Homily: August 1, 2025, Firday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time (Jesus Titles)

-

 “Is he not the carpenter’s son?” 

Jesus was referred to by various titles during His lifetime on earth: Son of Man, Son of God, Son of David, Messiah, Rabbi. People also acknowledged Him as a divine healer, prophet, Savior, even as their King.

But when He got back to His hometown Nazareth, people knew Him only as “the carpenter’s son.”

His foster father, Joseph, must have been well known in town as the carpenter, and Jesus thus was recognized as the son of the carpenter. Traditionally, the parents would teach and train their children to learn their trade, so that they would grow to be apprentices and finally become masters of their parents’ professions.

So, to the people of Nazareth, Jesus was expected to be a good carpenter like His father Joseph. They couldn’t imagine Him becoming anything else, because they did not think He would know any other trade than His father’s. 

Their understanding and expectations of His capabilities were very limited and narrow, they could not even believe how He could preach and teach so well; thus, they did not go to receive blessings or healing from Jesus.

They lacked faith. They could not see beyond the ordinary and the familiar, they could not believe that God would come to His people in a simple and humble way, through the household of a carpenter.

We too will have a faith block, if we expect God’s blessings to come through human logic, material wisdom or worldly power. The power of the Holy Spirit is most effective, and God’s graces pour out most abundantly in the simple, ordinary and humble situations.

Who is Jesus to you?

Can you accept that He, the son of a carpenter, is truly the Son of God?

Jesus of Nazareth, son of Joseph, Savior of the world, strengthen my lack of faith and help me see you as you truly are. Amen.


Comments

Post a Comment

Read

Homily: June 16, 2026, Monday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time (Mercy)

-
 “Since he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his time.” Yesterday we heard the disturbing story of Naboth and the terrible injustice committed against him by King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. Their actions were cruel, wrong and sinful. They deserved judgement and punishment, especially Jezebel, who orchestrated the whole scheme. Yet today we see something remarkable. When Ahab humbled himself, fasted, and repented, God relented. He delayed the punishment that had been announced. What does this show us about God? It shows us that God’s mercy is greater than our sins. For thirteen years, Pope Francis reminded the Church of this beautiful truth: God's very name is mercy. God is just, but He is also infinitely merciful. He never ceases to seek out the sinner and offer the way back to Him. We see this throughout the events in Sacred Scripture. When Adam and Eve sinned, God pronounced the consequences of their sin. Yet immediately afterward, we read that “the LORD Go...
Read more

Homily: march 15, 2026, Fourth Sunday in Lent (Laetare Sunday)

-
 “Then Samuel, with the horn of oil in hand, anointed David in the presence of his brothers; and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David.” This is one of the most powerful scenes in the Old Testament. A young shepherd boy was suddenly anointed the king of Israel – the least-expected to be king material, yet God chose him. David did not come from any royal line. There were no kings before in his family. He was young, tender in experience, and in the eyes of the world, he didn’t look promising as compared to his older brothers. The prophet Samuel saw more potential in David’s older brothers, yet God chose him. God reminded Samuel: “Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance, but the LORD looks into the heart.” God saw something in David’s heart which made him the perfect king for God, something no one else could see. Dear catechumens and candidates, in just twenty-one days, you will be fully initiated into the Catholic faith during Easter Vigil. Y...
Read more

Homily: April 20, 2026, Monday of the Third week of Easter (Friendship with Jesus)

-
 “Amen, amen, I say to you, you are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate the loaves and were filled.” I have many personal friends whom I do not contact regularly anymore, mostly because of our busy schedules, time zone difference, and simply how quickly time passes. But when I need something from there, when I need their help, I would not hesitate to call them. And they would oblige and not reject me. They too, would reach out to me only when they need my help, and I would not deny them my assistance either. I do feel guilty quite often, however. I do think I should have called them more often, to check in with them and show concern, not just when I needed help. My friends are guilty of the same. In today’s Gospel, people were looking for Jesus, and He knew their motivation, because they knew He could provide for their needs, He could feed them and satisfy their hunger for food. Sadly, they did not know He could give them much more than mere food, they simp...
Read more

Homily: May 14, Feast of St. Mathias (Chosen)

-
"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...
Read more

Homily: April 7, 2024 Second Sunday of Easter Sunday of Divine Mercy

-
 Let the house of Israel say, "His mercy endures forever." Let the house of Aaron say, "His mercy endures forever." Let those who fear the LORD say, "His mercy endures forever." We sang these verses in today’s responsorial psalm. God’s mercy endures forever. ‘Forever’ means from the very beginning to the very end of time, God’s mercy ‘endures’. What does it endure? Does it endure just the length of time? No, more than that. It endures the breadth of our sins, and the depth of our hard-heartedness. When Adam and Eve sinned against God, they had to bear the consequences of their sins. Even then, we read the scene of God putting together some garments for Man and Woman to cover themselves, who became conscious of their nakedness. This is a beautiful sign of God’s affectionate and compassionate love for the man and woman He created. This is God’s mercy. Thereafter throughout the whole of history, from Abraham to Moses, to Jesus till today, God continues to pur...
Read more

Homily: February 20, 2026 Friday after Ash-Wednesday (Fast)

-
 “The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.” People fast for various reasons. Many people fast for health, fitness and vanity reasons by doing intermittent fasting, detox diets, or weight loss programs. Some prominent figures use fasting as a form of silent protest. Leaders like Gandhi used hunger strikes to fight injustice. And sadly, some people are simply not eating, they are starving not by choice but because of poverty. Christian fasting is different. It is spiritual fasting and is not primarily about the body. It is about the spiritual heart. Jesus’ disciples were not fasting like the disciples of other preachers, and He told them that when the bridegroom is taken away, they will fast. Because their fasting will be an sign of longing, a spiritual desire to be re-united with their master, it expresses the deep sorrow of separation. Later, when the disciples could not cast out a demon, Jesus reminded them: “This kind can only come ...
Read more

Homily: February 4, 2026 Wednesday of the Fourth Week In Ordinary Time

-
 “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.” Jesus said something very honest today and I think it is very true. I am your priest and I love all of you. I also truly feel loved, appreciated, and respected here at school. It is a real joy for me to celebrate Mass with you, to pray with you, and to spend time with you. I feel very blessed and am very grateful for this. Now, let me tell you about another group of people in my life. I have more than a dozen nieces and nephews, aging from 2 years old, right up to 18 years old. Majority of them are around your age. They have known me since they were born, so they know a lot more about me than you do. They know the nice and the ugly sides of me. Of course, they love me too but honestly, I think you respect me and listen to me more than they do. Every time I get together with them, they would make fun of me a lot. They give me funny, and not very nice nicknames. They love to tease...
Read more

Homily: May 3, 2025, Feast of Apostles Philip and James (Message through the Earth)

-
 “Their message goes out through all the earth.” This is what we repeated in today’s Responsorial Psalm, and it aptly describes the missionary coverage of the apostles and disciples. They truly brought the message of Jesus’ Resurrection, the Good News of God’s redemptive love everywhere, to all corners, through all the earth. All the way to India, St. Thomas brought the Gospel, that’s how many of my ancestors became Catholic, and the faith has been handed down to the generations thereafter. Peter and Paul went to Rome. Luke went to Egypt. Matthew stayed and preached in Judea. Asia, Africa, even China received the Gospel. Today we celebrate the feast of the apostles James and Philip. James, the son of Alphaeus, also known as James the Lesser, is hardly mentioned in Bible, only when the twelve chosen apostles were listed. James wrote an epistle to his name. But Philip appears more often. When some Greeks came looking for Jesus, it was Philip who informed Jesus about it. At the multip...
Read more

Homily: October 19, 2025, Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Constant Prayer)

-
 “Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them?” These questions from Jesus in today’s Gospel invites us to reflect on the secret of a powerful prayer. What makes prayers powerful? When we pray for a particular intention, and the intention is fulfilled, we conclude that the prayer was powerful. Jesus questions us to reflect and realize that God is the generous One, who gives us the rights to call out to Him, day and night. God is the patient one, who will answer our prayers timely – His time, not ours. Recently past, one of my sisters told me of a problematic situation she has been trying hard to resolve, but it didn’t. I then suggested to her to pray the novena to our Lady, Undoer of Knots, and she did, she prayed the novena faithfully. Then last week, she called me with great excitement. “The prayer worked!” Her intentions were fulfilled, her prayers were answered according to her wish. Like her, many of ...
Read more

Homily: October 25, 2025, Saturday of the Twenty-Nineth Week in Ordinary Time (Spirit -Alive)

-
 “But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is alive because of righteousness.” What a hopeful and assuring message. Even though our bodies are weakened by sin and subject to death, the Spirit of God within us is alive and active. But note the one condition: if Christ is in you! The Father and the Son have given us this precious gift, the Holy Spirit, the divine helper who will dwell in our hearts if we accept Jesus Christ into our lives. If we follow the timeline of our salvation story, all of us are now living in the era of the Holy Spirit. God the Father has revealed Himself to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and the prophets. Then in the fullness of time, God the Son came into the world and revealed to us the Father’s love. Before returning to heaven, Jesus promised to send us the Holy Spirit to be our companion, our guide, and our strength till the end of time. And from then, the Holy Spirit has been active in the world, in the church and in o...
Read more