​Beloved in Christ,

The presentation of the Lord in the Temple is celebrated forty days after Christmas in the liturgical calendar. It is the fourth Joyful Mystery of the Rosary. This feast, whose beginning is in the fourth century Jerusalem, is also called Candlemas (Candle mass) to illustrate Simeon's acknowledgment of the fulfillment of the prophecy that Jesus is "a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for the glory to your people Israel" (Lk 2:32). Consequently, candles are blessed at mass this Sunday for liturgical and personal use throughout the year.

The presentation recalls the events recorded in this Sunday's Gospel passage from Luke: Mary and Joseph bring their son to the Temple for consecration as the firstborn male child, fulfilling the Law. In the Temple, they came in contact with Simeon and Anna, two distinguished servants of God who revealed the mission of Jesus as the "light of the nation." Jesus is recognized as the light that will draw all to his presence. That is why, on this feast, the priest blesses our candles to be lit for procession and those for use during the liturgical year. We bear the lit candle in procession into the church, symbolic of our acceptance and followership of Christ, the light of the World.

This Sunday is also observed as World Day for Consecrated Life. According to St. John Paul II, the aim is "to help the entire Church esteem ever more greatly the witness of those persons who have chosen to follow Christ by means of the practice of evangelical counsels" and " to be a suitable occasion for consecrated persons to renew their commitment and rekindle the fervor with which should inspire the offering of themselves to the Lord."

As we celebrate the feast of the Presentation, let us continue to invite our young men and women to consider a vocation to the priesthood and the consecrated life. It is a beautiful gift from God to the world. In embracing the call to this life, we indicate our priority for total dedication to God and become a sign of the promise of the world to come. I believe God has given us vocation in this parish. God has designated some of your sons and daughters for vocation to the priesthood and consecrated life. Let's do our part in encouraging and supporting this sacred call. Let me remind you that we now have a Vocation Awareness Ministry in our parish that you can contact if you have someone in mind you think God might be calling to consecrate their life to Christ and his Church.

In Christ our Light,

Fr. Bernard Alayode, OP
 

 Beloved in Christ,
 
"He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah" (Is 4: 16). We just heard a gospel passage read to us that Jesus went into the synagogue on a sabbath day, as was his custom, stood up, and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah from which he read of the prophecy about the messiah who will announce good tidings, proclaim liberty to captives, restore sight to the blind, and set in a year of the Lord's blessings. Jesus is the living fulfillment of this prophetic passage. Sacred scriptures are God's words and plans for our ultimate good. If it was customary for Jesus to go to the synagogue to read and preach the Word of God, what about us? What is our relationship to the Word of God?
 
Today is the Sunday of the Word of God. Pope Francis established this celebration of the centrality of the Bible in Christian life as a universal event just six years ago, and we must make the best of this opportunity. The Church encourages us to develop a love for Sacred Scriptures by owning one, reading and meditating on it, and applying its instructions to our daily lives. What is one good reason for reading and meditating on the Bible? Jesus! Jesus was a man of the Sacred Scripture. He read and used the Scriptures in his ministry and life. Jesus quotes the Scriptures so often to explain and defend his mission. He even used the words of the Scriptures to fight and defeat the devil's temptation after his forty days of fasting. Jesus revealed his identity to the Jewish people by referencing the Old Testament, as in today's gospel. After reading messianic prophecies from Isaiah, he gave a short reflection that shows that he is the Messiah, the anointed one: "Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing" (Lk 4:21).
 
If Jesus was familiar with the Holy Scriptures, so should we. We should imitate our Lord. The Bible's central character is Jesus Christ himself. He fulfills all of God's promises to humanity. If we must deepen our knowledge and increase our love of Jesus, we must make reading the Bible an essential part of our daily Christian living. As St. Jerome famously said, "Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ." The Bible scholar saint taught us that the Bible contains the wisdom and power of God, and seriously studying the Sacred Word is not an option but an obligation for one who wants to grow in the knowledge and love of Christ. I strongly encourage those who do not have one to get a Catholic Bible with orthodox commentary. I can recommend a couple to you. I have many versions and translations of the Bible. I read them comparatively and studied the commentaries. I can testify that my constant reading, study, and praying of the Bible has been a significant source of my enduring faith in times of distress. Get a Bible. Read your Bible daily. Get to know God and his plans for you.
 
Talking about God's plan for us, Scripture was very instructive in discovering God's plan regarding my vocation. Reading the Bible helped me realize that God had called me a priest. Other factors contribute to that awareness. The Church and family were also a big part. In light of this, I am happy to announce that, in fulfilling the wish of Bishop Timothy Senior and Fr. Josh Weaver, the Diocesan vocation director,  our parish recently established a Vocation Awareness Ministry (VAM). I want to express my heartfelt thanks to the following generous volunteers who are part of the VAM membership: Don Heffner, Rob Cavender, Holly Collins, Lisa Cleveland, and Frank Telenko. Thanks!
 
In Christ,
 
Fr. Bernard Alayode, OP
 

​Beloved in Christ,
 
"This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory" (Jn 2:11). The first part of the gospel of John is called the Book of Signs. In John's narrative, he refers to miracles as signs. There are seven signs in all that Jesus performed. What are the significance of these signs? What do those signs point to? What is the importance of the sign at Cana in Galilee? What does this first sign by Jesus in John's gospel say about him?
 
Signs is the English translation of the Greek "Semeion," which implies that Jesus' miracles or signs point to something beyond the act. Jesus indeed brought about a change of water to wine, a miracle! However, Jesus' sign goes beyond the miraculous act to indicate something about Jesus' identity. Jesus is the new wine that brings joy, gladness, and abundance. The more profound meaning and significance of turning water into wine is connected with the prophecies and events in the Old Testament. The motif of wedding and banquet points to the identity of Jesus and our need to trust in Him. The wedding sign is indicative of God's covenantal union with his people. We see the allusion to marriage between God and his people in our first reading from Isaiah 62. St. Paul would later write on this espousal of God to his people in the new covenant as it implies the union of Christ to his body, the Church (Eph 6). The marriage of Jesus, the groom to his bride, the Church, is the reconciliation of God to his people, restoring the proper relationship between God and his people.
 
The image of the wedding extends to the banquet held to celebrate the nuptial act. The Jewish wedding banquet is lavish, with an abundant supply of wine and food that lasts seven days. The celebration was crashing because they ran out of wine, as Mary announced to her son. Jesus is the one who restores joy and gladness. He asked that the six stone water jars that can hold thirty gallons be filled and served to the guest. On tasting the drink, the head waiter announced with excitement that the groom had just served the best wine at the end of the banquet instead of at the beginning. Here, we see the sign pointing to us placing our trust in Jesus, the perfect one, he who can restore our joy and grant us life in abundance (Jn 10:10). Jesus reveals himself through the sign at Cana as the messiah who comes to restore us to living union with the Father, to complete in the New Covenant what is incomplete in the Old Covenant. Through this sign, he shows his glory and identity as the world's redeemer and calls us to believe in him and trust in his power to transform our lives. Can we trust Jesus and believe in his words as Mary, his mother, tells us: "Do whatever he tells you"? We should.
 
Next Sunday is designated as Sunday of the Word of God, an opportunity for the body of Christ to devote herself to celebrating, studying, and disseminating the Word of God. To celebrate this day solemnly, I encourage each of us to come to mass next Sunday with our bible; we will use it literally and metaphorically.
 
Have a Happy Martin Luther King, Jr Day!
 
In Christ, I trust.
 
Fr. Bernard Alayode, OP
 

 Beloved in Christ,
 
"After all the people had been baptized and Jesus also had been baptized...." (Lk 3:21). In today's feast, we celebrate the baptism of Jesus by John the baptism at the River Jordan. Why would Jesus need baptism? This is the first question that came to mind when reading about Jesus' baptism. Jesus has not sinned. The baptism conducted by John is not sacramental as we have it today; it is a sign of cleansing and purification according to the Old Law. But even then, Jesus did not have a personal sin that needed cleansing. Jesus went under the requirement of the Law for our sake and was an example to us to fulfill the demands of the Law. He chose to submit himself to the Law's requirement and instructed us to obey God's Law. Also, by requesting baptism, Jesus, according to St. Augustine, intends to "freely proclaim through his humility what for us was to be a necessity." We need baptism because it is the first step towards our salvation (See 1 Pet 3:21).
 
Jesus prepares us for the Sacrament of Baptism by his baptism, which he will require as the doorway to the journey to paradise. The necessity of baptism is indicated when he commanded baptism in the power of the Holy Trinity at his Ascension (Mt 28:13). In the sacrament of baptism, Jesus himself is at work in us as He, the Father and the Holy Spirit come to make a home in us and make us sons and daughters of God. As John says, so it is; Jesus' baptism is done in power and effects a supernatural change to our soul. "He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire" (Lk 3:16).
 
The day of our baptism should be the most cherished one. On that day, our sins, original or actual, are forgiven, and we not only become sons and daughters of God by adoption, but we also receive faith and grace. Without these gifts, our longings and desires are never going to be fulfilled. Through the gifts of baptism, we receive help to make our efforts fruitful. By the grace of baptism, God makes our lives bear the fruits of a heavenly dimension. God healed our sin-soiled nature with this healing sacrament. What a great gift we receive in baptism! And how unaware are we of what happened to us at such a mystery-filled moment of baptism? Our mouths will be filled with praise and thanks only if we know what happened to our souls at our baptism.
 
St Leo the Great famously says of baptism in a Christmas homily: "Thanks to the Sacrament of Baptism you have been turned into a temple of the Holy Spirit. Don't let it happen that you drive away so noble a guest by your evil deeds, or ever again submit to the power of the demon: for a price you were bought with is the Blood of Christ." May we heed St. Leo's exhortation. Let us be thankful to God for the gift of our baptism. Let us begin to apprehend the meaning and implications of our baptism. Let us recover the faith and grace of this sacrament if we have allowed sin or indifference to the life of faith to make us lose them. Let us turn to the Lord to help those who have become passive or dormant in exercising their baptismal faith and grace. We know of so many in our families and parish. In particular, to our parish family, let us raise prayers of praise and thanks to God for all the five children who received the sacrament of baptism from our baptismal fount in 2024.
 
After the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, we come to the end of the Christmas season, and Ordinary Time begins on Monday, 13 January. Let's continue with the daily business of seeking and embracing life in Christ. Don't forget that our first parish monthly Adoration of the Year is on Monday, 13 January, at 6 p.m.
 
In Christ,
Fr. Bernard Alayode, OP
 

​Beloved in Christ,
 
The divine gift of the Baby Jesus continues to draw the attention of all and now constitutes a universal appeal. The baby born in Bethlehem invites the attention of the Magi from the East, an indication of the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah. Today, we remember the revelation of the Light to all people. Prophet Isaiah says in the First reading, "Nations shall walk by your light, and kings by your shining radiance" (Is 60:3). When Matthew writes, "We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage (Mat 2:2), he indicates the fulfillment of the prophecy about the expected king of the Jews whose influence will extend to the far ends of the world.
 
The gift of the baby God gave us on Christmas day, the baby who took our humanity to restore it, is the subject of the magi's adoration. The three magi from the East, guided by the Light, come bearing their riches to worship the newborn king: "They opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh" (Mt 2: 11). 
 
The feast we celebrate today is the gift of our acceptance into God's family, which is no longer limited to the Jews but is now accessible to all nations. This gift of light, in the words of St. Paul, is the mystery not made known to people in other generations; it is the good news "that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel" (Eph 3:6).
 
We, too, like the magi, guided by the bright morning star and the light of the world, must bring to fulfillment the prophecy contained in our responsorial mass regarding the Lord, "every nation on earth will adore you" (Ps 72: 11). As the magi adored the baby Saviour in the manger, as "They prostrated themselves and did him homage" (Mt 2:11), so must we offer him our lives in worship. Let us renew our baptismal vow in this new year to serve Him more intensely, placing all our gifts- prayers and talents on the altar of the Sacrifice of mass. We must freely and joyfully surrender to Him all our lives in praise and thanksgiving. No lesser gift than the gift of our lives is sufficient for the newborn king, the Light of life.
 
 
Merry Christmas!
 
Fr. Bernard Alayode, OP