Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded of the need for us all to put our trust and faith in God and His Wisdom, His guidance and help. We cannot think that we alone has the power to make all things work for us, as it is by God’s grace, help and guidance that we have become successful in this life. Through the Wisdom that He has imparted to us all, God has revealed the path for all of us to follow in life so that we may come to the path of righteousness and remain firm in the conviction to follow Him in each and every moments of our lives. The Wisdom of God has been manifested to us through His Son, Who revealed to us the truth about God’s love, and He has also imparted this same Wisdom to us through His Holy Spirit that He sent into this world.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Sirach, we heard the prophet speaking about the Lord and the Wisdom that has come from Him, and which had been imparted on us mankind in order to make us understand and appreciate parts of the mystery of Creation, of all things that we have experienced around us, in our perception of the world and all that is in it. And the prophet Sirach also mentioned how God is the source of all Wisdom, of all truth and revelations, and He generously offers His Wisdom and truth to all of His beloved ones, wanting all of us to share in His love and truth, so that we may know how much we have been loved by Him, and how precious all of us truly are in His Presence.

However, how come is then that we mankind cannot perceive this Wisdom, even though the Lord has been so generous in giving unto us this great grace of the Wisdom He has imparted to us? That is because we have likely allowed the veil of ignorance and the corruption of sin to prevent them from accessing the great riches of the Wisdom which they had been blessed with, and therefore we continue to live our lives with ignorance of the truth and Wisdom of God, which we could have easily accessed should we embrace God and His truth willingly and commit ourselves wholeheartedly to His cause. We should allow God’s Wisdom to endow us with the understanding and appreciation of the truth, and for Him to lead us all down the right path in life. This is why we cannot let our pride and ego, our greed and ambitions to lead us astray and to move away from the path towards God.

Then, from our Gospel passage today taken from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, we heard of the Lord speaking to His disciples who were arguing with some of the teachers of the Law because they were unable to cast out evil spirits that were afflicting a boy who was deaf and mute. The Lord told the boy’s father that everything is truly possible if one has faith in God and trust in Him. And the Lord proved this by showing His power, casting out the evil spirit that was afflicting the boy, and made him to be whole and healthy again. The evil spirit went out shrieking from the boy, having to obey the command from the Lord, revealing that not even the power of the evil spirits can prevail against that of the power and wisdom of God. God’s Wisdom and power far surpass that of man’s, and as long as we put our faith and trust in God, then we will be fine.

The Lord also told His disciples that they were unable to cast out the demons from within the boy because only prayer can drive out that kind of demon, and nothing else, a reminder that without prayer, that is connection to God, and the power from the Lord, whatever things we do, all of them may not avail against the forces of the diabolical, the wicked forces of evil that cannot be countered by physical or worldly means. While the details were not listed in the Gospel passage today, but it can be inferred that the disciples did not have enough faith in the Lord and did not put their trust fully in God through prayer, or that they were too confident with themselves, thinking with pride that since the Lord had granted them with the power and authority over the evil spirits then they could easily cast out those demons and spirits with ease.

That was why they probably began to act in manner that were not truly attuned with the Lord, thinking that it was by their own greatness and power that they had performed those miracles and signs. And amidst this wavering faith and connection to God, those evil spirits could challenge them and refuse to obey them. This is hence a reminder for all of us not to be easily swayed by the evil one, and all of his wicked forces, but to remain firm in our conviction to follow the Lord ever more faithfully and to attune ourselves well to His will, strengthening our connection to Him through regular and constant prayerful lives, devoting good quality time with our loving God and Father as we all should have done in each and every days of our lives.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reflect carefully upon what we have just listened to from our Scripture passages today, especially with regards to how each and every one of us as Christians, as God’s people should always strive to draw our inspiration in life from God and focus our whole effort and attention on Him. All of us should not seek the glory of the world and all of its temptations and pleasures, resisting the many pressures, coercion and all the other things that often become obstacles in our path towards God and His salvation. Each and every one of us as Christians need to show the path forward towards the Lord, becoming the beacons of God’s light and truth to all the whole world, to everyone whom we encounter in our journey of life.

May the Lord, our ever loving and compassionate God, Who has given us all His most wonderful and impressive Wisdom to help and guide us in our journey throughout life continue to bring us all ever closer to His Holy Presence. And may by the power and guidance of His Wisdom, ever present in our midst, in our hearts and minds, we will grow to be ever more faithful disciples and followers of God, becoming good role models and inspirations for everyone else to follow. May God be with us in our every good works and endeavours, and may He bless our every good efforts made in His Name, all for His greater glory. Amen.