Homily: June 6, 2026 Saturday of the Nineth Week in Ordinary Time (Preserverance )

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“But you, be self-possessed in all circumstances; put up with hardship; perform the work of an evangelist; fulfill your ministry.”

This month in Word Among Us, Fr. Mike Schmitz reflects on the life of Fr. Walter Ciszek, a Jesuit priest who went secretly to Russia to preach the Gospel. Religion was forbidden there, and people were so afraid that many would not even speak to a priest. Later he was arrested and spent many years in Soviet prisons and Siberian labor camps.

What touched me most was not only his suffering, but his honesty. Fr. Walter admitted that there were moments he felt useless. He thought his life had no meaning because nobody wanted to hear about God. Imagine being a priest and feeling that your ministry is accomplishing nothing.

Reading his story really humbled me. Many times I complain to God about small difficulties, disappointments, stress, or moments when things do not go the way I want. But Fr. Walter endured loneliness, fear, torture, and uncertainty for years. Yet he discovered one thing that kept him alive: God was with him even there.

That is faith. Faith is not only believing when life is easy. Faith is trusting that God is near even when we cannot understand what He is doing.

In 2012, the Church opened his cause for canonization. Fr. Walter teaches us that holiness is often quiet perseverance — staying faithful one day at a time.

All of us carry some burden today. Maybe worries about family, health, loneliness, disappointments, or uncertainty about the future. Today let us ask God for the grace not to give up, not to lose hope, but to continue faithfully, because beyond every cross awaits the joy of heaven. 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: June 29, 2026, Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles (Fear of God)

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 "The angel of the Lord will rescue those who fear him." Today's Responsorial Psalm is so assuring and is so apt for today as we celebrate the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul. Both were faithful and fervent Apostles who had a deep holy fear the Lord - not like the fear of a slave, or being afraid of God, but a loving and reverent fear like that of an obedient child before a righteous and perfect Father. Having a fear of the Lord is the seventh gift of the Holy Spirit. It is a gift, not something we can earn or obtain on our own, but freely given to us at baptism, connecting us to God with deep respect and love, with a conscience to never want to offend the One who loves us so much. Peter and Paul did not always have this gift. If Peter had possessed this holy fear from the beginning, he would not have denied Jesus three times. Paul, before his conversion, persecuted Christians because he did not yet know the living God. Without knowing God, he could not truly fear Him....
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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: August 1, 2026 Friday of the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Unjustly accused)

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 The first reading begins with these shocking words: “This man deserves death.” Those words sound very familiar because they echo what would later happen to Jesus. He, too, was condemned by the religious leaders. Unable to carry out the execution themselves, they handed Him over to the Romans to be crucified. Jeremiah was fortunate that influential people spoke on his behalf and saved his life. Jesus' situation was different. Although people like Nicodemus tried to defend Him, they could not prevent His execution. He willingly accepted the cross to accomplish our salvation. In today's Gospel, we see another innocent man, John the Baptist, suffering a tragic and unjust death. He spoke the truth without fear, and for that truth he gave his life. Jeremiah, John the Baptist, and Jesus all remind us that proclaiming God's truth often comes at a great cost. Sadly, history continues to repeat itself. Even today, innocent people suffer injustice, persecution, and violence. Many are...
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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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