Homily: November 26, 2023: Solemnity of Christ the king.

-

 “Thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will look after and tend my sheep.”

Today we celebrate the solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. This feast was instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925, when he proclaimed, “Pax Christi in regno Christi” which means ‘The peace of Christ in the reign of Christ’. Christ is our sovereign spiritual King and Ruler who rules by truth and love, and we, His subjects, declare our loyalty and faithfulness to Him.

Historically, kings had absolute sovereign power and authority over his people, many had wielded that for their own advantage, at the expense of the people’s good.

Is our King the same?

In the first reading today, prophet Ezekiel was delivering God’s message to the Israelites whose kings had been utterly unfaithful to God and irresponsible to the people. Ezekiel was reminding the people that God Himself is their ultimate King who is caring, loving and merciful. God’s Kingship is like a shepherd who is dedicated to the well-being and safety of his sheep.

His message to the Israelites living in exile and to us living in today’s world, is both assuring and encouraging. God is telling us, "He who is lost I will seek out, the strayed I will bring back, the injured I will bind up, the sick I will heal."

God loves us, His sheep. He does not use His sovereign power to oppress us but uses His loving power to save us.

We might see it in a movie but we hardly see this in real life, where a king would risk his life to protect the lives of his people. In reality, what we see are bodyguards and security personnel, servants and ministers sacrificing themselves for the safety and well-being of their king.

However, we all know that our King does precisely the opposite. He sacrificed Himself for the redemption of His people, and He continues to sacrifice Himself at every Mass for the spiritual well-being of His followers. He saves by love, not by force.

We are free to choose our destiny. God prepared heaven for us; He promised us eternal life. Jesus made it clear in the Gospel: "Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels." There is eternal punishment, but it was not prepared for us.

However, by our life and actions, our choice and decision, many of us might still be choosing eternal condemnation if we are prideful and stubborn. That is what the devil wants. Beware.

This feast is to remind us that if we stick close to Jesus, we will be safe and secure. Even if we strayed and got lost due to distractions and confusions, if we are ‘scattered when it was cloudy and dark’, He will ‘rescue’ us.

Jesus also reminds us in the Gospel that we can keep His spirit alive in us, we can help one another stay on course by doing what He does. 

There are six questions He will ask us at the end of time, and those six questions help us check our responsibilities towards one another in the world. As the Lord takes care of us, we are also called to take care of our brothers and sisters. As we help one another stay on course in our faith, to believe and trust in God’s loving, merciful care, the less likely we ourselves will stray or get lost. 

Finally, St. Paul in the second reading further assures us, "For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet." Jesus Christ will put all His enemies under His feet. The final victory is our Lord’s.

Eternal life and eternal punishments are forever. Recognize and follow the right King, the King who rules by truth and love. Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, will reign forever and ever. Amen.


Comments

Post a Comment

Read

Homily: May 6, 2024, Monday of the sixth week of Easter (Lydia)

-
 “One of them, a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth, from the city of Thyatira, a worshiper of God, listened, and the Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what Paul was saying.” The Easter readings are truly remarkable. We witness how the Holy Spirit did amazing works through the acts of the apostles. The apostles simply went about sharing about the life of Jesus and spreading the good news. They were unperturbed by rejections or persecutions, and their persistence and bold proclamations won more hearts than objections. And we also see how the Holy Spirit converts not always in the same way but through many ways according to the charisms of the preachers as well as the unique situations of the listeners.  On Pentecost day, we saw a massive conversion of three thousand people all in one day through one event. Today we encounter the story of a single conversion: that of Lydia, a woman from Thyatira. We are told she was a dealer in purple cloth, that meant she had dealings w
Read more

Homily: March 13, 2022, Sunday of the second Week of Lent

-
 The Lord God took Abram outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars if you can. Just so,” he added, “shall your descendants be.”  “I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as a possession.” God made these two promises to Abram. For the people in ancient times, and for many even in modern times, having children as heir and owning land as property are two most important possessions in life. Abram had been leading a nomadic life for many years and his wife Sarai, already in her old age, was still childless at that time. So, Abram doubted and questioned, “how am I to know…?” Have you been praying for something important, bearing heavy burdens while waiting, trying to keep hopeful but still you received nothing? Would you also doubt and question God? In response to Abram’s doubt, God assured him by cutting a covenant with him, known as a covenant of the pieces. In ancient times, when people entered a treaty, a contractual agreement, they wo
Read more

Homily: February 17, 2023, Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time.

-
“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
Read more

Homily: January 30, 2023, Monday of the Fourth Week in Ordinary Time

-
“Then they began to beg him to leave their district.” Why?? Jesus just did an amazing miracle, he cast out a multitude of demons in possession of a man and sent them all into nearby pigs. Jesus released the man from his horrible bondage so that he can live a free and fulfilling life. Isn’t that a wonderful thing Jesus did? Wouldn’t they feel secure and safe with Jesus around, so no one will be afraid of demons again? Why would they want to beg Jesus to leave them? Once I was biking with a friend towards Minburn. As we got near, we can already smell a pork refinery. My friend asked me, “Father, do you know what smell is this?” I said, “Yes, it is the smell of pork.” He replied, “Yes, this is the smell of money.” If you reared pigs, you would know what that smell is like. It is a very bad smell. To people from Middle Eastern cultures, including Jews, pigs are considered contaminated and unclean.  But to the rest of the world, it is a popular meat to eat. People may not like real pigs, bu
Read more

Homily: Thursday, June 9, Thursday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

-
 Jesus said to his disciples: “I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of God.” How were the scribes and Pharisees righteous? For them, being righteous meant to be obedient to the law and the prophets, to the letter. They followed the law literally. In other words, they were legalistic. They were righteous, externally. How then can anyone surpass their righteousness? They were exact and accurate in everything the law prescribed. Can anyone do more than them, more than the law required and go the extra mile? What does Jesus mean? What is the purpose of the law? St. Paul had the answer. In his letter to the Ephesians, he wrote, “…to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge…” Yes, we are to seek love above knowledge. St. Paul continued, “…so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” And this is the purpose of the law, that we may be full of God, that means full of love. So, the only way to s
Read more

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

-
 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 personality
Read more

Homily: March 11, 2024, Mnday of the fourth week in Lent (Need signs and wonders to believe)

-
 "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe…" If you had been praying to God all your life, but never once were your prayers answered, would you still believe? My mother was diagnosed with cancer when I was still studying in Rome. I prayed hard for a miracle for my mommy to be healed and to live long enough to see me become a priest. But she died at age 62 in 2012, four years before my ordination. Then in 2018, my father was also diagnosed with cancer. He was 70 years old. Again, I prayed hard for his speedy recovery, since I was already a priest for two years, I desperately needed a miracle to believe in my priesthood. But he passed away just one week after his diagnosis. I was sad for my parents’ early death, but what I found very difficult to accept was that my prayers for miracles were rejected, or so I thought. Now fast forward to January 2024, finally I made my first trip back to India after four years in USA. One of my anxieties was my hundred-and-o
Read more

Homily: June 4, 2023, The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity (Trinity-Love-Power)

-
 "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him." When I was a child, I wished to be tall, strong and muscular; I dreamed of winning every fight and imagined myself being feared by others. But the truth is I was always thin and small in stature compared to my peers and was bullied by others. To compensate for my lack, I decided that my God is powerful and mighty and will defeat all my enemies.  Growing up in a predominantly Hindu country, I was fascinated by the stories of Hindu deities who were victorious in every battle, they were superheroes. In school, my Hindu friends and I would argue whose god would win in a wrestling competition: Jesus or Krishna and Shiva the Hindu gods. But Jesus does not even possess any weapon, has never been in fights and would never kill, how could He win? I secretly wished that Jesus and His angels were powerful, invincible  warriors.   So, what is our God? Our God is unlike any
Read more

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

-
 “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
Read more

Homily:" May 7, 2024. Tuesday of the Sixth week of Easter (praise and worship in Prison)

-
 "About midnight, while Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God…” I cannot even imagine this scene. How could they still pray and sing in such a situation? Whenever I have a slight headache, ear infection, or a little upset stomach, I would already be very disturbed. I would not even want to talk to anyone during those moments. If I had something worse, I might not even be able to pray. If you look carefully at my left eyebrow, you will notice a scar. During my seminary days in Rome, there was once when I was late for class, and I ran so fast into the classroom that I crashed into the glass door without realizing it was closed. I shattered the glass and a piece of it cut deep across my eyebrow. Thankfully it missed my eye. I was so in pain, shock and bleeding that I could not talk to anyone for a while, and I definitely was not in the mood to sing or pray. But look at Paul and Silas. They had just been attacked by a crowd, were then stripped, and beaten with rods. Aft
Read more