Day: November 12, 2017

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Wednesday, 15 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Albert the Great, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Wisdom 6 : 1-11

Listen, o kings, and understand; rulers of the most distant lands, take warning. Pay attention, you who rule multitudes and boast of the numerous subjects in your pagan nations!

For authority was given you by the Lord, your kingship is from the Most High Who will examine your works and scrutinise your intentions. If, as officials of His kingdom, you have not judged justly or observed His law or walked the way God pointed our, He will oppose you swiftly and terribly; His sentence strikes the mighty suddenly.

For the lowly there may be excuses and pardon, but the great will be severely punished. For the Lord of all makes no distinction, nor does He take account of greatness. Both great and lowly are His work and He watches over all, but the powerful are to be judged more strictly.

It is to you then, sovereigns, that I speak, that you may learn Wisdom and not stumble. For those who keep the holy laws in a holy way will be acknowledged holy, and those who accept the teaching will find in it their defence. Welcome my words, desire them and they will instruct you.

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Tuesday, 14 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, in today’s Scripture passages, we heard how all of us mankind are God’s servants, and all of us are created by God’s love, and we are created as God’s children and servants. And as children and servants, all of us must obey the will of God our Father, Creator and Master. Yet, we know how mankind have sinned and disobeyed the Lord, through our sins.

And the just consequence for sin is death, as sin separates us from God, the Lord and Master of all life. Without God, we cannot exist, and we shall only suffer in the absence of God’s love and grace. And that is what was going to happen to all of us to our immortal soul, cast in the darkness away from God’s love. For while the body and the flesh is finite and mortal, but the soul is immortal.

If we do not walk in God’s ways and continue to sin against Him, then our lot will be that of eternal damnation and suffering, not because of the fires of hell which is often in our imagination and understanding of what hell is about, but rather because we have no hope of escape from the torment in hell. And the suffering to be experienced in hell is caused by the total separation between us, from God’s love. That eternal suffering come about because of the sundering, where in an eternity of despair we know that there is no escape for us from that state.

This is the eternal torment, knowing that there is no way forward for us except to endure forever this separation from God’s love. And this is what each and every one of us Christians should do our best in order to avoid falling into this state. Yet, many of us continue to ignore God’s reminders and warnings, even though He has endlessly tried to remind us via various means, calling us to return to Him and to be reconciled with Him.

We live at a time when we tend to put God aside, and focus on the many distractions that exist in this world, to the point that we forget about Him. We often find excuse so as we do not have to follow His ways, and we are often too preoccupied in doing our daily businesses that we end up failing to be good disciples of the Lord. As a result, that is why there are so many of us who are in danger of falling into eternal damnation, if we do not do anything about our current state of grace and faith.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us ought to take note that we should no longer allow the temptations of this world to sway us to do whatever it is that the devil wants us to do. Instead, we should let the Holy Spirit to be the Guide of our lives, rather than allowing our human desires to guide our ways. We must persevere through many challenges and even oppositions to our way of life, if we are to live according to God’s ways.

But let us now ask ourselves, have we let the Lord through His Holy Spirit to guide our lives? Too often, we are so stubborn in our ways that we want to forge our own path. Yet we have to realise that in God alone lies our only hope, and it is He alone Who is worthy of trust. If we rely solely on our human power, abilities and talents, we are bound to fail, for without God, nothing that we can do will truly be successful.

And ultimately in the end, we have to render accounts of each of our own lives, what we have achieved and done, in this opportunity given to us by the Lord. If we are not faithful, and wander away in sin, we will be judged by those sins, and our souls will be in great danger of damnation. Is that what we want, brethren? An eternity in suffering? Does it worth a lifetime of joy and pleasure, that is insignificant compared to an eternity of damnation?

Let us all renew our commitment to the Lord from now on, brothers and sisters in Christ, so that in everything we say, do and act, we will try our best to be righteous and to obey the commandments of Our Lord, that is to put the Lord as the priority and focus of our lives, and to love Him and our fellow men wholeheartedly. May the Lord help us in our endeavour, and may He continue to guide us on our path. Amen.

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Tuesday, 14 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 17 : 7-10

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Who among you would say to your servant, coming in from the fields after plowing or tending sheep, ‘Go ahead and have your dinner’? No, you tell him, ‘Prepare my dinner. Put on your apron, and wait on me while I eat and drink. You can eat and drink afterward.'”

“Do you thank this servant for doing what you told him to do? I do not think so. And therefore, when you have done all that you have been told to do, you should say, ‘We are no more than servants; we have only done our duty.'”

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Tuesday, 14 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 33 : 2-3, 16-17, 18-19

I will praise YHVH all my days; His praise will be ever on my lips. My soul makes its boast in YHVH; let the lowly hear and rejoice.

The eyes of YHVH are fixed on the righteous; His ears are inclined to their cries. But His face is set against the wicked, to destroy their memory from the earth.

YHVH hears the cry of the righteous and rescues them from all their troubles. YHVH is close to the brokenhearted and saves the distraught.

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Tuesday, 14 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Wisdom 2 : 23 – Wisdom 3 : 9

Indeed God created man to be immortal in the likeness of His own nature, but the envy of the devil brought death to the world, and those who take his side shall experience death.

The souls of the just are in the hands of God and no torment shall touch them. In the eyes of the unwise they appear to be dead. Their going is held as a disaster; it seems that they lose everything by departing from us, but they are in peace.

Though seemingly they have been punished, immortality was the soul of their hope. After slight affliction will come great blessings, for God has tried them and found them worthy to be with Him; after testing them as gold in the furnace, He has accepted them as a holocaust.

At the time of His coming they will shine like sparks that run in the stubble. They will govern nations and rule over peoples, and the Lord will be their King forever. Those who trust in Him will penetrate the truth, those who are faithful will live with Him in love, for His grace and mercy are for His chosen ones.

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Monday, 13 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the Sacred Scriptures, in which we heard that first of all, we must be responsible in living our lives, in our actions towards others, that we always show righteousness and justice in all things, especially as Christians, because if we do not do so, we will end up causing scandal for our faith and for the Church.

In today’s passage from the Book of Wisdom, our first reading, spoke of how the Lord through His Holy Spirit has inspired all of us to do what is right and just in the sight of the Lord, and all of us who have received the Holy Spirit ought to follow the example shown to us, or else, we will be judged and condemned because we have failed to do what the Lord commanded us to do.

And God knows all that we have done, and even all that is in our minds and hearts. There is nothing that we can hide from Him. Yet, many of us committed sin as if we think that God does not know or cannot know what we have done. If only that we realise how angry God is at our sins and wickedness, we will not even dare to think about sinning against Him, much less so, doing it. We always have to remember that God despises our sins and disobedience, but not ourselves.

What does this mean? Even though God loves each one of us but if we sin, we are distancing ourselves from Him. And all forms of disobedience and sin has their consequences, which ultimately lead to death. If we sin, we have to realise that our actions have consequences, and those who see and witness us sin, may also be lured to commit the same sin as well. And in the Gospel today, the Lord Jesus had harsh words for those who have misled others into sin, especially the innocent ones.

Therefore today, the first thing that all of us as Christians must learn and do, is that we have to abhor sin in all of its forms. This will be easier said than done, as sin is everywhere, in every aspects of our human and worldly lives. Temptations are always around us, as tools by which Satan and his allies are trying to steal us away from God and His salvation. We must actively resist this temptation to sin, by deepening our relationship with God, through active prayer life and charitable actions, loving and caring for our brothers and sisters who are in need.

Secondly, all of us must also learn to forgive one another, just as God has forgiven us. This is the calling which God had made to all of us, that as Christians we must love others and to forgive our faults and mistakes to one another. No man or woman has not done a single mistake in each of his or her life. We have been corrupted through our sins, and yet, all of our sins are willingly forgiven by God, because of His great love for us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, there is no point for us if we do a lot of good deeds and love, and yet, we are unable to forgive those who have slighted us, made us felt inconvenient and even causing us to suffer and be in pain. It is not easy to forgive others just as it is not easy for us to love. Yet, if we do not forgive others their sins and mistakes, how can we expect to be forgiven? Let us remember the phrase in the Lord’s Prayer, “Forgive us our sins just as we have forgiven those who sinned against us.”

If God is willing and wants to forgive us in the multitudes of our sins, as massive and unimaginably huge they are, then why we mankind are so hesitant to forgive others for faults that are so much smaller compared to our own faults and sins? Let us all reflect on this, and from now on, think of the many ways in which all of us are indeed able to obey God’s will, by starting to learn to forgive each other, even for simple matters, that eventually in everything we do, we will show what being true Christians is about.

Let us all therefore, from now on, devote our effort, time and commitment to the Lord, doing whatever we can in order to serve the Lord ever more by sinning no more, and trying our best to be faithful in everything we say and do, so that through our examples, instead of misleading and misguiding many others through scandal and impropriety, we can bring more souls towards God, by inspiring them to live righteously and in obedience to God. May the Lord bless us all, and help us in this endeavour. Amen.

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Monday, 13 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 17 : 1-6

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Scandals will necessarily come and cause people to fall; but woe to the one who brings them about. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone around his neck. Truly, this would be better for that person, than to cause one of these little ones to fall.”

“Listen carefully : if your brother offends you, tell him, and if he is sorry, forgive him. And if he offends you seven times in one day, but seven times he says to you, ‘I am sorry,’ forgive him.”

The Apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” And the Lord said, “If you have faith, even the size of a mustard seed, you may say to this tree, ‘Be uprooted, and plant yourself in the sea!’ and it will obey you.”

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Monday, 13 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 138 : 1-3, 4-6, 7-8, 9-10

O YHVH, You know me : You have scrutinised me. You know when I sit and when I rise; beforehand, You discern my thoughts. You observe my activities and times of rest; You are familiar with all my ways.

Before a word is formed in my mouth, You know what it is all about, o YHVH. From front to back You hedge me round, shielding me with Your protecting hand. Your knowledge leaves me astounded, it is too high for me to reach.

Where else could I go from Your Spirit? Where could I flee from Your presence? You are there, if I ascend the heavens; You are there, if I descend to the depths.

If I ride on the wings of the dawn, and settle on the far side of the sea, even there, Your hand shall guide me, and Your right hand shall hold me safely.

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Monday, 13 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Wisdom 1 : 1-7

Love justice, you who rule over the world! Think rightly of God, seek Him with simplicity of heart, for He reveals Himself to those who do not challenge Him and is found by those who do not distrust Him. Crooked thinking distances you from God; and His Omnipotence, put to the test, confounds the foolish.

Wisdom does not enter the wicked nor remain in a body that is enslaved to sin. The Holy Spirit Who instructs us shuns deceit; it keeps aloof from foolishness and is ill at ease when injustice is done. Wisdom is a spirit, a friend to man, and will not leave the blasphemous unpunished, because God knows his innermost feelings, truly sees his thoughts and hears what he says.

For God’s Spirit has filled the whole world; and He Who holds together all things, knows each word that is spoken.