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(Usus Antiquior) Nativity of St. John the Baptist (I Classis) – Saturday, 24 June 2023 : Introit and Collect

Liturgical Colour : White

Introit

Isaiah 49 : 1, 2 and Psalm 91 : 2

De ventre matris meae vocavit me Dominus nomine meo : et posuit os meum ut gladium acutum : sub tegumento manus suae protexit me, et posuit me quasi sagittam electam.

Bonum est confiteri Domino : et psallere Nomini Tuo, Altissime.

Response : Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto, sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper : et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

The Lord had called me by my name from the womb of my mother, and He had made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of His hand He had protected me, and had made me as a chosen arrow.

It is good to give praise to the Lord, and to sing to Your Name, o Most High.

Response : Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Collect

Deus, qui praesentem diem honorabilem nobis in beati Joannis nativitate fecisti : da populis Tuis spiritualium gratiam gaudiorum; et omnium fidelium menfes dirige in viam salutis aeternae. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

O God, You Who had made this day honourable to us on account of the birth of blessed John, grant Your people the grace of spiritual joys, and direct the minds of all the faithful in the way of everlasting salvation. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who with You lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.

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Friday, 23 June 2023 : Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this evening all of us come together to celebrate the Vigil of the great Solemnity in honour of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, the one whom the Lord had sent to be His own Herald, in proclaiming His coming into this world, and to prepare the path and everything for His entry and appearance in our midst. On this evening, we truly give thanks to God for His gift of St. John the Baptist, the holy servant whom He had sent to be in our midst, to call us from our slumber in the darkness so that by his efforts and works, many would be stirred and come to seek the Lord and His forgiveness, that more and more might be saved, and be prepared to welcome the Lord Himself, coming into our midst.

St. John the Baptist was born not long before the Lord Himself, as there was a short period of time when both him and our Lord and Saviour were both in their mothers’ wombs. At the time when Mary, the Mother of God visited Elizabeth, the mother of St. John the Baptist, not long before the latter’s birth, both of them were still in the womb, and it was then that St. John the Baptist recognised the coming of his Lord and Master, Who was in the womb of Mary, Elizabeth’s own relative and cousin. And like that of our Lord Himself, the pregnancy that gave rise to the birth and coming of St. John the Baptist was also miraculous, in that his mother Elizabeth was already very old and way past child-bearing age.

Yet, the Lord chose Elizabeth to bear the child who would become the Herald of the Messiah, revealing the news to Zechariah, his father, at the Temple through His Archangel, which according to the Church and Apostolic traditions, was the Archangel Gabriel, the same one who would then go on to visit Mary to tell her of the even greater Good News of the coming of the Saviour of the world. Through these two good news delivered by the Archangel to both Elizabeth and Mary therefore, the world has finally come to see the Light of God’s salvation, which He has long promised to us all, to His beloved ones, who have long been suffering under the dominion and the tyranny of sin.

St. John the Baptist was born into his family and into this world as an occasion of great joy, both for his family who had not been able to have any children at all, and then for the world because through St. John the Baptist, the Lord would finally reveal the last parts of His long prepared plan of salvation for each and every one of us. St. John the Baptist, as we all should know, would go on to do great deeds among God’s people, becoming known as the Baptist or the Baptiser because he called a great throng of countless thousands or more, to come to the Lord and to commit themselves once again to His cause, with the baptism at the River Jordan as the symbolic and tangible commitment of the people’s desire to return to God with repentance.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, what is the significance of this Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist is to us? This Solemnity is a reminder for all of us of everything that God had done for us, and in how He has always fulfilled everything that he has promised us, in showing us His ever tender mercy, love and compassion. That He sent us all His servants, repeatedly from time to time, and gave us guidance through His messengers and through His Church, and by giving us all His own beloved Son, Jesus Christ, the Divine Word Incarnate and Son of God, to be our Saviour, by suffering and dying for our sake, God wants us all to know that He truly loves us all, and He wants us to embrace the salvation that He has so freely offered to us.

As Christians, all of us should be inspired by the great examples set by St. John the Baptist, whose contributions are not limited only just by what he had done in baptising the countless thousands and more at the River Jordan. It was his faithfulness and his dedication to the Lord which should inspire us all to follow his good examples and faith as well. Not only that, but St. John the Baptist also showed us great courage and steadfastness in faith, in courageously opposing even the powerful ones at his time, the teachers of the Law and the chief priests, whom he scolded and criticised as the band of vipers for their lack of faith, hypocrisy and mismanagement of the people, and also King Herod, whom St. John the Baptist criticised for his immoral and adulterous behaviour with his brother’s wife, Herodias.

St. John the Baptist, who did not fear persecution and oppression, and who gave his whole life and efforts to the service of God, is a paragon of virtue and Christian discipleship, and all of us as Christians should be inspired to walk in the same path that St. John the Baptist had traversed, and be inspired by his great courage and commitment to God. He is a great role model for us all, in how each and every one of us should be living our lives as well, with great virtue and commitment to God, and in doing whatever it is that we have been entrusted by God to do with our lives, in our respective areas of responsibilities, and in our various vocations in the Church and in this world, in doing our best to glorify God by our lives.

May St. John the Baptist, Holy Herald of the Lord and His faithful servant, continue to pray and intercede for us all, that God may continue to guide and strengthen each and every one of us in our lives and in our works, so that we may truly be worthy of Him, and be committed in living our lives most worthily and faithfully in all things, in our every words, actions and deeds, at all times. May God bless us all, in our every efforts and endeavours, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Friday, 23 June 2023 : Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 1 : 5-17

In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah, belonging to the priestly clan of Abiah. Elizabeth, Zechariah’s wife also belonged to a priestly family. Both of them were upright in the eyes of God, and lived blamelessly, in accordance with all the laws and commands of the Lord, but they had no child. Elizabeth could not have any and now they were both very old.

Now, while Zechariah and those with him were fulfilling their office, it fell to him by lot, according to the custom of the priests, to enter the Sanctuary of the Lord and burn incense. At the time of offering incense, all the people were praying outside; it was then, that an Angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. On seeing the Angel, Zechariah was deeply troubled and fear took hold of him.

But the Angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, be assured that your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son and you shall name him John. He will bring joy and gladness to you, and many will rejoice at his birth. This son of yours will be great in the eyes of the Lord. Listen : he shall never drink wine or strong drink; but he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb.”

“Through him, many of the people of Israel will turn to the Lord their God. He, himself, will open the way to the Lord, with the spirit and power of the prophet Elijah; he will reconcile fathers and children; and lead the disobedient to wisdom and righteousness, in order to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

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Friday, 23 June 2023 : Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 Peter 1 : 8-12

You have not, yet, seen Him, and, yet, you love Him; even without seeing Him, you believe in Him, and experience a heavenly joy beyond all words, for you are reaching the goal of your faith : the salvation of your souls.

This was the salvation for which the prophets so eagerly looked when, in days past, they foretold the favour of God, with regard to you. But they could only investigate when the Spirit of Christ present within them, pointed out the time and the circumstances, of this – the sufferings of Christ, and the glories which would follow.

It was revealed to them, that they were working, not for themselves, but for you. Thus, in these days, after the Holy Spirit has been sent from heaven, the Gospel’s preachers have taught you these mysteries, which even the Angels long to see.

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Friday, 23 June 2023 : Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

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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Friday, 23 June 2023 : Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Jeremiah 1 : 4-10

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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Friday, 16 June 2023 : Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the occasion of the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, in which we celebrate the great love of God that has been shown to us firstly through His Son, Who has come down into our midst in the flesh, as the perfect manifestation of the love of God, and then, the most loving and wonderful Heart filled with love that Christ has shown us. The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus shows us the greatest love that ever exists, the pure love that God has always had for us, that He has always had for each and every one of us without exception. This very popular devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus is similar to the other popular devotion to the Divine Mercy, in which both of them showed unto us the loving Heart of the Lord, that has ever been shown and directed to us, in God’s desire to reach out to us, healing us and loving us most tenderly as He has always intended.

Today all of us are reminded that God has never abandoned or forgotten about us, despite us having done the same again and again, many times, in our constant and persistent rebellions against Him, and in our refusal of listening to His words and reminders for us, which He has done for us again and again. The Lord has always ever been patient towards us, and yet, we have always spurnt His love, rejected His kind and most compassionate approaches and efforts, hurting Him again and again, making His Most Sacred Heart to be wounded because of our many transgressions, sins and disobedience. This is what the Lord has shown to some of His servants, through whom the devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus became popular from. It all began from the popular devotion to the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the devotion to the Sacred Wounds of the Lord, which became popular after the Crusades and after the efforts from the saints like St. Bernard of Clairvaux and St. Francis of Assisi in calling the people of God to deepen their spiritual lives.

As many of the people had great affinity and connection to the Sacred Wounds of the Lord, this devotion naturally develops into the devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, that became concrete and in the form that we are familiar with the revelations which St. Margaret Mary Alacoque received a few centuries later. Beginning with St. Bernard of Clairvaux, who spoke of the piercing of the side of the Lord during the crucifixion, in which the Most Sacred Heart of the Lord was pierced, pouring out the love that He has always had for us, and the heart being always associated with love amongst us, it therefore deepened our appreciation and understanding of just how beloved and dear each and every one of us are by the Lord, ever patient and ever generous with His kindness and compassion towards us, desiring us all to be reconciled with Him, by turning away from our wicked and sinful ways.

Many other saints like St. Bonaventure and St. Gertrude the Great also alluded to the Most Sacred Heart of the Lord Jesus, and spoke of His love, with the latter having received vision of the Lord’s loving Heart. But it was only after St. Margaret Mary Alacoque received series of visions from the Lord that the current form of the devotion became finalised, and as we recognise it today. St. Margaret Mary Alacoque received the vision of the Lord and His Most Sacred Heart, in which He spoke of His Heart that had loved mankind so much, His bleeding and wounded Heart that had been rejected and abandoned by mankind again and again, and of all the sufferings, pain and persecutions that He had endured and faced in the midst of His desire to heal us and to be reconciled with us. Through all these visions and all that the faithful had received in revelation from the Lord, all of us gained greater knowledge of the love of God that had been made manifest to us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we heard from our Scripture passages today, all of us as Christians, as the beloved children of God are all expected to embrace God’s love, obey His will and to love Him most sincerely and genuinely. The Lord has always waited for us, and endlessly reached out for us in His efforts to call us to return to Him. In our first reading today from the Book of Deuteronomy, we heard the words of the Lord delivered to His people through His servant Moses, reminding all of them that they have all been chosen and consecrated to God as His holy and beloved people, and how they have received His Law and commandments, through which the Lord wanted all of them to follow Him and the path that He has led them all into, the path of righteousness and justice, the path of goodness and love, by obeying those Law and commandments.

And it was also there that God told us how His love was truly wholesome and patient, pure and sincere, and He is truly caring towards us, ever concerned of our overall well-being. It is also where we are reminded that God’s love for us, His mercy and compassion is always comprised of not just His generosity and kindness towards us, but also His desire for us to turn away from our wickedness, evil and sins. That is why God has always chastised and punished those who have committed rebellions, sins and wrongdoings, as mentioned, and as He has shown us all from time to time, again and again. That is because He truly cared for us, and He does not want us to continue to walk down the path of evil and wickedness. That is because if all of us keep on doing those wicked things, we will end up being separated forever from the Lord forever, and fall into eternal damnation, something that the Lord certainly does not want to happen to us.

In our second reading today, the Apostle St. John in one of his Epistles reminded all of us of how God made His perfect love manifested to us through His Son, the Divine Word Incarnate. Just as mentioned, the love that God has shown for us is so wonderful, magnificent and wholesome that all of us really ought to realise that we have received the most wonderful and amazing love of God through Christ, and all of us have been shown and taught what Love is truly all about, and therefore, we should do our best to show that same love in our own respective lives, by loving one another, our fellow brothers and sisters in the same way, and of course in loving God just how He has loved us all first. All of us have received God’s love and known the boundless grace and compassion of God, just as we have also heard in our Gospel passage today, when the Lord Jesus told His disciples, of Him calling all of His beloved ones, to come to Him, because through Him alone there is hope and true joy.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, having heard and been reminded of the great and most generous love that God has always shown us, let us all therefore spend some time to reflect upon our lives and how we have lived them. Have we truly been committed to the Lord and His love for us? Have we taken His love for us for granted? Have we been so stubborn and unreasonable in continuing to disobey Him and in committing whatever is evil and wicked in His sight? That is what many of us have often done, in rejecting His ever generous offer of kindness and compassion, in having betrayed Him and chosen to follow the path of sin and evil instead. Then, we must truly remember and realise that for every sins and wicked things that we have committed, each one of these are the cause of the many wounds, hurt and pain that made His Most Sacred Heart to bleed and to be wounded, all for our sake.

That is why all of us should remind ourselves to turn away from sinful and wicked ways, and we should strive from now on to do what is right and just in our lives, remembering as always God’s ever generous mercy and kindness, His love and mercy that has always been given to us. Let us all look upon the Lord, at His Most Sacred Heart, full of wounds and hurt because of our every transgressions and sins. Let us all look at Him Who has been crucified for us, and ask ourselves, if we have deserved all that He had done for us, to the point of enduring the worst sufferings, humiliations and pain for our sake? The Lord has patiently loved us all these while, and what many of us had done to Him, is to keep on inflicting hurt upon Him whenever we continue to sin, disobey and disregard His love and kindness towards us, and whenever we also cause hurt and suffering upon others around us by our selfish actions.

May the Lord in His Most Sacred Heart, continue to love us and care for us, as He has always done, and may all of us then continue to do what is right and just, worthy and appropriate for us all as Christians, as all those who have been called and chosen by the Lord, and all beloved by the Lord all the same, with the love overflowing from His Most Sacred Heart. Let us all turn towards Him with renewed faith and commitment, with love and dedication from now on, so that we may truly be good and faithful disciples worthy of His love. May the Lord be with us always, and may He bless all of our good works and efforts, our every endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Friday, 16 June 2023 : Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 11 : 25-30

On that occasion, Jesus said, “Father, Lord of heaven and earth, I praise You; because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to simple people. Yes, Father, this was Your gracious will.”

“Everything has been entrusted to Me by My Father. No one knows the Son except the Father; and no one knows the Father except the Son, and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.”

“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble of heart; and you will find rest. For My yoke is easy; and My burden is light.”

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Friday, 16 June 2023 : Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 John 4 : 7-16

My dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves, is born of God and knows God. Those who do not love have not known God, for God is Love. How did the love of God appear among us? God sent His only Son into this world, that we might have life, through Him.

This is love : not that we loved God, but that, He first loved us and sent His Son, as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, if such has been the love of God, we, too, must love one another. No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another, God lives in us, and His love comes to its perfection in us.

How may we know that we live in God and He in us? Because God has given us His Spirit. We ourselves have seen, and declare, that the Father sent His Son to save the world. Those who confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in them, and they in God.

We have known the love of God and have believed in it. God is Love. The one who lives in love, and God in him.

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Friday, 16 June 2023 : Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 102 : 1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8 and 10

Praise YHVH, my soul; all my being, praise His holy Name! Praise YHVH, my soul, and do not forget all His kindness.

He forgives all your sins and heals all your sickness; He redeems your life from destruction and crowns you with love and compassion.

YHVH restores justice and secures the rights of the oppressed. He has made known His ways to Moses; and His deeds, to the people of Israel.

YHVH is gracious and merciful, abounding in love and slow to anger; He does not treat us according to our sins, nor does He punish us as we deserve.