St. Thomas the Apostle Parish

Homily for the Memorial of Saint Francis Xavier, Priest

Today's Mass readings highlight the concept of the high ground. In the first reading, Isaiah speaks of a mountain where the Lord invites everyone to a lavish banquet featuring rich food and fine wines. On this mountain, all mourning, sadness, and shame will be eliminated, and even death will be destroyed. This vision inspires us to rise above our current experiences and look toward a realm where everything aligns with God's intentions.

In today's Gospel, Jesus ascends a mountainside, followed by a large crowd. There, high above the Sea of Galilee, Jesus restores speech to the mute, mobility to the lame, and sight to the blind. He also feeds the hungry with minimal resources, providing so much that everyone eats their fill, and there are abundant leftovers.

Isaiah's words in the first reading come to life in the Gospel. Both readings convey the message that God desires for us to have life and to experience it in abundance. Saint Irenaeus once said that "God's glory is the human person fully alive." In the Gospel, the Lord relies on others to bring the sick to Him; He needs the disciples to help feed the crowd. He continues to depend on us to carry out His life-giving work in the world.

Advent calls upon all of us to be instruments of the Lord's life-giving and healing presence. During Advent, we pray, "Come, Lord Jesus," and offer ourselves as channels for the Lord's coming.

Homily for Tuesday of the 1st Week of Advent

Everyone is offered gifts from the Holy Spirit that help us live as children of God and enable us to be instruments of God's love and grace in the world. 

As a sacramental Church, we open ourselves to the creative grace of God, our loving Father; the compassionate grace of Jesus Christ; and the transformative grace of the Holy Spirit. In the Sacrament of Confirmation, we receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit, as described in our first reading from the prophet Isaiah: wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, holiness, knowledge, and fear of the LORD. 

These gifts can transform us if we are genuinely open to the Spirit and to God's love and grace. True transformation means using these gifts for our own good and for the good of all people. 

This Advent season calls us to slow down and reflect on how the Holy Spirit has gifted us and how we are called to use these gifts. However, we cannot stop there; we must actively work to utilize them so that God's love and peace may flow through us, allowing us to fulfill our vocation of bringing ourselves and others into God's kingdom of love.

Homily for Monday of the 1st Week of Advent

When we get sick, our joints ache, our heads throb, and our stomachs feel unsettled. Yet, we usually understand that this discomfort is just a temporary phase as we wait for a cold or flu to pass. We know that in time, we will feel better.

However, there are times when waiting becomes uncertain and worrisome. We may not know how our suffering will end, and we might fear what our symptoms could mean. We find ourselves waiting for lab results, for medications to take effect, for surgeries to be completed, and for cures to be discovered.

Sometimes, we find ourselves waiting… for God.

Advent is a season of waiting for healing, transformation, and the arrival of God in the person of Jesus. In today’s Gospel, the centurion embodies the essence of this Advent waiting. He has cared for his servant and now awaits a cure. His faith allows him to wait with hope, trusting that God will act through Jesus. With a beautiful blend of dignity and humility, he simply asks Jesus to speak a word of healing.

This Advent season invites us to hope that our waiting and longing for healing, peace, and salvation will be fulfilled.

Homily for the 1st Sunday of Advent

There are many ways that people in specific jobs prepare themselves to perform their duties in stressful situations. One effective method is through simulation, which allows them to make mistakes and learn from them without putting anyone in danger. For example, pilots use flight simulators to learn how to respond in emergencies. Hospitals simulate disasters to assess how doctors, nurses, and equipment will handle an overload of victims. Schools conduct fire drills and other disaster simulations to determine the fastest and safest ways to evacuate hundreds or even thousands of students. The military also simulates war scenarios to ensure it is prepared in the event of a real attack.

With this context in mind, the Church invites us to view the season of Advent, which begins today, as a time of simulation. It encourages us to simulate the coming of Jesus into the world—not only his arrival on that first Christmas but also his Second Coming at the end of time. The Church particularly emphasizes this Second Coming on the first Sunday of Advent.

First, the Church reminds us that the Second Coming may be closer than we think. St. Paul states in our second reading, "The night is advanced, the day is at hand."

Second, the Church tells us that the Second Coming of Christ will catch us by surprise. St. Matthew writes, "As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. In those days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, right up to the day that Noah entered the ark. They did not know. Therefore, you must also be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come."

Someone once said that the most dangerous day of our lives is when we learn the word "tomorrow." On that day, we start putting things off, procrastinating, and acting as if we have plenty of time to do whatever we wish.

William Barclay, the Scottish theologian, tells the story of three devils preparing to depart for Earth to begin their apprenticeship in deceiving people. Before leaving, each had an interview with Satan, the chief of all devils.

Satan asked the first devil, "How do you plan to deceive people and destroy them?" The first devil replied, "I plan to convince them that there is no God."

"And what about you?" Satan asked the second devil. The second devil answered, "I plan to convince people that there is no hell."

Finally, Satan turned to the third devil and asked, "What is your approach?" The third devil said, "My strategy will be simpler. I will convince people that they have plenty of time to prepare for death and for the Second Coming of Jesus." Satan smiled and said, "If you do that, you will deceive many."

The point is that there are certain things in life we should never put off until tomorrow because we cannot be sure that tomorrow will come for us. Advent serves as a reminder that we must always be prepared since we do not know when we will meet our maker. The intention to be ready is not enough; we must live the kind of lives that God desires for us. We should always be on the lookout for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Homily for Saturday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time

Today, the Church celebrates the last day of our liturgical year. Our Scripture readings offer us parting words of hope: a vision of heaven, a call to Jesus to come to us, and a final piece of advice on how to reach the Promised Land.

Tomorrow, we begin anew with the season of Advent—a time for reflection and anticipation of God's incarnation in the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Let us pray that this upcoming holy season and the year ahead will draw us closer to God and to one another as the People of God. May we give praise to our Creator and be His instruments of love, peace, and mercy in the world.

Homily for Friday of the 34th Week in Ordinary tIme

We live in a world that is constantly and increasingly changing. Many people find it challenging to adapt because we often rely on certain constants in our lives. It is easier for us to manage change when familiar aspects remain the same.

In today's Gospel passage, Jesus announces a profoundly significant change: even heaven and earth will pass away. This can be difficult to understand. However, He immediately emphasizes something that will never change: "My words," He says, "will not pass away."

Despite the most drastic transformations, the Lord's word remains solid and unwavering because He Himself is eternal and true. He is the rock that stands firm when everything else fades away. In the midst of unsettling change, we can find comfort in knowing that the Lord remains constant. Our relationship with Him helps stabilize us when everything else seems to be falling apart.

Homily for Thanksgiving Day

Today, many people in the United States are celebrating Thanksgiving. This is a special day when we think about the things we are thankful for and remember the harvest. Families will decorate their tables with fall items like squash, pumpkins, colorful leaves, corn, and grapevines, which represent the spirit of the day.

Friends and family will come together to enjoy large meals that often include turkey, lots of side dishes, and desserts like apple or pumpkin pie. We will enjoy the food that comes from the harvest. As we gather, we will also think about those who are less fortunate. Many people will help by hosting dinners at churches or shelters and giving extra food to food banks. There is happiness in helping others.

It is good to celebrate and thank God for what He has given us. It is also important to share what we have and show gratitude for His goodness. However, Thanksgiving can feel less meaningful if our attitude towards life—and what God has done for us—is not filled with thankfulness.

There is a big difference between saying thank you on just one day and living with gratitude every day. Thanksgiving Day is a special event that lasts for a short time, but the spirit of Thanksgiving should last longer; it should be a part of our everyday lives.

Saying thank you is very important. When we show gratitude as a group or family, we remember all the good things and people that God has given us. We realize that we have blessings and acknowledge that there is a greater purpose beyond ourselves, reminding us of our need for God and His goodness.

However, it can be easy to forget God and think that we alone are responsible for our successes, forgetting that our abilities are also gifts from Him. This is why it is important to live a life full of gratitude. We really start to "live thanks" when we open our hearts to God and make Him our first priority.

When we choose to live with gratitude, humbling ourselves before God and recognizing Him as the source of all good things, we start to notice our blessings more. Our joy becomes greater, and we experience a sense of grace.

Our ongoing gratitude can turn into a lifelong commitment to sharing our blessings, as we come to understand that God is the giver of everything.

As you give thanks this Thanksgiving Day, remember your calling to always be joyful, to pray at all times, and to give thanks in every situation. This is what God wants for you. By adopting this attitude, you will find the fullness of what God has planned for you.

Homily for Wednesday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time

Jesus tells us that through our perseverance, we will save our lives. His emphasis on perseverance reflects the harsh realities the Church faced, especially in the first century. Witnessing to Jesus and His values under the oppressive rule of imperial Rome often meant risking imprisonment or even death. A believer's faith could be betrayed by a family member or a friend. Being recognized as a Christian could cost someone their life. While it was possible to keep one's faith a secret and live quietly, the danger was always present. The risks of following Jesus were very real.

Our relationship with Jesus today should not be hidden; it is not meant to be a private matter of no concern to anyone. If our friendship with Jesus is the most essential relationship in our lives, it will influence our other relationships and guide what we say and do. We are called to live our faith openly rather than keeping it to ourselves. In today's culture, that can be challenging. However, we can trust that God provides us with the resources we need to live as Jesus' disciples and witnesses to our faith. His enduring presence inspires us to truly embrace our identity as His followers.

Homily for Tuesday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time

As we approach the end of the liturgical year, the readings shift their focus to the darker aspects of human experience, such as destruction, loss, conflict, and deception. This aligns with the darkness of these late November days. 

This coming weekend, we will begin a new liturgical year by celebrating the first Sunday of Advent. Although the days will still be dark, the liturgical readings will adopt a much brighter tone, inviting us to anticipate the arrival of the light. 

In today's Gospel passage, Jesus speaks about the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and other sobering events. No one seeing the Temple during Jesus' time could have foreseen its destruction. It had taken nearly fifty years to build and was still unfinished. However, even the most substantial and magnificent buildings are temporary. 

Today's Gospel reminds us not to become overly attached to fleeting things. Instead, we should connect ourselves to the One who declares in Matthew's Gospel, "Something greater than the Temple is here." When everything else fails, disappears, and returns to dust, He endures. Through our relationship with Him, we too can endure.

Homily for the Memorial of Saint Andrew Dŭng-Lạc, Priest, and Companions, Martyrs

The phrase "widow's mite" finds its beginnings in the Gospel passage we just heard. This expression highlights a paradox: sometimes those who give the least are actually giving a significant amount, while those who give more may not be sacrificing as much.

In terms of money, the widow contributed less than anyone else to the temple treasury. However, her offering was substantial because it represented everything she had.

This paradox applies to our own lives as well. There are times when we might seem to be giving very little, but in reality, we are giving a great deal because we are offering all that we can. For instance, our health might be poor, or we may have low energy due to personal struggles, limiting what we feel we can contribute. Even in these challenging situations, giving a little of ourselves can be equivalent to giving a great deal.

The widow in today's Gospel reminds us that even when we have little to offer, we can still be exceptionally generous.