Homilies

Homily for the Feast of the Holy Family, December 29, 2024

The intensity of the Christmas’ solemnity should not dwarf the significance of the Feast of the Holy Family of Nazareth.   And the reason is not an exaggeration but a simple reality check: our future as a Church and as a Nation hangs in the balance.  The number of religious institutions that cling to this somber realization is dwindling.  It consists of conservative Christian groups and the Catholic Church. That’s about it!  For decades, we realized that there were covert efforts to undermine the traditional family unit and replace it wit

Homilies

Homily for Christmas, December 25, 2024

In the span of the next 24 hours, we will say the words: “Merry Christmas” to many people, in some cases almost automatically, perfunctorily, without giving much thought to its significance.   As believers, we are ready to be part of this collective rejoicing, provided that, after it is done in a quaint, brief way, we can hurry home and celebrate Christmas in a way that keeps all our traditions intact and unfolds according to our plans.  However, I ask for your kind forgiveness so that I may question our plans for the purpose of making this year’s

Homilies

Homily for the 4th Sunday of Advent, December 22, 2024

It should not be necessary for me, or for anyone else, to prove that we need a Savior, that we need Someone to fill the void that we feel inside and in Whom to anchor our hope because the sources of worrisome concerns seem to multiply with every passing day.  Of all the ways available to Almighty God to save us, he chose a “very humble way:” in the fullness of time, he prepared for his Son a body just like the body that we all got from our parents.  For this reason, when he came into the world, he said: "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a

Homilies

Homily for the 3rd Sunday of Advent, December 15, 2024

Today is Gaudete, i.e. “Rejoice Sunday.” Traditionally, we light the pink candle on the wreath.   We do so after two weeks of soul-searching and responsible cooperation with God’s grace to free ourselves of our nagging flaws.    We also fill ourselves with love and willingness to serve the Lord and our neighbor while awaiting the glorious revelation of the total Christ, i.e. the Lord Jesus Christ and his Body, the Church, as one.  We also stop to take stock of the reasons why we should look forward with eagerness to the fulfilment

Homilies

Homily for the 2nd Sunday of Advent, December 8, 2024

The most common word we hear during the Advent Season is “the coming of the Lord.”   For example: And they will see the Son of Man coming upon the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. Matthew 24:30  This phrase needs clarification.  Since Jesus, the Son of Man, is God, we cannot speak of him as leaving point A (heaven) to get to point B (wherever we happen to be).    As God, he is everywhere at the same time, in heaven, in the Blessed Sacrament, in his Word, in our hearts, near and far, everywhere, without excepti

Homilies

Homily for the 1st Sunday of Advent, December 1, 2024

Let me paraphrase today’s gospel: This world has ominous sings in the sun, the moon and the stars.  There are many nations in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the elements.  People are dying of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world.  Our world is indeed crisscrossed by heart-wrenching tragedies, by devastating calamities, by deadly, age-long feuds, barbaric, unspeakable acts of violence, deep divisions and prolonged wars.    There might even be signs indicating that the hope of a promising, better future could be

Homilies

Homily for the Solemnity of Christ the King, November 24, 2024

Today, on the final Sunday of the liturgical year, as we do every year, we honor Christ as King of the Universe, a resounding title indeed, but there is something disquieting about it in the context of the dialogue between Pilate and Jesus, in today’s gospel passage. (Jn 18:33-37)  Without a second thought, we attribute to Jesus this glorious title of King of the Universe.  But we might have to reconsider it on account of some personal vital implications for all of us.  Pilate asks: “Are you the King of the Jews?”  Nobody would ever dream of

Homilies

Homily for the 33rd Sunday of Ordinary Time, November 17, 2024

The reaction to the scary and ominous lines in this gospel passage (Mark 13:24-32) which is becoming of a true believer is found in Psalm 131:2: “Rather, I have stilled my soul, hushed it like a weaned child. Like a weaned child on its mother's lap, so is my soul within me.”  The graphic description of the final days of this world with the sun darkening, the moon not giving out its pale light anymore, and the stars hurtling down to earth, is only one additional element for us to place next to the many instances in which our heart is frightened and tension stea

Homilies

Homily for the 32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, November 10, 2024

Looking back at my priestly ministry spanning over more than 52 years, I lost count of the many people who came and keep coming to me with a very heavy heart.  Invariably, they want me, as one of God’s ministers, to assure them that he has been monitoring all their sighs, accompanying them through their tragedies and collecting their tears in his divine bowl: My wanderings you have noted; are my tears not stored in your vial, recorded in your book? Psalm 56:9  Frankly, the most painful part of sitting there listening, has been and always is, their silent

Homilies

Homily for the 31st Sunday of Ordinary Time, November 3, 2024

Today’s reflection is all about the law that must guide our every thought, choice, action and reaction.  Today’s reflection is about the “rail” on which our life, in all its facets, is supposed to run.  The expert of the law double-checked with Jesus about it by asking: “Which is the first of all the commandments?” (cf. Mark 12:28-34)  It is called “Shema” because its first word is “hear,” “shema” in Hebrew.   It is like saying: “Forget about anything else. This is what must guide you, enlighten you, and help you make the right choices