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03/29/2026

Sat, 04 Apr 2026 17:26:56 GMT

Palm Sunday

I love seeing people packed in the church. Which mass do you think is the most "popular"(most people coming)? I remember four masses: Christmas of course, Ash Wednesday, Palm Sunday, and Easter.

Do you know why? I think it’s because people like the free: Free ashes, Free palms, Free Savior, and Free salvation.

We got free ashes as we began this Lenten journey, and you get free palms today. And above all, through this holy week, we are experiencing “free salvation.”

Once we seek his mercy, he is ready. It reminds us of what God already said through the prophet Isaiah: “All you who are thirsty, come to the water. You who have no money, come, buy grain and eat; Come, buy grain without money, wine and milk without cost!” (Isa 55:1).

Today’s passion narrative portrays how Jesus pays for our sins, so that we taste God’s salvation for free.

Especially, we remember the story of the repentant thief on the cross, which is in Luke’s version. It speaks volumes to our Lenten journey. I believe your Lenten journey went well and successfully. But some might have been frustrated, experiencing the weakness and fragility of humans. Then would you say your Lenten journey was screwed up?

Remember, Even at the last moment, Jesus still gives another chance to the repentant. Your journey to the Kingdom is not completed by your merits but by Jesus’s.

In addition to your effort, the last piece is on Jesus’ hand. So, once you rely on God’s mercy, your spiritual journey never fails. He dies as a ransom for us. He paid for us.

And we are listening to the salvific drama culminating in Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection throughout this Holy Week’s liturgies.

So, I cordially encourage you to attend the liturgies of the Holy Triduum this year.

Holy Thursday, the Mass of the Lord’s supper;

Good Friday liturgies; the stations of Cross and the liturgy of the Lord’s passion,

and Easter Vigil and Sunday.

By participating in the liturgies of the Holy Triduum, deepen your relationship with Jesus.

03/22/2026

Sun, 22 Mar 2026 19:17:32 GMT

5th Sunday of Lent

What do you think is the most important ability in interpersonal relationships? Leadership? Generosity? Intelligence? There might be various. But one of the most important one is empathy. Sharing others’ emotions, such as joy, grief, anger, and delight is crucial in interpersonal relationship.

By the same token, the clinical absence of empathy is often cited as a hallmark of psychopathy. They have difficulties with sharing others’ emotions.

And I had difficulty with sharing others’ emotions when I first came to the States. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying I was a psychopath; It was not because of a lack of heart but a lack of language. When I was listening to someone, I had to focus on other’s reactions, not the speaker, so that I could make the same reaction at the proper times. No worries, now I'm off the hook.

Anyway, we all agree that empathy is a lubricant of human society. And in today’s gospel, we see this most human traits in the seventh sign in Jesus’ ministry: the raising of Lazarus. This story captures the absolute apex of Jesus’ divinity as the Lord of life, but in that same breath, it reveals his profound humanity through his compassion.

The Gospel tells us that Jesus was “perturbed”, “deeply troubled”, and that he wept. Jesus cried. Which means God cried. The tears of Jesus are the tears of God for humanity. Seeing this, the witnesses said, “See how he loved him.” In the same way, we say, “See how God loves us.”

The divinity of Jesus is not detached from his humanity; it is expressed through it . His divine power is inextricably linked to his human compassion. So, in Jesus, the most human aspect meets the most divine feature; Humanity is sublimated into divinity.

From the compassion of Jesus, life was restored. Compassion became the starting point of his life-saving work.

God has sown the seed of his divinity into our humanity.

When we choose to have the same compassion as Jesus, we allow that seed to sprout. When we cry with those who weep and rejoice with those in joy, we are participating in a divine emotion; we are co-feeling the heart of God. What God feels, we feel.

Through your compassion, others would feel the very comfort of God.

That is a miracle in its own right—a new sign performed by God’s children today.

Compassion.

Just a small, simple human emotion is, in fact, the most Divine-like emotion we feel. And it has a life-saving power. When you are compassionate, you reflect the very face of Jesus, and you become a channel of life to those around you.

03/15/2026

Sat, 21 Mar 2026 15:04:08 GMT

4th Sunday of Lent

We have reached the midpoint of our Lenten journey. Today is Laetare Sunday—which means "Rejoice!" The Church gives us this day as a spiritual "breather" to keep us from growing weary. And to mark this moment of encouragement, the priests wear rose vestments. I think I look good in pink, too, as well as purple. (Actually, I look good in any colors)

Today’s gospel depicts Jesus healing the man born blind. This story is full of symbols. Among them, I’d like to reflect on two points from this account today.

First, The Method of Healing.

Jesus heals the man by mixing his saliva with the dust to make clay. We know some occasions Jesus spat in the bible. You know, that doesn’t mean that Jesus likes to spit; it is a vivid callback to the moment of Creation.

In Genesis, God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into him to give life. Here, Jesus uses that same dust and his own "breath" (his saliva) to give the blind man new sight. In that era, sickness was often equated with sin, and healing was depicted as an act of forgiveness. So, In this context, this healing story speaks something profound about forgiveness: “Forgiveness is a new creation.” This blind man became a new being through Jesus—not only physically, but spiritually. Likewise we, too, are made new when we encounter God's mercy. God’s work of creation didn't stop in the Garden of Eden; it continues through his forgiveness.

Second, I’d like to muse on the name of the pool: Siloam, which means Sent.

The name is not a coincidence, nor did Jesus send him to one of the random ponds. This is a crucial detail. Actually, “The sent” is a significant expression in John’s gospel. It is used 17 times to refer to Jesus. Thus, Jesus is depicted as the sign sent from God. Notice what happens: the blind man is “sent” to Siloam. By washing in the pool, meaning sent, the man becomes a sign from Jesus. Having experienced God’s mercy, he is transformed into a walking witness and sent into his place.

This is our story. When we experience God’s mercy through the sacraments—whether the sacrament of reconciliation, Eucharistic Adoration, and receiving communion, we are called to be the signs of God’s mercy, and sent to our places. In other words, we are called to become "Sacramental beings." We become the visible signs of God's invisible grace in the world.

So, on this Fourth Sunday of Lent, I invite you to ask yourself: Do you truly feel God’s love in your faith life? How has your encounter with Jesus changed you?

He is calling us to Siloam. He is calling us to be washed, to be made new, and to be sent.

03/08/2026

Sun, 15 Mar 2026 13:40:18 GMT

3rd Sunday of Lent

I sometimes go out to see the school kids during weekdays, mostly pre-K kids. And I found little kids' predictable pattern when they were upset: They break away from the group, find a solitary spot, and sit crouched.

That departure is their emotional distance, and the crouch is their wall and fortress against others.

But when they do it, that’s not a serious situation. At their age, the walls are thin and break easily; By a kind word from teachers and friends, the fortress crumbles. They reconcile instantly, returning to the group as if the rift never existed. It is a "pure reconciliation"—simple, swift, and total.

But unfortunately, it seems to get harder to make this pure reconciliation as we grow. As we grow older, our conflicts become calcified and complicated. By this, we sometimes forget how to be that child Jesus set as our model.

Today’s Gospel shows us this pure reconciliation through the reconciliation of a Samaritan woman.

The Samaritan woman came to the well alone at noon. In Samaria at that time, women usually came to the well in the morning due to the weather, and in groups for their security.

So her solitary walk to the well is the physical manifestation of her distance from others and the walls against others. She was hiding from the whispers and the judgments of her past.

To her solitary time and place, Jesus came in and asked her for water. Who she was didn't matter to Jesus. There’s no stereotype, no prejudice, no discrimination.

Her conversation with Jesus shows that her walls were breaking down, not by force or persuasion but by invitation to his mercy. Jesus didn’t bring a sledgehammer to break her walls; he simply offered her the truth of who she was– a daughter of God.

Encountering Jesus reversed the situation.

Jesus’ physical thirst aroused her spiritual thirst.

Her question about who Jesus is has now turned into a confession about who she is.

The woman who carried the shadows of the past ran back as a herald of light. The marginalized sinner brought the whole community to Jesus, and they reassembled together.

This is pure reconciliation: being restored to God, and consequently, being restored to the community.

Today, Jesus comes to the well of your lives. Jesus sneaks into your solitary time and place to meet you.

You don't need to be embellished for this encounter.

You don't have to hide the “misery” of your parched soul.

He isn’t looking for a polished performance; he is looking for your bare self.

Just step out of the crouch to encounter Jesus. He is asking you for water. Make a pure reconciliation.

03/01/2026

Sun, 01 Mar 2026 14:31:15 GMT

2nd Sunday of Lent

I scheduled my vacation for this past week, so I was supposed to leave for Colombia last Monday, but as you know, due to the snowstorm, all the flights have been canceled. So, I couldn’t travel, but shoveled. But you know, things don’t go as planned. It is what it is. As such, travel always comes with uncertainty. It could be changed, threatened, or even canceled and start over. The same is true for our journey, including our spiritual journey. That’s why reflecting on the journeys in the Bible always helps us navigate our journey of faith.

Today’s first reading depicts the beginning of Abram’s journey: "Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk and from your father's house to a land that I will show you.” God told Abram to set off on a journey to a land that he will show him. Abram didn’t know the itinerary, or even the destination. It was uncertain, unguaranteed; only what he could rely on was God’s promise. He wasn't told what dangers he would encounter, or how long it would take, or where it would end. He was just demanded to start this uncertain journey.

Nevertheless, Abram answered the call. And this would be the starting point of the endless journey of the Israelites. Abram would be threatened so many times during this long journey, waiting for the fulfillment of the promise. And even his descendants, the Israelites, would resume this uncertain, long journey from the land of Egypt, which would take hundreds and hundreds years.

Their whole journey was a tension between their trust in God and fear of uncertainty; They sometimes fell, but rose up again, held fast to their trust in God, and continued their journey.

This calling, “go forth”, echoes in our spiritual journey, navigating to the promised land. Like Abram and the Israelites, our journey bears uncertainties; We don’t know what threats or difficulties we might encounter, or when they will come, and so forth. But this journey demands that we constantly move forward with steadfast trust in God, despite the uncertainty from a human perspective.

Today’s gospel can also be construed from the perspective of our spiritual journey. At the glorious figure of Jesus, the disciples, falling prostrate with astonishment and fear, said, "Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." To them, who fell prostrate with fear, Jesus approached and said, “Rise, and do not be afraid.” Jesus encouraged them to rise up. And when the disciples raised their eyes, there was Jesus alone. It symbolically tells us that alone is Jesus whom we see and follow in our fear. And we should focus on the next moment: Jesus came down from the mountain with his disciples, who wished to make tents and stay there; They resumed their journey with Jesus, leaving the glorious moment behind.

It says something to our spiritual journey; We can’t rest on a specific moment, even if it is a glorious moment; We are to move forward unceasingly, following Jesus by overcoming our fear or complacency, whatever holds us back on this journey. We might face various moments: Weary, tough, or sad moments; delight, encouraging, or glorious moments. But remember, we are on a journey. when you fall down, Jesus will raise you up to continue; when you are complacent in a temporal glory, he will urge you to go down from the mountain to keep walking. Jesus is encouraging us to rise and go forth today; he is inviting us to be another Abram who goes forth to the promised land, relying solely on the promise of God.

02/22/2026

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 14:29:41 GMT

1st Sunday of Lent

Did you happen to come to Ash Wednesday Mass? It was a good crowd, for both 7AM and 7PM Mass, like a holyday obligation, (And like last year, again, Fr. Tim “messed up” my forehead with ashes; It didn’t even look like a cross. It doesn’t have to be a cross, though. Still, I drew a beautiful cross on your foreheads. I think I was a “better” artist than Fr.Tim.)

As you know, Ash Wednesday Mass is not a Holyday Obligation. Yet, we, the church, treats it as one of the most serious days in the Catholic calendar. Why do you think the church doesn’t establish it as a holyday obligation?

Ash Wednesday is not about the Canon Law, but about conversion. It is not about command, but about conscience. The church does not force people to begin Lent, because repentance cannot be forced. Turning back to God must come from the heart, so instead of an obligation, the church gives an invitation, a spiritual call, a loving reminder. So I would say it is a holy day of decision where we respond with our resolutions, reflections, and repentance.

Likewise, our Lenten journey is not about rules; it’s about relationship, not about Law; but about Love, not about obligation; but about conversion.

This idea resonates in today’s first reading. The story of Original sin. Let’s see how sin sneaks in and breaks our relationship with God. The serpent asks, “Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?” And the Woman answers, ““We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; it is only about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, ‘You shall not eat it or even touch it, lest you die.’”

In this conversation, we see that the relationship has already been distorted. The serpent belittled their loving relationship with God into merely a legal relationship, like a relationship of prohibition or permission.

This is how evil sneaks into our relationship with God. Our faith is not about the rules, nor about avoiding punishment by adhering to the Law. It is about God’s love and forgiveness despite our sins and deficiencies, and our response accordingly.

Today’s gospel also treats the theme of relationship. The tempter challenges Jesus with a conditional premise: "If you are the Son of God."

- “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread.”

- “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down.”

These were not merely about Jesus’ hunger or ability. It was about his relationship with God the Father. And it is a preview of the very last temptation coming to Jesus on the cross. “Save yourself, if you are the Son of God, [and] come down from the cross!” The tempter tries to shatter Jesus’s relationship with God, tempting him to take the initiative in his relationship with God the Father.

The same temptation always aims at us, too. The tempter sometimes lures us, especially in our prayers, to take the initiative over God to steer Him at our will.

But Jesus shows us how to navigate our spiritual journey, overcoming the waves of temptation. He doesn’t argue, but simply affirms trust.

- “One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.”

- “You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.”

In spiritual theology, we call this the "Phase of Passivity." This is not a helpless or "do-nothing" faith; This is an active and positive surrender. This is the state of complete trust that entrusts the initiative to God. And this is the spirit of Gethsemane: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, not my will but yours be done.”

May your Lenten journey be a beautiful, active surrender to God who loves you, not rules over you.

02/15/2026

Tue, 17 Feb 2026 15:50:23 GMT

6th Sunday in Ordinary Time

These past few weeks, the Sunday’s Gospels are in the context of the Sermon on the mountain, which began with the Beatitude. And he spotted the role of disciples in the world through the address of the Salt and Light in last Sunday’s gospel. And today, Jesus highlights the practice of the law.

“Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law.”

What does he mean by that the smallest letter will not pass from the law? Would it literally mean the importance of the letter itself? If so, I would’ve been in big trouble; As you know, I sometimes make mistakes in pronunciation while I read the gospel or my homily.

Let me share one of those ‘humiliating’ stories, which you always like:

I think it was a few weeks after I arrived in the States. I was proclaiming the Gospel, which was about a man possessed by a demon who ran and prostrated before Jesus. But that time, my English was not good, and I didn’t know many vocabularies. So, without knowing, I read it like, “Catching sight of Jesus from a distance, he ran up and prostate himself before him,” Yes, I missed 'R' from 'prostrate.' I heard giggling. But I had no idea why. And I didn’t even know what prostate means at that time. To make matters worse, I had written "prostate" throughout my entire homily. I might have sounded like a urologist rather than a priest that day.

But when it comes to the Law, Jesus isn’t acting like a Spelling Bee judge. He isn't demanding a timid, over-meticulous obsession with the law itself. In his time, the Pharisees used the Law as a cage to trap people or a pedestal to look down on them. And people got used to that blind adherence to the law.

So, Jesus called their attention to the spirit of the Law, to move beyond the law and deeper into the heart, so that they live more actively in their faith journey. By this, he encourages his followers to surpass the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. Then Jesus gives some examples: speaking of the sin of killing, Jesus calls attention to spiritual killing. And speaking of the sin of adultery, Jesus guides us to look into our minds to guard against spiritual adultery.

From a broader perspective, we can apply them to our faith life in general. We often let our faith life become a series of "regulations" that make us feel guilty, rigid, or stuck in "spiritual inertia." Then, we become passive, merely trying to avoid the violations. Jesus urges us to practice an active faith life, leading us to see the core of our faith. Surpassing the righteousness of the Pharisees means moving from "I have to" to "I want to."

So, as you go about your week, I invite you to carry this question in your heart: 'Is my faith a burden of "I must," or the freedom of "I want"?' Do you follow the Lord out of a sense of duty, or out of a desire for His heart?"

02/08/2026

Sun, 08 Feb 2026 19:22:30 GMT

5th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Do you like coffee?

I do. You know, it is like a magic potion to me. I mostly drink just black coffee. (That’s why I keep my good shape ) I drink sugar-added coffee just once in a while.

How do you like your coffee? Some might have just sugar, just cream or milk, or a Caramel Macchiato, Frappuccino, etc. There are many options.

And, I found an interesting menu that came out a couple of years ago: ‘Salted Caramel.’ I don’t know if you like it, but when I first tasted it, it was peculiar, yet I liked it, cause the salt made it sweeter.

Likewise, although we cannot eat salt as it is, as it melts in food, it makes the food tastier.

I’d like to approach today’s Gospel from this perspective. Jesus says, "You are the salt of the earth.” This is an invitation for us to ponder our role in this world as Christians.

Beyond just being 'necessary,' salt implies sacrifice. For salt to do its job, it must be broken, crushed, and dissolved into the food. We, too, have been given this vocation. We are called to be poured out and sacrificed to make the world better, to restore the world to the 'goodness' God originally intended.

By the same token, being the 'light of the world' also demands sacrifice. You know, there was no electric light in the time of Jesus, so let’s think of a candle; A candle only provides light by burning itself up. It gives itself to dispel the darkness.

In this sense, today’s gospel helps us reflect on our sacrifice as Christians in the world. But in another sense, it buckles us up to keep our holiness. Jesus warns us, “If salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned?” He urges us not to lose our 'original properties'—our identity as Christians, which is rooted in holiness.

Today’s parable of Jesus perfectly describes our position, who are standing on the threshold between the secular world and our faith journey:

We are called to be broken and dissolved into the world without being assimilated by secularity. Our mission is to transform the world, making it 'tastier' and brighter, without losing our own essence. And We call this evangelization.

So, I’d like to leave you with two takeaways from Jesus’s words today:

1.As disciples, we must hold onto the holiness that defines our identity.

2.That holiness is not meant to be solitary or detached; it must be manifested within the world through our willingness to sacrifice.

Let us go forth, to make a “Salted Caramel Latte .”

02/01/2026

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 15:05:59 GMT

4th Sunday in Ordinary Time

A couple of days ago, while I was visiting another parish, a woman came into the sacristy and asked, “Father, can I say something to the people about ICE before Mass starts?”

I hesitated. As you know, that is a very sensitive issue these days. But I told myself: “We know what is right, and as Christians, we should have the courage to speak up.” Even though I couldn’t say anything since I have to be extra careful as a foreigner, I gave her my permission. She immediately went out and addressed the people: “Be careful, the black ice is on the stairs and driveway.”

She meant the real ice; I was thinking about the news. I was so stuck on social issues that I missed the reality in front of me.

This slightly embarrassing moment forced me to reflect on my own focus.

You know, Whatever fills your mind eventually controls how you think and act.

In this respect, today’s Gospel—the Sermon on the Mount—was revolutionary. It transformed how people believed back then, and it challenges how we believe today.

Why do you think the sermon on the mountain is so important? Just because it is a good consolation to the people? or just because of its length?

– It is because the sermon on the mountain is the first official sermon of Jesus.

Think back to your school days. What does a teacher do in the very first class of the semester? They hand out the syllabus. They explain the subject so the students know what they are learning and how to study.

We should approach Jesus’ first sermon the same way . The very first and foremost message of his sermon is the blessings. This was a radical shift in perspective.

F rom the time of the Old Testament, the Israelites were trained primarily “not to violate the law.” They lived like students being monitored during a strict exam—passively following the rules, terrified of making a mistake.

This kind of "faith of avoidance" keeps you safe from punishment, but it keeps you trapped in a passive faith life.

In this sense, the Sermon on the Mountain opens our eyes to the true way of faith: “walking actively toward the blessing of God.”

Jesus moves our sight from what we should “avoid” to where we are “going.” He moves us from being "careful" to being "active." He transforms our faith from the “faith of avoidance” to the “faith of pursuit.”

So, what does your faith look like today? Are you merely being careful to avoid violations? Or are you actively and boldly walking forward to taste His blessing?

The choice is given. And Jesus is still proclaiming to us today: “Blessed are you; your reward will be great in heaven.”