Homily: January 21, 2023, Tuesday of the 7th week in ordinary Time

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“For they had been discussing among themselves on the way who was the greatest.”

Isn’t this what we do all the time?

In a soccer game, we play to see which team is the best. In the Olympics, we see who will bag the gold medals. Even in computer games, we play to be the winner.

Who is the greatest? Who will be the first?

And Jesus’ answer is “the last of all and the servant of all” is the greatest. And He showed them a child.

I have been watching the popular TV series, ‘The Chosen’. This series has helped me better understand the human aspect of Jesus and the weaknesses of His apostles. They were clearly far from being great. The episodes effectively brought out the vulnerabilities of each disciple, their brokenness, unappealing characters, and easily shaken faith. I can relate so well to their imperfections.

It is worth reflecting on the life and growth of each apostle up till their martyrdom. How they gradually grew to become heroes of the faith, unafraid of persecutions and willing to die for Christ. I look forward to this same growth in me.

All through church history, successors of the apostles have continued leading the church with the same weaknesses. The church has never had a dull moment or been without scandals from her leaders and ministers. Other than persecutions from outside, the Catholic church suffers brokenness on the inside.

Yet,  she stands firm and is still growing after 2000 years. This truly is God’s church. God established His church to be a beacon of life and light to all nations until the end of the time. She will not fall.

What should we do? The responsorial psalm provides the answer. “Commit your life to the Lord, and he will help you.” Entrust your whole life to Jesus. 

In the first reading, Sirach recommended the same. He said, "Trust him and he will uphold you, follow a straight path and hope in him.  You who fear the Lord, wait for his mercy; do not turn aside in case you fall.  You who fear the Lord, trust him, you who will not be baulked of your reward.  You who fear the Lord hope for good things, for everlasting happiness and mercy."

We must commit our life completely to the lord, not let our weaknesses hinder us, but put our trust solely in Him. Through His graces, we will grow. He will not let us fall. Amen.


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Homily: April 23, 2024, Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Easter (Exciting news).

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Homily: March 24, 2022, Thursday of the Third Week of Lent

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Homily Third Sunday in Ordinary time: 1/23/22

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 “…Because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor”. Jesus declared His mission in the Gospel text today by reading from the scroll of Isaiah. Glad tidings are good news, news that will gladden the hearts of the recipients and cause them to rejoice. And prophet Ezra encouraged the Israelites who returned from exile in the first reading, “Do not be sad, and do not weep…for rejoicing in the LORD must be your strength!” So, what news is good news? What will truly gladden the heart and cause rejoicing? Today my homily will be short, is that good news? My family have always been average, we have always had what we needed, through God’s providence in our hard work. We just did not have comfort or extras, so we seldom go on vacations or travels. But we had simple fun and joy in daily life. My mommy died in 2012 and my papa died in 2018, both due to cancer. Papa had always been a very prayerful, humble and mild-mannered person. I saw him fast and pray consistently throughout his l
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Homily: June 19, 2023, Monday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time (parish Treasure)

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"As unrecognized and yet acknowledged; as dying and behold we live; as chastised and yet not put to death; as sorrowful yet always rejoicing; as poor yet enriching many; as having nothing and yet possessing all things." In today’s first reading, we see St. Paul’s wisdom as he writes to the faith community in Corinth. He is teaching them to see positivity in every hardship, every problem, every suffering. To him, every situation, seemingly good or bad, is a blessing, if we have eyes of faith to see it. A good example is our St. Ambrose parish. In the diocese, we are one of the poorest parishes, despite being the Cathedral. Seventy percent of our parishioners are refugees, living every day in survival mode, working hard to build a basic home, to educate their children, simply to live in peace. They left their war-torn country to find a new home, starting from zero. They brought nothing with them, only faith and hope. Materially, they have next to nothing, so they are not able t
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Homily: February 27, 2022, Eight Sunday in the Ordinary Time

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For readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022722.cfm There were two brothers who lived debauched lives engaging in terrible deeds. They were notorious yet not at all ashamed. Then one brother died. The surviving brother asked the local pastor to preach at his brother’s funeral. The pastor, aware of the brothers’ background, was reluctant to do it. The brother then promised to donate a big sum of money to the church and begged the pastor to preach with a special request. “Father, in your homily, you just have to say that my brother was a saint.” The pastor thought about it and agreed. The funeral day came. The pastor began his homily, “The man laid in the casket was a rotter; he led a horrible and debauched life. He was truly rotten to the bone. But compared to his brother, he was a saint.” Saintly life or shoddy living – Would the priest at our own funeral have to be paid to tell a lie? It all depends on what kind of fruit we produce from the way we live. Usually, we cannot
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Homily, March 22, 2022, Tuesday of the Third Week of Lent.

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