The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ  King of the Universe
 
                                                            Is Christ the King of our Lives?
 
The inscription above him reads “This is the King of the Jews.” We see a man nailed to the cross, sandwiched between two thieves similarly nailed to the cross, one seeking his mercy, the other one mocking his kingship. The soldiers jeer at him, questioning his kingship. This distasteful sight on the cross, the crucified Christ, is indeed our king and we are called to be his subjects by choice. Is he truly a king? Are we his subjects? Can such an unattractive person on the cross of shame be one we want to submit our wills to? Jesus is indeed the King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16). He is the offspring of David whose lineage God promised would one day produce the Messiah who will rule over God's everlasting kingdom (2 Samuel 7: 12-16).
 
Jesus is truly the king whom we pray in the Lord's prayer for his Kingdom to come. His kingship and kingdom are not to be likened in any way in form or spirit to those of the world. He is a king in the spirit of a shepherd who seeks to lay down his life to serve and save. He saves us by his sacrifice, sufferings and shame on the cross of Calvary. One of the thieves crucified along with Jesus came to this realization and pleaded with Jesus to remember him in his kingdom and he was graciously rewarded with a swift change to his eternal status: “Amen , I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.” Do we realize that saving grace comes from the suffering king on the cross? Is Crucified Christ the king of our lives?
 
When Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast of Christ the King in 1925 he intended that we recognize the universal Lordship of Jesus Christ via the way of the Cross and submit ourselves to his dominion. We are to surrender our independence to this shepherd-king because his kingship is devoted to saving us in the way we could not save ourselves. Like the repentant thief crucified with Jesus, let us surrender our will, mind, soul and body to Jesus' dominion; seeking to do his will and serve his kingdom. Let us pray the lyrics of that beautiful song to the King of the Universe: “Shepherd of my soul, I give you full control.”
 
Is Christ the king of your life? In what ways?
Happy Thanksgiving Day! 
 
In the service of the Crucified King,
Fr. Bernard Oniwe, OP
 

 
Dear Friends in Christ,

Persecution, Perseverance, and Parousia

Basic Christian living is marked by three inter-related expectations: persecution, perseverance and Parousia. These three realities are necessary consequences of confession and practice of faith that if they were to be missing from the life of a Christian, a reevaluation of commitment to faith would be required.
Persecution by the world on account of our adherence to Christian moral teachings should be expected because of their counter cultural and radical nature. As Christ was rejected on account of his teachings, so shall his followers be rejected on grounds of espousing ecclesiastical teachings that are contrary to popular practices. Think of contrary Catholic moral stance on some culturally permissive acts of our postmodern world: anti-abortion, anti-same-sex marriage (the archdiocese of Indianapolis was recently sued for defending this Christian moral position in a Catholic school), anti-contraceptives, anti-euthanasia, anti-death penalty, etc. We are criticized for holding these positions, and it should be expected; didn’t Christ tell us in Lk 21 to expect persecution on account of his name. “If they persecute me, they will persecute you” (Jn 15:20).
Perseverance describes our response to waves of persecution we face for standing for revealed and eternal truth. We are not daunted by the uphill task of living out our Christian life in the spirit of love despite the rejection and mockery of the secular world. Faithfulness to Christ and focus on heaven remain sources of hope and courage for us to persist. “By your endurance you will gain your life” (Lk 21:19). The Christian persevere in professing and living “unpopular” Christian teachings because they are mandated by Christ to do so, and it is by conforming to the truth that they are set free for eternal life.
Parousia is derived from a Greek word that means “coming”, that is, Christ’s second coming which will mark the end of the present age. These futuristic event is often conveyed in the eschatological discourses of synoptic Gospels and other New Testament books, through the deployment of prophetic and apocalyptic images. We bear witness to Christ courageously when we endure persecution with Parousia in mind. Christ helps us in our trials, that by persevering in truth to the end, we await an eternal reward in paradise. We live in a time of waiting and watching, expecting the glorious advent of Christ. “That is why Christians pray, above all in the Eucharist, to hasten Christ’s return by saying to him: Marana tha! ’Our Lord, come’” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 671-672).
Can you please find time this week to meditate on the Nicene Creed?

Yours in Crucified Christ,
Fr. Bernard Oniwe, OP
 

 
Dear Friends in Christ,
 
Congratulations to our new Parish Council Members!
 
The work of pastoring St Peter's parish is not dependent solely on her pastor; it is supported by many devoted parishioners, many who work behind the scenes. The parish pastoral council members will work behind the scenes as well as beyond. These men and women who reflect the parish's diversity will support me through their advise on various plans to grow the parish in all necessary and needed areas. They will serve as liaisons between different parish societies and the pastor, channeling your dreams and concerns to me. I am truly thankful for the generosity of these amazing Catholic men and women and pray that our work together in the years ahead to make Jesus the center of our parish life would be a fruitful one. Please join me in thanking and praying for these courageous and gracious sons and daughters of St. Peter Catholic Church:
 
                                                              Rachel Clark               Joseph Barone
                                                             George Kohlweiler      Anita Paynter
                                                              Erynne Lehman         Kevin Dolan
                                                              Tim Malcolm              Lisa Cleveland
                                                              Dolores Reidenbach Michael Rider
                                                              David Salley              Beth Vertucci
 
 
I want to extend my thanks to all the candidates who stepped forward to serve on the parish pastoral council. All the candidates are worthy, even if all are not elected or appointed. It is my hope that those who are not part of the Parish Pastoral Council will still be opened to serving our parish in other areas of need when called upon. Thank you to all of you, may God enrich you with more graces as you strive to follow in His way.
 
In Christ our Help,
 
Fr. Bernard Oniwe, OP

Dear Friends in Christ,

The Lord and Lover of Souls Leaves No One Behind

Our God is a generous lover. His merciful love extends to all he has created, including Zacchaeus, a chief tax collector, the epitome of the most despicable enemy of God’s chosen people, an ally with their Roman oppressor. Yet, God loves Zacchaeus even more, so much that he seeks him out and invites himself to his house: “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house” (LK 19: 5).

God is intensely interested in our salvation despite our inclinations to recede from his inviting reach. As Ezekiel says, the Sovereign Lord takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked but wants them to turn away from their sin and live (33:11).  Zacchaeus seeks to see who Jesus is, perhaps out of curiosity but probably more out of genuine hunger for what is lacking in his life-the Divine love. But the mission of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world is to reach out to save that which is lost. Zacchaeus combats with the hostile crowd, but he overcomes them by resolutely responding to the urges of grace and Jesus rewards his response to grace by bringing salvation to his house (Lk 19:9). Zacchaeus acts right and in response to grace, he makes restitution and gives half of his wealth to the poor.
Jesus’s extravagant merciful love as seen in his salvation of sinful Zacchaeus fills us with hope of redemption. If Zacchaeus can gain redemption, so can we. As St. Ambrose writes of our Lord and Lover of souls, “He chooses a chief tax collector: who can despair when such a man obtains grace?” God is a lover of souls (Wisdom 11:26) and good to all his creatures (Psalm 145:9), he will leave no one behind because he loves all and wants all saved.
We don’t have to climb a sycamore tree to see Jesus and benefit from his generous love, he makes himself readily available to us in His Eucharistic presence in the tabernacle and in the confines of the confessional. Will you seek him out in those sacred places today, getting ahead of crowd of obstructions-pride, procrastination, fear, lack of faith, and so forth, and just abandon yourself to his healing grace? Don’t hold back from the one who overlooks our sin that we may repent; his love leaves no one behind.
 In Christ’s Mercy,
Fr. Bernard Oniwe, OP
P.S.  November is a month specifically dedicated to the Holy Souls in Purgatory, don’t forget to offer prayers for family members and loved ones who have slept in the Lord.
 
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Dear Friends in Christ,

Remember the Dead, Offer Masses for the Souls in Purgatory                                        

As we bring Respect Life month to a close let us not rest on our oars in building a culture of life. Our parish was actively engaged through prayers and public acts in propagating our Christian belief in the sacredness of life from conception to natural death. Once again, I am thankful for the pro-life group and the Knights who carried out public awareness acts and prayerful acts respectively. The faith we express in praying for Respect for human life we must now extend into the month of November as we pray for the Holy Souls in Purgatory and celebrate All Saints. Do not forget to offer masses and other forms of prayers for family members and friends who still need purification to behold God face to face. Being a Holy Day of Obligation, All Saints masses shall be offered on All-Hallows –Eve and on the actual day in our parish, please endeavor to offer prayers for your departed loved ones during this intense period of grace.
One is not oblivious to the cultural celebration of Halloween that is sometimes clouded in the spirit of unchristian supernatural characters ranging from witches to vampires, hence the need to make sure we do only what is edifying to God even as we have fun playing different characters in our choices of costumes. Halloween, in its original and proper form, is a Catholic celebration and where and when it is being hijacked by something unwholesome it is our task to reclaim its Catholic spirit for the Catholic family. There are many supernatural characters we can invoke as we pray for the dead during All Saints celebration; let parents educate their children about the amazing characters in our spiritual treasure trove. Let parents pray with their children as they go out to have fun during trick-or-treat night, help them to do all things in the spirit of Christ.
Let our prayers for the dead in the month of November reflect the prayer of the church as found in Eucharistic Prayer II: “Remember also our brothers and sisters who have fallen asleep in the hope of resurrection, and all who have died in your mercy; welcome them to the light of your face.” Let us remember the souls of all the faithful departed at masses and visit the cemetery to pray for them.
Do you know you can gain a plenary indulgence under the usual condition when you visit the cemetery to pray for the dead during the month of November?

In Christ’s Hope,

 Fr. Bernard Oniwe, OP

Dear Friends in Christ,

Like a Praying Mantis: Reflection from Hunt Valley

During one of my meditations on Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament at Hunt Valley a couple of days ago, I heard the Lord say to me in the interior of my mind: “I desire a praying parish.” Part of our mission as a parish is sharing “the good news of Jesus Christ through prayer….” Are we living out our mission to the best of our ability? We need to be intentional and faithful to our communal and individual prayers if we are to be effective in bearing witness to the Gospel. To keep our praying hands steady in the manner Moses’ raised hands remained steady in prayers till sunset in the battle against the Amalek (Exodus 17: 8-13), it must be anchored firm in faith.  Praying persistently is only possible when faith is the foundation, a faith with no room for doubt (James 1:6). Jesus instructs us “to pray always without becoming weary” (Lk 18:1). It is necessary that we pray without ceasing. It is only when we pray with faith that we can sustain a life of consistent prayer, a consistency rooted in stillness before the Lord. Jesus is always with us in his real presence in the tabernacles of our churches. We are called to cultivate the habit of the praying mantis, in stillness and silence in the sacred places of our parish church and the domestic church as well-the family at home. The parish prays in the church as Eucharistic people and extends the prayer to the domestic church, the family at home and wherever they find themselves. We take Jesus with us everywhere we go. In practical ways, we sustain our praying mantis mode by a realization that prayer is a part of our daily life, not a compartmentalized practice carried out only at Sunday Mass. Consequently, we have to make a commitment to pray at fixed times and at a designated place in our homes, and our prayer must be inspired by the Holy Spirit who teaches us to pray, for we do not know how to pray (Rom 8: 26-27) . I desire that we become more and more a praying parish where adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is central and devotion to the Holy Rosary of the BVM is a norm. Thanks to those who make our monthly parish Adoration hour possible by attending and those who pray the rosary for life after the 8:30 am mass during Respect Life month in October. I desire with Jesus that we don’t get weary of praying.  Can you commit extra time to joining the parish at prayer beyond the Sunday mass you attend? As parents, have you considered starting a daily family morning or/and night prayer?
Yours in prayer,
Fr. Bernard Oniwe, OP

Dear Friends in Christ,
 
One Leper A-Leaping !
 
Giving thanks is an integral part of our Catholic faith. Eucharistein, a Greek word from which Eucharist is derived means "to give thanks." To give thanks is an indication of faith in Jesus. Persistent attitude of gratitude is tantamount to keeping faith in Gracious God. Naaman shows gratitude to Elisha on being cured of his leprosy by bringing him gifts (2 Kg 5). One leper out of ten healed by Jesus returned to express gratitude. Only one returned to give thanks in a loud voice glorifying God and falling on his face at the feet of Jesus. Of the ten, only one leper leapt for joy in thanksgiving. "Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? "(Lk 17:17). Because of his show of gratitude Jesus rewarded him with a gift greater than the cure of his leprosy; he received from Jesus greater gift of faith and personal recognition. 
 
Why is it that we sometimes don't give thanks to God for numerous blessings we receive from him? We sometimes even skip giving him thanks for gift of our food! We often fail to recognize the importance of thanksgiving in our faith expression. Such ingratitude is not acceptable and diminishes our sense of faith in God. St. Paul reminds us today to give thanks in all circumstances (1 Thess 5:18); we don't have to wait till Thanksgiving to give thanks. In all circumstances-good and bad- we should give thanks.
 
My Yoruba people have a saying: Bi omode ba dupe oore ana, a tun ri omiran gba (A child grateful for gifts received will receive another). Like the one leper a-leaping and unlike the nine who are ungrateful, I want to say thank you to all of you gracious parishioners who give to the church their time, talent and gift. Many of you are fulfilling your monetary pledges, many of you have been very supportive of the changes made to Sunday masses, many have made sacrifices to keep church religious events alive from those catechizing our children, those who volunteer in the parish office to those praying the rosary between masses on Sundays. In a special way, I want to thank those who made themselves available to be voted for membership of our Parish Pastoral Council. In a couple of weeks, we shall get to decide on our choices for membership of PPC. Thank y'all!
 
With gratitude,
 
Fr. Bernard Oniwe, OP
 

Dear Friends,  
 
Go to your Guardian Angel and the Blessed Virgin Mary
 
“Angel of God, my guardian dear. To whom his love God commits me here; Ever this day be at my side. To light and guard, to rule and guide. Amen”
 
October 2 is the feast of the Guardian Angels. Every Human Being has a Guardian Angel. Br. Emmanuel, my religious education teacher for Holy Communion class made us memorize the traditional prayer to the Guardian Angel, and I have always prayed to my Guardian Angel since then. Like the saints and martyrs of Christ, we can love and seek the help of angels. This is a noble act based on orthodox Catholic teaching of angels.
 
It is an established Catholic teaching that every human being, from the moment of conception, has a guardian angel. It is reasonable to believe that our guardian angels minister to us till the moment of our death. Our guardian angels are constant companions in every season of our lives. It is a reliable Catholic doctrine that God appoints only one guardian angel for each human being. This angel remains a protective spirit of that person until bodily death. Angels are intelligent and pure spirit. They were created out of nothing by God, before creation of human beings. They were all created good but some, out of disobedience against God became demons. With the exception of the Sadducees, all believers in God in the Old and New Testaments professed belief in angels. Catholics believe in the protective ministry of the angels and are encouraged to go to their guardian angels and indeed talk directly to them. God does not leave us unprotected, he sends his angels to watch over us as King David affirms: “For he will give his angels charge of you to guard you in all your ways (Psalm 91:11). I want to seize the moment to say Thank You to St. Michael's Guard for their angelic ministry at our parish Eucharistic celebrations.
 
October is also the month of devotion to the Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As we celebrate Christ our Hope in this month of Respect Life, we have no better person to fly to than Mary, mother of life. Mary is our sure source of hope in this time when our faith is placed on trial in the court of secularism. Our Mother Mary with our guardian angels will accompany us throughout life as beacons of hope. The rosary is the weapon of choice as we continue to wage war against culture of death. Please go often to Mary, pray her rosary daily to help enthrone and sustain culture of life in the world. 
 
“Go to the Madonna. Love her! Always say the Rosary. Say it well. Say it often as you can!  Be souls of prayer. Never tire of praying, it is what is essential. Prayer shakes the Heart of God, it obtains necessary graces!”-St. Pio of Pietrelcina.
 
Can you commit to a daily recitation of the Rosary during the month of October? Go to Mary!
 
In Jesus and Mary,
 
Fr. Bernard Oniwe, OP

                                               "Love Our Lady and make her loved;
                           always recite the Rosary and recite it as often as possible."
                                                            — St. Padre Pio

My Encounters with St. Pio of Pietrelcina
 
On September 23, 1968, the 43rd day of my birth, Padre Pio was born into heaven. Our paths have crossed several times since then. The first time our paths crossed, as I recall, was in the early days of my spiritual revival in early 1992. It was at St. Dominic Catholic Church, Yaba, Lagos, my home parish in Nigeria where I had gone to the bookshop to find books on doctrinal teachings of the church on Mary and the saints so I could explain this catholic devotion to my Pentecostal friends. And behold on one of the book stands was the picture of this bearded man staring at me; it did not matter where I stood in the bookshop, it kept staring at me. When I could not resist any longer, I decided to take a closer look at it and that was the moment Padre Pio invited me to become his spiritual son-I did not at that time know there was a prayer group founded by him and of thousands of spiritual sons and daughters he birthed by it. This was the moment seed of my vocation to religious life and priesthood was planted.
 
The next major encounter with Padre Pio was late 1992 when I visited my benefactors. This family who lived across the road from my family house helped me spiritually and financially to get ready for my application to the Dominican formation house. The first thing I saw on entering their parlor was the imposing picture of Padre Pio with his famous “inviting look.” I felt called to the priesthood, to a crucified life with Christ when I saw this picture of Padre Pio on this particular day. I knew there was no turning back at this point, Padre Pio was definitively backing my desire to embrace the vocation to religious life and priesthood!
 
At my solemn profession of religious vows, I announced my name as Bernard Mary Pio and many of my brothers till this day still refer to me as Benny Pio! My connection to Padre Pio grew throughout my priestly formation years and I always sought his help and tried to imitate his love for the crucified Christ My ordination day was set for August 8, 2000 and by some divine “machination” midway into a novena to Padre Pio, the date was moved to September 23, 2000! It did not occur to me at the time that it was the day Padre Pio died, it was only in retrospect, after his canonization in 2002 that it occurred to me that it was not accidental that my ordination day in 2000 was moved from August to September 23, the feast day of St. Pio of Pietrelcina! 
 
I am a proud spiritual son and a strong devotee of this holy man. I have experienced many graces through his intercession and pray others experience the same. His life is a reflection of Christ crucified. For 50 years he bore the stigmata of Christ Jesus on his body as a testimony to his closeness to Jesus crucified. His love for the Eucharist and the Blessed Mother is exemplary. He followed Christ faithfully and Christ lived in him. Padre Pio taught us how to love and pray to our Guardian Angel and to pray the rosary, a devotion we are called especially to in the month of October. St. Pio loves all his spiritual children, praying they make it to heaven: ”I belong entirely to everyone. Everyone can say: ‘Padre Pio is mine’…. Lord, I am staying at the gates of Paradise; I will go in when I have seen the last of my children enter.” Padre Pio, pray for us.    
 Fr.  Bernard
 
 
 
 
 
 

Dear friends,
 
On Relics of St. Pio of Pietrelcina and Prayer
 
I invite you to a special kind of prayer on Monday, September 23, 2019, the feast day of St. Pio of Pietrelcina (affectionately known as Padre Pio). St. Pio’s feast is going to be specially celebrated in our parish this year for a couple of reasons. First, we shall have an opportunity to venerate relics of St. Pio! Second, this September 23 is the 19th anniversary of my priestly ordination. You see, I have a deep devotion to St. Pio and my vocation to the priesthood is tightly connected with Padre Pio, long before his canonization in June, 2002 by Pope John Paul II.  During my religious and priestly formation years, I prayed the same Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus that Padre Pio offered for the intention of his spiritual children (I am proudly one of them) and venerated the third class relics of St. Pio. Prayerful devotion to St. Pio helped and still helps nurture my spiritual growth. On Monday, September 23 from 3 PM, we will get an opportunity to venerate relics of St. Pio at St. Peter’s. Reverend Fortunato Grottola, OFM, Cap  of San Giovanni Rotondo will bring to us gloves and sacred vestments Padre Pio wore before he died and lead us in the veneration of the relics of the first priest to ever receive the stigmata.
 
Veneration of relic, a word derived from the Latin reliquiae, is a Christian devotion that glorifies God’s manifestation of his power through the sacred bodies of holy martyrs and saints, whose bodies as the Council of Trent taught, were living members of Christ and the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6: 19) and which by the power of God will be raised up to eternal life and glorified. As shown in 2 Kings 13: 21, Acts 19:12 and Acts 5:15, contacts with bones, handkerchiefs, clothes and shadows of holy people of God brought about miracles. God works through created things. Hence, the Church permits veneration of authentic relics because the holy lives led by the saints and their closeness to God could aid our goal of seeking holiness. Veneration of relics and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament begin at 3 pm followed by our parish daily mass at 6:30pm. At the end of mass there will be opportunity for prayers of healing with relics of St. Pio. 
 
With St Paul I invite you to prayer on Monday, September 23: “It is my wish, then, that in every place the men (and women) should pray lifting up holy hands, without anger or argument” (1 Tim 2:8). Come, let’s pray to God with St. Pio.
 
On a different subject, I want to plead with all of you to bear with any forceable or otherwise consequences on your Sunday routine as a result of the changes to mass schedule beginning October 5. I know some of you are going to find it hard to adjust but I plead with you in the name of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer to support this change. Let’s be open to it and see how it works out. Thanks for being an important part of St. Peter’s parish family.
 
 
In Christ our Love,
 
Fr. Bernard Oniwe, OP