priests

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Wednesday, 31 July 2024 : 17th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures today, we are all reminded that we should continue to put our focus, attention and emphasis on the Lord at all times and opportunities, and we should not allow the many temptations and allures of worldly glory, pleasures, ambitions and other things from leading us astray down the path towards our downfall and destruction. We should always keep in mind that as Christians, each and every one of us are the ones whom God had called and chosen from this world, and whom He embraced as His own beloved sons and daughters, as those whom He is pleased with, and seek to be reunited with.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Jeremiah in which we heard of the frustrations of the prophet Jeremiah who at that time had been sent by God to minister to the people of the kingdom of Judah, the southern half of what was once the united kingdom of Israel. Jeremiah was sent to proclaim God’s words and judgment to the people and kingdom of Judah, telling them all of the wickedness that they had done as well as the consequences of those wickedness and sins. The Lord wanted His people to know that He still loved them and was concerned for them, and therefore told them through His prophet that they should repent from their many sins, and warning them of the doom and destruction which they would face if they continued to disobey Him.

But for all these works and things that he had done in God’s employ, Jeremiah faced a lot of stubborn resistance and rejection from those who refused to listen to God’s words. He was persecuted and had a difficult journey and life as God’s prophet, just like many others before him. And just like any one of us, even Jeremiah could break under pressure and duress, after he had to face such stubbornness and all the difficulties that he had to endure amidst all those challenges. But at the same time, as we heard in that same passage, the Lord also spoke to Jeremiah, reassuring him of His protection and guidance, and how despite all the hardships, challenges and dangers that he had to endure, God would always be with him and guard him, and indeed, if we follow the life and story of the prophet Jeremiah, God had saved and protected him on many occasions, and gave him the strength to persevere through those difficulties.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard of the account from the Gospel of St. Matthew in which the Lord spoke to His disciples and followers using two parables to highlight what the Kingdom of Heaven or the Kingdom of God is like. He used parable of the treasure in the field and the parable of a pearl of great price to show that the Kingdom of Heaven, God’s glorious Kingdom, His triumph and victory is something that we should value over all else, and is what we should put as the focus and emphasis of our whole lives. Each and every one of us as Christians should put our focus on the Kingdom of God and value it above everything else in our lives, above all the temptations and distractions all around us, the false treasures that will not lead us to the ultimate triumph and victory with God.

We are reminded as we heard these readings from the Scriptures that first of all, following God is not an easy matter, just as how the prophet Jeremiah and the many other holy men and women of God had suffered. To be a disciple and follower of Christ, we may often have to face difficulties and challenges just as the many stories and experiences of our holy predecessors have shown us. But we must also be strengthened and encouraged by the fact that God is always with us throughout the way, and just as He had done with the prophet Jeremiah and His many other servants, He will always be by our side, providing for us and giving us His help in our respective paths and journeys. The path we tread and walk through may indeed be difficult and arduous, but we must not be afraid to make the sacrifices and the efforts needed for us to remain true to this path, just as the person who discovered the treasure and the merchant who found the pearl in the Lord’s parables had done.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of the great founder of the Society of Jesus, also known as the Jesuits, namely that of St. Ignatius of Loyola, who was born in the northern part of Spain today as the youngest son of a local Basque nobility, at the time when there were many conflicts and wars happening in the region. St. Ignatius of Loyola eventually grew up into a young man who was interested in military matters and career, seeking for glory and fame through wars and battles, seeking all that through the various romanticised war stories and legends he was inspired by in his youth. Hence, he joined the army at the young age of seventeen, fighting in many battles in Navarre in northern Spain, until one day, he was seriously injured by a cannonball hitting one of his legs, which effectively ended his military career.

St. Ignatius of Loyola went through a spiritual conversion as he was recovering from that major injury, as he was exposed to the story of the Lord and His saints, realising that his earlier pursuit of fame and glory through war and conflicts had ultimately been illusory and fleeting, a fact further emphasised by his mangled leg and injury, reminding him and also all of us of just how fickle life in this world can be, and how fleeting any kind of earthly glory and satisfaction can be. And as he grew closer to God, he eventually came to the idea of establishing an order and congregation of men dedicated and committed to God and His Church, to the mission of evangelisation and ministering to the people of God, which came to reality with the Society of Jesus.

Through the Society of Jesus, St. Ignatius of Loyola gathered many other people who were called to serve the Lord, including those like St. Peter Faber and St. Francis Xavier who were counted among the founding members of the Jesuits. They worked tirelessly to serve God and His people in both Christendom at the time when the Protestant reformation was causing great harm and divisions on many of the faithful, as the spearhead of the Counter Reformation efforts, as well as in distant lands to proclaim the Gospel of Christ among the people who have not yet known God and His truth, like what St. Francis Xavier and many others did in the Far East and beyond. St. Ignatius of Loyola committed himself and the rest of his life in serving God faithfully and we should be inspired by his great examples.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, as we have heard from the Sacred Scriptures, pondered and reflected, and then through the life and experiences of St. Ignatius of Loyola, the great saint whose memory we remember and venerate today, let us all as Christians renew our commitment to be ever more faithful, zealous and committed disciples and followers of God, giving our best in whatever areas and missions that He had entrusted to us, so that by our various contributions and efforts, we may truly glorify Him and bear rich fruits of our efforts in the advance of the proclamation of the truth of God and His salvation to all.

May the Lord, our most loving God continue to guide and strengthen us in our journey and faith, at each and every moments so that we may continue to be good and worthy examples for everyone around us in our lives and actions. May He bless our many good works and endeavours, our efforts and contributions to the missions of His Church, and may He strengthen us in the commitment and conviction to continue proclaiming Him at all times, in our every niches in life and in all of our various communities. Amen.

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Wednesday, 31 July 2024 : 17th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 13 : 44-46

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure, hidden in a field. The one who finds it, buries it again; and so happy is he, that he goes and sells everything he has, in order to buy that field.”

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a trader, who is looking for fine pearls. Once he has found a pearl of exceptional quality, he goes away, sells everything he has and buys it.”

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Wednesday, 31 July 2024 : 17th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 58 : 2-3, 4-5a, 10-11, 17, 18

Deliver me from my enemies, o God, from those who rise up against me. Deliver me from evildoers; rescue me from the bloodthirsty.

Look, they lie in wait for my life; the mighty conspiring against me, for no fault of mine, o YHVH. I have done them no wrong; yet, they prepare to attack me.

O my Strength, I look up, to You; for You, o God, are my Fortress. My loving God will come to help me and let me see my enemies fall.

But I will sing of Your might; in the morning I will sing of Your love. For You have been a Fortress to me, a Refuge in time of distress.

O my Strength, I will sing praises to You; for You, o God, are my Stronghold; You are a loving God.

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Wednesday, 31 July 2024 : 17th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Jeremiah 15 : 10, 16-21

Woe is me, Mother, why did you bring me to the light? A man of dissension throughout the land! I owe them nothing, neither do they owe me, yet they all curse me!

I devoured Your words when they came. They were my happiness and I felt full of joy when You made Your Name rest on me. I never associate with worldly people, amusing myself with scoffers! When Your hand was upon me I stood apart and You filled me with Your anger. Why is there no end to my sorrow or healing for my wound? Why do You deceive me, and why does my spring suddenly dry up?

Then YHVH spoke to me, “If you return I will take you back and you will serve Me again. Draw the gold from the dross and you will be as My own mouth. You must draw them to you and not to go over to them. I will make you a fortress and a wall of bronze facing them; if they fight against you they will not overcome you; I am with you to free you and save you. I will redeem you from the wicked and free you from the hands of tyrants.”

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Wednesday, 24 July 2024 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charbel Makhluf, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures in which we are all reminded to answer the call which the Lord had made to us, in everything which He had done for us, in leading us all to the right path in life. Each and every one of us have been entrusted with the various and unique gifts, talents, opportunities and capabilities which God had sown in us, so that hopefully we may make good use of them for the benefit of everyone around us, for those whom we are interacting with. Through us and our efforts, and our interactions with others, we may inspire many more people to come and follow the Lord as well.

In our first reading today, we heard of the words of the Lord calling Jeremiah to be His servant, in becoming the prophet to the people of the southern kingdom of Judah, which was then in its last years of existence. The people of Israel, God’s first chosen people back then had been divided into two groups, and they had mostly disobeyed the Lord and His commandments, disregarded and refusing to follow His Law despite the many reminders and help provided to them by the Lord through His prophets and messengers. The northern kingdom of Israel then had been crushed and destroyed by the Assyrians, sent into exile in distant lands. The people of God in the southern kingdom of Judah had similarly lived in the same way, and they would soon share a similar fate to their brethren in the north.

It therefore fell upon Jeremiah to be the one whom God sent to His people to tell them of their impending doom and all that they would have to face as a consequence for their rebelliousness and refusals to follow the path of God. Jeremiah himself was unsure of the responsibilities and the charge placed upon him, but the Lord reassured and encouraged him, saying that He would be with him throughout the way, and He would guide and inspire him in whatever he was to say to those whom he had been sent to. He empowered Jeremiah and strengthened him, so that through His guidance, this simple man would become one of the great prophets, through whom many would be called to return to God and His path.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Matthew in which the Lord Jesus taught and preached to the people with the famous parable of the sower. In that parable, we heard of the Lord speaking to the people using the comparison with a sower that was spreading seeds on different places. The Lord liked to use these parables because many of the people back then were illiterate and uneducated, and they did not know much about the ways of the world outside that of their professions or related ones. Many of the people back then were farmers, shepherds and fishermen, and hence, the Lord used these parables to help them understand what He wanted to tell them.

As we heard in that parable, the sower placed the seeds in various places and the seeds faced different fates depending on where those seeds had landed. This would later on be explained and be elaborated further by the Lord, but let me explain in case some among us may not be aware of the meaning and significance of this parable. The seeds that landed on the roadside were snatched and eaten away by the birds of the air, representing those people who have received the seeds of faith from the Word of God, and yet, allowed Satan and the other evil ones to snatch these truth and virtues away from them, by not taking up these into their hearts and minds, ignoring what the Lord had generously presented and given to them.

Then, those seeds that fell upon the rocky grounds and dried up before they could grow roots represent those who have received the Word of God and His truth, and yet failed to allow these to grow roots in their hearts and minds, as they did not provide good and suitable environment for their faith to grow and blossom in. And those seeds that landed among the brambles and thistles were choked to death as they grew, because those brambles and thistles competed with the plants for nutrients and other resources. These represent all those who allowed the distractions in life to pull them away from the path of righteousness and virtue, instead following the path of greed, desire, ego and ambition, which would lead them to their downfall.

It was only those seeds that fell upon the rich soil that managed to germinate and grow well, healthy and strong, bearing lots of rich fruits and produces, in multiples of what had been planted before. This represents all those who have received the Word of God and truly acted on them, internalising and receiving them with genuine faith, doing their best to embody what they have believed in, so that their faith is not merely just a formality only, but a truly real and living faith. This has also been shown by the example of the prophet Jeremiah from the Old Testament, as well as the many other prophets and servants of God, who have allowed the Lord to guide and strengthen them in their lives so that in everything that they had said and done, they would indeed bear rich and plentiful fruits of their faithful actions and commitments to God.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Sharbel Makhluf, also known as St. Charbel Makhlouf, who was a renowned Maronite Catholic monk living in what is part of Lebanon today, born into a pious family, raised up well in the faith by his family. He would ensure that he had time for prayers and committed himself to God even from a very young age. Eventually, he became a monk after years of preparation and instruction, taking up the name by which he is now famous today, namely that of Charbel, inspired by the saint of that name, a Christian martyr of the region during the early history of the Church. He therefore began a life of seclusion and withdrawal from the world as a hermit for the rest of his life.

St. Charbel lived the rest of his life in pious and prayerful seclusion, and he died about twenty-three years after he began his hermitic lifestyle. Yet, even after his passing, his great holiness and virtues, his examples and great commitment to God brought about great wonders and inspiring things to happen, as he is indeed famous for right up to this day, more than a century after this great saint’s passing. It was told since immediately after his passing that miracles happened aplenty at his tomb, and many people were healed and encountered miracles, and also through the intercession of St. Charbel, many experienced great things and were cured from their diseases and troubles. This led to many people to turn towards the Lord, as among those who sought for the intercession of St. Charbel were unbelievers.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have heard from the inspirational story of the life of St. Charbel Makhlouf, as well as the words we have heard today from the Sacred Scriptures on the calling and commissioning of the prophet Jeremiah, and also the parable of the sower, we are therefore reminded that each and every one of us as Christians, as God’s disciples and followers, have the important responsibility and part to play in ensuring that our lives are truly faithful to the Lord, and that we are always open to the Lord guiding and strengthening each one of us in our respective lives. All of us must be like those seeds that grow in the rich and fertile soil, and hence, we should ensure that our lives and environment, that is our hearts and minds, our whole beings are truly conducive to allow our faith in God and our love for Him to continue to grow and develop.

May the Lord, our most loving God and Father continue to help and strengthen us all, so that in all that we do, we will continue to be inspired and encouraged to do our best, to be ever more faithful and to strive to follow Him in all of our lives. May He empower each one of us and be our source of Hope and encouragement, be our Light and inspiration, now and always. Amen.

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Wednesday, 24 July 2024 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charbel Makhluf, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Matthew 13 : 1-9

At that time, that same day, Jesus left the house and sat down by the lakeside. Many people gathered around Him. So He got into a boat, and sat down, while the crowds stood on the shore; and He spoke to them in parables about many things.

Jesus said, “The sower went out to sow; and, as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path; and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where there was little soil, and the seeds sprouted quickly, because the soil was not deep. But as soon as the sun rose, the plants were scorched; and they withered, because they had no roots.”

“Again, other seeds fell among thistles; and the thistles grew and choked the plants. Still, other seeds fell on good soil and produced a crop : some a hundredfold, others sixty, and others thirty. If you have ears, then hear!”

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Wednesday, 24 July 2024 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charbel Makhluf, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Psalm 70 : 1-2, 3-4a, 5-6ab, 15ab and 17

In You, o Lord, I seek refuge; let me not be disgraced. In Your justice help me and deliver me, turn Your ear to me and save me!

Be my Rock of refuge, a Stronghold to give me safety, for You are my Rock and my Fortress. Rescue me, o my God, from the hand of the wicked.

For You, o Lord, have been my Hope, my Trust, o God, from my youth. I have relied on You from birth : from my mother’s womb You brought me forth.

My lips will proclaim Your intervention and tell of Your salvation all day, little though it is what I can understand. You have taught me from my youth and until now I proclaim Your marvels.

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Wednesday, 24 July 2024 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charbel Makhluf, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Jeremiah 1 : 1, 4-10

The words of Jeremiah, son of Hilkiah, of a priestly family in Anathoth, in the land of Benjamin.

A word of YHVH came to me, “Even before I formed you in the womb I have known you; even before you were born I had set you apart, and appointed you a prophet to the nations!”

I said, “Ah, Lord YHVH! I do not know how to speak; I am still young!” But YHVH replied, “Do not say; ‘I am still young’, for now you will go, whatever be the mission I am entrusting to you, and you will speak of whatever I command you to say. Do not be afraid of them, for I will be with you to protect you – it is YHVH Who speaks!”

Then YHVH stretched out His hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “Now I have put My words in your mouth. See! Today I give you authority over nations and over kingdoms to uproot and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”

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Thursday, 11 July 2024 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Benedict, Abbot (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded that each and every one of us are truly beloved by God, He Who has always been patient in loving and caring for us, and Who has always reached out to us to help bring us back from the darkness into the light of His grace. God has always been kind to us, in sending to us His guidance and providence, through all those servants, messengers and helpers that had assisted us in our journey back towards Him all these while. And while He did chastise and punish us whenever we erred and made mistakes, He did all these not because He despised or hated us, but instead, His love for us truly endured, so much so that He wanted us all to be redeemed and forgiven from the many sins we have committed, which is what He despises.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Hosea in which God after having told His people of the coming destruction and sufferings that they had to face, the punishments and hardships that they would have to endure for their sins and wickedness, their disobedience and refusal to follow the path which He has shown them, He then told them of the mercy and love which He, as their loving God and Father, has for each and every one of us. The Lord told His people, the Israelites, that they would be brought back eventually from their misery and sufferings, just like how they had once been rescued from their enslavement and sufferings in the land of Egypt, under the rule and yoke of the Pharaoh and the Egyptians.

God highlighted to them all His frustrations and all the problems that His people had caused Him, that despite all the things which He had done for them, in patiently instructing and guiding them, they kept on getting further and further away from Him, abandoning His Law and precepts, worshipping and following pagan idols and false gods rather than obeying Him and worshipping Him alone. Nonetheless, despite this, God kept on caring for His beloved ones, and still watched over them, sending His servants again and again to help them on their paths. He never gave up on them, and later on, afterwards, He gathered them back from their exile and helped them to return once again to their homeland, fulfilling all the promises and predictions He had spoken to them through the prophets like what we heard in today’s reading from the prophet Hosea.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples and followers, as He instructed them all on what they should be doing in the missions and works that He has entrusted to each and every one of them. He sent them out two by two to the many towns and villages that He Himself would be going to, and He encouraged them all that whatever sufferings and challenges that they might have to face, He would be with them and He would guide and strengthen them, and they should not depend on their own means or power in achieving what they had been sent out to do, or else, they might end up forgetting the purpose and reason why they were all sent out in the first place, that is to minister and to proclaim the Good News of God.

That was why He told them all not to bring too many things with them, and in fact just what they barely needed to survive upon themselves, and that they should instead depend on the good will and kindness of the people that they had visited and ministered amongst. He sent them all to proclaim His words and Good News, to show His truth and love, by granting them the power over evil spirits and the power of miracles so that through their works, they might heal many people who have been afflicted and troubled by various maladies and difficulties, especially from that of sin. Through these things we have heard from the Lord Himself, all of us are reminded that first of all God’s love for us is truly great and universal, and then, each and every one of us as Christians, we have the same mission to reach out to our fellow brethren, to proclaim and show the Lord to all of them.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of the great and renowned St. Benedict, also known as St. Benedict of Nursia, the founder and initiator of Western monasticism. He was born in Nursia, in what is part of Italy today, into a family of Roman nobility just right after the downfall of the Roman Empire in the West and in Italy itself. He and his twin sister, St. Scholastica was brought up during this turbulent time, and for St. Benedict, he was initially sent to Rome to study and be an academic, however he found the academic life in the city of Rome to be disappointing, and this eventually led to him discovering a community of hermits in Subiaco nearby the town of Enfide outside of Rome. He became a hermit for about three years and as he grew and mature in his faith and wisdom, he eventually grew to appreciate monastic life.

St. Benedict therefore slowly went on the path of religious life, and despite facing challenges and difficulties along the way, it did not dissuade him from his path and commitment, and it was told from his hagiographic story, how miracles happened to St. Benedict and in one of them a jealous priest named Florentius tried to harm and poison him with a poisoned bread, only for a raven to snatch the bread from St. Benedict after he prayed and said blessing over the bread. This and many other miracles that happened inspired many people who came to visit him in Subiaco and later on in Monte Cassino where he established a great Benedictine monastery, the first of the many Benedictine monasteries, where the rule of St. Benedict eventually became popular among all other monastic traditions. Many people flocked to the monasteries and the Christian faith thanks to the efforts and the holy life led by St. Benedict.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore now spend some time to reflect upon our lives and our path in walking down this life, on whether we have truly been faithful to the Lord or whether we have allowed ourselves to be tempted and swayed by the temptations of this world, of pleasures and human greed, the desires for power and worldly fame, glory and ambitions, all of which could mislead us away from the path towards God’s salvation and grace. Instead, let us all be committed to the Lord wholeheartedly like how St. Benedict had done in his life, and let us also be good examples ourselves in our own lives, so that we may truly embody the light of God’s grace and salvation, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 11 July 2024 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Benedict, Abbot (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 10 : 7-15

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Go, and proclaim this message : The kingdom of Heaven is near. Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, cleanse the lepers, and drive out demons. Freely have you received, freely give. Do not carry any gold or silver or money in your purses. Do not take a travelling bag, or an extra shirt, or sandals, or a walking stick : workers deserve to be compensated.”

“When you come to a town or a village, look for a worthy person, and stay there until you leave. When you enter the house, wish it peace. If the people are worthy people, your peace will rest on them; if they are not worthy people, your blessing will come back to you.”

“And if you are not welcomed, and your words are not listened to, leave that house or that town, and shake the dust off your feet. I assure you, it will go easier for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment, than it will for the people of that town.”