Homilies

We begin the tenth week of Ordinary Time with Mother Church, deepening our knowledge of the Person of Jesus Christ and His teachings in order to grow in His discipleship. Today the evangelist Matthew speaks to us about his calling by Jesus and his affirmative response. Matthew was called Levi and, before becoming an apostle and evangelist, he worked for the Romans as a tax collector. It was a profession hated by the Jews, who considered these workers traitors to the nation and sinners, voluntarily serving the violent, unjust, and pagan rulers. Surprisingly, Jesus called a tax collector to be His apostle, probably because He knew that Matthew had this profession out of necessity, and not out of complicity with the Romans. So much so that, when given the opportunity by Jesus, Levi rose to follow Him. Some Pharisees—a group of Jews who considered themselves morally superior because they radically observed the Law of Moses, criticizing those who did not—questioned Jesus' disciples abou...

On the Sunday after Trinity Sunday, the Church celebrates the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, the Most Holy Eucharist, the sacrament of the consecrated Bread and Wine. In some countries, the solemnity is celebrated on previous Thursday because it was on this day of the week that Jesus celebrated the Last Supper with His apostles, when He instituted the Eucharist. It is the only day of the year when the Blessed Sacrament can be taken from the church to the nearby streets and avenues for the adoration of the faithful and the public demonstration of faith in the presence of Jesus in the consecrated Host. Only Catholics believe in the mystery of transubstantiation, that is, that the Bread and Wine are transformed into the Body and Blood of Christ by the action of the Holy Spirit and by the laying on of the consecrated hands of the priests, repeating the words and gestures of Jesus in the Holy Mass. For Catholics, the Eucharist is the Body and Blood, the...

On the Sunday following Pentecost, the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity, the central mystery of the Christian faith: the one true God is formed by three distinct divine Persons in perfect communion of love. The Christian God is the Creator Father, who sent the Savior Jesus, His only begotten Son, into the world, and together they sent the Sanctifying Spirit to those who believe. It is a mystery that has been revealed throughout the history of salvation and that surpasses human understanding and, therefore, must be received with faith, on our knees. The unity of the three divine Persons inspires communion in the Church, where the diversity of members is seen as a gift to others, and not as a threat. The originality of each Christian is valued and harmonized in a broader project of life and sanctification for all. The dignity of the human person is highlighted, and communion is awakened in this increasingly divided and threatened world. Today, the Evangelist John speak...

Today is the Solemnity of Pentecost! We celebrate the giving of the Holy Spirit to the Church by the Father and the Son. He is God the Sanctifier together with the Creator and the Savior. Seven weeks have passed since Easter, fifty days after the resurrection of Jesus. The disciples were gathered in the upper room in Jerusalem, in the company of Mary, the Mother of Jesus and the Church. This is the third glorious mystery of the Holy Rosary. For the Jews, Pentecost was also an important solemnity, in which they celebrated the giving of the Ten Commandments to the Hebrews by God through Moses, on Mount Sinai, seven weeks after the Jewish Passover, that is, the liberation from slavery in Egypt. Today the evangelist John tells us about the sending of the Holy Spirit by the risen Jesus to the disciples three days after His crucifixion and burial. That’s right: in the Johannine chronology, the Holy Spirit is breathed upon the Church on the very Sunday of Jesus’ resurrection. The Holy Spirit ...

We celebrate with Mother Church the solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord. This is the second glorious mystery of the Holy Rosary. We begin the last week of Easter Season, which will end with the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, next Sunday. Today, the evangelist Matthew speaks to us about the mission of the Church in the world, the ascension of Jesus to Heaven, and the promise of continuous presence. After demonstrating that He was alive and shortly before being taken up to Heaven, the risen Jesus said that the disciples should go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to observe all that He had commanded them. This is the mission of the Church, received directly from the risen Jesus. The Church exists to call humanity to the discipleship of Jesus, to the observance of His commandments. It is a mission that began among the Jews and extended to non-Jews. Jesus said that all authority h...

We begin the sixth week of Easter Season with Mother Church, deepening our experience with the risen Jesus, united to the Father, the Advocate Spirit, and to us. We continue in May, the month of Mary. And, since the second Sunday of May is Mother's Day, we honor the women who gave birth to us and brought us into the world while we exalt our Mother in Heaven, the Blessed Virgin Mary. Today the evangelist John speaks to us of the union of the risen Jesus with the Father and the sending of the Holy Spirit as Advocate to the disciples. For a period of forty days, Jesus gave proof of His resurrection (cf. Acts 1.3), and then went to the Father. The original context of today's Gospel is Jesus' farewell before His crucifixion, but it is being read in the Easter context prior to the ascension of the resurrected Jesus to Heaven, revealing His victory over death, His union with the Father and with the disciples, and the giving of the Spirit of Truth as Advocate. Jesus said that keepi...