DAILY HOMILIES

The Eighth Commandment teaches us: “Thou shall not bear false witness.” Telling lies is a disease capable of destroying whole families and even nations. In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus teaches us to avoid swearing. Let what you say be simply ‘yes’ or ‘no’.

Our vices and bad habits begin from the heart. The summary of your future is the contents of your hearts right now. What are you thinking about? What kind of thought has become permanent visitor in your mind? As Jesus taught us: “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8).

The name Barnabas means “Son of Encouragement.” He was truly a man of encouragement. It was Barnabas who went to Tarsus to look for Saul upon hearing of his miraculous conversion. Barnabas gladly received Paul as a brother instantly forgetting and forgiving his past as a persecutor, and went ahead to introduce him to the company of the other Apostles. Barnabas teaches us the importance of team spirit.

Like Elijah who stood as one man against four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, devoted Christians today must learn to stand almost alone against a world that swims in darkness and evil.

Jesus is not asking us to become salt or light, rather He is revealing our true identity as Christians. When we live by the beatitudes, (when we are pure in heart, poor in spirit, peaceful, merciful, thirst for righteousness and so on), we become the only salt left to preserve and sweeten our world as well as the only light left to shine on our world.

To be a person of faith is to be somehow radical; it is swimming against the tide, choosing the narrow path when everyone else is on the broad lane. Elijah was such a radical. He stood for God and God did not fail him. It is said that ravens are the stingiest birds on earth, yet God sent ravens to feed Elijah. There is happiness on the other side, there is a blessing for being different; for choosing God.

What is the greatest love story ever told? It is a story that is ongoing as we speak; it is the story of God’s unfathomable love for humanity; a story that began at the very dawn of creation and has continued to unfold ever since. Out of Love, God created us in His image and likeness, but rather than reciprocate that love we kept on sinning but God never gave up on us...

Both our first reading and Gospel passage today spoke about false and fake teachers. How do we identify such teachers? Firstly, they are teachers who do not practice what they teach, wolves in sheep clothing...

In today’s first reading, St. Paul writing to Timothy from prison notes: “Anyone who desires to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” (2 Timothy 3:12). In this letter, St. Paul recalls his painful experiences for the sake of preaching the Gospel. As the book of Sirach says: “My son if you come forward to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for temptation.” (Sirach 2:1)

Even though Jesus quoted texts from the Old Testament, notice that Jesus combines the commandment to love God and the commandment to love our neighbours thereby showing us that loving God implies loving our neighbours.

Too often, we Christians tend to confuse meekness with timidity. In the beatitudes, Jesus said: “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5) Jesus did not say “Blessed are the timid.” While meekness has to do with being gentle, quiet and patient, timidity means being frightened, showing a lack of courage or confidence in oneself.

Anyone who does what is right in a world that does not know God cannot escape enemies. (John 15:18-20) How can we survive in a world that hates us so much? Jesus said: “Be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16). At the heart of this wisdom is Discernment.