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

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 “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 our being.

When was the last time you truly prayed to the Holy Spirit? 

He should play an active role in our daily lives. In fact, He should be the one to direct us daily, in all our decisions and dealings because He will gift us with wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord and helps us to bear fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control everyday – if we consult and cooperate with Him. 

If you can see it, you will believe that through the charisms of the Holy Spirit, we will live and serve with great joy and deep fulfilment.

St. Paul consoles us that “we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings.” Even in our weakness, when words fail, the Spirit prays within us and can help us align our hearts to the Father’s will.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks about repentance and conversion. That, too, is the work of the Holy Spirit. He awakens our conscience, moves us to repentance, and leads us to reconciliation. Without Him, true conversion is impossible.

Let us take to heart the warning of Jesus: “But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did.” Repentance leads to reconciliation, and reconciliation leads to salvation.

So let us always be conscious of the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, and never forget to ask for guidance, direction, renewal and to brighten our paths with the light of Christ. Amen.


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Homily: November 8, 2026, Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Running out of the Spirit)

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 “Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.” I invite you to read the parable of the ten virgins again when you go home today. Or simply reflect on this one sentence: “Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.” The oil in this parable can remind us of the Holy Spirit. Imagine these words as a prayer: “Lord, give us more of your Spirit, for without your Spirit, the light of our lives is going out.” As we approach the end of the liturgical year, the Church invites us to reflect on the end times. Our earthly lives will come to an end, and one day, the world itself will come to an end. But the important question is: Will our lamps still be burning when the Lord comes? Our Christian life is a life in the Holy Spirit. Throughout salvation history, our heavenly Father spoke through the patriarchs and prophets. In the fullness of time, he sent his only Son, Jesus Christ, who taught us, redeemed us through his death and resurrection, and before returning to the Fat...
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“I saw water flowing out from beneath the threshold of the temple toward the east.” Today, as we celebrate the Feast of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome, the Mother Church of all churches, the Church invites us to reflect on two temples: the physical church where we gather to worship, and our own bodies, which are temples of the Holy Spirit. What makes both temples sacred is the same beautiful reality: God has chosen to dwell in them. In today's first reading, the prophet Ezekiel sees water flowing from the temple, bringing life, healing, and fruitfulness wherever it goes. In a spiritual sense, this beautiful vision becomes a reality in every Catholic church. Think about how many graces flow into our lives from the Church! Through Baptism, we receive new life in Christ. Through Confession, our souls are cleansed and healed. Through the Eucharist, we are nourished with the very Body and Blood of Christ. Through the sacraments, God's grace continues to f...
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Homily: The Sixth Day in the Octave of Christmas, Thursday, December 30, 2021

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 For readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/123021.cfm “She never left the temple, but worshipped night and day with fasting and prayer”. Look at Anna, the prophetess’ life of worship and dedication, isn’t it beautiful and inspiring? Have you ever met someone who prays day and night like her? I have. On Monday I shared about my grandma who died 25 years ago. I was only eight years old then so I do not have much memory of her life, but one very vivid and lasting impression I have of her, is that she was a prayerful person. I almost always see her praying the rosary, day and night, whenever she was not doing any chores. It was a green rosary which one bishop gave her some years before. And you know what? Grandma was completely blind. She had never seen me and my younger siblings before. Yet, she taught us how to pray and would lead the family morning prayers. She helped with the household chores, with chopping vegetables. She would even make brooms for us using coconut...
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“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” These words of St. Paul are especially meaningful for us today, particularly in the days following an election. We live in a country where politics and political ideologies have created so much division, anger, and sometimes even hatred. We see families divided, friendships broken, and there are people who  refuse to speak to one another simply because they have different political views. In the midst of all this, St. Paul reminds us of something very important: “Our citizenship is in heaven.” As Christians, we must never forget that our first and most important citizenship is in the Kingdom of God. We received this citizenship on the day of our baptism. Through the waters of baptism, we were reborn as children of God, became members of the Body of Christ, and were made heirs to the Kingdom of Heaven. And this citizenship is not temporary. It is meant to last for all eternity. We did not ...
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Homily: October 10, 2026, Saturday of the twenty Seventh Week in Ordinary Time (You are a blessing)

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“And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to the promise.” These beautiful words are from today’s first reading, from St. Paul’s Letter to the Galatians. What were the promises God made to Abraham? There were several.  One of the promises that always comes to my mind is this: “I will bless you… so that you will be a blessing.” Abraham is known as the father of faith. He became a blessing to the world because of his faith and obedience to God. Think about his life. He followed a God he was only beginning to know, to a land he had never seen. He did not know where God was leading him or what his future would look like. Even when God asked him to do the most difficult things, Abraham remained faithful and obedient. And because of his faithfulness, he became a blessing, not only to his own family but to generations after him. St. Paul reminds us today that through our baptism, we too have become descendants of Abraham and heirs to God's promises....
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Homily: November 3, Tuesday of the Thirty-First Week in Ordinary Time (Invitation)

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“I ask you, consider me excused.” In today’s busy world, we use the word excuse so many times. We cannot attend every event, family gathering, dinner, or celebration to which we are invited. So we often excuse ourselves, giving one reason or another. In today’s Gospel, the invited guests did the same thing. One had purchased land, another had bought oxen, and another had just married. They all had their reasons. None of these things was bad in itself, but they gave them priority over the invitation to the banquet. God our Father also keeps inviting us to a banquet, the heavenly banquet. And whether we will be part of that banquet depends on our response to His invitation. God does not invite us just once. He keeps inviting us throughout our lives. God created us with a soul that constantly longs for Him, a soul that will find its ultimate fulfillment only when it is united with Him. And throughout our lives, God gives us opportunities to respond to His invitation. He invites parents to...
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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: October 18, 2026, Sunday of the Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time (All to God )

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 “Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” Three weeks before the election, we hear these words of Jesus in today's Gospel. you may wonder whether the Church intentionally chose this Gospel because of the upcoming election. The answer is no. It is simply a coincidence. The readings we hear at Mass are proclaimed throughout the world, not just here in the United States. They are not chosen according to political events. And I am not here to speak about the election. That is not the purpose of a Sunday homily. Rather, I want to reflect on the spiritual message Jesus gives us today. “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar.” Caesar was the Roman emperor. Jesus reminds us that, as citizens, we have certain responsibilities and duties toward our country and society. We have a responsibility to contribute to the common good, to respect others, and through our good deeds, to make our country and our world a better place. In another Gospel passage, we eve...
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Homily: November 1, 2026, Solemnity of all saints

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 “These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb.” On this Solemnity of All Saints, we remember that great multitude of men and women who have gone before us and are now with God in heaven. And they want us to be there with them one day. St. John, in his vision, sees a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, race, people, and tongue. Today’s feast reminds us of the ultimate purpose of our life: to become saints and to be with God forever. When we think about the saints, one thing is very interesting. No two saints are alike. They came from different backgrounds, lived in different circumstances, faced different struggles, and followed different paths. You and I are also called to become saints. But sometimes, when we look at the saints, we become discouraged. We look at their sacrifices, their holiness, and their extraordinary lives, and then we look at our own struggles ...
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Homily: October 13, 2026, Tuesday of the Twenty-Eighth Week in Ordinary Time (Love)

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 “For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.” This is a beautiful statement from St. Paul in today's first reading. What truly matters to God is not simply our religious practices or how faithfully we observe the rules, but how our faith is expressed through love. Both Jesus and his disciples had to deal with religious leaders who were obsessed with laws and regulations. They observed these laws meticulously and expected everyone else to do the same. But sometimes, in their concern for the law, they forgot the most important thing: love. How did Jesus deal with such people? Interestingly, he dealt with them with love. In today's Gospel, a Pharisee invites Jesus to dine at his house. Jesus does not refuse the invitation. He accepts it and sits at the table with him, even though he knows that the Pharisees constantly criticize and oppose him. Jesus did not agree with everything the Pharisees taught or pra...
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