Category: EVERGREEN REFLECTIONS
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THE WAYS OF LOVE
Reflection for the Sixth Sunday of Easter (Year A) Rev. Fr. Boniface Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Ten years ago, I missed an appointment with death in an ugly car accident. My saving grace was God’s love in the person of Jesus Christ, substantially and really present in the Holy Eucharist. It was a Sunday evening.…
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DEALING WITH TROUBLES
Reflection for the 5th Sunday of Easter (Year A) Rev. Fr. Boniface Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. The trouble with trouble is that it comes with others. It often comes with other relations and companions. For instance, finding a remedy to trouble is often trouble itself. Another trouble with trouble is that it does not respect…
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THE GOOD SHEPHERD VS THE GOOD BUTCHER
Fourth Sunday of Easter (Good Shepherd Sunday) Rev. Fr. Boniface Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Once upon a time, a priest led his church members on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. While they were on a bus on the first day of their tour of the Holy Land, the priest started teaching the pilgrims about shepherds and…
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HOW TO JOURNEY WITH THE LORD:
THE EMMAUS ENCOUNTER Reflection for the Second Sunday of Easter (Year A) Rev. Fr. Bonnie Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. There is such a thing as an awkward moment. It describes an embarrassing situation with no remedy; it could also be called a messy situation. For example, imagine forgetting your friend’s name while introducing them to another…
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THE MYSTERY AND POWER OF SACRIFICE
Reflection for the Palm Sunday Rev. Fr. Boniface Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. A powerful line from an unknown creative writer says, “without sacrifice, there is no victory.” But what is sacrifice in the real sense of the word? According to Blessed Mother Theresa of Calcutta, “to be real, a sacrifice must cost, hurt, and empty…
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ARE YOU BORN BLIND?
Reflection For the 4th Sunday of Lent (Year A) Rev. Fr. Boniface Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Our Lord Jesus Christ defined the eye as the light of the body (Matt. 6:22b). So, without the eye, the body is dark. Blindness is a highly limiting physical impairment that impedes our natural human desire to see. “Seeing is…
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Trust And Obey: The Transfiguration Way
Reflection For the Second Sunday of Lent (Year A) Rev. Fr. Boniface Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Did you know it is reasonably better to be trusted than loved or appreciated? Unfortunately, most people seek to be loved but lack the foreground to be trusted. Trust involves believability and strong confidence in someone’s words and actions. To…
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HOW TO OVERCOME TEMPTATIONS
Reflection for the First Sunday of Lent (Year A) Rev. Fr. Boniface Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Tim’s mom caught him stealing chocolate from a container and confronted him for stealing against her instructions. Crying, he began explaining to his mother, “Mom, I was minding my business when my eyes started going to the container, and before…
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PREPARING FOR THE ASH WEDNESDAY AND THE LENTEN SEASON
Rev. Fr. Bonnie Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. One common mistake some shepherds of souls make is that they start giving directions about the season of Lent when it has already started with Ash Wednesday. The challenge is that most people must be reminded of their expectations and obligations for more committed involvement before the season…
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YOUR CHOICES DETERMINE YOUR CHANCES
Reflection for the 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Rev. Fr. Bonnie Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. In the morning, you choose whether to wake up from the left or the right, Depending on the position of your bed. Someone jokingly remarked, “if you find out that you woke up from the left side, go back…
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THE SALT AND LIGHT ENGAGEMENT
Reflection for the 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Rev. Fr. Bonnie Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Life without salt and light is unimaginable because salt and light are two necessary realities we may not dispense with. Significantly salt and light share striking similarities. First, they do not go unnoticed; in other words, they always make…
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THE BEATITUDES OF THE REMNANTS
Reflection For The 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Rev. Fr. Boniface Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Have you ever heard that someone emerged from nowhere and suddenly turned out to become a famous or influential person? The truth is that nobody comes from nowhere; God makes people. The apostle Peter said that God could transform…
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FINDING THE LIGHT AMID THE DARKNESS
Reflection for the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Rev. Fr. Bonnie Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Any reader of ancient philosophy or classics will be conversant with Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave.” The narrative is cast as a dialogue between Plato’s teacher Socrates and his brother Glaucon and talks about a group of…
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THE TESTIMONY OF THE MAN SENT FROM GOD
Reflection for the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Rev. Fr. Bonnie Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. If you have ever attended an event featuring some famous socialites, or political figures, you may recall that they do not just show up on the stage; someone, mostly the master of ceremony, needs to announce their presence…
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THE MOTHERHOOD OF MARY AT THE DAWN OF A NEW YEAR
Reflection on the Feast of the Motherhood of Mary Rev. Fr. Bonnie Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Nestorius was a brilliant monk who later became a priest and the Bishop of Constantinople from Ad 428 to 431. Unfortunately, you will find out that he would later become popular for the wrong reasons. Nestorius deviated from the teaching…
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CELEBRATING THE ORIGINAL CHRISTMAS
A Christmas Reflection Rev. Fr. Bonnie Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. What excites you about Christmas? Do you know Christmas enough to celebrate it? There are more lies about Christmas than any other event on earth. Children are groomed to believe that Santa Claus (Father Christmas) comes to town from the milky way galaxy, riding on a…
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THE SIGN OF LOVE IN “AHAZIC” SITUATIONS
Reflection for the Fourth Sunday of Advent (Year A) Rev. Fr. Bonnie Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Back in the day, when there was no internet or mobile phones, people had a more personal and experiential way of encountering events by accessing some intelligible signs. A sign generally points to something other than itself. Another way…
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ENGAGING THE POWER OF JOY IN THE FACE OF TROUBLES
Reflection for the Third Sunday of Advent (Year A) Rev. Fr. Bonnie Nkem Anusiem Ph.D. Have you ever felt joy in your life? Before giving an affirmative answer, we need to understand what joy is and how it differs from happiness. You may have seen an inflated decorative balloon used to celebrate a birthday,…