Homily: May, 16, 2023, Tuesday of the Sixth week of Easter (Prison-Praise).

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About midnight, while Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God…

This part of the first reading really struck me. Paul and Silas had just been beaten badly with rods and thrown into the innermost cell prison, with their feet chained up. They must be in extreme pain, every inch of their bodies, feeling very uncomfortable being chained up, very hungry and thirsty. Yet they prayed and sang hymns to God.

How many of us can sing while having a bad headache? I can’t even smile.

What was it that kept Paul and Silas, and the other apostles going and glorifying God even when they were tortured, suffering and in great pain?

We live in a society of pain avoidance, we want a painless life, painless religion, painless relationships, painless death. And so we rely on painkillers, we want comfort and minimal struggles.

My papa had cancer, and in his final days, he went through great pain. In India, we do not administer morphine. I was not with my papa when he passed away, but my sister told me that he prayed calmly and unceasingly throughout the night till he died, even though he was in intense pain. He faced his death with faith.

Recently, I read an article about St. Pope John Paul II in which his personal doctor, Renato Buzzonetti, who attended to him from 1978 till his death, shared that the Pope had always refused all kinds of pain medication. Instead, he offered all his pains and suffering to Mary.

The saint Pope said, “Prayer joined to sacrifice constitute the most powerful force in human history.” Thus, we see how Paul and Silas’ prayer and praise amidst suffering brought about the conversion of the jailer and his household.

He also said, “Each man, in his suffering, can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ.”

Jesus saved us through his suffering and death, could we also offer our little pain and discomfort for the salvation of another soul? Even if we can't sing out a hymn, we can silently offer them to our Lord on the cross.

That was probably what Paul and Silas, and the apostles had, the conviction to do what Jesus did, to be united with Him in His suffering. Christ lived in them.

The late Pope Benedict XVI said, “The world offers you comfort. But you were not made for comfort, you were made for greatness.” Let us not live for comfort but for Christ. Christ lives in us! Amen.


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March 1, 2025: First Holy Communion Homily: St. Joseph's Catholic Church Seffner, Florida

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Homily: April 1, 2025, Tuesday of the Fourth Week in Lent ()

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Homily: April 27, 2025, Second Sunday of Easter (Divine Mercy )

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Jesus said to the disciples, “Peace be with you,” and then immediately showed them His hands and His side, His wounds. Even in His glorified, resurrected body, Jesus bears the nail wounds of the crucifixion. When it is our turn to see Him face to face, we too will still see His wounds. They are important to Him. To us, they are proof of His sacrifice, a permanent reminder of His love, the pain He endured for us. To Jesus, they are physical signs of His full obedience, even unto death. We too have our own wounds, sufferings we experienced which leave behind scars: physical, mental, emotional and social. These scars can be manifested in the form of physical impairments and imperfections, anger temperaments, deep bitterness and sadness, or even intentional avoidance of social situations which could trigger the painful memory. But we don’t always show these openly, we tend to hide these painful, hurting part of us from others, we try to look ok on the outside. Most of the time, only those ...
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 “Behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals”. Jesus is sending his disciples out to proclaim the good news of salvation to all. Yet, his instruction sounds like he is sending them out to die, into a dangerous mission. Instead of advising them to bring all the necessities and resources to be self-sufficient and independent, He is telling them to be helpless and vulnerable. Can they manage it? Jesus is the lamb of God. His mission is to give His life for His sheep. He is totally dependent on God alone. He needs nothing else from this world to accomplish His mission. And now He is teaching His disciples to do the same. He is telling us to do the same. Can we manage it? Seems difficult, isn’t it? I have a very good friend Dr. Samuel Thomas. He is a Pentecostal minister. He is the president of Hopegivers International, giving hope of a better future to orphaned, abandoned and underprivileged children.  In India, founded by his father,...
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“For those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.” How much do you love God? How grateful are you to God who has given you everything you need, including His own life? When we love someone deeply, we would be more than willing to give everything we have for the good of the person we love, right? And if we are truly grateful to someone, we would show appreciation in the most sincere and respectful way, wouldn’t we? Recently, a friend told me what one priest shared in his homily: “Don’t give to God as you would give to a homeless beggar.” That struck me. God does not need our sympathy, He does not need our money, He wants our love and gratitude. But church needs money to function, to accomplish God’s mission, so when we give to church, we are giving to God. So how much does the church need, how much do we give? Some general statistics look alarming. Typically, only about 30% of parishioners are supporting a p...
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 The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them. The soul of Bill is in the hand of God, no torment shall touch him. We are here to bid our final farewell to Bill, our beloved brother, grandpa, dad, husband, friend. I feel privileged to have known Bill these last two years and honored to preside over this Mass for his sending off. Many of you would have known him much longer and much better than I. I wish I had more time with him. I was awed when I read his obituary, his life story is inspirational. I know from my encounter with him that he was a dedicated husband, a loving and caring father, the greatest fan to every one of his grandchildren, and an incredible friend to countless people here and around the world. His going would surely leave a void in our lives. It is only natural that we grieve this loss. Bill was a man of remarkable character. His love for life, his sense of humor, and his thoughtfulness for others were the hallmarks of his persona...
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 Grief-stricken in spirit, I, Tobit, groaned and wept aloud. Then with sobs I began to pray… We continue our reflections from the book of Tobit. In the first part of today’s first reading, we see how Tobit was ‘grief-stricken in spirit’ – he was devastated and desperate! His life saw misfortunes one after another, while he continued to keep faithful to God. But there is just so much a human person can withstand, so he took it to prayer, with groans and sobs, but if you read carefully his prayer, there was no complaints or anger against God. Only total surrender and giving up his life totally to the Lord. Then we read on to Sarah’s life. What a miserable life she had, losing one husband after another, seven times, all on the wedding nights. She was cursed indeed by the demon and ridiculed by others, she was helpless and depressed. What could she do? We see in the reading, “At that time, then, she spread out her hands, and facing the window, poured out her prayer…” She could take her...
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