Homily: July 26, 2025, Saturday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Weeds-Wheat-Blood)

-

“While everyone was asleep, his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off.” 

The parable in today’s Gospel warns that we live in a world where sin has entered through the works of the devil, disguised to look like wheat. Good and evil are thus left to grow side by side, because it is hard to tell the difference at this point.

We experience this confusion every day and now with technology, it gets harder to distinguish real from fake, good from evil. Think about the phone calls we receive, many of us hesitate to answer unknown callers because we don't know if it is a genuine call or a scam.

Health products and medications proposed to help us get better could be found later to cause more problems or threaten our well-being. Parents might think cartoons or children’s games are suitable for children but might contain inappropriate content that could contaminate or mislead innocent minds.

Sin often disguises itself as something good, poison is sometimes packaged as medicine. That is why Jesus warns us: “Be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” 

This world is full of moral confusion thus spiritual vigilance is crucial. We must constantly discern what is of God and what is not.

In the first reading today, the Israelites respond to the Lord: “We will do everything that the Lord has told us.”

Moses then sprinkled the blood of a young bull to symbolically purify and protect the people. Today, we are purified not symbolically but truly, by the Precious Blood of Jesus. And we are protected not externally, but deeply in our being, by the Holy Body of Christ. The Holy Eucharist is our true food and drink.

Let us pray for the gift of prudence and wisdom, to discern and distinguish clearly what is pleasing to God, and to courageously choose what is right and good, even when it is difficult. Amen.


Comments

Post a Comment

Read

Homily: July 25, 2025, Feast of St. James the Apostle (Dying to give life)

-
 “So death is at work in us, but life in you.” Profound words from St. Paul. Death was at work in his life, in other words, he was dying. Whatever he was doing at that time, it was causing his death sooner than later. But his dying was giving life to others. I grew up witnessing real models who died to themselves to give life to others. They were my parents. My papa worked hard from very early in the morning till late in the evening on our farm every day. There are no rest days for farmers because the crops need attention daily. My mother cooked all our daily meals, prepared from scratch, used firewood for cooking, there was no running water from taps, water had to be fetched from the river. You can imagine she would be cooking and washing non-stop from the moment she woke till she rested at night. Life wasn’t easy. They worked hard to provide for their seven children; they gave their life for us. They were dying a little each day while we were growing steadily. We, their children,...
Read more

Homily: July 20, 2025, Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary time.

-
 “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing.”  What is the only one thing needed? In the first reading, God visited Abraham in the heat of the day. Abraham saw three men approaching his tent and sensed something special about them. In normal circumstances, Abraham simply could have acknowledged them and gone on with his work, but he did not. He dropped his work, ran to them, bowed before them, presented himself at their service, and got his household to prepare a good meal for them. He paid attention to their needs, and to what they had to tell him. In the Gospel, Jesus visits His dear friends Martha and Mary. Martha busies herself to prepare food to serve her special guest. While Mary chooses to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen to Him. Mary is paying full attention to Jesus and enjoying His presence, while Martha is overwhelmed with perfecting her tasks, and then complains, in an attempt for Jesus to deny attention to Ma...
Read more

Homily: July 22, 2025, Feast of Mary Magdalene (Loved Most)

-
 Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’  St. Mary Magdalene is known in the Church as the “Apostle to the Apostles”, a privileged and beautiful title. Even Peter, the head of the apostles, or John, the beloved disciple, were not entrusted with the first announcement of the Resurrection. Instead, Jesus gave that mission to Mary Magdalene. She was the first to proclaim the central truth of our faith: Christ is risen! He has overcome death, and because of that, we live with hope and our faith is strengthened. Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life. Death has no power over us too, because the One who conquered it, has the power to resurrect us as well. For over 2,000 years, since Mary Magdalene’s first announcement, Christians have continued to proclaim the Good News of Jesus’s resurrection. It is our call, our mission, to echo Mary Magdalene’s joyful ...
Read more

Homilía: Marzo 24, 2022, Jueves de la III semana de Cuaresma.

-
 “El que no está conmigo, está contra mí; y el que no recoge conmigo, desparrama”.”. El mensaje de Jesús es muy claro. No podemos seguir a Jesús parcialmente. Si no lo estamos siguiendo de todo corazón, no somos sus seguidores. Hoy es el vigésimo día de Cuaresma, sin contar los domingos. Estamos a la mitad. ¿Recuerdas lo que decidiste hacer especial para estos 40 días de Cuaresma? ¿Lo estás cumpliendo? Mientras nos esforzamos por fortalecernos espiritualmente, los demonios se esfuerzan más para mantenernos deprimidos. Me pregunto quién está a la cabeza en esta mitad de camino. En mis años de infancia, solo los niños ricos de mi pueblo podían tener bicicletas. Cuando estaba en quinto grado, mi hermano mayor y yo decidimos recolectar flores silvestres de nuez moscada del bosque cercano para venderlas y poder comprar una bicicleta. Nos despertábamos muy temprano en la mañana y corríamos al bosque para buscar y recolectar tantas como fuera posible. Muchos niños de otros pueblos estaban...
Read more

Homily: November 11-2024, Solemnity of Christ the King of the Universe (Humble king )

-
 "Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, "My kingdom does not belong to this world." Our Lord Jesus Christ is King. His kingdom does not belong to this world, but this world belongs to His kingdom. Beyond this world, in truth, all the worlds in the whole Universe belong to Him. Jesus Christ is not just King of this earth or of heaven, but He is King of all creation, the entire universe, as far and wide as you can imagine, and beyond. To better understand His Kingship, the Church has chosen readings that tell us the essence of our Lord and King. In the first reading, we read, "His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not be taken away, his kingship shall not be destroyed." From this we understand that Christ’s Kingship is forever and ever, it is authentic and true, and he holds the authority and power, so it can never be taken away nor destroyed. In the second reading, we read, “"I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, ...
Read more

Homily: Feast of Saint John, Apostle and evangelist, Monday, December 27, 2021

-
  “ They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter…” Today is the 25th death anniversary of my paternal grandmother. I remember vividly that day. My papa had always been a calm and composed man, I hardly see him excited or hurried. But exactly 25 years ago this day, I saw my papa run in anxiety. Early that morning, my grandmother collapsed at home and was unconscious. We had no telephone, no car. There were only three cars in our village and only two families had telephone connection. Papa ran to one family to ask them to drive grandma to the hospital. The rest of us waited in silence at home. Later in the afternoon, our neighbour who had phone connection, ran to our house and reported, "grandma is no more". That was the first time I encountered death in the family. I was eight years old. I didn’t understand what death meant. I knew I would not see grandma at home anymore, I felt sad, because papa was sad. Grandma’s death was certain. But is death final? In the g...
Read more

Homilía: 3 Julio, 2022, XIV Domingo Ordinario

-
 “Pónganse en camino; yo los envío como corderos en medio de lobos. No lleven ni dinero, ni morral, ni sandalias”. Jesús está enviando a sus discípulos a proclamar la buena nueva de la salvación a todos. Sin embargo, su instrucción suena como si los estuviera enviando a morir, a una misión peligrosa. En lugar de avisarles que traigan todas las necesidades y recursos para ser autosuficientes e independientes, les está diciendo que sean indefensos y vulnerables. ¿Pueden manejar? Jesús es el cordero de Dios. Su misión es dar Su vida por Sus ovejas. Él es totalmente dependiente sólo de Dios. Él no necesita nada más de este mundo para cumplir Su misión. Y ahora Él está enseñando a Sus discípulos a hacer lo mismo. Él nos está diciendo que hagamos lo mismo. ¿Podemos manejarlo? Parece difícil, ¿no? Tengo un muy buen amigo, Doctor Samuel Thomas. El es un ministro pentecostal también presidente de una organización internacional llamada Hope Givers que da esperanza de un futuro mejor a los ni...
Read more

Homily: March 6, 2022, Monday of the second Sunday in Lent (Be Merciful).

-
 “Be merciful, as your Father is merciful.” ‘Misericordia’ the Latin word for ‘mercy’. It is made up of  ‘miseriae’ which means ‘misery’ and ‘cordis’ which means ‘heart’. God's mercy for us is His loving heart extended towards our misery. He understands, empathizes and embraces our misery in His heart. What is humanity’s greatest misery? That we are weak and prone to sin. And what is God’s response to this misery of humanity? Mercy. We do not deserve His forgiveness but He gives it willingly. This is mercy. We heard in the first reading, Daniel admitting that “we have rebelled and departed from your commandments and your laws”. Humanity is always going against God. But God remains compassionate. “But yours, O Lord, our God, are compassion and forgiveness!” He never gives up on us, He is always merciful to us. So what must we do? Jesus tells us in the Gospel, “be merciful.” This world is full of sin and wrong-doings, not just against God but against one another. And people are ...
Read more

Homily: December 3, 2023, First Sunday of Advent (Jesus Coming)

-
 "It is like a man traveling abroad. He leaves home and places his servants in charge, each with his own work." Have you ever been in the same situation as the servants in this parable, where you were given responsibilities to take charge of while the person in authority took leave for some time? Did you accomplish your tasks? Or have you ever gone away for a while and left others in charge of your property or duties? Did things get done as you had expected? We are now in a new liturgical year. This year we will be taking readings from cycle B and the gospel texts will be from Mark and then from John later, since Mark’s gospel is short. Today is the first day of the new liturgical year, so ‘happy new year’! Though it is the beginning of the year, the readings seem to be warning about the end times, reminding us to prepare for the second coming of Christ. Well, why not? ‘Begin with the end in mind’ is one of the seven habits of highly effective people, according to the author ...
Read more