Martyrs

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Wednesday, 5 February 2025 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Agatha, Virgin and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Hebrews 12 : 4-7, 11-15

Have you already shed your blood in the struggle against sin? Do not forget the comforting words that Wisdom addresses to you as children : My son, pay attention when the Lord corrects you and do not be discouraged when He punishes you. For the Lord corrects those He loves and chastises everyone He accepts as a son.

What you endure is in order to correct you. God treats you like sons and what son is not corrected by his father? All correction is painful at the moment, rather than pleasant; later it brings the fruit of peace, that is, holiness to those who have been trained by it.

Lift up, then, your drooping hands, and strengthen your trembling knees; make level the ways for your feet, so that the lame may not be disabled, but healed. Strive for peace with all and strive to be holy, for without holiness no one will see the Lord. See that no one falls from the grace of God, lest a bitter plant spring up and its poison corrupt many among you.

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Monday, 3 February 2025 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Ansgar, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we all listened from our Scripture passages today, we are all reminded of the reality of hardships, persecutions and the challenges that each and every one of us as Christians may encounter in our journey of faith as the disciples and followers of the Lord. We must remember that despite all these difficulties, we must remain firm in our faith in the Lord and do not easily be discouraged or disheartened, dissuaded or prevented from finding our way towards Him. This is because the Lord is always by our side, journeying with us and guiding us, and He will provide us with whatever we need along the journey, and it is in Him alone that we can confide, and He alone can overcome the forces of darkness and evil, just as we have heard from our Scripture passages today.

In our first reading today, taken from the Epistle to the Hebrews, we heard the author of this Epistle speaking to the Jewish community referring to the examples of God’s providence, help and guidance to His people, how He had called, chosen and empowered His servants, those famous figures like Samuel, David and others in the Old Testament, who have been blessed and strengthened by God, ordinary people who were sinners and imperfect, and yet, by the Lord’s guidance and strength, had been empowered to do great and wonderful things, which mankind alone cannot do by themselves. This passage is an important reminder for us all that we are never alone in our journey and struggles in life, and we must always keep our hope and faith in the Lord at all times, no matter what the circumstances are.

And at the same time, sufferings, hardships, obstacles and challenges are always in our path, and we will always likely be encountering these in our journey, as we must never forget that whatever the Lord has taught and shown us, His way and path are often in contradiction to the ways promoted by the world. That is why if we continue to embark on this journey and remaining faithful to God throughout, we may be persecuted and face challenges just as the Lord Himself had been rejected and oppressed by the world. And yet, we must remain firm in our faith because God will give us the strength and the courage needed for the journey, and if we trust in Him, we will eventually share in His glorious inheritance and be freed from all those hardships, persecutions and challenges.

It will not be an easy journey for us to be faithful Christians, to be good and worthy disciples and followers of the Lord. But with God and by His guidance and help, everything is truly possible. We must also not fear those that can only harm the body, our physical self, existence and material in this world, but cannot touch our eternal soul, which belongs to God alone. But if we choose to abandon the Lord and allow sin to continue to corrupt us and leading us down the path of ruin, then by ignoring or rejecting God’s mercy and generous love, we will be judged and condemned by those same sins and wickedness that we have committed, and by the corruptions that have marred the sanctity of our souls, which God had intended to be holy and worthy of Him.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, we heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus went to the region of the Gerasenes beyond the Jordan River where He and His disciples encountered a man who had been possessed by evil spirits, and forced to wander off in the wilderness away from the community because of his condition, and we heard how he was greatly feared by everyone because of the demons that were in him. But God showed His power and might, His authority and dominion over all those evil spirits, who called themselves ‘Legion’ because they were numerous in number. God told them to leave the man behind and not to trouble them anymore.

Those evil spirits, which many others had feared and fled from, had to obey the Lord and His commands, although they tried to negotiate with Him, asking Him to allow them to leave the man for the herd of pigs that were there nearby the location. And thus, that was how the Lord cast out those army of demons out of the possessed man, healed and made him whole once again, which therefore allowed him to return once again to the community. We heard how the people who heard of the miraculous occasion were astonished and even fearful, seeing such a great sign and miracle occurring before them, and the man who had once been possessed by the many evil spirits having been freed from his possession by those demons.

All these showed us how the Lord is there for us, by our side, and not even an army of demons can stop Him, because He is Lord and Master over all things, and even all those demons and evil spirits had to obey Him, to stay away from us, His beloved ones. That is why if we are encountering hardships and challenges, we should not be easily deterred or brought down by fear, because the evil ones are indeed always ready to strike at us especially when we are not vigilant and when we lack confidence and faith in the Lord. When our faith in Him wavers and when we allowed them to tempt us and enter into our hearts and minds, that is how we falter and fall in our journey towards Him, and end up in miserable state of sin, in danger of damnation and destruction with those evil spirits, who are more than happy to see us share their fate.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of two great and holy men, whose lives can be great source of inspiration and hope for us all to follow in our own lives and journeys of faith. St. Blaise was the Bishop of Sebastea in what is today part of Turkey, in the region of Lesser Armenia, and he was a well-known physician, and today revered as patron saint of physicians, animals, veterinarians, and also over throat sickness and diseases, and the special blessing associated to him, the Blessing of Throats by St. Blaise is a popular and well-known tradition of the Church. He was a great and popular healer, and not only in physical ailments, but also expert in matters of the spiritual, as the shepherd of the flock entrusted under his care in Sebastea and its surrounding regions.  Many people came to him seeking for help from their various ailments, physical and spiritual, and many were healed by him.

The popular blessing associated to St. Blaise came about because of the popular account of the healing of a child who had been choking on a fish bone, when his distraught mother came to seek St. Blaise seeking for his help and intercession. St. Blaise prayed for the child and he was cured from his condition immediately. Henceforth, he became the patron of all those suffering from throat conditions. Then, during the time of persecution of Christians, then under the Eastern Emperor Licinius, the rival of Emperor Constantine the Great, who persecuted Christians in spite of the Christian-favouring Emperor Constantine, St. Blaise was arrested and tortured, and according to accounts he was tortured with iron comb before being beheaded, a true martyr of the Church and the Christian faith.

Then, St. Ansgar, the other saint whose life we honour and commemorate today was also known popularly as the ‘Apostle of the North’ due to his many works and missions to the northern part of what is today Germany, which during his time and ministry were still populated by many pagan believers, and many of those people had not yet received the Good News of God, or refused to believe in Him despite earlier missionaries’ works. St. Ansgar eventually became a priest and missionary, and was sent by the then ruler of Francia, Charlemagne or Charles the Great, to evangelise in the region of Saxony and northern Germany. He ministered to the people there and proclaimed the Word and Good News of God courageously even amongst those who resisted his efforts and works.

The patient works of St. Ansgar and many of his compatriots and fellow workers in evangelisation eventually bore many fruits, as many people came to believe in the Lord, laying the foundation for the Christian Church in that region. He was also eventually chosen as the Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen in northern Germany, and he continued to perform many works of evangelisation in spreading the Word of God to not just northern parts of Germany but even Scandinavia, where the then Vikings who were still mostly pagan had not yet known the Lord. St. Ansgar worked hard and devoted himself to the works of evangelisation to the end of his life, managing to put the beginnings and laying the firm foundations for later conversion of Scandinavia through his efforts and good relationships with the Scandinavian rulers, his patient and consistent efforts in dialogue and encounter with those who have yet to believe in God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, from the examples of these great men, St. Blaise and St. Ansgar, and from what we have just discussed about the Scripture readings earlier, let us all therefore be reminded that we should always put our trust and faith fully in the Lord, and commit ourselves to whatever missions, works and calling that the Lord has entrusted to us. We should not be afraid or fearful of the challenges and trials that we may have to encounter in our path, but like St. Blaise and St. Ansgar, we should continue to push on forward with genuine and strong faith in the Lord, knowing that God will always be by our side, journeying and guiding us throughout our journey in life, now and always. Let us all renew our commitment and our desire to follow Him and to glorify Him, proclaiming His Good News and truth to all the people, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Monday, 3 February 2025 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Ansgar, Bishop (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Mark 5 : 1-20

At that time, Jesus and His disciples arrived at the other side of the lake, in the region of the Gerasenes. No sooner did Jesus leave the boat than He was met by a man with evil spirits, who had come from the tombs. He lived among the tombs, and no one could restrain him, even with a chain. He had often been bound with fetters and chains, but he would pull the chains apart and smash the fetters, and no one had the strength to control him.

Night and day he stayed among the tombs on the hillsides, and was continually screaming, and beating himself with stones. When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell at His feet, and cried with a loud voice, “What do You want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? For God’s sake, I beg You, do not torment me!”

He said this, because Jesus had commanded, “Come out of the man, evil spirit!” And when Jesus asked the evil spirit, “What is your name?” It replied, “Legion is my name, for we are many.” And it kept begging Jesus, not to send them out of that region.

Now a great herd of pigs was feeding on the hillside, and the evil spirits begged him, “Send us to the pigs, and let us go into them.” So Jesus let them go. The evil spirits came out of the man and went into the pigs, and immediately the herd rushed down the cliff, and all were drowned in the lake. The herdsmen fled, and reported this in the town and the countryside, so all the people came to see what had happened.

They came to Jesus, and saw the man freed of the evil spirits sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the same man who had been possessed by the legion. They were afraid. And when those who had seen it, told what happened to the man and to the pigs, the people begged Jesus to leave their neighbourhood.

When Jesus was getting into the boat, the man, who had been possessed, begged to stay with Him. Jesus would not let him, and said, “Go home to your people, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how He has had mercy on you.”

So he went throughout the country of Decapolis, telling everyone how much Jesus had done for him; and all the people were astonished.

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Monday, 3 February 2025 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Ansgar, Bishop (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Psalm 30 : 20, 21, 22, 23, 24

How great is the goodness which You have stored for those who fear You, which You show, for all to see, in those who take refuge in You!

In the shelter of Your presence You hide them from human wiles; You keep them in Your dwelling, safe from the intrigues of wagging tongues.

Blessed be the Lord for His wonderful love! He has strengthened my heart.

I said in my fright : “I have been cut off from Your sight!” Yet when I was crying, You heard; when I called for mercy, You listened.

Love the Lord, all you His saints! The Lord preserves His faithful, but He fully requites the arrogant.

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Monday, 3 February 2025 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Ansgar, Bishop (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Hebrews 11 : 32-40

Do I need to say more? There is not enough time to speak of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, as well as Samuel and the prophets. Through faith they fought and conquered nations, established justice, saw the fulfilment of God’s promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched raging fire, escaped the sword, were healed of their sicknesses; they were weak people who were given strength to be brave in battle and repulse foreign invaders.

Some women recovered their dead by resurrection but there were others – persecuted and tortured believers – who, for the sake of a better resurrection, refused to do what would have saved them. Others suffered chain and prison. They were stoned, sawn in two, killed by the sword. They fled from place to place with no other clothing than the skins of sheep and goats, lacking everything, afflicted, ill-treated.

These people of whom the world was not worthy had to wander through wastelands and mountains, and take refuge in the dens of the land. However, although all of them were praised because of their faith, they did not enjoy the promise because God had is in mind and saw beyond. And He did not want them to reach perfection except with us.

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Saturday, 25 January 2025 : Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church marks the occasion of the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle, marking the moment when the once hostile and fervent anti-Christian young Jew and Pharisee named Saul turned over a new leaf completely in his life, becoming then the courageous defender of the Christian faith, changing his name into Paul as the sign of this conversion and embarking into a new life and mission blessed by God. And this day all of us are reminded not to give up hope in the Lord because in Him alone lies our salvation and hope, and He has generously showed us all His love and grace, His persistent care and compassion towards all of us, and His desire to be reunited with us. God has always called us all to holiness, and He provided us with the sure path through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour.

In our first reading today, we heard the story of the conversion of St. Paul himself, highlighting to us the moment when as mentioned, Saul the Pharisee encountered the Lord and was converted to the true faith. Up to that moment Saul had always been a very energetic and fanatical Pharisee who had been very active in persecuting the early Christians, arresting many of them throughout Jerusalem, Judea and other regions, and he was also present at the time of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, the very first martyr of the Church. Essentially he was a great enemy of the Church and the early Christian believers. And that mistaken zeal was what drove the young Saul to seek permission from the Jewish leaders to go to Damascus to continue rooting out the early Christians and persecuting them for their faith in the Lord.

But as we all know, God had a very different plan for Saul. As we heard from the account from the Acts of the Apostles, Saul had an encounter with the Lord Jesus Himself Who appeared to Him on the way to Damascus, and Who revealed Himself and His truth to the misguided and overzealous young man. It was thus the beginning of the conversion journey of Saul, who met Ananias, one of the Lord’s disciples who was in Damascus, and it was Ananias who baptised Saul and gave him the first teachings and truth of the Christian beliefs, opening the eyes of Saul to what the truth about Jesus Christ, the Saviour has brought into this world, which he and many other Pharisees, clouded by pride, greed and ego, and by falsehoods, refused to believe and ended up persecuting.

Saul therefore completely changed his ways, so much so that many people were astonished by the change, both those Pharisees who once persecuted Christians with him and also the persecuted Christians themselves. But Saul continued to grow in wisdom and power of the Lord through the Holy Spirit, and he took upon the new name of Paul to signify this conversion and change, much as how in the Scriptures, people had their names change to indicate significant events in their lives. From a great enemy and persecutor of Christians, St. Paul became the great champion of the Christian faith, dedicating and committing himself to the cause of the Lord, proclaiming the truth of God faithfully wherever he went, labouring hard for the Lord’s sake and enduring a lot of hardships and persecutions that he himself once inflicted upon the Christians.

The story of the conversion of St. Paul the Apostle is truly a very amazing story of hope and change which all of us should be inspired by. The great examples shown by St. Paul the Apostle and his dedication to the Lord after having committed great mistakes and harm to the Church earlier in his life is one of the story of hope reminding us that there is no one excluded by the Lord and that each and every one of have the same opportunity and chance which God Himself has provided most generously to us because He wants us all to be saved and redeemed through Him, and no longer be lost because of our sins and disobedience against Him. If even a great sinner and someone who had once committed grievous sins and acts that endangered many of the early Christians like St. Paul could become a great servant of God and exemplary follower of the Lord, then who we are to say that we cannot do the same as well?

In our Gospel passage today from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, we heard the words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples in which He commanded all of them to go forth and spread throughout the world, proclaiming His Good News and salvation, all of which He has promised to us through the same Jesus Christ, the Saviour of all. This commissioning took place after the Lord has suffered and died on His Cross, and then risen gloriously from death. It is the mission which the Lord has entrusted to all of us as His disciples, to be the bearers of the Good News of His triumphant victory over sin and death, over the chains of evil and the dominion of Satan, all those things that had prevented us from coming towards the Lord and His salvation, His grace and love.

Each and every one of us have been given such great grace from God and we should indeed be thankful for everything that He had done for us. He has loved us so dearly and patiently even when we have often rebelled against Him and disobeyed Him, resolving to forgive us all and continuing to open the path of redemption to all of us. That was what St. Paul had accepted, the generous offer of mercy and forgiveness, and he showed us all that all saints were sinners just like us too, but what matters is that they all changed their ways and abandoned their past sins, corruptions and all the things which had kept them from truly being able to live their lives faithfully as God’s holy servants and people. They cast aside the temptations and false pleasures of the world, putting their faith and trust fully in God, becoming great role models and inspirations for us to follow.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, are we willing and able to commit ourselves henceforth to the Lord like how St. Paul and many other saints had done? Are we willing and able to reject the temptations of the evil one, all the pleasures and allures of worldly glory, ambition, corruptions and all the things that often distract us from the right path towards the Lord? God has given us all the freedom to choose our path in life, and we need to make the conscious effort to firmly reject all those that can bring us away into the path towards our downfall and destruction. This is why we should always put the Lord at the centre of everything that we believe in, and make Him to be the reason and the focus of everything that we say and do. We should not allow anything to keep us away from God and His truth, His love and Presence. Every one of us as sinners still have path path forward, and that is through God’s love, compassion and mercy.

Let us all continue to live our lives to the fullest in faith, committing ourselves each and every moments to walk ever down this path that God has shown us, and be the good and worthy disciples and followers of the Lord, the shining beacons of His truth, His Good News and love in this world. May the Lord be with us all and may He continue to help and guide us so that we may continue to be led towards Him and that we will not lose our paths and bearings in life, continuing to trust in God’s love and mercy, now and always, ever proclaiming that love and mercy to the whole world. Amen.

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Saturday, 25 January 2025 : Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Mark 16 : 15-18

At that time, Jesus told His disciples, “Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News to all creation. The one who believes and is baptised will be saved; the one who refuses to believe will be condemned.”

“Signs like these will accompany those who have believed : in My Name they will cast out demons and speak new languages; they will pick up snakes, and if they drink anything poisonous, they will be unharmed; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”

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Saturday, 25 January 2025 : Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 116 : 1, 2

Alleluia! Praise YHVH, all you nations; all you peoples, praise Him.

How great is His love for us! His faithfulness lasts forever.

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Saturday, 25 January 2025 : Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 22 : 3-16

Paul spoke to the Jews in Jerusalem, “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up here, in this city, where I was educated in the school of Gamaliel, according to the strict observance of our law. And I was dedicated to God’s service, as are all of you today. As for this Way, I persecuted it to the point of death and arrested its followers, both men and women, throwing them into prison.”

“The High Priest and the whole Council of elders can bear witness to this. From them, I received letters for the Jewish brothers in Damascus; and I set out to arrest those who were there, and bring them back to Jerusalem for punishment. But, as I was travelling along, nearing Damascus, at about noon, a great light from the sky suddenly flashed about me.”

“I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me : ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?’ I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me : ‘I am Jesus, the Nazorean, Whom you persecute.’ The men who were with me saw the light, but they did not understand the voice of the One Who was speaking to me. I asked : ‘What shall I do, Lord?’”

“And the Lord replied : ‘Get up and go to Damascus; there, you will be told all that you are destined to do.’ Yet, the brightness of that light had blinded me; and so, I was led by the hand into Damascus by my companions. There, a certain Ananias came to me. He was a devout observer of the law, and well spoken of by all the Jews who were living there.”

“As he stood by me, he said : ‘Brother Saul, recover your sight.’ At that moment, I could see; and I looked at him. He, then, said, ‘The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know His will, to see the Just One, and to hear the words from His mouth. From now on, you shall be His witness before all the pagan people, and tell them all that you have seen and heard.’”

“‘And now, why delay? Get up and be baptised, and have your sins washed away, by calling upon His Name.’”

Alternative reading

Acts 9 : 1-22

Meanwhile, Saul considered nothing but violence and death for the disciples of the Lord. He went to the High Priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues of Damascus that would authorise him to arrest and bring to Jerusalem, anyone he might find, man or woman, belonging to the Way.

As he travelled along and was approaching Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul! Why do you persecute Me?” And he asked, “Who are You, Lord?” The voice replied, “I am Jesus, Whom you persecute. Now, get up, and go into the city; there, you will be told what you are to do.”

The men who were travelling with him stood there speechless : they had heard the sound, but could see no one. Saul got up from the ground and, opening his eyes, he could not see. They took him by the hand and brought him to Damascus. He was blind; and he did not eat or drink for three days.

There was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias, to whom the Lord called in a vision, “Ananias!” He answered, “Here I am, Lord!” Then the Lord said to him, “Go, at once, to Straight Street and ask, at the house of Judas, for a man of Tarsus named Saul. You will find him praying, for he has just seen in a vision that a man named Ananias has come in and placed his hands upon him, to restore his sight.”

Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many sources about this man, and all the harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem; and now, he is here, with authority from the High Priest, to arrest all who call upon Your Name.”

But the Lord said to him, “Go! This man is My chosen instrument, to bring My Name to the pagan nations and their kings, and the people of Israel as well. I, Myself, will show him how much he will have to suffer for My Name.”

So Ananias left and went to the house. He laid his hands upon Saul and said, “Saul, my brother, the Lord Jesus, Who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me to you, so that you may receive your sight, and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately, something like scales fell from his eyes and he could see; he got up and was baptised. Then he took food and was strengthened.

For several days Saul stayed with the disciples at Damascus, and he soon began to proclaim in the synagogues that Jesus was the Son of God. All who heard were astonished and said, “Is this not the one who cast out, in Jerusalem, all those calling upon this Name? Did he not come here, to bring them bound before the chief priests?”

But Saul grew more and more powerful; and he confounded the Jews living in Damascus when he proved that Jesus was the Messiah.

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Wednesday, 22 January 2025 : 2nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Vincent, Deacon and Martyr, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded to put our faith and trust in the Lord, to open ourselves, our mind and heart to His truth and love, and not to allow our pride, ego and stubbornness to prevent ourselves from following Him wholeheartedly. The Lord has shown us all His most generous love which He has manifested through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, and each and every one of us should therefore strive to live lives that are truly worthy of Him, giving Him thanks for all that He has done for us, in blessing and forgiving us, ever enduring in His love for us despite us having often disobeyed Him and refusing to follow Him or listen to Him. He has blessed us all through His Son, and we ought to live our lives then as the worthy bearers of the truth and love that Our Lord Himself has revealed to us.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle to the Hebrews the account of the author of this Epistle, which many biblical scholars and historians attributed to St. Luke the Evangelist, directed to the Jewish community and population, especially to those who have accepted and embraced Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. For at that time, there were many different opinions and beliefs among the Jewish people on Who this Jesus Christ was. On one extreme, there were those Jewish people who rejected the Lord completely, like many among the Pharisees and the Sadducees, the teachers of the Law and the chief priests who viewed the Lord as a False Messiah and even a dangerous blasphemer and sinner because of His teachings and works, and for Him claiming to be the Son of God, some of which were shown in our Gospel passage today about the Lord healing a paralysed man.

On the other extreme, of course there were also those who have fully accepted and embraced the fullness of truth about this person of Jesus Christ, how He is not just a mere Man or Prophet sent by God, but that He is indeed the Son of God, the Divine Word of God made manifested and incarnate in the flesh before us all, conceived and born into this world through His mother Mary. And there were those Jewish people who were receptive to the teachings of Christ but they were still ambivalent, indecisive and unsure about how much or what they would believe in Him. Therefore, the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews went on through these series of discourses, discussions and teachings to help them to understand the truth of this Saviour Whom God had sent into their midst, as we all have heard in the past two weeks or so in our weekday readings.

In today’s discourse, the mention of Melchizedek, the King of Salem was a significant one because the person of Melchizedek himself in the Scriptures and in history was a mystery and is still debated till this day on who this Melchizedek truly was. It is precisely just like how the Lord Jesus Himself and His truth and identity were widely debated and discussed among the Jewish people both during and after the period of His ministry and works in their midst. For Melchizedek, him being the King of Salem highlighted his place as the High Priest of God offering the sacrifices and offerings to God at Salem, which name suggests connection to Jerusalem, which is the place that the Lord Himself would offer the ultimate sacrifice and offering through His suffering and death on the Cross.

Therefore, this mention of Melchizedek served to highlight the important role that Jesus Christ, as the Saviour had to do in order to save all mankind, just as the prophets had also predicted and prophesied about it. Some among the Jewish people then likely did not understand why the Messiah had to suffer and in fact even die in such a humiliating and painful way, betrayed and rejected by many of the leaders of His own people. Melchizedek here was seen as an archetype and even as a possible manifestation of Christ before the time that was appointed for Him to come into this world, to reveal part of what God intended to do with us, in saving all of us His beloved ones from certain destruction. The mention that Melchizedek was one without a parent, was also yet another reference to Christ, Who was conceived without any human intervention and by the power of God alone.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Vincent the Deacon, a holy man of God and a renowned martyr whose life and examples, dedication to God and martyrdom can inspire us all in how we ought to live our lives as Christians. St. Vincent the Deacon was born in the region of Zaragoza in what is today Spain, also then known by its original name of Caesaraugusta, which made this saint to be also known as St. Vincent of Zaragoza. He was eventually ordained as a deacon by his local bishop, Bishop Valerius who needed St. Vincent’s help as a spokesperson due to his speech impediment issue. And during that time, Christians and the Church was being heavily persecuted by the Roman state under the Emperor Diocletian.

When St. Vincent and his bishop were both arrested and brought before the Roman magistrate, and offered release and safety, comfort and good life if they were to abandon their faith in God and consign their Holy Scriptures to the fire, St. Vincent and his bishop courageously refused this offer and mentioned bravely that nothing that could be done to change their mind or to persuade, coerce or force them to do otherwise, as they would remain firmly attached to the Lord and their faith in Him. This remarked angered the Roman magistrate so much that he inflicted all sorts of torture and pain on the man of God until St. Vincent was eventually martyred, but remaining firm in his faith in God to the very end of his life.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have heard earlier on from the discourses and discussions from the Epistle to the Hebrews and the Gospel about the healing of the paralysed man, and from the courageous faith and life of St. Vincent the Deacon, all of us are reminded that as Christians we may often have to face a lot of disagreements, hardships, and even persecutions and oppressions for our faith in God. But we should not allow these to discourage us from being faithful to the Lord and to follow Him. After all, we must first remember what the Lord Himself has done for us, and the sufferings and hardships He Himself had suffered and endured for us in His Passion and death. When we suffer, we all suffer together with Christ, and we are all united to His death and ultimately to His glorious Resurrection.

If we continue to have strong and enduring faith in God, we will surely not be disappointed and we will receive the fullness of God’s blessings and grace, and be truly worthy of the salvation which He has promised and reassured us all. Let us all therefore renew our faith and commitment to live our lives worthily of the Lord from now on, doing our very best to be the good examples and inspiration to everyone around us, now and always. Amen.