Father Weerackoon’s Homilies and Talks

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jesus invites us into a “take and give” relationship with Him in which we are to take up our cross and follow Him, and give a cup of cold water to His messengers and to those whom we struggle to love. And if we abide in this “take and give” relationship, then Jesus promises to take us to Himself and give us a heavenly reward.

12th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jesus speaks into His disciples's fear of being killed for preaching the truth by telling them to trust in God's providence. Because the antidote to self-reliance is abandonment to God’s providence. When we approach the Father in prayer and give Him our weaknesses, our faults, and the darkest parts of ourselves, we too will no longer live in fear and we’ll no longer be afraid because we’ll recognize the Lord is with us like a mighty champion.

11th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Just like the twelve tribes of Israel were called to be kingdom of priests to the nations before they chose to rebel and build a Golden Calf, Jesus’s ministry is geared towards the restoration of a new Israel, which is why He calls twelve men to be His priests. We are called to be a priestly people ourselves, and we will be able to give a priestly example if we ask for a heart that is moved with pity and compassion like our Lord's and pray for the master to send out laborers for his harvest, because God says to each of us: you are my special possession.

Corpus Christi

Jesus makes it abundantly clear we need the Eucharist in saying "unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you." But Jesus needs the Eucharist for two reasons: one, so that He can be with us always as our friend and so that we can share in His divinity, and two, as our Savior, He loves us much because it cost Him much to give us the Eucharist.
 
This homily was given at the First Mass of Thanksgiving for Fr. Patrick Sorrells of the Diocese of Fargo.

Trinity Sunday

God reveals His name because He is a God of relationship, and He draws us into the relationship that He is between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. A simple way to pray is to thank the God the Father for the blessings of that day, to ask God the Son pardon for our sins, and to ask God the Holy Spirit to show what we should take away and reflect upon from that day.

Pentecost

The first thing Jesus did when He rose from the dead was breathe...and then He breathes on the Apostles in the Upper Room on Easter Sunday to give them His life. But the Apostles still needed to undergo a transformation, which takes place in the time between the Ascension and Pentecost when they learn from Mary to pray. We also need to go to Mary to learn how to pray, because prayer will change our lives and the world.

7th Sunday of Easter

How does the Father answer Jesus's prayer to "Give glory to your son"? It's through Christ's suffering, crucifixion and death.
Why is the suffering of Christ His glory? It’s because at the cross, Jesus reveals that we have a God who draws us to Himself, a God who’s willing to fight for you to the , point of death because you are that valuable to Him. And when we conform our sufferings to Christ, we glorify the Father who will bring us into eternal glory.

Ascension Thursday

Why didn't Jesus appear to Pilate or Herod or the chief priests after the Resurrection? Why did Jesus only appear to His disciples? It's so that they and all of us can continue His saving work, so that by living the Christian life, we can help others to live the Christian life so that we the body can follow where Christ our Head has gone because Christ says to each of us: you will be my witnesses.

6th Sunday of Easter

Jesus says the Father will give us another Advocate to be with us always to help us when we feel deserted and alone; when we feel abandoned and unloved and think we have no one to care for us. But with His dying breath, Jesus also gives His mother as another advocate to us, because Christ promises: I will not leave you orphans. 

5th Sunday of Easter

When Jesus says that He's going to prepare a place for us and take us to where He is, He's talking about wedding because Jesus is the bridegroom. So ask yourself: What kind of place has Jesus prepared for me? Because Jesus isn't scrambling to get something ready for you. He's been preparing a place specifically for you.