​Beloved in Christ,
 
Merry Christmas! We celebrate the feast of the Holy Family in the Octave of Christmas. It is essential to highlight that Jesus, the redeemer of the world, was born into the human family of Mary and Joseph. The incarnation took place within a human family, a family set apart for the glory of God. What a great insight the holy family has given us today: holiness is found embedded in the frail, human family. Within the divinely ordered structure of the family- dad, mom, and children, a human interrelationship, a life ordered to the glory and reflection of God’s familial relationship, is made manifest. This is good news. Merry Christmas!
 
Responsibility, honour and authority are central values sewn into the fabric of the human family. As Sirach (3: 2-6, 12-14) and Colossians (3:12-17), and Mathew (2:13-15, 19-23) reveal to us in the liturgy of the word, fathers play roles that are different from roles played by mothers, and children have specific responsibilities toward their parents. Each one is assigned to a particular, yet similar role based on the Christian principle of love and respect. With love comes responsibility. Once each member of the family is aware of the responsibilities it owes others, the family is on its way to holiness. We see Joseph take on the responsibility for protecting the family in the Gospel for this Sunday. We also see the honour and authority fathers and mothers have over their children in Sirach and how children are called to obey their parents in Colossians. Responses to these divinely ordered roles make Christian families holy.
 
God established holiness within the human family, with all its imperfections. The holy family of Jesus, Mary and Jesus is not without its own difficulties. For instance, in the Gospel account according to Matthew (2:13-15, 19-23), we hear of the danger posed to baby Jesus and how his father and mother made difficult decisions to migrate to a foreign land to protect the holy family. Families go through periods of difficulties, be it on account of external, violent threat, failed parenting or marriage, misbehaving or wayward children ( we recently had a couple of bad news stories in the media of children killing their parents). Let it be known that the holy family, too, had its share of hardships, disappointments, and sorrows.  
 
Holiness is not without difficulties. Raising your children and making your home a Christian home does not guarantee freedom from moments of fright and worry. Those stress-filled moments are part of the ingredients that make up the holy family. The problems that arise from raising a Christian family can be turned into opportunities to place our trust in God’s love, protection, and grace and to solidify it. With the example of the Holy Family as a guide, let us make it our goal to structure our family on the principle of faith, love, and responsibility to one another. Let us take our family problems to God in prayer, asking for the intercession of the Holy Family. Let's renew our commitment to family prayer. A family that prays together will live holy.
 
On this day, nineteen years ago (December 28, 2006), the soul of my beloved father, Lawrence Ajibade Oniwe, departed this world for eternity with the Father; I hope and pray. He was one human being I honoured and still honour. The example of St. Joseph inspired his authority over the family. I will continue to miss him. Please remember him in your prayers.
 
Merry Christmas to all families of St. Peter. I look forward to a holy New Year with you.
 
Fr. Alayode Bernard, OP
 

Dear Friends in Christ,
  
God is One of Us. As I was reflecting on St. Matthew’s account of the incarnation of God, Joan Osborne’s 1995 hit song, “One of Us”, came to mind. In the chorus verse of the somewhat theologically controversial song, she sang repeatedly, “What if God was one of us?” What if he were a “slob” or a “stranger on the bus,” what if he were just a regular Joe? Today’s Gospel account answers the questions in the affirmative, God is indeed one of us, a person with an identity, son of Joseph, son of David and Mary, the ever virgin. He took on our humanity through the “yes” of simple people and was born in an obscure place in Bethlehem. His name, according to the prophecy in Isaiah 7:14, is Emmanuel, meaning “God is with us” (Mt 1:23).
 
God stoops low to conquer (apology to Oliver Goldsmith). In becoming one with us, taking up our humanity, born into the squalor and obscurity of the stable in Bethlehem, he demonstrates his love and humility, and so saves us. His love, because all he did was for our benefit, not his; it was a selfless giving. Humility, because the creator chooses to inhere our flawed human nature and poverty to show us the way to truth and life. God’s oneness with us came about because ones like us, Joseph and Mary, chose to listen and comply with the divine will despite the difficulty that came with their YES! A woman who is yet to live with her husband suddenly becomes pregnant. A man who had no intimate union with his betrothed is asked to be the father of the child she is pregnant with. God had to depend on free will fiats from Mary and Joseph to become one of us and with us, and to save us. This is a testimony to the power of trusting in God in all events of our lives, no matter the trials that accompany them.
 
We will come to the end of the Advent season on Wednesday, and by sunrise, begin the celebration of the nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ in a couple of days. The great solemnity will sneak up on us, so to speak. As a result of the nearness, I want to anticipate the solemnity by wishing you all a Merry Christmas! It will be my seventh Christmas with our loving and growing parish, and I look forward to it with the excitement of children gathered around the Christmas tree, opening their presents. The joy at the Family Bingo last Sunday and at the Advent meditation and adoration with Mark Forrest this past Monday, on a snowy, freezing evening, are pleasant signs of greater things to come as we properly enter the Christmas season. Let’s keep the Christmas spirit in sight in the few days left of Advent. Seek to be one with God who became one with you on Christmas Day.
 
Have a Holy Advent and Merry Christmas, friends!
 
In His Hope and Will,
 
Fr. Alayode Bernard, OP
 

Beloved in Christ,
“Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” (Mt 11:2). Is God not who he says he is? Is Jesus truly present in our world? Am I seeing myself grow spiritually? John the Baptist must have wondered, in his pain and suffering, whether Jesus was truly the Messiah he claimed to be. We too have our doubts and questionings of the presence of God in our world, is Jesus at work in our lives?
 
Christ came 2000 years ago at the first Christmas, yet the world is still in the darkness of sin, violence, war, hate, lies, suffering, and aimless death. We were baptized, received Eucharist frequently, confirmed, yet and despite this, Jesus' coming and presence in our lives, we still show weakness and sin and suffer pains and anguish.
 
Despite conditions that make us wonder whether God is with us because of suffering and trials, despite our wondering and doubts about whether we are growing in faith, we know for sure that the Light of joy is present in the darkness of sin and evil that sometimes envelopes our lives. The Lord will come and save us, the Psalmist says to us this morning. God is with us, he is near, the coming of the Lord is near, St James reminds us. Here is your God, he comes to save you, says the prophet Isaiah.
 
No cause for alarm, Jesus is here in our world, in our Church, in our individual lives. The seed of Christ's presence 2000 years ago is still growing patiently and quietly in a world that seems to only show us darkness. Look at all the good brought into the world since Christ came at first Christmas: catholic schools, orphanages, hospitals, saints. See how you have lived life based on hope, faith, and a good Christian conscience. These are the fruits of Christ's presence in our lives.
We only need to be patient and trust in the Lord. Until his second coming and his daily comings, we must be joyfully expectant and live in hope that there is light on the horizon. Like the farmer in today’s letter of St James, we must be patient to see the seeds we plant blossom. We are called to build in faith, patiently and expectantly. Donovan’s song, “Little Church”, in the film based on the life of St. Francis of Assisi, Brother Sun, Sister Moon, captures this sense for us: 
 
“If you want your dream to be
Build it slow and surely.
Small beginnings, greater ends
Heartfelt work grows purely.
 
If you want to live life free
Take your time go slowly.
Do few things but do them well
Simple joys are holy.
 
Grow slowly and steadily. It takes time to grow spiritually. Like many saints, we may not see the signs of God’s presence in the midst of our struggles, sin and sufferings we encounter daily, we may have our doubt and questionings like John the Baptist but like St. Teresa of Avila, who for the first 20 years of her spiritual life was not on fire,  we must persist in prayers and charity until our faith starts to blossom. The saints have much to teach us about how God is joyfully encountered, even in the darkness of a sad and sorrowful world. Let us be joyful as we patiently allow Jesus to come into our lives at Christmas and every day. We must do our part in watering and fertilizing the soil as we wait patiently for the seeds of faith planted in us to grow and blossom. Be patient and have no doubt that Jesus is the one who is to come, and he is near. Do not doubt but rejoice that he is near on this Gaudete Sunday.
 
We had our Advent penance service last Friday. Many of us have had the opportunity to prepare a home in our hearts for Jesus to dwell at Christmas by taking advantage of several opportunities for sacramental reconciliation. We have an additional aid in our preparation for a joyful Christmas tomorrow at our Advent Night of prayer and adoration led by Mark Forrest, Irish Tenor. It promises to be another amazing night of hope and joy; you don’t want to miss it. Invite a friend to come with you.
 
With joy,
 
Fr. Alayode Bernard, OP
 

Beloved in Christ,
 
"Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight" (Matt 3:3). John the Baptist preached and provided a cleansing bath of repentance. He is the Elijah Isaiah prophesied would come to prepare the way for the Messiah, the Messiah who will establish the kingdom of heaven. John the Baptist's baptism of repentance was to clear the path for the entrance of the Lord of Lords into the hearts of the people of Israel. Repentance is a significant factor in establishing God's reign in our lives. To prepare for the access of Jesus into our lives and to make his path straight and smooth, we need to repent and show signs of repentance. What does repentance consist of? What does it mean to repent?
 
When John the Baptist announced the coming of the Lord in the desert, the people of Israel had waited for generations; he offered an opening to a life of grace. By inviting them to receive the baptism of repentance, he quickly added that his baptism was different and lesser than the baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire that Jesus was coming to grant the people. Yet, in the baptism of John the Baptist, we get a clear idea of the importance of changing our way of seeing the world. Anyone preparing as they await the coming of Jesus and his kingdom into their lives must first have a modified or altered perspective on life. Such a change is what repentance entails and consists of. The Greek word used in the New Testament is metanoia. It means "beyond the perception of the mind. "In a fuller sense, metanoia (repentance) encompasses many things: a change of mind or heart or a new way of seeing, thinking, or looking at life, an embrace of a different set of values and attitude, a transformation of consciousness. Advent is an ideal time to go to the desert and experience repentance.
 
The desert experience is necessary for preparation for repentance. We are waiting for God's kingdom's arrival in our lives and the world through it. According to spiritual writer Alan Jones, in his book Soul Making, the desert is more than a place. The desert is an experience of solitude, conversion, and transformation. It demands a response that leads to revelation and revolution in the spiritual sense. In the silence and stillness of the desert, you will experience a total confrontation with yourself, a closer look at things and people, face situations one would rather avoid, and answer questions one would rather forget. John the Baptist invites us to the desert experience. Could you find the time and place to be still and wait in silence? I can guarantee you that by entering into the spiritual desert, you will find a need to confess your sins (Matt 3:6). "Since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," (Rom 3:23) as St Paul reminds us, we all need to "repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near" (Matt 3:2).
 
If you have not gone to sacramental confession in a year, you should go as soon as possible. If you have not approached the Sacrament of reconciliation in months or weeks, you need to have the desert experience, receive sacramental absolution, and emerge a "born-again" catholic. Please save the date for our parish penitential service on Friday, December 12, at 7 p.m.

In Hope and Love,
​
Fr. Alayode Bernard, OP