All posts filed under: Faith

A Thing For Lent

Published by Osemhen

It’s almost cliché, isn’t it? My first post this year is on the first day of Lent. I think it’s safe to say Lent is my favorite part of the Catholic calendar. Does that sound weird? Lent is ash on my forehead. Lent is fasting and abstinence and purging my soul. Lent is haunting hymns. Lent is sorrow and pain and deprivation and all the things that are considered ugly about human existence. Lent is death. But Lent is also hope. It’s the reminder of everything this world is. Drought. Then rain. Aslan dying. And then resurrecting. Death. And Life after. Lent is honesty with God. Look, Lord. It’s just me here. With my flaws and imperfections and I’m unworthy, Lord. Many times, I even forget to pray. Did I ever tell you how I sometimes envy Muslims their dedication to prayer? Seriously, good Muslims are #dedicationgoals. I see them stop conversations abruptly so they can go pray. And I think with shame of all the times my phone buzzes that it’s time for my prayer, and …

Story of a Bleeding Heart

Published by Osemhen

Kosidinma, my friend’s son passed away last week. His mother, Ehimemen wrote this for him. Words cannot express the pain I feel at your demise. You entered my life and made me feel like finally I had a purpose. A purpose that was mine only. Suddenly I knew I owed someone, I knew I owed you a responsibility to raise you as God wants. You gave me sleepless nights but it was all worth it because the look and satisfaction you gave after each feeding was priceless. We had a connection which no one understood. Whenever I heard you cry, even when I knew you were having your bath, I jumped out of bed to watch just to make sure your crying was not for something that could have been avoided. When people came to congratulate me, I was proud of the child I had begotten and created; bright, tall, independent and a whole lot more. I looked forward to your growing up because I felt you were going to be the next Albert Einstein… …

Blessed Are The Merciful: Shelter the Homeless

Published by Osemhen

When I count my blessings, having a roof over my head comes in the top 5. I never take it for granted because at a point in my childhood, we were almost homeless. Our landlord decided he wanted to demolish our home and build a block of flats instead. We got a quit notice. We started building a house someplace else but were unable to finish it before our eviction deadline. We moved into the new house literally in the middle of construction. That was an interesting experience. 🙂 We had a happy ending. Not everyone is this lucky. I’m thinking of the Internally Displaced Persons who have fled their homes and livelihoods in the North because of Boko Haram. I’m thinking of unemployed young people in Lagos who sleep under bridges, in buses, in doorways. I’m thinking of the beggars on our streets. I’m thinking of the ones we call “mad” who really are just homeless people rendered anti-social by the way we treat them. “Be merciful as your heavenly Father is merciful.” We …

Blessed Are The Merciful: Clothing the Naked

Published by Osemhen

“…I was naked and you clothed me.” Matthew 25: 35-36 I wonder what I should write about this. It seems easy enough, doesn’t it? “Clothe the naked”. We should spring-clean our closets and give to the poor all the clothes we no longer want. The problem is that I hardly ever do this with a proper Christian attitude, with what some of my friends would call “rectitude of intention”. The clothes I give out are usually over-size or too tight or faded/worn or out of fashion. Cleaning out my closet is then less of a sacrifice, and more of a necessity. Yay. Free space in closet. Done good deed for the month. Gotten moral justification. Must shop. I don’t know. I think I could do better. I think God would want me to do better. Clothing serves two purposes. Protection from the elements and preservation of dignity. The last point is key because it also highlights something we often overlook: the origin of some of the clothes we wear. Behind many major clothing labels are sweatshops, in …

Blessed Are The Merciful: Difficult Conversations

Published by Osemhen

Thank you, guys, for sticking around despite my inconsistent blogging. 🙂 How’ve you been? I’ve missed this. Anyways, I’m so behind on my posting schedule for the Works of Mercy series. I was wondering how I’d even catch up but then I realized that a number of them have the same themes. 😀 (No, it’s not cheating.) St. Paul is one of my favorite saints. His conversion story reminds me of God’s infinite mercy. How else could one man go from being a terrorist (think Isis-type of religious persecution of Christians) to being one of Christianity’s biggest proponents? Seriously. But in all the drama of Paul’s life there’s a character who’s sometimes forgotten. Ananias of Damascus. The believer through whom Paul’s sight was restored. The one who gave him his first instruction and then baptized him. This month, I’m focusing on the first 3 Spiritual Works of Mercy. To counsel the doubtful Teach the ignorant Admonish sinners All of us know dozens of “ignorant” people we would just love to “instruct” i.e. Tell how to …

Things To Give Up This Lent: A List of Ideas

Published by Osemhen

We interrupt our regular “Blessed Are The Merciful” series to bring you this Lenten edition. 😀 So Lent begins officially on Wednesday. That’s tomorrow. Traditionally, these 40 days before Easter are dedicated to fasting, alms giving and prayer. The model is Christ’s example; he spent 40 days in the wilderness fasting and praying. Most people remember the fasting; not everyone remembers giving alms and using the season to deepen our prayer life. And when we say fasting, people automatically think of food. Then there are all the various modes of fasting as practiced by the various denominations. 6am to 6pm fasting, one-large-meal per day fasting, dry fasting (no liquids, no food), one normal-sized meal per day and liquids (Milo, Lucozade etc.) to supplement… I could go on. For clarity, these are the rules for fasting in the Catholic Church: Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are prescribed days of fasting and abstinence (from the flesh of all animals except fish) for Catholics between the ages of 18 and 59. The ill, pregnant and nursing mothers …

Forgiving All Wrongs

Published by Osemhen

Hola, everyone! Thanks for being patient; this post was supposed to go up last week Sunday but I’ve been super busy with a lot of things. Thank you for all the likes, shares, kind words and comments on my last post :D. Like wow! I was a bit apprehensive about blogging about being pregnant but your responses made it worthwhile. I tried to respond to everyone but couldn’t and I figured I’d just go ahead and give you guys more posts. Know that I read and treasured each comment, and your prayers are a huge help. First of all, how did December go? In the midst of all the feasting and turning up, how did you help to feed the hungry? I hope the ideas I posted were helpful. Pope Francis officially kicked off the Jubilee Year of Mercy, ushering in a year of dutiful and deliberate kindness. The custom of a Jubilee Year is derived from the Old Testament: Leviticus 25: 8-13. In summary, the Jubilee Year was celebrated as a year when slaves and prisoners …

"Blessed Are The Merciful": Christmas is for Giving

Published by Osemhen

Hello! As promised, I’m continuing the Works of Mercy series. But first, how did last month go? We dedicated November to burying the dead and praying for the Living and the Dead. Were you able to use some of the suggestions here? Did you come up with yours? This December, the focus is on “Feeding the Hungry.” What are your most vivid childhood Christmas memories? I remember the food. Mounds of bright orange jollof rice, peppered chicken, elbow-licking egusi and pounded yam, fried rice, moi-moi, plantain, chin-chin, puff-puff… I remember drinking so much Fanta, my stomach would be distended from all the gas. Christmas was for food. As I grow older, the tradition of endless feasting hasn’t waned. Even if I’m not cooking, I know that merely dropping in to visit someone on Christmas Day guarantees me a full belly. Not having food to eat on Christmas Day is almost an oxymoron. Not possible. And yet it’s a very real reality for some families. There are families that have no food to eat, not just …

"Blessed Are The Merciful": Practically Living the Works of Mercy

Published by Osemhen

Pope Francis is pretty much everyone’s favorite Pope at the moment. It’s not difficult to see why. No disrespect to Pope Benedict (Emeritus), but Pope Francis inspires us every day with his simplicity, his dislike for ceremony and his willingness to demonstrate God’s mercy and compassion to the poor and sinners. He takes it all back to the basics. Love. Mercy. Compassion. Forgiveness. Understanding. Like Jesus told us to do. Last week, I read his message for Next Year’s World Youth Day in Poland. It’s not very long, and it’s absolutely worth the read. “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy” (Mt 5:7) That’s the verse on which the WYD theme is based. There’s a fair bit of history and theology at the beginning of the message and then he gets to the really practical bit: how can we as young Christians live the virtue of mercy? James 2: 14 – 26 talks about the relationship between faith and works. Sometimes, I forget what works exactly I’m supposed to be doing. Every day, I …

An Easter Story

Published by Osemhen

picture from www.cardiphonia.org He was dead. After three years of the most unbelievable miracles, of awakening hope in the hearts of the people, of bringing light to hearts darkened by sin and dispelling fear and despair. After everything…. He was dead. A most unbelievable fact. Rage, disappointment, grief and shame warred for prominence in Cephas’ heart. The Christ, the Messiah, dragged through Jerusalem like an animal, nailed to a tree like a common criminal. He who had woken from sleep to still a storm, he before whom demons cowered had stood in silence as his trial turned into the most abominable travesty. The very people who had rejoiced with palm branches and shouted hosanna as he rode into Jerusalem had cried out as one that he be crucified. Now he was dead, dead as the wood to which he had been nailed. Cephas looked round the room, filled to capacity with men who had given everything to be with the Man from Galilee. A gentle man whose hands had tickled children… and held a whip …