I Sunday in Advent:[A]:Is 2:1-5; Rom 13: 11-14; Mt 24:37-44

I Sunday in Advent:[A]:Is 2:1-5; Rom 13: 11-14; Mt 24:37-44

Introduction: Today we begin our yearly pilgrimage through the events of our history of salvation starting with the preparation for the birthday celebration of Jesus and ending with  the reflection on his glorious “second coming” as judge at the end of the world. We are entering into the Advent season. Advent means coming. We are invited to mediate on Jesus’ first coming in history as a baby in Bethlehem, his daily coming into our lives in mystery through the sacraments, through the Bible and through the worshipping community and finally his Second Coming at the end of the world to reward the just and to punish the wicked. 

Scripture lessons: Today’s gospel speaks about the coming of the Lord at the end of the world and how to prepare for it. In our world today, there are two big mistakes people make with regard to the coming of the Lord. One is to prepare for it with paranoid anxiety. The other is to dismiss it with nonchalant abandon and do nothing about it. What does the gospel tell us about the end of the world and how to prepare for it?

The gospel uses two images to make the point that “you do not know on what day your Lord is coming” (Matthew 24:42b). One is the flood which overtook the unprepared people of Noah’s time. The other is the analogy of a thief in the night, who always comes unannounced. The Lord’s coming and the end of the world as we know it will occur suddenly and unexpectedly. It will come unannounced, springing a surprise on an unsuspecting world. Like a wise householder, therefore, we are urged to be watchful and ready.

Anecdote: Early Sunday morning, June 30, 1974, a hundred young people were dancing to the soul-rock music at Gulliver’s in Port Chester, on the border between New York and Connecticut. Suddenly the place was filled with flames and smoke. In a few minutes 24 were dead, burnt by fire, suffocated by smoke, and crushed in the exit passage by the escaping youngsters. According to the Mayor of Port Chester, the dancing crowd ignored the repeated and frantic warnings given by the band manager when he noticed the smoke. Today’s second reading tells us about the warnings given by St. Paul, and today’s Gospel gives the warning to be vigilant and prepared given by Jesus.

Joke:  A man in the hospital gasping and near death.  Priest was called to give him last rite. During the prayers the patient asked for a slip of paper and pen and wrote something and handed over to the priest.  Priest, for it was during prayer, got it and put it in the coat-pocket.  That man died immediately after the prayers. Next day at the funeral service, the priest during his homily, thought of saying something about the dead, took the slip and read what he has written as something he has said at the last breath. It says, “Father! You are on my oxygen tube.”

Practical Application:  1) Be alert and watchful.  Every morning when we get up, let us pray, “Lord, show me someone today with whom I may share your love, mercy and forgiveness.”  Mother Teresa of Calcutta once said, "Whatever you do in your family, for your children, for your husband, for your wife, you do for Jesus."  Every night when we go to bed, let us ask ourselves, “Where have I found Christ today?”  The answer will be God’s Advent gift to us that day. By being alert and watchful, we’ll be getting an extra gift:  Christ himself.  There is a saying about being saved which goes back to St. Thomas Aquinas: "Without God, I can't.  Without me, he won't."  

2) We need to be wakeful and watchful: We are so future-oriented that we frequently forget the present entirely.  We spend too much time trying to protect ourselves against future misfortunes.  We save for a rainy day, to get married, to buy a home, to send the children to college, to retire in comfort and to protect ourselves against future misfortunes with varieties of insurance.  But we need to be more spiritually wakeful to prepare for our eternal life.  Let us make this Advent season the time of such preparation. 

First Sunday of Advent-Introduction

Message:   Let us rejoice in the Lord’s peace; let us live honorably as we await his return.

Saints and Events in this week:  3-Third-Tuesday-Saint Francis Xavier, priest; 4-Fourth-Wednesday-Saint John Damascene, priest, doctor of the Church; 6-Friday-Saint Nicholas, bishop; 7-Saturday-Saint Ambrose, bishop, doctor of the Church.

XXXIV SUNDAY IN OT:[C]: II Sam 5:1-3; Col 1:12-20; Lk 23:35-43

XXXIV SUNDAY IN OT:[C]: II Sam 5:1-3; Col 1:12-20; Lk 23:35-43

Introduction: Today, the last Sunday of ordinary time the Church in a special way invites us to celebrate Jesus Christ our anointed king who overcame suffering and death, and so brought us out of darkness into his kingdom of light.

Scriptural lessons: The gospel text of today (Lk 23:35-43) tells us that the placard that was affixed to the cross to point out to the crime of Jesus, read: “This is the King of the Jews.” All the four gospels are agreed on this interesting detail (Mt 27:37; Mk 15:18; Lk 23:38; Jn 19:14).  In short, Jesus was being killed in the Roman way because of treason: he was accused of calling himself “King of the Jews”.  But this was only a false accusation. Nowhere in the gospels do we find a text where Jesus made an explicit declaration like: “I am the King of the Jews.”  All the gospels tell us that this question featured very strongly in the trials of Jesus.  So how did he get entangled with this title, and to the point of getting crucified on account of that? 

Exegesis: After his arrest, Jesus has been accused before Pilate, the Roman governor, of being opposed to Caesar and of claiming to be the Messiah of God, a king. Now, having been condemned to death under Roman law, Jesus is being crucified along with two criminals. The rulers and the soldiers taunt Jesus and call out that if he is the Messiah and king of the Jews, he should be able to save himself. One of the criminals also reviles Jesus saying, "Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us." The other criminal, however, recognizing his own crimes and the goodness of Jesus, says, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." Jesus responds, "Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."

Anecdote: In the 1920s, a totalitarian regime gained control of Mexico and tried to suppress the Church. To resist the regime, many Christians took up the cry, "Viva Cristo Rey!" ["Long live Christ the King!"] They called themselves "Cristeros." The most famous Cristero was a young Jesuit priest named Padre Miguel Pro. Using various disguises, Padre Pro ministered to the people of Mexico City. Finally, the government arrested him and sentenced him to public execution on November 23, 1927. The president of Mexico (Plutarco Calles) thought that Padre Pro would beg for mercy, so he invited the press to the execution. Padre Pro did not plead for his life, but instead knelt holding a crucifix. When he finished his prayer, he kissed the crucifix and stood up. Holding the crucifix in his right hand, he extended his arms and shouted, "Viva Cristo Rey!" At that moment the soldiers fired. The journalists took pictures; if you look up "Padre Pro" or "Saint Miguel Pro" on the Internet, you can see that picture. 

History: It was Pope Pius XI who brought the Feast of Christ the King into the liturgy in 1925, to bring Christ, his rule and Christian values back into lives of Christians, into society and into politics. The Feast was also a reminder to the totalitarian governments of Mussolini, Hitler and Stalin that Jesus Christ is the only Sovereign King.  Although Emperors and Kings now exist mostly in history books, we still honor Christ as the King of the Universe by enthroning Him in our hearts and allowing Him to take control of our lives. This feast challenges us to see Christ the King in everyone, especially those whom our society considers the least important, and to treat each person with human considerations as Jesus did.

Joke: After tucking their three-year-old child Sammy in for bed one night, his parents heard sobbing coming from his room.

Rushing back in, they found him crying hysterically. He managed to tell them that he had swallowed a penny and he was sure he was going to die. No amount of talking was helping.

His father, in an attempt to calm him down, palmed a penny from his pocket and pretended to pull it from Sammy's ear. Sammy was delighted.

In a flash, he snatched it from his father's hand, swallowed, and then cheerfully demanded, "Do it again, Dad!"

Life messages: 1) We need to surrender our lives to Christ’s rule: Since Christ, our king, lives in our hearts with His Holy Spirit and His Heavenly Father, and fills our souls with His grace, we need to learn to live in His Holy Presence and do God's will by sharing His forgiving love with others around us. Being aware of His presence in the Bible, in the Sacraments and in the worshipping community we need to listen and talk to Him.

2) Be servers: Since Christ was a serving King we are invited to be His loyal citizens by rendering humble service to others and by sharing Christ’s mercy and forgiveness with others.

3) We need to use our authority to support the rule of Jesus.  This feast is an invitation to all those who have power or authority in the public or the private realms to use it for Jesus by bearing witness to him by the way we live. Parents are expected to use   their God-given authority to train their children in Christian ideals and in the ways of committed Christian living.

Thirty Fourth Sunday in OT:Christ the King: Introduction

Message: In Hebron, David is hailed as king by all the tribes of Israel.  Jesus is anointed king on the wood of his cross, a sign of paradox, of defeat yet final victory.  Through his cross we have passed from darkness into the kingdom of light.

Saints and Events in this week: 25-Twenty fifth-Monday-Saint Catherine of Alexandria, virgin, martyr; 28-Twenty Eighth-Thursday-Thanksgiving Day; 30-Thirtieth-Saturday-St.Andrew, Apostle;

XXXIII Sunday in OT:[C]:Mal 3:19-20a; IIThes3:7-12;Lk21: 5-19

XXXIII Sunday in OT:[C]:Mal 3:19-20a; IIThes3:7-12;Lk21: 5-19

Introduction:  A mother says to her ten years old son, "If you study hard all year and you get passing grades, next summer, I will buy you a new bicycle." In order words, if her son does not study hard all year and he does not get passing grades, he will not receive a new bicycle next summer.  A man goes to a store and tells the manager, "If you can get me the carpet that I want, I will buy it from you." In other words, if the store manager cannot get the carpet, the man will not buy it from him.

Have you noticed that by reversing what is being said, we often get a better understanding of what was said? For example, Jesus said, "By your endurance you will gain your souls." [Lk. 21:19] If we reverse these words, we get, "If you do not endure, you will lose your souls." Notice how reversing the sentence highlights two important things: first, the need to endure; secondly, the salvation of the soul. The first is absolutely necessary in order to obtain the second.

Why is it absolutely necessary to endure in order to be saved? Today's readings answer that question by teaching us the importance of endurance. During the First Reading, we heard of the necessity to endure in righteousness. In the Second Reading, we heard of the necessity to endure in our imitation of the saints. And in the Gospel Reading, we heard of the necessity to endure in our living faith. To summarize all of this, we must persevere in our living faith through righteousness and the imitation of the saints.

Scriptural Lessons:  Today’s Gospel passage clarifies that the date of the end of the world is uncertain.  Signs and portents will precede the end, and the Christians will be called upon to testify before kings and governors. The Good News is that those who persevere in faithfulness to the Lord will save their souls and enter God's eternal kingdom. Christ’s Second Coming is something to celebrate because he is going to present all creation to his heavenly Father. Since Luke's community had experienced much persecution, today’s Gospel gives them the message:  don't give up because God is always with us.   Jesus' promise of the protective power of a providing God was meant to encourage His disciples to persevere in Faith and its practice.  Jesus also includes the signs of the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the world, to prepare His disciples and to remind them to rely upon Him for Salvation, not their own power.

Anecdote: Josh is the resident humanist in the neighborhood. He does not go to church anymore. He goes about telling his friends that since God lives in everyone’s soul, it is not necessary for anyone to go to church to find God. His parish priest learns of this and decides to pay Josh a visit. The priest shows up in Josh’s house one cold winter evening and finds Josh warning himself by the fireside. Josh invites the priest to join him at the fireside, which he does. The priest does not talk about church attendance, although Josh suspects that is why he came. They talk about the weather. Meanwhile, the priest uses the fire-tongs to remove a burning piece of wood from the fire and places it all by itself beside the fireplace. Both men watch as the flames flicker and go out and in a short time white ash covers the once blazing piece of wood. Josh gets the message. He turns to the priest and says, “Father, I will be in church next Sunday.” Like that piece of wood we need fellowship with our brothers and sisters in the faith in order to maintain the fire of our own faith. We need the church.

Explanation:  Josh is an example of people who go to one extreme. There are people also who go the other extreme, people who see the presence of God only in churches and church services. We read about people like that in today’s gospel. We are not told exactly who they but some of them were probably disciples of Jesus. They were fascinated with the splendor of the Jerusalem Temple built by Herod the Great in over 46 years and lavishly adorned with gold and silver offerings of the people

Joke: After finishing his homily on the Judgment Day, the preacher started the prayer of mercy. "Oh Lord," he began. "One of these days we are going to wake up, and it's going to be DARK everywhere! Deliver us, O Lord." "Lord, have mercy on us!" responded the congregation. The preacher continued: "Then we are going to pick up the telephone and call Washington, and they are going to say, 'It's DARK over here too!'" "Lord, have mercy on us!" responded the congregation.” Then we’re going to pick up the phone and call London, and they are going to say, 'It's DARK over here!' "Lord, have mercy on us!" responded the congregation. “Again we're going to pick up the phone and call Moscow, and they are going to say, 'It's DARK over here too!" "Lord, have mercy on us!" responded the congregation.” "Then we're going to pick up the phone…. At this juncture, the church treasurer, who had also been caught up in the fervor of the preacher’s prayer, cried out uncontrollably: "Lord, Lord! What a PHONE BILL!"….ha..ha..ha.. (after a pause)  And people responded, “Lord, have mercy on us.”

Practical Applications: 1) We need to be prepared daily for death and judgment. The ideal way to accept Jesus’ apocalyptic message is always to be ready to face our death.  We must also take time to rest and to pray in order to keep our hearts alive to God’s presence with us and within us. 

2) We need to attain permanence in a passing world by exemplary lives. Our homes, our churches and even our own lives are temporary. All our structures are provisional. Our influence has no more claims to permanence than our buildings. Hence, our task is not to build monuments of any kind, but to be faithful to Christ. We are to persevere in our Faith, despite worldly temptations, attacks on religion and moral values by the atheistic or agnostic media, threats of social isolation, and direct or indirect persecution because of our religious beliefs. Let us conclude this Church year by praying for the grace to endure patiently any trials that are essential to our affirmation of Jesus our Savior. 

Introduction: Thirty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Message: Jesus teaches that his disciples will be persecuted as a necessary prelude to the parousia.  Through their perseverance, they will emerge victorious when the Lord comes again.  As we await the Day, let us conscientiously fulfill our Christian obligations.

Saints and Events in this Week: 21-Twenty First-Thursday-The presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary; 22-Twenty Two-Friday-Saint Cecilia, virgin, martyr; 23-Twenty third-Saturday-Saint Clement I, Pope, martyr; Saint Columban, abbot; Blessed Miguel Pro, priest, martyr(USA); 

XXXII Sunday in OT:[C]: II Mc 7: 1-2,9-14;IIThes 2:16--3:5;Lk 20:27-38

XXXII Sunday in OT:[C]: II Mc 7: 1-2,9-14;IIThes 2:16--3:5;Lk 20:27-38

Introduction: The main theme of today’s readings is the reality of life after death and of the relationship between our lives on earth and the life of glory or punishment that will follow. The first reading describes a Jewish family, consisting of a mother and her seven sons, who refused a Syrian command to eat pork, forbidden as “unclean” by Jewish Law.  Because of their Faith in, and obedience to, God, they endure suffering and accept martyrdom.  During their torture, three of the brothers speak, and each of them finds strength in the belief that he will eventually be raised and rewarded by God.  The second reading encourages the Thessalonians who were waiting for the Parousia or the second coming of Christ, to trust in the fidelity of God who would strengthen their hearts in every good work and word.  In today’s Gospel, the confrontation on the resurrection of the dead, Jesus ingeniously escapes from a doctrinal trap set for him and explains the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead, supported by the Pharisees and denied by the Sadducees.  Jesus speaks of God as the God of the living; he also explains that heavenly life with God in glory is totally different from earthly life, and that there is no marriage in heaven in the earthly sense.

Exegesis: In actuality, this is a very Jewish way of seeing things as we find out from our readings today.  The Sadducees who question Jesus in the Gospel believe only in the continuation of their race and family through procreation.  That is why all through the Old Testament we have rules and regulations ensuring that a man has a son to carry on his name… why it was such a disgrace not to be given a child, or for a woman to be barren. Without a child, there is no immortality for the Jews.

The Sadducees we read about today were very wealthy Jews, nearly all were priests of the governing class, and they accepted ONLY the written law of the Old Testament.  They only believed in the written Law of Moses, they didn’t put much faith into the prophetic books, they didn’t accept the Book of Maccabees (from which our first reading came today) and they did not believe in the resurrection of the dead, in angels or even in spirits. Added to that, the Jews believed that the BODY was the person. When the body died and decayed, there was no more person.

So, they pose to Jesus a question which was purposely meant to be outrageous and silly in order to ridicule a belief in the resurrection, a concept that had become more popular in the last number of years before Jesus, and which books like Maccabees promoted. To do this, they dig up a law from Deuteronomy which says that if a man dies childless, his wife must marry the man’s brother, and that the child resulting from that marriage should bear the name of the original dead brother. Again, it was important for one’s name to be carried on. The Sadducees really exaggerate this law, however, and tell of a woman who had to marry seven brothers, and still didn’t have a child. To make fun of the idea of resurrection, they then ask: OK, who is going to be the husband of this lady in an afterlife. And then they chuckled, thinking that they had really outwitted Jesus.

Jesus answer, however, has become the clearest affirmation by Jesus in all of Scripture that there is life after death, that we do rise from the dead. And so we can try to understand how Jesus reaches this strong conviction.  So we profess our belief through our creed, “…I believe in…. the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting”.  Life is indeed stronger than death.  This is our eternal consolation and hope.

Anecdote: John loved noodles so much that on Monday mornings his mother usually prepares it for him to take to school for his lunch. However, one Monday, it happened that none was available in the house because his mother forgot to buy some during her weekend shopping. John went to school refusing to take along with him any other type of food. So, his mother made him a promise that she would prepare noodles for him before he comes back from school. During lunch at school, some of John’s colleagues who noticed that he did not come with any food persuaded him to eat with them but he refused by telling them that: “Mummy has promised to prepare my noodles before I get home, and I know she will not disappoint me.” Even though he was greatly famished, he endured it until school was over around 4.00pm. The hope he had in the promise of his mother sustained him till he returned home. Of course, his mother kept to her promise. This is what hope does. It is a silent and constant prayer! Hope leads to better active life.

Joke: An old man and woman hate each other, but remain married for years. During their shouting fights, the old man constantly warns his wife, "If I die first, I will dig my way up and out of the grave to come back and haunt you for the rest of your life!"   One day, the man abruptly dies. After the burial, the wife goes straight to the local bar and begins to party. Her friends ask if she isn't worried about her husband digging himself out of the grave.                                                                                               The wife smiles, "Let the old bugger dig. I had him buried upside down!"

Life messages: 1)We need to live as people of the Resurrection.  We are to live joyful and peaceful lives, constantly experiencing the real Presence of the Risen Lord. 

2) The hope of our resurrection and eternal life with God gives us lasting peace and celestial joy amid the boredom and tension of our day-to-day lives. The awareness will help us to control our thoughts, desires, words and behavior.

3) If our God is the God of the living, our worship of this living God also has to be alive. Our participation in prayers and songs during the Holy Mass should be active and our behavior in Church reverent, as we offer our lives and all our activities to our living God on the altar with repentant and grateful hearts.

Thirty Second Sunday in OT: Introduction

Message: In response to an attempt to ridicule his teaching about life after death, Jesus again proclaims a resurrection from the dead, that life is indeed stronger than death itself.  This is our eternal consolation and hope.  Then will our joy be truly fulfilled.

Saints and Events in this week:   Eleventh-11-Monday-Saint Martin of Tours, bishop; Twelfth-12-Tuesday-Saint Josaphat, bishop, martyr;  Thirteenth-13-Wednesday-Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, virgin(USA); Fifteenth-15-Friday-Saint Albert the Great, bishop, doctor; Sixteenth-16-Saturday-Saint Margaret of Scotland; Saint Gertrude, virgin.

XXXI Sunday of OT:[C]: Wis 11:22--12:2; 2 Thes 1:11--2:2. Lk 19:1- 10

XXXI Sunday of OT:[C]: Wis 11:22--12:2; 2 Thes 1:11--2:2. Lk 19:1- 10

Jesus didn’t intend to stay there. He was passing through Jericho. But something happened that made Him change His plans. Compassion Mercy and Love happened. The little man that everyone hated, Zacchaeus, the head tax collector, had climbed a tree along the road that Jesus was walking down. He was merely curious. He wanted to see this Jesus. But then Jesus stopped under the tree and said, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly because today I must stay at your house.”  The man with the crowds around Him hanging on His every word, saw the man that everyone avoided, everyone hated, changed His plan to pass through Jericho, and said, “I must stay at your house.”  Shocking.  So also was Zacchaeus’ reaction. He promised to give half his possessions to the poor and payback four times over all he had extorted. Jesus cared about Him. Zacchaeus would not let the moment pass. And salvation came to little Zacchaeus’ house. 

Anecdote: Boris Becker was the world’s number one tennis star. At the height of his tennis career, he had won Wimbledon twice, once as the youngest player. He was rich and could afford all the material comfort and luxury he wanted. Yet he was an unhappy man. In spite of all his achievements, his life was so empty and meaningless that he contemplated suicide. “I had no inner peace,” he said. Becker is not alone in this feeling of emptiness. Many successful people who have ignored the inner life have felt that way. According to J. Oswald Sanders in his book Facing Loneliness, “The millionaire is usually a lonely man and the comedian is often more unhappy than his audience.” Jack Higgens, author of such successful novels as The Eagle Has Landed, was asked what he would like to have known as a boy. His answer: “That when you get to the top, there’s nothing there.”

We are all worried about acquiring possessions, richness, money, affections and high positions in the society. Accumulations of these worldly things cannot satisfy our inner self.  We need a curiosity to see Jesus and then experience the presence of God.  Even being in the presence, we are not able to experience the Divine for we are so much grabbed with the worldly things.  God can heal you. Just show an interest to see Him.

I think we all have had times that our sins have separated us from the people following the Lord, but our determination to be in His Presence has led us to a place we can view Him. So we go to Church in our sinfulness, just to get away from ourselves for a few moments. And then something happens. We decide that we want to be with the Lord forever. And we seek forgiveness, and are rewarded with peace. Or perhaps we come to Church only to keep someone else happy, a spouse, or parents, or children. We don’t intend to take our presence in Church all that seriously, but then we feel the call of Jesus to let Him stay with us, in our house, and everything changes.

Joke: 1)A pastor was asked by one of the presidential candidates,

"Name something my government can do to help your church if I am elected president." The pastor replied, "Quit making one-dollar bills." 

Life messages: 1) We need to accept the Divine invitation for repentance.  We are all sinners to a greater or lesser degree.  Jesus is inviting each one of us to total conversion today.  Let us remember that Jesus loves us in spite of our ugly thoughts, broken promises, sullied ideals, lack of prayer and Faith, resentments and lusts.  Hence, let us admit our sinfulness and accept God’s call to repentance, conversion and renewal of life.

2) we must avoid, and ignore distractions and detractors to our success. These come in the form of complains from those around us as the crowd did to Zacchaeus: “They all complained when they saw what was happening. ‘He has gone to stay at a sinner’s house…”Sympathizers and gossips must play their roles in our lives but we must not cave in because of their negative comments, complaints, and castigations. Instead, we must stand our ground as Zacchaeus did, remain poised and unperturbed in our quest to achieve the life changing divine encounter we are looking for.

3) Sometimes we are with Zacchaeus in the tree, and sometimes we are in the crowd following Jesus. But always Jesus is there for us, calling us away from sin, and calling us to join him in rejoicing over each person who has come into His Family. We pray today for the courage to accept His Presence into our lives, and in the lives of others.

Thirty First Sunday in Ordinary Time

Message: The Lord is full of mercy and compassion, slow to anger and of great kindness.  He has come to search out and save what was lost.  Let us be more concerned with doing the Lord’s work than with idle speculation about when he will come again.

Saints and Events in this Week:  4-Fourth-Monday-Saint Charles Borromeo, bishop; 9-Ninth-Saturday-The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica

XXX Sunday in OT-[C]: Sir 35:12-14, 16-18; 2Tm 4:6-8, 16-18; Lk18:9-14

XXX Sunday in OT-[C]: Sir 35:12-14, 16-18; 2Tm 4:6-8, 16-18; Lk18:9-14

Introduction:  Today’s gospel says that true humility must be the hallmark of our prayers. However, the central focus of today’s parable is not on prayer itself, but rather on pride, humility and the role of grace in our salvation.

Anecdote:  The story is told that one day Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, visited a prison and talked with each of the inmates. There were endless tales of innocence, of misunderstood motives, and of exploitation. Finally the king stopped at the cell of a convict who remained silent. “Well,” remarked Frederick, “I suppose you are an innocent victim too?” “No, sir, I'm not,” replied the man. “I'm guilty and deserve my punishment.” Turning to the warden the king said, “Here, release this rascal before he corrupts all these fine, innocent people in here!” The biblical saying proves true, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (1 Peter 5:5).

Explanation:  Jesus chose to make the Pharisee a principal character of his parable because Pharisees were the most highly respected religious group in the community. Pharisees were intensely committed to the religious traditions of the people. They refused any collaboration with the occupying Roman military power. They kept the commandments, voluntarily fasted beyond the obligatory annual day of fasting, and even cut down on their standard of living to support the needs of the temple.

Jesus chose a tax collector as the opposite principal character because tax collectors were generally held in contempt by the people. They were not only collaborators with the hated Roman oppressors, but by collecting funds to support a corrupt imperial system, made it impossible for many people to fulfill their financial obligations to the temple. These petty government officials were proficient at defrauding people by various strong-arm methods, and were regarded as no better than robbers.

The Pharisee of the parable had every good reason to thank God for the worthiness of his own life, and to despise the tax collector as one who was a threat not only to the temple, but to everything that was worthwhile and holy. When Jesus at the conclusion of his parable remarked that the tax collector went home justified, not the Pharisee, it must have seemed like a shockingly unfair conclusion.

Jesus in his parable obviously is not advocating collaboration with an oppressive military power, cheating people, moral relativism, or much less, forbidding evaluation of evil behavior or false teaching. The Pharisee is condemned because he assumed God’s role in judging the spiritual worth of a fellow human being. He exalted himself above the rest of humanity, and despised another through the comparisons he fashioned in his prayer.

Today at our Eucharist we ask to be freed from illusions that we have fashioned about ourselves, and pray for the grace of sharing in Christ’s humility. Through his authentic humility, we will be able to stand before God in our own unique truth, and thus make it possible to receive divine mercy and go home justified.

Joke: I once heard a humorous story about the Pope who was on a visit to America for a period of time. On his last day of the visit, he was delayed due to meetings and was unable to break away to catch a flight.

Since he couldn’t depend on his Pope Mobile, he phoned for a limousine. When the limousine arrived, the driver was joyfully surprised that it was the Pope who called for him. The driver became nervous and was beside himself. He proceeded to drive very slowly. The Pope became nervous and told him to hurry up. It did not make a bit of difference. The driver went slower; he wanted to keep the Pope in his limousine as long as he could. The Pope could not be delayed any longer so he asked to drive the limo himself. The Pope speed off and reached the speed of 85 miles an hour. The policeman who stopped him was shocked when he discovered the famous personality behind the wheel. He frantically phoned his police chief and said, “Chief, I have stopped a very important figure for speeding. I don’t know what to do?”

--“What do you mean? Give him a speeding ticket!”    --“Sir, in all honesty, I can’t.”

--“Why can’t you? The law is the law. Who is it anyway that you stopped?  Is it the mayor?”   --“No, sir.”     --“Is it the governor?”     --“No, sir.”     --“Is it a congressman?”    --“Is it the president?”   --“No, sir.”    --“Well, then, who is it?!”

--“I don’t know sir! All I know is that the Pope is driving him to the airport.”

Practical Applications: 1) Let us evict the Pharisee and revive the publican in each of us.  There is a big dose of the Pharisee's pride in us and only a small dose of the tax-collector's humility.  2) Let us have the correct approach in our prayer life by including praise and worship, thanksgiving and our request for pardon and forgiveness for our sins, along with our petitions.  3) Let us rid ourselves of self-justification and ask for God’s unconditional love and mercy during the Holy Mass.  It is a tragedy that those who justify themselves leave no room to receive grace. There must be a space in our lives   for grace to enter and work its miracle. On the other hand, if we are truly humble, we will find grace, mercy and peace. Hence, let us make the tax collector’s prayer, “Be merciful to me, a sinner” our daily prayer.   

Introduction: Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Message: Humility is the recognition that no matter what our accomplishments, we still stand in need of the Lord.  God hears the cry of the poor and the oppressed, especially those who acknowledge their dependency upon him.  Having heard Paul’s cries for help, the Lord crowned him with eternal salvation.

Saints and Events in this Week: World Youth Day is observed today in the USA. 28 -Twenty eighth- Monday - Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles; November – 1 – First Friday -First Friday - All Saints Day -Holy day of obligation in USA; 2 - Second-Saturday - All Souls Day - The Commemoration of all the faithful departed; practice of visiting the graves of loved ones is recommended.

XXIX Sunday in OT-[C]:Ex 17: 8-13,II Tm3:14--4:2,Lk18:1-8

XXIX Sunday in OT-[C]:Ex 17: 8-13,II Tm3:14--4:2,Lk18:1-8

Introduction:  Today’s readings are mainly about prayer -- perseverance in prayer, constancy in prayer and trust in God as we pray. They are also about the Trustworthiness and Justice of God, a Justice that reaches out to the poor and the weak, enabling them to fight against injustice.

Exegesis:  Meanwhile he begins to tell us two stories about prayer.  One, (in Lk 18:1-8) about constancy in prayer; and another, (in Lk 18:9-14) about our attitude in prayer. This Sunday we take up the first story, about the woman who went knocking at the door of the agnostic judge.  Though the woman in the parable of today is seeking the help of the judge because she is in need, we should not lose sight of the context of the story. Luke tells us that “Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.” (Lk 18:1). Besides, this story comes after Jesus has been talking about the coming of the Kingdom of God (Lk 17:20-37).  And the story ends with the statement from the mouth of Jesus, “When the Son of man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Lk 18:8). Therefore, the parable is about praying as long as we are on the earth. It is about prayer in our daily life.

Explanation:  Wherever in the world you are, today, you can have access to emergency services just by ‘dialing’ a few numbers on your telephone. In the UK, it is 999; in the European Union it is 112, and in United States it is 911.  In some other countries there are separate numbers to call the police, fire services, or medical assistance.  I recently read in the internet that the first emergency number system to be deployed, anywhere in the world, was in London.  It was on 30 June 1937 that ‘999’ was first dialed and a special red light flashed on the telephone operator’s table.  Thus began the system of emergency services.  

How often have you called an emergency number in your life?  If ever you called an emergency number, I am sure, it now brings to your mind some traumatic experience. In any case, I suppose, the emergency number is not the most frequently dialed number on your personal telephone.  What is the most dialed number in your phone?  Is it that of your lover, spouse, child, parent, friend, business partner?  Perhaps, these days, thanks to the mobile phones you might even call the same person more than two, three times a day!  And what the frequently dialed number say is about your own priorities in life. 

Now, here is a more important question:  how would you describe your own acts of calling on God!  Are they emergency calls, or are they frequent calls?

A study among recovering alcoholics revealed that even alcoholics pray!  Sometimes, even when they are drunk, they pray.  But their prayer is often like calling an emergency number: “God get me out of this mess!”  But the study also revealed that prayer takes another form among recovered alcoholics.  Their prayer becomes more constant.  Their prayer is no more just sporadic ‘God-get-me-out-of-this-mess’ type of prayer, but a constant: “Father, lead me not into temptation.”

How would you describe your own prayer life?  Is it like calling emergency numbers?  Or it is a constant relationship?

Joke: The middle-aged farm couple had no children. As a last resort they put their trust in persistent prayer. And it worked.  The wife became pregnant, and at the end of her term, she was delivered of triplets. “Persistent prayer really works, doesn’t it?" she asked her husband. Her husband replied, “Seems to-- but I sure as heck didn’t pray for a bumper crop!”

Practical Applications: 1) We need to combine formal prayers with action prayer. We should perfect our prayers by bringing ourselves into God’s presence during our work several times during the day and by offering all that we are, that we have and that we do to God. This will help us to bring all our successes and failures, joys and sorrows, highs and lows to God in prayer. Along with formal and memorized prayers, this type of prayer life enables us to pray always and pray with constancy and trusting perseverance.

2) We should not expect to get whatever we pray for. This parable does not suggest that God writes a blank check, guaranteeing whatever we want whenever we want it in the form we ask for.  But we conveniently forget the fact that, often, a loving father has to refuse the request of a child, because he knows that what the child asks would hurt rather than help him

Introduction: Twenty Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Message: Through incessant prayer, we open ourselves more fully to understanding God’s will.  Through faith in the power of prayer, we experience God’s love and assistance.  Our Christian life is nourished by the scriptures we read and by our received tradition.

Saints and Events in this Week: 23-Twenty Third-Wednesday-Saint John of Capistrano, priest; 24-Twenty Forth- Thursday-Saint Anthony Mary Claret, bishop;