My dear brothers and sisters, today we celebrate the bravery of St. Andrew Dũng-Lạc and the Vietnamese martyrs, and our readings give us a b...
My dear brothers and sisters, today we celebrate the bravery of St. Andrew Dũng-Lạc and the Vietnamese martyrs, and our readings give us a beautiful blueprint for holiness through three words: Sacrifice, Smallness, and Strength.
First, Sacrifice. In the First Reading, we see the young Daniel and his friends in a foreign land. They were offered the finest food from the King’s table—lechon, wine, the best delicacies of Babylon. But they refused. Why? Because eating it would compromise their faith and identity. They chose vegetables and water—a sacrifice of comfort for the sake of fidelity. Similarly, the widow in the Gospel didn't just give from her surplus; she gave her whole livelihood. Sacrifice isn't about the size of the gift; it’s about the cost to the giver.
Second, Smallness. The world loves "big" things—big houses, big titles, big donations. But look at who God honors today: a poor widow with two small coins, and a group of young men in exile. In the eyes of the temple officials, the widow was invisible. In the eyes of Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel was just a captive. But God loves smallness. He works best when we are humble. St. Andrew Dũng-Lạc was a simple priest in Vietnam, yet his "small" yes to God echoed into eternity.
Finally, Strength. Where does true strength come from? We think strength comes from protein, or money, or political power. But Daniel grew stronger and healthier on vegetables than the men eating the King’s steak. The widow, though poor, had the spiritual strength to trust God with her last centavo. The martyrs we celebrate today faced torture and death, yet they possessed a strength that terrified their executioners. This strength comes from God. When we sacrifice and embrace our smallness, God fills us with His strength.
Today, you might feel you have little to offer—maybe just a little time, a little patience, or a little prayer. Do not be afraid. Like the widow’s coins and the martyrs’ blood, God will take your small sacrifice and turn it into strength for His Kingdom.
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