Homily: June 4, 2026, Thursday of the nineth week in Ordinary time

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 “Such is my Gospel, for which I am suffering, even to the point of chains, like a criminal. But the word of God is not chained.”

What a powerful statement from St. Paul. He may be chained, imprisoned, and treated like a criminal, yet he continued to preach the Gospel, because the Word of God can never be imprisoned, it is free forever.

From the very beginning, God created the whole universe by speaking forth His word. He said, “Let there be light,” and light came into being. By His word, all creation came into existence. The same word that spoke to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and the prophets continues to speak to us today, guiding, challenging, and inspiring us.

The Letter to the Hebrews reminds us: “Indeed, the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).

The Word of God is not merely ancient text; it is alive and active. It has the power to change hearts, heal wounds, and lead people to God.

Throughout history, many have tried to silence God, to stop His word. They imprisoned preachers, persecuted prophets, and even killed those who profess to believe. The harder they tried to stop it, the wider it spread.

When it was suppressed at one place, it flourished at another. Nothing can stop it. Nothing can keep it away. God's word always finds a way into the hearts of those who are searching for Him.

Because the Word of God is so powerful, we should make it a part of our daily prayer. The early Christians always prayed with the Scriptures, especially the Psalms. Even today, the Church's official prayer, the Liturgy of the Hours, is filled with the Word of God. When we pray with Scripture, we allow God Himself to speak to us.

Today, let us ask ourselves: How much space do I give to God's word in my life? Do I read and reflect on it? Do I pray with it? Do I allow it to enter my heart, pierce my being and transform me?

God has spoken to us through His Word, and that Word remains with us. Kingdoms rise and fall, cultures come and go, and generations pass one after another, but the Word of God endures forever.

May we open our hearts to that living Word today, allow it to take root within us, and let it bear fruit in our lives for the glory of God. Amen.

 


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Homily: August 15, 2026, Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Sin-death)

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 “For since death came through man, the resurrection of the dead came also through man.” Sin and death are connected, but Christ has come to break that connection and give us life. In his Letter to the Romans, St. Paul says, “The wages of sin is death.” Sin separates us from God, and God is the source of life.  God created Adam and Eve for life and friendship with him. But through their disobedience, sin entered the world, and with sin came death.  But when God prepared the world for the coming of his Son, he gave Mary a unique grace. From the first moment of her conception, she was preserved from original sin.  We can see Mary as the new Eve. Eve was created without sin, but she disobeyed God. Mary, by God's grace, responded differently. When the angel came to her, she said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Eve's disobedience was connected with humanity's fall. Mary's obedience opened the door for Christ, the Savi...
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Homily: July 18, 2026, Tuesday of the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Remember death)

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 “It is I who deal death and give life.” These words from our Responsorial Psalm today are actually not taken from the Book of Psalms. They come from the Book of Deuteronomy, chapter 32. They remind us of a fundamental truth of our faith: God is the author of life. Our life comes from God, belongs to God, and ultimately returns to God. This phrase beautifully connects our first reading and the Gospel today. In the first reading, the prophet Ezekiel speaks against the prince of Tyre, a man who had become proud because of his success, wealth, wisdom, and accomplishments. And so the prophet reminds him of one simple reality: you are only a man, and you will die. There are certain realities in life that quickly reveal our limitations. An illness can make a powerful and independent person suddenly dependent on others. None of us can say, “I am too important to die,” or “I have accomplished enough that death cannot touch me.” Sirach 7:36 says  “In whatever you do, remember your last...
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Homily: August 14, 2026, Memorial of St. Maximilian Kolbe

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Today we celebrate the memorial of St. Maximilian Kolbe, a saint whose life teaches us what it means to say a complete and generous “yes” to God. Most of us know the final and heroic chapter of his life. At Auschwitz concentration camp, a prisoner escaped, and as punishment, ten men were chosen to die by starvation. One of them cried out in anguish for his wife and children. Fr. Maximilian Kolbe stepped forward and said, “I am a Catholic priest. Let me take his place.” His offer was accepted. He entered the starvation bunker with the other prisoners. But even there, he continued to be a priest. Instead of allowing that terrible place to be filled only with despair, he prayed with the prisoners, encouraged them, and helped prepare them to meet God. One by one they died. Maximilian survived longer than the others, and finally the guards killed him with a lethal injection. We know that St. Maximilian Kolbe is in heaven because the Church has canonized him. But I like to think that those p...
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Homily: February 25, 2025, Tuesday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time (Undisappointed Hope)

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 “Study the generations long past and understand; has anyone hoped in the Lord and been disappointed?”  I have read this passage many times before, but it struck me differently this time. The message of hope resonates so deeply with me since this year is the Jubilee Year of Hope.  Romans 5:5: “Hope does not disappoint us.” We are pilgrims of hope, our pilgrimage is a journey of hope, and we are assured that when we place our hope in the Lord, we will not be disappointed. Have you ever been disappointed? Probably yes. And that could be because we were hoping the Lord will meet our expectations. We placed our desires in your own ambitions, and hoped the Lord would satisfy us and please us, He probably did or didn’t. Well, that is not the hope of faith we are talking about here. The answer becomes clear when we study the generations that came before us. If I think about my own parents and grandparents, they lived devout and pious lives. Their only hope was in the Lord and Hi...
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Homily: May 11, 2026 Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter

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 “When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, he will testify to me.” There is an often-used phrase in the Alpha program: “Alpha is designed to fail if the Holy Spirit does not show up.” This implies that since Alpha has not failed despite itself and continues to grow from 1977, the Holy Spirit is at work in the program. I think that is true not only for Alpha but for the Church and the whole Christian life. Church would have been totally destroyed, and the Christian life would have been completely crushed with so much internal struggle and trouble, external persecution and attacks, if we are without the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, the Church would not survive, life would have ended, humanity would no longer exist. Yesterday, here in our parish, 25 young people received the sacrament of Confirmation. They confirmed their faith and received the fullness of the Holy Spirit in their lives. The first reading ...
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Homily: May 9, 2026, Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter (Visions)

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 “During the night Paul had a vision. A Macedonian stood before him and implored him with these words, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’” One of the mysterious ways God speaks to people in the Bible is through dreams and visions. I am always fascinated by that. In the early chapters of Genesis, we already see visions and dreams. Abraham looked at the stars, and God promised him descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven. Jacob saw a ladder between heaven and earth. Joseph had many dreams. Moses, the prophets, St. Joseph in the New Testament, all received guidance from God through dreams and visions. The prophet Joel describes the messianic age with these words: “Your sons and daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.” And throughout the history of the Church, many saints received mystical visions, saints like Gemma Galgani, Padre Pio, Teresa of Ávila, and Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich. Personally, I do not think I have ev...
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Homily: August 11, 2026, Tuesday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Sweet as Honey)

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 “Feed your belly and fill your stomach with this scroll I am giving you.” Ezekiel tells us, “I ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.” Sweet as honey! Is that really how we experience the Word of God? For many of us, the Word of God can actually be very challenging. It corrects us, directs our conduct, and forms us in Christian discipline. Beginning with the Ten Commandments, we hear many “You shall nots.” Do not do this. Do not do that. Forgive your enemies. Love those who hurt you. Be faithful. Be honest. Carry your cross. Deny yourself. Sometimes God's Word may feel less like honey and more like medicine—something good for us, but not always pleasant to take. So was Ezekiel simply using beautiful symbolic language when he said that God's Word was sweet as honey? Our responsorial psalm today tells us the same thing: “In the way of your decrees I rejoice.” “How sweet to my taste is your promise!” And again, “The law of your mouth is to me more precious than thousan...
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Homily: May 18, 2026, Monday of the Seventh Week of Easter (Holy Spirit )

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 “And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.” I have always wished to experience similar impact and intensity of the Holy Spirit. But I wonder if I wish because I need the gift of tongues in my ministry? Or I wish because I am interested in being part of the excitement? Being inflamed by the Holy Spirit does not always end up with these dramatic outward results. Yet it seems to be happening rather often in the conversion experiences of the early Christians and hardly in these later times. Perhaps we do not have the same deep hunger the early Christians had for the sacraments. In the face of persecution and uncertainty, knowing their lives were always on the line, their desire for the grace of God was thus very intense and strong. They also lived in a world with possibly less distractions, so the Gospel of Jesus could enter more deeply into their hearts. In contrast, we live now in a society where life has become c...
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Homily: May 20, 2026 Holy Family School Graduation Mass

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 We just heard the first reading from Isaiah: “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles.” Today is a wonderful milestone in your life. You must be so eager to go out and soar on wings like eagles!! But note what is the condition before this line: “Those who hope in the Lord…” Do you remember how it was when you first came to Holy Family School? Some of you came when you were tiny kids. Some of you could not even speak English. Many of you must have been anxious because everything was new to you, teachers and classmates, rules and environment… But over time, days, months and years passed, this school has become your second home. These hallways hold many memories for every one of you: laughter, friendships, victories, even tears, fears and disappointments. There might have been times when you thought you would never make it through. But you did, you got through, you are here now, celebrating the fact that you did not give up, you kept ...
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Homily: May 2-2026 Memorial of St.Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church.

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 “Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own.” Jesus is one with the Father. Jesus is not just a teacher or a prophet. He is the eternal Son of God— fully divine and fully human. He took on our human nature to save us, to redeem us, to bring us back to the Father. Today, the Church celebrates Athanasius of Alexandria, one of the great defenders of this truth. He lived in the 4th century and served as the bishop of Alexandria. At that time, a serious error began to spread in the Church. A priest named Arius taught that Jesus was not truly God— that He was only a creature, that He was created, and not equal to the Father. This teaching was very popular. Many people followed it.  St. Athanasius stood firm. Even as a young deacon, he defended the true faith. In the year 325, the Church gathered at the Council of Nicaea. There, the bishops proclaimed clearly: I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only...
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