Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
One of the topics we study in our moral theology course in the seminary is titled, “Death and Dying.” As an aside, the professor who taught us this course, died of pancreatic cancer last year. He taught us something which remains fresh in my mind even to this day. He said, for a Christian, ‘death is an act’. What he meant was that, we are all moving toward our death. We should make that movement an intentional movement, an intentional act. In other words, that death should not be something that happens to us, but rather, that we make death a free and intentional event.
Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Perhaps you have heard about the recent Amazon Synod of Bishops. The Synod met in Rome from 6 to 27 October 2019. On 15 October 2017, Pope Francis had announced that the Synod would work "to identify new paths for the evangelization of God's people in Amazon region. His focus was on the indigenous peoples who are often forgotten and without the prospect of a sustainable social and religious future. The obstacles to evangelization of this region are many. It includes the difficult terrain, the great variety of languages spoken, and most importantly the vested interest of landowners and business interests who exploit the land and the indigenous peoples, most of whom are Roman Catholic.
Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
At first glance, today’s gospel reading might seems to be about pride versus humility, about self-righteousness versus trusting God’s mercy. In reality, though, Luke is continuing his reflection on prayer. Last week, his emphasis was on “the necessity to pray always without becoming weary.” This week, his focus is on prayer as an extension of life.
Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
I was talking to someone this past week and I said to them, “I would like to take 2019 and just throw it somewhere.” Beginning with dad’s death, and then the tornadoes in Dayton, the gun violence in Dayton, the death of two children in a senseless tragedy, Fr. Dave’s death, and the number of unexpected serious illnesses of people close to me, I cannot wait for 2019 to end. To whomever I have share my feeling, they have agreed with me. “It’s been a hard year.”
Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
There are two very powerful stories in today’s scripture readings. The first story is the healing of Naaman the Syrian and the other is the healing of the ten lepers. As powerful as these stories are in themselves, I would like to reflect on them from the perspective of a sentence from today’s second reading. Paul writes to Timothy, “But the word of God is not chained.”
Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
There is something that I have preached about in passing which today I want to make the theme of my homily. Don't live a good and holy life because you want to get to heaven; live a good and holy life because you already belong in heaven." “Don’t live a good and holy life because you want to be saved; live a good and holy life because you ARE saved!” The theme is inspired by today’s gospel reading where Jesus says, “When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do'" (Lk 17:10).
Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
For a second week in a row, the scripture readings at Mass are going to invite us to reflect on a Christian’s relationship with wealth. Last week we reflected on Jesus’ words, “You cannot serve God and mammon!” I had suggested that our relationship with wealth has implications for eternity. This week we focus the people who chose to serve mammon. Mammon made some people inhuman. Today’s readings warn us about the kind of people we should not become. On the contrary, today’s readings invite us to develop a Christian character.
Today’s readings are replete with imageries. I would like to use these imageries to draw out the three practical implications. So, let us unleash the power of our imagination.
Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now I’m found.
Was blind, but now, I see.
This is one of the most popular hymns in Catholic and Protestant churches alike. It is sung at most reconciliation services, funerals, and anytime we reflect on repentance. Perhaps, the context of the song is less popular that the song itself. John Newton, the author, was a slave trader. During his 1748 voyage, a destructive storm struck his ship. This was the moment he reached out for God’s mercy. The storm spared the ship and he survived. This began a process of conversion that ultimately led him to become an abolitionist. Just before his death he was fortunate enough to see the abolition of the African slave trade in the United Kingdom in 1807.
Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
If you have raised children/are raising children, are or have been an educator, or have had the opportunity to influence young minds, one of the pieces of advice you probably give them is to make ‘good’ friends. As the saying goes, “One rotten apple ruins the whole basket.” We discourage young people from hanging out with bad people because they can ruin good people. It’s sane advice. It is good advice. We teach our young people to take care of themselves. Even as adults, we try to stay away from those who can damage our souls, is it not? We must save ourselves before we can save others.
Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
It is very easily possible for us to get caught up with Jesus’ words, “If anyone comes to me without hating father and mother…” (Lk 14:26). Especially the word, ‘hate’. Does Jesus really expect us to hate our father and mother? However, if we understand these words along with Jesus’ parable about constructing a tower and the king marching into battle, then we realize that Jesus was saying more than what that single verse seems to say.
Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
This homily is about humility. However, I would like to begin elsewhere. Last Monday night, I spend a few late hours accompanying the two families as they came to terms with the death of their six-years-old daughters, Penelope Jasko and Eleanor McBride. They were killed in a senseless crash caused by a man fleeing the law in a stolen police cruiser. In my twenty-five years of priesthood, I cannot remember doing anything as difficult as praying with families as they stood before the bodies of their little children. That night was an incredibly difficult night for everybody, most of all for the grieving families.
It is not my intention to dwell on the tragic crash or to reflect upon it. This homily is about humility. I learnt something about humility that night. Before I talk about the lessons I learnt, let me read for you the very first verses from today’s first reading. The author of the book of Sirach says, “My child, conduct your affairs with humility, and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts. Humble yourself the more, the greater you are, and you will find favor with God” (Sir 3:17-18). I define humility as, posturing. Humility is the posture, or the stance we take in the presence of God, of others, and creation.
Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
“Are you saved?” No, really. “Are you saved?” I have a follow-up question. If your answer is “I am!” “How can you be sure?” After all, Jesus tell his disciples that they must “strive enter through the narrow gate” (Lk 13:24). He even says, “Those who are first will be last and the last will be first” (Lk 13: 30). Are we striving to enter through the narrow gate? Is are striving to be first of last? As you can see, the answer to the question “Are you saved?” is really not that easy.
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
At a time when division, polarization. and violence are rife in society church is the last place I want to come to, and hear the words, “Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division” (Lk 12:51). Moreover, to hear these words from Jesus’ lips is very, very difficult. This is not the Jesus we know. The Jesus we know is the Jesus who promised God’s kingdom to peacemakers. The Jesus we know is the Jesus who says, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.” The Jesus we know is the Jesus who, after the resurrection, appeared to his frightened and confounded disciples saying, “Peace be with you!” What are we to make of Jesus’ seemingly divisive statement?
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
It’s only a week since gun-violence claimed the lives of ten people in Oregon district in Dayton. Last Sunday night, I was among the more than 2,500 people gathered at the very spot where a young man had unleashed terror and death. It was not even twenty-four hours since the mass shooting, but people had the courage to come together and be a community! What makes human beings act in this way? What is it about human beings that in the darkest hour, we never give up! It’s called faith. It may not always be religious faith. But it’s faith. Faith is the inexplicable conviction human beings have, that in spite of it all, we can approach the next moment, the next hour, the next day, the next week, indeed, the future with hope! “I’ve gotta have, faith, faith, faith,” goes a George Michael song! In today’s scripture reading, we might as well hear the author of the letter to the Hebrews say, “We’ve got to have faith, faith, faith!”
Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
I have just returned from Paraguay, named in a global survey as the happiest and most positive country in the world. After a glorious welcome at the airport by a harpist, two classical guitarists, and a host of other people, I was sure that the survey was accurate. The drive from the airport to our hosts’ homes made me skeptical. Who did they talk to? Certainly not the man selling fruits at the traffic lights! Certainly not the woman selling trinkets on the streets with a child in hand! Who did they talk to? In four days, my skepticism was laid to rest. Living amidst the people revealed what would be hidden to the superficial eye. Over four days I encountered some of the most hospitable, happy, and positive people I have ever met. What is the secret? I do not want to be simplistic, romanticize Paraguay’s social issues or suggest that I have discovered utopia. In four days and a brief homily, it is impossible to uncover the complexities of Paraguayan social life. However, my experience in Paraguay takes me helps me understand Jesus when he says that we must be “rich in what matters to God.” And that is the secret of the Paraguayan community we met. I met a people rich in what matters to God. I did not encounter the vanity that today’s first reading speaks about. I did not meet a people obsessed with money, wealth, and possessions. I did not encounter self-obsessed people. The secret to the happiest and most positive nation is that they are “rich is what matters to God.”
Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
To the modern western mind, Abrahams haggling or bargaining with God, in today’s first reading, may sound preposterous. To me, coming from India, I am not alarmed. Haggling is part of our daily life. In fact, for us haggling is an art. We do not buy anything without haggling. I am reminded of my dad in this regard Every morning, when the fish monger comes to my house, my dad had to haggle. The fish monger already knew that my dad would haggle. So the price he quoted would be already higher than the original price. My dad haggled to bring the price down. At the end of it all, the fish monger was happy that he got the price he wanted and my dad was happy that he saved a few bucks. Or, at least he thought he did. Haggling was and is common in the Middle-East as well. Abraham’s bargaining with God follows this practice.
Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Perhaps, you have heard about my awful experience at the hands of American Airlines on my recent trip back from India. What was supposed to be a 36-hour journey became a 60-hour journey. Weather was not the only reason for the delay. The problems ranged from unavailability of the crew, incomplete paperwork on aircraft maintenance, non-working toilet, and finally, low fuel. More than a hundred passengers sat in the plane, and on the tarmac for 5 ½ hours, only to be deboarded. Besides the unbelievable reasons for the harrowing experience, my primary frustration was about customer-service. There was simply no one to help. And if there were people who could help, they simply did not care. Good customer-service could have made everything easier. The biblical word for customer-service is hospitality. Abraham, in the first reading, and Mary and Martha in today’s gospel reading, are great examples of Christian customer service. If you want to know what hospitality is not, travel American Airlines.
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Today’s scripture readings answer our most enduring question: “How do we get to heaven?” A scholar of the law came and asked Jesus this question, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Lk 10:25). Isn’t eternal life what we all seek? If eternal life is our quest, then today’s gospel passage becomes critical to our eternal pursuit.
Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
I’ve just spent the last month home with my dear mother. I picked her up at my brother’s home, where she now resides, and brought her to her own home. She got the chance to visit my dad’s grave, move around in her own space, and meet her relatives and friends. Not only that, we got her entire house re-painted. We cleaned every nook and corner, got the furniture polished, and rearranged things that way that made her feel good. As I have now returned back to ministry in Dayton, I am realizing how important the last month has been.
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ
As we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi the meaning of this feast most probably is a no-brainer for us. As believers we have the Eucharist at the very core of our Catholic life. We strongly believe that Christ intended that we have his real presence in bread and wine; that for this reason at the Last Supper Jess took the bread and wine and gave it to his disciples and said that it was his body and blood; and that by doing this in memory of Jesus, he becomes present to us in a real and concrete way. But what we consider undoubtedly to be integral part of our faith has also always been the topic of intense controversy. As early as Paul’s times (today’s second reading), there were misconceptions about the Eucharist. A few decades later John in his gospel would dedicate an entire chapter (Chapter 6: bread of life discourse) to remove doubts about the real presence of Christ in bread and wine.