Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the readings from the Sacred Scriptures remind us that all of us are Christians must always be firmly established in our faith in God, as we are called to live a most worthy and wholesome life, in each and every moments of our lives, as God’s disciples and followers. As those who believe in the Lord, we are all expected to put our trust and faith in Him, and strive to do whatever we can so that by our exemplary commitments and devotion to God, we may always continue to do His will and to carry out whatever missions that He has entrusted to us even amidst all the challenges and trials that we may have to face in our lives and in our journey as faithful Christians, that is as holy and beloved people of God.

In our first reading today, we listened from the Epistle of St. Jude in which St. Jude the Apostle exhorted all the faithful people of God to live worthily and truly obedient to God’s will and Law, walking in the path which He has shown and taught us to do. St. Jude also spoke of the need for all the faithful to build their lives upon the foundation of God, and to do all of their actions and to base their whole lives upon the compassion and love of God, to show love in their whole lives so that by their every words, actions and deeds, they may indeed show that they truly belong to the Lord and are truly His disciples and followers in all things, not merely in words and formality only. Those who do not truly mean what they believe, in their way of living, are not true disciples of the Lord.

The Lord calls upon His disciples through this exhortation by St. Jude, including that of all of us that we must always strive to live our lives in the most Christ-like manner, in our desire to keep away from all sins and evils, from all the temptations of worldly pleasures and all the other things that often misled many people to their downfall and destruction. Each and every one of us are reminded that we must indeed be holy just like our Lord is all holy and perfect, or else we are hypocrites and we may sully and slander the goodness and holiness of His Name and Presence. Many people have been scandalised and put off from embracing the Christian faith precisely because of the wicked attitudes and behaviours of some of our fellow Christians, if not we ourselves.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Mark where the Lord Jesus was faced with disapproval and questioning from the chief priests who questioned Him and interrogated Him about His activities and works, which they disapproved of and refused to accept and embrace. They also did the same with St. John the Baptist, the Herald of the Lord, the one who went before Him to prepare His way. The chief priests and the Pharisees also went to St. John the Baptist, questioning him of his authenticity and the authority behind which he had performed all of his works and conducted all of his teachings and ministry. All these were because what the Lord and St. John the Baptist had done were not in accordance with what the chief priests had upheld and preferred.

This was where the Lord pointed out firmly to those chief priests that whatever He and St. John the Baptist had done were indeed sanctioned by God, and were Divine in origin. He challenged those chief priests and Pharisees to answer if the works and actions of St. John the Baptist, who was also highly esteemed like the Lord among the Jewish community, whether his works were human or Divine in origin. Those chief priests and those who opposed the Lord could not answer that challenge because they were afraid of the crowd and the people, and it showed just how shallow their accusations and oppositions against the Lord were. They opposed the Lord and His disciples and servants because they thought that they were better and more worthy, as the bearers and keepers of the Law, looking down on those who did not follow their path.

But this is also an important reminder for all of us that just as the Lord Himself has faced a lot of hardships and opposition in His work and ministry, therefore we can expect to face similar hardships and opposition as well. We must also remember how those chief priests were swayed by the temptations of worldly glory and power, by their jealousy against the Lord and St. John the Baptist, seeing how many of the people chose to flock to the two of them rather than following the path of the chief priests and the Pharisees. They opposed the Lord and His servants because they feared losing their prestige, influence and privileges in the community, and this led them to disobey and sin against God. This is what we must be vigilant against, and we must not allow ourselves to be swayed in the same manner.

We are reminded constantly through these passages from the Scriptures, the Word of God Himself, that we must always be strong amidst the challenges of life and all the trials that we might have to face amidst our journey of faith and life. We should not easily be dissuaded or discouraged from picking up our crosses and in following what God Himself has entrusted to us. Each and every one of us have been given the distinct and unique mission in life, to do our best in our various areas of responsibilities, in the unique opportunities that God has given to us, the talents and abilities that He has granted to us. Let us all therefore make good use of these and serve the Lord ever more faithfully, seeking not worldly and human approval but instead seeking to obey God and to glorify Him at all times.

May the Lord continue to bless each and every one of us, and may He empower us all to be His ever faithful and worthy followers, so that in everything that we say and do, we will always do our very best to live our lives as good and worthy Christians, persevering amidst the many challenges and difficulties that we may have to face in our daily lives and journey as the faithful people of God. Let us all continue to go forth with faith and conviction, with the strength and guidance of God to guide our path. May God bless our every good works, efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.