By Jude Eze
Reactions that trailed our last week’s discussion on “The new twist in Gov. Soludo’s solutions” in this space was unprecedented. I was preparing to feature a part two of it to showcase the positions of the numerous respondents, when some of my journalist-friends pointed me to a trending issue bordering on the feast of Easter and appraising the dispositions of our leaders towards imbibing the teachings of Jesus Christ, the saviour of the world, as they administer us. They argued that we should join hands in conscientizing the political class as the swim through the frenzy of the upcoming general elections. I bowed to their patriotism.
And so the theme of this week’s musing was influenced by the decision of the deputy editor, Good Shepherd newspaper of the Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja, Mr. Samson Adeyanju, to draft me into Catholic Television of Nigeria’s budding current affairs programme – “Late Morning Show,” few days ago to discuss the import of Easter to man, and revisit the seeming sacrilege of public office holders who swear by the Bible or Quran to live true to the demands of their respective offices, only to renege afterwards.
It was only a 25 minutes interview session. Quite insufficient to dissect the topic. So we’ll continue the discourse here. Mr. Adeyanju arguably wanted me to stop ‘hiding’ behind keypad and face the camera.
We have to contribute our quotas in nation building, and there is no better time than now. 2023, looks like Nigeria’s last chance in reshaping her destiny. A hunter with one bullet shoots with absolute care.
What is Easter and its significance to our lives?
I don’t think any Christian that is worth the name would want us to bore him/her with the meaning of Easter in this discourse.
But in case anyone cares, we can have a cursory look at what Easter epitomizes. Jesus Christ represents God’s handshake across space and time encouraging creation that had become so cruel with sin to become friendly again. This is the Lenten message and Easter hope.
Easter presupposes the greatest intervention of God in man’s life, to save him from the shackles of eternal darkness of death and bring him to God’s wonderful light of life. Christ Jesus, the image of the unseen God, by His death and resurrection has reconciled the world to God. St. Clement of Alexandria taught that at Easter, God “turned our sunset into sunrise.”
In a nutshell, let’s say that on Christmas, Jesus came with a mission to save the world; at Easter, he accomplished it.
The season which begins on Easter Sunday runs through expanded period of 50 days, culminating on Pentecost Sunday.
Lent (an extensive 40-day period of fasting, prayers and alms giving) prepared us for it in a more special way than Advent could prepare us for Christmas. Christmas season lasts barely 10 days including its octave, while Easter season spans across 50 uninterrupted days of celebrating the mystery of our redemption. The last week prior to Easter (holy week) is filled with intense sacred activities that instill sense of awe about this feast on those who participate in them: – Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday (Chrism Mass, and Mass of the last supper), the aliturgical day – Good Friday commemoration of the Lord’s passion (the greatest celebration of God’s mercy), Paschal Saturday vigil.
All these shape our souls for the hallowed days of Easter.
The coming of Christ divided time and history into two distinct periods: Before Christ (BC) and Anno Domini (AD) which means “in the Year of the Lord.”
While presiding over the closing ceremony of the great council of Vatican II, on December 08, 1965, Giovanni Battista Montini, more commonly known by his papal name, Pope Paul VI said: “Jesus Christ the redeemer of the world, is at the centre of the life and history of mankind. Man therefore will continue to progress or regress in accord with how he align or malign Christ.”
This statement had taken a prophetic stance 60 years after. Europe and America (and other advance economies) who imbibed the spirit of Christ in their national dealings have seen progress and development despite being agnostics in terms of patronizing churches. But Africa had continued to regress down the ladder despite being a continent with the highest number of churches, partly because she, especially her leaders, pay lip service to the creed they profess and partly due to overbearing cosmetic spirituality of her faithful.
As we girdle towards 2023, the words of Pope Paul VI (presently represented by the admonitions of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria) re-echoes louder to our political leaders:
“At this solemn moment, we, the Fathers of the 21st ecumenical council of the Catholic Church, on the point of disbanding after four years of prayer and work, with the full consciousness of our mission toward mankind, address ourselves respectively and confidently to those who hold in their hands the destiny of men on this earth, to all those who hold temporal power.
“We proclaim publicly: We do honor to your authority and your sovereignty, we respect your office, we recognize your just laws, we esteem those who make them and those who apply them. But we have a sacrosanct word to speak to you and it is this: Only God is great. God alone is the beginning and the end. God alone is the source of your authority and the foundation of your laws.
“Your task is to be in the world the promoters of order and peace among men. But never forget this: It is God, the living and true God, who is the Father of men. And it is Christ, His eternal Son, who came to make this known to us and to teach us that we are all brothers. He it is who is the great artisan of order and peace on earth, for He it is who guides human history and who alone can incline hearts to renounce those evil passions which beget war and misfortune. It is He who blesses the bread of the human race, who sanctifies its work and its suffering, who gives it those joys which you can never give it, and strengthens it in those sufferings which you cannot console.
“In your earthly and temporal city, God constructs mysteriously His spiritual and eternal city, His Church. And what does this Church ask of you after close to 2,000 years of experiences of all kinds in her relations with you, the powers of the earth? What does the Church ask of you today? She tells you in one of the major documents of this council. She asks of you only liberty, the liberty to believe and to preach her faith, the freedom to love her God and serve Him, the freedom to live and to bring to men her message of life. Do not fear her. She is made after the image of her Master, whose mysterious action does not interfere with your prerogatives but heals everything human of its fatal weakness, transfigures it and fills it with hope, truth and beauty.
“Allow Christ to exercise His purifying action on society. Do not crucify Him anew. This would be a sacrilege for He is the Son of God. This would be suicide for He is the Son of man. And we, His humble ministers, allow us to spread everywhere without hindrance the Gospel of peace on which we have meditated during this council. Of it, your peoples will be the first beneficiaries, since the Church forms for you loyal citizens, friends of social peace and progress.”
The lessons of this period are enormous. But none is louder than the news that CHRIST is RISEN!
Our leaders are enjoined to anchor all their dealings in the glory of Easter, for in Christ we live and move and hold our beings (Acts 17:28). In the true freedom of the children of God, let them become the light of the world and the salt to the earth as they carry out the sacred duties of nation building (Matt.5:13-14).
Happy Easter and may daylight spare us!
Jude Eze, a public affairs analyst, contributed this piece from Abuja.
