Month: February 2025

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Wednesday, 26 February 2025 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are being reminded of the need for us to continue obeying the will of God and to do whatever it is that the Lord has entrusted to us to do in our respective lives, through the good use of whatever talents, opportunities and other blessings that we have received from Him. Each and every one of us as Christians are expected to do our best such that we will continue to glorify Him by our lives, and be the good and worthy bearers of His truth, Good News and love to everyone whom we encounter and interact with in life. As Christians, all of us are called and expected to be the faithful bearers of God’s Good News, to be truly evangelising and missionary in our everyday moments.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Sirach, we heard of the Wisdom of God and how through this Wisdom all of us are led and guided through the right path, with God guiding us through the words that His Wisdom speaks in the depths of our hearts and minds, helping us all to make the good choices and judgments in each and every turns of our lives. If we can trust in His Wisdom, His guidance and truth, then we will truly be assured of the path towards God and His salvation, as the prophet Sirach had mentioned. There will be difficult and tough moments in which we have to endure and persevere through, but with the guidance from God, eventually everything will be fine for us, as long as we continue to put our trust and faith in Him. But if we wander off and detach ourselves from His Wisdom, then we shall end up being lost and cast away from God.

This is an important reminder for us that our lives as Christians will not necessarily be an easy and smooth-sailing one, as there will likely be many obstacles, hardships and challenges facing us in our path. There will be twists and turns in our journey where we may be hard pressed to follow the path of the world, where we need to remember to trust in the Lord and His Wisdom. We must not allow ourselves to be swayed easily by these pressures, and we must always trust in the Wisdom of God guiding us in our path. And as Christians, it is important for us to be the role models for others around us, in showing everyone how our lives and actions are shaped and guided by the Wisdom of God and not by the whim of our own desires or by worldly ambitions.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist in which we heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus told His disciples not to stop a man who was performing good works in His Name, even though he did not belong to their group. The context of this exchange is that those disciples witnessed the man who drove out demons from others using the Name of the Lord, invoking Him in the process. And those disciples were likely uncomfortable with the fact that there were those who were working miracles and wonders that were not connected to their group. And the Lord told His disciples that His gifts and wonders were not meant to be exclusive or discriminatory.

It means that there should be no exclusivity in the gifts of the Lord, or that those who do work in the Name of the Lord ought to belong to a certain caste or group, without which they are not authorised to do the works of the Lord. This is also shown in other occasions in how even the Gentiles received the same gifts from the Lord, and the power of the Holy Spirit, both during the time of the Lord’s ministry and the works of the Apostles later on. This shows the Universality of the Church, how the Lord’s calling and the missions He has entrusted to all of us mankind, are truly universal in nature, given to all the whole world, and to all the children of man, without exception. And this was the reminder that the Lord gave to His disciples, that they should not think that they were above the others because of the gifts and the blessings which He has given to them.

Many among the disciples of the Lord at that time thought that the Lord came as the Messiah to liberate the people of God, the Israelites from their enemies and those who have ruled over them, and many among them likely thought that they would receive rich rewards of the world, becoming the important members and parts of the reestablished Kingdom of Israel with Christ as its King, and hence, naturally, they would not suffer any rivals to their position. This was further supported by the evidence of rivalry and bickering among them as frequently recorded in the Gospels, where those disciples bickered with each other on who among them was the most important and better one as compared to the others. All these attitudes are not what the Lord desired from His disciples and followers.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, just as we all have heard from the first reading passage taken from the Book of the prophet Sirach, about the Wisdom of God and how we should put our trust and faith in this Wisdom, instead of in our own power, might and intelligence, therefore, linking to what we have heard from the exchange between the Lord and His disciples in our Gospel passage today, we are reminded that we should distance ourselves from the corruption of worldly desires and glory, all the attachments we may have towards worldly ambitions and pleasures, all the things that can lead us astray from the path of righteousness towards God. That is why we are reminded that we should listen to the Lord and His Wisdom, and not to allow our own ego, pride and desires from leading us astray in life.

May the Lord, our most loving God and Father, continue to be with us, guiding us and strengthening us in our journey throughout life. May He empower all of us with the resolve and the courage to continue walking down this journey of faith, and bless us all with His Wisdom so that we may perceive the right path in life, and that we may continue to remain faithful to Him, doing His will and obeying His Law and commandments at all times. May all of us as Christians be committed and faithful disciples of the Lord, and be the good examples and inspiration for everyone around us, and may all of us continue to do our best to glorify the Lord as always by our exemplary lives. Amen.

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Wednesday, 26 February 2025 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 9 : 38-40

At that time, John said to Jesus, “Master, we saw someone who drove out demons by calling upon Your Name, and we tried to forbid him, because he does not belong to our group.”

Jesus answered, “Do not forbid him, for no one who works a miracle in My Name can soon after speak evil of Me. For whoever is not against us is for us.”

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Wednesday, 26 February 2025 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 118 : 165, 168, 171, 172, 174, 175

Lovers of Your Law have found great peace; nothing can make them stumble, not even distress.

I obey Your precepts and Your decrees; my ways are always before You.

Let my lips overflow with praise, for You teach me Your decrees.

Let my tongue sing of Your good news, for all You say is true.

I long for Your salvation, o YHVH; I delight in Your Law.

Long may I live, to sing Your praise, may Your ordinances always be my help!

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Wednesday, 26 February 2025 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Sirach 4 : 11-19

Wisdom brings up her children and takes care of those who look for her. Whoever loves her loves life. Those who rise early in the morning in search of her will be filled with joy.

Whoever possesses her will have glory and wherever he goes blessings will follow. Those who serve her are ministers of the Holy One; those who love her are loved of the Lord. He who listens to her will have good judgment. He who obeys her will rest in safety. Whoever trusts in her will possess her and his children after him will inherit her.

For in the beginning she will lead him by rough paths, causing him to fear and be terrified; she will plague him with her discipline until she can count on him; and she will put him to the test by her demands. Then she will lead him on a level path, give him joy and reveal her secrets to him. But if he wanders from the path, she will abandon him and allow him to be lost.

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Tuesday, 25 February 2025 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, through what we have heard in our Scripture readings today, we are all reminded that as the followers and disciples of the Lord, we may be facing a lot of struggles, hardships, trials and difficulties in our path, and we have to be prepared and ready for this eventuality. We should not be ignorant of the responsibilities and all the aspects of our Christian living and calling, in each and every unique missions and vocations that the Lord has entrusted to each one of us in this world. We must live our lives worthily as those who belong to the Lord, as His beloved and holy people, such that everyone who witness us and our works may come to know of God’s truth and love, manifested through our actions and every parts of our lives.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Sirach in which the prophet reminded the faithful people of God of the difficulties that they might have to endure as part of their journey as God’s people, and yet, at the same time, he also exhorted them to remain true to their faith and trust in God, that they would not abandon Him or seek other avenues of help amidst the challenges and hardships they might be enduring from. The prophet Sirach reminded the people of God to remain steadfast and committed to the Lord regardless of what they had to encounter, to be confident in their Lord and Master, and how He would protect them and provide for them all that they needed. In the end, despite the hardships and challenges that they had to endure, those who remain faithful will enjoy the rich rewards from the Lord for their faith.

The prophet Sirach also mentioned the historic examples of how God had been with His people, patiently guiding them and taking good care of them such that despite their sufferings and the many tribulations they faced, and despite the stubbornness that those people had shown against their loving God and Master, the Lord still cared for them nonetheless, showing them His mercy and kindness, sending them His messengers and servants, the many prophets that He had sent for centuries up to the time of the prophet Sirach, who was active about two centuries or so prior to the coming of Christ into this world. God has always been with the people whom He loved and had chosen, and He repeatedly guided them, prodding them from time to time so that they would return to the path of righteousness, and He gathered them back again and again whenever they had erred and wandered off from His path.

Then, in our Gospel passage today taken from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord telling His disciples after He had miraculously healed a boy that was possessed by evil spirits, that He, as the Son of Man and the Saviour of all, would have to suffer greatly for the sake of the world and all mankind, and He would have to face persecution and rejection from even those elders and leaders of the people, to be mocked and reviled, made to endure the worst of humiliation and pain for our sake, His beloved people, whom He has painstakingly called towards Him, to be punished instead of us so that by His wounds, by His outpoured Precious Blood, all of us may gain healing and reconciliation with our loving God and Father, all of which he had intended for us from the very beginning.

Through this revelation, the Lord wants each and every one of us to realise that we are really called to be obedient to God and to be humble, just as the Lord went on to chide His disciples for arguing amongst themselves on who among them were the greatest of the disciples. He told them all that in order for them to be truly great in the eyes of the Lord, they should be like those little children, who came to the Lord sincerely and because they truly loved Him and wanted to devote themselves to Him. Those children were used by the Lord as examples and comparisons for their faith because for those who know how children behave, those little children are truly sincere in their faith and beliefs, and they are truly pure in their intentions, still not corrupted yet by the temptations and desires of the world.

The Lord Himself, as the Son of Man, as the Son of God the Father showed the perfect example of obedience to the Father’s will, as mentioned, how He was tasked to be the One to liberate the whole world and to redeem everyone through the bearing of the burdens of our sins on the Cross. The Lord, Who was without any blame or sin, was forced to bear the burden and punishments of the sins of everyone else, but He did this willingly and obediently, to show us all what it truly means to be a disciple and follower of God, and what it means to be truly faithful in our lives. He also showed us all the perfect example of love, manifesting before each one of us the perfect love that God has always had for us, a love that is ever enduring and strong despite the disobedience and stubborn attitudes that we often showed to Him.

Therefore, as Christians, as God’s followers and disciples, all of us are expected to follow in the good examples that our Lord and Master Himself has shown us, in His ever patient and wonderful love, and in how we should continue to devote ourselves thoroughly to His cause, resisting the temptations of this world, the desires for worldly pleasures, ambitions and attachments that can lead us astray from the path towards righteousness in God. God has given us the perfect means for us to reach out to Him and that is through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour Himself, Whose loving and most selfless sacrifice on the Cross has opened for us the path to the salvation in God, the reconciliation and reunion with our loving God and Father. And just as the Lord Himself has shown us the example of faith, love and obedience, then we should also do the same in our lives as well.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence be good and exemplary Christians in all things, not just in mere words but also in our everyday living and actions. Let us all be ever more committed and courageous in doing God’s will and in carrying out whatever it is that He has entrusted to us to do, so that by our good examples and actions, we may grow ever stronger in our faith and conviction to follow and serve Him at every moments in our lives, and be more strengthened and encouraged despite the trials and challenges that we may have to face in our journey of life. May the Lord be with us always, and may He continue to bless our every good efforts, works and endeavours, all for His greater glory. Amen.

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Tuesday, 25 February 2025 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 9 : 30-37

At that time, after leaving the place where He cast out evil spirit from a deaf and dumb boy, Jesus and His disciples made their way through Galilee, but He did not want people to know where He was because He was teaching His disciples. And He told them, “The Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men. They will kill Him, but three days after He has been killed, He will rise.”

The disciples, however, did not understand these words and they were afraid to ask Him what He meant. They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house, Jesus asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” But they did not answer, because they had been arguing about who was the greatest.

Then He sat down, called the Twelve and said to them, “If someone wants to be first, let him be last of all and servant of all.” Then He took a little child, placed him in their midst, and putting His arms around him, He said to them, “Whoever welcomes a child such as this in My Name, welcomes Me; and whoever welcomes Me, welcomes not Me but the One Who sent Me.”

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Tuesday, 25 February 2025 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 36 : 3-4, 18-19, 27-28, 39-40

Trust in the Lord and do good, dwell in the land and live on it. Make the Lord your delight, and He will grant your heart’s desire.

The Lord watches over the lives of the upright; forever will their inheritance abide. They are not crushed in times of calamity; when famine strikes, they still are satisfied.

Do good and shun evil, so that you will live secure forever. For the Lord loves justice and right, and never forsakes His faithful ones. The wicked instead will perish and their breed will be cut off.

The Lord is the salvation of the righteous; in time of distress, He is their refuge. The Lord helps them, and rescues them from the oppressor; He saves them for they sought shelter in Him.

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Tuesday, 25 February 2025 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Sirach 2 : 1-11

My son, if you have decided to serve the Lord, prepare yourselves for trials. Keep your heart upright and remain resolute; do not be upset in the time of adversity. Hold fast to the Lord, do not separate yourself from Him so that you may be successful to the end of your days.

Accept all that happens to you, be patient when you are humbled, for as gold is tested in the fire, so those acceptable to God are tested in the crucible of humiliation. Have confidence in Him and He will take care of you; follow the right path and hope in Him.

You who fear the Lord, wait for His mercy and do not turn away lest you fall. You who fear the Lord, trust Him and you will not lose your reward. You who fear the Lord, hope for all good things; hope for eternal joy and mercy. Remember what happened to your ancestors. Who has ever trusted in the Lord and been confounded? Who has persevered in fear of the Lord and been abandoned? Who has called upon Him and not been heard?

For the Lord is compassion and loving kindness; He forgives our sins and saves us in time of distress.

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Monday, 24 February 2025 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

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.

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Monday, 24 February 2025 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 9 : 14-29

At that time, when Jesus and His disciples, Peter, James and John came to the place where they had left the disciples, they saw many people around them and some teachers of the Law arguing with them. When the people saw Jesus, they were astonished and ran to greet Him.

He asked, “What are you arguing about with them?” A man answered Him from the crowd, “Master, I brought my son to You, for he has a spirit, deaf and mute. Whenever the spirit seizes him, it throws him down and he foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth and becomes stiff all over. I asked Your disciples to drive the spirit out, but they could not.”

Jesus replied, “You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him to Me.” And the brought the boy to Him. As soon as the spirit saw Jesus, it shook and convulsed the boy, who fell on the ground, and began rolling about, foaming at the mouth.

Then Jesus asked the father, “How long has this been happening to him?” He replied, “From childhood. And it has often thrown him into the fire and into the water to destroy him. If You can do anything, have pity on us and help us.”

Jesus said to him, “Why do you say, ‘If You can?’ All things are possible for the one who believes.” Immediately the father of the boy cried out, “I do believe, but help the little faith I have.” Jesus saw that the crowd was increasing rapidly, so He ordered the evil spirit, “Dumb and deaf spirit, I command you : Leave the boy and never enter him again.”

The evil spirit shook and convulsed the boy and with a terrible shriek came out. The boy lay like a corpse and people said, “He is dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him and the boy stood up. After Jesus had gone indoors, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not drive out the spirit?”

And He answered, “Only prayer can drive out this kind, nothing else.”