11th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year B
The Kingdom of God is like… (Mk 4:26)
Some years back, while still in campus, walking between two blocks, I happened to run into the Principal. I introduced myself as a priest and a current research student. The Principal’s next question was, “So what are you working on?” “My project is on spirituality and addictive behaviour,” I said. The Principal, a Jesuit theologian himself, was obviously in a hurry, as Principals usually are! He offered me a quick quip. It came in the form of a question: “Don’t you think almost all our spiritual and moral struggles are basically centred around addiction and idolatry?” And off he went. But his rhetorical question lingered on in my mind for days. Addiction and idolatry! I do not […]
Sunday Sermons
Sunday Sermons and Homilies
Sermon for Corpus Christi: Precious Body and Blood of Our Lord – Cycle B
Feast of the Precious Body & Blood of Jesus – Cycle B
“This is my blood, the blood of the covenant, poured out for many” (Mk 14: 24)
There are two feasts in the liturgical calendar that invite us to meditate on the mystery of the Eucharist: Maundy Thursday and the Feast of the Precious Body and Blood of Jesus, that is, today. The celebration of the Maundy Thursday reminds us that the Eucharist is a sacrificial meal. The altar is not only the place of sacrifice but also the table where a meal is being served. The Eucharistic-food offers us the possibility “to share in the divinity of Christ who humbled himself to share in our humanity.” When we receive the Eucharistic bread we commune with God.
Related to the theme of the sacrificial meal, the Liturgy of the Word today invites […]
Sermon for Trinity Sunday – Year B Homily
Trinity Sunday – Year B
God in Three: Our experience of the Divine
At the recommendation of a friend of mine, some years back, I ventured into reading The Shack. With over 10 million copies in print, and raising a lot of questions among the churches, the book had become controversial. Here is the story-line in brief:
Mack, the main character of the story, receives an invitation from ‘Papa’ to visit the shack – a hut in the forest. From his scanty religious background, Mack knows that Papa is God himself. Four years prior to this invitation, Mack had lost his daughter Missy from a camping site. Since then he had been overcome by, what he calls, “The Great Sadness.” He decides to respond to the invitation and spend the weekend at the […]
Sermon for Pentecost Sunday – Year A, B, C: Receive the Holy Spirit
In the recent years I have been travelling across continents and living in different cultural contexts. The question, “Where do you come from,” has become so difficult for me to answer. I am sure, these days many people are in similar situation, thanks to the opportunities that the contemporary world offers. I am grateful to God for the variety of cross-cultural experiences that I have had, and I feel I am a citizen of the world. One thing that has made this possible, easy, and enjoyable, is the fact that I am a Christian, and a Catholic! Catholicism stands for universality.
Today we celebrate the birthday of this Church – the universal church. We celebrate the presence of the Spirit in this believing community today, just as it was present among the community in Jerusalem. In some countries this day is […]
Sermon for the Ascension of the Lord – Year B Homily
Feast of the Ascension of the Lord – Year B
“Proclaim the Good News to all creation” (Mk 16:15)
Today is one of those days when across the globe, in the Catholic Church, people may not be listening to the same readings. In many countries, on this day we celebrate the feast of the Ascension of the Lord. In some other countries, however, this feast might have been already celebrated last Thursday, marking the 40th day after Easter. As we heard in the first reading of today, Luke tells us in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:3) that Jesus was seen in his risen form for forty days. After those forty days, Jesus was no more seen in his risen body. The feast of today marks this stage of transition in the story of […]