St. Thomas the Apostle Parish

Homily for Thursday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time

In today's Gospel, Jesus speaks to His disciples about His mission as a refining and purifying fire. This refining process is not easy; it requires us to be completely honest with ourselves, to be willing to make necessary changes, and to let go of things that hinder our openness to God's redeeming love. This purification process may even cause tension within our relationships with family and friends.

Let us pray for the strength, courage, and faith to allow ourselves to be transformed by the refining fire of God's love.

Homily for Wednesday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time

Many prefer to know what lies ahead and when to expect it rather than being caught off guard. However, unexpected events are a part of life. Jesus uses this experience of the unexpected in today's parables. In one story, a burglar breaks into a house unexpectedly. In another, a master arrives home when his careless servant is unprepared. Jesus implies that there can be an element of surprise in His relationship with us.

The Son of Man arrives at an hour we do not anticipate. This warning may refer to sudden and unexpected death. Still, it could also apply to the unexpected arrival of the Son of Man in our daily lives. The Lord may call us to something we had never considered or lead us down a path we wouldn't have chosen. The Lord can come to us through unexpected people, individuals we wouldn't have expected to be messengers of the Lord. The Gospel suggests that we should always expect the unexpected when it comes to the Lord.

Homily for Tuesday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time

Jesus surprised His audience by describing a scenario in which a homeowner, instead of being served by his servants, puts on an apron and serves them. This was completely unconventional for that time, but it reminds us of Jesus washing His Apostles' feet. Jesus combined the roles of master and servant in a unique way, which was not the norm.

The homeowner's act of serving his servants is a response to their faithful vigilance. The Lord who sustains us expects us to be faithful and vigilant so that we are ready to welcome Him whenever He arrives.

In the Book of Revelation, the Risen Lord says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock." Jesus is always knocking at our door. If we welcome His daily coming, He will serve and support us in countless ways.

Homily for Monday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time

Our Gospel today may seem to speak against wealth, but one can argue that God does not have a problem with our success. The book of Psalms prayed that God would "prosper the work of our hands."

From Jesus' teachings, we understand that our wealth, gifts, and the fruits of our labor can be powerful tools for good.

We live in a society teeming with possessions, schedules, and empty busyness; many are overwhelmed with pursuing more and building larger "barns" to store more. To be people of faith and genuine disciples of Jesus, we must empty ourselves of our stuff and busyness to create a place and a time for God to dwell and fill. The most tragic kind of poverty is the emptiness of a life filled with things but possessing nothing of God.

Christ calls us to think of what is above — love, forgiveness, compassion, mercy, and gratitude — the gifts God has generously bestowed upon us. Let us embrace this priceless, wonderful life and learn to love one another as God loves us.

Homily for the 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

In today's Gospel reading, James and John ask Jesus to ensure they will be at His side in Heaven. Jesus tells them that this is not His to give and that they should worry about the things over which they have control. Namely, they should live as God commands, do what they are called to do to bring glory to God, and lead others to the Promised Land.
 
In other words, to give all that they have to God in their work, in their relationships with one another, in their relationships with God, and in serving God's people and guiding them to a genuine knowledge of and desire for the love of God.
 
The journey to Heaven is challenging. Anything worthwhile entails struggle and sacrifice. Jesus repeatedly tells us this in the Gospels. We must work and sacrifice to reach the Kingdom of God. 

In today's Gospel passage from St. Mark, we learn that we must be true disciples, which means guiding others to the Kingdom of Heaven in a manner in which we exhibit leadership without power and service without disdain for those we serve.
 
Let us pray for the wisdom to see how God calls us to serve him on this earth and for the strength, determination, and faithfulness to give all that we have to fulfill God's will for us in this life.

Homily for the Memorial of Saints John de Brébeuf & Isaac Jogues, & Companions

Jesus calls His disciples to be brave in sharing His mission and spreading His message to others, even when their lives are at risk. He promises that in this demanding mission, they will have the help of the Holy Spirit, who will inspire them in what to say.

Speaking about faith is just as difficult today because so much of our culture and public discussion is opposed to religion. We might easily be pressured into silence and invisibility and even abandon our call to share the Good News.

As believers, we must fight that temptation and do whatever we can to share Jesus' message of salvation. This is not just a duty, but a privilege that should motivate and inspire us. If we try to do that, we are promised the help of the Holy Spirit, who helps us in our weakness.

Homily for the Feast of St. Luke

In this part of Paul's second letter to Timothy, we witness Paul's loneliness after Demas took off to explore Thessalonica, Crescens went to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. Paul sent Tychicus to Ephesus. He hoped Timothy and Mark would join him and Luke as they continued their mission.

The very ordinary elements of this part of Paul's letter are intriguing. He asks Timothy to pick up a cloak he left behind and bring some papyrus rolls and parchments. He also complains about how a coppersmith named Alexander treated him. These mundane details serve as a reassuring reminder that the early disciples were human, like us, and that, like them, we may discover that our lives can be significant in God's plan, even in the ordinary course of our lives.

Let us pray that we may understand how God calls us to be His voice in our world today. May the example of those fully human early disciples inspire us to follow God's call to go forth and preach in His Name.

Homily for the Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Antioch

In today's Gospel passage, Jesus criticizes the experts of the Jewish Law for taking "away the key of knowledge." They rejected Jesus' teaching and tried to keep others from getting to know God through that teaching. They have not been faithful to their calling as teachers of the ways of God. Jesus revealed God more thoroughly than any other human being could. In rejecting His teaching, they fail to recognize that God is at work in Jesus.

God has entrusted us with the key to understanding Him. That key is Jesus. He is the gateway to this unique knowledge, and our learning from Him is a lifelong journey. It is a misconception to believe that we have a complete understanding of God's ways. We are more like infants, always with much to learn. This is why Jesus, in His humility, prayed to His Father, acknowledging, "You have hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to the innocent." Our understanding of God will only deepen when we accept this truth.

Homily for Wednesday of the 28th Week in Ordinary Time

Jesus admonished the Pharisees and the scholars of the Law for laying heavy burdens on people instead of trying to help them. Their interpretation of the Jewish Law was warped. Rather than a path to life, the Law became a weighty load on people already burdened with life's challenges. Jesus did not come to make people feel more guilty. Instead, He said, "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

At times, the Gospel can be rather demanding. This is to help us be more loving in our relationships. We are not meant to feel burdened by this task. Our loving Father, who wants us to have life in the fullest measure, challenges us but also gives us the gift of the Holy Spirit to guide us on our way to eternal life.

Homily for the Memorial of St. Teresa of Jesus

Experience teaches us that people have different priorities and values. What is essential to me may be unimportant to someone else. We can become upset when something we believe is necessary is not taken seriously by someone else.

Observance of prescribed washing before meals was more critical for his host than for Jesus. They had conflicting priorities. Certain rituals and practices, like prescribed washings, were less important to Jesus than the values and attitudes of our minds and souls. 

Jesus then discusses almsgiving, caring for those living in poverty, as a way to purify one's deepest self. Love takes precedence over human-made rituals.

It's important to remember that what we consider vital may only sometimes align with Jesus' values. To be like Him, we must allow Him to shape us more than we shape ourselves. Our ultimate goal should be to align our priorities with His, as this is the path to spiritual growth, guiding us on our journey.