💖 HOMILY - AUGUST 3 💖

First Reading - Jeremiah 31:1-7

Gospel - Matthew 15:21-28

Recently European Youth Summer Olympic Festival has ended in which many players participated. There are some qualities which we can certainly observe in the players, such as, perseverance and persistence in their efforts. It's because of that they have come to the level of representing their respective countries. The readings of day invite us to cultivate the qualities of perseverance and persistence in faith and they will never allow us to get discouraged and disheartened in our lives.

The first is a beautiful passage which is filled with assurance for the disheartened people in exile. This passage reminds of the promise of renewal almost incredible to the exiles who received it to sustain their hopes in the dark days of Babylonian captivity. All people are invited to trust in the promise of God who loves and cares for them.

The gospel exemplifies the faith of the canaanite woman. The woman was not a jew but a non-Jew but her faith in Jesus was commendable and in contrast to the faith of the disciples who were reprimanded for their little faith just prior to this event. The conversation between Jesus and the woman is filled with humour and teasing. In the first case, Jesus draws a very crude example to refuse to grant what she wanted by saying - it's not fair to throw children's food to the house dogs. This statement apparently seems disgraceful but is clothed with a sense of humour and teasing. The reply of the woman was not of anger or disdain but insistence and deep faith - yes sir; but still the house dogs can eat the scraps from the master's table. This statement of the woman displayed the faith and trust she had in Jesus. This canaanite woman stands as a satirical figure in contrast to the faith of the disciples who failed to recognise the real identity of Jesus. It's because of her stubborn and firm faith Jesus acclaimed her and granted her request.

My dear friends, we certainly take pride of our faith in Jesus. The irony of our faith lies in our wavering faith like Israelites who didn't believe in the message of the prophet Jeremiah. Consequently, they end in exile. In fact, the exile comes as a punishment for the lack of faith of the people. However, the prophet Jeremiah constantly invites people to faith in God by overcoming their lack of faith; to learn from the past mistakes and grow in faith. In fact, he tells them that their difficulties should strengthen them in faith. When we are faced with the challenges of our lives, we too evince distrust and lack of confidence in God. We sometimes fail to believe that God who walks with us and loves us will help us also to overcome any challenge that comes on our way. This is a kind of faith we see in the Canaanite woman; she was persistent and she believed that Jesus would not discourage her and the result was as she believed. Today we need a faith that is stubborn and firm and this will help us become confident in life, however worse may be the situation and insurmountable the problem. It's with our perseverance and persistence in faith we can overcome all trials, difficulties and pains of our lives. A true sign of faith is shown by St. John Mary Vianney who persevered in faith and won the souls for Christ by sitting for confession and reconciling people with God.

May God help us persevere in our faith in every circumstance of our lives.