HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 32ND WEEK IN THE ORDINARY TIME YEAR II/(Memorial of St. Leo the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church)

Homily for Thursday of the 32nd Week in Ordinary Time year II 

(Memorial of St. Leo the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church) 

Philemon 7-20; Luke 17:20-25

In the First Reading, St. Paul while he was in prison wrote a letter to Philemon to forgive Onesimus, Philemon's runaway slave. Onesimus left Philemon for a while as a result of some disagreement. This disagreement led to the imprisonment of Onesimus who through Paul's preaching got converted to the Christian faith. Paul appealed to Philemon to accept Onesimus back, no longer as a slave but as a brother in Christ Jesus.

Receiving Onesimus back by Philemon as a brother in Christ Jesus is the height of forgiveness since slaves then were treated as objects to be used and discarded once their masters no longer need them. Forgiving hurts and extending hands of friendship to those who offend us the way Paul asks Philemon to do with Onesimus is one of the things we do to make God's kingdom present in our world just as Jesus declared in today's Gospel.

Jesus warns when they will say to you, "Behold, there!" or "Behold, here"!" Do not go, do not follow them (Luke 17:23). The kingdom of God is in your midst when we allow God to guide our lives and do His will always.

We celebrate the memorial of St. Leo the Great who became Pope in 440. Though unable to attend the Council of Chalcedon in 451, his letter (or Tome) defining Christ's twofold nature was acclaimed as the Church's teaching: 'Peter has spoken through Leo.' His famous meeting with Attila the Hun outside Rome the following year saved the city from destruction then, although, despite his efforts, it was pillaged by Vandals in 455. Leo's theological writings earned him the title of Doctor of the Church.

May God through the intercession of St. Leo the Great grant us the grace to make present His kingdom here on earth by living a life worthy of our Christian faith through Christ our Lord. Amen.