Liturgical Colour : Green
Sirach 3 : 19-21, 30-31
The greater you are, the more you should humble yourself and thus you will find favour with God. For great is the power of the Lord and it is the humble who give Him glory. Do not seek what is beyond your powers nor search into what is beyond your ability.
As water extinguishes the burning flames, almsgiving obtains pardon for sins. The man who responds by doing good prepares for the future, at the moment of his downfall he will find support.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Offertory
Exodus 32 : 11, 13, 14
Precatus est Moyses in conspectu Domini, Dei sui, et dixit : Quare, Domine, irasceris in populo Tuo? Parce irae animae Tuae : memento Abraham, Isaac et Jacob, quibus jurasti dare terram fluentem lac et mel. Et placatus factus est Dominus de malignitate, quam dixit facere populo suo.
English translation
Moses prayed in the sight of the Lord his God, and said, “Why, o Lord, is Your indignation enkindled against Your people? Let the anger of Your mind cease, remember Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to whom You had sworn to give a land flowing with milk and honey.” And the Lord was appeased from doing the evil, which He had spoken of doing against the people.
Secret Prayer of the Priest
Hostias, quaesumus, Domine, propitius intende, quas sacris altaribus exhibemus : ut, nobis indulgentiam largiendo, Tuo Nomini dent honorem. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.
English translation
Graciously behold, we pray to You, o Lord, the sacrifices which we lay upon Your sacred altars, that, in bringing us plentiful forgiveness, they may give honour to Your Name. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who with You lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.
Communion
Psalm 103 : 13, 14-15
De fructu operum Tuorum, Domine, satiabitur terra : ut educas panem de terra, et vinum laetificet cor hominis : ut exhilaret faciem in oleo, et panis cor hominis confirmet.
English translation
The earth shall be filled with the fruit of Your works, o Lord, that You may bring bread out of the earth, and that wine may cheer the heart of man, that he may make the face cheerful with oil, and that bread may strengthen man’s heart.
Post-Communion Prayer
Vivificet nos, quaesumus, Domine, hujus participatio sancta mysterii : et pariter nobis expiationem tribuat et munimen. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.
English translation
May the holy partaking of this mystery, we pray to You, o Lord, vivify us, bringing us at once forgiveness and strengthening. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who with You lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Sequentia Sancti Evangelii secundum Lucam – Continuation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke
Luke 10 : 23-37
In illo tempore : Dixit Jesus discipulis Suis : Beati oculi, qui vident quae vos videtis. Dico enim vobis, quod multi prophetae et reges voluerunt videre quae vos videtis, et non viderunt : et audire quae auditis, et non audierunt. Et ecce, quidam legisperitus surrexit, tentans illum, et dicens : Magister, quid faciendo vitam aeternam possidebo?
At ille dixit ad eum : In lege quid scriptum est? Quomodo legis? Ille respondens, dixit : Diliges Dominum, Deum tuum, ex toto corde tuo, et ex tota anima tua, et ex omnibus viribus tuis; et ex omni mente tua : et proximum tuum sicut teipsum.
Dixitque illi : Recte respondisti : hoc fac, et vives. Ille autem volens justificare seipsum, dixit ad Jesum : Et quis est meus proximus? Suscipiens autem Jesus, dixit : Homo quidam descendebat ab Jerusalem in Jericho, et incidit in latrones, qui etiam despoliaverunt eum : et plagis impositis abierunt, semivivo relicto.
Accidit autem, ut sacerdos quidam descenderet eadam via : et viso illo praeterivut. Similiter et levita, cum esset secus locum et videret eum, pertransiit. Samaritanus autem quidam iter faciens, venit secus eum : et videns eum, misericordia motus est. Et appropians, alligavit vulnera ejus, infundens oleum et vinum : et imponens illum in jumentum suum, duxit in stabulum, et curam ejus egit.
Et altera die protulit duos denarios et dedit stabulario, et ait : Curam illius habe : et quodcumque supererogaveris, ego cum rediero, reddam tibi. Quis horum trium videtur tibi proximus fuisse illi, qui incidit in latrones? At ille dixit : Qui fecit misericordiam in illum. Et ait illi Jesus : Vade, et tu fac similiter.
English translation
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Blessed are the eyes that see the things which you see. For I say to you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see the things that you see, and have not seen them, and to hear the things that you hear, and have not heard them.” And behold a certain lawyer stood up, tempting Him, and saying, “Master, what must I do to possess eternal life?”
But He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” He answering, said, “You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart, and with your whole soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself.”
And He said to him, “You have answered rightly, do this and you shall live.” But he, willing to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbour?” And Jesus answering, said, “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, who also stripped him, and having wounded him, went away, leaving him half dead.”
“And it happened that a certain priest went down the same way, and seeing him, passed him by. In similar manner also a Levite, when he was near the place and saw him, he passed him by. But a certain Samaritan being on his journey, came near him, and seeing him, was moved with compassion, and going up to him, bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and setting him upon his own beast, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.”
“And the next day he took out two pence, and gave to the host, and said, ‘Take care of him, and whatsoever you shall spend over and above, I, at my return, shall repay you. Which of these three, in your opinion, was neighbour to him who fell among robbers?” But he said, “He who showed mercy to him.” And Jesus said to him, “Go, and do it in similar manner.”
Liturgical Colour : Green
Psalm 33 : 2-3 and Psalm 87 : 2
Benedicam Dominum in omni tempore : semper laus ejus in ore meo.
Response : In Domino laudabitur anima mea : audiant mansueti, et laetentur.
Alleluja, Alleluja.
Response : Domine, Deus salutis meae, in die clamavi et nocte coram Te. Alleluja.
English translation
I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Response : In the Lord shall my soul be praised. Let the meek hear and rejoice.
Alleluia, Alleluia.
Response : O Lord, the God of my salvation, I have cried in the day, and in the night, before You, Alleluia.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Lectio Epistolae Beati Pauli Apostoli ad Corinthios – Lesson from the Epistle of Blessed Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians
2 Corinthians 3 : 4-9
Fratres : Fiduciam talem habemus per Christum ad Deum : non quod sufficientes simus cogitare aliquod a nobis, quasi ex nobis : sed sufficientia nostra ex Deo est : qui et idoneos nos fecit ministros novi testamenti : non littera, sed spiritu : littera enim occidit, spiritus autem vivificat.
Quod si ministratio mortis, litteris deformata in lapidibus, fuit in gloria; ita ut non possent intendere filii Israel in faciem Moysi, propter gloriam vultus ejus, quae evacuatur : quomodo non magis ministratio Spiritus erit in gloria? Nam si ministratio damnationis gloria est, multo magis abundat ministerium justitiae in gloria.
English translation
Brethren, such confidence we have through Christ towards God. Not that we are sufficient to think anything of ourselves, as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is from God. He Who also had made us fit ministers of the New Testament, not in the letter, but in the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit quickens.
Now if the ministration of death, engraven with letters upon stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses, for the glory of His countenance; which is made void. How shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather in glory? For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more ministration of justice abounds in glory.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Introit
Psalm 69 : 2-3, 4
Deus, in adjutorium meum intende : Domine, ad adjuvandum me festina : confundantur et revereantur inimici mei, qui quaerunt animam meam.
Avertantur retrorsum et erubescant : qui cogitant mihi mala.
Response : Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto, sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper : et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.
English translation
Incline unto my aid, o God. O Lord, make haste to help me. Let my enemies be confounded and ashamed, who seek my soul.
Let them be turned backward and blush for shame, who desire evils to me.
Response : Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Collect
Omnipotens et misericors Deus, de cujus munere venit, ut Tibi a fidelibus Tuis digne et laudabiliter serviatur : tribue, quaesumus, nobis; ut ad promissiones Tuas sine offensione curramus. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.
English translation
Almighty and eternal God, Whose gift is that Your faithful serve You worthily and rightly, grant us, we beseech You, that we may without offense hasten on to the fulfilment of Your promises. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who with You lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that all of us as Christians, as God’s holy and beloved people, His disciples and followers, we have been given important tasks and missions in our respective lives, in whichever area we are, to carry out what God Himself has shown and taught us all, in loving Him first and foremost before all else, and then in showing that same love to our brothers and sisters all around us, especially to all those whom we truly find dear and beloved to us. If we have been called by the Lord to show love even to strangers and to those who hated and persecuted us, then all the more we should love those dear and beloved to us even more.
However, this is not what many of us have done in our lives, and many of us failed to love in the way that God has called us all to do. We often love ourselves and our selfish desires and ambitions more, and we allow ourselves to be swayed by those selfish ambitions and desires, to the point that we have forgotten what it truly means to be truly and genuinely caring towards those whom God had placed in our lives, to all those whom we encounter in life, because we are too busy and preoccupied into seeking for our own personal ambitions, desires and achievements, and in the process, we may even cause harm and neglect upon others, even to those whom we love and are dear to us. That is why today all of us are being reminded that we should always be sincere and committed in living our lives as Christians in the manner that God has taught us.
In our first reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful people of God in the city and region of Thessalonica, we heard of how they have been faithful to the teachings of the Lord and His disciples and missionaries, following closely to what St. Paul and the other Christian missionaries and disciples had been preaching and showing to them. Contextually, we must also remember, based on the earlier part of this Epistle, St. Paul had praised the faithful in Thessalonica for their exemplary faith which was contrasted by the rather cold and unwelcoming attitudes of the people in the neighbouring regions. The Thessalonians therefore stood out as the rare examples of those who have willingly listened to the Lord and embraced His truth and Good News, and not only that, but also lived according to what they had believed.
That is why St. Paul was truly happy and pleased at their good attitudes in living their faith. They had been exemplary and inspirational in the way they treated one another, with love and genuine care, as how all Christians are supposed to live their lives. However, many among Christians then, and throughout history and even to the present day world we are living in, many among us now have not truly lived our lives in the manner expected of us as disciples and followers of Christ. Many among us Christians even treat our fellow Christians, our fellow brothers in the manner unbecoming of our Christian faith and identity, causing hurt and divisions among us, by our way of manipulating and exploiting even those closest to us for our own advantages and benefits.
In our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the well-known parable of the Lord which He spoke to the disciples and followers in order to remind them what it truly means to be His followers and disciples, to do God’s will and to live in accordance to what He has shown and taught all of us. In that parable, also known as the parable of the talents, we heard how the master entrusted to his servants different amounts of the silver talents from his possessions for them to take good care and make good use of while he went away. We then heard how two of the servants make good use of the silver talents given to them and eventually doubled their silver talents by the time the master came back, while another servant hid the silver talent and did not use it at all.
The purpose and idea behind this parable is such that God wants each and every one of us to make good use of what He has given to us in our unique talents, abilities and the various opportunities which He had presented to us. The master represents the Lord, our God Himself while the servants represent each and every one of us, God’s beloved people. Those who invested their talents and got rewarded in the end represent all of us who have made good use of our various blessings and opportunities provided by God to us, and benefitted those whom God had entrusted to us and put in our paths. Meanwhile, the servant who was punished for his lack of action represents all those who failed to make good use of what God has given to them for the good of others, and instead keeping these idle or for themselves only.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, let us all reflect carefully on what we have heard in our Scripture reflections today. Let us all remember that as those whom the Lord has called and chosen to be His own beloved and holy people, each and every one of us have the responsibility and obligation to follow the Lord’s will and to do what He has taught and shown us to do, to be loving towards Him and to show that same love to everyone around us. That is what each and every one of us should do, just as the servants in the Lord’s parable were expected to do good upon the silver talents that had been entrusted to them. And we are reminded that we have to be accountable to the works that we are doing in this life, as well as what we may not have done for the good of others around us.
Let us all therefore do our very best to live our lives in the manner that the Lord Himself has taught and shown us all to do, to be truly loving in all things, full of love for God, for one another and for ourselves. As Christians, each and every one of us should always be exemplary in our way of life, in inspiring faith, hope and love in everyone whom we encounter daily in life, in each and every one of our actions, words and deeds. May the Lord continue to guide and strengthen each and every one of us so that by our every efforts, endeavours and contributions, we may continue to glorify His Name at all times, now and forevermore. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Matthew 25 : 14-30
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Imagine someone who, before going abroad, summoned his servants to entrust his property to them. He gave five talents of silver to one servant, two talents to another servant, and one talent to a third, to each, according to his ability; and he went away.”
“He who received five talents went at once to do business with the talents, and gained another five. The one who received two talents did the same, and gained another two. But the one who received one talent dug a hole in the ground, and hid his master’s money.”
“After a long time, the master of those servants returned and asked for a reckoning. The one who had received five talents came with another five talents, saying, ‘Lord, you entrusted me with five talents, but see, I have gained five more.’ The master answered, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant, since you have been faithful in a few things, I will entrust you in charge of many things. Come and share the joy of your master.'”
“Then the one who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you entrusted me with two talents; with them I have gained two more.’ The master said, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant, since you have been faithful in little things, I will entrust you in charge of many things. Come and share the joy of your master.'”
“Finally, the one who had received one talent came and said, ‘Master, I know that you are a hard man. You reap what you have not sown, and gather what you have not scattered. I was afraid, so I hid your money in the ground. Here, take what is yours!’ But his master replied, ‘Wicked and worthless servant, you know that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered. You should have deposited my money in the bank, and given it back to me with interest on my return.'”
“Therefore, take the talent from him, and give it to the one who has ten. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who are unproductive, even what they have will be taken from them. As for that useless servant, thrown him out into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Psalm 97 : 1, 7-8, 9
Sing to YHVH a new song, for He has done wonders; His right hand, His holy arm, has won victory for Him.
Let the sea resound and everything in it, the world and all its people. Let rivers clap their hands, hills and mountains sing with joy.
Before YHVH, for He comes to rule the earth. He will judge the world with justice, and the peoples, with fairness.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
1 Thessalonians 4 : 9-11
Regarding mutual love, you do not need anyone to write to you, because God, Himself, taught you how to love one another. You already practice it with all the brothers and sisters of Macedonia, but I invite you to do more.
Consider how important it is, to live quietly, without bothering others, to mind your own business, and work with your hands, as we have charged you.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 