Saints

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Friday, 4 October 2024 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Francis of Assisi (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Job 38 : 1, 12-21 and Job 40 : 3-5

Then YHVH answered Job out of the storm : “Have you ever commanded the morning, or shown the dawn its place, that it might grasp the earth by its edges and shake the wicked out of it, when it takes a clay colour and changes its tint like a garment; when the wicked are denied their own light, and their proud arm is shattered?”

“Have you journeyed to where the sea begins or walked in its deepest recesses? Have the gates of death been shown to you? Have you seen the gates of Shadow? Have you an idea of the breadth of the earth? Tell Me, if you know all this. Where is the way to the home of light, and where does darkness dwell? Can you take them to their own regions, and set them on their homeward paths? You know, for you were born before them, and great is the number of your years!”

Job said : “How can I reply, unworthy as I am! All I can do is put my hand over my mouth. I have spoken once, now I will not answer; oh, yes, twice, but I will do no further.”

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Tuesday, 1 October 2024 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Feast of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, Patroness of all Missionaries and the Missions (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, also known as St. Therese of Lisieux, whose devotion to God and great holiness inspired many others to follow the Lord and to renew their faith in Him. Her famous ‘Little Way’ is inspiration for many up to this day on how each and every one of us can be faithful to God and be good contributors to the good works and missions of the Church through every little things and actions we carry out in our daily living. Today we are all called to reflect upon the good examples and the life of St. Therese of the Child Jesus as we also ponder upon the message of the Sacred Scriptures that we have received from the Lord.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard of the great joy which the Lord promised to His people, to the ones to whom Isaiah had been sent to. The context of this message and revelation is that, the people of the southern kingdom of Judah that the prophet Isaiah had been sent to, they had faced a lot of tribulations and hardships amidst their lives and existence of that time among their neighbours and enemies. They and their brethren in the northern kingdom of Israel had not been truly faithful to God, had disobeyed Him and disregarded the reminders sent to them through the prophets and messengers of God, and as such, they had to face the consequences of their sins and wickedness. Their northern neighbours had been crushed and conquered by the Assyrians and were brought into exile in distant lands.

Therefore, the Lord sent His reassurance to His people, the remnants of those who still remained in the kingdom of Judah, that He still loved them nonetheless and wanted them all to be reconciled and reunited with Him. God has always been full of love and mercy for His people, but He waited for all of them to repent from their sins and wickedness, and for them to embrace once again wholeheartedly, His Law and commandments, and the path which He had shown them all. He told them all through Isaiah that if they are faithful to Him and are committed to Him, then all of them shall receive the fullness of His grace, love and blessings. If they continued to put their trust in Him, eventually He would lead them all out of their troubles and sufferings, bringing them back to His loving Presence and bless them.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard from the Gospel according to St. Matthew in which the disciples of the Lord came to Him asking Him on who would be considered as the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. This was in the context of how those disciples and followers of the Lord had been bickering among themselves, arguing about all these while forgetting the true importance and purpose of their discipleship and obedience to God. They sought for worldly satisfaction and pleasures, fulfilment and achievements, but in the end, all of those things are illusory, temporary and will never last, and no matter what, they would never be truly satisfied by all those temptations and pursuits in life. Each and every one of us must always remember that true satisfaction, happiness can come from the Lord alone.

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Now, why is it significant that the faith of young children have been mentioned by the Lord here? That is because the faith of little children had been used as example for everyone as a child’s faith is truly pure and unblemished and uncorrupted by the allures of worldly desires, temptations and all the other things, pursuits and ambitions that often led us astray in our lives, distracting us with all sorts of temptations and other things that prevented us from truly being able to approach the Lord and coming closer to Him and His salvation. If we can believe in the Lord in the manner that children believe in Him, then all of us can truly be closer to God, committed and dedicated to Him despite the challenges, trials and temptations facing us in our path. And we will not be distracted by those many distractions around us.e 

Now, let us discuss about the life of St. Therese of Lisieux and see how her life and dedication to God reflects what we have just heard in our Scripture passages today. St. Therese of Lisieux was born to a loving family of St. Louis Martin and St. Marie-Azelie Guerin, whose devout and happy life inspired many of their own children to seek the Lord and devote themselves, as many among St. Therese’s siblings also joined religious and consecrated life as she did. St. Therese of Lisieux was frail in health since young, but this did not stop her to grow ever stronger in her love and devotion to God, as her family spent significant amount of time in prayer, participating in the Holy Mass daily and other important devotions and works of faith, among other things. This eventually led to St. Therese to feel the calling from God to embrace religious and consecrated life.

St. Therese began to experience visions and mystical experiences, which gradually drew her ever deeper to her calling, and she was drawn towards the Carmelite sisters, which order her eldest sister had also joined. Then, when she wanted to join the Carmelites after having encountered physical and spiritual challenges, she continued to persevere on despite those difficulties and trials. She was initially not allowed to do so because of her very young age, being only around fourteen years old at the time, but eventually her efforts, perseverance and constant persistence gained the admiration of others, even that of the Pope and her local diocesan bishop, who eventually approved her joining the Carmelite sisters despite her young age.

As a young postulant and member of the Carmelite monastery, St. Therese of Lisieux obeyed her superiors faithfully and lived her life with great devotion and commitment to God, doing whatever she could so that she could live her life ever more worthily of the Lord, spending each time and every moments of her life to glorify God, through every small and little actions she did, which would become known later on as mentioned, as her ‘Little Way’, and as she described herself as the ‘Little Flower of Carmel’. All of us are reminded of this great dedication, faith and commitment which the young St. Therese of Lisieux had for the Lord, who committed herself wholeheartedly to the end of her life, and although she passed away at the young age of barely twenty-four, yet, her faith inspired countless people even to this day.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, having heard of the life and examples of St. Therese of Lisieux and from what we have discussed regarding the Scripture passages today, we are all reminded that as Christians we need to realise our role and responsibilities in doing our part and efforts in whatever we can contribute to the good works of the Church, even in the smallest things. Like what St. Therese of Lisieux told us in her ‘Little Way’ it is a reminder for all of us that even in the seemingly very small and insignificant things we do, we may be surprised to find out just what kind of impact we may have on those around us, and what we can do for others which may benefit them and touch their lives, inspiring them to come towards the Lord.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence continue to do our best to approach the Lord faithfully and with great love and commitment, doing our part to come towards Him like those of little children, truly and wholeheartedly being faithful and dedicated to Him, seeking Him purely out of love and desire to be reconciled and reunited with Him, and not because of any selfish and worldly ambitions and desires. May the Lord continue to help and strengthen us in our every moments, in everything that we say and do in our lives, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Tuesday, 1 October 2024 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Feast of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, Patroness of all Missionaries and the Missions (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 18 : 1-5

At that time, the disciples came to Jesus and asked Him, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

Then Jesus called a little child, set the child in the midst of the disciples, and said, “I assure you, that, unless you change, and become like little children, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble, like this child, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, and whoever receives such a child, in My Name, receives Me.”

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Tuesday, 1 October 2024 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Feast of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, Patroness of all Missionaries and the Missions (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 131 : 1-3

O YHVH, my heart is not proud nor do I have arrogant eyes. I am not engrossed in ambitious matters, nor in things too great for me.

I have quieted and stilled my soul, like a weaned child, on its mother’s lap; like a contented child is my soul.

Hope in YHVH, o Israel, now and forever.

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Tuesday, 1 October 2024 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Feast of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, Patroness of all Missionaries and the Missions (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Isaiah 66 : 10-14

Rejoice for Jerusalem and be glad for her, all you who love her. Be glad with her, rejoice with her, all you who were in grief over her, that you may suck of the milk from her comforting breasts, that you may drink deeply from the abundance of her glory.

For this is what YHVH says : I will send her peace, overflowing like a river;  and the nations’ wealth, rushing like a torrent towards her. And you will be nursed and carried in her arms and fondled upon her lap. As a son comforted by his mother, so will I comfort you. At the sight of this, your heart will rejoice; like grass, your bones will flourish.

For it shall be known that YHVH’s hand is with His servant, but His fury is upon His enemy.

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Monday, 30 September 2024 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the futility of worldly glory, pleasures, ambitions, desires and all the things which often distracted us in our path towards God and His salvation and grace. Each and every one of us are constantly being reminded this day so that we may continue to live our lives worthily in the manner that God has wanted us all to live our lives, in lives that are truly centred and focused on Him, and not on the many distractions and temptations present all around us in this world, all those things which can keep us away from the Lord and His salvation.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Job of the servant of God named Job, who according to Scripture experts might have not existed or might be a metaphor for a suffering and yet obedient servant of God, while some others said that he truly existed. But regardless, the story of Job should serve as inspiration for all of us on how to remain faithful to the Lord despite the challenges and difficulties that we have to encounter and face in life. As we all heard how the life of Job was truly blessed before his misfortune, as a rich man with great family and many possessions, and then, through Satan’s attack and efforts, all of those things were taken from him, while not even his body and health was also spared, in Satan’s effort to tempt him and see if he would abandon God.

If we were to continue reading through the Book of Job, we would then hear how Job remained firm in his faith despite all of his predicaments, and despite everything that he had to endure throughout the ordeals, including being attacked and criticised by his own friends and peers, he did not give up faith and hope in the Lord. And while he did encounter moments of despair and hardships, desolation and difficulties on the way, Job continued to remain strong in his beliefs and remained faithful to the end, and God rewarded him greatly, restoring everything that he had lost and in fact blessed him double than what he had before. Job’s perseverance in faith and devotion to God was known to God and He blessed him greatly for that.

It is a reminder for us all that first, our lives as Christians may not always be smooth sailing and we may encounter trials, hardships and challenges in our ways, and we may have to endure sufferings and challenges in our paths in life. However, if we remain firm in our faith and trust in the Lord, we will then be strengthened and empowered by God Who is always with us and by our side, as He has constantly reassured and shown Job all throughout, and also showed to all of us throughout the whole journey, that He is with us, leading us patiently by our side, ever always guiding and strengthening us through all the challenges and tribulations that we may have to go through. God has not left us all alone and He always provided for our needs, supporting us and encouraging us in this path.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Luke in which the Lord Jesus were speaking to some of His disciples who were arguing and bickering among themselves, who among them were the most important and prominent, and likely who deserved more favour and honour from the Lord. The Lord rebuked them for all of those attitudes and behaviours, for their pettiness with worldly things, with all the glory and ambitions of the world. Each and every one of them as His followers should not be doing all those things and sought for all the temporary and illusory ambitions, all the false leads and temptations present all around them and all of us. His path, the Christian truth and journey, is all about focusing oneself on God and Him alone, distancing and detaching oneself from the worldly ambitions and pursuits.

As the example of Job, his suffering and the aftermath reminded us all, that all worldly pursuits and ambitions are ultimately meaningless and pointless, and we should not put our trust and focus on all those things but rather on the Lord and His Providence instead. We are all God’s beloved ones and as long as we continue to walk in His path and continue to be committed to His cause, we will surely be rewarded in the end of our journey, receiving the fullness of God’s inheritance and graces, the promise of life everlasting and true happiness and glory, everything that He has promised and assured us all from the very beginning of time, from the moment of Creation to this very day and to everlasting. We must always keep in mind of God’s ever enduring and patient love for each one of us.

This day, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Jerome, the renowned saint whose contributions to the Church and the faithful people of God were truly enormous, but particularly was renowned for his role in translating the Scriptures from the Greek Septuagint version, which itself came from the original Hebrew and Aramaic texts, into Latin language, compiling what would come to be known as the Latin Vulgate Bible, from which the various translations and the Scriptural basis of the Western Christianity was derived from, which remains to this very day, in all the Bibles that we have today, which can trace their roots to the works of St. Jerome, who has dedicated himself most wonderfully and faithfully to the Lord.

St. Jerome was born and lived during the fourth century, about the time when the Christian faith began to be tolerated and accepted by large parts of the Roman Empire. He converted to the Christian faith in his middle twenties and went for a while to the desert to live the life of a hermit, which is something that he is also often associated with. Later on, due to his connection and patronage by Pope St. Damasus, he was called to Rome to help the Pope in managing the Church there, as some sort of early predecessor of the office of Cardinals, as there was not yet any well-established system of the Cardinalate at that time. He helped the Pope with the reforms of the Church, rooting out worldliness and corruption from the Church and the clergy, and most importantly, as mentioned, he helped to compile the Latin translation of the Bible for those in Western Christendom.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, St. Jerome has shown us all how we should live in great faith and commitment to God, in living our lives with focus on the Lord and to be holy just as He is holy. There may be difficulties and challenges, as St. Jerome himself encountered throughout his life and missions, but we must not be disheartened or discouraged by all the challenges and trials that we have to face in this journey. Instead, like Job and St. Jerome before us, as well as the innumerable saints and martyrs, holy men and women of God, let us all continue to be faithful to the Lord, trust in His love and providence, and do our best so that our lives may truly be great inspiration to others and glorify the Lord at all times. May the Lord, our ever loving and generous God, be with us always, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Monday, 30 September 2024 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 9 : 46-50

At that time, one day, the disciples were arguing about which of them was the most important. But Jesus knew their thoughts, so He took a little child and stood him by His side. Then He said to them, “Whoever welcomes this little child in My Name, welcomes Me; and whoever welcomes Me, welcomes the One Who sent Me. And listen : the one who is found to be the least among you all, is the one who is the greatest.”

Then John spoke up, “Master, we saw someone who drives out demons by calling upon Your Name, and we tried to forbid him, because he does not follow You with us.” But Jesus said, “Do not forbid him. He who is not against you is for you.”

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Monday, 30 September 2024 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 16 : 1, 2-3, 6-7

Hear a just cause, o YHVH, listen to my complaint. Give heed to my prayer, for there is no deceit on my lips.

Let my defence come forth from You; Your eyes see what is right. You have probed my heart, searched me at night, tested me by fire, and You have seen no wickedness in me.

I call on You, You will answer me, o God; incline Your ear and hear my word. For You do wonders for Your faithful, You save those fleeing from the enemy as they seek refuge at Your right hand.

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Monday, 30 September 2024 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Job 1 : 6-22

One day the heavenly beings came to present themselves before YHVH, and Satan came with them. YHVH asked Satan, “Where have you been?” Satan answered, “Going up and down the earth, roaming about.”

YHVH asked again, “Have you noticed My servant Job? No one on earth is as blameless and upright as he, a man who fears God and avoids evil.” But Satan returned the question, “Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not built a protective wall around him and his family and all his possessions? You have blessed and prospered him, with his livestock all over the land. But stretch out Your hand and strike where his riches are, and I bet he will curse You to Your face.”

YHVH said to Satan, “Very well, all that he has is in your power. But do not lay a finger upon the man himself.” So Satan left the presence of YHVH. One day, while his sons and daughters were feasting in the house of their eldest brother, a messenger came to Job and said, “Your oxen were plowing, and your donkeys were grazing nearby when the Sabaeans came and carried them off. They killed the herdsmen. I alone escaped to tell you.”

While he was still speaking, another messenger came, “God’s fire fell from the sky and burnt all your sheep and the shepherds as well. I alone have escaped to tell you.” He had hardly finished speaking when another messenger arrived, “Three raiding teams of Chaldeans have killed your servants and carried off your camels. I alone have escaped to tell you.”

He was still speaking when another messenger came and said to Job, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking in the house of their eldest brother when suddenly a great wind blew across the desert and struck the house. It collapsed on the young people and they all died. I alone have escaped to tell you.”

In grief Job tore his clothes and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground and worshipped, saying, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, naked shall I return. YHVH gave, YHVH has taken away. Blessed be His Name!”

In spite of this calamity, Job did not sin by blaspheming God.

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Saturday, 28 September 2024 : 25th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Wenceslaus, Martyr, and St. Lawrence Ruiz and Companions, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

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

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are yet reminded again today of the futility of seeking and being ambitious for the matters of the world, in seeking pleasures and satisfaction from all the various kinds of worldly desires, achievements, glory, fame and more. All those things are ultimately impermanent and illusory, and as I have mentioned earlier in the week through similar discourses, and we are constantly being reminded that what we truly should seek in this life is not comforts and pleasures of this world, not the glory and fame, the greatness and ambitions of this world. We must instead be humble and realise that our purpose in this life is to live our lives in accordance with God’s will and to serve Him wholeheartedly.

In our first reading today, we continue to listen to the passage from the Book of Ecclesiastes, also known as Book of Qoheleth, in which the author had highlighted in the past few days the futility of worldly pursuits and glory, all the ambitions and desires of this world and all the false pleasures and joys around us. All those things can lead us down the slippery slope towards sin and destruction because of those sins, and if we are not careful, we will end up losing sight and direction towards the Lord and fall ever deeper into the path of wickedness and evil. That is why we must always resist the never-ending pursuits for power and worldly ambitions, all of which are likely going to bring us into our doom, as they lead us ever further away from the path towards God.

Many of our predecessors and ancestors, those who had come before us had faced this same problem, and many among them had faltered in their faith as they were unable to resist the temptations of worldly ambitions and all the things which had brought them down the path of sin and temptations to sin. Many of them had been swayed by the various temptations of this world, which are also present all around us as well. That many among them failed to resist those temptations spoke volumes about how challenging it may be for us to overcome those things if we do not put the conscious efforts and do whatever we can to keep our lives focused and centred on the Lord and not on our own personal ambitions.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Luke in which the Lord continued to tell His disciples about how He would face oppressions, rejection and betrayal, and how He would eventually face the worst persecutions and pain, made to suffer and endure humiliation and shame in the midst of Him completing and accomplishing everything that had been entrusted to Him. The Lord wanted all of His disciples to know and realise that to be His followers and disciples, one must not seek what is commonly sought in the world, such as all the pleasures and ambitions of our personal desires that many among the disciples might have had in them too. After all, they did bicker and argue before among them regarding who among them were the ones who were more worthy and better.

Instead, the Lord wanted to highlight to the disciples and hence to all of us as well that being His followers and disciples would often mean that we may have to face and endure challenges and hardships, all of which could dissuade and tempt us away from following the path towards the Lord and His salvation. But if we continue to hold fast to our faith in God and in the assurance which He has always provided to us, all these while, then we may be preserved and strengthened amidst all those challenges and temptations, that we do not end up falling into those wrong and wicked paths. We have to be strong and faithful always in devoting ourselves, our time and efforts to walk in the path that the Lord has shown us, and not to allow anything to separate us from His love and grace.

Today the Church also celebrates the Feast of several saints whose lives and courage in standing up to their faith and love for God ought to be good inspiration and examples for each and every one of us all to follow in our own lives. First of all we have St. Wenceslaus, the patron saint of Bohemia, which is now the Czech Republic. St. Wenceslaus was the Duke of Bohemia during the early decades of Christianity in that region. Previously Bohemia and its surrounding regions had been pagans and by the time of the reign of St. Wenceslaus, there were still quite a number of pagans living in that area. There were still conflicts between Christians and pagans in Bohemia and early on in his reign, his powerful and influential mother who favoured the pagans tried to persecute Christians, but was foiled and she was exiled by the Christian nobles and lords.

St. Wenceslaus as Duke of Bohemia carried out his duties and responsibilities most nobly and most wonderfully, establishing many important institutions for the benefit of the people under his dominion and care, while also supporting the many good works and efforts of the Church and its missionaries. However, the efforts and works of St. Wenceslaus did not win universal accord and support, as there were those nobles who were disgruntled against him and plotted against him with the support of his own brother, Boleslav. It was at a feast when these plots came to fruition, as St. Wenceslaus was attacked and struck by three of Boleslav’s own companions, and his brother also struck him with his lance. St. Wenceslaus therefore died a martyr defending his virtue and righteousness, and his faith in God against the corrupt forces of the world.

Then we have St. Lawrence Ruiz, also known as St. Lorenzo Ruiz and his companions in martyrdom. St. Lawrence Ruiz himself was born in the Philippines to a mixed Chinese-Filipino background, and had a relatively normal life as a married man, husband and father, working as a clerk in the employ of the then Spanish colonial government in the Philippines. However, one day, he was framed for a murder which he did not do at all, and he had to flee to avoid being persecuted and condemned falsely. He eventually sought refuge with several priests who happened to be on their way to Japan. Together they made it to Japan where they landed, at the time when Japan had become increasingly hostile against Christians under the early years of the Tokugawa Shoguns.

It was then that St. Lawrence Ruiz and his companions were arrested by the authorities, who persecuted and oppressed them for their Christian faith, and for the works of the missionaries in trying to spread the words of the Lord and His Good News to the people of Japan. Then, after a period of two years in suffering and incarceration in prison, St. Lawrence Ruiz and his companions were brought to Nagasaki where their final journey would be, and it was there that they were persecuted and eventually martyred through a most painful and gruesome method by being hung upside-down over a pit, a method known as tsurushi in Japanese. Despite the sufferings and hardships, St. Lawrence Ruiz and his companions remained firm in their faith in God, and they stayed true to their obedience to God to the very end of their lives.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we all have heard from the Sacred Scriptures today and as we have all been reminded of the courageous examples of the great saints and martyrs, St. Wenceslaus of Bohemia, as well as St. Lawrence Ruiz and his companions in martyrdom in Japan, let us all continue to seek the Lord in all things, to do what He has called and entrusted to do, to be truly faithful to Him in all things. Let us all not be swayed by all sorts of worldly temptations and pleasures, by all the things that can easily distract us into the wrong paths in life. May the Lord continue to strengthen us all in faith and help us in our journey towards Him, now and always. Amen.