DAILY HOMILIES

As myrrh pointed to the Cross so did the sword piercing through Mary’s soul pointed at the Cross. Jesus had not even begun to talk yet but it was certain that He would die, though, for a good cause.

Jesus cured a demoniac but in the process, the villagers lost their entire herd of swine. The size of their economic loss was so huge that they failed to notice that a man had been set free from demon-possession.

esus did not teach like the scribes, rather He taught as one who had authority; Jesus taught as God because He knew who He is. When we don’t know who we are, we behave like slaves and allow others to push us around. More still, when in the name of sexual pleasure or in the quest for material riches, we sell ourselves to the devil we become so entangled in sin that our heart becomes hardened and we feel hopeless. If today you hear God speaking to your heart, do not remain in darkness.

Faith makes us relax even when others are panicking. Mind you, being relaxed is not the same thing as spiritual laxity. That Jesus was asleep during a storm did not mean he was asleep all through the day. He was such a prayerful person that he would wake very early in the morning to pray and at times pray all through the night.

Jesus compared the kingdom of God to a man scattering seeds on the ground and then goes to sleep. How the seeds spouts, the farmer does not know. When things are tough, we are not able to see the brighter side. Little by little, that which you thought was your worst nightmare eventually becomes your most treasured moment.

Before you act, think! Think not only about the immediate result but think also of years to come. Live your life in such a way that when all your secret deeds and hidden facts come to light, you will be so proud of yourself.

My heart really goes out to those seeds that fell on rocky ground. These are really good Christians who are so excited about the things of God but lack roots in them. They cannot withstand trial because they are sweet-sweet-milk-and-sugar Christians.

Being timid is trying to hide the gifts and talents that God has deposited in you. It is a form of spiritual coldness or slothfulness. It is keeping quiet when you should raise your voice for God out of fear of what people would do to you.

The beauty of St. Paul’s conversion was that the moment he rose from his feet, he never went back to his former ways. From that day, he saw himself as a completely different person.

In our Gospel passage today, Mark tells us that Jesus began his public ministry by preaching saying: “This is the time of fulfilment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” In other words, “today is all we have, this is the time, repent now and believe the Gospel.” In our first reading, we see a very similar message being preached by Jonah to the people of Nineveh: “Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed.” In other words, there is no time, we cannot postpone repentance otherwise, we shall be destroyed. Even our Second reading today contains the same message: “The appointed time has grown very short…”

At times, giving to God seems like madness. It felt like madness for Jesus to be attending to the people when he had not eaten. It surely feels like madness for a priest to forget himself and his personal interests for the sake of the people. But let us not forget that what seems like madness to us men is wisdom in the sight of God

Never assume that you can succeed all by yourself in this life. A single broomstick may be so strong and powerful but without the rest of the bunch, it cannot sweep out the dirt in the house. In coming to save mankind, Jesus needed to be born like us – he needed to take our human flesh. Today, Jesus still needs our human flesh to continue His work of salvation.