Homily: March 23,2025, Third Sunday of Lent (First Scrutiny of the elect)

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 "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again; but whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst; the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:13-14)

On the third, fourth, and fifth Sundays of Lent, we celebrate the Rites of Scrutiny with our elects - those preparing to receive the Sacraments of Initiation, to enter the Catholic Church, as part of the period of ‘Purification and Enlightenment.

The purification process is God's way of helping to remove the stain and dirt from the souls of the Elect, so to see the true good and beauty of each soul. God does not scrutinize to find the wrongs but to celebrate the real identity of each child of His, revealing the value within each of us and rejoicing in the light of Christ reflecting from us.

Each of these Sundays has a powerful theme: Water, Light and Life. These themes are presented through the Gospel texts of various encounters with Jesus Christ: the woman at the well, healing the blind man and raising Lazarus.

Both the first reading and the Gospel of today take place within the context of a journey. First, the Israelites were traveling over 40 years through the wilderness towards the Promised Land. Next, Jesus was traveling from Judea to Galilee, passing through Samaria on a 75-mile journey.

The journey is a pilgrimage of faith. The pilgrimage is a rite of passage, a rite of scrutiny, where we become more and more purified, and shine brighter as we progress on in the journey, nearer to our destiny.

We do not walk alone; God walks with us.

This year, we are blessed with 21 catechumens. Eighteen will receive the sacraments at the Easter Vigil, and four of our Burmese catechumens will receive them on Divine Mercy Sunday.

They do not walk alone; we walk with them.

We pray for them and with them, we welcome and support them, we approach the waters of eternal life with them. Jesus promised that “the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." This water is free for all who come to Jesus and accept Him.

But this walk towards eternity is not smooth and comfortable. As Pope Benedict XVI said: "The world offers you comfort, but you were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness."

We are called to be more. Our life is meant to be full.

Dear elect, like the woman at the well, let go the past and trust Jesus, yearn to drink the living water that Jesus gives, to live the full life that Jesus lives. We are here with you.

Amen.


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

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 “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.” Jesus is saying that if we love Him, then His Father and Him will come and make their home in us. And we know that if the Father and the Son come, the Holy Spirit will come too! When God comes, He does not just pay us a visit. He does not stay at a distance. He desires to live with us. He in us, and we in Him. Fully united. If God truly dwells in us, what more do we need? His presence is enough. His love is enough. His power is enough. If God is with us, we have nothing to be afraid of. But Jesus also gives us a condition: “Whoever loves me will keep my word.” We are called to love Him in action, by obeying His commandments, doing His will, keeping His teachings. Now, this is where many people struggle. For some people, God’s commandments feel like a burden, they think His will dampens their desires and His teachings restrict their freedom. But for those who h...
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"It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you”.  Today, we celebrate the feast of St. Matthias, who was not at first one of the twelve nor part of the inner circle of Jesus. He was chosen later into the college of apostles, to take the place of Judas. In the first reading, we saw how the apostles prayed and asked the Lord to show them whom He had chosen, someone who had accompanied them ‘the whole time’. They then cast their lots and God’s choice was revealed. Did God choose Matthias only at that point when the apostles had to replace Judas? Or did God already planned and prepared Matthias ‘the whole time’ when he was following Jesus throughout His ministry, and remained in the community even after the crucifixion? St. Paul says, “He chose us in him, before the foundation of the world…” Can you imagine, right up to this point in your life and mine, you and I are present right now in this holy place not by chance, but by choice. Through our own decisions nevertheless, but not w...
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