The Godfather Speaks

My dear friends, contemplating the uniqueness and universal nature of scriptures had challenged me to seek insights on the meaning of Faith and why people believe. The truth is, as Humans, we all share similar beliefs despite our differences in " religion ". There is a need to highlight these similarities and show that "the Good" and "Moral Codes" are quintessential to the glorification of the human race. The deeper you get into your spirit, the more you understand that the Word of God (as understood by most in this generation to particularly mean the texts of any of the Holy Scriptures) are inexhaustible. Concerning the texts of the Christian Faith, I used to be of the school of thought that one interpretation must be superior above all others and it must be universal ( Gk. Catholicam ). I used to judge people who consider it more personal than universal because, in most cases, they consider their understanding to be above those of many others. T

My dear friends, it is becoming extinct for Christians to suffer physical assault or martyrdom for the sake of the gospel, but we live in a time of psychological and emotional assault for our great cause. How often do we hear people, even our closest friends and family tag us mockingly with snotty names like Borney [Born-again] , spirikoko, Holy Holy, Virgin Mary e.t.c? In most cases, our loved ones mean these things on a lighter note, but then some others out rightly jeer at us to make a laugh of it because we do those things that are right by allowing your soul to be filled by His righteousness. This can make us feel bad or lose focus, but I want you to know these things are inevitable in the kingdom of God. Find comfort in hearing what our Lord has eternally said concerning this: “ You are blessed when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way the

I sat calmly at the dining table, picking my teeth clean and reminiscing on the awesome meal of ugha & okazi soup I had just eaten, putting behind me the battle of driving 130km from Uyo against a heavy storm and waterlogged roads in Abia state, when I watched daddy make a request to mummy and he had this boyish look on his face as if he was having “ long-throat ”. Lol! Mummy’s response played out as words of a loving mother, scolding her child for being excessive, yet with acts of a pleasing wife, in obeisance to his needs and presenting a small portion of the same awesome meal to quench that appetite. As he dipped his hurriedly washed hands into the plate, he started to make funny jokes about not sharing his food with her in what sounded Yoruba-ish to which she responded to the joke in a flawless Yoruba tongue. Mummy speaks the 3 main Nigerian languages awesomely if I may add. It felt like what I had just seen was cute so I decided to share my little meditation on Love &am

Dear Friends, if you would lend me your ears let me tell you a not so spoken tale of so great a man called Socrates. Have you heard of how he had a wife that was the most difficult of women to live with? Of how well he managed to cope with her excesses? Of how where most men would have lost it in many occasions he was able to endure? I have never heard such a humiliating story about one of the wisest men to have ever walked the earth. Xanthippe was described as “ the hardest of women to get along with of all the women ”. Socrates adds that he chose her because of her argumentative Spirit:  “It is an example of the rider who wishes to be an expert horseman…the horse for me to own must show some spirit… if he can manage such an animal, it will be easy to deal with every other horse besides. And that is just my case. I wish to deal with human beings, to associate with man in general; hence my choice of wife. I know full well, if I can tolerate her spirit, I can with ease attach mys

I am not worthy to write to you concerning these mysteries of those who are as pure as the Angels, for my soul has been unable to reach such heights as to see the Almighty in very recent times. However, out the wisdom of my heart, permit me to share my fleeting insights concerning so great a beatitude, as one who is but a child trying to share an understanding with his friends about things we must all know to live as we ought to in these trying times. How great it would be to see God? These words from our Lord guarantee us that on earth there are some who live in so great a blessedness that like the great patriarchs of old, Moses and Abraham, they also see God as He is in their living flesh. “O the blessedness of the pure in heart, for they shall see God” [Matt V:8]. I will neither go into spiritual visions and gifts, nor if you think you’re going to hear me say anything about sexual purity, you will be disappointed. It’s “ pure in heart ”, not pure in mind/body. So, don’t yo

I have chosen this image because of the uniqueness of the guy showing mercy in that portrait. In my understanding, that fellow looks as deserving of the very goodness he gives to the other yet he gives out when he doesn't have enough. How foolish right? But isn’t it basic " Humane Intelligence " to share goodness with others rather than keeping it all to ourselves? In the corporate world today, the use of Humane Intelligence (HI) is fast developing and it ensures that proper moral conscience demands that humans do what is right and just for the collective benefit of everyone in the work place rather than impartial forms of sharing benefits. If people of the world in their working environments can develop such a concept, how much more should we who are children of God be challenged to do beyond the attitude of this concept of equity and justice by being heralds of Love and Mercy. I mean if our human nature would aspire to this, then our divine nature must be provoked

My dear friends, I write to you once more concerning these proclamations of blessedness that we have received, which I have meditated on day and night and put daily into effect in my life because they concern the existing realities of our spiritual essence to which my soul is awakened to the conformity of the Light of Christ, in whom was life and that life was the light of all men [Jn I:4]. Of these beatitudes, the attitude of those who hunger and thirst for righteousness has taken me on a spiritual odyssey which I have no doubt has changed my life for good because in developing the desire to do the Will of my Father Who sent me, I have discovered the manifold wisdom and richness of the fulfillment of every saint in life or in eternity to which I have been called to proclaim of its goodness with every breath of life in me. Before I go on with my analogy of the great King David on this beatitude, permit me to share a little testimony with you of the living power of this heroic

As I paced through Goodluck Jonathan boulevard, the morning dew mixing with droplets of sweat falling down my chin, the voice of my favourite motivational speaker Brian Tracy brainwashing me with a dose of personal development to get my day fired up, he made a statement about excellence in character that simply exploded in my mind. Before I share this statement with you, I want you to know that what got me really thrilled was that, apart from the fact it was one of those “ major keys ” of success, my frequently contemplating mind immediately remembered something glorious I had read in a course outline I had studied on the history of salvation. I scribbled what I heard on my Galaxy Note 5 but for some reason I’ve deleted the freaking note by mistake before I even got to use it. Anyways, here’s what I think I remember Brian said: “Live as if your every act would be made into a universal law” My dear, believe it or not this statement is more than just a motivational quote. It

I remember an advice I once got from a very wise man concerning riches. He said, “ when a man works hard he would be blessed [by God]  and the more money he makes, the more he ought to become humble ”. I want to mention here that we were speaking from a very non-religious point of view. Today, I can say that that testimony of the Word of God that was uttered from this man’s lips is the reason God has continued to help him grow in his businesses. There is a popular saying that only the strong rule the Earth. One thing people crave the most in our world today is power. The most impressive displays of wealth are seen in our television cultures where people elevate the superficial glory of athletes, movie stars and musicians and believe these superficial ones actually do dominate the earth. This illusion feeds the desires of many yet there are few who are wise enough to realise that the most successful people in the world are actually the most frugal. Humility and prudence is an attit

Often times we are sad and burdened with many situations in our life. People tend to live in sorrow because it is the only reality they can find in such situations. The problem of suffering is as a result of the presence of pain and evil. Our inability to suffer is representative of our inability to bear the pains of this world. We fall deeper into darkness and despair as though in our very existence life has seized to exist within. This is the case of those who have lost a loved one in their life to the hands of death. These ones who mourn in the pains of their sufferings do so because their souls seek a comfort that they are unable to grasp; a comfort they believe to be their right. In most instances, these people are consumed by grief, hatred or despair. The fear of living in pain drives them to live a life of pain. As I've always mentioned, I am a strong lover of Japanese anime and I would ask you to permit me to tell some of you about of one of my favourite character in N

I had a really difficult time picking out what to eat this morning. Switching from being an impulsive eater to selecting a healthy meal in your diet is equivalent to dying on the cross of Calvary for my weight. I was quite convinced I made the wrong choice of food when I belched in mass while standing and listening to the Priest recite the prayers of the Eucharistic Liturgy as we celebrated the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. I could taste the burnt flavour of well-seasoned goat meat which I had eaten a bit over an hour ago, with a portion of well cooked beans and unripe plantain in stew. Just before I knelt down to chant the “ Sanctus ”, I started to question my level of piety for the Most Holy Sacrament. “ Why did I have to eat so close to the moment I would have to receive our Lord from the Altar ?   My friend do you want to contaminate the taste of this humble Bread with that of one goat that probably met the butcher’s knife because of how stubborn it was ?” I couldn’t help

I started out my first day of the year trying to understand the various way to practice this core attitude of the beatitudes and I surprised myself. I never even thought that practicing the virtue would be as elevating as studying it’s meaning in scriptures. There is no better teacher on how to live the poverty of the spirit than our Lord Jesus Christ. If you back up a chapter before the event of the sermon, He took out some time to fast and be tempted by the devil. Let me point from experience that fasting mortifies one’s body and deprives it of all of its pleasures. This weakening of the flesh causes the soul to begin to look for strength. The soul inevitably gets detached from all pleasures and realises that it’s totally dependent on its spiritual source of life. In those moments, we experience a bit of this poverty of the spirit. We realise that we are in a state of blessedness and “ours is the kingdom of heaven” . We pray better. Now contemplate this with me, Jesus had fa