. In Nigeria, in 2019, the remains of Mr. Aiku Boboye was exhumed by his Children. It was 41 years from the time he was buried at Alafiatayo street, along hospital road, Akure. It was an unusual scene. The crowd surged uncontrollably to catch a glimpse at what many onlookers regarded as a mystery. It was not a scene that could be hidden. It was the fresh corpse. Some undertakers who opened the grave found the dead body of late Boboye still fresh with the clothes  used to rap him intact. He was exhumed, due to the ongoing construction of the Hospital/Ijoka road, Akure. But Mr. Aiku Boboye cannot be canonized a saint. EVENTS SURROUNDING THE EXHUMATION OF THE REMAINS OF BLESSED...

  EXHUMATION AND THE INCORRUPTIBLES III WHO ARE THE “THE INCORRUPTIBLES”? The “the Incorruptibles” are saints whose mortal bodies have not fully decayed (or been “corrupted”) after death. Sometimes, one particular limb or organ of the body of a saint has not decayed, even though the rest of the body has done so. SOME SAINTS WHOSE BODIES ARE INCORRUPT  Throughout the history of the Catholic Church, the bodies of many saints were exhumed after death and found incorrupt. Normally after death, our bodies naturally decompose. As Genesis 3:19 says, “For you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” However, there are saints who exhibited such holiness that God preserved their bodies. Even science has no explanation for this! ST. VINCENT DE PAUL The heart and bones of St. Vincent de Paul are completely incorrupt. His bones are underneath wax at the Chapel of St. Vincent de Paul in Paris, France. His heart, however, is at Chapel of the Daughters of Charity in the Shrine of Our Lady o...

  HOMILY FOR 4 AUGUST 2023 MEMORIAL OF SAINT JOHN MARY VIANNEY (WITH READINGS PROPER TO THE MEMORIAL)  Ezekiel 3:17-21 Psalm 117:1-2 Matthew 9:35-10:1 I AM CALLED TO EMULATE THE MINISTRY OF COMMITMENT AND HOLINESS OF SAINT JOHN MARY VIANNEY I pray for you: May the Lord Jesus grants you the grace to learn for yourself something of the pastoral plan of St. John Mary Vianney. AMEN Saint Jean Baptiste-Marie-Vianney lived in times similar to our own. France after the French Revolution was de-Christianized. Saint John was born in 1786, three years prior to the Revolution. The people of his time were indifferent and hostile to religion. I believe that the situation today is worse. Hostility, indifference, materialism, same-sex marriage, transgenderism, abortion etc. are just some of the evils that afflict us today. St John Vianney was a man with a vision. Jesus Christ was the centre and purpose of his life. We all know of his heroic ministry to the people of Ars. His passion for soul...

 EXHUMATION AND THE INCORRUPTIBLES II HOW THE CHURCH DEFINE THE INCORRUPTIBILITY OF SAINTS, AND WHAT THE PHENOMENON SIGNIFY Incorruptibility is a Catholic and Eastern Orthodox belief that divine intervention has allowed for some human bodies, specifically those of saints, to avoid the normal natural process of decomposition as a sign of the holiness of the saint to be.  Incorruptibility is thought to occur even in the presence of factors that normally hasten decomposition and is considered a supernatural occurrence. Embalmed bodies are not recognized in this case. This was the cases of saints Cecilia, Catherine of Genoa, Francis Xavier Cabrini, Catherine Laboure and Padre Pio. Past popes, such as Blessed Pope Pius IX, St. Pius X and St. John XXIII are also considered incorrupt.   In Catholicism, if a body is judged as incorruptible after death, this is most often seen as a sign that the individual is a saint. Canon law allows inspection of the body so relics can be t...

 EXHUMATION AND THE INCORRUPTIBLES I EXHUMING THE BODIES OF SAINTS Exhumation is a part of the canonization process. The mortal remains of the Saintly candidate are exhumed (brought out) from the grave.  REASONS FOR EXHUMING THE MORTAL REMAINS (1) Exhumation confirms that the person lived and died. This might sound strange, but the Church wants to be positive of even the most basic, simple facts. Professionals, such as anthropologists, examine the remains to see if they match the known historical information about the candidate. And perhaps new information is learned from the exhumation itself. (2) Exhumation also allows for relics to be distributed to churches, etc., for veneration by the faithful, typically after the beatification process. (3) Relocation of the body to another place. Blessed Iwene Tansi was buried in England. Before his beatification, the body was exhumed and transferred to Onitsha. (4) Exhumation of the body takes place only after the cause for sainthood ...