Christmas 2024

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Saturday, 11 January 2025 : Saturday after the Epiphany (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Scriptures, and as we approach the end of this current joyful season of Christmas, and as we are soon about to enter into the new season of the Ordinary Time, we are all reminded of our calling and mission in life as Christians, as all those whom the Lord had called and chosen to be His people, that we have the mission and obligation to help one another to reach the Lord and His salvation, to encourage everyone to walk ever more faithfully in the path that He has shown to all of us. As God’s children and His holy people, all of us should always strive to obey the commandments of God and to love one another just as He has always loved us, as His Law and commandments are all about love.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. John the Apostle in which St. John spoke clearly about the salvation which all of us have received from God, and which He has revealed and made clear to us through His Son, Jesus Christ, the One Who has come into our midst and brought us all the promise of eternal life and redemption. And because all of us as Christians have received the revelation, truth and knowledge about God’s salvation and grace, hence, all of us ought to live our lives worthily and embrace the salvation which our Lord has provided most generously for us, being ever mindful of the dangers of sin and evils all around us and in all of our actions, words and deeds so that we do not end up falling again and again into the trap of sin and darkness.

The Lord our Saviour has shown us the path out of the darkness and into the light of His salvation. However, it requires our cooperation and commitment that we may resist the temptations of sin and evil, temptations of worldly pleasures, ambitions and other desires of the world, the desire for the pleasure of the flesh, for fame and renown, for riches and worldly glory, among many other things, all of which may corrupt us and lead us astray in the path towards God and His grace. St. John the Apostle spoke clearly about how sin can lead us to damnation and death, but at the same time, we must have hope with us because the Lord Jesus, our Saviour has brought the forgiveness of sins and the perfect manifestation of God’s love into our midst.

We must not take this great love and generosity which we have received for granted, as if we are not careful then the allures of sin can lead us astray once again into the path towards damnation and Hell. But the Lord has given us all His providence and protection, the great love which He has shown us through His Son. And since all of us are the beloved children of God, we shall be protected and guided in our paths in life, and God will always be with us, by our side, with His Spirit and Wisdom lighting our path forward. However, we still have to cooperate with what the Lord has given to us, His love and providence so that we will be able to move forward ever closer towards His Light and salvation, towards the eternal joy and true happiness that we can find in Him alone, and not be distracted by the pursuit of false pleasures all around us.

In our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the works of the Lord Jesus and His Herald, St. John the Baptist, who were both working on the people, baptising them and calling them to repent from their sins and return to the Lord. And we heard of how the Lord Jesus at that time was becoming more and more popular, while less and less people were coming to St. John the Baptist. Prior to this, thousands upon thousands of people came flocking to St. John the Baptist, wanting to listen to him and to be baptised by him, and some even thought of him as the Messiah. But he told them all clearly that he was not the Messiah and was merely just the one sent ahead of the Lord to prepare the way for him.

Hence, when some of the disciples of St. John the Baptist told him of the issue, St. John the Baptist humbly said that it was how things were meant to be, that he should decrease and decline in importance and popularity while the Lord became more and more renowned and popular among the people. He had done what he was tasked to do, preparing the path for the Lord’s coming. It was indeed easy for one like St. John the Baptist to seek popularity and support from the people, as some other false Messiahs at that time had tried to do, gaining the support of many people and rising up in rebellion against the Romans, claiming to be the Messiah, only to have their rebellions failed and themselves killed and destroyed, because they did not represent the truth of God.

But St. John the Baptist remained obedient and committed to the mission which he has been entrusted with, resisting the temptations of worldly glory and ambitions, and did what he was tasked to do, to proclaim the Saviour of the world to everyone. And as he did so, he reminded all of us as Christians that we are also tasked and entrusted with the responsibility to proclaim the salvation of God and His truth, His love and hope to everyone whom we encounter daily in our lives. Each and every one of us have been given the opportunities and the grace to reach out to others whom we meet and encounter, interact and work with in our respective lives so that we may show to them the love of God, His truth and Good News through our own exemplary lives and actions.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we are all about to enter the Ordinary Time after tomorrow’s Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, let us all therefore remember always that as Christians we are expected to centre our lives, existence and all of our works on the Lord, and we should always proclaim His truth and love in our community and among all those whom we encounter each day in our lives. Let us all continue to be exemplary and be good inspiration to our fellow brothers and sisters around us, doing our best to live a most Christian living, full of faith and commitment to God, and be the shining beacons of His Good News, light and hope, and show His love manifested through His Son, by our own love for Him and our love for our brethren around us. Amen.

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Saturday, 11 January 2025 : Saturday after the Epiphany (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 3 : 22-30

At that time, Jesus went into the territory of Judea with His disciples. He stayed there with them and baptised. John was also baptising in Aenon, near Salim, where water was plentiful; people came to him and were baptised. This happened before John was put in prison.

Now John’s disciples had been questioned by a Jew about spiritual cleansing, so they came to John and said, “Rabbi, the One Who was with you across the Jordan, and about Whom you spoke favourably, is now baptising, and all are going to Him.”

John answered, “No one can receive anything, except what has been given to him from heaven. You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before Him.’ Only the bridegroom has the bride; but the friend of the bridegroom stands by and listens, and rejoices to hear the bridegroom’s voice. My joy is now full. It is necessary that He increase, but that I decrease.”

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Saturday, 11 January 2025 : Saturday after the Epiphany (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 149 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6a and 9b

Alleluia! Sing to the Lord a new song, sing His praise in the assembly of His saints. Let Israel rejoice in his Maker, let the people of Zion glory in their King!

Let them dance in praise of His Name and make music for Him with harp and timbrel. For the Lord delights in His people; He crowns the lowly with victory.

The saints will exult in triumph; even at night on their couches. Let the praise of God be on their lips, this is the glory of all His saints. Alleluia!

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Saturday, 11 January 2025 : Saturday after the Epiphany (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 John 5 : 14-21

Through the Son of God we are fully confident that whatever we ask, according to His will, He will grant us. If we know that He hears us whenever we ask, we know that we already have what we asked of Him.

If you see your brother committing sin, a sin which does not lead to death, pray for him, and God will give life to your brother. I speak, of course, of the sin which does not lead to death. There is also a sin that leads to death; I do not speak of praying about this. Every kind of wrongdoing is sin, but not all sin leads to death.

We know, that those born of God do not sin, but the One Who was born of God, protects them, and the evil one does not touch them. We know, that we belong to God, while the whole world lies in evil. We know, that the Son of God has come and has given us power to know the truth. We are in Him Who is true, His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God, and eternal life. My dear children, keep yourselves from idols.

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Friday, 10 January 2025 : Friday after the Epiphany (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all reminded of the love of God which has been made evident, real, tangible and approachable to all of us through His Son, which has been testified by many testimonies and proofs, that the love of God had indeed manifested itself in our midst, dwelling among us, He Who is known as Emmanuel, God Who is with us, living in our presence and walking in our world with us. He has brought us His healing, salvation and liberation so that each and every one of us may have the sure path out of the darkness and into the light of His salvation and grace, as He has promised to us from the very beginning, and which He has indeed fulfilled perfectly through His Son.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. John about the testimony of God’s salvation, which He had mare known and revealed to all of us through His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world. And by the coming of His Son into this world, God has opened the path to Himself and extended for us all the sure path to eternal life. And St. John mentioned not just one but three testimonies of the truth about the Lord’s coming, in water, in Blood and in Spirit. All these three testimonies affirm the truth about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Whose appearance in our midst have restored the hope that had once been lost to Him, and brought us back to see the light of God and His ever generous love.

Those testimonies of water, Blood and Spirit are the truths presented to us about the Messiah, with the first testimony of water referring to the moment when the Lord was baptised in the River Jordan by St. John the Baptist just as it has been prophesied. The Herald of the Messiah, St. John the Baptist himself recognised the One Whose coming He has been preparing the world for, and as He entered into the water, the Heavens itself opened and the voice of God the Father was heard, revealing that the Son of Man Who was baptised that day was indeed the Son of God as well, further affirmed by the Holy Spirit in the form of a Dove descending down from Heaven to rest upon Him. Truly this testimony showed us all that Jesus Christ is indeed the Divine Word of God incarnate in the flesh.

Then, the testimony of Blood is a reminder for us all of the redemptive mission of Our Lord, as He came into this world ultimately to be the One Who would offer the perfect and only worthy sacrifice and offering for our behalf, as our One True and Eternal High Priest, offering the Body and Blood of the Lamb of God, that is His own Most Precious Body and Blood, which had been broken and outpoured for us from His Cross at Calvary. There is no other Blood worthy enough to save us all from our predicaments and from the power of sin and darkness. That He willingly embraced us all and offered Himself and His life for us, is truly testimony and proof enough of what the Lord has done for us, the reality of what He had given to us, the perfect gift of His love.

Then lastly, the testimony of the Spirit referred not just to the descent of the Holy Spirit at the moment when the Lord Jesus was baptised at the River Jordan, but also referring to the moment when the Holy Spirit came down upon the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord, at the occasion of Pentecost, fifty days after the Lord has risen from the dead and ten days after He has ascended in glory to Heaven. This coming of the Holy Spirit and the guidance that the Lord has given us all His Church ever since is a fulfilment of everything that the Lord Himself has spoken about sending His Advocate, the Helper, the Holy Spirit upon His Church and all of His disciples and followers, to strengthen and guide us all in our path, showing that whatever He had said, all would indeed come true.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the story of the time when the Lord Jesus encountered a leper who came to Him and asked Him to heal him of his condition which had certainly made his life very difficult. We must understand that at the time of the Lord Jesus, those who have contracted leprosy were considered as unclean and impure, and they had to remain outside the community as outcasts, wandering off in the wilderness until their leprosy had been healed. In fact, what is known leprosy in this case might not have been the same as what is known today as leprosy, but might have been a kind of infection of the skin and the body, which can be easily passed on from one person to another, and can be cured, unlike the leprosy that we are familiar with today.

But regardless of the detail, or which leprosy the man was truly suffering from, the Lord healed him and told him to go to see the priests so that he could be welcomed back to the community. The Lord did not boast about what He had done, and in fact, He wanted those who have been healed by Him to keep quiet about the matter. Yet as we heard from the Gospel passage today, what the Lord had done for His people continued to grow in knowledge and popularity among the people, and many more would come towards Him, seeking His love, healing and forgiveness. And we are all therefore reminded today to remain focused on the Lord and His saving power, and all the love that He has shown us all these while.

Therefore, as we have been reminded through the Scripture passages today, we are all called as Christians, as God’s holy and beloved people to continue to proclaim our Lord and Saviour in our world today, reminding everyone whom we encounter of Who it is that we truly serve and believe in, reiterating our fullness of faith and trust in Him and in the salvation and eternal life that He has promised to each and every one of us. Let us all therefore strive to do our best in each and every moments to glorify the Lord by our every actions, words and deeds, in everything that we say and do, in our every interactions with one another so that we may show the truth of God to all the people around us.

May the Lord be with us all, and may He empower each one of us so that we will continue to live worthily in His Holy Presence, and be the worthy bearers and the good and shining beacons of His light and salvation, His truth and love, now and always. Amen.

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Friday, 10 January 2025 : Friday after the Epiphany (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 5 : 12-16

At that time, one day, in another town, a man came to Jesus covered with leprosy. On seeing Jesus, the man bowed down to the ground, and said, “Lord, if You want to, You can make me clean.”

Stretching out His hand, Jesus touched the man and said, “Yes, I want to. Be clean.” In an instant, the leprosy left him. Then Jesus instructed him, “Tell this to no one. But go, and show yourself to the priest. Make an offering for your healing, as Moses prescribed; that will serve as evidence for them.”

But the news about Jesus spread all the more; and large crowds came to Him, to listen and to be healed of their sickness. As for Jesus, He would often withdraw to solitary places and pray.

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Friday, 10 January 2025 : Friday after the Epiphany (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 147 : 12-13, 14-15, 19-20

Exalt YHVH, o Jerusalem; praise your God, o Zion! For He strengthens the bars of your gates and blesses your children within you.

He grants peace on your borders and feeds you with the finest grain. He sends His command to the earth and swiftly runs His word.

It is He, Who tells Jacob His words; His laws and decrees, to Israel. This, He has not done for other nations, so His laws remain unknown to them. Alleluia!

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Friday, 10 January 2025 : Friday after the Epiphany (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 John 5 : 5-13

Who has overcome the world? The one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus Christ was acknowledged through water, but also through Blood. Not only water but water and Blood. And the Spirit, too, witnesses to Him for the Spirit is truth.

There are then three testimonies : the Spirit, the water and the Blood, and these three witnesses agree. If we accept human testimony, with greater reason must we accept that of God, given in favour of His Son. If you believe in the Son of God, you have God’s testimony in you.

But those who do not believe make God a liar, since they do not believe His words when He witnesses to His Son. What has God said? That He has granted us eternal life and this life is in His Son. The one who has the Son has life, the one who do not have the Son of God do not have life.

I write you, then, all these things that you may know that you have eternal life, all you who believe in the Name of the Son of God.

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Thursday, 9 January 2025 : Thursday after the Epiphany (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded again during the remaining time of this joyful season of Christmas that we truly are celebrating the love of God manifested in this world through the coming of His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of all mankind and the whole world, by Whose arrival, presence and ministry, in all that He has done in our midst, in His teachings and outreach, all of us have seen and witnessed, experienced and learnt about what God truly wants from each and every one of us. And we are also reminded on how God is truly faithful and ever committed to the Covenant which He had made with us and all the promises He had given us.

In our first reading today, from the continuation of the Epistle of St. John the Apostle, we heard the exhortation from St. John to all the faithful reminding all of them to love one another, to show love to everyone without exception, and to show care and concern for each other, following the example and the teachings which the Lord Himself has shown to us by His words and actions amongst us. The Lord’s commandments and all of His Law, all of them are truly about love, on how we ought to love God with all of our strength and might, and then how we should love in the same manner as well to our fellow brothers and sisters around us, all those who need our love, care and attention.

It is also important that we all should embrace God’s love wholeheartedly and be appreciative and thankful that God has shown us all so much love, even when we have often disobeyed Him and disregarded His Law and commandments. Our loving God and Father has often been patient in loving us and caring for us, and because He has taught us all how to love and to show His love in our actions, words and deeds, therefore, it is important that we are truly filled with love in everything that we do, or else, we cannot truly call ourselves as God’s children or people. St. John himself said it plainly that if we do not show love to our brothers and sisters, then we are not truly loving God, and we are in fact ‘liars’ in our proclamation of love for God.

St. John made it clear that all those who love the Father, also loves the Son, and vice versa, and in order to be able to truly love God as we should, then we must be truly loving in all things, and we cannot be full of hatred or lacking in love towards anyone. If we ourselves are not showing love towards our fellow brothers and sisters, then how can we truly be genuinely loving towards God as well? And God Who loves everyone certainly will not find our lack of love and even hatred against our fellow brethren as something that is favourable. As Christians it is imperative that we follow the examples of Christ our Lord Himself, loving everyone around us generously and sincerely, to the best of our abilities. Indeed, this is something easier said than done, but we should at least make the effort to do so.

In our Gospel passage today from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus, early in His ministry returned to His hometown of Nazareth, and when He went to the local synagogue, at the appointed time, He proclaimed what the prophets like Isaiah and the ones before him had prophesied about the coming of the Messiah or the Saviour from God. And as Jesus proclaimed those words of the Scriptures, He proclaimed the fulfilment of everything that had been prophesied, how everything had indeed come true as it was meant to be, and everything that He had done, His teachings and great Wisdom, all the miracles and signs He had performed, all were the evidence that He was the Messiah that had been promised.

Yet, many of those people in Nazareth failed to recognise this and they refused to believe in Him, and instead they preferred to be swayed by their own prejudices and biases against the Lord just because they thought that they knew better about Him, that they knew about His family and His background, being merely the supposed Son of the town carpenter, from a lowly background and origin, unlike what many of the people of that time expected, that the Saviour would come as a great, mighty and conquering King, as the One to restore the Kingdom of Israel and lead the people of God to triumph and victory against their enemies. But the Lord Jesus revealed to them that God’s plan is far greater than their limited desires for worldly glory and liberation, for the Lord desired for no less than the salvation of the whole entire world, and the healing of those who have been hurt and afflicted by sin.

That is why, as Christians, all of us are challenged to be the ones to show the love of God as revealed to us through His Son to those whom we encounter in our lives in each and every interactions we have with them. We should show this through even the smallest parts of our lives, we can be the ones to show the love of God to everyone around us, in how we love our neighbours, all those whom we encounter in life, in our willingness to forgive those who have hurt us and to pray for them and their conversion of heart, among other things. This is why as we still continue to celebrate this joyful Christmas season, we are constantly being reminded to be always putting Christ, the manifestation of God’s love, at the centre of our lives.

Let us all therefore truly become worthy children and followers of the Lord, to be truly worthy to call God our ‘Father’ because we are truly like Him in all things, especially in how we love generously from our hearts and continue to do so just as how the Lord Himself has loved us all so generously. Let us all no longer be idle in our lives, in not realising that our every actions can be very important in showing the love of God to all the people, and let us all be proactive from now on in being evangelising and missionary in all of our actions, words and deeds, in our every interactions with our fellow brethren, even in the smallest things, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 9 January 2025 : Thursday after the Epiphany (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 4 : 14-22a

At that time, Jesus acted with the power of the Spirit; and on His return to Galilee, the news about Him spread throughout all that territory. He began teaching in the synagogue of the Jews and everyone praised Him.

When Jesus came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, as He usually did. He stood up to read, and they handed Him the book of the prophet Isaiah.

Jesus then unrolled the scroll and found the place where it is written : “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me. He has anointed Me, to bring good news to the poor; to proclaim liberty to captives; and new sight to the blind; to free the oppressed; and to announce the Lord’s year of mercy.”

Jesus then rolled up the scroll, gave it to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. Then He said to them, “Today, these prophetic words come true, even as you listen.” All agreed with Him, and were lost in wonder, while He spoke of the grace of God.