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A Message of Hope for Our Churches - Homily 2º Sun. of Advent

Advent is a time of hope. Not only hope that Jesus will come to save, but also hope that He will save us , that we will benefit from salvation. If Jesus comes to save, but the fruits of His salvation are not shown in us, what’s good about His coming? Those who are not saved cannot rejoice. Those who cannot be saved, or those who think that they cannot be saved, those people have no hope. There is a crisis of hope in many churches, in Christians and also among priests. We have tried so many things to make our churches grow and nothing seems to work. People have tried so many things to attract the youth to our churches, and everything seems to have failed. We have tried so many times to change, to do better, and here we are… What else can we do? What can we hope for? Can Jesus save us? What can we expect from His coming among us? 1. Sometimes we think that there is nothing we can do because we have no strength left, or no talent, or no experience. “If anyone can do something, that g...
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A King Who Has Power to Save

  The soldiers, who did not believe in Jesus, said to Him in mockery: “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” ( Luke 23.35-43). For them, salvation meant worldly welfare, bodily health. A true king, for them, must have a good life himself and be able to provide a good life to his subjects. The not-so-good thief, for his part, did have faith. He knew perhaps that there was another life, but he was interested in this life only “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” As if he were saying, “ what’s the point of having power if you do not use it to avoid suffering? Is there any meaning in this suffering ?” Jesus is a King who can save from the spiritual death of sin and from the eternal death of hell; Jesus can destroy also corporeal death and give Eternal Life in Heaven to our bodies also. But in order to overcome his enemies, sin and death, this King needed to fight. He needed to rescue His subjects from sin, and the only way to do it was by taking upon Himself ...
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Where is Truth From?

  Today’s readings touch upon one of the most important problematics in today’s world: our relationship with the truth. What is truth? What is our truth, as human beings? Where is that truth and where does it come from? 1. The prophet Isaiah says that many nations shall come to Jerusalem and say to each other: “‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.’ For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem” ( Isaiah 2.1-5). This is a prophecy of the Messianic times: the Apostles were instructed by Jesus to preach the Good News to all nations beginning from Jerusalem (cf. Luke 24:46; Acts 1:4-7). Jerusalem is an image of the Kingdom of Heaven, an organized community with the God-man Jesus as its leader and centre; a community that will be perfect in Heaven but begins on earth through the Church. In this Jerusalem, “the thrones for judgment were ...
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Christian = Churchgoer?

The Thessalonians believed that the day of the Lord was happening immediately, and so some of them started to say, “What’s the point of working or planning for the future, if the day of the Lord is coming next week, or soon enough?” St. Paul reminds them that the expectation of the Lord’s coming does not excuse them from working in this world ( 2 Thessalonians 3.7-12), and he tells them in his Letter about the signs of the Lord’s coming. Today’s readings may help us to reflect upon what it means to be a Christian in today’s world. For some people being a Christian is coming to church on Sundays, or often enough. Of course, coming to church is part of it, and the most important part of it (because of the Eucharist). But that’s not all. 1. For St. Paul, being a Christian was working for your own food, that is, minding your business. This means doing your job in a productive way, as one who expects fruit. A Christian does not cheat at work. A Christian should love what he does, ev...
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Why Was the Pharisee Not Heard?

  I find something interesting in today’s first reading (Sirach 35.15-17, 20-22). “The person whose service is pleasing to the Lord will be accepted, and their prayer will reach to the clouds . The prayer of the humble pierces the clouds , and it will not rest until it reaches its goal.” The prayer of the humble not only reaches to the clouds, but pierces the clouds and reaches God’s heart, obtaining what the humble person needs. 1. Mind you: the text begins, “The person whose service is pleasing to the Lord will be accepted, and their prayer will reach to the clouds .” One could think that the pharisee in today’s Gospel, and perhaps we ourselves (at least sometimes!), are people “whose service is pleasing to the Lord.” The works mentioned by the pharisee are not bad: “I fast twice a week,” he said, and “I give a tenth of all my income.” The pharisee’s actions are not bad, he is accepted as a child by God, and his service is pleasing to Him. But he does not obtain what he nee...
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Persistent AND Patient

  Today's readings teach us to be persistent and patient. In the Gospel, Jesus teaches us to be persistent and patient in prayer. St. Paul, in the second reading, urges Timothy to be persistent and patient in teaching. Persistence and patience are not the same. We are persistent when we persevere in doing the same thing always, time and again, whenever we are required to do so. Persistence requires discipline and commitment. Patience adds a further element of suffering: we are patient when we keep doing the right thing despite times being harder, despite opposition, in the face of different trials, etc. Thus, prayer needs to be persistent, and we sometimes are persistent, but we may give up when things don’t go our way and get discouraged. We were persistent, but because of lack of patience, we stop or relent in our prayers. In a similar way, the one who teaches might be constant and disciplined in delivering his message, but then, when people react harshly to his teaching and do ...
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Thanksgiving: Making Someone the King of My Heart

  Naaman, after being cured from his leprosy, wants to thank the prophet with generous gifts. The prophet, however, refuses to take anything from him. Naaman insists, but the prophet does not allow him to give anything. Naaman has received the gift of new life, he has been saved from death by God’s prophet, and he cannot do anything to express his joy and gratefulness to the prophet. What does Naaman do? I find it amazing: he asks for another favour. The one who wanted to give something, who felt obliged to give something in return, now asks for more gifts: “ please let two mule-loads of earth be given to your servant; for your servant will no longer offer burnt offering or sacrifice to any god except the Lord.” Let me make a few points about thanksgiving. 1. Giving thanks is not paying for what you have received. It is realizing that what you have received is priceless. Giving thanks is giving yourself back to the giver in any way you can. And it is, first of all, acknowledging ...
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