HOMILIES

Dear Audience,
For better understanding of the spiritual message behind this homily I kindly remind you to first read and contemplate the biblical texts before reading or listening to my preaching - a human reflection on the Word of God!

Twenty Ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C)

Oct 20, 2013

3883

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First Reading

A reading from the Book of Exodus (17:8-13)

In those days, Amalek came and waged war against Israel. Moses, therefore, said to Joshua, "Pick out certain men, and tomorrow go out and engage Amalek in battle. I will be standing on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand."

So Joshua did as Moses told him: he engaged Amalek in battle after Moses had climbed to the top of the hill with Aaron and Hur. As long as Moses kept his hands raised up, Israel had the better of the fight, but when he let his hands rest, Amalek had the better of the fight. Moses' hands, however, grew tired; so they put a rock in place for him to sit on.

Meanwhile Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other, so that his hands remained steady till sunset. And Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalms of David (121:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8)

(R) Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

I lift up my eyes toward the mountains; whence shall help come to me? My help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. (R)

May he not suffer your foot to slip; may he slumber not who guards you: indeed he neither slumbers nor sleeps, the guardian of Israel. (R)

The Lord is your guardian; the Lord is your shade; he is beside you at your right hand. The sun shall not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. (R)

The Lord will guard you from all evil; he will guard your life. The Lord will guard your coming and your going, both now and forever. (R)

Second Reading

A reading from the second Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy (3:14-4:2)

Beloved: Remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingly power: proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Gospel

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (18:1-8)

Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary. He said, "There was a judge in a certain town who neither feared God nor respected any human being. And a widow in that town used to come to him and say, "Reader a just decision for me against my adversary." For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought, "While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being, because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.""

The Lord said, "Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says. Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them? I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"

(P) The Gospel of the Lord.
(R) Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Homily

A man asks his married friend whom he finds more despicable - those people who had been married before him, or those who got married after he did. The friend says, "Oh! Both are dreadful." The man asks him why he thinks so. The friend replies, "I am angry at the people who were married before me, because they advised me badly. And I am angry at those who got married after me, because they have not heeded my advice."

Friends, God does not despise sinners for He is kind and merciful, but He certainly is sorrowful and unhappy that many people are badly led and advised on matters faith and that many others do not heed his advice. Today's second reading reminds us to be mindful of our obligations to others and obey God's word.

As we know the second letter of Paul to Timothy is the last of his letters from his prison in Rome. He writes the letter knowing well that he will soon be put to death and Timothy will be in need of help from God. So Paul's parting words are powerful spiritual encouragement for Timothy to overcome hard times. He urges Timothy, as we had heard last week, to remember Jesus Christ for He is God, He is alive and that He is present with him in his ministry; to remember Jesus Christ for He is man and He understands his struggles and to remember the gospel of Jesus Christ. In today's text he exhorts Timothy to remember the sacred Scriptures.

Paul says, "Remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known the sacred Scriptures". Paul refers to the Hebrew/Jewish scriptures which consist of the Torah, the Prophets and the Writings as sacred Scriptures. We call it the Old Testament. Some Christian scholars argue that it is also possible Paul meant both the Old Testament and the earliest New Testament writings.

Timothy's father was a Greek but his mother was a Jew. At the time of Paul, the Jewish children from their earliest days, learned the Jewish scriptures by heart. Therefore, Timothy might have as a child, learned the Scriptures from his mother. Paul recalls the Jewish practice and appeals to Timothy to remain faithful to all the teaching which he has received as a believer and as a man of God. And then he gives reasons for this:

The Scriptures give wisdom. Timothy is reminded that it is the Scriptures which have taught him what he knows about Jesus. It is the Scriptures that have guided him to believe in Jesus Christ. It is the Scriptures which have given him "wisdom for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ".
The Scriptures are inspired by God. God is the author but He inspired human beings to put His Word in writing and thus making it far more valuable than the wisest human words.
The Scriptures are useful for teaching, refutation, correction and training in righteousness.
The Scriptures fully equip a believer for every good work.

Finally Paul calls on Timothy to be persistent in convincing, reprimanding, encouraging and proclaiming the Word of God regardless of whether it is convenient or inconvenient but with great patience in teaching.

Friends, Paul's instructions to Timothy reveal to us the importance of God's word. We need the Scriptures to stay in touch with God, to deepen our faith in Him and to do His work on earth. The Scriptures offer us not only information, but also wisdom that leads us to salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. They contain instructions not just on heavenly life but also earthly life. They hold insights to confront and challenge our misconceptions and distortions about God, about ourselves, and about life. They are full of general principles on our behavior and daily living. There are directives to make us good spouses, good parents, good children and good human beings and to manage our daily affairs and relations.

Friends, we are not just believers in Jesus Christ but also proclaimers of His word. Let us therefore remain faithful to what we have learned. Let us allow God's word to be in our mind and heart. We cannot have God's Word in our mind and heart without spending time reading it and meditating upon it. Let us immerse ourselves in it and then instruct our children with it as well. Let us humbly seek the wisdom of the Holy Scriptures for all the issues affecting us. Our Lord will certainly guide us to find solutions to all our problems for He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. For many of us the only time we hear the word of God is when we come to church. If we share truths about God more often in our families and communities maybe we would see a change in all of our lives. Even if personal application of the scriptures is painful and difficult let us strive to convince, reprimand and encourage one another in our faith with patience. The Lord says in the gospel of John (13:17), "Now that you know this, blessed are you if you behave accordingly."

Let this be our prayer to the Lord. Philippians (4:7), The peace of God which is beyond our understanding will guard our hearts and our thoughts in Christ Jesus.

(P) Amen.

God Bless You!

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