Homily – “The Fire That Divides, the Fire That Saves”

Brothers and sisters,

Jesus does not say, “I came to make things easier.”
He says: “I came to bring fire on the earth—and how I wish it were blazing!”

Not comfort.
Not compromise.
But fire.

The first reading: Jeremiah.
God’s prophet. Truth-teller.

What’s his reward? He’s thrown into a muddy pit, left to sink, left to die.

Why? Because truth burns.

People don’t mind religion when it’s vague.
They don’t mind God when He asks nothing.
But the moment truth demands change, the world says: “Silence him. Throw him out.”

That same instinct is alive today.
Stand for the unborn.
Defend marriage.
Proclaim the Eucharist.

And watch the world sneer: “Too much. Too extreme. Keep it private.”

But Jeremiah reminds us:
Better to be in the mud with God—than in a palace without Him.

Then Jesus speaks. And His words cut like a sword:

“Do you think I have come to bring peace? No—I tell you, division.”

Wait—didn’t the angels sing “Peace on earth” at His birth?
Yes. But not peace at any price.
Not peace with sin.
Not peace built on lies.

Christ’s peace is reconciliation with God.
But before peace—there must be fire.

The fire of truth.
The fire of repentance.
The fire of the Spirit.

And fire divides.

Light or darkness.
With Christ or against Him.
There is no neutral ground.

Hebrews tells us:

“Run with perseverance, keeping your eyes fixed on Jesus.”

The Christian life is not a hobby.
Not an extra.
Not part-time.

It is a race.
It is a fight.
It is fire.

The saints knew this.

St. Lawrence joked as his body burned.
St. Catherine of Siena faced down popes and kings.
St. Maximilian Kolbe walked into Auschwitz and said: “I will take his place.”

They were not lukewarm.
They burned—and the world changed.

Where is this fire today?
Right here—in the sacraments.

• Baptism lit it in your soul.
• Confirmation sealed you with the Spirit’s flame.
• The Eucharist feeds that fire with Christ Himself—Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity.

That’s why the Catholic Church cannot water down truth.
Because we are not keepers of opinions.
We are guardians of fire.

The fire of Christ’s presence.
The fire of saving grace.
The fire that purifies, heals, and makes holy.

And yes, fire divides.

Some of you know it.
Division in families—when one follows Christ and another refuses.
Division at work—when Catholic convictions make you stand out.
Division in society—when the Church dares to say: not every path leads to Heaven, only Christ does.

The Gospel is not “all roads are equal.”
The Gospel is: No one comes to the Father except through Jesus.

Truth will always divide before it unites.
Fire burns away what is false—so only what is true can remain.

The Catholic faith is not one religion among many.
It is not “choose-your-own spirituality.”

Jesus did not say: “I came to give options.”
He said: “I came to bring fire.”

And that fire was entrusted to His Church.

The Church that still binds and looses.
The Church that still forgives sins in His name.
The Church that still calls bread His Body and wine His Blood—and means it.

Not symbol. Not memory. Not poetry.
But Christ Himself—substantially present on the altar.

That is Catholic fire.

So here’s the question: is that fire alive in you?

Or has it cooled?

How do we keep it burning?

• Pray daily—“Come, Holy Spirit, set me on fire.”
• Confess regularly—sin smothers the flame, confession clears it.
• Receive the Eucharist worthily—the fire Himself enters your soul.
• Live with courage—speak the truth in love, even when it costs.

Because lukewarm Catholicism does not save souls.
And lukewarm Catholicism never converted the world.

Only fire does.

Catholicism is not casual.
Jesus is not looking for half-disciples.

He wants Catholics who burn.
Hearts that blaze.
Lives that shine.

The Catholic faith is not an add-on to our life—it’s the centre. Everything else takes its place around it. So ask yourself:

Is my lamp burning—or my heart cooling?
Is my soul awake—or drifting in comfort?
Am I on fire—or just going through the motions?

Because when He returns, He will not ask if we played it safe.
He will ask if we burned.

The world offers comfort. Christ offers a Cross.
The world offers tolerance. Christ offers truth.
The world offers compromise with sin. Christ offers fire.

And His fire is not to destroy you.
It is to save you.

The fire that divides is the fire that purifies.
The fire that burns is the fire that makes holy.
The fire that consumes is the fire that brings eternal life.

So today—choose to burn.

Because a Church on fire for the Lord cannot be ignored.
A Catholic on fire cannot be silenced.
And a soul on fire cannot be lost.

“I came to bring fire to the earth—and how I wish it were blazing.”

Let it blaze in us.