Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we conclude the current liturgical year and will be beginning the new liturgical year cycle with the season of Advent tomorrow on the First Sunday of Advent, let us all reflect upon all the words of the Sacred Scriptures that we have listened to on this day, reminding each and every one of us of our obligations as Christians to be truly faithful, committed and devoted to the Lord our God, at all times. We must always be vigilant and keep our lives worthy of the Lord, in doing His commandments and Law, and in walking down the path and following the things that He has shown and taught us to do. We should not be easily swayed by temptations and pressures from this world, the challenges, trials and difficulties that may be present in our path as we live our lives in Christian manner.
In our first reading passage today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Daniel in which we continue with the details of the apocalyptic vision that Daniel received from the Lord regarding the coming of the end of times and the salvation promised from God. In that reading, we heard of the coming of the four great beasts that will ravage the world, oppress the faithful and the people of God, and cause great destruction. These are the same beasts that a few centuries later, St. John the Apostle would also witness in his series of apocalyptic visions in the island of Patmos. Those beasts represent the forces of the Devil, the great enemy, who would try to crush all those who oppose him and those who are faithful to God.
We heard from that same passage how those beasts dominated over the world and persecuted the holy people of God, namely those who have held on firmly to their faith in God and remained virtuous and worthy of Him despite the struggles and challenges that they would have to face in the midst of their lives. Those beasts represent the dominion and power of Satan and all of his wicked allies, all the forces of evil who are always ready to strike upon us, bringing us to our downfall and destruction. And they manifested all their power and projections upon us, their efforts and strikes through the worldly domains and powers, by whom they persecuted and made lives difficult for those who continue to keep the commandments of the Lord faithfully and courageously.
But the Lord reassured us all, His beloved ones, that through Daniel, He showed us all that no matter how powerful and mighty those wicked forces may be, and how overpowering and dominating they all may seem to be to us, but in the end, even the mightiest of their forces, in their greatest triumphs and moments of pride, in the end, none of these shall remain and hold up against the might and power of the One true Lord and Master of all, Our King and Saviour, Jesus Christ, the One through Whom God has revealed His salvation and love, His truth and presence to all of us. In the end, even the devil and all of his mighty forces have to bend their knee and submit to the commands and the judgment of the one and only True God and King.
And as we heard from that same vision, the dominion of Satan and all of his forces, no matter how powerful and mighty they may be, ultimately all of them have been doomed from the start, for they rose up against the Lord, their Master, and they shall be utterly defeated and crushed in the end, never to harm any one of us ever again. There are of course those who have sided with them and chose to rebel against the Lord through sin and corruption of evil, but in the end, only those who are faithful to the Lord will be saved and will enjoy forever the rich bounties of God’s divine providence and inheritance, while those who did not keep their faith in Him will go to eternal damnation, suffering and destruction.
In our Gospel passage today, we heard the Lord Jesus reminding His disciples and followers, and hence all of us, that we should all be ever vigilant and prepared in each and every moments of our lives so that we do not end up being caught unprepared amidst the temptations, pressures, coercions and other things all around us that may cause us to lose our focus and attention on the Lord. Many of us have fallen into the temptations and corruptions of the worldly ways and wickedness present all around us. This is why many people have faltered and fallen into the wrong paths in life. This is why we are constantly being reminded by the Lord, especially as we are about to enter into the new liturgical year cycle, and the season of Advent, that we must not allow all those wickedness to affect and mislead us.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence examine and reevaluate our paths in life. Let us all look into how we have lived our lives so far, and ask ourselves if we truly have devoted our lives to the Lord and been true to His path. Are we willing to walk ever more faithfully in the path that God has shown us? Or are we more interested in satisfying ourselves with the temptations and desires, pleasures and attachments of this world? The choice is ours to make, whether we want to allow the Lord to lead us down the right path and whether we want to walk on this path, or whether we allow our desires and attachments to drag us down the path towards our downfall and damnation. The choice is ours to make because God has given us all the freedom to choose our course of action.
May the Lord, our most loving God and Father, continue to guide and strengthen each and every one of us. Let us all continue to persevere in our struggle daily in faith, and do whatever we can, so that we may always ever be worthy and committed in our dedication and commitment to the Lord at all times. Let us all enter into this Season of Advent with renewed heart and faith, with greater commitment and love for the Lord. Let us all be true and faithful disciples and followers of the Lord, and strive to be the worthy beacons of God’s light, truth and love, now and always. Amen.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 