Homilies (Page 44)

Investment Sunday NOT Judgment Day Proverbs 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6; Matthew 25:14-30. When we read today’s readings, especially the gospel, from the background of the liturgical year that draws to a close, the temptation is to focus on the four last things – death, judgment, heaven and hell. This approach, of itself, is laudable, but it smacks off fatalism, it is as if we stand before God’s judgment here and now, which is not the case. However, a new perspective to our liturgical readings becomes manifest when we ask why a “good woman” is being praised on a Sunday that draws our attentionRead More →

Wisdom 6:12-16; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Matthew 25:1-13 It is NOT the Day or Hour that Matters, What Matters is BEING with God/Bridegroom! What is the point of the gospel of today, given the roles assigned to the different characters of the gospel – virgins, bridegroom and olive-oil/lamp-oil? Today’s gospel comes on the heels of Jesus’ discourse on time and its utilization, which begins this way, “But concerning that DAY and HOUR no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only” (Matthew 24:36-51). Today’s gospel is followed by the very nice statement which recalls division of labor, “For itRead More →

  Congruity of Lifestyle and Doctrine: From the Greatest Commandment to the Greatest Person Malachi 1:14b-2:2b, 8-10; 1 Thessalonians 2:7b-9, 13; Matthew 23:1-12 On a face value, our gospel reading appears to be focused on the scribes and the Pharisees. In fact, most titles of today’s gospel reading in many Bible versions read “The seven woes of the Pharisees” or something close to that. This reading of the gospel is not going to be our guide for this Sunday. I think there is a deeper meaning and significance to today’s gospel message, which will become apparent when we ask a simple question: to whom wasRead More →

  Charity is contagious, Spread it Around! Exodus 22:20-26; 1 Thessalonians 1:5c-10; Matthew 22:34-40 From the conspiracies of the Pharisees, the theologians of the Jewish people, we now move to the Pharisees’ connivance with the Herodians, the political class among the Jews. Today, we arrive at the participation of lawyers in the saga of Jesus’ betrayal. In other words, all the major aspects of the society – religious (Pharisees and Sadducees), Politicians and ruling class (Herodians) and Lawyers (interpreters of the law) are all involved in this conspiracy. This sounds like the three arms of government, in a functional democracy. Nevertheless, our gospel reading startsRead More →

  29TH Sunday in Ordinary Time, 2017 Is 45:1, 4-6; 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5b; Matthew 22:15-21 The God of all People’s, through the Universal Image of God It is always nice to know, when to change one’s game or strategy, especially when it fails to yield the desired result. Haven used so many parables to talk to the chief priests and the Pharisees to no avail, Jesus now changes tactics to straight talk with the Pharisees. How does Jesus go about doing that – his straight talk? A bit of background check on the adversaries of Jesus is in order today. In their plot to eliminateRead More →

    28TH Sunday in Ordinary Time, 2017 “Moral Yes” to God, Our Uniform to Heaven Isaiah 25:6-10a; Philippians 4:12-14, 19-20; Matthew 22:1-14 On reading today’s gospel, my mind remains glued to how one individual could sneak into the wedding banquet of God without a garment! Does it mean that God’s security is porous and can be beaten? Yet, this fellow was fished out and thrown into hell or outer darkness among those to weep and gnash their teeth. What is happening here? Two realizations will help our comprehension, 1) that Jesus continues to address the chief priests and Pharisees (again) in another parable (MattRead More →

  Not the Destruction of Sinners, but Hope for their Conversion and Prayer for Fidelity in Truth Isaiah 5:1-7; Philippians 4:6-9; Matthew 21:33-43 Let us situate our parable today in its proper context. The beginning of Matthew 21 helps us to do this. It starts out with the journey of Jesus to Jerusalem; which means that our gospel today is part of Jesus’ teachings to his disciples, indeed, all of humanity, about the importance of journeys of faith and the role of Jerusalem in such journeys. Other elements to help our analysis are the companions of Jesus’ journey and what he says to them andRead More →

  Never too Late for Salvation, Yet Salvation is Gratuitously Free Isaiah 55:6-9; Phil 1:20c-24, 27a; Matthew 20:1-16a Today, the prophecy of Isaiah about a Messianic age, where everything is gratuitously given, no payment, no credit card necessary, is being liturgically fulfilled. For all those who doubt for their salvation because they considered themselves sinners, for those who still wonder how God will save a sinful world, you have your answer today, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways above your waysRead More →

  The Eleventh Commandment does not Exist: Man, know thyself and Act Accordingly! Sirach 27:30-28:7, Romans 14:7-9; Matthew 18:21-35 A story may illustrate well the meaning of today’s readings – I can’t get away with my sins, I must account for them – even if wisdom is like every analogy, it limps. Wisdom can fit into a thousand and one illustration, just like every African proverb and the parables of the New Testament, but the story of a man who was over speeding and notices the police chasing after him, and he sticks out his hand through the window of his car with the inscriptionRead More →