Homily: June 24, 2024, Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist.

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“Though I thought I had toiled in vain, and for nothing, uselessly spent my strength, yet my reward is with the Lord, my recompense is with my God.” 

Some people do go through life tougher and rougher than others. I personally know some such people who lived the whole of their lives literally toiling and working till they die. My own parents lived like that.

Since young they were already laboring to help their own families. When they got married, they labored every day from morning till night to provide for us. Before they even got a chance to rest and retire, they fell ill and passed on. They did not accomplish anything spectacular and daily life was simply hardship from beginning till the end. They have never experienced a good life, but they have discharged their duties and responsibilities fully. Is such a life meaningful?

Looking at Zechariah, Elizabeth, and John the Baptist, they might not have lived in extreme poverty, but they toiled in other ways. For a woman to be barren in Elizabeth’s time was considered a curse, a woman forgotten by God. Elizabeth bore that humiliation every day until her old age. 

Finally, when God sent them a son, they both had to raise him as elderly parents. Yet instead of looking after them in their old age, he soon left home to live in the wilderness for most part of his growing years. There seems no relaxation, no recreation, no comfort, no fun. Is such a life worth living? What is there to gain?

If the purpose of life is entertainment and enjoyment, then my parents, Zechariah, Elizabeth and John the Baptist have lived in vain. But if God’s will be the purpose and eternal life be the goal, then they are enjoying it fully right now, and forever.

They did set their eyes on something more valuable and lasting than what the world can offer. And they lived to achieve only this: to serve the Lord in everything and live a life pleasing to Him. They focused on the reward from God, their recompense was in the Lord.

If we too live like that, it would be a life without sin, because every day we are focused on serving God and others, not ourselves. Because right from our existence, God has chosen us to be His children, to be set apart for Him, not for the world.

From the first reading, “The LORD called me from birth, from my mother’s womb he gave me my name.”

Like St. John the Baptist, whose mission was established from the time of his birth, and accomplished at the time of his death, his life was a total dedication to serving God, preparing the people for the coming of the Messiah.

Let us too be purposeful in serving God with our life. Let our recompense be in the Lord. Amen.


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Homiía: Mayo 1, 2022, III Domingo de Pascua

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Christmas Homily 2021,

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Homily: April 22, 2024 Monday of the fourth week of Easter (Uncircumcized).

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So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers confronted him, saying, “You entered the house of uncircumcised people and ate with them.” This incident happened soon after the Pentecost event. Peter was going around Jerusalem and its neighboring towns thus most of the newly converted were Jews, Orthodox Jews who were strictly faithful to the Mosaic laws and Jewish traditions and practices like circumcision, separating from the Gentiles, and even religious dietary restrictions. They wanted to follow Christ but were not ready to let go of their old way of life. They were not ready to live alongside the Gentiles who also accepted Christ and so could not include them into their community. They embraced Jesus’ resurrection but could not discard their deep rejection of the Gentile people. If the apostles and their successors had also maintained the same disposition, the church would not have grown. It was only when the good news spread to the Gentiles and non-Jews that the chu
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