Pip: There’s a popular saying that obedience is the first law in heaven — which raises the obvious question of how the rest of us are doing down here.

Mara: This episode draws from frcanicenjoku, where canicecnjoku has published Sunday homilies on obedience to God’s will — covering the same liturgical readings in both English and Spanish. Let’s start with what those homilies are actually arguing.

Mara: This week’s homilies take up a single pressing question: what does genuine obedience to God actually look like, and how do most of us fall short of it without quite realizing we have?

Pip: The English homily sets up the stakes with a quote from Ezekiel, framing the whole segment around what happens when integrity is abandoned. Here it is directly: “When the upright man renounces his integrity to sin because of this, he dies of the evil that he committed.”

Mara: So the upshot is that disobedience is not merely a rule violation — it is a form of spiritual death, a severing from God. Obedience, by contrast, is what draws us back into relationship with him.

Pip: The homily builds toward Paul’s letter to the Philippians, and the communal dimension is worth sitting with. Paul’s instruction is not just personal — it’s directed at how a community holds together.

Mara: Right, and the quote makes that communal dimension explicit: “Be united in your convictions and your love. God does not want competition among you, no conceit. Instead, everyone must be self-effacing. Always consider the other better than.” The conclusion follows: “In your minds, you must be the same as Christ Jesus.”

Pip: And the homily is quick to specify what being the same as Christ means in practice — not doctrine, not ritual, but obedience and humility as lived posture.

Mara: The parable of the two sons in Matthew 21 is where this lands concretely. The first son refuses outright but then goes. The second promises to go and doesn’t. Both fail, but differently.

Pip: The second son is doing something most of us recognize — the enthusiastic yes at the sacramental moment, the quiet non-appearance afterward. The homily names this lip service directly, quoting Matthew 15: “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”

Mara: The Spanish homily, covering the same readings under the title Homilia del Vigésimo Sexto Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario, Año A, runs the identical argument in parallel — same Ezekiel warning, same Pauline community vision, same parable. The bilingual structure itself seems intentional, reaching two congregations with one coherent call.

Pip: The resolution the homily offers is to harmonize the two sons — the action of the first with the word of the second. Which is a tidy way of saying: mean what you say, then actually do it.

Mara: That synthesis is the whole point. Faith, as the homily frames it, is not doctrinal assent alone — it requires the hearer to commit their whole life to God in truth, humility, and obedience.

Pip: Obedience as a living, communal practice — not a checklist, not a promise made once and forgotten.

Mara: That tension between word and action is the one the next homily will likely press further. Worth returning for.

Obediencia a la Voluntad de Dios

Readings: 1^ra: Ezek 18:25-28; Ps: 24:4-9; 2^da: Flp 1:1-11; Ev: Mt 21:28-32

Esta breve reflexión fue escrita por el Padre Canice Chukwuemeka Njoku, C.S.Sp., DMin., un sacerdote católico y miembro de la Congregación del Espíritu Santo (Espirítanos). Es un misionero en Puerto Rico. Es director del Santuario del Espíritu Santo, Dorado, y el Superior Mayor de la Congregación del Espíritu Santo (Espirítanos), Circunscripción de Puerto Rico y República Dominicana. El padre Canice es miembro de la Academia de Homilética (The Academy of Homiletics). Para más detalles y comentarios , se puede contactarlo al: canice_c_njoku@yahoo.com, canicechukwuemeka@gmail.com.

Encuentra otros libros en: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/904854

(Donar @ATH Móvil: Canice Njoku – 7873146309)

(https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8452-8392)

Este domingo, la iglesia llama nuestra atención de una manera muy especial a la importancia de la obediencia a Dios. Hay un refrán popular de que “la obediencia es la primera ley en el cielo”. Obediencia nos ayuda a ser como Cristo, que obedeció a su padre hasta la muerte.

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En nuestra primera lectura, Dios respondió a la acusación de Israel de que era injusto, porque les permitía ser derrotado por sus enemigos. Condena su actitud de desobediencia. Este fue el caso de Israel a lo largo de su historia. Debido a su orgullo y desobediencia, sufrieron la esclavitud y la deportación a Egipto, Persia y Asiria.

Sin embargo, cada vez que se arrepintieron, Dios los restaura. Por lo tanto, Dios les recuerda que: “Cuando el hombre recto renuncia a su integridad para cometer pecado a causa de esto, él muere del mal que él mismo cometió”. En palabras de orden, renunciar a la senda de la integridad es la desobediencia. Su consecuencia es la muerte.

Dios siempre nos da tiempo y una nueva oportunidad. Si volvemos a la parte de la integridad a través de la obediencia a su voluntad, nos restaurará a la vida. En palabras de orden, la desobediencia trae la alienación de Dios. Esto es igualmente muerte espiritual. Por otro lado, la obediencia nos trae cerca a Dios.

En la segunda lectura, nos presenta a Cristo como el epítome y modelo de obediencia a la voluntad de Dios. Sin embargo, Pablo primero nos recuerda lo que Dios quiere de nosotros como comunidad. Él dice: “… Esten unidos en sus convicciones y en su amor… Dios no quiere la competencia entre ustedes, ni la vanidad.” Él concluye: “en sus mentes deben ser los mismos que Cristo Jesús…”

¿De qué manera o sentido debemos ser los mismos que Cristo? ¡Simple! Debemos ser los mismos que Cristo en obediencia y humildad. En otras palabras, sólo podemos ser verdaderos cristianos a través nuestra obediencia a la voluntad de Dios. Su voluntad incluye lo que Pablo enumera arriba. Es decir, amar y respetarse unos a otros, y también vivir de acuerdo con los mandamientos de Dios.

El Evangelio de hoy nos presenta otra parábola popular de Jesús. El primer hijo representa a los recaudadores de impuestos, prostitutas y pecadores. Mientras que, el segundo hijo representa a los fariseos, escribas y meros asistentes de la iglesia. Evaluando los dos hijos, es cierto que ambos fallaron a su padre de una manera u otra.

El primero desobedeció y falló en palabras: “¡No voy a ir!” Sin embargo, después una debida reflexión, se cambió su corazón y obedeció a su padre. Por lo tanto, lo que él no pudo hacer en palabras lo hizo en la acción. El segundo falló a su padre tanto en sus palabras como en su acción. En primer lugar, hizo una promesa falsa. Dice a su padre, “iré” pero no fue. Además, falló a su padre al no actuar como prometió.

Este segundo hijo representa a la mayoría de nosotros que pagamos el servicio de labios a Dios: “Este pueblo me honra con su labio, pero su corazón está lejos de mí” (Mt 15, 18). Él representa a la mayoría de nosotros que siempre responden, sí o iré a cada pregunta, sin ningún compromiso.

La fe que conocemos no consiste meramente en afirmar la doctrina verdadera, sino que incluye algo más grande y más profundo. El oyente deber negarse y comprometerse a Dios en la verdad, humildad y obediencia. Para ser como Cristo, debemos armonizar la acción del primer hijo, y la palabra del segundo hijo con el fin de hacer la voluntad de Dios.

¡La paz sea con ustedes!

¡Maranatha!

Obedience to God’s Will

Readings: 1^st: Ez 18:25-28; Ps: 24:4-9; 2^nd: Phil 2:1-11; Gos: Mt 21:28-32

This brief reflection was written by Fr. Njoku Canice Chukwuemeka, C.S.Sp., DMin, a Catholic Priest and a member of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (Spiritans). He is a missionary in Puerto Rico. He is Director of Santuario del Espiritu Santo, Dorado, and the Major Superior of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (Spiritans), Circumscription of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Fr. Canice is a member of the Academy of Homiletics. For more details and comments, contact him at: canice_c_njoku@yahoo.com, canicechukwuemeka@gmail.com.

Find other books @: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/893122

(Donate @ATH Mobil: Canice Njoku-7873146309)

(https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8452-8392)

This Sunday, the Church draws our attention in a most special way to the importance of obedience to God. A popular saying is that “obedience is the first law in heaven.” It is obedience that will help us to be like Christ, who obeyed His Father unto death.

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In our first reading, God responded to Israel’s accusation that he was unjust because he allowed them to be subdued by their enemies. He condemns their attitude of disobedience. This was Israel’s case throughout its history. Due to their pride and disobedience, they suffered slavery and deportation to Egypt, Persia, and Assyria.

However, they obeyed God when they realized their fault, and He restored them. Hence, God reminds them, “When the upright man renounces his integrity to sin because of this, he dies of the evil that he committed.” In order words, renouncing the path of integrity is disobedience. Its consequence is death.

God is always giving us time and new opportunities. If we return to the part of integrity through obedience to His will, we shall be restored to life. In order words, disobedience brings alienation from God. This is equally spiritual death. On the other hand, obedience draws us closer to God.

The second reading presents Christ as the epitome and model of obedience to the will of God. However, Paul first reminds us of what God wants from us as a community. He says: “Be united in your convictions and your love. God does not want competition among you, no conceit. Instead, everyone must be self-effacing. Always consider the other better than.” He concludes: “In your minds, you must be the same as Christ Jesus.”

In what way or sense are we to be the same as Christ? Simple! We are to be the same as Christ in obedience and humility. In other words, we can only be true Christians obeying God’s will. His will includes what Paul enumerates above. That is, to love and respect one another and live according to God’s commands.

The gospel of today presents us with yet another famous parable of Jesus. The first son represents the tax collectors, prostitutes, and sinners, while the second son represents the Pharisees, Scribes, and mere churchgoers. Looking at the two sons, one will find that both failed their fathers in one way or the other. The first failed in words: “I will not go!” However, after reflection, he changed his mind and obeyed his father. Hence, he did in action what he failed to do in words.

The second failed his father both in words and action. First, he made a false promise: “Surely, I will go.” Also, he failed his father by not acting as he promised. This second son represents most of us who pay lip service to God: “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me” (Mt 15, 18). He represents most of us who, during the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Orders, and Matrimony, responded, “I will to every question, but do not fulfill them.

As we know, faith affirms true doctrine and includes something more significant and profound. The hearer is to deny himself and commit his whole life to God in truth, humility, and obedience to His will. To be like Christ, we must harmonize the action of the first son and the word of the second son to do God’s will.

Peace be with you all!

Maranatha!

Pip: A vineyard owner who pays everyone the same wage regardless of hours worked — either the worst HR policy in history, or a parable worth sitting with for a Sunday.

Mara: Today we’re in the territory of God’s invitation and unconditional love, drawing on canicecnjoku’s homilies for the Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time. Let’s start with what the readings actually argue.

Mara: The central tension across these homilies is fairness versus generosity — specifically, whether God’s justice operates by the same logic we use to measure human reward and effort.

Pip: The English homily sets up the parable’s key interpretive move by anchoring it in Isaiah, and the quote does the heavy lifting: “My thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your thoughts.”

Mara: That reframe is the whole argument. If God’s ways are categorically different from ours, then the vineyard owner paying late workers the same wage isn’t a labor dispute — it’s a demonstration of unconditional love extended equally to everyone who responded to the invitation.

Pip: And the Spanish homily, covering the same readings, reinforces exactly that point — God’s generosity isn’t governed by strict justice or economics, but by love for all who answer his call, whenever they answer it.

Mara: Paul’s letter to the Philippians adds a second layer. The homily traces Paul’s conflict between longing for Christ and remaining present for his community, and lands on his own resolution: “To live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

Pip: Which is a remarkable thing to say from prison, honestly — but the homily reads it not as resignation, but as a model of motivation. Love for Christ and for others becomes the source of action, not the reward at the end of it.

Mara: Both homilies make the same practical point from that: the instruction Paul gives is to avoid anything in daily life unworthy of the Gospel. The theology lands in behavior, not just feeling.

Pip: So the parable isn’t really about wages. It’s about what counts in God’s vineyard — and the homily is direct: “not years of service, but the diligence of heart as a chosen one.”

Mara: Right. The reward is grace, extended to everyone who responded faithfully. The timing of the call doesn’t change the love behind it.

Pip: Which reframes the grumbling workers less as wronged employees and more as people still thinking in a different economy entirely.

Mara: That’s the invitation the homilies close on — to stop measuring God’s generosity by human scales, and simply respond to it.

Pip: Unconditional love that doesn’t calculate hours — that’s a harder posture to hold than it sounds.

Mara: It is. And that tension between human accounting and divine generosity is exactly the kind of question worth returning to next week.

La invitación, y Amor de Dios para todos

Readings: 1^ra: Is 55:6-9; Sal: 144:2-3.8-9.17; 2^da: Flp. 1:20-24.27; Ev: Mt. 20:1-16

Esta breve reflexión fue escrita por el Padre Canice Chukwuemeka Njoku, C.S.Sp., DMin., un sacerdote católico y miembro de la Congregación del Espíritu Santo (Espirítanos). Es un misionero en Puerto Rico. Es director del Santuario del Espíritu Santo, Dorado, y el Superior Mayor de la Congregación del Espíritu Santo (Espirítanos), Circunscripción de Puerto Rico y República Dominicana. El padre Canice es miembro de la Academia de Homilética (The Academy of Homiletics). Para más detalles y comentarios , se puede contactarlo al: canice_c_njoku@yahoo.com, canicechukwuemeka@gmail.com.

Encuentra otros libros en: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/904854

(Donar @ATH Móvil: Canice Njoku – 7873146309)

(https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8452-8392)

En este vigésimo quinto del tiempo ordinario, reflexionamos sobre los caminos inimaginables y el amor de Dios. Este amor es incalculable. Por lo tanto, la Iglesia nos invita a emular este amor. Todas las lecturas de hoy tienen una cosa en común, el amor de Dios por nosotros.

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En la primera lectura, Isaías nos invita urge: “Busquen al Señor mientras lo pueden encontrar, invóquenlo mientras está cerca; que el malvado abandone su camino…” En esta lectura, vemos a un Dios que expresa su amor por su pueblo. También, vemos a un Dios que, a pesar de nuestra infidelidad, sigue buscándonos. Un Dios, que se preocupa y está listo para acogernos.

En la segunda lectura, Pablo expresa el amor que tiene por Dios y por el Evangelio. Como cristianos, muchas veces, somos jalados en dos direcciones. Todos queremos ir al cielo, pero esta vida aún nos atrae. Pablo tenía los mismos sentimientos mixtos también. Aunque creía que pronto sería liberado de la cárcel, sabía que podía caer víctima de la espada de Nerón.

Esto creó un conflicto en él. Anhelaba estar con Cristo, porque eso sería mucho mejor. Sin embargo, también quería vivir, por su amor a sus hermanos y a sus hijos en la fe. Por lo tanto, la respuesta de Pablo al dilema más profundo de la vida es: “vivir, es Cristo, y morir, es ganancia”. El amor por Cristo, la buena nueva, y para nuestros hermanos deben motivar todas nuestras acciones. Debe ser la fuente de nuestra fuerza.

A través de esto, morir o vivir para Dios, o para nuestros hermanos ya no será una tragedia para nosotros. Más bien, sería un testimonio del Evangelio. Se convertiría en una expresión de nuestro amor por los demás. Pablo resume su reflexión con la siguiente instrucción: “Evita cualquier cosa en tu vida cotidiana que sea indigno del Evangelio de Cristo”.

En el Evangelio, Cristo nos presenta un dilema. ¿Cómo podría el empleador pagar a todo, la misma cantidad? Fue difícil para el anterior (o primero) grupo de trabajadores entender tal como sería para la mayoría de nosotros hoy en día. La clave para entender la acción del empleador en esta parábola está en la primera lectura de hoy. Dios nos recuerda que: “Mis pensamientos no son sus pensamientos, y mis caminos no son sus caminos.”

Lo que vemos en la acción en el Evangelio de hoy, es simplemente la justicia de Dios. Su justicia se rige por su generosidad y amor incondicional para todos. Su acción hacia el último grupo de trabajadores demuestra que no está actuando de acuerdo con la justicia estricta, ni con la economía.

Más bien, está motivado por el amor y la generosidad hacia todo lo que responde a su invitación. Para todos nosotros, él ha extendido la misma invitación inmerecida. A todos, él pagará el mismo salario o recompensa porque su amor es incondicional. Su recompensa no depende de cuándo el llamó a uno, sino de su amor generoso e inimaginable para todos.

Lo que cuenta en el reino de Dios no es años de servicio, sino diligencia de corazón como elegido. Todos los hombres, no importa cuando llegan, son igualmente hermosos para Dios. Por lo tanto, la recompensa de Dios para todos en su reino es simplemente su gracia que se extiende a todos aquellos que respondieron fielmente a su invitación divina.

Finalmente, lo que importa es que el Señor está cerca de todos los que responden a su invitación. No importa cómo y cuándo. Su amor es para todos.

¡La paz sea con ustedes!

¡Maranatha!

God’s Invitation and Love for all

Readings: 1st: Is 55:6-9; Ps: 144:2-3.8-9.17; 2nd: Phil 1:20-24.27; Gos: Mt. 20:1-16

This brief reflection was written by Fr. Njoku Canice Chukwuemeka, C.S.Sp., DMin, a Catholic Priest and a member of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (Spiritans). He is a missionary in Puerto Rico. He is Director of Santuario del Espiritu Santo, Dorado, and the Major Superior of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (Spiritans), Circumscription of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Fr. Canice is a member of the Academy of Homiletics. For more details and comments, contact him at: canice_c_njoku@yahoo.com, canicechukwuemeka@gmail.com.

Find other books @: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/893122

(Donate @ATH Mobil: Canice Njoku-7873146309)

(https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8452-8392)

On this 25^th Sunday of ordinary time, we reflect on God’s unimaginable ways and love. This love is incalculable by any human standard. Hence, the Church invites us to emulate this love. All today’s readings have one thing in common: God’s Love for us.

Available now on

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In the first reading, Isaiah invites us to “Seek the Lord while he is to be found; call to him while he is near, and let the wicked man abandon his way…!” In this reading, we see a God who expresses his love for his people. Despite our infidelity, we also see a God who continues to search for us. A God who cares and is ready to welcome us.

In the second reading, Paul expresses his love for God and the Gospel. As Christians, often, we are pulled in two directions. We all want to go to heaven, yet this life still appeals to us. Paul had the same mixed feelings, too. Although he believed he would soon be released from prison, he knew he could fall victim to Nero’s sword.

This created a conflict in him. He longed to be with Christ, for that would be much better. However, he also wanted to live because of his love for his brothers and children in the faith.  Hence, Paul’s answer to life’s most profound dilemma is, “To live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Love for Christ, the good news, and our brethren must motivate all our actions. It must be the source of our strength.

Through this, dying or living for God or our brethren will no longer be a tragedy. Instead, it would be a witness to the gospel. It would become an expression of our love for others. Paul summarizes his reflection with the following instruction: “Avoid anything in your everyday lives that would be unworthy of the gospel of Christ.”

In the gospel, Christ presents us with a dilemma. How could the employer pay everyone the same amount? It was difficult for the earlier (or first) group of workers to understand, just as it would be for most of us today. The key to understanding the action of the vineyard’s owner in this parable is in today’s first reading. God reminds us, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your thoughts.”

What we see in the gospel today is simply the justice of God. His justice is governed by his generosity and unconditional love for all. His action towards the last group of workers shows he is not acting according to strict justice or economics.

Instead, he is motivated by love and generosity toward all who respond to his invitation. To all of us, he has extended the same unmerited invitation. He will pay the same wage to everyone because his love is unconditional. His reward depends not on when he calls anyone but on his generous and unimaginable love for all.

What counts in God’s vineyard is not years of service but the diligence of heart as a chosen one. All men are equally precious to God, no matter when they come in. God’s reward for all in His kingdom is this: His grace extended to all who responded faithfully to His divine invitation.

Finally, what matters is that the Lord is close to all who respond to his invitation. It does not matter how and when. His love is for all.

Peace be with you all!

Maranatha!

Pip: Forgiveness — turns out it’s not just a nice idea for greeting cards. It has a double effect, a single-dose medicine, and apparently no upper limit. Fr. Canice Njoku has thoughts.

Mara: That’s exactly where we’re headed. The posts this week center on one of the Gospel’s sharpest demands: what Christian forgiveness actually requires, and what it does to the person who practices it. Let’s start with that question.

Mara: The twenty-fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time puts forgiveness at the center, and the homily doesn’t treat it as a soft virtue. The real question is whether forgiveness is a feeling, a transaction, or something with actual consequences for the person doing the forgiving.

Pip: The English homily sets up the stakes plainly. Drawing on Psalm 102 and Sirach, it frames forgiveness as participation in God’s own nature — and then drops this from the first reading: “Forgive your neighbor the hurt he does to you, and when you pray, your sins will be forgiven.”

Mara: So the upshot is that forgiveness isn’t optional in this framework — it’s the condition under which you yourself receive it. The two movements are locked together.

Pip: And Paul’s line from Romans tightens that further. “The life and death of each of us influence the other.” Forgiveness isn’t a private act; it ripples. The homily calls it a single-dose medicine that cures more than one person at once.

Mara: That double-effect image is one of the more striking moves in the text. It liberates the one forgiven and heals the one who forgives. Which reframes the whole question — you’re not just being generous, you’re treating a wound in yourself.

Pip: Peter’s question to Jesus — how many times must I forgive? — gets the least transactional answer possible. Seventy-seven times, which is the Gospel’s way of saying the counter doesn’t exist.

Mara: And the homily is careful about what forgiveness is not. It explicitly rules out “I forgive you, but I do not want to see you again,” or “I forgive you, but I will not forget.” The definition it offers is sharper: “It means to heal a wound without leaving a scar.”

Pip: That’s a high bar. The wicked servant parable exists precisely to show how badly we miss it — forgiven an enormous debt, he immediately jails the neighbor over pocket change.

Mara: The Spanish homily, the Vigésimo Cuarto Domingo, covers the same ground and adds one emphasis worth noting: the need to forgive oneself. Endless guilt over past mistakes, the text says, hinders both spiritual and material progress.

Pip: Self-forgiveness as a practical necessity, not a therapeutic indulgence. That’s a different framing than you usually hear.

Mara: Both texts close on the same prayer: “Forgive us our offenses, as we forgive those who offend us” — asking God for help to actually live those words, not just recite them.

Pip: The prayer as a commitment you’re making every time you say it. That reframes the closing of every Mass.

Mara: Which is exactly the point — this is a weekly invitation, not a one-time resolution.

Pip: Forgiveness with no upper limit, no scar left behind, and a cost to the one who withholds it. That’s a demanding theology.

Mara: It is. And it keeps returning — next week’s readings will likely push further into what reconciliation looks like in practice. Worth staying with.

El Perdón Libre, Y Sana

Lecturas: 1^ra: Sirac, 27: 30-28:7; Sal: 102; 2^da: Rom 14: 7-9; Ev: Mt 18, 21-35

Esta breve reflexión fue escrita por el Padre Canice Chukwuemeka Njoku, C.S.Sp., DMin., un sacerdote católico y miembro de la Congregación del Espíritu Santo (Espirítanos). Es un misionero en Puerto Rico. Es director del Santuario del Espíritu Santo, Dorado, y el Superior Mayor de la Congregación del Espíritu Santo (Espirítanos), Circunscripción de Puerto Rico y República Dominicana. El padre Canice es miembro de la Academia de Homilética (The Academy of Homiletics). Para más detalles y comentarios , se puede contactarlo al: canice_c_njoku@yahoo.com, canicechukwuemeka@gmail.com.

Encuentra otros libros en: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/904854

(Donar @ATH Móvil: Canice Njoku – 7873146309)

(https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8452-8392)

Hoy es el vigésimo cuarto domingo del tiempo ordinario. La semana pasada, la iglesia nos recordó la importancia de la reconciliación a través del diálogo fraterno y el amor mutuo. Hoy, ella nos invita a reflexionar sobre el perdón. Es un elemento bien importante de la reconciliación, y nuestra creencia cristiana. Es el mensaje central de la primera lectura y el Evangelio de hoy.

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Hay un refrán popular que errar es humano, mientras que perdonar es divino. Es decir, que aquel que peca actúa humanamente. Esto es porque, es parte de nuestros atributos como humanos errar o pecar. Por otro lado, la persona que perdona actúa divinamente. Esto es porque, perdonar es participar en un atributo bien importante y la naturaleza de Dios. Es decir, su divinidad. Es por lo que nuestro Dios es conocido. “Él es compasivo, misericordioso, amoroso y perdona” (Sal 102).

La primera lectura de hoy se centra en el perdón. Primero, nos recuerda que para que nuestra oración sea aceptable o escuchado, debemos perdonar a los demás. En segundo lugar, presupone que todos somos pecadores, y en necesitad de perdón de Dios. Entonces, para que seamos perdonados, primero debemos perdonar a los demás. Por lo tanto, Sirac nos insta: “Perdona la ofensa a tu prójimo, y cuando ores, tus pecados serán perdonados.” Este es una llamada a liberar a los demás, para que también, seriamos liberados y curados.

En la segunda lectura, Pablo nos recuerda algo muy importante. “La vida y la muerte de cada uno de nosotros tiene su influencia en el otro.” También, nuestra capacidad de perdonar tiene una gran influencia en el otro, así como, en nosotros mismos. Es importante notar que el perdón tiene un doble efecto. Es una medicina de dosis única que cura a una o muchas personas al mismo tiempo. Se libera a aquel que es perdonado, y sana al que perdona.

En el Evangelio, Cristo lleva el perdón a un nivel diferente y práctico. Esto se desarrolla en el diálogo entre Pedro y Cristo. Pedro hizo una pregunta teórica: “¿Cuántas veces debo perdonar a mi hermano?” Jesús le respondió de la manera más práctica: “Hasta setenta veces siete.” La respuesta de Cristo, simplemente nos recuerda que el perdón cristiano no tiene límites. Debemos perdonar a todos y para siempre, como la oración de San Francisco de Asís dice: “Que donde haya ofensa, ponga yo perdón.”

Por lo tanto, para demostrar esto, Jesús dice una parábola sobre el Reino del cielo. Reflexionemos sobre cuántas veces hemos actuado como el siervo malvado. Fue perdonado una gran deuda, pero no podía perdonar a su vecino una poca deuda. Fue liberado, pero encarceló a su vecino. El mensaje de esta parábola es que debemos tratar a los demás misericordiosamente. Debemos perdonar, porque Dios nos perdona todos los días. No debemos siempre despreciar a nuestros vecinos. Más bien, debemos considerar sus situaciones como Dios considera nuestra situación siempre.

Jesús nos dice que perdonemos todo, y para siempre. ¿Qué significa perdonar todos y para siempre? En primer lugar, no significa: “Te perdono, pero vamos por caminos separados” o, te perdono, pero no quiero verte más en mi vida ” o, te perdono, pero no olvido”. Significa algo mucho más hondo. Significa restaurar la unidad, creer que es posible caminar juntos hacia una meta común. Significa curar una herida, sin dejar cicatriz.

Es importante añadir que, a veces, uno igualmente necesita perdonarse a sí mismo por las faltas cometidas contra uno mismo. Pena sin fin, o conciencia de culpa debido a los errores en la vida, reduce la calidad de vida de uno. Dificulta u obstaculiza tanto el progreso espiritual como el material. Por lo tanto, debemos perdonarnos a nosotros mismos también, para seguir viviendo en paz con uno mismos.

Finalmente, el que perdona actuar como Cristo. Así pues, mientras oramos hoy en esta celebración eucarística: “Perdónanos nuestras ofensas, como nosotros perdonamos a los que nos ofenden,” pidamos a Dios que nos ayude ser fiel a estas palabras, viviéndolas prácticamente.

¡La paz sea con ustedes!

¡Maranatha!

Forgiveness Liberates, And Heals

Readings: 1st: Sirac, 27: 30-28:7; Ps 102; 2nd: Rom 14, 7-9; Gos: Mt 18, 21-35

This brief reflection was written by Fr. Njoku Canice Chukwuemeka, C.S.Sp., DMin, a Catholic Priest and a member of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (Spiritans). He is a missionary in Puerto Rico. He is Director of Santuario del Espiritu Santo, Dorado, and the Major Superior of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (Spiritans), Circumscription of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Fr. Canice is a member of the Academy of Homiletics. For more details and comments, contact him at: canice_c_njoku@yahoo.com, canicechukwuemeka@gmail.com.

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Today is the twenty-fourth Sunday of ordinary time. Last week, the church reminded us of the importance of reconciliation through fraternal dialogue and mutual love. Today she invites us to reflect on forgiveness. It is a vital element of reconciliation and our Christian belief. It is the central message of today’s first and gospel readings.

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There is a famous saying that to err is human, while to forgive is divine. That is to say, the one who sins acts humanly. This is because it is part of our human attributes to err or sin. On the other hand, the one who forgives acts divinely. This is because to forgive is to participate in an essential attribute and nature of God. That is His divinity. Our God is known for this. “He is compassionate, merciful, loving and forgiving” (Ps 102).

The first reading of today focuses on forgiveness. First, it reminds us that we must forgive others for our prayers to be answered. Second, it presupposes that we are all sinners needing God’s forgiveness. So, to be forgiven, we must first forgive others. Therefore, Sirac urges us: “Forgive your neighbor the hurt he does to you, and when you pray, your sins will be forgiven.” This is a call to liberate others to liberate and heal ourselves.

In the second reading, Paul reminds us of something fundamental. “The life and death of each of us influence the other.” Also, our ability to forgive has a significant influence on others as well as on ourselves. Hence, it is important to note that forgiveness has a double effect. It is a single-dose medicine that cures one or many persons simultaneously. It liberates the one who is forgiven and heals the one who forgives.

In the gospel, Christ takes forgiveness to a different and practical level. This unfolds in the dialogue between Peter and Christ. Peter asked a theoretical question: “How many times must I forgive my brother?” Jesus answered him most practically: “seventy-seven times.” Christ’s response reminds us that Christian forgiveness does not have limits. We must forgive all, always and forever, as the prayer of Sant Francisco of Assis says: “Wherever there is injury (offense or hurt), forgiveness.”

Hence, to demonstrate this, Jesus tells a proverb about the kingdom of heaven. Let us reflect on how often we have acted like a wicked servants. He was forgiven an outstanding debt but could not forgive his neighbor a little debt. He was set free, but he jailed his neighbor. The message of this parable is that we must treat others mercifully. We must forgive because God forgives us every day. We must not always hold our neighbors in contempt. Instead, we must consider their situations as God considers our situation always.

Jesus tells us to forgive all and forever. What does it mean to forgive all and forever? First, it does not mean: “I forgive you, but we must go our separate ways,” or I forgive you, but I do not want to see you again in my life,” or I forgive you, but I will not forget.” It means something much more profound. It means restoring unity and believing it is possible to walk together toward a common goal. It means to heal a wound without leaving a scar.

It is essential to add that, at times, one must forgive oneself for the faults committed against self. Endless grieving or guilt conscience because of one’s mistakes in life reduces one’s quality of life. It hinders both spiritual and material progress. So, we must forgive ourselves, too, to continue living in peace with ourselves.

Finally, he who forgives acts like Christ. So, as we pray today at this Eucharistic celebration: “Forgive us our offenses, as we forgive those who offend us,” let us ask God to help us to be true to these words by living them practically.

Peace be with you all!

Maranatha!

Pip: What do you get when you take the Twenty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, a Spiritan missionary in Puerto Rico, and the perennial human talent for skipping straight to “treat him like a tax collector”? An episode, apparently.

Mara: That’s exactly the territory canicecnjoku covers this week — responsibility toward one another, the mechanics of reconciliation, and why mutual love is the method, not just the sentiment. Let’s start with the Sunday homily reflections.

Pip: The Twenty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time lands on a question that feels both ancient and Monday-morning urgent: when someone in your community goes wrong, what exactly are you obligated to do about it — and how?

Mara: The English homily sets the stakes directly from Paul’s second reading: “Avoid getting into debt, except the debt of mutual love.” The word “mutual” is doing real work there — this isn’t sentiment, it’s a two-directional obligation.

Pip: So the upshot is that love, in this framing, isn’t passive goodwill. It counsels, corrects, accepts correction, and shares the weight of responsibility. Silence isn’t neutral — it has consequences for the one who stays quiet.

Mara: Ezekiel makes that explicit. God tells the watchman: “I will hold you responsible.” The homily draws that line clearly — indifference to moral or spiritual decay in your community could, as the text puts it, be detrimental in the future.

Pip: Which is a remarkably gentle way of saying that looking the other way is its own kind of choice, with its own kind of cost.

Mara: And then the Gospel gives the practical architecture. Christ offers a three-step principle: dialogue one-on-one first, then seek a mediator, then bring in the wider community. The homily notes that dialogue sits at the center — the capacity to see things from another’s perspective, to empathize.

Pip: The Spanish homily — “Homilia del Vigésimo Tercero Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario” — covers the same scriptural ground for a Spanish-speaking audience, and it sharpens one image worth noting: dialogue, it says, promotes mutual respect, saves energy and time, and ultimately restores relationships. When both sides agree, God seals it.

Mara: Both versions close on the same diagnosis: we skip the steps. We go straight to treating the other person as a tax collector — the nuclear option — before exhausting the quieter, harder work of actually talking.

Pip: Turns out the three-step process isn’t complicated. It’s just inconvenient.

Mara: The homily would probably say that’s exactly why it needs spelling out, Sunday after Sunday.

Pip: Responsibility, dialogue, love as action rather than feeling — that’s the thread running through both texts, and it’s worth sitting with.

Mara: The through-line this week is accountability — to each other, through honest conversation, before anything escalates.

Pip: Dialogue first. Court of law a distant last resort. Same advice next Sunday, probably, because we keep needing it.