St. Thomas the Apostle Parish

Homily for Wednesday of the 5th Week of Lent

Jesus said, "The truth will set you free," and later in John's Gospel, He declared, "I am the truth." He is a source of genuine freedom for His followers. Jesus stated, "If the Son frees you, then you will be truly free." By staying close to Him, we can experience what St. Paul calls "the glorious freedom of the children of God."

Our relationship with Jesus and the Holy Spirit that He pours into our hearts enables us to live according to God's will in ways that align with our best selves. True freedom means having the freedom to love and give of ourselves to others, just as Jesus gave of Himself to us. That is the freedom we pray for in these final weeks of Lent.

Homily for the Solemnity of St. Joseph, Husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The traditional artistic depiction of St. Joseph, the father of Jesus, is that of an old man, more like Jesus’ grandfather than His father. However, the Spanish artist El Greco painted St. Joseph as a vigorous young man with Jesus holding onto his legs, portraying him as a strong, trustworthy, and protective figure. This is much closer to the portrayal of St. Joseph in the Gospels than the usual elderly depiction of him.

Today's Gospel suggests that although St. Joseph was protective of his young Son, he sometimes struggled to understand Him. After searching anxiously for Jesus with Mary, Joseph finally found Him in the Temple, only to be told by Jesus that He must be busy with His Father’s affairs.

St. Joseph realized that his young Son had someone else in His life whom He called "Father." Clearly, his Son had a stronger loyalty to this "Father" than to His earthly parents. St. Joseph learned that he had to allow his Son to pursue a greater purpose, even if it wasn't the one he had in mind for Jesus. As a result, St. Joseph serves as an inspiration and a reference point for all parents who must work through the difficult task of learning to “let go” of their children.

Homily for Monday of the 5th Week in Ordinary Time

In the biblical account of the adulterous woman brought before Jesus by the Pharisees, they suggested that she should be stoned to death as punishment for her moral failure. However, Jesus did not agree with this approach. He recognized that the situation was much more complex than the Pharisees' simplistic solution allowed for. The Gospel reading highlights that Jesus had a different way of dealing with moral failure that was more compassionate and understanding.

The individuals who presented the woman to Jesus had a limited view of her, only focusing on her recent past. However, without ignoring her sin, Jesus had a more compassionate perspective, taking into consideration her entire life story instead of just one aspect. By seeing the complete picture of her life, he recognized that she had a promising future that those who brought her to him would have denied her from experiencing.

When the Lord looks at us, He sees the entire picture and doesn't become fixated on just one or two details. He hears the full story of our lives. The Lord understands that our story is still unfinished and will only be complete when He transforms our humble bodies into the image of His glorious body.

Homily for the 5th Sunday of Lent

Here in New England and many other parts of the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada, it is currently "sugaring season." This season lasts for about six weeks, from late February through mid-April, during which maple trees are "tapped" for their sap.

During the period known as the "sap run," the frozen sap inside the maple tree begins to thaw and circulate, causing pressure to build up within the tree. When the pressure within the tree reaches a certain level, the sap will flow out from any new wound or injury on the tree.

Farmers and producers collect the crystal-clear sap and boil it in an evaporator over a blazing hot fire. Only water is removed, and nothing is added. The sap becomes more concentrated until it becomes maple syrup.

Maple syrup, which is often paired with pancakes or French toast, is a parable of what it means to love as God loves us. By allowing our self-centeredness to be boiled away, we can transform our lives in the grace and peace of God.

May we have the faith of a grain of wheat, which dies to itself to bear fruit in God's harvest of justice and forgiveness. May we also embrace the faith of a spring maple tree, willing to give ourselves for the sake of others as Christ gave himself up for us. In doing so, we will allow ourselves to be transformed by the life and love of the Risen Christ.

Homily for Saturday of the 4th Week of Lent

We often think we want the truth, but when Jesus proclaimed the Gospel, it was more than people expected. The reign of God that Jesus spoke of was based on a kind of justice and reconciliation that could be intimidating. It threatened the isolated cocoons people created for themselves and shattered their self-centered approach to the world.

To those who understood Jesus, His teachings were not comforting or joyful. They saw Him as a dangerous firebrand, an idealistic radical with no grasp of reality or the world's complexities.

The Gospel of Jesus is not one of comfort, at least not to those who are comfortable. It is not a Gospel of peace for those at war with themselves or those around them, nor a Gospel of love for those concerned only with themselves.

Jesus taught us to love our enemies, pray for them, invite people experiencing poverty to our table, forgive seventy times seven, seek the lowest place, take up our cross, and follow Him. These radical teachings undermine comfortable and complacent lifestyles and threaten what the world often holds dear.

Let us have the courage to look deep within our hearts and souls, understand Jesus's Gospel message, and turn to Him for the support, help, and guidance we need to follow in His ways.

Homily for Friday of the 4th Week of Lent

In today’s Gospel, we are reminded that sometimes we become so preoccupied with searching for God in places where He is not present that we fail to see Him where He actually is. We may think that God only reveals Himself to us during specific times, situations, and religious practices, and we become disillusioned when we fail to see Him when tragedy strikes.

However, the truth is that God is with us all the time, even in the mundane aspects of our lives. He is present in the kindness and love that we show to others and that others show to us, in the daily events that we experience, and in the blessings that sustain our lives.

Let us pray that we may become aware of God's presence in every moment, circumstance, and action of our lives, and that our lives may reflect that presence.

Homily for Thursday of the 4th Week of Lent

Today's readings remind us that God never gives up on us, even when we fail to follow His will. Instead, God always tries to show us the true path towards His kingdom.

While we may focus on the idea of God's wrath, the reality is that God wants us to be a part of His kingdom and play an active role in His plan for Earth. Unfortunately, we don't always heed His call.

Let us pray for an open heart and mind to hear God's call and live out our purpose with faith and wisdom. May we become the people that God has intended us to be.

Homily for Wednesday of the 4th Week of Lent

In today's Gospel passage, Jesus proclaims that His aim is not to do His own will, but the will of the One who sent Him - the Father. Jesus' entire life was shaped by the will of His Father, which is for all people to find life through faith in Jesus. As John says in Chapter 3 of his Gospel, "God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him." God desires life, which is why Jesus says, "I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly."

This same image of God is portrayed in today's first reading from the prophet Isaiah. Just as a mother cherishes the child in her womb and gives life to her child, so does God cherish us and work to bring us to the fullness of life.

God leads us to springs of living water. When we pray in the Lord's Prayer, "Thy will be done," we are praying that a culture of life will prevail over a culture of death. We are also committing ourselves to do God's will by protecting life, bringing life to others, and helping others to live fully human lives that are shaped by the Holy Spirit and lead to eternal life in heaven.

Homily for Tuesday of the 4th Week of Lent

In today's Gospel reading, we see Jesus being criticized for performing a miracle on the Sabbath by people who were hypocritical. It's not the only instance where people questioned the goodness and faithfulness of Jesus while being too rigid in their interpretation of the law. They were so caught up in the literal interpretation of the law that they failed to see the greatness and goodness of Jesus' actions.

Sometimes, we also tend to focus too much on the letter of the law and forget the most important parts of God's law, which are to love God and love our neighbor. We often neglect these two crucial commandments.

Let us pray that we can always be filled with the spirit of God's law and strive to be messengers of God's love and kindness in our world.

Homily for Monday of the 4th Week of Lent

In our Gospel passage, we learned about a court official who approached Jesus for help to cure his seriously ill son. Many people had already approached Jesus for help in the villages he visited. Initially, Jesus seemed to refuse the official's request, but the official persisted and said, "Sir, come down before my child dies." Jesus granted his request, but not in the way the man wanted. He simply said, "Your son will live." The man believed Jesus' words and returned home. On the way, he discovered that his prayer had been answered.

When we pray to the LORD for help, we may feel that our prayers are unanswered. We may not receive the answer we were hoping for, but we must persevere in prayer, like the royal official in the Gospel. We must trust in the LORD's promises and journey with them in our hearts. Like the royal official, we will discover that the LORD will answer our prayers, even if not in the way we expected.