​Beloved in Christ,
 
Jesus says to his disciples: “In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?” (John 14:2). Prior to his ascension to heaven, Jesus taught his disciples of his divine identity, his heavenly destination, and his plan to have them follow in his path: “I will come again and take
you to myself, that where I am you may also.” He also adds, “and you know the way where I am going.” Thomas expresses our uncertainty about our ultimate end or destination, and how to get there. Jesus answered him: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). The goal of Jesus’ teaching here is to assure his followers that they will be rewarded with eternal covenantal communion with the Father after a lifetime of loving God and their neighbor. We all must long for the presence of the Father in heaven, where Jesus has gone ahead of us, as we say in the Creed, to sit at the right side of the Father. All our life on earth must be devoted to knowing Jesus and longing to follow in his way to the Father’s house, where he has gone ahead to prepare a place for each and every believer.
 
Pope St. John Paul II imbibed and lived the faith in his lifelong longing for God's eternal presence. According to Vatican News, Pope John Paul II’s last words at his bedside indicate his knowledge of Jesus as the way to the Father. Pope John Paul II’s last words, spoken in Polish around 3:30 pm on April 2, 2005, on the vigil of Divine Mercy Sunday, were “Pozwolcie mi odejsc do domu Ojca (”Let me go to the house of the Father”). To get to the Father’s house, to experience the beatific vision on the other side of the world, we must come to know Jesus. Jesus says, “If you had known me, you would have known my Father also, henceforth you know him and have seen him” (John 14:7). Jesus and the Father are equal in essence, substance, and nature. Hence, to know Jesus is to know the Father since Jesus is the incarnate Word of the Father. Now, how do we know Jesus? Apparently, spending a long time with him is no guarantee, as we see with Thomas and the other disciples. To know Jesus is to have absolute faith in Him and do His works. We must be in union and communion with him to know and follow where he has already gone ahead of us.
 
So, the question arises: Do I know Jesus? Do I know the promise he made about coming to take those who believe, know him, and do his work to the Father’s house? Do we recognize our identity as a part of “the holy priesthood” called “to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ”, a chosen people called “to announce God’s praise”? (1 Peter 2:5,9 ). What we must do is to revisit our followership and faith in Jesus. Are we totally submissive to him? Do we love Him with everything we have, with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength? It is clear from Jesus’ dialogue with Thomas that being a follower of Jesus does not necessarily mean one “knows” Jesus well enough to be assured of being on a sure path to truth and life. Jesus is the sole way to happiness and the presence of God. Do we know this to be true and live by our conviction? Let us review and renew our commitment to our baptismal promises, renouncing Satan and worldly allurements in order to fully commit to a deep daily longing for “the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction” (Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est, 1). Having this encounter, described by Pope Benedict XVI, is what it means to be a Christian, a follower of the Way, the truth, and the Life.
 
We have come to yet another opportunity to strengthen our devotion to Mary, the Mother of Jesus, the Queen of Heaven, who intercedes for all her children, all who believe and follow Jesus closely. May is the Month of Mary. When our religious education students crown the statue of Mary this Sunday, they indicate to us Mary's special role as Queen of Heaven and Earth. Mary is the Queen Mother who intercedes on behalf of all who love and are devoted to her. The act of crowning Mary, dating back to a 13th-century custom, will hopefully inspire us to express our love for the Mother of Jesus more deeply by praying her Rosary and imitating her virtues. Most canonized saints are known for their devotion to Mary and praying the Rosary. Let us join in that procession of embracing the Blessed Virgin Mary as our mother, crowning her with the rosary's rose beads.

In Jesus and Mary,
Fr. Alayode, OP
 

  Dearly Beloved,

"That very day, the first day of the week, two of Jesus' disciples were going to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus..." (Lk 24: 13). Let's take some time on this "first day of the week," this third Sunday of Easter, to reflect on the importance and necessity of going to mass every Sunday (if inclement weather or poor health do not impede us). Catholics are expected to attend Mass on all Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation. Why so? What is so special about Sunday? Early Christians received wisdom on the centrality of this day of all days in the week as a day primarily devoted to sacred worship. Pope St. John Paul II wrote of Sunday in the following words: “It is Easter which returns week by week, celebrating Christ's victory over sin and death, the fulfilment in him of the first creation and the dawn of "the new creation" (cf. 2 Cor 5:17). It is the day which recalls in grateful adoration the world's first day and looks forward in active hope to "the last day", when Christ will come in glory (cf. Acts 1:11; 1 Th 4:13-17) and all things will be made new (cf. Rev 21:5)” (Dies Domini, 1).
 
One of the earliest writings of the Church on early Christian understanding and practice on
Sunday, "the first day of the week," is found in today's Office of Reading (Divine Office, the
official prayer of the Church), St. Justin Martyr's "First Apologia," in which he describes what Christians did on that day:
they assemble, they share the Word of Sacred Scriptures, and they partake in the Holy Eucharist. Here are words from St. Justin's "First Apologia": "We hold our common assembly on Sunday because it is the first day of the week, the day on which God put darkness and chaos to flight and created the world, and because on that same day our savior Jesus Christ rose from the dead."

Sunday is primarily the Lord's Day! It is not sports day (though we can play sports with family), it is not party day( though we can celebrate a party with family and friends), it is not a day to sleep all morning and watch TV (though we can indeed rest more and recreate with family by watching movies or sports on TV together); it is above all the day Christ is revealed sacramentally to the assemble of the faithful in the explanation of the Scriptures and the breaking of bread (see Lk 24:32,35). On the Jewish Sabbath, what did Jesus do? He often went to the temple to worship. As followers of Jesus, we should imitate his spirit by gathering in person on Sunday to glorify and praise God through the liturgies of the Word and the Eucharist.
 
Attending Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation maintains God's covenant with us and offers him praise and thanksgiving for saving us from sin and death. It is why every Sunday is a mini-Easter, a day of the joyful celebration of the Risen Christ. The Mass on Sunday is preeminently foreshadowing the eternal banquet in heaven that we all look forward
to. Therefore, it would be best if you looked forward to every Mass, especially on Sundays, as a foretaste of heaven, which
is the purpose and destiny of our earthly journey. Always prioritize going to Mass on “the Lord’s Day, the lord of days”
(Dies Domini 2). Imagine missing Mass on Sunday as the equivalent of missing a taste of heaven on earth.
 
Congratulations to our children who received Holy Communion for the first time on Saturday. I taught them about the importance of attending Mass every Sunday. I told them it is the most excellent source of joy on earth: a meeting with the Real and Living Jesus. I pray they act on my instructions with the help of their parents and godparents. With Pope St. John Paul II, I invite you “to rediscover with new intensity the meaning of Sunday: its ‘mystery’, its celebration, its significance for Christian and human life” (Dies Domini 3). See you next Sunday! And strive to invite someone to mass if you can.
 
In Christ's Joy,
Fr. Alayode, OP
 

​Beloved in Christ,
 
“My Lord and My God!” (Jn 20:28). The first time I heard those words of Thomas called Didymus was from the lips of my parents after consecration at Mass. As a young child at Mass with my parents, I would often hear them say with faith and gaze on the raised consecrated host, "My Lord and my God!" Since then, I have never failed to make this act of faith at the elevation of the Consecrated Host and Chalice at Mass. However, this act of faith by Thomas in the divinity of the Risen Christ flows from a beginning rooted in doubt and uncertainty; hence the term, "Doubting Thomas." Thomas wanted proof, or is it evidence, that Jesus has indeed risen. The Bible says that on the evening of the first day of the week, Jesus appeared to the apostles, who locked themselves up in a room out of fear of the Jews. He showed them his hands and side as proof that it was his resurrected, glorified body, and they believed with their eyes. Thomas was absent and would not believe the disciples' words unless he saw the marks of the nails in his hands, put his finger into the nail marks, and put his hand into his side; he would not believe (see Jn 20:19-25).
 
There is a lot of unbelief that attends to the revealed truth of faith in our time. Within and outside the Church are people who will not make an act of faith unless they see, touch, and verify. Some people consider the scientific method the only acceptable way of knowing. Many will not believe the doctrines of our faith, such as the Real Presence in the Sacred Host, unless they can verify the facts behind them; they need materialist proof. They exclude faith as a way of knowing when faith itself is involved, even in scientific methods. Facts do not exclude faith. Faith is always a way of knowing. We do not have to see, observe, and experiment to believe in the reality of a claim, especially the mystery of faith.
 
We believe and exercise faith in the revealed truth about the resurrection of Jesus from the dead without falling into the notion of blind faith. Our faith also has evidence to back it. We are even better off for believing without seeing. We believe based on trust in God's love for us. From Scripture and Christian living, we know that God is faithful to his promises and cannot deceive. We have to nourish our faith daily through prayer, meditation on the Scriptures, and action in faith.
 
On this Divine Mercy Sunday, we are called to affirm our faith in the Divine Mercy that flows from the side of Jesus on the Cross and the wounds from his risen body. Today, we pray the Divine Mercy and perform the required acts of faith to receive a plenary indulgence, remitting all temporal punishments due for our sins. God has provided a fountain of mercy in the sacrament of reconciliation. Let us receive it frequently in faith.
 
We will conclude the Octave of Easter with the communal praying of the Divine Mercy chaplet at 2:30 pm here in our church. The Novena to Divine Mercy, begun on Good Friday, ends with the outpouring of God’s ocean of mercy into our souls. Let’s come in our numbers to partake of this superabundant grace of mercy.
 
Please note that the bowl of water on a decorated stand at the entrance to the church narthex is taken from the water blessed at the Easter vigil. Its purpose is to highlight the centrality of baptism in Eastertide and our Christian life.
 
In Christ’s Mercy,
 
Fr. Alayode, OP
 

 Beloved in Christ,

Jesus is alive! He was raised from the dead! We rejoice in the victory of the Risen Christ over sin and death. "This is the day the lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad" (Ps 118: 24). Early in the morning on the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala, and later Peter and John, in that order,  went into the tomb where Jesus was buried and found it empty. His body was not in the tomb (see John 20:1-9). The empty tomb signifies and tells the story of our justification- his resurrection redeems our lost lives due to sin. The disciples came to believe in the resurrection of Jesus when they found his tomb empty. Jesus has risen bodily from the tomb. Jesus rises from the dead, and so shall we rise with him! Alleluia!!

We should make a big deal out of this sacred event- the resurrection of Jesus. Jesus, who suffered, was crucified, died, and was buried on Good Friday, is now alive! St. Peter recalls his death and resurrection in his sermon in the Acts of the Apostles, "They put him to death by hanging him on a tree. This man God raised on the third day..." (10:40). The resurrection of Christ is a fantastic act by the mere fact that he who was put to death for our sin defied death and, in fulfillment of the prophets, is now alive to die no more. We, too, his followers, will live forever.

Jesus died, and he rose, and so what? What’s next? Jesus’ resurrection has consequences for all who die in Him, because now they will live in Him forever; death will never have the last word over them. The good news of Jesus' resurrection has additional consequences for all believers. Now that we are risen with him in baptism, we must seek him who is in heaven. "If then you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God" (Col 3:1). From now on, we must bear witness to the risen Christ. We are now witnesses to the risen Christ. We must continue to reflect on what the call to become witnesses of the resurrection of Christ means for us in the next fifty sacred days of the Easter season and beyond- into Pentecost.

But for now, on this Easter morning, let us offer "a joyful sacrifice of praise" to the Paschal Victim (sequence) because He is alive; death did not have the final say! Easter is, above all, a joyful season. According to St. Athanasius, "The fifty days from the Sunday of the Resurrection to Pentecost Sunday are celebrated in joy and exultation as one feast day, indeed as 'one Great Sunday.' "  For the next fifty days and into Pentecost, may Jesus always be alive in us as we strive daily to witness to the power of his resurrection by living our lives in Him and for Him.

Do keep the ongoing Novena to Divine Mercy in mind. We will conclude the Octave of Easter with a parish celebration of Divine Mercy Sunday devotion starting at 2:30 p.m. next week. Also, keep in mind that tomorrow, Monday within the Octave of Easter, is our parish's monthly Eucharistic adoration. Let’s come adore the Risen Lord in joyful songs of praise and thanksgiving.


The Lord is risen indeed! Shout Alleluia!

Happy Easter!

Fr. Alayode, OP