MAY 26, 2008: MEMORIAL DAY HOMILY

In my culture, the dead are very much part of our lives. Even though we grief their passing away, continue to keep their memories fresh in our lives. We do this by giving their names to newly born children in the family; we bury them in our compounds to signify their ever presence with them. Whenever we look at their graves, we remember the time they spent with us and the wonderful influences they had in our lives.

Our celebration of Memorial Day is a reminder of the lives of the many men and women who gave their lives for our freedom. We also remember our loved ones who have died. In many parts of the world today, millions of people are living under political and economic bondage. There are people who are still enslaved today and there are those who have been denied the choice to make decisions for themselves. The government decides for them and usually this is not good for them. We have been so privileged in this country to have freedom. Our freedom did not come easy, it came at a great cost. It came about because many persons in this country decided to offer their whole lives for the service of country. We have our freedom because many men and women chose that fundamental principle “I am my neighbors keeper” and they were ready and willing to die that we might live in freedom. We must respect their generosity to our country. Their actions show the depth of their love for every one of us. Jesus Christ tells us, “no greater love than one has for his friend than to lay down his life for him.” This is what our men and women in the military did in the past for us and are continuing to do for us.

Our freedom is not freedom from God, but it is freedom for God. It should lead us to build a civilization of love around the world. President George Bush told us in 2003, “Freedom is not America’s gift to the world, it is God’s gift to the world.” It is the will of God that everyone in the world should live in freedom and peace. While most times we have to employ our military might to protect ourselves from our enemies or those who wish us harm, it is not always the answer. The answer is building a civilization of love everywhere in the world, so that in all the continents, the people may know the peace and freedom that has been offered by Jesus Christ.

The primary cause of the wars, ethnic violence and unrest in many parts of the world is as a result of poverty, illiteracy and disease. The rich dictators and political Lords in these regions use the most vulnerable members of the society to cause unrest for their own political or economic benefits. In order to live, the poor do all that they are led to do. It is very unfortunate because most of the victims are young people who should be the light into the future of these countries. The insecurity in these regions of the world, affects our own security. No amount of military power will bring us the security that we need. If we can build peace through a civilization of love throughout the world by aggressively ending poverty, disease and illiteracy, we can then enjoy the freedom that Christ has given to us.

Thursday May 15, 2008: James 2:1-9; Mark 8:27-33

The great questioned posed to the Apostles by Jesus is, “Who do you say that I am?” It is the same question Jesus asks every one of us today. Who is Jesus Christ to you? Is he some nice great guy that once lived in this world? Is he one of the great prophets that lived? Who is he to you? Have you ever asked yourself this question? It is an important question every Christian should honestly try to answer. If we do not know who Jesus Christ is to us personally, it would be difficult to develop a concrete relationship of love with him. If you do not know your spouse, how can you build a long life relationship with him? For me, Jesus Christ is a brother, a friend and redeemer. I can always count on him being there for me through both difficult and easy times; joyful and sorrowful times. I can count on him to lay down his life again for me any moment and any time. I will not hesitate to do same for him.

Who is Jesus Christ to you? Can you give of your life for him?

Friday May 9, 2008: Acts 25:13b-21; John 21:15-19

Jesus Christ understands the temptations that his disciples will face after he has returned to his Father. How many times have we decided we were going to commit more time to ministry only to find ourselves not keeping to that promise? We always have reasons why we have to work many more hours than committing that time to volunteer in the church. Jesus Christ wants to receive that commitment from Peter that he would not abandon his flock. He asks Peter if he loves him more than the world, more than his profession of fishing, and more than his own life. If you have been following the gospel story, Jesus has just prayed for his disciples to have the kind of love that the Father has for him. It is this love that Peter is invited to embrace. This love will lead Peter to give of his own profession to take care of Jesus’ flock and it is this love that will lead him to his own crucifixion.



Like Peter and the rest of the Apostles, we are also invited to embrace this love. A visible way of doing this is to deny ourselves some comforts, so that we can generously help the victims of the Cyclone in Myanmar.

Thursday May 8, 2008: Acts 22:30; 23:6-11; John 17:20-26

It is clear in today’s gospel that the prayer and promise of Jesus was not only for the Apostles that lived during his time, but this was extended to all those who will believe the gospel preached by the apostles. We are all beneficiaries of this gospel. There is no reason why we cannot engage in ecumenism today in order to heal the wounds that our divisions have caused. Jesus Christ says we are the Father’s gift to him. The gift of the Father is a precious gift, and thus, Jesus treats us as his precious gifts. There is special benefit for us because we are God’s gift to Jesus – the privilege to being wherever he is. We have no doubts in our minds where he is. He is in heaven and he waits with joyful anticipation to receive us there. Meanwhile, Jesus prays that Christians may have divine love – the love with which the Father has loved him. This is the greatest challenge that Jesus leaves us all today - to love as the Father has loved him.



In what ways can we love as the Father loved Jesus?

Luke 21: 1-4 (Monday, November 26, 2007)

Jesus tells us in today’s gospel that, the widow did not give from her surplus but from all that she has. That is the whole idea of giving. It has to be sacrificial. I use to think that I will begin to give to God when I have had enough and I can spare God some change. I then discovered that God is not a beggar in a street that I spare some change from my excess. I should give to him joyfully even when I do not have much. One of the things I have noticed since I started giving weekly is that, I have not gone lacking because I gave. It reminds me of that bumper sticker “givers never lack.” God is primary every month as I write my budget. I have God’s own percentage that I should give him irrespective of all the expenses I might need to make. Some times it truly hurts when I have to give of the last money in my bank account to Jesus but I keep in mind that giving that hurts truly shows the depth of my love to the person that I am giving. While it may hurt, it must be done out of freedom and not coercion. For as St. Paul tells us, the Lord loves a cheerful giver.

Prayer:
Lord, give us the courage to give without counting the cost.

Luke 19: 1-10 (Tuesday, November 20, 2007)

Zacchaeus story is an invitation to stretch out to the Lord. He wants to encounter the living God and nothing will stop him from encountering Jesus. He does not let his height stop him; he doesn’t let the crowd stop him; he doesn’t let his riches stop him; he would not let his life of sinfulness stop him. All he wants is to see Jesus. He fought all barriers that would have stopped him from seeing Jesus and he was victorious. The moment he encountered Jesus, he received the gift of salvation. In our own lives too, sometimes we want to see Jesus but we cannot because of certain barriers: disease, family, poverty, wealth, our jobs, sin, etc. Like Zacchaeus, we must keep stretching, keep making efforts and we must overcome all these barriers and proclaim our victory. If we stretch hard enough, we will see Jesus and in his presence there is healing, joy, peace, happiness, and above all, the fullness of love.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, we want to see you. We want to be in your glory. Give us the courage and the power to overcome all that stand our way and prevent us from seeing you.

Malachi 3: 19-20a; 2Thessalonians 3: 7-12; Luke 21: 5-19 (Sunday, November 18, 2007 – 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time)

Today’s readings point us to the things that would happen during the day of the Lord. We hear that they would be earthquakes, kingdoms divided, massive destructions, epidemics, wars and rumors of wars, false prophets, persecutions, etc. All these signs have been with us for more than 2000 years. The early followers of Jesus saw these signs and thought that the day of the Lord was almost at hand. St. Paul will tell the people of Corinthians who are not married to stay that way because it is useless to get married when God is almost here.

When Jesus spoke about the destruction of the temple in the gospel of today, the apostles were overwhelmed with fear. The destruction of the temple meant a lost of everything they have. The temple was the one most important thing for Jewish people. This means that they were going to be down to nothing. What they did not understand is that God is going to be up to something in their life. God made a promise to them, I will be with you and I will help you through all this time of suffering. Not even a hair in your head will be hurt. All I ask of you is perseverance and endurance, at the end you would be victorious. At the end, the “Son of Justice” is going to be up to something in their life and that would be the victory over evil as the first reading of today tells us.

Christians today like the early apostles are always afraid about issues of the last judgment. Some preachers read the signs of the time and argue that the day of the Lord has started. They even fix dates when it started. Hal Lindsay in 1970 wrote in his book, “Death of the Great Planet Earth” that, the day of the Lord started with the creation of the state of Israel. As Jesus tells us in the gospel, no one knows the time that this will come. The only motto for Christians should be “Always be ready.” I often ask people what they will do if they knew the Lord was coming tomorrow. I usually get interesting responses. Some will say they will spend the whole day in the church praying; others will say they will confess their sins and ask for forgiveness, for others, they will reconcile with all those they have wronged or who have wronged them. My response is that you don’t want to wait to know when the Lord will come before you begin to do these things. You have to start leaving your Christian life as you should, so that when the Lord comes he will find you doing the good work you always do.

Jesus does not delude his followers that their life would be easy. It would be a challenging life. They will be persecuted because they have chosen to follow him. The evil people would seem to be the ones that are succeeding and they will Lord it over the Christians. Christians would even be called to give testimonies. Jesus says, don’t worry about what you have to say. All Christians need is endurance. All they need is perseverance. If they endure and persevere, they would be victorious. The Cross is Christian victory. When all the battles are over, God is going to restore us to where we belong. We do not belong to this world. The “Son of Justice” will bring us healing from all our diseases that seem incurable; He will bring peace upon us; He will give us love and destroy all divisions. He will be the all in all of our lives.

Let us persevere. Let us endure. Let us not be afraid of the day of the Lord. In fact, let us anticipate it. Rather than bringing us destruction, it will bring us victory.

Luke 17: 20-25 (Thursday, November 15, 2007)

In the Lords prayer we pray, “thy kingdom come on earth, as it is in heaven.” What do we pray for? We pray that the glory of the Lord shine upon this earth, as it is in heaven; we pray that the peace of the Lord reign upon this earth, as it is in heaven; we pray that the joy of the Lord radiate this earth, earth as it is in heaven. Jesus tells us in the gospel of today that the kingdom of God is among us. God’s kingdom is here, but we are not seeing it. It is here in the Eucharist we share; it is here in our brothers and sisters, members of the ecclesia. In fact, we are the kingdom of God today. We should not look at the kingdom of God as an ideological concept; as something out there. We should look at it as something here with us. We all have the responsibility of bringing that kingdom to other people. Whatever Christian thing that we do furthers the realization of that kingdom here on earth.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, through our lives and work, may your kingdom come upon this earth, as it is in heaven.

Romans 13: 8-10 (Wednesday, November 7, 2007)

St. Paul tells us in today’s reading that the only debt we should owe as Christians is that of love. For every other debt, we can finish paying and we do have the responsibility to pay, but the debt of love, we can never finish paying. The reason is because love is the foundation of our Christian lives. Every moment in a Christian’s life should be marked by love. Love is the substructure, the structure and supra-structure of our Christian faith. All the commandments are subsumed in love. To say we have paid the debt of love is to say, I can now stop loving. Christians should not stop loving. The moment you stop loving as Jesus did, you have let go of your Christian vocation. Our Christian calling is a call to the love of Jesus Christ. It is when we embrace Christ’s love that we are able to shame the same love with other people. The one law guiding us as Christians is the law of love, if you keep to this law, you can live your life anyway you want to live because your whole life will reflect this law.

Prayer:
Jesus I love you, all I have is yours, yours I am and yours I want to be, do with me whatever you will.

Luke 8: 16-18 (Monday, September 24, 2007)

One of the Catholic symbols of baptism is light. Parents and godparents are invited to receive the light of Christ - the light is entrusted to them to keep it burning, so that when the Lord comes, he will find them watching. The Christian life should be like a light that shines through all the world. Light is one of the symbols that Jesus Christ uses to identify himself. He says, "I am the light of the world." We all have been entrusted with this light of Christ, the question is, are we burning brightly? Sometimes we are ashamed of our faith; we feel timid talking about Jesus; we deny Jesus in the presence of non-Christians. My interest today is not how much we have failed to be the light of Christ, but how we can become the light of Christ? The past has happened and gone and there is not much we can do to change that than to seek the forgiveness of God for our failures. Christ is giving us one more opportunity today to rekindle our lights. The best way towards becoming Christ's light is by the way you live your life. Your life must radiate the Christian virtues of faith, hope, love and charity. When you live radically these values, people will come to know and believe in Jesus. As you strive to do these things, more graces will be given to you by Jesus to enable you become even the more successful in your Christian life.

Prayer:
Lord, you have called us to be your light shinning through all the world. Please help us to rekindle the light of your faith, hope, love and charity in us, that we may shine brightly your life to those we meet.

Matthew 9: 9-13 (Friday, September 21, 2007)

In today’s gospel, we see the call of Matthew. Jesus says to Matthew who is a tax collector, “follow me” and without questioning, Matthew stood up and followed him. Tax collectors were considered sinners and were not favorable people in the society. They were known for their cheating and exploitation of the people. Of all the people that Jesus could have called, he decided to call Matthew, a sinner. He will later do greater works with Matthew. In this encounter with the living Lord, Matthew knew the time has come for him to give up his dirty carry and follow Jesus. Matthew could not have followed any rabbi that called upon him to become his follower but they was something special about Jesus that the moment Jesus called him, he knew his time has come to become the person God has called him to be. Sometimes we let our sinfulness or our sins of the past overweigh us that we fail to accept the present invitation Jesus Christ is making to us. Jesus invites us today to leave our past alone and come to him, so that he will transform us and use us to accomplish great works.

Prayer:
Lord, I come before you repenting of all my sins. I know have failed in the past to do your will. I have lied, cheated and exploited other people. Forgive me Lord and use me as you will.

Luke 7: 36-50 (Thursday, September 20, 2007)

In the gospel of today, we learn how an encounter with the living Christ can change our lives. The sinful woman in today’s gospel encountered Christ at a dinner in Simon’s house. Having Rabbi’s at special dinners like these and even having them teach to a general audience present from all walks of life was not uncommon. Jesus’ presence could have attracted a greater crowd because of all the miracles he has been working and the radical nature of his teachings. Yesterday’s gospel gives us a glimpse into the radical life of Jesus. If he was in today’s world, he would probably be called “a liberal.” This prostitute who was present at the dinner, most probably for other reasons than listening to the Christian message of Jesus, had a conversion experience. This experience of the living Christ took away all the shame she had and she did things that were very unconventional. For once, she knew what true love means. It is reflective in the life and teaching of Jesus. She could feel that love being before the presence of Jesus. That love is forgiveness. That encounter with the living Christ brought her salvation.

In our lives, our striving should be to always encounter the living Christ. Sometimes we walk away from him. We can only encounter him by fostering families that are truly a domestic church; by reading and praying with the scriptures; by visiting him in the Eucharist and by partaking in his greatest mystery, the Eucharistic sacrifice.

Prayer:
Lord, we want to be in your presence. We want to encounter you. We believe that in your presence there is true love, true peace and true joy.

Luke 6: 27-38 (Thursday, September 13, 2007)

Jesus Christ in today’s gospel sets out to show the Christian difference. Christians have a higher calling. While the regular people in the society live a life of retribution, Jesus calls Christians to rather live differently. They are to love their enemies, bless those who curse them, pray for those who mistreat them, etc. These commands by Jesus are rooted in love. It is only the heart that loves fully can live this life. Jesus Christ sets himself as an example for us. He prayed for his enemies even when they were crucifying; even when he was harshly treated, he was submissive and still loved them. Just as Jesus Christ was kind to the wicked, we too are called to the same way of live. Our reward is not on this earth, it is in heaven.

As you go out today, say hello to a difficult co-worker; hold the door with a smile for a colleague you cannot stand; call a family member you are estranged from; write a nice note for your spouse who has been aggravating you recently. We cannot truly become the people God has called us to be if we do not begin to live practically these commands of Jesus.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, you lived a life of love and taught us to love like you have loved us. Lead us develop good relations with the people we cannot stand and help us to always think positively about the people we love the least.

I Thessalonians 2: 1-8 (Tuesday, August 28, 2007 Feast of St. Augustine)

Yesterday, we celebrated the feast of St. Monica, the mother of St. Augustine. We learnt how Monica persevered in prayer and eventually was able to help Augustine receive baptism. Augustine was baptized at the age of 33, became a priest at the age of 36 and eventually a bishop at the age of 41. Augustine gave up a Manichean lifestyle of love for the flesh and took on a new life of love for God. Augustine’s conversion experience led him towards becoming the person that God wants him to be. This new found love made him truly a Eucharistic person. Augustine would instruct those approaching first holy communion that, “you yourself are what you receive.” Our reception of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist makes us one with Jesus, and this one-ness should help us to become Christ-like people in the world. In Augustine, we learn that the Eucharist empowers us to become Christ-like people.

As we share in the Eucharist today, there are many habits in our lives that we have been struggling to rid ourselves of. Let us identify those things and ask Jesus of the grace to overcome them. If he could help Augustine overcome his life of the flesh, Jesus can help you too.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, we come to you today with our different sins of the flesh: Adultery, fornication, masturbation, pornography, alcoholism, drugs, over indulging ourselves in food. We ask you Lord to give us the power to overcome these, that we may be truly the people you want us to be.

Matthew 19: 13-12 (Friday, August 17, 2007)

Today’s gospel affirms the sacredness of the married life and a life of celibacy. The teaching does not diminish any of the vocations. Married life is as good as celibacy. Both vocations are a gift from the Lord. You do not become a priest or nun because married life is difficult but you embrace this life because you have been called to do so.

Marriage as with any vocation is not something you try and if it does not work out, you abandon it, but it is a vocation you embrace with love. As Christians, marriage is a permanent life long commitment that must be lived in charity and love. It is a union in which two persons (male and female) become one. It is the two in oneness. This oneness is never to be broken. That was the divine plan and Jesus reaffirms this teaching. Christians are called upon to uphold this teaching in a world that attacks the institution of marriage and family life. As we go out today, let us continue to pray that God strengthen married couples to live their vocation in a radically Christian way.

Prayer
Lord, bless all married couples. Strengthen them in their marital union. Deepen their love each day for their spouses and may you keep far away all things that will lead them to divorce and help them to be patient, understanding and charitable to each other.

Matthew 13: 44-46 (Wednesday, August 1, 2007)

The kingdom of God is like a treasure; a great treasure; more precious than silver and gold. There is nothing in value compared with the kingdom of God. Your job, your home, your car and any possession you have is not more valuable than the kingdom of God. If these things are on the way of your realization of the kingdom of God, you need to cut them off. Jesus tells us in the scriptures, what shall it profit you if you gain the whole world and lost your soul.

In a week, we spend about 40 hours to work, yet, we grudgingly work only an hour for the kingdom of God. God wants us to spend more time working for the kingdom. One hour on Sunday for Mass, at least twenty minutes daily for prayers, another hour daily for our greatest Christian obligation of Love. It is when we begin to do these things that we are beginning to acquire this great treasure that is worth selling every other thing.

Prayer
Lord, many times we fail to possess your kingdom because we are busy acquiring the treasures of this world. Give us the knowledge to know that your kingdom is more precious than every other thing and the strength to work for your kingdom.

Matthew 13: 31-35 (Monday, July 30, 2007)

In the parable of today, Jesus likens the kingdom of God to a mustard seed which is the smallest seed, yet when it grows, it is a big tree. We know that the mustard seed was not the smallest seed even at the time. It was a common proverbial expression at the time that the mustard seed was the smallest seed. Jesus is not trying to show that the mustard seed is the smallest seed but his interest is on how when this small seed grow, it becomes a big tree. Yesterday at Mass, Jesus taught his disciples how to pray and he explicitly prayed that the kingdom of God come. When we always pray for the kingdom of God, when we pray for the reign of God, we sometimes have the tendency to think of a dramatic event in which suddenly God will reign over the whole earth. This is not the intention of Jesus. This kingdom grows gradually like the mustard seed beginning first from our hearts and then gradually extending to others in the world. We are partakers in making this kingdom come upon the earth by the way we live our lives radically in the world. Imagine if the 1 billion Catholics in the world each tried to change some one and bring the kingdom of God to that person! The kingdom of God would soon come upon the earth.

We are invited this week to work to bring about the kingdom of God to the earth. The best way we can do this is to be Christ’s love and presence to the people we encounter this week. Look at them as another Christ and treat them as such. In this way, the kingdom of God would soon reign upon the earth.

Prayer:
Lord God, let your kingdom come upon the earth as it is in heaven. Give us the courage to live radically your kingdom in our hearts and in the world. Use as instruments to bring about this kingdom upon the earth.