Homily on the 24th Sunday in OT – 15 Sept 2024, Mass for Children, San Pedro Calungsod Parish, Pulangbato
Allow me to begin with some trivia questions on the Pope:
| 1. What is the name of our current Pope? | a. Pope John; b. Pope James; c. Pope Francis; d. Pope Peter |
| 2. Which country or countries did the Pope recently visit? | a. Indonesia; b. Papua New Guinea; c. East Timor; d. Singapore; e. all of the above |
| 3. Of the countries which the Pope visited, which one had the largest percentage of Catholics (97%) in their population? | a. Indonesia; b. Papua New Guinea; c. East Timor; d. Singapore |
| 4. Of the countries which the Pope visited, which one had the smallest percentage of Catholics (3%) in their population? | a. Indonesia; b. Papua New Guinea; c. East Timor; d. Singapore |
| 5. Since the beginning of his Papacy in 2013 how many countries has the Pope already visited so far? | a. five (5); b. fifty (50); c. one-hundred (100); d. more than one-hundred |
It is good for us to know that our beloved Pope, whom we know is the Vicar of Christ and successor of St Peter, has been travelling around the world, not for sightseeing, neither for business nor pleasure, but for an important mission, that is, to bring hope to people. We are amazed that despite his old age and weak physical condition our Pope still has the strength to visit different countries including those far away from the Vatican in order to bring the message of Christ to as many people as possible. In his recent trip to South East Asia and Oceania he tried to make it clear that Christ’s Good News is one of peace, love, harmony and that salvation is for all, including those who are not baptized Catholics like us.
And would you believe, in the four countries mentioned above, tens of thousands came over to see the Pope and listen to his important message. In Papua New Guinea, those who attended the Pope’s Mass reached up to 35,000. While in Singapore 50,000 people came to meet him in their big stadium, in Indonesia around 87,000 people filled up their huge stadium to meet the head of the Catholic Church. Most impressive of all, in East Timor, up to 600,000 came to attend his concluding Mass held in the open air.
One more thing surprised us all – not all those who came to meet with the Pope were Catholics; many were actually from other religions, including Muslims. And that is why in his talks and homilies, Pope Francis tried to emphasize the importance of keeping the harmony among people of different religions and encouraged everyone to work together to establish peace and make this world a better place for us and the future generations.
In the Gospel we have heard today we see the apostles walking with Jesus towards a certain place called Caesarea Philippi. And along the way Jesus surprised them with a question that left most of them silent and dumbfounded: “Who do people say that I am?”
Ever since Jesus left Nazareth his hometown, Jesus had been constantly travelling around Galilee reaching out even to the farthest places in the land of Israel, just to preach the Good News. And whenever he would meet people in need, he would stop to heal those who were sick, save those who were in danger, forgive their sins, bless them and help them in their needs. All that Jesus did was to speak about the goodness of God and proved it by his good works and miraculous deeds.
And that is why at a certain point in one of his relaxing moments with his apostles, Jesus asked this question: “Who do people say that I am?” However, none of the answers satisfied Jesus. And so he asked the same question and directed it to his apostles, his closest followers, “Who do YOU say that I am?” Luckily one of them by the name of Simon Peter gave the right answer: “You are the Christ.”
We on our part have also been following Jesus, in fact every Sunday we come to church to have some bonding moments with him in the celebration of the Holy Mass. And so today, Jesus is still asking us the same question: “Who do you say that I am?” In our hearts and minds, do we also have the right answer that would make Jesus feel happy and contented? Can we truly say that we are getting to know Jesus ever more deeply every time we encounter him and listen to his words?
Getting to know Jesus more deeply is very important. If we truly know Jesus we will be ready to trust him no matter what happens. This means, even if we have to face many difficult challenges, suffer much and be rejected by others, we will still persevere in following him, because we know well that he, who is all-powerful, will help us overcome all trials. And one day he will bring us victory and glory.
And that is precisely what he is teaching us today when he said: “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel will save it.” This is also what Pope Francis had been trying to do all these years as leader of the Catholic Church: to follow Jesus more closely, and unmindful of his own comfort and condition, tell everyone how much we are loved by Jesus.
This is also what San Pedro Calungsod, our patron saint, tried to do many years ago. As a teen-ager he took the courage to leave behind all his loved ones for an important mission, that is, to help bring the Good News in the island of Guam, to a people who still did not know Jesus. There, in that mission land, unmindful of his own comfort, safety and security, he assisted Fr Diego Luis de San Vitores in teaching catechism, in celebrating Mass and administering the sacraments. And when the unexpected day came, he offered his life as a martyr trying to profess his faith as well as defend the Jesuit missionary priest from the violent attack of the natives. San Pedro Calungsod might have lost his life in this world at a very young age, but he gained it for all eternity in the glory of heaven.
Let us pray in this Mass that we too may get to know Jesus more deeply, follow him more closely, trust him more fully, and serve him more faithfully all the days of our life. GiGsss!
Answer key to trivia questions: 1. c; 2. e; 3. c; 4. a; 5. d
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