Lent

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Tuesday, 18 March 2025 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us are reminded through the readings of the Sacred Scriptures during this time and season of Lent that all of our actions and practices during this time of repentance and reorientation towards God should always be based and founded upon the desire for us to return towards our loving God and Father, ever being mindful of our fallen and wicked nature, having been tempted and corrupted by those sins and wickedness present all around us. During this time of Lent, all of us are made more aware of all the obstacles that prevented us from coming back towards God and His love, to our loving Father and Creator, Who has always desired for us to return to Him and to be reunited with Him, no longer separated from Him due to our sins.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard of the words of the Lord warning His people, the Israelites of the dangers of sin, reminding them of what had happened in the past to the two cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, which in history had been destroyed because of their grievous and terrible sins, and most importantly, because they refused to listen to God’s words and reminders, ignoring the opportunities given to them to repent and turn away from their sins. For the context, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were where Lot, the nephew and relative of Abraham settled in after they parted ways from each other. God first revealed to Abraham His plan of destroying the two cities for their wickedness and sins, but Abraham pleaded with the Lord a few times, asking Him to spare the cities if some righteous ones could be found in them, likely also for the sake of Lot, his relative.

Unfortunately, despite the pleading from Abraham, not even few righteous in those cities could be found save that of Lot himself and his immediate family. And when God sent His Angels to those cities, the wicked people of Sodom and Gomorrah, who according to tradition involved themselves in perverse sins and corruption of the flesh, demanded that the guests of Lot, who were the Angels in disguise, were to be surrendered to them. This was the last straw that sealed their fate, as the Angels led Lot and his family out of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, which ended up being destroyed by fire and brimstone from Heaven. God told the people through the prophet Isaiah about this reference to Sodom and Gomorrah to remind and warn them of the dangers of the sins that they had committed, in disobeying His Law and commandments, which could eventually lead them into the same path towards destruction.

The lesson from this story of Sodom and Gomorrah, and what the Lord Himself has told His people, the Israelites through the prophet Isaiah is that, while God is truly loving and merciful towards us, His beloved ones, but we must not take this love and mercy for granted, as in the end, at the time of reckoning and judgment, we will be condemned by whatever sins and wickedness that we have committed, if we do not repent from them. God did remind His people of His mercy and love as well, giving them reassurance and hope that if they were to change their ways and embrace His love and mercy, then they would be fully forgiven from their faults, mistakes and sins. But if they were to persist in their sins, then they would eventually face destruction and damnation.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist in which the Lord Jesus told His disciples regarding the behaviour and attitude of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, many of whom liked to showcase their piety and actions among the people around them, praying visibly in public places and wearing long and wide bands of prayer tassels and cloaks that the Jewish elders and intellectuals often wore, so that they would be praised by the people who saw them and their pious behaviour and actions. The Lord was warning His disciples and therefore also all of us against following this kind of behaviour so that we will not end up being tempted by pride, ambition and desire, all of which may lead to us into this same path of arrogance and egoistic behaviour that will likely lead us away from God.

Instead, the Lord said that to be His faithful and true followers, we must be humble and we must always keep our focus on the Lord, our one and only true Master. We must not let ourselves to be deluded into thinking that we are the master of our lives and our fates, or that we can gain the riches and glory of the world that will last forever. None of these worldly things, attachments and pursuits will last forever, and they will not avail us on the time and moment of reckoning and judgment of our lives. And if we spend so much time in trying to gain all these at the expense of our relationship with God, then in the end there may be nothing left for us except regret because we have spent so much time and effort to gain all these in vain, because none of those things will last for us. All of them are ultimately fleeting and impermanent.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, a holy man and servant of God who had devoted himself thoroughly to the service of God. St. Cyril of Jerusalem was born in Jerusalem in the early fourth century, and was ordained as a deacon, priest and eventually became the Bishop of Jerusalem, which was why he was known as St. Cyril of Jerusalem. St. Cyril as the Bishop of Jerusalem became one of the most steadfast defenders of the true and orthodox Christian faith against those who sought to change and twist the teachings of the Church to suit their own agenda and ambitions. He met a lot of opposition from those who embraced the heretical Arian teachings and ways, and such as from one Arian bishop Acacius, he had to face stubborn resistance which led to him being banished by those in power who were favourable to the Arian cause.

St. Cyril endured patiently all these challenges and hardships, giving his all in the struggles for the souls of the faithful people of God. He embraced the fullness of the orthodox teachings after having been influenced by Arian teachings and ideas himself in his youth. During those turbulent years when he was exiled from his See of Jerusalem, and after, when he returned in favour and power, he wrote extensively about the faith, which is the basis for his later elevation as one of the Doctors of the Church, a rare privilege among the saints of God. His great series of catechises on various matters and aspects of the Christian faith still inspired many people long after his passing, much as his great faith and piety are truly examples for all of us to follow in our own lives.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us have discussed from the words of the Sacred Scriptures that we have received regarding the need for us to repent and turn away from our sins, and on the need for us all to be humble in all things, to seek the Lord, His love and mercy at all times in our lives. We have also listened to the life and ministry of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, the faithful servant of God whose life should serve as a good inspiration for all of us so that we may know how to move forward in life, striving to distance ourselves away from the corruptions and temptations of sin. Let us all therefore be good role models and examples for one another, and do our part as good, holy and devoted Christians, as God’s holy people, to be the ones to glorify the Lord by our lives and examples. May our Lenten journey continue to bear rich fruits of faith, and help us to draw ever closer to the Lord, our God and His salvation. Amen.

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Tuesday, 18 March 2025 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 23 : 1-12

At that time, then Jesus said to the crowds and to His disciples, “The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees have sat down on the chair of Moses. So you shall do and observe all they say, but do not do as they do, for they do not do what they say. They tie up heavy burdens and load them on the shoulders of the people, but they do not even raise a finger to move them.”

“They do everything in order to be seen by people : they wear very wide bands of the Law around their foreheads, and robes with large tassels. They enjoy the first places at feasts and reserved seats in the synagogues, and they like being greeted in the marketplace, and being called ‘Master’ by the people.”

“But you, do not let yourselves be called Master, because you have only one Master, and all of you are brothers and sisters. Neither should you call anyone on earth Father because you have only one Father, He Who is in heaven. Nor should you be called Leader, because Christ is the only Leader for you.”

“Let the greatest among you be the servant of all. For whoever makes himself great shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be made great.”

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Tuesday, 18 March 2025 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 49 : 8-9, 16-17, 21, 23

Not for your sacrifices do I reprove you, for your burnt offerings are ever before Me. I need no bull from your stalls, nor he-goat from your pens.

What right have you to mouth My laws, or to talk about My covenant? You hate My commands and cast My words behind you.

Because I was silent while you did these things, you thought I was like you. But now I rebuke you and make this charge against you. Those who give with thanks offerings honour Me, but the one who walks blamelessly, I will show him the salvation of God.

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Tuesday, 18 March 2025 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Isaiah 1 : 10, 16-20

Hear the warning of YHVH, rulers of Sodom. Listen to the word of God, people of Gomorrah. Wash and make yourselves clean. Remove from My sight the evil of your deeds. Put an end to your wickedness and learn to do good.

Seek justice and keep in line the abusers; give the fatherless their rights and defend the widow. “Come,” says the Lord, “let us reason together. Though your sins be like scarlet, they will be white as snow; though they be as crimson red, they will be white as wool.”

“If you will obey Me, you will eat the goods of the earth; but if you resist and rebel, the sword will eat you instead.” Truly the Lord has spoken.

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Monday, 17 March 2025 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded of the great mercy which the Lord, our most loving God and Father has shown to each and every one of us, the compassion and love which He has given to us all as His beloved people. We are reminded especially during this time and season of Lent, we have been given the opportunity to turn away from our sins and wickedness, and we have been given the generous opportunity to return to our loving God and Father, embracing His compassion and kindness, in His desire to reconciled and reunited with all of us. God has been generous in His mercy, and today we are all reminded to be thankful and appreciative of what we have received from Him.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Daniel, we heard of the words of the prophet Daniel beseeching the Lord and asking Him to show mercy and compassion on His people, the Israelites and their descendants. They and their ancestors had rebelled and sinned against God, and therefore they had been cast out of the land that had been promised to them, the Land of Canaan, which their ancestors had dwelled in, but which by the time of Daniel, foreigners like the Assyrians and the Babylonians had conquered their kingdoms, destroyed their cities and exiled many among them to the distant lands, as Daniel himself had experienced and suffered. And in those distant lands, they had to bear the humiliation of their fate, the loss of their homeland, and the ignominy of their exile.

Daniel gathered the prayers and thoughts of the people of God, many of whom had repented from their sins in their time and period of exile from their homeland. He asked the Lord on their behalf, presenting their sorrow and repentance, their regret for all of their mistakes and sins in the past, seeking God to forgive them their sins so that they might once again be loved and blessed by Him, and be allowed to return to their homeland, after their punishment and sufferings had come to an eventual end. He showcased Israel’s regret for their many disobedience and sins, and this is showing us how our attitude should be like in how we live our lives especially during this penitential time and season of Lent. We should also seek God’s generous mercy and forgiveness, and commit ourselves to His path, from now on.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples, telling them clearly to be merciful in their actions just as God their loving Father has shown them lots of mercy and compassion. Just like in the prayer which the Lord Jesus Himself had taught them said, that, ‘Forgive us our trespasses just as we forgive those who have trespassed against us’. And this is an important reminder for us all that just as we seek to be forgiven from our many sins and mistakes, we too should be ready to forgive others around us, be it our own family members, relatives, colleagues and even strangers who have caused hurt to us, or those who have wronged and done mistake to us.

To forgive others is something that is not easily done, but we must still strive to do it nonetheless. And the best example we can follow is none other than the Lord Himself, our most loving and generous Father, Who has loved us all and desired to forgive us our sins should we come to Him with sincere repentance and desire to be forgiven from those sins. Not only that, but He has also given us all His own only Begotten Son to save us from our fated destruction, and through this same Son, Who was punished for our sins, He forgave us all the trespasses, mistakes and sins we have committed, just as His Son forgave those who have persecuted and condemned Him to death from His Cross, praying for them to the Father not to count their sins against them. This is an example of forgiveness and mercy that all of us as Christians ought to follow. 

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Patrick, a holy bishop and great servant of God, who is well-known as the missionary who brought the Christian faith to Ireland and established the foundation of the Church there in that island. He is well-celebrated especially amongst the members of the Irish diaspora, which is now spread all around the world. St. Patrick himself was born in the then late Roman Britain, and he was born to a Romano-British family, whose father was apparently a decurion, a rather important official in the Roman government. In his youth, it was reported that he was captured by Irish pirates who brought him to Ireland and enslaved him for a whole period of six years. Eventually he was able to escape from his captors and returned home, but his experiences in Ireland was truly a premonition of what he would do there in the future.

Eventually, St. Patrick continued his studies and was ordained as a deacon and then priest, and then sent as a missionary back to Ireland, acting on a vision that he has seen and received since the day of his captivity there. He was ordained as a bishop and became the one to lead the path for other missionaries to evangelise the land of Ireland. St. Patrick laboured patiently for many years among the many pagan peoples throughout Ireland, and while he had some successes in converting some of the local kings, lords and people, but there were lots of opposition that he had to endure throughout his ministry in Ireland. But slowly, through his patient teaching and genuine Christian love, virtues and righteousness, more and more people came to believe in God through him and that was the beginning of Christian Ireland.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have discussed through our reflection on the Sacred Scripture passages and from the life and works of St. Patrick, we are reminded to be aware of our sinfulness and seek God for His forgiveness and mercy, for Him to heal us from our sins and corruptions, so that we may once again be worthy to come to His Holy Presence and embrace Him fully in His love. And we are also reminded that we have the calling and obligation to be missionary as what St. Patrick and our other holy predecessors had done in their respective lives and works. That is why all of us are called to remember today our faith in the Lord and the generous mercy that God has given and reassured us with. We should not take God’s love for granted any longer, but appreciate every opportunities that we have been given.

Let us all therefore continue to journey through this time and season of Lent with contrite heart, desiring to seek God’s forgiveness and mercy, and at the same time, showing mercy and love, compassion and kindness to those around us as well. May all of us be truly forgiven by God and be reconciled with Him through this great opportunity of this Lenten time and season. May God be with us always, and may He continue to bless us in our every efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 17 March 2025 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Luke 6 : 36-38

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not be a judge of others and you will not be judged; do not condemn and you will not be condemned; forgive and you will be forgiven; give and it will be given to you, and you will receive in your sack good measure, pressed down, full and running over. For the measure you give will be the measure you receive back.”

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Monday, 17 March 2025 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 78 : 8, 9, 11, 13

Do not remember against us the sins of our fathers. Let Your compassion hurry to us, for we have been brought very low.

Help us, God, our Saviour, for the glory of Your Name; forgive us for the sake of Your Name.

Listen to the groans of the prisoners; by the strength of Your arm, deliver those doomed to die.

Then we, Your people, the flock of Your pasture, will thank You forever. We will recount Your praise from generation to generation.

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Monday, 17 March 2025 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Daniel 9 : 4b-10

Lord God, great and to be feared, You keep Your covenant and love for those who love You and observe Your commandments. We have sinned, we have not been just, we have been rebels, and have turned away from Your commandments and laws. We have not listened to Your servants, the prophets, who spoke in Your Name to our kings, leaders, fathers and to all the people of the land.

Lord, justice is Yours, but ours is a face full of shame, as it is to this day – we, the people of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the whole of Israel, near and far away, in all the lands where You have dispersed us because of the infidelity we have committed against You. Ours is the shame, o Lord for we, our kings, princes, fathers, have sinned against You.

We hope for pardon and mercy from the Lord, because we have rebelled against Him. We have not listened to the voice of YHVH, our God, or followed the laws which He has given us through His servants, the prophets.

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Sunday, 16 March 2025 : Second Sunday of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we all gather together in this Second Sunday in the season of Lent, all of us are reminded to continue embarking on the journey of faith through our lives towards the Lord our God, our Saviour and Hope. We are reminded of the Covenant which God has made with each and every one of us, beginning with Abraham, our father in faith, to whom God had willingly established the Covenant that He had constantly renewed and then expanded to cover all of us, the children and descendants of Adam, that we all may partake in His glorious inheritance and to receive the grace and blessings that He has assured to all those who are faithful to His Covenant, His Law and commandments.

In our first reading this Sunday, we heard from the Book of Genesis in which the very moment when God established His Covenant with Abram, a man whom He had called from the land of Ur of the Chaldeans in Mesopotamia. Abram had obeyed the Lord and responded to His call with commitment, following the Lord’s call to the land that He had led him into, the land of Canaan, the Promised Land that God promised to be given to the descendants of Abram. Abram brought his wife, Sarai and his personal assets and servants, travelling long distance from his homeland, leaving behind the life that he knew, and embarked on the journey to the land of Canaan. Through this great obedience and other virtues that Abram had shown, the Lord chose him to be the one with whom He would make His Covenant, renewing the Covenant that He had made with us mankind from the beginning.

God therefore promised to Abram through this solemn Covenant, that He would be his God and the God of his descendants, which would be as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand grains on the shores, essentially uncountable. And this is remarkable considering that at the time that God made this Covenant with Abram, he was still a relatively old man with no child or anyone that can bear his legacy, and he himself said that his servant would be the one to inherit his riches and property. But God reassured Abram that He would give unto him a son, son born of him and his wife, Sarai. And as a sign of his commitment to this new Covenant and the new life that Abram and his wife, Sarai, had been called into, they both changed their name, which symbolically highlighted this moment of conversion and change, becoming known as Abraham and Sarah respectively. Eventually Abraham would indeed become the father of many nations, both by blood and by faith, as all of us Christians do call Abraham our father in faith.

In our second reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful people of God in the region of Philippi in modern day Greece. In that Epistle, the Apostle spoke of the nature of our Christian citizenship in Heaven, a reminder for all of us that as Christians, as God’s holy and beloved people, all of us, regardless which country, origin or background that we have, ultimately, all of us belong to the Lord and we all share this common inheritance from God, the promise of the eternal life and true happiness in Heaven, to be forever in the presence of our loving God and Creator. And linking to what we have heard in our first reading today regarding the Covenant of God and Abraham, all of us have Abraham as our father in faith, and therefore, we also share in this great and Eternal Covenant that God has established and renewed with us all.

We are all reminded by St. Paul the Apostle that no matter what struggles and hardships each and every one of us may encounter in our respective lives, each one of us should continue to be faithful in the Lord and put our faith and trust in Him. We must not let ourselves to be easily swayed by the many temptations, pressures, coercions and all the things that we may encounter in our path which may lead us astray, tempting us to abandon our journey towards God and His salvation. At that time, during the moment when St. Paul wrote this Epistle, Christians have begun to spread around the Roman Empire and other surrounding regions, as missionaries worked hard to proclaim the Good News of God to more and more people. However, they also faced a lot of opposition and persecution from their enemies and from those who were suspicious of the Christian teachings and faith.

At the same time, the Christian faithful were also surrounded by the many pagan practices and other things which were often in conflict with the Christian belief and ways. Therefore, St. Paul was encouraging the faithful in Philippi to be strong and to remain committed in their faith so that they would not easily give in to the temptation to abandon their faith amidst all those pagan influences and pressures to conform and follow the worldly ways. This is something that is difficult and a dilemma facing many of the early Christians, as some of them were divided between their families and their faith, and some of them were persecuted by their own families and relatives, on top of the persecution from the authorities for their faith and belief in God. They were all reminded that their faith and trust in the Lord ultimately would not be in vain, for them having adopted the ways of the Lord, and changing their path from the path of the wickedness of the world for the path of God’s righteousness.

And this is what we have ourselves experienced in our baptism and journey of Christian initiation as well. All of us through our baptism, and more especially so for those of us who chose to embark on this journey in our adulthood, had to make the commitment to a new life in God. Through our baptism and the other sacraments of Initiation, we have essentially been brought into the Covenant with God much as how Abraham had the Covenant established with him by God. And just as Abraham has dedicated himself and his life, promising that his descendants would also obey the Covenant that God had made with them, therefore all of us are also required to follow and obey the commandments of God, doing our very best so that we can fulfil our part of the Covenant as well, to live our lives in the manner that the Lord has shown and taught us to do.

All of us are reminded that by becoming Christians, we embark on this journey of renewal and purification, one that we are being reminded of during this time of Lent, by our renewal of the commitment to live our lives in accordance to the way that the Lord Himself has shown and taught us. And what we have heard in our Gospel passage today should serve as a reminder and premonition of what our end goal is, which is to be truly transformed in our whole being to be once again full of God’s grace, light and love, to be free from the taint and corruption of sin, just as the Lord Jesus showed us and His disciples by His glorious Transfiguration at Mount Tabor. At that occasion, the Lord revealed His glory and true nature to three of His closest disciples, St. Peter, St. James and St. John.

Through what we have heard in that account of the Transfiguration of the Lord, we are shown that Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, was not merely just a Man, the Son of Man, but also the Son of God, Who had clad His Divine nature in the form of our human nature and flesh. As we firmly believe in our Christian faith, we believe in Our Lord Who has made Himself manifest in His divinity and humanity both in the Person of Jesus Christ, one Person having two distinct yet inseparable and indivisible natures, Divine and Human. And by sharing this Human nature with all of us, Christ Our Transfigured Lord reminds us of our original immaculate and perfect nature, as how we were when He first created us all, untainted and uncorrupted by the corruption of sin and evil.

By His Transfiguration, the Lord reassured us all of His salvation, fulfilling everything that He has promised to our ancestors and predecessors, all the Law and the prophecies which He had passed on to them through the prophets, represented by the appearance of Moses and Elijah there at Mount Tabor with the Transfigured Lord. Both of them were very important figures in the history of the people of God. Their appearance there at Mount Tabor reaffirmed the fact that Jesus is truly the One Whom the people of Israel had been awaiting for, and the fulfilment and perfect manifestation of the Law of God that Moses represented, which He revealed in its fullness and elaborated in its purpose, as well as the completion of the prophecies of the Prophets that was represented by Elijah. And we are all reminded of the true nature of our existence, our true selves, unhindered by the corruption of sin.

Therefore, as we continue to progress through this time and season of Lent, are we willing and able to commit ourselves to the Lord anew and follow Him wholeheartedly, as we have been called to do, to be like Abraham and our forefathers who have trusted in God and be part of the Covenant that He had made with us all. And like Jesus our Lord and Saviour Himself, Who as Son, obeyed His Father’s will perfectly, and as we heard, despite the glory of His appearance and Transfiguration on Mount Tabor, chose to descend down the mountain to go forth to His Passion in Jerusalem. Through His obedience and willing sacrifice, He showed us all the perfect love of God by which all of us have received the fulfilment of the promise of God’s salvation, and opened for us the path towards full reconciliation with our loving Father.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday let us all therefore strive to continue our Lenten journey with great faith and commitment, doing our very best so that we may come closer to God and be ever stronger in our relationship with Him, and be fully committed to His path, so that we can truly be faithful to the New and Eternal Covenant that He has made and sealed with us by the loving sacrifice of His Son, Our Lord and Saviour on the Cross. May the Lord be with us always, and bless our Lenten journey, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Sunday, 16 March 2025 : Second Sunday of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Luke 9 : 28b-36

At that time, Jesus took Peter, John and James, and went up the mountain to pray. And while He was praying, the aspect of His face was changed, and His clothing became dazzling white. Two men were taking with Jesus : Moses and Elijah. Appearing in the glory of heaven, Moses and Elijah spoke to Jesus about His departure from this life, which was to take place in Jerusalem.

Peter and His companions had fallen asleep; but they awoke suddenly, and they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him. As Moses and Elijah were about to leave, Peter – not knowing what to say – said to Jesus, “Master, how good it is for us to be here! Let us make three tents, one for You, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

And no sooner had he spoken, than a cloud appeared and covered them; and the disciples were afraid as they entered the cloud. Then these words came from the cloud, “This is My Son, My Beloved, listen to Him.” And after the voice had spoken, Jesus was there alone. The disciples kept this to themselves at the time, telling no one of anything they had seen.