DAILY HOMILIES

The good news is that the same Jesus who became a guest in the home of Zacchaeus is standing at your door right now. St. John, in today’s first reading, quotes Jesus: “Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me…”

It is not enough that we avoid sin, we must relate with God every day as if it was today that we gave our lives to Christ. Avoid familiarity, avoid becoming cold, don’t let your fire go out, and be the best version of yourself always.

Today’s readings were carefully selected by the Church because we are coming to the end of a liturgical year. Jesus tells us that there would be wars, tumults, terrorism, earthquakes, famines, pestilences and so on, but despite all these things, “do not be terrified.” Relax, and go about your daily activities, earn your daily bread, but in all you do, make sure you “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Matthew 6:33)

Faith is what will keep you going despite the failures you encounter along the way. Edison believed in his vision and even when he failed over and over again, he just wouldn’t stop. This is the kind of faith we need to have in God – a faith that continues to believe regardless of whatever failures or disappointments we encounter.

The fact that “everybody is doing it” does not mean that God is not offended by it. Do not take God’s mercy for granted. Jesus says that on that day, many would be going about their daily routines, eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building, and so on and judgment would happen like a surprise. Then we would all face the consequences of our actions.

This is heaven – loving our neighbors as ourselves. This is heaven – forgiving one another without counting the cost. This is heaven – seeing the face of Jesus in the people who have offended you like Onesimus. This is heaven – welcoming the earth’s rejected, the sick, the imprisoned, the orphans, giving to these little ones as much as a cup of water without expecting anything in return. The joy we feel when we help others sincerely is a foretaste of the joy of heaven.

Today, we are called to do a cleansing of our minds and hearts. We are called to make a whip of cords and search through our lives for any sinful inclination or vice that pollutes the temple of our bodies.

If you lack self-control, it is not because you are powerless but because you have decided to divert your power to the wrong things. Every human being is powerful. God would not give us any commandments if He knew we are completely powerless against our bodily passions.

A good leader inspires the best in people but a bad one destroys every atom of morality in them. This is why leaders; especially spiritual leaders will suffer a greater punishment than others if they are bad shepherds. A lot of young people in our society today aspire for leadership but the painful truth is that having been scandalized, they dream of taking up leadership positions not to serve the people, but to amass as much of the commonwealth as possible.

Is it the case that this very flesh will be given to us again? Yes. Does it mean that at the resurrection, we would be able to recognize each other’s faces? Yes. So, our hands, our eyes, our tongue, etc. would be restored to us again? Yes. Does it then mean we shall be capable of falling in love, getting married, and so on? Jesus says: “Those who are accounted worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, for they cannot die anymore

If making money stops you from your daily prayers or stops you from attending church as you would normally do before, if you find yourself doing things that are against your conscience just for the sake of making money, the truth is that money has become your master.

Our attachment to wealth and material possession very often acts as an obstacle to the practice of our Christian virtues. Jesus told us that we cannot serve two masters, neither can we serve both God and mammon (Matthew 6:24).