I Am The True Vine

Sermon by Fr. Joseph Mungai, FMH

Fifth Sunday of Easter, April 29, 2018

Hospital Chaplaincy, Long Island, New York

Many of us are familiar with the American Indian story about a young man who found an eagle’s egg and put it into the nest of a prairie chicken. The eaglet hatched with the brood of prairie chickens and grew up with them. 

All its life, the misplaced eagle thought it was a prairie chicken and did only what the prairie chickens did. It scratched in the dirt for seeds and insects to eat. And it flew no more than a few feet off the ground with a thrashing of wings like other prairie chickens.

Years passed and the unfortunate eagle grew very old. One day, it saw a magnificent bird high above in the cloudless sky. Hanging with graceful majesty on the powerful wind currents, it soared gracefully on its strong golden wings. “What a beautiful bird!” said the unfortunate eagle to its neighbour. 

“That’s an eagle, the chief of the birds,” the neighbour replied, “But don’t give it a second thought. You could never be like him.” So the poor eagle never gave it a second thought and it died thinking it was a prairie chicken.

This frightening story underlies the importance of what we identify ourselves with. Human beings are like vine branches; we need a vine in which to graft and root ourselves. The vine into which we are grafted and rooted conditions the way we see ourselves, the expectations we have of

ourselves, and the ceiling of achievement we place on ourselves. Vines come in many

shapes and colours each soliciting our primary allegiance. They come in the form of nationalism such as Nazism, ideology such as communism, and religion such as the cults. Materialism, pleasure and power are among the most popular vines of our times. Once we identify ourselves with a false vine, it immediately conditions and determines how we see ourselves and what we do with our lives.

The Jews whom Jesus was addressing in today’s gospel (John 15:1-8) knew very well the vine on which they were supposed to be grafted and rooted. Many times in the Old Testament the religious and national entity Israel was referred to as the vine (Psalm 80:8; Isaiah 5:7; Hosea 10:1) which the hand of God had planted (Psalm 80:15; Jer 2:21). The Maccabees even minted a coin in which a vine was used to represent Israel. So when Jesus claimed that he was now the vine they would understand that as an invitation to shift their primary allegiance from Jewish nationalism to the Person and message of Christ.  To make sure they get it, Jesus makes the claim that He is not just the

vine but the true vine. The word “true” (in Greek aléthinos) here signifies that which is real, authentic and valid, as opposed to that which is flawed, imperfect or false. To accept Jesus as the true vine into which our lives are grafted and rooted is to regard every human ideology or institution which recommends itself to us as an object of primary allegiance as flawed, imperfect or false.

The misguided eagle in our story was like a branch grafted on a false or imperfect vine. That is why it remained false or imperfect all its life. If a wise bird had told it the truth about itself it would have shifted its self-identification from that of a prairie chicken to that of an eagle. This radical shift in self-understanding would then enable it to produce in its life the marvellous feats for which eagles are known.

Today that word of wisdom is being addressed to us: to stop identifying ourselves primarily in terms of nation, social or economic status, race, gender or religious affiliation. Rather we should see ourselves in

terms of our oneness with Christ just as the branch and the vine are one. Then and only then shall we be able to bear good fruit, the same type of fruit that Christ Himself bears.

We know the pathetic story of Cardinal Wolsey who, under King Henry VIII of England, gave his primary allegiance to the state rather than to God. On his deathbed he left us these words of wisdom: “If I had served God as diligently as I have done the king, He would not have given me over in my gray hairs." His life was like that of the

unfortunate eagle in the story. The gospel invites us today to know better: to graft and root ourselves as  branches into the True Vine, Jesus Christ

A Deep Down Thirst

In Many Places, Africa Does Not Have Clean Water;

And Sometimes There is Nothing to Drink at All

by Susan Fox 

Imagine you are incredibly thirsty and someone offers you a glass of water. 

But you can visually see organisms moving up and down in the water, which is brown in colour. 

“But since you are thirsty you could only close your eyes and drink.” Those are the words of Fr. Joe Mungai, FMH,  who drank that water while serving in Awasi, Kisumu, Kenya. 

His first appointment as a young priest  after his ordination on June 7, 2014 was to this incredibly large parish, St. John the Apostle Awasi Catholic Church, Kisumu Archdiocese, Kenya, consisting of 7,000 families, 21 mission churches, 30 primary schools and 11 secondary schools. Father is a Franciscan Missionary of Hope, a relatively new congregation started in Nairobi, Kenya in 1993.

Not only did he deal with traveling a vast territory in the Western part of Kenya initially without a car, but he also had to learn a new language and deal with a new culture. “In Kenya we have 43 different languages and my mother tongue is Kikuyu. But  where I was sent, they speak Luo,” Father Joe said.  

“But the main challenge which still remains is accessibility to clean drinking water. People would walk for miles to get water from rivers

Hauling water over great distances in Kenya

and dams which was not clean, so there were a number of diseases associated with dirty water and I feared for my life.”

In Awasi, they built  more reservoir tanks and supplied water filters through Water With Blessings, Middletown, Kentucky.

“Where I come from, my birth village, we still face the same challenge of accessing clean drinking water but unlike my former parish, we do not have any river flowing or any lake near by. The only way to access this water is to drill a borehole which is extremely expensive to do,” Fr. Joe explained. 

Fr. Joe’s birthplace is in Central Kenya —  Gatura,Thigio in Kiambu County, about  25 miles from Nairobi and 250 miles from Awasi. Groundwater is the only available source of

water in Thigio. Currently, it rises to the

Water collection in Gatura,Thigio, future site of borehole 

surface during certain months of the year and can be scooped out, but during the dry season, the people don’t have water to drink. Their health suffers. And some die.  

Fr. Joe hopes to raise $25,000 for a borehole that will drill down to the groundwater on his grandfather’s land. Then he will need to install the electricity, buy a water pump, build a water tower, and  lay underground pipes, etc. He estimates the total cost of the water project will be $80,000 when completed. 

The borehole will provide clean water to 2000 families, a primary school and a secondary school in the Thigio neighbourhood. Fr. Joe

Lucy Nungari Mungai

has already paid for a geological report that shows the feasibility of the project. The borehole will be drilled in honour of his mother Lucy Nungari Mungai, who died last December because she lacked access to safe water.

Lucy Mungai's funeral

Fr. Joe is now fulfilling his new assignment from the Franciscan Missionaries of Hope as a hospital chaplain in Long Island, New York. He has been a regular contributor to this blog since September 2016, and his sermons are universally enjoyed by our readers. 

Fr. Joe behind the gravestone of his grandfather Njoroge Mungai.
The borehole will be drilled on his grandfather's land

If you would like to donate to digging a bore hole for Fr Joe's home village, please go to WaterWithBlessings

This is an update from Fr Joe Mungai. They are beginning the project: 
I would like to appreciate your efforts and energy spent towards fundraising and setting up of the mobile cause https://app.mobilecause.com/vf/WWBLUCY and Go Fund Me pages. Many known and unknown friends have donated towards this noble course of drilling a water bore hole in honour of my late Mother Lucy. Looking at what God has given us through these friends I am of the opinion that we can begin the work. Last evening I talked with the contractor and asked him how far we can go with what we have at hand. He agreed with my suggestion that we can do it in three phases. First will be to sink the borehole, second phase will be to install the pump and installation of the water tower and Third phase will be to distribute water to homes around my village. We have enough funds to sink the water borehole. So we are beginning the project, as we look for more funds either through donations or through my little stipends that I get monthly. I have  asked my uncle Fr. Boniface Mungai, a priest in the Archdiocese of Mombasa (Kenya), to be the liaison with the Contractor to supervise the work.  

A thousand mile journey begins with a single step.

  

Though Others May Fleece Us, The Lord is my Shepherd

Sermon by Fr. Joseph Mungai, FMH

Fourth Sunday of Easter, April 22, 2018

Hospital Chaplaincy, Long Island, New York

The pastor of a rich suburban parish was speaking to the children at Sunday school. He told them that as the pastor he was like a shepherd and the members of his congregation were the sheep. He then put this question to them: “What does the shepherd do for the sheep?” A little fellow in the front row raised his hands and answered, “He fleeces them.” 

True enough, shepherds go into the business for the purpose of fleecing, milking and feeding on the sheep. But when the Bible speaks of the leaders of God’s people as

shepherds, it envisions leaders who feed, protect and feel with the people as a good shepherd does for his flock.

The title “shepherd” in the Hebrew Bible refers primarily to God who shepherds His people. This is brought out in Psalm 23: “The Lord is my shepherd.” Here God is portrayed as a faithful and good shepherd who leads the flock into well-being and abundance ("green pastures") and keeps them safe from every danger (“valley of darkness”) such that they want for nothing and fear no evil even as they are surrounded by their foes (wolves and lions). 

Kings, as God’s anointed deputies, were also referred to as shepherds. But some of them only got the title and not the qualities of a shepherd. Instead of feeding the sheep entrusted to their care they fed on them. 

God raised up prophets like Ezekiel to denounce such shepherds: "Thus says the Lord GOD: Ah, you shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fatlings; but you do not feed the sheep. You have not strengthened the weak, you have not healed the sick, you have not bound up the injured, you have not brought back the strayed, you have not sought the lost, but with force and harshness you have ruled them. So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd; and scattered, they became food for all the wild animals. My sheep were scattered, they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill; my sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with no one to search or seek for them." (Ezekiel 34:2-6)

Who says the Bible is out of touch with modern reality? Does this not sound like a description of Christ’s flock today? Don’t we still have career pastors and evangelists who

are more interested in their own comfort than in the spiritual advancement of their congregations? Don’t we have white-collar ministers who would pontificate in their offices or churches and never take a step to reach out to the weak, the sick, the strayed? Don’t we still have church authorities who “rule” with force and harshness? Are the people of God not scattered over the mountains and hills in search of spiritual nourishment?

On account of the infidelity of the shepherds to their divine calling, God made this promise to his people that He Himself was going to be their shepherd, their good shepherd (Ezekiel 34:15-16). This promise was fulfilled in Jesus who declared himself to be the Good Shepherd who has come “that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). 

He is the Good Shepherd who lays down his own life to protect His flock. In those days, shepherds guarding their flock by night would

gather their flocks into an enclosure and sleep literally by lying across the entrance so that before a wild beast would attack the sheep it would have to attack them first.

Before Jesus left the world, He commissioned Peter to feed His lambs and tend His sheep (John 21:15-16). The work of shepherding God’s flocks is an ongoing task that is entrusted to the whole church with Peter as head. 

Since today we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday, we need to ask ourselves two important questions. (1) Am I a faithful member of God’s flock? Only those sheep who follow the guidance of the shepherd could ever hope to arrive at the green pastures or be safe from the ravenous wolves. (2) How could I participate more closely in the work of shepherding God’s flock? Bishops and pastors, as well as Sunday school teachers and ushers – all participate in various forms of shepherding God’s flock. How can I be a better shepherd in my own state, reaching out with understanding and compassion to the weak and misguided dropouts of church and society, so that through me they may hear the loving voice of Jesus, the Good Shepherd? 

Fr. Joe is asking us to asking us to donate to Water With Blessings for clean water in poor rural communities in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Central and South America & the U.S.A.