Day: April 19, 2015

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Tuesday, 21 April 2015 : 3rd Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Anselm, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 6 : 30-35

At that time, the people said to Jesus, “Show us miraculous signs, that we may see and believe You. What sign do You perform? Our ancestors ate manna in the desert; as Scripture says : They were given bread from heaven to eat.”

Jesus then said to them, “Truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven. My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. The bread God gives is the One who comes from heaven and gives His life to the world.” And they said to Him, “Give us this bread always.”

Jesus said to them, “I am the Bread of Life; whoever comes to Me shall never be hungry, and whoever believes in Me shall never be thirsty.”

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Tuesday, 21 April 2015 : 3rd Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Anselm, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 30 : 3cd-4, 6ab and 7b-8a, 17 and 21ab

Be a rock of refuge for me, a fortress for my safety. For You are my rock and my stronghold, lead me for Your Name’s sake.

Into Your hands I commend my spirit; You have redeemed me. But I put all my trust in the Lord. I will rejoice and be glad in Your love.

Make Your face shine upon Your servant; save me in Your love. In the shelter of Your presence You hide them from human wiles; You keep them in Your dwelling.

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Tuesday, 21 April 2015 : 3rd Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Anselm, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 7 : 51 – Acts 8 : 1a

Stephen said to the Council, “But you are a stubborn people, you hardened your hearts and closed your ears. You have always resisted the Holy Spirit just as your fathers did. Was there a prophet whom your ancestors did not persecute? They killed those who announced the coming of the Just One whom you have now betrayed and murdered, you who received the Law through the angels but did not fulfill it.”

When they heard this reproach, they were enraged and they gnashed their teeth against Stephen. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, fixed his eyes on heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus at God’s right hand, so he declared : “I see the heavens open and the Son of Man at the right hand of God.”

But they shouted and covered their ears with their hands and rushed together upon him. They brought him out of the city and stoned him, and the witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they were stoning him, Stephen prayed saying : “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and said in a loud voice : “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he died.

Saul was there, approving his murder. This was the beginning of a great persecution against the Church in Jerusalem.

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Monday, 20 April 2015 : 3rd Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the message is clear, from the Sacred Scriptures that we have heard. Seek not what is earthly and worldly, but instead search for things that will bring us to heaven and its glory. Therefore, we are reminded not to be bought over by all the temptations which Satan and his allies had placed around us in this world, but find the way to the Lord, to be truly reunited with Him in love.

Our true goal in life is for us to lead an upright and just life, filled with obedience to the Lord and love for Him. We should seek to follow the Lord and walk in the way which He had shown us through Jesus, His Son. We should not be distracted by the many concerns of the world, fear and desire which often lead our hearts and attentions away from the Lord.

The people of Israel at the time of the Exodus often disobeyed the Lord and complained against Him, walking in the path of sin and worshipping pagan idols, because they did not have their heart completely for the Lord. They were divided and distracted by the desires of their heart. That was why they made such disobedient comments such as regretting why the Lord had brought them out of Egypt when they had much to eat there, and they felt that they were dying of hunger in the desert.

Their minds were clouded by the inability to resist the temptations of their stomachs and the weakness of their bodies. They chose the pleasures of the world rather than to listen to the Lord and His urgings, which He made through Moses His servant. They disobeyed Him, and as a result, many of them met ignominable end in death. We have to remember that it was our ancestors’ desire for knowledge of good and evil that had led them to sin. And it was thus the same desire for worldly things, gluttony and lust, as well as greed which had led them to their undoing.

The people who debated with St. Stephen and later accused him of blaspheming against God could not accept this truth about themselves, that they had been tainted with human desires, ego and pride, and having been unable to overcome St. Stephen in wisdom and knowledge, they gave in to their pride, and jealousy built up in their heart, to the point that they used all those to strike back at God’s faithful servant.

They sought human approval and worldly glory and fame, as many other people also do. We can also ask ourselves, if we too have been trapped in such a situation. Surely most of us if not all have been at one point of time or another, seek such worldly satisfaction and fulfillment, at the cost of heavenly approval. We crave for human recognition, praise by others and fame. All these feed our ego and pride, and made us even more susceptible for more temptations in the future, and we fall deeper into sin.

We have to heed what Jesus had told the people today, brothers and sisters in Christ. To seek not food that is perishable, but seek that which leads to eternal life. St. Stephen might not have spoken in a way that endeared him to the people, and certainly not to the chief priests and the elders, but he spoke the truth, and he did not hesitate to preach the truth of Christ to others around him.

This is what we have to do as well, that is to be courageous in our faith, and to devote ourselves fully to the Lord and to His cause. We cannot be half hearted in this. We also have to resist our pride, our ego, our desires and all the temptations which Satan had placed on our path. In doing these, we will become better disciples of our Lord and we will walk righteously in His presence.

May this Easter be a time of great renewal, of our faith and ourselves, that we may become ever closer to the Lord and be more faithful in all of our actions, so that the Lord who sees it all, will bless us and welcome us into His heavenly kingdom and give us the inheritance that we deserve. God bless us all. Amen.