Homily: September 12, 2023, Tuesday of the thirty third week in Ordinary Time.

-

“For in him dwells the whole fullness of the deity bodily, and you share in this fullness in him, who is the head of every principality and power.”

Today's first reading is truly inspiring, offering us a glimpse of life with Jesus Christ, life in the Spirit. The Christian life revolves around the Master’s teachings. Jesus who sacrificed His life for us, taught and showed us how to live like Him. His way is simply to give life, completely till the last breath. That is His way of true unconditional love.

How should we respond to this powerful teaching of love?

Follow Him, imitate Him, be like Him. It is when people realize they are loved that they want to worship, they come to church. And it is when people realize they are called that they want to follow, they become active disciples, they go out to preach.

In today's gospel, we witness Jesus choosing His twelve apostles. Were they perfect? Far from it.

Do they qualify? Not according to our criteria of good leaders, but yes, they were the best apostles for Jesus according to His expectations. He knew they would be transformed.

Indeed, after they had witnessed Jesus’ passion, death, and resurrection, and after they had been empowered by the Holy Spirit, these twelve apostles began preaching Christ everywhere, without doubt, without fear, without stopping.

Within a few years, the gospel spread across three continents, and it all started with twelve simple men whom we consider far from perfect, unqualified to lead. It was a period of exponential growth we wish we could revive and repeat. 

Now we are about 500 thousand priests worldwide, with uncountable number of religious and lay ministers. Yet, the speed and spread of growth cannot match that of the first apostles.

Why? What is missing?

Transformation. To be transformed to share in the fullness of Christ. The saints we know were transformed, the martyrs we read about were transformed. They shared fully the sufferings of Christ, and so they live, walk and die like Him. They also attracted multitudes of followers and converted sinners like Christ did.

Are we transformed?

Imagine what we can become if we are.

Do we share fully the life of Christ?

Imagine how the church can grow if we do.

What is stopping us? Pride, fear, lack of faith. We have already received the same Holy Spirit, allow Him to transform us, every day. Surrender. Amen.


Comments

Post a Comment

Read

Homily: March 4, 2025, Tuesday of the Eight week in Ordinary time (Empty Handed)

-
 "Appear not before the LORD empty-handed, for all that you offer is in fulfillment of the precepts."  One of our parish volunteers who gives rides to refugee families to bring them for Sunday Mass shared an incident with me. One day, she arrived at a house to pick up a family as usual, but they were reluctant to go to church. When she asked them why, the children responded, “We have no money to put in the collection basket.” Oh, my heart ached to hear that. The church needs money, but God does not. Yet the refugee families in our parish, who have barely enough for themselves, would refuse to come before the Lord empty-handed. They are so eager to give. Our parish is special, our Sunday collections always receive hundreds of one-dollar bills. I presume these are small offerings given with great love. Just like the poor widow who gave two small coins, she won Jesus’ praise for giving her all. Our Lord does not count the dollars, He weighs the sincerity. The first reading tells...
Read more

Homily: March 2, 2022, Ash Wednesday

-
 Today begins another holy season of Lent. A time to turn away from sinful ways. To turn back to God. Ash Wednesday reminds us that we are from dust. Unto dust we shall return. God looked at dust and loved. He gave dust His breathe of life. God looks at us and loves. He gives us His body, blood and spirit. What can we give Him? “Even now, says the LORD, return to me with your whole heart”. God doesn’t want anything from us, He wants us. Live in God. Live with God. Live for God. In God’s ways. When I first came to this country, I saw crowds packing the mega churches. Non-Catholic Christian churches. I was really fascinated. Our Catholic churches are hardly ever filled. I asked an elderly priest, “why?” He replied, “Ours is a worship and sacrifice. Theirs is a show.” People like shows, performances, excitement. The world says, “be heard, be seen, be known, and be successful.” The Gospel says, “pray but don’t be heard, fast but don’t be seen, give but don’t be known, and be faithful.”...
Read more

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

-
Did you listen attentively to the Gospel reading? Yes? Let me test you… What did Jesus say? Did He say, “Whoever eats my bread and drinks my wine?”  No! He said, “Whoever eats my FLESH and drinks my BLOOD remains in me and I in him.” Yes, when you receive Holy Communion, you are receiving the real flesh and blood of Jesus. I am sure Fr. Roy, your catechists, parents and the whole parish community have prepared you well for this day, so you know what you are receiving today. But what I want to focus on now is the last part where Jesus says, ‘remains in me and I in him’. 29 years ago in 1996, I received my First Holy Communion. I was eight years old, but I still remember that day vividly. I remember the preparations, my First Reconciliation, and the excitement I felt when I lined up to receive Jesus for the very first time. I remember seeing the priest dipping the Precious Body into the Precious Blood, and then that precious moment – Jesus’ body and blood rested on my tongue. So swee...
Read more

Homily: July 15, 2024, Monay of the fifteenth week in Ordinary time (Pleasing God).

-
“In the blood of calves, lambs, and goats, I find no pleasure.” Why does God find no pleasure in such blood sacrifices? What would please God? In the past, one of the parishes in my home diocese in India used to practice animal sacrifices in church. I do not know how it all started but I know how it all ended. In 1924, exactly one hundred years ago, the bishop at that time banned all animal sacrifices in our parishes. It was a huge decision and he faced strong opposition. Why? The parish church was dedicated to St. Anthony attracted many visitors from other states. People would go and offer animal sacrifices, in the hope of getting their petitions granted. The church would sell chickens outside the church, and when a devotee wanted to offer a sacrifice, they would cut the necks of the chickens, and sell it to the devotees for their sacrificial offertory. The parishioners who sold the chickens to the church made a lot of money and the church profited from the offertory as well. You can ...
Read more

Homily: November, 13, 2023, Monday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time (hiding).

-
 “For the Spirit of the Lord fills the world, is all-embracing, and knows what man says.” My youngest nephew, Joe, is now two-years old. At the moment, he is the only child of my youngest sister in New Jersey. At home, he keeps himself very busy. He will play with anything he finds at home. Recently, he found a simple cardboard box and it has become his latest plaything. He can easily climb into it and sit inside, then close the flap and pretend he has disappeared. His mother would also pretend to be searching for him, asking, 'Where are you, Joe?' At that point, he would lift the flap, giggle, and say, “I see you!” Joe’s mommy, my sister, would record this on video and send it to me. I love watching it again and again. It is simply adorable. I don't know how many times they have played this same game, over and over. It makes Joe very happy to hide and then to see his mother’s surprise when he appears from the box. She of course knows where he is, but she plays along. She a...
Read more

Homily: March 8, 2025, Satruday after the Ash Wednesday (Call of Levi)

-
 He said to him, "Follow me." And leaving everything behind, he got up and followed him.  Have you watched the TV series about Jesus, The Chosen? Which is your favorite character? I personally love the character of Matthew. With poetic imagination, they beautifully presented this scene when Jesus called out to Matthew and how he responded spontaneously to the call. I remember watching Jesus walk past Matthew’s tax collection booth, and they both locked eyes, just before Jesus called out to him. It was exciting to see the way Matthew looking shocked at first and then disregarding even the Roman guard’s attempts to stop him, Matthew just went out of his booth and left his high-paying job forever, without looking back. It almost seems as if Matthew had been waiting, and waiting for someone to reach out to him, someone to invite him, call him and give him a good reason to change his life. As a tax collector, Matthew was trapped between two worlds. His own Jewish people rejected h...
Read more

Homily: August 28, 2023, Monday of the twenty first week in Ordinary time (Past sins- St. Augustine

-
 "And how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God and to await His Son from heaven."  Thessalonica was a Greek city. Before the people encountered St. Paul’s preaching, they were practicing idol worshipping, they had numerous deities which they turn to for their needs and wants. They made statues to worship and accorded much superstitious powers to these statues of various deities.  They believed that many of their wishes and requests were answered through these. Such worship gave them much sensual satisfaction and immediate gratification. These heightened the worshippers’ reliance on the deities. As such, it was not easy for the people to give up idol worship. Although St. Paul’s preaching about Christ and the good news of eternal salvation were powerful in converting some of the Thessalonians, he could not remove them completely from the old habits of idol worshipping. They were living in the city which was still very much practicing the old ways. ...
Read more

Homily: February 14, 2023, Tuesday of the sixth week in Ordinary Time.

-
 “…He regretted that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was grieved.” This sounds bad. Did God really regret bringing man to life? There is another place in the Bible which seems to express God’s regret. It was when the first king of the Israelites, Saul, disobeyed God and did evil. In the book of Samuel, the Lord God said, “I am grieved that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me…” Did God regret this too and changed His mind? No, not at all. In the same book of 1 Samuel, it is clearly written: “He who is the strength of Israel does not lie not does he repent, for he is not a man that he should change his mind.” (1 Samuel 15:29 NCB) God is omnipotent, all-knowing, almighty. He knows everything, He does not change His mind, He is constant, consistent, steadfast, everlasting. So, why do these inspired books of the Bible express that God regretted? First, especially so in the Old Testament, we need to appreciate that the authors wrote the texts with a limi...
Read more

Homily: April 17, 2024 Wednesday of the Third Week of Easter (Jesus does not Reject)

-
Holy family School Mass  “Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and I will not reject anyone who comes to me”.  Isn’t this wonderful? Jesus says that He will not reject anyone who comes to Him. This means that whoever goes to Jesus, whether they are naughty or nice, good or bad, He will accept them all and love them all. So, every one of you here, no one excluded, as long as you go to Jesus, He will accept you. This is truly good news! And this is what we are celebrating for Easter, Jesus died to save not just some people, but the whole world. During this season of Easter, we take readings from the Acts of the Apostles. We see how the Apostles were fervent and fearless in the way they go around to preach this good news and how thousands and thousands of people believed and were baptised. But it was not smooth and easy, we see in the first reading, how the early church was being persecuted. The enemies have killed Jesus, and they continue to kill those who believ...
Read more

Homily: June 5, 2023, Monday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time (Bury the dead).

-
 "And I wept. Then at sunset, I went out, dug a grave, and buried him." I love reading the book of Tobit and the book of Jonah from the Old Testament, especially Tobit, which provides deep moral insights. Tobit was a righteous man, ever ready to get into acts of mercy. In today’s first reading, Tobit’s meal of ‘many different dishes’ was served. But before he ate, he asked his son to go out to find a poor man to share his meal, a fellow Israelite whom he may not even know personally, he regarded everyone as family. And when he heard about the Israelite whose dead body was left on the streets, he ‘sprang to (his) feet’ to bring the body back so as to bury him after sunset. His immediate reaction showed how important that work of mercy was to him, an act which took courage and sacrifice. Tobit and his family were in exile, and to bury a fellow countryman who was killed by the Assyrians will put his life in danger. Yet to leave a body unburied was an act of disrespect to the one...
Read more