Month: August 2021

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Thursday, 5 August 2021 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major)

Psalm 94 : 1-2, 6-7, 8-9

Come, let us sing to the Lord, let us make a joyful sound to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before Him giving thanks, with music and songs of praise.

Come and worship; let us bow down, kneel before the Lord, our Maker. He is our God, and we His people; the flock He leads and pastures. Would that today you heard His voice!

Do not be stubborn, as at Meribah, in the desert, on that day at Massah, when your ancestors challenged Me, and they put Me to the test.

Alternative reading (Mass for the Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major)

Judith 13 : 18bcde, 19

My daughter, may the Most High God bless you more than all women on earth. And blessed be the Lord God, the Creator of heaven and earth, Who has led you to behead the leader of our enemies.

Never will people forget the confidence you have shown; they will always remember the power of God.

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Thursday, 5 August 2021 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major)

Numbers 20 : 1-13

The whole congregation of Israel came to the wilderness of Zin in the first month and the people stayed in Kadesh. Miriam died and was buried there.

Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered together against Moses and Aaron. They disputed with Moses saying, “Would that we had perished with our kinsmen in the presence of YHVH! Why have you led YHVH’s community to this desert to die here with our cattle? And why did you bring us out of Egypt to this wretched place? It is no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates and there is not even water for drinking.”

Moses and Aaron fled from the assembly to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting and fell on their faces. Then the glory of YHVH appeared and YHVH spoke to Moses, “Take your rod and assemble the community, you and Aaron, your brother. In their presence command the rock to give forth water and you will make water gush from the rock for the community and their livestock to drink.”

So Moses took the rod from before YHVH as he had been ordered. Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly in front of the rock and said to them, “Listen, you rebels. Shall we bring water for you from this rock?” Moses raised his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod. And then water in abundance gushed out for the community and their livestock to drink.

But YHVH said to Moses and Aaron, “You did not trust Me nor treat Me as the Holy One in the sight of the Israelites; because of that you shall not lead this community into the land that I am giving you.” It was at the waters of Meribah that the sons of Israel quarrelled with YHVH and where He showed His holiness to them.

Alternative reading (Mass for the Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major)

Revelations 21 : 1-5a

Then, I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and no longer was there any sea. I saw the new Jerusalem, the holy city, coming down from God, out of heaven, adorned as a bride prepared for her husband.

A loud voice came from the throne, “Here is the dwelling of God among mortals : He will pitch His tent among them, and they will be His people; He will be God-with-them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There shall be no more death or mourning, crying out or pain, for the world that was, has passed away.”

The One seated on the throne said, “See, I make all things new.”

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Wednesday, 4 August 2021 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Vianney, Priest and Patron of All Priests (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us are called together to recall our Christian calling and mission, as entrusted to us by the Lord, our God, our Master and Saviour. He has called on all of us to follow Him and to be His disciples. As today we celebrate the feast of the great Patron of All Priests, namely St. John Maria Vianney, also known as St. John Vianney, the Cure of Ars, we are all called to reflect on our own calling and vocation in life.

In our first reading today we heard from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel, every men and everyone shall be judged based on their own deeds and actions, and all of them shall be held responsible for their contributions, as well as the failure to act and contribute when they were perfectly able to do so. Those who were righteous and fell into sin would be judged by those sins and also by their righteousness, while those who sinned and then repented, would also have a chance of salvation through his repentance and in abandoning the ways of the wicked.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard the Lord Who went through to many places, healing the sick and caring for those who needed Him and His guidance, as He ministered to them and showed His love to them. He sent His disciples to spread the same Good News and to do the same good works He had done, and in sending them, He has called and sent forth His servants, those who responded to His call and accept the Lord’s call, and walked in His path, doing whatever they could in order to do His will. And the Lord then spoke of how the harvest was plentiful, but there was a great lack of labourers to collect the harvest.

What does He mean by saying that, brothers and sisters in Christ? It means that while there are plenty of opportunities for evangelisation and for the salvation of souls, that is the true meaning of this ‘harvest of the Lord’, but there were few who wanted to participate in the labour and efforts to bring this about. Just as the disciples and the Apostles in the old times, we are all called to be the Lord’s disciples, the witnesses of His truth, His salvation and teachings among the nations. But many of us have not responded to His call, and even some still rejected Him and abandoned Him.

This is why today, we are all called to hearken to the Lord’s call, to be stirred and to be moved to action, that we no longer be indecisive or doubtful, or be filled with wickedness and all sorts of infidelities. Instead, we should take the first step and respond to the Lord’s call, by embracing the Lord’s truth, His teachings and commandments, to our hearts. We are all called to model ourselves after St. John Vianney, in his life, faith and dedication to the Lord, and we also pray for our priests, that they may also be like St. John Vianney in their faith and dedication as well.

St. John Vianney was the simple parish priest of the church in the village of Ars in France. He came from a very humble background, and he almost did not become a priest as his education was stunted and he encountered many challenging moments in the seminary and in his formation. He failed some of the subjects and did not excel in the academics, and yet, this did not deter him from becoming a most dedicated and committed priest and servant of God later on. St. John Vianney became an ordinary and unassuming parish priest of a small and insignificant village of Ars, and yet his life and contributions would soon have a far greater impact on so many.

St. John Vianney dedicated himself to his flock, caring for the needs, especially the spiritual needs of the people under his care. The parish church was dilapidated and many among the people were apathetic to the Church. Their faith had dwindled and many lived in wretched and wicked state. Yet, St. John Vianney never gave up, and on the contrary, he redoubled his efforts even more, as he spent a lot of time in preaching to them and in reaching out to them, and spending long hours in the confessional, where more and more people over time would come to visit him and confess their sins to him.

St. John Vianney remained humble despite his growing popularity, as thousands and more flocked daily to see him and to confess their sins to him, and to seek advice from him. He lived his life in humble dedication to the Lord, spending time to care for the needs of the people of God and to bring them ever closer to Him. Indeed, he is the role model for all of us and especially all of our priests, all those whom God had called and chosen, and who have responded to His call.

Let us all pray that each and every one of us may find our path in life, that we may dedicate ourselves ever more to the Lord in all things, and that we may be ever closer to Him, and for our priests that they may ever be inspired to follow the Lord and the examples of St. John Vianney, the great priest and servant of God. Let us all be the faithful labourers in the Lord’s field, spreading the Good News of God’s salvation to ever more people, that more and more can be saved, through Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour. Amen.

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Wednesday, 4 August 2021 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Vianney, Priest and Patron of All Priests (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 15 : 21-28

At that time, leaving that area, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from the area, came and cried out, “Lord, Son of David, have pity on me! My daughter is tormented by a demon.”

But Jesus did not answer her, not even a word. So His disciples approached Him and said, “Send her away! See how she is shouting after us.” Then Jesus said to her, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the nation of Israel.”

But the woman was already kneeling before Jesus, and said, “Sir, help me!” Jesus answered, “It is not right to take the bread from the children and throw it to puppies.”

The woman replied, “That is true, Sir, but even puppies eat the crumbs which fall from their master’s table.” Then Jesus said, “Woman, how great is your faith! Let it be as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at that moment.

Alternative reading (Mass of St. John Vianney)

Matthew 9 : 35 – Matthew 10 : 1

At that time, Jesus went around all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom; and He cured every sickness and disease. When He saw the crowds, He was moved with pity; for they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are only few. Ask the Master of the harvest to send workers to gather His harvest.”

Jesus called His Twelve disciples to Him, and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to drive them out, and to heal every disease and sickness.

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Wednesday, 4 August 2021 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Vianney, Priest and Patron of All Priests (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 105 : 6-7a, 13-14, 21-22, 23

We have sinned like our ancestors; we have done wrong and acted wickedly. When they were in Egypt, our ancestors had no regard for Your wondrous deeds.

But soon they forgot His works and did not wait for His counsel. They gave way to wanton craving and tempted God in the desert.

They forgot their Saviour God, Who had done great things in Egypt, wonderful works in the land of Ham, and awesome deeds by the Sea of Reeds.

So He spoke of destroying them, but Moses, His chosen one, stood in the breach before Him to shield them from destruction.

Alternative reading (Mass of St. John Vianney)

Psalm 116 : 1, 2

Alleluia! Praise YHVH, all you nations; all you peoples, praise Him.

How great is His love for us! His faithfulness lasts forever.

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Wednesday, 4 August 2021 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Vianney, Priest and Patron of All Priests (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Numbers 13 : 1-2, 25 – Numbers 14 : 1, 26-30, 34-35

YHVH then spoke to Moses, saying, “Send men to explore the land of Canaan that I am giving to the Israelites; send one man from each of the ancestral tribes, all of them leaders.”

After forty days of exploration, they returned. They went and met Moses, Aaron and the whole community of Israelites in the wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. They gave an account to them and the whole community and showed them the fruit of this land.

And they said, “We entered the land where you sent us, truly a land flowing with milk and honey and here is the fruit. But how strong are the people who inhabit the land! The cities are fortified with walls and bars, and we even saw there descendants of the Anakites. Amalekites live in the region of the Negeb; Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites live in the hill country; the Canaanites are by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”

Caleb then quieted the people who rose up against Moses and said, “We should go up and take over the land, for we shall surely overcome it.” But the men who had gone up with him said, “We cannot advance against these people for they are stronger than we are.”

And they spread an unfavourable report about the land that they had explored, saying to the Israelites, “The land we went through to explore is a land that devours its inhabitants and all the people we saw there are men of great size. We even saw giants (these giants were the Anakites). We felt like grasshoppers before them, and to them we must have seemed the same.”

Then all the community broke out in loud cries and wept during the night. Then YHVH spoke to Moses and Aaron saying, “How long will this wicked community grumble against Me? I have heard the grumblings of the people of Israel against Me. Say to them : As truly as I live, it is YHVH Who speaks, I will do to you what you have said in My hearing.”

“All of you of twenty years and more, numbered in the census, who grumbled against Me, your corpses will fall in the desert. You will not enter the land where I swore to settle you, except Caleb, son of Jephunneh and Joshua, son of Nun. According to the number of days spent in exploring the land – forty days, for every day a year – for forty years you shall bear the guilt of your sins and you shall know what it is to oppose Me.”

“I, YHVH, have spoken. Surely this is what I will do to this wicked community that has conspired against Me. In this wilderness they shall be destroyed and this is where they shall die.”

Alternative reading (Mass of St. John Vianney)

Ezekiel 3 : 16-21

After seven days, the word of YHVH came to me : “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. With the word you hear from My mouth you will warn them in My Name. When I say to the wicked, ‘You will surely die,’ if you do not speak to warn the wicked man, to give up his evil ways, and so live, he shall die for his sin, and I will hold you responsible for his death.”

“But if you have warned the wicked man, and he has not given up his wickedness and evil ways, he shall die for his sin, but you will save yourself. When the righteous man turns from what is good to do evil, I shall put an obstacle in his path : he shall die. Since you did not warn him, he will die for his sin. His good deeds will not be remembered; and I shall hold you responsible for his death.”

“But when you have warned the righteous man to keep him from sinning, and he has not sinned, he will live for sure, for he was warned; and you will save your life.”

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Tuesday, 3 August 2021 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Lord, speaking to us about the faith that all of us must have in Him, we are reminded that we should not allow our desires and the temptations of the flesh to distract us in our faith and in our way of believing in God. Otherwise, we may end up falling into sin, and ended up like what some of our predecessors had experienced.

In our first reading today, we heard the unfortunate occurrence when the brother and sister of Moses, Aaron and Miriam ended up in a sort of power struggle with Moses, as the two of them grumbled that Moses alone had the opportunity to speak with the Lord and to speak on behalf of all the Israelites and to deliver God’s truth and messages to them. Aaron and Miriam desired that they too could be the ones who spoke of God’s words and truth just like Moses. They did not want to remain in the shadows of Moses and desired influence and limelight.

It was mentioned then that Moses himself was a very unassuming and humble leader, who did not take much of a fuss of things, including these rivalries and the disagreements over who ought to lead the Israelites. To Moses, he served the Lord and did everything for the greater glory of God. And yet, as we heard, there were those who were displeased and unhappy with his leadership, including those who were closest to him, his own siblings no less.

Thus we heard how Aaron and Miriam sought for power and attempted to seize control, only to face God’s wrath as God reaffirmed before all that Moses was indeed His chosen one, and it was not man who chose for themselves to be worthy of God but rather God Who chose those who are considered as worthy. God punished Aaron and Miriam, and yet, Moses asked God to be merciful and to show clemency to his siblings. Indeed, you can really see why God chose Moses to be the leader of His people, for his great virtues, his humility and patience.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the account of the moment when the Lord came to His disciples as they were battered by great storm, by the waves and the wind in the middle of the raging waters, as He went to pray on His own and the disciples were in the boat. The Lord appeared before the disciples amidst the waves, and they were all afraid, thinking that they were seeing a ghost, only for the Lord to rebuke them and to tell them that it was truly Him that they had seen.

Then we heard how St. Peter asked the Lord that if it was really Him, then He would allow him to walk towards Him on the water. And St. Peter truly stepped out of the boat into the water, and walked on the water for a while before beginning to sink, when his fears of the wind and the waves made him to doubt and stumble. The Lord rescued St. Peter and while making comment on his doubt and lack of faith, reassured him and all the other disciples, that He was with them, and calmed the storm before them all.

What is then the significance of the readings that we have heard today, brothers and sisters in Christ? It is to remind us that God chose us among the nations, and called us all to be His disciples. And if we think that we have to be great and worthy, and are capable to be His disciples, or on the contrary that we feel that we are unworthy of Him then we have to remember that God did not call the worthy, and rather, He made worthy those whom He had called to follow Him.

As Christians, we are all called to follow in the footsteps of the faithful servants of God like Moses and the prophets, and to follow His Apostles and the other disciples, all those who have given and dedicated themselves to the cause of the Lord. Are we willing to commit ourselves to the Lord, brothers and sisters? Are we willing to dedicate our time and effort, giving our contributions to God and to our fellow men, to the very best of our abilities?

Let us all therefore reflect on these words from the Scripture and on what we have listened and received today, from the Lord. May the Lord be our guide and may He continue to strengthen us in our journey of life, that we may always be ever faithful to His commandments and obedient to His will. May God bless us all in our every efforts and endeavours, from now on, always. Amen.

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Tuesday, 3 August 2021 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Matthew 14 : 22-36

At that time, immediately, Jesus obliged His disciples to get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowd away. And having sent the people away, He went up the mountain by Himself, to pray. At nightfall, He was there alone.

Meanwhile, the boat was very far from land, dangerously rocked by the waves, for the wind was against it. At daybreak, Jesus came to them, walking on the sea. When they saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, thinking that it was a ghost. And they cried out in fear. But at once, Jesus said to them, “Courage! Do not be afraid. It is Me!”

Peter answered, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” Jesus said to him, “Come!” And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water to go to Jesus. But seeing the strong wind, he was afraid, and began to sink; and he cried out, “Lord, save me!”

Jesus immediately stretched out His hand and took hold of him, saying, “Man of little faith, why did you doubt?” As they got into the boat, the wind dropped. Then those in the boat bowed down before Jesus, saying, “Truly, You are the Son of God!”

They came ashore at Gennesaret. The local people recognised Jesus and spread the news throughout the region. So they brought to Him all the sick people, begging Him to let them touch just the hem of His cloak. All who touched it became perfectly well.

Alternative reading

Matthew 15 : 1-2, 10-14

At that time, some Pharisees, and teachers of the Law, who had come from Jerusalem, gathered around Jesus. And they said to Him, “Why do Your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders? For they, they do not wash their hands before eating.”

Jesus then called the people to Him, and said to them, “Listen and understand : What enters into the mouth does not make a person unclean. What defiles a person is what comes out of his mouth.”

After a while the disciples gathered around Jesus and said, “Do You know that the Pharisees were offended by what You said?” Jesus answered, “Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted shall be uprooted. Pay no attention to them! They are blind, leading the blind. When a blind person leads another, the two will fall into a pit.”

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Tuesday, 3 August 2021 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 50 : 3-4, 5-6a, 6bc-7, 12-13

Have mercy on me, o God, in Your love. In Your great compassion blot out my sin. Wash me thoroughly of my guilt; cleanse me of evil.

For I acknowledge my wrongdoings and have my sins ever in mind. Against You alone, have I sinned.

What is evil in Your sight, I have done. You are right when You pass sentence; and blameless in Your judgement. For I have been guilt-ridden from birth; a sinner from my mother’s womb.

Create in me, o God, a pure heart; give me a new and steadfast spirit. Do not cast me out of Your presence nor take Your Holy Spirit from me.

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Tuesday, 3 August 2021 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Numbers 12 : 1-13

Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman he had married and they said, “Has YHVH only spoken through Moses? Has He not also spoken through us?” And YHVH heard.

Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than any man on the face of the earth. Yet suddenly YHVH said to Moses, Aaron and Miriam, “Come out, all three of you, to the Tent of Meeting.” The three of them came out.

YHVH came down in the pillar of cloud and, standing at the door of the Tent, called Aaron and Miriam. They both went out and He said, “Listen carefully to what I say, ‘If there is a prophet among you, I reveal Myself to him in a vision and I speak to him in a dream. It is not so for My servant, Moses, My trusted steward in all My household.'”

“‘To Him I speak face to face, openly, and not in riddles, and he sees the presence of YHVH. Why then did you not fear to speak against My servant, against Moses?'” YHVH became angry with them and He departed. The cloud moved away from above the Tent and Miriam was there white as snow with leprosy. Aaron turned towards Miriam and he saw that she was leprous.

And he said to Moses, “My lord, I beg you, do not charge us with this sin that we have foolishly committed. Let her not be like the stillborn whose flesh is half-eaten when it comes from its mother’s womb.”

Then Moses cried to YHVH, “Heal her, o God, I beg of You.”