Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
In our parish we are observing this year as the year of “Being Church at Home and Home at Church.” It is only fitting that we reflect seriously on today's readings that revolve around relationships, marriage, family and home. I want to do this in three points.
1.Before anything else, before God even spoke the first creative words, there was RELATIONSHIP. God as Father, Son and Spirit is a community of persons. God did not create man to be alone because God is community. No wonder then that man felt alone. Man’s search for a companionship and finally finding one mirrors the oneness between the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. Just like the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one, so now man and woman are one. Notice that the word ‘love’ does not occur anywhere in the narrative of the man and woman. What is emphasized is self-giving. Creation is an act of God’s self-giving; the woman is formed from a rib taken from a man; the man and woman become one by their sacrificial leaving of father and mother and cleaving to one another. This is also love.
Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Last week Hospice of Dayton called me called to give the last sacraments to someone from out of State. I rushed there to find this very small frail man lying in a fetal position. Throughout our conversation this man never opened his eyes. I spent much time just sitting by his bed and comforting him. At one point I said to him that it will be all alright. And he said to me, “I do not know, Father.” And then he said to me, “I have been a very bad man, Father… very bad.” I did not ask for any details but I let him know how God’s love is greater than our sins and how Christ came to save us. “We are all sinners,” I said. “But you don’t know me, Father.” It was almost a protest, a disbelief that God could save him after all that he had done. And I said to him, “Yes, I do not know you, but God knows everything.” Then I asked him if I could pray with him, give him absolution and bid him a Christian farewell. He reluctantly agreed and I think it was because he was still wondering how he could get away with his sinful life so easily. I did not see any visible signs of relief when I left him because his eyes were still closed.
Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
An Egyptian-Coptic Christian makes an anti-Islamic movie, social media websites allow its video cast, four Americans are killed as are many protestors in Islamic countries and the world moved further away from sanity. Newly trained Afghan recruits kill their Western trainers, the Chinese in Japan and Japanese in China fear for their lives because of a dispute over islands in the East China Sea, the contenders for the presidential elections in the United States continue their vitriolic attack on each other and hundreds of government and rebel forces continue to die in Libya. These are just some of the headlines that dominated the news over the last week. Is there any compelling and credible voice that is calling for peace? If there is, it is not heard.
Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Over that last few weeks the second reading has been from the letter of St James. Because of our emphasis on the parish retreat and the related themes in the gospel, I chose not to comment on the readings from James. In the process we have sidelined some very practical and important ethical teachings from scripture. Briefly, let me recall a few important statements from these readings. I have to insert a caveat here. Some of James’ writings are all too direct and difficult to digest at first. He writes: “Humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you and is able to save your souls. Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves.” Last week we heard him say, “For if a man with gold rings and fine clothes comes into your assembly, and a poor person in shabby clothes also comes in, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say, "Sit here, please," while you say to the poor one, "Stand there, " or "Sit at my feet," have you not made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil designs? Today we heard James say, “So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”
Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
I would like to pay special attention to the gospel reading today. If we read deeper into the passage we will realize that this is not a simple account of the healing of a deaf and mute man. First of all, this passage is a direct fulfillment of Isaiah’s Messianic prophecy in today’s first reading. “Be strong, fear not! Here is your God, he comes with vindication; with divine recompense he comes to save you.” (Is 35:4) The reference to God here is a reference to Jesus. And as Isaiah continues, “Then the eyes of the blind be opened, the ears of the deaf be cleared; then will the lame leap like a stag, then the tongue of the mute will sing.” (Is 35:5-6) Mark, in this way presents Jesus as the prophesied Messiah.
Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
It is a common phrase these days, “I believe in God but not in organized religion.” Or, I have heard people say, “I am a spiritual person but I just do not want to belong to any religion.” More and more people are finding this to be an attractive alternative.
All the readings today are all about organized religion. The first reading talks about the statutes and decrees that Moses gave to the people to observe. The second reading gives us James’ understanding of religion that is pure and undefiled. He says, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their affliction
and to keep oneself unstained by the world.” And Jesus in today’s gospel tries up to correct false religiosity particularly as he encountered it in Pharasaical Judaism. Quoting Isaiah he says, “This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines human precepts.”Jesus was clearly juxtaposing authentic religiosity against and mere human traditions.
Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Recently, researchers conducting a WIN-Gallup International poll about religion surveyed people from 57 countries. The poll suggests that in the Unites States, since 2005:
•The number of people who consider themselves religious has dropped from 73% to 60%
•Those who declare themselves atheists have risen from 1% to 5%
From the Christian perspective and from the point of view of church attendance, there are numerous reasons for this decline. But there is no one single reason that stands out. Conservatives and liberals have both weighed in on the statistic. Conservatives say that that the Church is not traditional enough for people to stay true to their faith and the liberals say that it is the Church’s conservative stand that is leading many people to abandon their faith. Either way, religion seems losing its hold on the people.
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Last week I spoke to you about God speaking to me through the scriptures about returning to the love with which I first loved God. There were two realizations that came to me: first that I needed to return to God with all the love in my heart and allow God to lead me; and second, that God concretely and really spoke to me. God did not discard me or abandon me, but rather, God actually cared enough to be present to me and draw me back. In recent times, this has been the most real experience of God’s presence in my life. I truly know that God still loves me.
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
My trip home last month became an opportunity for an a-ha moment. First of all, I took the unfamiliar route to the airport, lost my way and then panicked. I got on the plane just on time. I was not looking forward to my six-hour layover at the Washington DC airport but it helped me catch my breath. The best analogy I can use to explain how I felt is that of a tired and worn out puppy. It was as if I was sitting in the airport huffing and puffing. It was not just the way to the airport. It was the last six months. It is when I sat down that I realized how tired I was. Later after dinner that evening, I decided to read the scriptures and connect with my Creator. My Bible opened to the book of Revelation chapter two. The passage read: ““I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate the wicked…. Moreover, you have endurance and have suffered for my name, and you have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: you have lost the love you had at first. Realize how far you have fallen. Repent, and do the works you did at first”(Rev 2; 2-5). I sat there in stunning self-realization.
Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
For the next three weeks our gospel reading will be taken from chapter six of John’s gospel. Most of this chapter is the bread of life discourse. It began last week with the miracle of the multiplication of loaves and will end with many disciples ceasing to follow Jesus because his teachings were too hard to follow. In between these two events is sandwiched Jesus’s teaching of him as the “bread of that came down from heaven” and him being the “bread of life.” Since we have three weeks to understand every aspect of this teaching, I would like to explore every possible meaning of Jesus teaching. I would like to keep the more strictly Eucharistic themes for the coming weeks. Today, I want to reflect on the more unconventional interpretations Jesus teaching on the bread of life.
Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
On my way to the store in India on my last vacation, I met this crippled man sitting on his wheelchair begging. I have seen him on my previous visits and I have always been generous with him. This time too, I gave him money enough for him to smile. Secretly, there is a sense of contentment every time I do this. I guess it makes me feel good. This time however, even after my return this man has not left my mind. And the question that has been playing in my mind is, why could I not be more generous with him? What stops me from giving him a hundred rupee bill rather than a ten rupee bill? For that matter, why not a thousand rupee bill? After all, I always have a few thousand rupees in my wallet. More importantly, why have never asked him name or where he lives? Why have I not offered to visit his home or do something for him that might change his life forever? What is the harm in being just a little more generous?
Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
To understand today’s readings we must understand the context within which Jeremiah prophesied. Jeremiah was called to be a prophet in the year 628 BC when Josiah was the King of Judah. Josiah began a process of reform that would rid the nation of idolatry, injustice and false religiosity. Jeremiah wholeheartedly supported Josiah’s reform. After Josiah, however, under King Zedekiah, the false prophet Hananiah began to counsel the King to revolt against the Babylonians. It was also at this time that the old idolatry and infidelity returned. On instruction from God, Jeremiah opposed the King and the false prophet. As a result, Jeremiah was arrested, imprisoned, and publicly disgraced. Had Zedekiah listened to Jeremiah and stayed faithful to the covenant, perhaps, Judah would be spared. Tragically, the Babylonians pillaged Jerusalem, destroyed the temple, killed thousands of Israelites, took into exile all able bodied men, women, and children, and left behind to die, the aged and disabled.
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
(This homily was written three years back).
I saw a movie called Whatever Works. It is a Woody Allen film and the central character isBoris Yelnikoff, an eccentric in his seventies who believes that life happens by chance. I mean, what are the chances that one would jump out of the window of a New York high rise and still survive? What are the chances that a pretty twenty-two year old runaway from Mississippi would land up at his door and finally end up marrying him? What are the chances that the mother of this girl would land up at the same apartment and make it big in New York even though it meant happily sleeping between two men? What are the chances that the girl’s father would land up at the same apartment in search of his daughter and wife and finally meet the man of his dreams to live happily ever after. The girl finally realizes that marrying a younger man would make her happier and what are the chances that a hopeless Boris would jump out of the window a second time, only to land on his future wife. The movie ends with all the characters happily sharing a drink. Boris’ lesson to the audience at the end of it all is simple. Life is a game of chance. Take any happiness you get along the way in whatever way it comes. “Whatever works.”
Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
This entire section of Mark's gospel from which the gospel reading these Sundays are being read deals with faith. Mark gives us stories of faith and faithlessness to make his point. In last week’s reading from Mark 5, we heard two stories of healing that were instigated by the faith of the people who were healed. The synagogue official’s faith saw Jesus raise his daughter to life and the woman with the hemorrhage was healed by merely touching Jesus’ clothes. At the end of the miracle Jesus commended her faith and said, "Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured of your affliction." (Mk 5:34) The story before these two stories in the same chapter is the story of a demoniac who was possessed by Legion (a multitude of evil spirits). Even these demons acknowledged Jesus’ power and identity.
Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
I would like to draw your attention to the very first sentence of today’s second reading; “As you excel in every respect, in faith, discourse, knowledge, all earnestness, and in the love we have for you, may you excel in this gracious act also.” (2 Cor 8:7) It is the “gracious act” that I would like to focus on. What is the gracious act that Paul is referring to?
Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist
What matters for you? Would it matter if your child did not return home from school one day? Would it matter if you lost your job? Would it matter if your spouse or partner was becoming an addict? Would it matter if you were diagnosed with a terminal illness? How much does it matter that Miami Heat won the NBA championship? How much does it matter if the Reds lose their first place in the National League Central division? What does it matter that you gained a pound or two in the last month? How much does it matter when your prayer life is in a mess? How much do you care that according to the best of your knowledge, your life reflects God’s will?
Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
When I celebrate mass with our school kids, I sometimes ask them where heaven is. It is not uncommon for them to point toward the sky and say, “There.” One of the concepts that is very close to the word heaven is, kingdom of God. And because most of us imagine heaven to be up there, we also think that the kingdom of God lies beyond us in the far distant future. Even though we often pray “Thy Kingdom come on earth as it is heaven,” we really do not believe that heaven and kingdom of God have anything to do with us in the here and now.
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ
This August my mother turns 75. When I visit home this July, I want to do something very special for her. I am wondering - should I buy her fabulous diamond jewelry or should I take her in a trip somewhere exotic? Should I cook for her or have a special celebration of the mass for her? Should I get her a new sari or should I get her a brand new refrigerator? Or, may be, I should do all these things? My feeling is that no matter what I do for my mother, it can never express how deeply I love her. The most eloquent words cannot capture the depths of what I want to say to her.
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity
I spent twelve years in the seminary before I was ordained. Through the first eight years, my only goal was to get to the theology classes because I wanted to get into the depths of the knowledge about God. I plunged into theology with the excitement of a two-year-old about to jump into a puddle. But a puddle is only so deep, right? That is how I felt with theology as well. The best of my efforts to understand God led me only thus far. The best of my theology professors often ended the class with the line, “It is a mystery.” If I heard that statement one more time I could scream. Eighteen years after my ordination there are times, I have to content with that same statement, “It is a mystery.”