Homily for Thursday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time

Herod ruled Galilee on behalf of Rome. Saint Luke characterized his attitude toward Jesus as somewhat trivial. When he heard about Jesus' activities and people's great interest in Him, Herod became perplexed and attempted to see Him. They finally met during Jesus' Passion, when Pilate sent Jesus to Herod for his opinion about His guilt. Herod questioned Jesus at length but, in the end, treated Him with contempt. Herod was curious about Jesus, but it was not serious, nor did it lead to faith.

Others showed interest in Jesus, and their curiosity did lead them to faith. But, even for people of faith, there is much to wonder about in the life of Jesus. The question asked by Herod, "Who then is this?" is one for us all to think about. We must be searchers when it comes to Jesus since we can never know Him fully.

Let us pray that we will constantly seek to understand Jesus and His role in our redemption so that we may grow in our relationship with Him, and in our hope for salvation.