Homily: September 20, 2025, Saturday of the Twenty-Fourth week in Ordinary Time (Commandments)

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 “Keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

In this month’s Catholic Mirror, Fr. Ron Rolheiser shared a story about a couple celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. At the celebration, the husband said: “When we got married 50 years ago, we didn’t have much. But we had an unconscious trust that if we lived by the Ten Commandments and the laws of the Church, then things would turn out all right, and I think, they did.”

Fifty years of marriage is not just “all right”, many of you who are married would know, it is hard work. And truly, very often God’s grace is at work harder than the couple. So fifty years of marriage is a testimony to a life of faith and full of God’s grace. The Ten Commandments that God gave to Moses and the Israelites thousands of years ago are still relevant for us today, guiding us every step of our faith life.

The challenge is that human nature resists compliance and obedience to commands. We don’t like rules. The Ten Commandments are simple in words, but very difficult to live out fully in practice. Yet they are not optional, they are God’s blueprint for holiness.

When the rich young man asked Jesus, “What must I do to gain eternal life?” Jesus’ first response was: “Follow the commandments.” This is the foundation. If we keep the commandments faithfully, we will reach eternal life.

All it requires is our willingness, our deep acceptance of first, that God is God, the Almighty, the Judge of Life, the One to whom we must be united with, because if not God, it will be the evil one. There is no middle ground.

And second, a clear realization that ‘if not eternal life, it will be eternal death’. This too, there is no other world midway.

Following the ten commandments is our way to being in the same boat with Jesus, in the direction towards eternal life. Hop onboard and stay on course.

Amen.


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Homily: March 27, 2026, Saturday of the Fifth Week in Lent (Hardness of Heart)

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 “So from that day on they planned to kill him.” These are very strong and shocking words from today’s Gospel. During this season of Lent, we have been praying often in the responsorial psalm: “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” Every morning, priests and religious pray this line in the Divine Office. It is like a daily reminder, a warning—to keep our hearts open to God. But in today’s Gospel, we see the opposite. The Pharisees and the chief priests witnessed so many miracles of Jesus. And the final one—the raising of Lazarus after four days in the tomb—is something truly extraordinary. That one miracle alone should have led anyone to faith. But instead of believing, they decide to kill Him. Why? Because their hearts had become hard. They chose not to see. They chose not to listen. They chose not to believe. They closed their eyes to the truth and shut their ears to God’s voice. And this is where today’s Gospel speaks to us. Hardness of heart does not happen in o...
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Homily: March 7, Saturday of the Second Week In Lent (Endless Love)

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 “Quickly, bring the finest robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Take the fattened calf and slaughter it.” When I read this Gospel, sometimes I ask myself honestly: If I were that father, how would I respond? Of course, I would be happy that my son returned home. But I don’t think I would be this happy. First I might want to hear his apology. I might remind him of the mistakes he made. And since there is another son at home who is angry, I would probably try to be careful not to appear too generous. But this father does something completely different. He does not wait for explanations. He does not ask questions. He does not punish. He runs toward his son, embraces him, and restores him with dignity. To understand how radical this is, we have to remember the culture of that time. In Jewish tradition, children received their inheritance only after the father’s death. For this younger son to demand his share early was like saying: “Father, I wish y...
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Homily: March 6, 2026, Friday of the second monday in Lent (Cruelty- Salvation )

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 “They then sat down to their meal.” This scene from today’s first reading really hit me. Joseph’s brothers had just stripped him of his robe, thrown him into an empty cistern, and abandoned him, knowing well that would kill him. And what did they do after that cruel deed? Scripture says: they sat down to eat their meal. It is shocking. Their brother is suffering nearby, crying for help, yet they felt nothing, they calmly continued their day, with a meal, like nothing unusual happened. That behavior made an already cruel act more evil. When I read this passage, it reminded me of a scene from the movie ‘The Passion of the Christ’. In that film, Jesus spent the night in a dungeon in the house of the high priest. He was captured, trapped, waiting for death. The detail of this scene is not found in the Bible, but was vividly described by Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich from her mystical visions. And truly, there is a dungeon behind what is believed to be Caiaphas’s house in Jerusalem, ...
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Homily: February 22-2026, First Sunday of Lent (Angles)

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 As I was preparing this homily, I first thought of preaching about the three temptations of Jesus. Then I changed my mind and thought of focusing on the first reading, and then perhaps the second reading. I couldn’t get the right inspiration, so I went through the readings several times over the past days. Finally, I noticed one phrase which stayed with me quietly but firmly: “The devil left Him, and angels came and ministered to Him.” It was a reassuring resolution to an intense build-up of temptations. Jesus had fasted forty days. He endured hunger, thirst, solitary living and silence. At the end of it when he was at his weakest, tempting offers to satisfy His possible needs and wants were presented to Him. He was at His weakest, physically, but he was also at His strongest, spiritually. As He overcame the temptations and defeated the devil, heaven responded - not with applause, but with accompaniment. Angels came to minister to Him. We see the same later in the Gospel of Luke. ...
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Homily: March 23,2026, Monday of the Fifth Week in Lent (God's does not condemn)

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 “Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say? They said this to test him.” Today we heard two powerful stories - one from the Book of Daniel and another from the Gospel of John. In the first reading, Susanna was truly innocent but was falsely accused and about to be condemned for something she never did. She was used as a scapegoat to cover up for the sins of covetous men pretending to be righteous. In the Gospel reading, we see a slightly different situation. The woman caught in adultery was truly guilty of the sin. But similarly, she was used as a bait to trap Jesus, and Jesus cleverly diverted the tricks of those evil men pretending to be righteous. In both cases, God saved the victims. God is a defender of the innocent and savior of the vulnerable. In the Gospel, Jesus did not deny the woman’s sin, but he did not let that destroy her. He gave her a new beginning: “Go, and from now on do not sin anymore.” This is why Jesus says, “It is the will of...
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Homily: March 31,2026 Tuesday of the Holy Week (Light and darkness )

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 “I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” Have you ever heard this quote by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: "The nearer the dawn the darker the night." As we enter further into Holy Week, we are getting very near to Easter, and we see the events leading up are also getting darker and more intense. And today, we hear the words from the prophet Isaiah in the first reading, reminding us of our role in the salvation of the world, that He will make us a light in the darkness that is to come upon earth. He has chosen each one of us personally. He has called us by name. While the world is in darkness, we are not to be consumed by it. He has made us to be a light, to shine in this darkness, to break it. Our light does not just shine for others to see, it is a light of holiness, for others to reach to God. It is a light of grace, for others to receive God’s goodness. It is a light that reflects Christ to others, so that they can see c...
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Homily: February 27, 2026Friday of the First Week in Lent (Salvation)

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 “Since he has turned away from all the sins that he committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die.” In the spiritual tradition of the Church, we often talk about the four last things: death, judgment, heaven, hell. Death is certain for each one of us. We will all die one day.  Judgment is also certain. It is part of our encounter with God. He is the ultimate Judge. Then the final destination. It is not heaven and hell, it is heaven or hell. Each of us will have the freedom to choose. Do you think everyone will choose heaven? Many do not want hell, but that does not mean they want heaven. Choosing heaven means choosing God, choosing His will. This is where we all failed. Everyone has sinned. But in today’s first reading, the prophet Ezekiel gives all of us a great big hope: our past does not have the final word. The hope is that if a person turns away from sin, if they repent and choose what is right, they shall live - repent and believe in the Gospel! Many people, myself ...
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Homily: November 17, 2025, Monday of the Thirty-Third Week in Ordinary Time (Faith)

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 “But many in Israel were determined and resolved in their hearts not to eat anything unclean.” These were people of true obedience to the faith. They were truly committed and disciplined to follow the teachings. The events we hear about in today’s first reading from the Book of Maccabees took place in the second century before Christ. It was the time when the notorious King Antiochus Epiphanes ruled over Israel. He was anti-Jews. Many among the Israelites began to follow pagan practices and false religion promoted by the king. This period in history is often called the “silent years” of salvation history, a good 400 years after prophet Malachi, before John the Baptist appeared. For four centuries, there were no prophets, no new divine revelations, and no visible signs from God. It seemed like God was silent. That is why the commitment of those who refused to eat unclean food was extraordinary. There was no prophet to remind or encourage them to keep God’s law, no miracles to susta...
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Homily: March 17, 2026, Tuesday of the Fourth Week in Lent (Water)

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 “Wherever the river flows, every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live… wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh.” Where there is water, there is life. The prophet Ezekiel in today’s first reading, tells us with great detail the prophetic vision he had, about the water of life which flowed from the temple. If you have read the book The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese, you would know something about my home in India, the state of Kerala. It is a small state. Iowa is almost three times the size of Kerala. But Kerala has a lot more water than Iowa. The Western Ghats is a mountain range that runs 1,600 km along the western coast of India, covering several states including Kerala. It is an important watershed, keeping in the rain clouds thus bringing much rainfall, and feeding many rivers. Because of that, Kerala has forty-four major rivers. Forty-one of them flow toward the Arabian Sea and three toward the east. Rain is plentiful throughout the year e...
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Homily: January 28, 2025, Tuesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time (Do your will)

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 “Then I said, As is written of me in the scroll, Behold, I come to do your will, O God.” When I was little and growing up on the farm, I didn’t know much about the world beyond my village and parish. I had imaginations about my future, but my dreams were simple and centered around my little village. I wanted to be a farmer, a successful one, to earn lots of money from my bountiful crops, I will buy more land, build a nice house, own a car, get married and live happily ever after. Yes, it was a fairy tale dream. It made me happy and hopeful every time I imagined this perfect life of my future. But one day, all my dreams were broken. God has another plan for me, He called, and I said yes. So no land, no farm, no house, no married life. But I believe this vocation will lead me to a happily-ever-after life after all. My vocation has taken me far away from the village and country where I thought I would live for the whole of my life. I’ve worked in and visited over 23 countries, taken ...
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