Homily: August 20, 2023, Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary time.

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 "For my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples."

When King Solomon built the majestic temple in Jerusalem for the Israelites, many non-Israelites had a hand in it. Other nations from Solomon’s connections contributed to its construction – precious stones, wood, gold etc to complete the magnificent house of God. The temple of God was built also with Gentile offerings in that sense.

When the Israelites were sent into exile and the temple was destroyed, the pain of loss were suffered by more than just the people of God.

Finally, when the Israelites returned from exile and rebuilt the temple, God made this declaration in today's first reading through prophet Isaiah. The Lord is declaring His acceptance of the offerings from ‘foreigners who join themselves to the Lord’. Yes, the Lord is saying ‘All are welcome’ to His house of prayer.

Sadly though, Jewish authorities thereafter did not allow the Gentiles to enter the Temple. Prideful as the chosen race of God, the Israelites rejected and were hostile towards the Gentiles.

Is God’s house still open to all peoples?

In today’s gospel, Jesus encounters a Canaanite woman. Indirectly, He posed that question for His disciples to think. In His remarks to His disciples and in His dialogue with the Gentile woman, Jesus exposes the discriminatory thoughts of the Jewish people but through His acceptance of the woman’s petition, “Let it be done for you as you wish", 

Jesus shows the people and assures us that yes, God’s house is always open for all peoples as He wishes.

Healing the Canaanite woman’s daughter according to her plea is an open declaration of love and mercy for all, not excluding the Gentiles or anyone with faith in the Lord.

His message to His disciples is clear, and so all of us gathered here in this beautiful house of prayer, can offer our hearts to God and worship Him in confidence. He who is not just the God of Israel, but is our God.

Is our church also open to all peoples?

If the Canaanite woman is alive today, would she come looking for Jesus in our church?

I think she would. She knew Jesus could help her. She believed in Jesus. And she was willing to face difficulties to claim even the ‘scraps that fall from the table of their masters.’

Do we also have faith like the Canaanite woman?

Do we make effort to claim the full graces that God is showering upon us every day?

We don’t need to beg Jesus or shout to get His attention. We just need to turn up in God’s house of prayer and receive the sacraments with thanksgiving and gratitude.

There are many around us who have forgotten their baptismal rights to the sacraments. Let us pray for the grace to reach out to them, invite and attract them back to God’s house. Let us tell them surely ‘All are welcome’. Amen.


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Homily: April 14, 2026 Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter (Simple Faith)

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Holy Family School Mass Homily:   “During the night, the angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison.” Did you hear that line in today’s first reading? The Sadducees put the apostles in jail. But during the night, an angel of the Lord came, opened the prison doors, and set them free. That is amazing, right? Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have an angel like that? But here is the good news: You already do! Each one of you has a guardian angel. God has given every one of us an angel to protect us, guide us, and help us reach heaven. Some saints were very close to their guardian angels. St. Isidore, a farmer in Spain, loved God very much. There are stories that angels helped him with his work when he was busy praying. St. Padre Pio often spoke with his guardian angel and even asked his angel to help others. St. Gemma Galgani also experienced her guardian angel, who guided her and even corrected her when she did something wrong! Even in the life of Jesus, when He was praying in t...
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 “Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert…? We are disgusted with this wretched food!” When you read the story of Exodus to this point, do you feel frustrated with the Israelites? Don’t you think they should be deeply grateful to God? For years, they have been praying and crying to God to save them from slavery. Then God sent Moses and they saw with their own eyes the many miracles and wonders God performed to bring them all out of Egypt safely. The ten plagues, the passover, the parting of the Red Sea as they walked on dry ground to freedom. They experienced God’s power firsthand and saw what generations before and after them have not seen. They know God is real. Now they did not have to be flogged and beaten, they did not have to work in harsh conditions, they did not have to live in fear, they didn’t even have to grow their own food. God provided every day. And yet, they complained, they blamed God and Moses, they even called manna, the food God gave them fro...
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“Prepare to meet your God, O Israel.” This is the last verse from today’s first reading, and it reminds me of my school days. When I was in school, from Pre-K right up to high school, there were umpteen times when I was told, “Prepare to meet your principal.” And that meant trouble. Every principal that had led my school, has had the privilege of punishing me for being naughty or not doing my homework, and occasionally my parents too were called in to meet them. That was so embarrassing for them, and totally shameful for me. Yet it did not stop me from getting into trouble as I progressed through school. And so, whenever I go to Holy Family School here, and if I see students in the principal's office, it reminds me of my own experience in the past. I imagine that they too probably got into some trouble for not finishing their homework or misbehaving in class. And if I see a kid from SAC in the principal's office, I would just pretend that I did not look inside and did not see t...
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