DAILY HOMILIES

To hope in God is to believe He can bring life out of what is already dead. Our hope is never based on our visible circumstances; instead, it is built solely on what God can do. This hope operates through the eyes of faith. Like Abraham, you may consider your body as good as dead, but let your focus be on what God is capable of doing. Don’t be distracted by your situation; look at God instead. Do not make the mistake of the Jews, who were only focused on Jesus’ humanity without seeing His divinity.

It is not easy to say “Yes” to God. However, once we say “Yes” to God, we become God’s instruments of salvation in our world. St. Teresa of Avila says, “Christ has no body now but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ looks with compassion on the world. Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good. Yours are the hands through which he blesses all the world.” God needs you to cooperate with Him.

No matter how dire your situation seems, always maintain a positive attitude. Trust that God is giving you the best for now and that He is leading you somewhere. Good days bring memories, bad days teach lessons, and worst days bring endurance. No matter how painful your experiences are, learn to look at the bright side.

Dear friends, it is always better to die for God’s sake than to live in sin. Nevertheless, when we stand for God, God never disregards us. Our Psalmist today sings: “The Lord is my shepherd, there is nothing I shall want… He is true to his name if I should walk in the valley of darkness, no evil will I fear… You have prepared a banquet for me in the sight of my foes.”

Like Lazarus, who was bound all over, sin ties us down and keeps us stagnated spiritually. That is why we need Jesus in our lives. And it really doesn’t matter how deep sin may have crushed us. It is not too late today to repent and begin to live a new life in Christ.

In today’s Gospel passage, the crowds listening to Jesus were divided in their opinions. This is typical of any crowd. This is why we must avoid being swayed by public opinion, lest we become like a palm tree that sways in different directions depending on the wind. We must praise the courageous soldiers who were sent to arrest Jesus, but after hearing him preach, they returned to the Pharisees to say, “No man has ever spoken like this man.”

The Book of Wisdom says: “Ungodly men reasoned unsoundly: ‘Let us lie in wait for the righteous man, because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions. Let us test him with insult and torture.” (Cf. Wisdom 2:12-21). Evil doers, having made themselves God’s enemies, are constantly at war with God’s children. In Revelation 12:17, we read: “Then the dragon was angry with the woman, and went off to make war on the rest of her children, those who keep the commandments of God and hold the testimony of Jesus.” Righteousness annoys those who have sold their souls to the devil.

The Bible describes Joseph as a just man. (Matthew 1:19). This means he was a man of integrity. He was well-respected in the community. He had a good name. He was a man of justice. He was not wayward and believed in always doing what was right. Can it be said about me that I am a just person?

Are you asking: “God, where are you?” The answer is: “I am always here with you. I can never leave you, and you can never leave me.” The Psalmist put it beautifully: “Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there. If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea, even there, your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night,’ even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as day, for darkness is as light to you. You formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.” (Psalm 139:7-13) God has not and can never abandon you.

St. Patrick, the beloved patron saint of Ireland, was originally from Roman Britain. When he was fourteen, Irish pirates captured him and took him to Ireland as a slave. His strong faith provided comfort and hope during his six years in captivity. A divine dream inspired Patrick to escape, and he eventually returned to Britain and reunited with his family. Feeling a sacred calling, Patrick became a priest and was later ordained a bishop. He was driven to bring Christianity to Ireland, arriving in Slane on 25 March 433.

Without further questions, “the official believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went his way.” When the priest says, “Go forth, the Mass is ended”, consider these words as coming from Jesus’ lips. Go home joyful, hopeful and happy. Go with positive expectations. The behaviour of this official is similar to that of Hannah, who believed the prophet Eli’s word.

The blindness of the Pharisees was caused by: 1. Envy. When you are envious of others, you are prepared to pull them down by any means, but no matter how hard you try, they remain above you. They couldn’t believe that Jesus was now doing what they themselves could not do. 2. Hatred. When you hate someone, there is nothing the person would do that would make sense. While others praised God, the Pharisees found fault: “He cannot be God because he did this on the Sabbath day.” Watch out when you become highly critical of others; it is a sign of hatred brewing in your heart.