Homily: June 26, 2026, Friday of the Twelth Week in Ordinary Time.

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 "He burned the house of the LORD, the palace of the king, and all the houses of Jerusalem; every large building was destroyed by fire."

In the Books of Kings, we have heard many glorious stories about the kingdom of David and Solomon. We have witnessed the mighty deeds of great prophets like Elijah and Elisha. Israel seemed powerful, blessed, and secure under God's protection.

But when we come to the end of the Second Book of Kings, that glorious history comes to a heartbreaking conclusion. The northern kingdom had already been taken into exile, and now the southern kingdom, where the Temple of the Lord stood, also falls into the hands of its enemies.

The tragedy was not only that the people were carried away into exile. Jerusalem itself was left in ruins. The Temple was burned, the king's palace destroyed, and every important building reduced to ashes.

Kingdoms rise, and kingdoms fall. God's chosen people, who once seemed so strong and secure, became slaves in a foreign land. This pattern repeats itself throughout salvation history and throughout the history of the world. Every earthly kingdom, no matter how powerful, eventually passes away.

For us as believers, these biblical stories remind us not to place our hope in earthly success, wealth, power, or security. They invite us to fix our eyes on the one kingdom that will never be destroyed—the Kingdom of God. Every day we pray, "Thy kingdom come." 

Those are not merely words we recite; they are a reminder that our true homeland is heaven and that our greatest hope is the eternal glory God has promised to those who remain faithful to Him.

May we live each day with our hearts set not on what is passing away, but on the everlasting Kingdom of God.

Amen.


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Homily: June 23, 2026 Tuesday of the Twelth Week in Ordinary time (Narrow Gate)

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 “How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few.” What Jesus says today is both challenging and true. Heaven is a popular destination, almost everyone wants to go there, but the road that leads to it, is not the most preferred, few people want to walk it. Our natural tendency is to take the most comfortable, convenient, and pleasurable route. The world constantly invites us to choose the easy path, promising happiness without sacrifice and fulfillment without commitment. Seriously, we all know those are lies. Recently I came across a striking phrase: “If your life is very comfortable, you may have wandered away from the Lord.” While comfort itself is not a bad thing, the Christian life was never meant to be centered on comfort. It is centered on Christ. We are pilgrims on a journey. A pilgrim knows where he wants to go. He does not travel merely to explore, to be entertained, or to enjoy the scenery. He keeps his eyes fixed on the de...
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Homily: April 20, 2026, Monday of the Third week of Easter (Friendship with Jesus)

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 “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...
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Homily: February 15, 2026 Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Yes or No)

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 “Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.” Every one of our Christian journey begins with a very simple thing: “Yes”. At baptism, the priest asks the parents or the candidates three questions: Do you renounce Satan? Do you reject sin? Do you reject all that leads you away from God? If the answer is Yes, Yes and Yes, then he asks three more questions to confirm our belief, the profession of our faith in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Yes, Yes and Yes. And from that moment, we belong to God totally. Our new relationship with God, our new life as a Christian begins. Do we then live happily ever after? Realistically, this is where the struggle also begins. Growing up, I have said many “Yes’s” to God. Often, I have also said “No” to Him. But more often, My Yes’s were compromised, unaccomplished, unreliable. Often, they were conditional “Yes’s”. I negotiated and bargained with God, I procrastinated and made excuses. They would so...
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Homily: April 7, 2024 Second Sunday of Easter Sunday of Divine Mercy

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 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...
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Homilía: Julio 17, 2022, XVI Domingo Ordinario

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 "Marta, Marta, muchas cosas te preocupan y te inquietan, siendo así que una sola es necesaria. María escogió la mejor parte". ¿Qué es esa única cosa que se necesita? Este consejo de Jesús es muy importante para cada uno de nosotros. Reflexionemos sobre las lecturas de hoy para entenderlo mejor. En la primera lectura, Abraham vio a tres hombres que estaban cerca de su tienda; inmediatamente se ofreció a servirles y les dio una buena cena, antes de que siguieran su camino. En la lectura del Evangelio, cuando Jesús entró en el pueblo, Marta y María lo recibieron. Marta se ocupó de preparar una buena cena para Jesús. Mientras que María, se sentó a sus pies a escucharle hablar. Marta se sentía agobiada y ansiosa. Necesitaba la ayuda de María para dar una buena comida a su invitado. Entonces Jesús dijo: "una sola es necesaria. María escogió la mejor parte...". Efectivamente, María eligió algo maravilloso. Sentarse con Jesús y escucharle hablar. Eso es lo que nos gustaría...
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Homily: April 18, 2026, Saturday of the Second Week of Easter (Be not Afraid )

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 “It is I. Do not be afraid.” One of my nephews and I used to do WhatsApp video calls. You know how those apps have masks and funny filters. One day I put on a scary mask, he threw the phone aside, and ran away. He got frightened. Later I called him and said , “It’s your uncle. Don’t worry.” After that we made an agreement—no more masks/ filters during our calls. Now he is fine! In today’s Gospel, the disciples see Jesus walking on the water, but they do not recognize Him. They think they are seeing a ghost, and they are terrified. Then Jesus speaks: “It is I. Do not be afraid.” The moment they hear His voice, fear begins to leave them. His words help them recognize Him. His voice brings peace. That is the power of the word of God. We see the opposite in Gethsemane. When the soldiers came to arrest Jesus, they asked, “Are you Jesus the Nazorean?” Jesus answered: “I AM.” And the Gospel says they drew back and fell to the ground. The same Lord. The same voice. The same divine power. ...
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Homily: February 4, 2026 Wednesday of the Fourth Week In Ordinary Time

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 “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...
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Homily: May 4, 2026 Monday of the Fifth Week of Easter (Love-Commandments)

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 “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.” Jesus is saying that if we love Him, then His Father and Him will come and make their home in us. And we know that if the Father and the Son come, the Holy Spirit will come too! When God comes, He does not just pay us a visit. He does not stay at a distance. He desires to live with us. He in us, and we in Him. Fully united. If God truly dwells in us, what more do we need? His presence is enough. His love is enough. His power is enough. If God is with us, we have nothing to be afraid of. But Jesus also gives us a condition: “Whoever loves me will keep my word.” We are called to love Him in action, by obeying His commandments, doing His will, keeping His teachings. Now, this is where many people struggle. For some people, God’s commandments feel like a burden, they think His will dampens their desires and His teachings restrict their freedom. But for those who h...
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Homily: May 3, 2025, Feast of Apostles Philip and James (Message through the Earth)

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

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 “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...
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