Homily: December 19, 2023, Tuesday of the Third Week of Advent (Samson)

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 “As for the son you will conceive and bear, no razor shall touch his head, for this boy is to be consecrated to God from the womb.”

As we near Christmas, the readings at Mass help us to prepare well for the season. Today we hear about two miraculous births: the birth of Samson in the first reading and the birth of John the Baptist in the gospel. 

I like reading about Samson. He had tremendous strength and killed many of the Israelites' enemies easily. God blessed him with extraordinary powers on one simple condition – “no razor shall touch his head.” All he needed to do was to keep his hair, nothing else.

Why didn’t God ask for something more challenging since what He is giving to Samson is something amazing?

This reminds me of God’s simple instruction to Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden, they just could not eat the fruit of a particular tree, nothing difficult. And another situation when God rescued Abraham, Sarah, Lot, and his wife, He promised them safety with only one simple instruction – not to look back.

God does not ask for big projects or challenging tasks, He only gives very, very simple instructions, but He showers huge blessings. Yet in all those situations mentioned, man failed God.

Why is it so difficult to keep to simple tasks given by God? Why are we so easily tempted to disobey God?

We know Samson’s story; he was seduced by a woman to reveal the secret of his power, and thus he lost it.

Our God is a God of small things; He does not need a lot from us, He is ready to bless us abundantly. Whatever He asks from us does not add anything more to God’s greatness, power or authority, but in effect, is meant to bless us more.

And for us to receive the abundant blessings of joy, peace and love of Christmas, all He asks of us is a place in our heart, a pure, contrite and loving heart.

Are we ready to open our hearts to truly welcome God coming as a baby? Is there space in our heart for Him? Is there space in our schedule to spend with Him? Is there space in our homes to honor Him?

Or are we too busy with shopping, presents, decorations, parties, food, dressing up and vacations?


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Homily: December 21, 2025, Fourth Sunday of Advent (Joseph -Trust)

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“When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.” God chose Joseph, a simple carpenter, to be the foster father of His beloved Son. A man from Nazareth, an insignificant town. A man with no power, no influence, no recorded words in Scripture. Yet Joseph stands at the very heart of the salvation story. What makes him so important is not what he said, but what God entrusted him with. There were kings and scholars, priests and leaders, wealthy and influential men. But God entrusted His Son not to them. He entrusted Him to Joseph. That tells us something profound about Joseph’s character. If God trusted him with Jesus, then Joseph must have been a man of deep integrity, quiet strength, steady faith, and faithful obedience. He did not question God’s decision, did not demand explanation to be convinced, nor sought recognition for his sacrifices. He listened. He trusted. He obeyed. And he acted without delay. This Fourth Sunday of Advent i...
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Homily: December 20, 2025, Saturday of the Third Week of Advent

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 “The Lord spoke to Ahaz: Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God.” Some people have special gifts, they are able to see signs of divine intervention or direction everywhere. Almost every day, they recognize God’s hand directly at work in their lives. I have friends who seem to be gifted in this area. They notice signs that I overlook and would dismiss as normal daily incidents, but only to realize later they were truly divine intervention. Recently, I read an autobiography. The author shared that on one occasion she was waiting a long time for a friend to join her for lunch, but who did not arrive. She later learned that her friend was killed in an accident. Overwhelmed with grief, she went to church to pray. An infant baptism was taking place, and she heard the newborn baby cry. At that moment, she felt God speaking to her, consoling her that though her friend’s life on earth had ended, at the same time, a new life was brought into Church, reborn through water and the Holy Spirit,...
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Homily: December 23, 2025 Tuesday of the Fourth week of Advent (Stories)

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 “All these matters were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea.” I know how this works. I grew up in a hill country very much like Judea, long before the time of internet, wi-fi and cell phones. Only one house in our village had a telephone, yet somehow everyone knew what was happening in every family. News traveled fast and no one was ever left out of the details. Communication was efficient and effective, without technology. And everyone shared quite freely about their joys and sorrows, ups and downs, happy stories, sad stories, all real, nothing fake. I wonder if the youth of today can imagine that. I am glad we still have these ways of personal communication in practice, especially with those who do not depend on cell phones. I love the little children of St. Ambrose whenever they come to me in excitement. Because they tell me everything that happened in their homes, even things I probably didn’t need to know! They are fast, and detailed. And often they return very soo...
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Homily: December 22, 2025 Monday of the Fourth week of Advent (Surrender)

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“Now I, in turn, give him to the LORD; as long as he lives, he shall be dedicated to the LORD. She left Samuel there.” How long did Hannah pray and wait for a child? Jewish tradition suggests that Hannah possibly waited about nineteen years. Throughout scripture, we understand that being childless in those days meant living like being cursed. There was no sympathy from others, only gossip and scorn. Despite carrying deep sorrow in her heart, Hannah did not give up, she kept praying and asking for God’s compassion and mercy. Finally, God answered her prayer, and the child was named ‘Samuel’ which means ‘because I asked God for it’. What would you do if you received a gift you have been longing for and waiting for years? You would hold on tightly to it and not want to lose it, right? Well Hannah was different. She was totally grateful that God has removed her shame and restored her dignity with the gift of a son, Samuel. But Hannah did not cling on to her gift, she readily dedicated her ...
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Homily: December 23, 2024 Monday of the Fourth Week in Advent (Purification)

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 "He will purify the sons of Levi, refining them like gold or like silver, that they may offer due sacrifice to the LORD." There are usually five steps to refine gold or silver. The very first step is to melt it in a hot furnace, then the molten gold is cast into molds to separate it from base metals and other impurities. It is further refined through electrolysis and other refining processes. Today’s first reading tells us God will purify His people like refining gold. Isn’t it a lot of hard work for God the refiner and such painful process for us, the refined? Yes, but it is so that we will all shine bright and flawless. Yesterday, after Sunday Mass, I was standing near the baptismal font, talking to a parishioner who informed me that Afaf Bakal, a Sudanese parishioner, had just passed away. Two years ago, I baptized her at that very same font and administered her Confirmation and First Communion. I remember her baptism vividly because she was already very weak at the time....
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Homily: December 28, 2024 Feast of the Holy Innocents (Suffering).

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"Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you." Just three days ago, we celebrated Christmas - a joyful commemoration of the day God came to live among us in our world, it is a when divine light entered human darkness, it is a day for rejoicing. The Christmas season continues for the Church up until the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. However, if we read and reflect on the details of Christ’s birth and events surrounding this season of joy, we see poverty, simplicity and suffering. Just before our Lord was born into this world, His earthly parents went through hardship just to find a place to rest, He was then welcomed into physical and material poverty, the day after His birth, we celebrated the death of the first martyr, St. Stephen, followed by the feast of St. John the Evangelist who suffered persecution and isolation till a ripe old age. And now today, we observe the feast of the Holy Innocents — a sorrowful event when hundreds of...
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Homily: August 10, 2025, Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

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 “You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.” Do you like surprise visits? Some of us do. Recently, I went again to visit my sister and her family. Since the last visit, my 4-year-old nephew had been calling me almost daily and asking me to visit him again. So, this time, I told my sister to keep my trip a secret, I wanted to surprise the little boy. When he saw me finally, his eyes were wide open with disbelief, and his mouth too was wide open in surprise! I will never forget that look on his face, and the exuberant joy of the moment when I hugged and carried him. But not all of us like surprise visits, especially when the visitors come at the wrong time, and we are caught unprepared. When I was in high school, our principal, Fr. George, was very strict. He didn’t talk much, but he knew every student. Occasionally, he would walk along the school corridors, surveying every corner and if he caught any student misbehaving, he would carry ou...
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Homily: April 11, 2023, Tuesday in the Octave of Easter (Ignorance)

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"Let the whole house of Israel know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified." We heard this from the first reading today, St. Peter made this declaration in his first preaching, on the day of Pentecost. Many of the Jews who demanded that Jesus be crucified were ignorant that Jesus was truly the Christ, and now Peter is declaring, so they will ‘know for certain’. Because they were unaware of scriptural prophecies about the Messiah which Jesus fulfilled, they blindly believed the false accusations made against Him by the Jewish leaders. Their ignorance led them to become co-conspirators of murder. St. Paul rightly said, "None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." (1 Cor. 2:8) Yes, if they had known for certain, they would not have killed Jesus. Ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ. Ignorance of Christ is ignorance of salvation. This ignorance is...
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Homily: September 15, 2025, Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows (Entrustment)

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 “Woman, behold, your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother.” This arrangement, spoken from the Cross, may look like a simple and practical arrangement for the care of His surviving mother, but truly, it carries a deeper and profound truth. It is one of the ‘seven last words of Jesus’. Quite naturally and obviously, He entrusted the care of His beloved Mother to someone reliable and obedient. He gave her to John. And at the same time, He also entrusted the continued nurturing of John, His beloved disciple, to His Mother. Jesus had no earthly possessions which will wither and end to leave behind. What He left, as a lasting forever legacy to His disciples and as a gift of eternity to all believers to come, was the institution of the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper. Now from the Cross, He is giving to the whole of humanity something personal: His own Mother,  whom He took His human flesh and blood from when she carried Him in her womb. Why John the beloved ap...
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Homily: JUne 28, 2022, Memorial of Saint Irenaeus, Bishop and Martyr.

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 He said to them, “Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?” There was a violent storm and the boat was going to sink. Naturally, anyone would be terrified. Why did Jesus continue to sleep when they were all in danger? Was it unreasonable of them to wake Him? Why did Jesus rebuke them? Well, Jesus rebuked them not because they interrupted his sleep but because of their lack of faith. They were calling, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” They were so sure they would die. They called out in fear. They have seen so many miracles from Jesus, yet they did not have any confidence having Him in the boat with them. Should they not wake Him at all then? I have a very good friend from Sri Lanka. During our seminary days together, I remember he struggled a lot with his studies, especially in the first year.  He was trying so hard but was feeling helpless and hopeless. One day, his spiritual director told him, “Jesus is sleeping in your boat, you have to call out to Him. He will wake...
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