Lent 2023

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(Usus Antiquior) Holy Thursday, Solemn Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper (I Classis) – Thursday, 6 April 2023 : Epistle

Liturgical Colour : Violet

Lectio Epistolae Beati Pauli Apostoli ad Corinthios – Lesson from the Epistle of Blessed Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians

1 Corinthians 11 : 20-32

Fratres : Convenientibus vobis in unum, jam non est Dominicam cenam manducare, Unusquisque enim suam cenam praesumit ad manducandum. Et alius quidem esurit : alius autem ebrius est. Numquid domos non habetis ad manducandum et bibendum? Aut ecclesiam Dei contemnitis, et confunditis eos, qui non habent? Quid dicam vobis? Laudo vos? In hoc non laudo.

Ego enim accepi a Domino quod et tradidi vobis, quoniam Dominus Jesus, in qua nocte tradebatur, accepit panem, et gratias agens fregit, et dixit : Accipite, et manducate : hoc est Corpus Meum, quod pro vobis tradetur : hoc facite in Meam commemorationem.

Similiter et calicem, postquam cenavit, dicens : Hic calix novum Testamentum est in Meo Sanguine : hoc facite, quotiescumque bibetis, in Meam commemorationem. Quotiescumque enim manducabitis panem hunc et calicem bibetis : mortem Domini annuntiabitis, donec veniat.

Itaque quicumque manducaverit panem hunc vel biberit calicem Domini indigne, reus erit Corporis et Sanguinis Domini. Probet autem seipsum homo : et sic de pane illo edat et de calice bibat. Qui enim manducat et bibit indigne, judicium sibi manducat et bibit : non dijudicans Corpus Domini. Ideo inter vos multi infirmi et imbecilles, et dormiunt multi. Quod si nosmetipsos dijudicaremus, non utique judicaremur. Dum judicamur autem, a Domino corripimur, ut non cum hoc mundo damnemur.

English translation

Brethren, when you come therefore together into one place, it is not now to eat the Lord’s supper. For everyone takes, before, his own supper to eat. And one indeed is hungry and another is drunk. What, do you have no houses to eat or to drink in? Or do you so despise the Church of God and put those to shame, those who does not have? What shall I say to you? Do I praise you? In this I do not praise you.

For I have received of the Lord that which I also delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus, on the same night in which He was betrayed, took bread, and giving thanks, broke it and said, “Take all of you and eat. This is My Body, which shall be delivered for you. Do this for the commemoration of Me.”

In like manner He also did to the chalice, after the supper had ended, saying, “This chalice is the New Testament in My Blood. Do this all of you, as often as you shall drink, for the commemoration of Me.” For as often as you shall eat this bread and drink the chalice, you shall show the death of the Lord, until He comes.

Therefore, whosoever shall eat this bread, or drink of the chalice of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the Body and the Blood of the Lord. But let a man prove himself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of the chalice. For he who eats and drinks unworthily, eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Body of the Lord. Therefore there are many infirm and weak among you, and many sleep. But if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But while we are judged, we are chastised by the Lord, that we should not be condemned with this world.

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(Usus Antiquior) Holy Thursday, Solemn Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper (I Classis) – Thursday, 6 April 2023 : Introit and Collect

Liturgical Colour : Violet

Introit

Galatians 6 : 14 and Psalm 66 : 2-4

Nos autem gloriari oportet in Cruce Domini nostri Jesu Christi : in quo est salus, vita et resurrectio nostra : per quem salvati et liberati sumus.

Response : Deus misereatur nostri, et benedicat nobis : illuminet vultum suum super nos, et misereatur nostri. Nos autem gloriari oportet in Cruce Domini nostri Jesu Christi : in quo est salus, vita et resurrectio nostra : per quem salvati et liberati sumus.

Response : Ut cognoscamus in terra viam Tuam : in omnibus gentibus salutare Tuum. Nos autem gloriari oportet in Cruce Domini nostri Jesu Christi : in quo est salus, vita et resurrectio nostra : per quem salvati et liberati sumus.

Response : Confiteantur tibi populi, Deus : confiteantur tibi populi omnes. Nos autem gloriari oportet in Cruce Domini nostri Jesu Christi : in quo est salus, vita et resurrectio nostra : per quem salvati et liberati sumus.

English translation

But it behooves us to the glory in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom is our salvation, life, and resurrection, by whom we are saved and delivered.

Response : May God have mercy on us, and bless us. May He cause the light of His countenance to shine upon us, and may He have mercy on us. But it behooves us to the glory in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom is our salvation, life, and resurrection, by whom we are saved and delivered.

Response : That we may know Your way upon the earth, Your salvation among all nations. But it behooves us to the glory in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom is our salvation, life, and resurrection, by whom we are saved and delivered.

Response : Let the peoples praise You, o God. Let the peoples praise You. But it behooves us to the glory in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom is our salvation, life, and resurrection, by whom we are saved and delivered.

Collect

Deus, a quo et Judas reatus sui poenam, et confessionis suae latro praemium sumpsit, concede nobis Tuae propitiationis effectum : ut, sicut in passione sua Jesus Christus, Dominus noster, diversa utriusque intulit stipendia meritorum; ita nobis, ablato vetustatis errore, resurrectionis suae gratiam largiatur. Qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

O God, whom Judas received the punishment of his crime, and the thief the reward of his confession, grant us the effect of Your clemency, that as Jesus Christ, our Lord, in His passion dealt according to their deserts with the one and the other, so, putting away from us the error of the past, He may bestow upon us the grace of His resurrection. Who with You lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.

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Thursday, 6 April 2023 : Holy Thursday, Chrism Mass (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this occasion today, which is typically celebrated in the morning of Holy Thursday just before the beginning of the most solemn Easter Triduum, the Church all around the world usually celebrates the Chrism Mass, in which the holy oils to be used in the various purposes in the life of the Church are blessed and sanctified, and the bishop of the diocese together with all the priests of the diocese together commit themselves anew to the Lord, in their priestly ministry, in ministering to the people of God, the flock of the Lord. In this morning’s Mass, the whole Church gathers together in prayer, united with the whole presbyterate and the bishop, in recalling the ministry of priesthood that Christ our Lord Himself has instituted on this day at the Last Supper that He had with His disciples.

In our first reading and Gospel passage today, we heard the passage from the Book of the prophet Isaiah in which the Lord proclaimed His salvation and the coming of His grace and love into our midst, as He reassured all of His beloved people that He always remembers them, and He will never abandon any of them, as well as any of us, at any time, since He truly loves us all, and He wants us to be saved and be reconciled with Him. That was why, He revealed through the prophet Isaiah and His many other prophets and messengers, that He will send unto us His Holy One, His Messiah and Saviour, the One Who in our Gospel passage today, Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Son of Man proclaimed before all the assembled people, that everything which God had promised them and their ancestors, all had become true and been fulfilled with His coming, Him being the Messiah long awaited.

Then, in the same readings we have also heard how this Holy One of God came unto us to bring us healing from God, healing for those who were sick and afflicted by various maladies and hardships, consolation and strength for those who were grieving and without hope, as well as the comfort of His truth and love, opening the eyes of the blind, both of our physical eyes and also for all those who are physically fit, the ‘eyes’ of our hearts and minds, that we all may see and recognise the truth of God. That was what the Lord Jesus has been tasked to do by His Heavenly Father, to be the One to bring the love, grace and salvation from God to His people, to be the Bridge that connects us all back to our loving God and Creator. And it is this same mission which the Lord then transmitted to His Apostles, Whom He appointed as the first priests of the Church, to be the servants of God forever.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, that is what the calling of a priest of the Lord is like, and as today all the priests of the dioceses in the world come together with their respective bishops, to renew their commitment and dedication to the service of God, all of them are reminded to follow the Lord more wholeheartedly and to remember that each and every one of them are truly the representatives of Our Lord Jesus Christ, first of all as the shepherds of the people of God, and during the celebration of the Holy Mass, as the representatives ‘in persona Christi’, acting in the person of the Lord Himself, in consecrating the bread and wine, offering them to the Lord and uniting them to the same Sacrifice made by the Lord on His Cross at Calvary, becoming the Lord’s own Most Precious Body and Most Precious Blood, broken and outpoured unto us all, all of us who partake in His Covenant and His Most Holy Eucharist, the greatest gift that the Lord has given us.

All the priests of the Lord have given themselves and committed themselves to a life of sanctity and celibacy, dedicated completely to the Lord and to the service of His people, and they are all facing a lot of challenges and hardships, which only become more and more in these days, as many trials and attacks face our priests. Yet, despite all of these, they still have to continue to minister to the people of God, caring for them and giving them the guidance that they all needed, so that they may find their way to the Lord, their Chief Shepherd and Saviour. And all these are related to the holy oils that are being blessed in this Chrism Mass happening now as well. Those holy oils are used in many important and integral aspects of our Christian faith, and the priests are charged with the dutiful application of these oils in the many different stages of the lives of those of the faithful people of God, from their birth, right down to the end of their earthly lives.

There are three holy oils in total, namely the Oil of the Catechumens also known as Oleum Catechumenorum, the Sacred Chrism also known as Sanctum Chrisma, and the Oil of the Sick also known as Oleum Infirmorum. Each of these holy oils are important in the life journey of Christians, as the Oil of the Catechumens are used to anoint Catechumens who are preparing themselves to become Christians, in an occasion prior to their baptism. Oil of the Sick by its name, is used to anoint those who are gravely ill and sick, and are usually in the danger of death, as part of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, one of the Church’s seven Sacraments. Meanwhile, Sacred Chrism is used most extensively, in the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation, as well as in the Sacrament of Holy Orders, in the dedication of churches and Altars, among many other uses. All of these are blessed today by the diocesan bishop, to be used for the good of the Church and the flock of the Lord.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we gather together as the whole Universal Church today, united with the bishops and their priests all around the world, let us all unite our prayers and renew our support for all those who have dedicated themselves to God. Our priests have dedicated their whole lives to the Lord and committed themselves, and they face many struggles and hardships, and are in need of the support of the whole Universal Church. We must remember that every members of the Church and the faithful have to be active partakers of the works and the actions of the Church. The bishops, priests and deacons, the ordained members of the Church cannot be the only ones who carry out the works of the Lord and obey God’s will, as each and every one of us are part of the same Church, the same Body of Christ, and hence, have a part to play in the works of the Church, in whatever missions that God has entrusted to each and every one of us.

Let us hence pray for our priests, for the bishops and all those who have been ordained for a specific ministry in the Church, so that the Lord may continue to guide and strengthen them, to resist the many temptations, pressures, coercions, and to endure trials and hardships all around them. Let us all pray for the sanctification of our ordained ministers, that they all may continue to serve the Lord and His people with all of their hearts and minds, and with particular attention to sanctity and purity in their lives and actions. May the Lord continue to bless His Church and all of us, His beloved people, and especially our priests, whom we remember today. May God bless us always, in our every good efforts and deeds, and may He particularly bless our upcoming Easter Triduum observances and commemorations. Amen.

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Thursday, 6 April 2023 : Holy Thursday, Chrism Mass (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 4 : 16-21

At that time, 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.”

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Thursday, 6 April 2023 : Holy Thursday, Chrism Mass (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Revelations 1 : 5-8

And from Jesus Christ, the faithful Witness, the Firstborn of the dead, the Ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him Who loves us and has washed away our sins with His own Blood, making us a kingdom and priests for God His Father, to Him be the glory and power forever and ever. Amen.

See He comes with the clouds and everyone will see Him, even those who pierced Him; on His account all the nations of the earth will beat his breast. Yes. It will be so. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, He Who is, Who was and Who is to come : the Master of the universe.

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Thursday, 6 April 2023 : Holy Thursday, Chrism Mass (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 88 : 21-22, 25 and 27

I have found David my servant, and with My holy oil I have anointed him. My hand will be ever with him and My arm will sustain him.

My faithfulness and love will be with him, and by My help he will be strong. He will call on Me, ‘You are my Father, my God, my Rock, my Saviour.’

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Thursday, 6 April 2023 : Holy Thursday, Chrism Mass (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Isaiah 61 : 1-3a, 6a, 8b-9

The Spirit of the Lord YHVH is upon Me, because YHVH has anointed Me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up broken hearts, to proclaim liberty to the captives, freedom to those languishing in prison; to announce the year of YHVH’s favour and the day of vengeance of our God; to give comfort to all who grieve; (to comfort those who mourn in Zion) and give them a garland instead of ashes.

But you will be named priests of YHVH, you will be called ministers of our God. I will give them their due reward and make an everlasting covenant with them. Their descendants shall be known among the nations and their offspring among the peoples. All who see them will acknowledge that they are a race YHVH has blessed.

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Wednesday, 5 April 2023 : Wednesday of Holy Week (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we come ever closer to the beginning of the Easter Triduum and commemorating the most important events in the whole entire liturgical year, all of us are reminded yet again of everything that the Lord had done for each and every one of us, in all the things He had endured for our sake, the sufferings, trials and hardships that He had to face, all so that we can be saved and liberated from the tyranny and dominion of sin. He has reached out to us and touched us, offering His most generous love and mercy so that by His compassion, all of us may find the sure path and the guarantee of eternal glory with Him. God loves each one of us and He does not want to be lost from Him. This is why we commemorate this most holy and blessed of all weeks, remembering what God had done for us out of His enduring and most supreme love.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard the continuation of the discourse on the suffering of the Holy Servant of God Whom He had sent into our midst, to bear the brunt of the punishments and the rejection that this One would have to face as He carried out dutifully in obedience to the will of His Heavenly Father. God has sent unto us His Son, incarnate in the flesh and born as the Son of Man, so that by His sufferings, His pains and hardships, and by the wounds and hurts, all of us have received healing and forgiveness, mercy and reconciliation with God, our loving Father and Creator. He has willingly done this because He truly loves each one of us so greatly, as our loving Shepherd, reaching out to us, His lost sheep, so that by laying down His life for us, He may raise us up to eternal life.

Then in our Gospel passage today, we heard of the betrayal of Judas Iscariot, which had been building up as we heard the past two days of Gospel passages from Holy Monday and Holy Tuesday. That is why this day is also known as Spy Wednesday, denoting and remembering the moment when Judas Iscariot, the traitor, went behind the back of the Lord and His disciples, to betray Him to the hands of the chief priests and all the other enemies of the Lord. He sold his own Lord and Master for a mere sum of thirty pieces of silver, which symbolically was also back then the typical price of a slave in the market. Blinded by his own greed and human desires and arrogance, Judas allowed Satan to enter into our hearts and to do what was truly abhorrent, betraying the very One Who has called Him to be His disciple and abandoning Him for the pursuit of worldly glory and temptations.

If we remember the background and the story of Judas Iscariot, such an action was truly not entirely unexpected at all, since we all have heard that Judas Iscariot had often been dishonest and whose way of thinking and beliefs were often at odds with the Lord. According to the Apostolic traditions and history, Judas Iscariot had often stolen and appropriated the common funds the Lord’s group for his own selfish use, enriching himself with the money and things that were not his own. He must indeed have been a smart and intelligent man, for having been entrusted with the group’s finances. Unfortunately, he allowed his desires for power, glory, material wealth and more to cloud his judgment and to tempt him, leading to him being misguided by Satan into committing a most great and heinous act of rebellion and sin against God, in abandoning and betraying Him for monetary gains.

Yet, as I have mentioned yesterday earlier on, it may indeed be very easy for us to point fingers at Judas Iscariot and heap all the blame and condemnation on him, for his heinous and wicked actions especially in betraying the Lord. However, the actions of Judas Iscariot should in fact be a reminder for us of our own lack of faith, vulnerabilities to sin, inability to resist the many temptations of the world, the challenges and hardships we often face in encountering various forms of temptations and persuasions, coercions and pressures from many quarters, trying to lead us down the path of disobedience and rebellion against the Lord, much as Judas Iscariot himself had done. Before we conveniently just blame Judas Iscariot for everything that happened back then, we have to realise that in our own daily living, we have often also done what Judas himself had done.

Every time we commit sins against the Lord, be it small or significant, trivial or substantial, we have in fact betrayed the Lord and abandoned Him for the sins and whatever it is that we prioritised instead of fully obeying God’s Law and commandments. That is why, the example of Judas Iscariot and everything that he had committed should be something for us to carefully reflect on as we live our lives in this world, so that we do not end up falling into the same temptations that had brought him down, and led him to commit such a terrible act. Not only that, but as we all know how Judas Iscariot then responded to his action, by killing himself in regret, instead of entrusting himself to God’s forgiveness and mercy, all of us are called to remember that each and every one of us have the capacity for repentance and reconciliation with God just as much as we have the capacity to sin against God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we are about to enter very soon into the time of Easter Triduum, beginning tomorrow on Holy Thursday, let us all do whatever we can to reflect upon the things that the Lord has done to us, all the love, mercy and compassion that He has shown to all of us, so that although we are all sinners, wicked and evil in our words, actions and deeds, but through what He Himself had done for our sake, God had given us a certain path towards reconciliation with Him. That is why we should reflect on our often sinful and rebellious way of life so that we do not end up losing our way and committing the same things that Judas Iscariot had done. We are all called and reminded to focus our attention once again to the Lord, and remember everything that He had gone through for us, in His most loving embrace, and in reaching out to us through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour.

As we enter into the Easter or Paschal Triduum, let us all do whatever we can to centre our lives and focus our attention on the Lord, and grow ever stronger in our connection with Him. Let our every actions and observance of the many wondrous things happening during this Easter Triduum help us to grow ever closer to the Lord. May God bless us all and may He empower us to remain firmly ever more faithful to Him. May He help us to be ever more committed and courageous in all things, in being good role models and examples, as inspiration for each other in faith. May God bless our every good efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Wednesday, 5 April 2023 : Wednesday of Holy Week (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 26 : 14-25

Then one of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “How much will you give me if I hand Him over to you?” They promised to give him thirty pieces of silver, and from then on, he kept looking for the best way to hand Jesus over to them.

On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and said to Him, “Where do You want us to prepare the Passover meal for you?” Jesus answered, “Go into the city, to the house of a certain man, and tell him, ‘The Master says : My hour is near, and I will celebrate the Passover with My disciples in your house.'”

The disciples did as Jesus had ordered, and prepared the Passover meal. When it was evening, Jesus sat at table with the Twelve. While they were eating, Jesus said, “Truly I say to you : one of you will betray Me.” They were deeply distressed, and they asked Him, one after the other, “You do not mean me, do You, Lord?”

He answered, “The one who dips his bread with Me will betray Me. The Son of Man is going as the Scripture says He will. But alas for that one who betrays the Son of Man : better for him not to have been born.” Judas, who was betraying Him, also asked, “You do not mean me, Master, do You?” Jesus replied, “You have said it.”

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Wednesday, 5 April 2023 : Wednesday of Holy Week (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 68 : 8-10, 21bcd-22, 31 and 33-34

Since I am held in contempt for Your sake, and shame has covered My face. I have become a stranger to My kindred, an alien to My mother’s sons. Zeal for Your house consumes Me as fire and those who insult You insult Me as well.

I looked for sympathy and there was none, for comforters and there was no one. They gave me poison for food and vinegar to drink.

I will praise the Name of God in song; I will glorify Him with thanksgiving. Let the lowly witness this and be glad. You who seek God, may your hearts be revived. For the Lord hears the needy and does not despise those in captivity.