This homily is based on Mark 1:40-45.
Today’s reading may be interpreted as yet another healing miracle of our Lord that showcases his compassion for those who are marginalized in society. The worst part about being a leper during Jesus’ time, after all, was not so much the physical affliction as much as the social isolation inflicted on lepers.
I found out about Benny and Noey long before I should.
This homily is based on Mark 1:21-28 for the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time.
Today’s Gospel is about the first–and lasting–impression that our Lord makes on people. And the impression that he makes on the people he interacts with–the lasting impression he leaves them with–is summarized by one recurring word: “Authority.” It’s funny because I would have expected a different kind of first or lasting impression. Perhaps holiness or kindness? Or even divinity?
This homily is for the Feast of the Sto Nino.
I’m not exactly a big fan of the Sto. Nino. When I was a kid, my sister had her own private altar that featured many religious statues and pictures. You name it, she had it. It was a virtual nightmare for any born-again Christian.
It had a huge wooden crucifix with a bloody corpus, a small replica of the Black Nazarene of Quiapo, several images of the Blessed Mother—Lourdes, Fatima, Perpetual Help, among other titles—and last but not the least, it had the Sto. Nino in a glass case. I remember almost all the images elicited a religious feeling in me—all the images, that is, except for the Sto. Nino.
This homily is based on 1 Samuel 3:3-19 and John 1:35-42.
In the First Reading today, we have the somewhat charming story of young Samuel who mistakes God’s voice calling to him as coming from his master Eli. After being roused a third time from his sleep, Eli realizes it must be the Lord and directs Samuel to answer, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”
When I googled this line, here’s what I found:
