Homily: August 27-2023, twenty first Sunday in ordinary time (Who do you say that I am).

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 "But who do you say that I am?"

Why did Jesus ask His disciples this question?

Didn’t they all know who He really is?

Let us go back to look at how their discipleship began. Some of them were fishermen, Jesus called them to follow Him, they left their jobs and followed him. Did He tell them, “I am the Messiah you have been waiting for, come follow me”? No.

Some of them were disciples of John the Baptist, when he pointed out Jesus to them, he told them “Behold the Lamb of God,” and they followed Jesus. Did John introduce Jesus as the Messiah? No.

We assume they know that Jesus is the Son of God sent to earth as a human to die for them, because that is how we were introduced to Jesus. But Jesus was never officially presented to the disciples as the Messiah, the Son of God.

Although by this time of Jesus' ministry, the disciples would have been following him daily for a couple of years. He would have taught them many things about the scriptures referring to the Messiah, they would have witnessed the miracles he performed and felt the special presence of God whenever they were with Him. Some of them would have seen the heavens opened at His baptism. 

So, they do know who Jesus is, or do you think they still had doubts?

All of us here who are baptized, have been told Jesus is the Son of God, how He loves us and forgives us our sins if we come to Him in humility, how He can help us if we submit ourselves totally to Him… do you believe or do you sometimes doubt if it is true?

Jesus is asking us, "But who do you say that I am?"

If you truly believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, your God, your Savior, then why do you still fear? Why do you still doubt? Why do you still follow the world and reject His teachings? Why do you follow your own selfish individualistic ways and not His way of humility and way of the cross?

It seems like we are like the first disciples before Pentecost: knowing Jesus in the head but not in the heart.

Jesus is asking us again, “Who do you say that I am?”

Jesus is not asking us based on what we have been told, but based on what we ourselves believe, and it can only come from our relationship with Him.

Jesus is my savior – how does He save you?

Jesus is my Messiah – how is He the focus in your life?

Jesus is my Christ – how does He have control in your life?

Jesus is my friend – how is He intimate and active in your life?

If you do not have a personal relationship with Him, you will not be able to answer His question.

Holy Spirit of God, help me know Jesus. Amen.


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Funeral Homily: William J. Baum, June 8, 2023

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“Let us then go down and there confuse their language, so that one will not understand what another says." If that did not happen at Babel, we would all be speaking the same language, I would not need to learn Spanish and you would understand me perfectly, right? Did you wonder, what was so wrong with building a high tower in Babel which would reach up to the sky? If we look around the cities in the world, we will see many huge and tall buildings. And many are so iconic, making the city they are located at famous and well known. Like the leaning tower of Pisa in Italy, Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, Petronas Twin Tower in Malaysia, Burg Khalifa in Dubai, Taj Mahal in India, just to name a few. Possibly, the question should be, why do people need to build such mammoth buildings? In the first reading, we are told that the people in Shinar wanted to make a name for themselves. So, it was pride. Their plan would need to use up lots of time and resources to build something which would
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Homily: November 20, 2023, Monday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time (Hope).

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Homily: October 12, 2022, Wednesday of the twenty-eighth week in the ordinary time.

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 “If you are guided by the spirit, you are not under the law”.  From my kindergarten years to grade 4, I used to walk two miles to school and the same distance back home. I would always get really hungry on the way home. My friends and I would pick and eat whatever that was edible along the road. One of our neighbours grew a special cherry plant in his garden. We used to pick the juicy cherries to eat as we walked past. One day, he put up a handwritten sign on the tree which read, “Don’t pick the cherries”. One naughty kid continued to pick the cherries and even tore up that sign. Thereafter, the owner began to guard his cherry fiercely.  If we behaved right and showed respect for his property, there would not need the sign board nor the guarding, right? Similarly, if everyone in society knew how to behave and treat one another, we would not need to have laws. Those who are guided by the spirit of right behaviour will not need laws, because they are above the law.  Is it any wonder why
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