Posts by Fr. Maurice Emelu

Grace to you! Today in our Catholic tradition, we are celebrating the life of one of the four women the Church honors as Doctors of the Church. The other three are Saints Catherine of Siena, Therese of Lisieux (the youngest of all the Doctors of the Church), and Hildegard of Bingen. A Doctor of the Church is not…

Grace to you! In Luke 11:37-54, the Blessed Lord Jesus Christ leveled series of charges against the religious leaders of his time. As I read the strong words, I see a running thread about those condemnations. The Lord was condemning their hypocrisy. Hence, in today’s reflection, I will shed light on what I call seven…

Grace to you! It could be a challenging task to clear the reading desk of many senior academics. You are not certain what is essential and what isn’t. Though the table is messy, the academic sees every little paper on that desk as necessary.  This scenario isn’t the case only with scholars; many of us…

Grace to you! A beggar approached the car of a young woman in a traffic jam. Afraid and nervous, she shuddered at the sight of the scar-ridden hands of the beggar, beckoning for help and pointing to the burger inside her car. The traffic eased, and she drove away as fast as she could. However,…

Grace to you! The message of God’s word from Isaiah’s prophecy, Saint Paul’s Letter to the Philippians, and the Gospel of Matthew fills my hearts with joy. I hear of the generous invitation to a more-than-red carpet treat to the Feast of the Lamb (Jesus Christ). Summarizing these readings, the first one (Is 25:6-10) is…

Grace to you! I introduce today’s reflection with a famous Bible story. Fascinated by the Blessed Lord Jesus Christ’s words and actions, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him,” ‘Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts that you sucked!’ But he [Jesus] said, ‘Blessed rather are those…

Grace to you! Roses are one of the most beautiful flowers, a special gift of nature. From the white rose to the pink, yellow, sterling silver and deep red, all roses are nature’s wonders. Even if you have little appreciation for aesthetics, you can’t gaze too long at a garland of roses without been drawn to its…

Grace to you! A friend got a ticket for crossing double lines on a highway. You know that feeling of “Oops! The cops! Please have mercy…”  His violation was way beyond the officer’s leniency. He knew the ticket was coming. Surely it did.  By the time the bill came, at least $500 of hard-earned money…

Grace to you! If you’ve ever invested so much in a person, but find he or she is wasteful and unproductive, it hurts. Doesn’t it? Wastefulness and lack of proper stewardship is a terrible vice. For us Catholics, it is a sin against justice. In the Gospel of Matthew chapter twenty-one, verses thirty-three to forty-three, Our…