Homily: March 30, 2025, Fourth Sunday in Lent (Second Scrutiny of Elect, Year A readings )

-

 “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” He answered and said, “Who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?”

Today, we celebrate the second scrutiny of our 17 elect who are preparing to receive the Sacrament of Baptism. Dear elect, you are here today because God has chosen you, to have faith Jesus Christ.

Who is He, that you may believe in Him?

He is Son of God, the Father. We believe because we have the gift of faith.

As I reflect on this moment, I can’t help but be in awe of God’s way of working. Look at ourselves. I’m from India, your catechist Priscilla is from Kenya, and among you are brothers and sisters from Burma, South Sudan, and Mexico. And yet, here we all are, at St. Ambrose, because God chose us, every one of us.

By our own ability, or choice, or plan, we would not have created such a beautiful union of diversity, all at the same time, in the same place, for the same reason – to respond to God’s call for us to be His people of faith.

Who would have known?

In today’s first reading, God sent Prophet Samuel to anoint His chosen king. Jesse had eight sons, but presented only his older sons, thinking one of them would be most suitable. He didn’t present David at first, since he was just a boy. Yet God chose David, who was not at all impressive in the eyes of the world, but God saw deeper into his heart and further into the future. He saw who David could be.

Who would have known?

You might think you’re here today because your parents wanted you to be baptized, or someone else encouraged you. But truly, God is the one who called you and chose you. He wants to anoint you, to make you His priest, prophet, and king. And you are here to say yes to Him.

Through baptism, God makes a permanent covenant with you. The mark of baptism and confirmation will be engraved deep in your soul forever, indelible through eternity, even in heaven.

Like the blind man in today’s Gospel, Jesus chose to heal him “so that the works of God might be made visible through him”, and having his physical and spiritual sight, he declared, “I do believe, Lord,” and he worshiped Him.

On the day of your baptism, Bishop Joensen will anoint you with the Oil of Catechumens, which will wipe away original sin, giving you spiritual sight to recognize and worship Jesus.

After being baptized, you will be anointed with Sacred Chrism, a sign of the Holy Spirit’s abiding presence. The same spirit which rushed upon David, will come upon you, remain with you to guide and strengthen you.

Believe in Jesus. Follow Jesus. Die with Him and rise with Him on the last day. Amen.


Comments

Post a Comment

Read

Homily: October 4, 2026, Twenty Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time (No Anxiety)

-
 “Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God.” This is how St. Paul speaks to us in today’s second reading. “Have no anxiety at all.” We might immediately think: That is easy to say! But look at the person who said it. St. Paul wrote these words while he was a prisoner. He was facing an uncertain future and even the possibility of death. And yet his Letter to the Philippians is often called the Letter of Joy. All of us have anxieties. I have my anxieties too—what to preach, how to raise money, what comes next, concerns about family and ministry. Parents worry about their children and their future. We worry about our health, finances, relationships, and many other things. St. Paul does not simply say, “Stop worrying.” He tells us what to do with our worries: bring them to God. “By prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God.” In other words: Do what you can, and place what you cann...
Read more

Homily: September 21, 2026, Feast of Saint Matthew, Apostle and evangelist (Follow me)

-
 “Follow me.” On this feast of St. Matthew, we hear Matthew’s own account of his calling. Jesus saw him sitting at the customs post and said just two words: “Follow me.” And Matthew gets up and follows him. No second thought. No long discernment. No plan for the future. Maybe Matthew had been waiting for a moment like this—a chance to begin again. Matthew was a tax collector, considered a sinner and hated by his own people because he worked for the occupying power. Yet Jesus looked at this man whom others rejected and saw an apostle. That should give every one of us hope. God can change people. God does not wait until we are perfect before he calls us. Jesus says in today’s Gospel, “I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” We are all sinners. We all have weaknesses, habits, failures, and things in our lives that need to change. And there may be people around us struggling with addictions or trapped in sinful situations. Sometimes we may even wonder whether a person can ev...
Read more

Homily: October 5, 2026, Monday of the Twenty-Seventh Week in Ordinary Time (Repay you on my way back)

-
 “If you spend more than what I have given you, I shall repay you on my way back.” This is one of the beautiful lines from today’s Gospel.  We can easily see Jesus as the Good Samaritan. Humanity was wounded by sin, and Jesus came to rescue us. He lifted us up, cared for our wounds, and brought us to the inn. And we can see the inn as the Church—a place where wounded people are brought to be healed, cared for, and loved. But then Jesus gives the innkeeper two coins and says, “Take care of him.” Perhaps we can see ourselves as that innkeeper. Jesus has entrusted people to our care. And we might imagine those two coins as the two great commandments: Love God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and love your neighbor as yourself. The first coin is love of God. God deserves the first place in our lives—our heart, our time, our attention, our will. So let us intentionally live our lives trying to please God. Then comes the secon...
Read more

Homily: October 6, 2026, Tuesday of the Twenty-Seventh Week in Ordinary time( Zealous Catholic)

-
“You heard of my former way of life in Judaism, how I persecuted the Church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it.” Whenever I read the letters of St. Paul, one thing that strikes me is his zeal. Paul never did anything halfway. Before his conversion, he was completely committed to what he believed. He thought Christianity was wrong, and so he became one of its fiercest persecutors. But when Paul encountered Jesus, something beautiful happened. Jesus did not take away Paul’s zeal; he redirected it. The man who traveled from place to place persecuting Christians now traveled from place to place preaching Christ. The man who tried to destroy the Church became one of its greatest builders. He crossed countries, entered unfamiliar cities, endured rejection, imprisonment, beatings, and suffering—all because he wanted people to know Jesus. That same fire comes through in his letters. Paul says, “Stir into flame the gift of God.” He says, “For to me life is Christ, and death is gain.”...
Read more

Homily: December 2, 2024 Monday of the First Week in Advent (Banquet)

-
 "I say to you, many will come from the east and the west, and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven." Do you have a favorite saint who inspires you? How would you feel if you got to meet this saint in real, and had a meal together? In today’s Gospel text, Jesus describes the banquet in heaven. Imagine that glorious day when we will all recline at the heavenly banquet together with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and your favorite saint! All the saints, the martyrs, the prophets we have read about in the Old Testament and the apostles of Jesus will all be present too. How wonderful that will be! At the head of the banquet table we see Jesus, gloriously radiant, with the Father and the Holy Spirit united as one, and Mother Mary right beside them! That is just the heavenly banquet we can describe; I am sure the real thing will be much more wonderful. Every time we celebrate Holy Mass, we get a tiny glimpse, a foretaste of that heavenly b...
Read more

Homily: April 24, 2023, Monday of the Third Week of Easter. (Angel Look)

-
 "All those who sat in the Sanhedrin looked intently at him and saw that his face was like the face of an angel.” St. Stephen, one of seven selected deacons in the early Christian community, was standing in trial before the Sanhedrin, the supreme rabbinic court in Jerusalem. He was being accused of blasphemy, for his powerful preaching in Jesus’ name. According to the Jewish authority, he had offended the law of Moses. Stephen knew the sentence for blasphemy was death. Yet he did not look downcast, nor fearful. Instead, his face was like an angel. What look is that? After vesting for mass, I would always look in the mirror to check, today I did too and checked my face, I definitely do not look like an angel at all. I have seen many whom I think look like angels. They were all little children. On Saturday, I had 3 baptisms and all those babies looked just like perfect precious angels. Innocent, pure, at peace. Even when they cried, they were still angelic. We were all like that whe...
Read more

Homily: April 2, 2024, Tuesday in the Octave of Easter (Mary at the Tomb).

-
 Mary Magdalene stayed outside the tomb, weeping. Today’s gospel begins by describing the emotional state of Mary. We can all visualize and identify with this scene. Mary Magdalene is very sad, to the point of experiencing deep emotional pain which triggers tears. This is love.  I recall when my papa died within a week of discovering his illness. It was unexpected, we were all unprepared. All my sisters wept on the day he died, and into the days after his burial. They cried again, very emotionally, when we visited his tomb thereafter and I recited the Office for the Dead. I, too, cried a lot at papa’s death. Love is a powerful emotion. It stirs our heart to feel the pain of loss, which works up our brain to trigger the release of tears, to help reduce the emotional pain. God gave us tears to help us manage our pain.  Jesus wept at the death of Lazarus, and before He entered Jerusalem, and at the garden of Gethsemane. His love for humanity stirred up deep emotional pain, s...
Read more

Homily: Septemer 22, 2026 Tuesday of the Twenty Fifth week in Ordinary Time (The poor)

-
“He who shuts his ear to the cry of the poor will himself also call and not be heard.” These words from the Book of Proverbs are very direct. They remind us that God expects us to hear the cry of the poor. And the reality is that the poor have always been among us. Jesus himself said, “The poor you will always have with you.” Wherever we live and wherever we travel, we encounter people in need. Poverty also has many faces. Someone may become poor because of the loss of a job, war, natural disaster, persecution, displacement, or circumstances completely beyond his or her control. Sometimes the poor person is someone without food or shelter. Sometimes it is a refugee or immigrant who has left everything behind and is trying to begin life again in a strange land. This week, the Catholic Church in the United States observes National Migration Week. It is a good opportunity for us to remember that our own state of Iowa has a long history of welcoming refugees and immigrants. And our parish ...
Read more

Homily: September 27, 2026, Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary time (The Fair way)

-
 “Thus says the Lord: You say, ‘The Lord’s way is not fair!’” I chose this phrase from our first reading for our reflection today because it sounds very similar to what we heard last Sunday in the first reading.  “My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways.” I think most of us, at some point in our lives, have said something similar to God. I know I have. “Lord, this is not fair.” “Why do I have to go through this?” “Why didn’t you answer this prayer?” “Why did you allow this to happen?” “I am trying to follow you. Could you not treat me a little better?” We may not say those words aloud, but sometimes they are deep within our hearts. So what exactly is God’s way? The second reading gives us an answer.  For centuries humanity wondered what God was like. Then Jesus Christ, the beloved Son of the Father, came among us and revealed the face of God. And St. Paul describes Jesus with these extraordinary words: “He did not regard equality with God something to...
Read more

Homily: February 12-2024, Monday of the sixth week in Ordinary time (Preserverenace)

-
“Consider it all joy, my brothers and sisters, when you encounter various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” A good friend of mine battled with addiction to drugs and alcohol for many years. Finally, he was able to give up his destructive habits and began walking with the Lord. Was it all smooth and easy? No. He faced many other struggles in his new life. Often, he was tempted to go back to his old ways, with thoughts that his life with drugs and alcohol was more carefree. He knew it was a lie. He then began to involve himself in various ministries in his parish church to serve the Lord. Was it all smooth and easy then? No. He experienced many disagreements and arguments within the ministries. Why is it that serving God seemed to make life more difficult? Shouldn’t we be rewarded with a good and easy life? If we look at Abraham, we see that he had to go through many trials and challenges in obeying God’s call. He did not have it easy. The apostl...
Read more