religious

by

Saturday, 5 September 2026 : 22nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Teresa of Kolkata, Religious (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all constantly being reminded as we have been this whole week, to entrust ourselves to God’s wisdom and not to human wisdom and ways, to put our faith in God and His providence and not to depend on human ingenuity, power and strength. The Lord has shown us the path forward in life, and we should believe in Him and commit ourselves to His cause, allowing Him to lead and guide us down the right path, and not to allow ourselves to be distracted by worldly temptations and persuasions, all those that are able to cause us to be drawn away from the path towards God and His truth.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in Corinth regarding the importance of remaining vigilant against the temptations of pride and desire, of hubris, ego and ambition that can easily mislead them away from the path towards the Lord. The Apostle spoke against those who were divided against each other, being prejudiced against their fellow brothers and sisters simply because they had differences in opinions and thoughts. At that time, the community of the faithful in Corinth were divided among several groups due to the different preferences they had between following the different missionaries and leaders like St. Paul himself, as well as Apollos, the famous Jewish Christian preacher, and others.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Lord Himself speaking to the Pharisees and others regarding the matter of the Law of the Sabbath which the Pharisees found issue with Him and His disciples when the latter were picking the grains of the field to be eaten as they were very hungry. The Pharisees adopted a very strict and rigid view of the Law and they imposed this view and version of the Law on the people, looking down on those who did not obey the Lord the way that they had done it. They criticised others whom they deemed to be unworthy while praising and looking highly on themselves, considering them as the only ones worthy of God.

It was there that the Lord made the same reminder to all of us, that we must not fall into this temptation of pride and desire, the temptation of our ego and greed which can become the source of our downfall into sin. For through their preoccupation and obsession with their rigorous observation of the Law, that had led to them idolising themselves and being self-centred instead of focusing their attention on God. The Lord and His truth no longer became the focal point of their actions and lives, and as such, they became further and further away from God’s path, and dragged many others into the wrong paths in life.

That is why each and every one of us have been constantly reminded throughout this week to guard ourselves against all sorts of temptations found in our world. We should not easily succumb to the pressures and the temptations found all around us, all of which can drag us deep into the trap of sin and evil. We must constantly be vigilant and ready to resist the pleasures and e allures of wickedness, and strive to do our best to be ever faithful to God at all times and in all things. We are all reminded today that each and every one of us have been called to a new, holy existence through God and His Son. And we can do so by looking upon the examples set by the Lord Himself, His Apostles and our holy predecessors, the saints and martyrs. And today, we have the examples of St. Teresa of Kolkata, also better known as Mother Teresa, as the great example, role model and inspiration that we should emulate in our lives today. St. Teresa of Kolkata and her actions in reaching out for the poor and the least fortunate should inspire us to do the same with our own lives.

St. Teresa of Kolkata was born as Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu or Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu in what is today Albania, to a family of Catholic Albanians, who was called early to her vocations when she was inspired by the story of missionaries and the works they did in the region of Bengal and India. Eventually, this led to the young Agnes joining the Sisters of Loreto, and aspiring to become a religious sister and missionary. She eventually went to India, and took up the name of Teresa upon entering the convent, living her life as a religious in caring for the needs of the community. During those years, St. Teresa was gradually more and more disturbed by the abject poverty which were rampant around her convent and school community. This eventually led to her embracing the new calling and mission of the Lord, beginning a new missionary outreach in caring for the poor, the sick and the dying, which led to the establishment of the Missionaries of Charity.

St. Teresa tirelessly worked hard for the sake of those to whom she had dedicated herself to, and inspired many others within her community with her dedication and efforts, while facing hardships, challenges and trials throughout her journey and mission. But she did not allow all those obstacles and hardships to distract or dissuade her from her commitment to her mission, or to her love for her fellow brothers and sisters, especially to the poorest, the last and the least among the people, and for all those who did not have anywhere else to go to, or anyone else to turn towards. St. Teresa established homes and care places to take care of those who were sick and dying, giving them the means to face suffering and death with dignity, caring for the least fortunate amongst us, and showing unto us the love of God manifested in our midst.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the well-known examples set by St. Teresa of Kolkata should serve to remind us to keep ourselves strongly dedicated to God, as well as to turn away from all sins and wickedness. We should instead be filled with genuine love from God, and with the desire to love our fellow brothers and sisters, much as what St. Teresa of Kolkata and all those inspired by her had done. All of us should do our part so that we may always seek to be ever more faithful and worthy of God, in all of our words and actions, in our every interactions and dealings, so that through us, and our works, we may ever be blessed and be filled with God’s grace. May God bless us always, in our every good works, efforts and endeavours. Amen.

by

Saturday, 5 September 2026 : 22nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Teresa of Kolkata, Religious (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Luke 6 : 1-5

At that time, one Sabbath Jesus was going through a field of grain, and His disciples began to pick heads of grain, crushing them in their hands for food. Some of the Pharisees asked them, “Why do you do what is forbidden on the Sabbath?”

Then Jesus spoke up and asked them, “Have you never read what David did when he and his men were hungry? He entered the house of God, took and ate the bread of the offering, and even gave some to his men, though only priests are allowed to eat that bread.”

And Jesus added, “The Son of Man is Lord and rules over the Sabbath.”

by

Saturday, 5 September 2026 : 22nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Teresa of Kolkata, Religious (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Psalm 144 : 17-18, 19-20, 21

Righteous is YHVH in all His ways, His mercy shows in all His deeds. He is near those who call on Him, who call trustfully upon His Name.

He fulfils the wish of those who fear Him; He hears their cry and saves them. For those who love Him, YHVH has compassion; but the wicked, He will destroy.

Let my mouth speak in praise of YHVH, let every creature praise His holy Name, forever and ever.

by

Saturday, 5 September 2026 : 22nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Teresa of Kolkata, Religious (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

1 Corinthians 4 : 6b-15

Learn by this example, not to believe yourselves superior by siding with one against the other. How, then, are you more than the others? What have you that you have not received? And if you received it, why are you proud, as if you did not receive it?

So, then, you are already rich and satisfied, and feel like kings, without us! I wish you really were kings, so that we might enjoy the kingship with you! It seems to me, that God has placed us, the Apostles, in the last place, as if condemned to death, and as spectacles for the whole world, for the Angels as well as for mortals.

We are fools for Christ, while you show forth the wisdom of Christ. We are weak, you are strong. You are honoured, while we are despised. Until now we hunger and thirst, we are poorly clothed and badly treated, while moving from place to place. We labour, working with our hands. People insult us and we bless them, they persecute us and we endure everything; they speak evil against us, and ours are works of peace. We have become like the scum of the earth, like the garbage of humankind until now.

I do not write this to shame you, but to warn you, as very dear children. Because, even though you may have ten thousand guardians in the Christian life, you have only one Father; and it was I who gave you life in Christ through the Gospel.

by

Wednesday, 12 August 2026 : 19th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jane Frances de Chantal, Religious (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we listened to the passages from the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of our duty as Christians and therefore as God’s people to follow the Lord and to obey His will and His laws, to be righteous and good just as He is good, and to be exemplary in our conduct and actions. For if we do not act as we have been called to act, and if we disobey God, then it is by our own disobedience and therefore sins that we will be judged. That is why we have been constantly reminded so that we will not easily give in to the many worldly temptations all around us, and continue to be resolute in our desire and effort to live our lives worthily in the manner that God has called on all of us to do each day and at every moments.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel we heard of the great vision of Ezekiel witnessing God’s glory upon His Throne of Angels, surrounded by the mighty Seraphim and Cherubim. What the prophet Ezekiel described of what he had seen was likely the best that he could do to describe within the limitations of the human expressions and perceptions of the great and infinite glory of God that he had seen, and through this, both Ezekiel and the people to whom he was sent were all reminded of the One Who had revealed all the truth they received, the One Who had always been with them and providing and protecting them throughout all of history, the One and only True God worthy of worship and adoration.

The prophet Ezekiel saw what happened when the glory of God departed from the Temple and the city, where bloodshed and destruction would happen, a premonition of the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple of God by the Babylonians, as seen by Ezekiel who was then in exile in Babylon. Through the vision, God showed how His grace and presence among the people would leave the city and the House He had chosen and dwelled in, all because of the wickedness and evil of the people who refused to change their sinful ways. The prophet Ezekiel’s message is parallel to what the Lord Jesus Himself told His disciples in our Gospel passage today. In that occasion, the Lord said that if someone had erred, then it is the duty, obligation and responsibility for that one’s fellow brothers and sisters in faith to correct and guide the one who erred back to the truth. And therefore, this is a reminder that each and every one of us have this responsibility to be faithful to God and to be examples for one another, and help lead each other down the right path.

However, God also said in that same occasion, that if the attempt to regain the faith in the one who erred fails, and the person stubbornly refused to change his ways, then that person ought to face condemnation for his or her own conscious refusal to obey the Lord and follow His ways. This is also what happened to the people of Israel and Judah, after they continued to disobey God and refused to listen to the many prophets and messengers God had sent to them. They were conquered, crushed and humiliated by their enemies, suffering for their own sins. This is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us are reminded today through these Scripture passages that disobedience against God leads to sin, and sin lead us to suffering and separation from God.

And thus we should strive to be faithful at all times and we should do our best to resist the temptations to walk the path of sin, to live ever more worthily in accordance to what the Lord Himself has shown and taught us all to do in our daily living. Today, we celebrate the feast of a holy woman and servant of God whose examples can inspire us in our own journey of faith in this life we have today. St. Jane Frances de Chantal was born into a noble family in what is now France, and was a woman of high standing and reputation, who married another noble, Baron de Chantal who was killed early on, which left St. Jane Frances de Chantal as a widow at a young age with several children.

St. Jane Frances de Chantal took good care of her family, while at the same time establishing a new order for women who had been rejected because of them being in poor health or by being advanced in age by the order religious orders. The sanctity and great examples showed by St. Jane Frances de Chantal who dedicated herself to the cause of the Lord, inspired many others to follow her and her good examples, in serving God and in doing His commandments and Law. Many came to be convinced to be followers of Christ, and many still came to join the order that St. Jane Frances de Chantal had established, and performed so many wonderful things to the people of God. She also showed us all what it truly means for us to be faithful as Christians, in doing God’s will at all times, and in following God’s commandments and Law, living a life truly holy and worthy of God.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have been reminded today of Who it is that we have lived for, the One we all ought to honour, adore and worship, the One and only True God, let us all therefore strive to live our lives in accordance to what He Himself has shown and taught us to do, in focusing our lives and our attention once again on the Lord our God, just as St. Jane Frances de Chantal and many others among our holy and worthy predecessors had done, the innumerable saints and other holy men and women of God. Each and every one of us should always be well-attuned to the Lord and to His ways, and be ever ready to help one another to live lives that are truly faithful to God in all things and at all circumstances.

May our most loving Lord and God continue therefore to guide us and to show us all His most generous love in all things, as He continues to lead us all down the path that He has called on each one of us to walk, and with the unique missions and vocations that He has entrusted to every single one of us. Let us all continue to persevere in faith and do our best so that our lives may truly be the worthy beacons of our faith in God, showing to everyone what being truly Christians is all about, that more and more people may also come to believe in God through us as well. May God bless our every good endeavours and efforts to glorify His Name, now and always. Amen.

by

Wednesday, 12 August 2026 : 19th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jane Frances de Chantal, Religious (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious)

Matthew 18 : 15-20

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “If your brother has sinned against you, go and point out the fault to him, when the two of you are alone; and if he listens to you, you have won back your brother. If he does not listen to you, take with you one or two others, so that the case may be decided by the evidence of two or three witnesses.”

“And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the assembled Church. But if he does not listen to the Church, then regard him as a pagan, or a tax collector. I say to you : whatever you bind on earth, heaven will keep bound; and whatever you unbind on earth, heaven will keep unbound.”

“In like manner, I say to you, if, on earth, two of you agree in asking for anything, it will be granted to you by My heavenly Father; for where two or there are gathered in My Name, I am there, among them.”

by

Wednesday, 12 August 2026 : 19th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jane Frances de Chantal, Religious (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious)

Psalm 112 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Alleluia! Praise, o servants of YHVH, praise the Name of YHVH! Blessed be the Name of YHVH now and forever!

From eastern lands to the western islands, may the Name of YHVH be praised! YHVH is exalted over the nations; His glory above the heavens.

Who is like YHVH our God, Who sits enthroned on high, but also bends down to see on earth as in heaven?

by

Wednesday, 12 August 2026 : 19th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jane Frances de Chantal, Religious (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious)

Ezekiel 9 : 1-7 and Ezekiel 10 : 18-22

Then He shouted loudly in my ears saying, “The punishment of the city is near; see, each one of these has in his hand his instrument of destruction.” And six men came from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each one with his instrument of destruction. With them was a man clothed in linen, with writing material at his side. They came; and stopped near the altar of bronze.

Then the Glory of the God of Israel rose from the Cherubim, where It rested; and went to the threshold of the House. YHVH called to the man clothed in linen; who had the material for writing at his side; and He said to him, “Pass through the centre of the city, through Jerusalem, and trace a cross on the forehead of the men who sigh and groan, because of all the abominations committed in it.”

I heard Him say to the others, “Now you may pass through the city, after him, and strike. Your eyes shall not look with pity; show no mercy! Do away with them all – old men, young men, virgins, children and women – but do not touch anyone marked with a cross.”

And, as they were told to begin with the Sanctuary, they struck the elders who were in front of the Temple. YHVH said to them, “Let the courts be filled with the slain and the Temple be defiled with their blood : Go out!” They went and slew the people in the city.

The glory of YHVH went from above the threshold of the House and went, to rest on the Cherubim. Then the Cherubim left, opening their wings and rising above the earth in my sight; and the wheels went with them. They halted at the east gate of the House of YHVH; and the Glory of the God of Israel was over them.

These were the living creatures I had seen under the God of Israel on the banks of the river Chebar. I recognised them as Cherubim. Each had four faces, each had four wings; and they had what seemed like human hands under their wings. As for the appearance of their faces, they were the faces I had seen by the river Chebar, the same likeness. Each one went straight ahead.

by

Thursday, 23 July 2026 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bridget of Sweden, Religious (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we heard the reminder of how much God has loved us and how much He had done for all of us, throughout all the time. God has always shown us His patient care and love, and He was always ever patient although we have often disregarded His love, disobeyed Him and being wayward and wicked in our way of life. The Lord wants us to listen to Him, hearken to His words and to follow His path that we may not end up falling into the wrong paths, and be trapped by the whims of our desires and sin, which can lead us down the path towards ruin and destruction.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Jeremiah in which the Lord spoke of the great and wonderful things which He had done for them, and all the love He had shown them throughout the ages, and yet at the same time, of how those same people had rejected Him and refused His love, in worshipping pagan idols and gods, offering sacrifices to them and by doing what were wicked in the eyes of the Lord. They had not been faithful to God and disregarded His reminders and calls, persecuting the prophets who had been sent to them in order to remind them to be faithful to God and to be reconciled with Him, and still God continued to patiently love them and care for them nonetheless.

Today we are then presented with the words of the Lord speaking to the disciples regarding the matter why He always preferred to speak in parables, as the disciples were wondering why He did so. The Lord told all of them that He revealed the secrets and truths of the kingdom of Heaven to them, while those who have not committed themselves to Him and refused to believe in Him would not understand or appreciate those words of truth that He has spoken to them. The ones who were willing to listen to the Lord would receive the revelation and the truth, by their faith and the guidance, the wisdom and the Holy Spirit that the Lord would grant them to help them find their way towards Him.

All these are therefore reminders for us, that we should not harden our hearts and minds against the Lord, especially viewing how in the past, many of our predecessors had faltered and fallen off unto the path of sin precisely because they shut themselves off from the Lord, were proud and haughty, and unwilling to listen to the Lord calling in their hearts and minds, for them to seek His truth and to repent from their wayward paths. They often trusted in their own abilities, intellects and strengths rather than to trust in God and in His providence, all of which had been given freely by God to guide all people to Himself. And therefore if we do not heed this examples and lessons, we ourselves may fall as well.

As such, that is why by learning that how many had fallen in the past in the path towards redemption in God, we are reminded that we ourselves should not fall into that same path and traps, of temptations and worldly attachments that can easily lead us astray in our journey towards the Lord. That is why we are called to live our lives from now on with greater and more genuine faith, dedicating ourselves to the service of God and glorifying Him by our lives and actions, in how we carry ourselves in our daily living and actions. And today, we should reflect upon the great examples and inspiration that had been shown by one of our predecessors, namely that of St. Bridget of Sweden.

Today, our Church celebrates the feast of this great woman and servant of God, St. Bridget of Sweden, honoured as one of the great Patron Saints of Europe. She was born into a rich landowning family in medieval era Sweden, and was then married at a relatively young age to a Swedish nobleman, having six of her own children surviving their infancy years. One of them is another Swedish saint, namely St. Catherine of Sweden. This, coupled with the facts and evidences of the holy and devout life carried out by St. Bridget of Sweden in her devotion as a mother, a wife and as a daughter of God, all of these showed us all how St. Bridget is truly a great role model for all of us in all of our lives, in what we all ourselves can do to glorify the Lord by our lives.

St. Bridget lived a truly holy life, and when her husband passed away and she was widowed, she dedicated herself thoroughly to God by becoming a member of the Third Order of St. Francis, comprised of all the laity who sought to emulate the examples and charism of St. Francis of Assisi and his Franciscan Order in dedicating themselves to God and to His people, which St. Bridget carried out most faithfully in her life of prayer and service to those who were poor and sick. In addition, St. Bridget also initiated the idea and started the religious congregation known as the Order of the Most Holy Saviour, or as the Bridgettines after their founder. This order gathered men and women into communities dedicated to serving the Lord and His people, committing themselves to the good of all of God’s beloved.

St. Bridget was also known for her many mystical experiences and visions, which she recorded down, as well as for her pilgrimage to  Rome, Jerusalem and Bethlehem which were well recorded and known, and in Rome she was in particular honoured and respected for her great piety and holy life, for her commitment and faith in the Lord. She inspired many others through her life and good examples, and she also committed to help and inspire the much needed reforms of the Church. Through her lifelong commitment and devotion to God, many of us should be inspired and strengthened in our own faith in God, so that we may truly know how we should live our lives worthily in the path that God has shown us all.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, having heard of the inspiring examples and the life story of St. Bridget of Sweden, let us all therefore strive to be good and worthy disciples of the Lord in all that we say and do, and that in every parts of our lives, we will always continue to glorify God and be the good role models and inspirations for one another, helping everyone around us to come ever closer to God as we should be doing, to manifest God’s truth and Good News tangibly in our own faithful and good lives. Our lives should be truly holy and faithful, filled with virtues and good deeds at all times. May we all continue to dedicate and commit ourselves to God and His path, as how St. Bridget of Sweden and many other holy men and women had done. Amen.

by

Thursday, 23 July 2026 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bridget of Sweden, Religious (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious)

Matthew 13 : 10-17

At that time, the disciples of Jesus came to Him and said, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” Jesus answered, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but not to these people. For the one who has will be given more; and he will have in abundance. But the one who does not have will be deprived of even what he has. That is why I speak to them in parables; because they look and do not see; they hear; but they do not listen or understand.”

“In them, the words of the prophet Isaiah are fulfilled : However much you hear, you do not understand; however much you see, you do not perceive. For the heart of this people has grown dull. Their ears hardly hear and their eyes dare not see. If they were to see with their eyes, hear with their ears and understand with their heart, they would turn back, and I would heal them.”

“But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. For I tell you, many prophets and righteous people have longed to see the things you see, but they did not see them; and to hear the things you hear, but they did not hear them.”