Homilies

Homily for the 31st Sunday in Ordinal Time, November 5, 2023

26 years ago, I visited the Temple’s Wailing Wall in Jerusalem.  There I witnessed a disturbing sight; it was a roadshow of sort.  Some very devout Jews tried their best to draw everyone’s attention as they, with the help of their attendants, put on quite wide phylacteries on their foreheads and on their left forearms.  Phylacteries are leather cases containing some passages of the Torah, held on the forehead and on the left forearms by leather straps.  After donning their cloak with long tassels and making sure that they got all the attentio

Homilies

Homily for the 30th Sunday in Ordinal Time, October 29, 2023

For the Jews, 2000 years ago, there were 613 precepts of the law, some bigger, more important than others considered less important; of these precepts about half were given as positive commands and the other half as negative commands.  Hence, for well-intentioned people the need for simplification was real and pressing. The question put to Jesus was roughly this: “Rabbi, in a nutshell, what do we have to do to make it to Heaven?” We should reflect on the answer given by Jesus and probe the reason why he adds a second commandment as being the other hinge on w

Homilies

Homily for the 29th Sunday in Ordinal Time, October 22, 2023

Today, Jesus teaches us that he expects us, his disciples, to be consistent, viscerally grateful and of solid integrity. After seeing the embarrassment of the Pharisees as Jesus repeatedly exposed to public scrutiny their inconsistency, ungratefulness, and dishonesty, we should decide to conduct ourselves in the spirit of truth. How embarrassed had the Pharisees been? All four gospels record the many times their hypocrisy was unmasked by Jesus. In today’s gospel passage (Matthew 22:15-21), we realize that they had been so deeply and so repeatedly embarrassed tha

Homilies

Homily for the 28th Sunday in Ordinal Time, October 15, 2023

The first thing that stands out about the wedding feast of the Lamb, the eternal Eucharist of Heaven, in today’s gospel passage (Matthew 22:1-14) is the fact that its choice foods do not spoil; last forever; and without need to be reheated, they are continually delicious. This is a mere human way of introducing us to the most unfamiliar concept of duration without the passing of time. This concept of duration without the passing of time is what we commonly refer to as “eternity,” which is equally impossible for us to understand because we are born in time, and we

Homilies

Homily for the 27th Sunday in Ordinal Time, October 8, 2023

Alas, I know of a few men and women who turned bitter, disenchanted, depressed and unable to trust another human being for the rest of their life because their love was not reciprocated. As we can clearly see from the first reading (Isaiah 5:1-7) and the gospel passage (Matthew 21: 33-43) that I just read to you, God himself laments this experience of unreciprocated love, of a broken heart, not once, not twice, but repeated times throughout history. The analogy of the vineyard fails to hide God’s sadness and frustration: “What more was there to do for my vineyard

Homilies

Homily for the 26th Sunday in Ordinal Time, October 1, 2023

Today’s parable stings. It is very brief, to the point and, ouch! It stings because it is aimed at most of us, “the insiders.” I mean, it is directed at those who have available all the tools, the means, and the information on how to act in a manner always pleasing to God. It was, originally, aimed at the chief priests and elders of the people.  Matthew 21:28 However, nowadays, who are the targets of Jesus’ warning? They are the insiders, those who, from bishops to priests, deacons, and pious, committed laity are with their hands so deep in things religiou

Homilies

Homily for the 25th Sunday in Ordinal Time, September 24, 2023

Here is a sobering fact: if God were to treat us with justice, we would all be wiped out, erased off the face of the earth in an instant. If you, Lord, mark iniquities, Lord who can stand? Ps. 130 Today we are all invited to rejoice that God is not just with us in a distributive sense but, rather, he is “just” in his divine way. Any of our sins, however small, is an offense against God who is infinite. Hence, it calls for infinite punishment. If God were to apply distributive justice, we would all be mercilessly condemned. Today’s gospel passage proves clearly t

Homilies

Homily for the 24th Sunday in Ordinal Time, September 17, 2023

The phrase that comes to my mind reflecting on the gospel passage from Matthew (18:21-35) is the one immortalized in the book and film The Godfather: “an offer that cannot be refused.” Yes, when it comes to forgiving or unwillingness to forgive, we face an offer made by God which we cannot refuse. We often hear that God’s love is unconditional. That sounds good and comforting but it is fluffy stuff, pure and simple. God’s love and forgiveness are conditional: they depend on our willingness to forgive from the bottom of our heart, our brothers and sisters who wron

Homilies

Homily for the 23rd Sunday in Ordinal Time, September 10, 2023

Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Matthew 18:18 What is quite intriguing is the fact that Jesus gives to each one of you, lay people, the authority which he had given to Peter and to the other 10 and, consequently, to bishops and priests ever since. (Matthew 16:19 and John 20:23) First, this means that, in Christ, heaven and earth are inseparably united; that humanity is given to God and divinity to human beings. Christ as Head of the Body is forever one entity with h

Homilies

Homily for the 22nd Sunday in Ordinal Time, September 3, 2023

I urge you, brothers, and sisters, by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice. Romans 12:1 Hmmm. This is unusual. Why not our souls? Why not our hearts? First, we should try to divest ourselves of our Western mentality of conceiving body and soul as being the lone two components of a human being and somewhat in opposition to and in tension with each other. And, secondly, we should think of body the way the Bible sees it, i.e., as being our whole self, considered from the point of view of our interaction with this earth, i.e., our body as us