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(Usus Antiquior) Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost (II Classis) – Sunday, 10 October 2021 : Offertory, Secret Prayer of the Priest, Communion and Post-Communion Prayer

Liturgical Colour : White

Offertory

Psalm 136 : 1

Super flumina Babylonis illic sedimus et flevimus : dum recordaremur Tui, Sion.

English translation

Upon the rivers of Babylon, there we sat and wept, when we remembered you, o Zion.

Secret Prayer of the Priest

Caelestem nobis praebeant haec mysteria, quaesumus, Domine, medicinam : et vitia nostri cordis expurgent. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

Let these mysteries, we beseech You, o Lord, be our heavenly medicine and purge the evil from our hearts. 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.

Communion

Psalm 118 : 49-50

Memento verbi Tui servo Tuo, Domine, in quo mihi spem dedisti : haec me consolata est in humilitate mea.

English translation

May You be mindful of Your word to Your servant, o Lord, in which You have given me hope. This had comforted me in my humiliation.

Post-Communion Prayer

Ut sacris, Domine, reddamur digni muneribus : fac nos, quaesumus, Tuis semper obedire mandatis. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

That we may be rendered worthy of Your sacred gifts, o Lord, grant us we beseech You, ever to obey Your commandments. 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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(Usus Antiquior) Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost (II Classis) – Sunday, 10 October 2021 : Holy Gospel

Liturgical Colour : White

Sequentia Sancti Evangelii secundum Joannem – Continuation of the Holy Gospel according to St. John

John 4 : 46-53

In illo tempore : Erat quidam regulus, cujus filius infirmabatur Capharnaum. Hic cum audisset, quia Jesus adveniret a Judaea in Galilaeam, abiit ad eum, et rogabat eum, ut descenderet et sanaret filium ejus : incipiebat enim mori.

Dixit ergo Jesus ad eum : Nisi signa et prodigia videritis, non creditis. Dicit ad eum regulus : Domine, descende, priusquam moriatur filius meus. Dicit ei Jesus : Vade, filius tuus vivit. Credidit homo sermoni, quem dixit ei Jesus, et ibat.

Jam autem eo descendente, servi occurrerunt ei et nuntiaverunt, dicentes, quia filius ejus viveret. Interrogabat ergo horam ab eis, in qua melius habuerit. Et dixerunt ei : Quia heri hora septima reliquit eum febris. Cognovit ergo pater, quia illa hora erat, in qua dixit ei Jesus : Filius tuus vivit : et credidit ipse et domus Ejus tota.

English translation

At that time, there was a certain ruler whose son was sick at Capernaum. Having heard that Jesus came to Judea from Galilee, they went with Him and prayed to Him to come down and to heal his son, for he was at the point of death.

Jesus therefore said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders, you do not believe.” The ruler said to Him, “Lord, come down before my son die.” Jesus said to him, “Go on your way, your son will live.” The man believed the word which Jesus said to him, and went his way.

And as he was going down, his servants met him, and they brought word, saying, that his son lived. He asked therefore of them, the hour wherein he grew better. And they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” The father therefore knew that it was at the same hour that Jesus said to him, ‘Your son lives,’ and he himself believed, and his whole house.

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(Usus Antiquior) Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost (II Classis) – Sunday, 10 October 2021 : Gradual and Alleluia

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 144 : 15-16 and Psalm 107 : 2

Oculi omnium in Te sperant, Domine : et Tu das illis escam in tempore opportuno.

Response : Aperis Tu manum Tuam : et imples omne animal benedictione.

Alleluja, Alleluja.

Response : Paratum cor meum, Deus, paratum cor meum : cantabo, et psallam Tibi, gloria mea. Alleluja.

English translation

The eyes of all hope in You, o Lord, and You give them meat in due season.

Response : You opened Your hand, and filled every living creature with Your blessing.

Alleluia, Alleluia.

Response : My heart is ready, o God, my heart is ready. I will sing, and I will give praise to You, my Glory. Alleluia.

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(Usus Antiquior) Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost (II Classis) – Sunday, 10 October 2021 : Epistle

Liturgical Colour : White

Lectio Epistolae Beati Pauli Apostoli ad Ephesios – Lesson from the Epistle of Blessed Paul the Apostle to the Ephesians

Ephesians 5 : 15-21

Fratres : Videte, quomodo caute ambuletis : non quasi insipientes, sed ut sapientes, redimentes tempus, quoniam dies mali sunt. Propterea nolite fieri imprudentes, sed intellegentes, quae sit voluntas Dei.

Et nolite inebriari vino, in quo est luxuria : sed implemini Spiritu Sancto, loquentes vobismetipsis in psalmis et hymnis et canticis spiritualibus, cantantes et psallentes in cordibus vestris Domino : gratias agentes semper pro omnibus, in Nomine Domini nostri Jesu Christi, Deo et Patri. Subjecti invicem in timore Christi.

English translation

Brethren, see how you walk circumspectly, not as unwise, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore, do not become unwise, but understand what is the will of God.

And do not be drunk with wine, wherein is luxury, but may you be filled with the Holy Spirit, speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns, and spiritual canticles, singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things, in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to God and the Father, being subject one to another in the fear of Christ.

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(Usus Antiquior) Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost (II Classis) – Sunday, 10 October 2021 : Introit and Collect

Liturgical Colour : White

Introit

Daniel 3 : 31, 29, 35 and Psalm 118 : 1

Omnia, quae fecisti nobis, Domine, in vero judicio fecisti, quia peccavimus Tibi et mandatis Tuis non obedivimus : sed da gloriam Nomini Tuo, et fac nobiscum secundum multitudinem misericordiae Tuae.

Beati immaculati in via : qui ambulant in lege Domini.

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

English translation

All that You have done to us, o Lord, You have done in true judgment, because we have sinned against You, and we have not obeyed Your commandments, but give glory to Your Name, and deal with us according to the multitude of Your mercy.

Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the Law of the Lord.

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

Largire, quaesumus, Domine, fidelibus Tuis indulgentiam placatus et pacem : ut pariter ab omnibus mundentur offensis, et secura Tibi mente deserviant. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

Being appeased, o Lord, grant to Your faithful in abundance, we beseech You, both forgiveness and peace, that they may both be cleansed from all offences and with a quiet mind give themselves to Your service. 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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Saturday, 9 October 2021 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

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

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are all called to be faithful to God, and to believe in Him and His providence, to do His will because all of us who are faithful to Him and remain true to our commitment to Him will not be disappointed, as God knows all of our actions and dealings, and whatever we have done, our every small little actions, for the greater glory of His Name, shall be rewarded in the end.

In our first reading today, we heard of the words of the Lord spoken to His people through the prophet Joel, who was active during the years following the return of the descendants of the Israelites from their exile in Babylon. To put things in context, the people of Israel had by then endured a lot of humiliations and sufferings because of their past sins, due to their stubborn refusal to follow the Lord and to believe in His words and the prophets that had been sent to them.

They had been beaten, oppressed and conquered by the Assyrians and the Babylonians. Their cities and towns were destroyed, and they were forced to leave their ancestral homeland for a faraway exile in Assyria and Babylon, and seeing pagans and foreigners taking over the ownership of their lands. Their Holy Temple in Jerusalem, the House of God was destroyed, a House which they themselves had long forgotten and abandoned for the worship of pagan gods and idols.

The Lord never forgot about His people though, and continued to love them despite of all the troubles and the betrayals they had done to Him. He loved them regardless and desired to reconcile themselves to Him, to love them once again and to extend His merciful hands to be reunited with them. He guided them and sent His prophets to them, and after many decades, gathered them back and through King Cyrus of Persia, led them back to their homeland, and allowing them to rebuild their towns and the Temple of God.

Therefore, through the prophet Joel, God wanted to remind His people to stand by His side and to remain faithful to Him so that they will no longer experience those periods of sufferings and challenges, and even if they were to suffer from difficulties and challenges, the Lord would be by their side and they would triumph together with Him, for He will come in the end to gather them all and lead them into the true joy and glory with Him, at the very end of time.

As we heard in our short Gospel passage today, we are all then reminded that in order to do this, what we all need to do is to be faithful to God and to commit ourselves wholeheartedly, by doing His will and obeying His laws and commandments. To do the will of God is the calling for us all as Christians, and we should do our very best to live a virtuous and exemplary life, to the best of our ability, so that even in the smallest things that we do, we will always remain faithful and committed to God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us also follow the good examples set by our holy predecessors, namely St. Denis and his companions in martyrdom, as well as St. John Leonardi, faithful servants of God and saints whose feasts we are celebrating today. We should delve into their lives’ examples and be inspired with how they had led lives that were centred and focused on God, and how they had shown great faith despite the many challenges and trials they had encountered in life.

St. Denis was the Bishop of Paris during the time of the later Roman Empire, during a time of great persecution of Christians by the Roman Emperors and the state. St. Denis was sent from Rome by Pope St. Fabian, and was tasked with the evangelisation and conversion of Roman Gaul, together with several other missionaries. They encountered great challenges while having a lot of successes as well, and that time, when the Emperor Decius declared a great persecution against Christians, he and the other missionaries were arrested.

St. Denis and his companions were tortured and made to suffer for their faith in God, and they refused to give in, and finally, were led to their execution, which St. Denis suffered by beheading, together with his fellow martyrs. However, in a most miraculous and amazing occasion, St. Denis remained alive even after he was beheaded, and he picked up his head, and the head preached to the people as he walked for many kilometres, to many awed witnesses and even those who were involved in the execution. It was at the place where he stopped and finally passed into heavenly glory, that he was buried and where a great church, the Basilica of St. Denis in Paris now stands.

Meanwhile, St. John Leonardi was an Italian priest and founder of the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca, who lived about five centuries ago. As a priest, he was remembered for his great dedication to his flock, the parishioners and the other members of the faithful whom he dedicated himself to, in the formation of young adults in the faith among other things. He also popularised the devotion of the Forty Hours and the Eucharist to the faithful, which was meant to bring them closer to God.

St. John Leonardi also worked hard to implement the many reforms of the Ecumenical Council of Trent, while also proposing to the Pope for the formation of a religious order that is focused on the reforms of the Church and greater discipline in faith, which eventually became a reality with the foundation of the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca, gathering many like-minded people who seek to serve the Lord following the charism and efforts of St. John Leonardi. Through his faith and dedication, and his perseverance, in facing the challenges and opposition he had for his efforts, St. John Leonardi has shown us, just as St. Denis and his companions in martyrdom had, on how to be truly faithful and committed to God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore commit ourselves anew to the Lord and let us do our very best to follow Him, and to walk in His path, so that in everything we do, we will always glorify Him and be exemplary and inspirational in our way of life, such that many more people may come to believe in the Lord through us and our examples. May the Lord continue to guide us and help us in our journey of faith, and may He strengthen each and every one of us to live ever more faithfully from now on. Amen.

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Saturday, 9 October 2021 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Gospel Reading)

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

Luke 11 : 27-28

At that time, as Jesus was speaking, a woman spoke from the crowd and said to Him, “Blessed is the one who gave You birth and nursed You!”

Jesus replied, “Truly blessed are those who hear the word of God, and keep it as well.”

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Saturday, 9 October 2021 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Psalm)

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

Psalm 96 : 1-2, 5-6, 11-12

YHVH reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the distant islands be glad. Clouds and darkness surround Him; justice and right, are His throne.

The mountains melt like wax before YHVH, the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim His justice, all peoples see His glory.

He sheds light upon the upright, and gladness upon the just. Rejoice in YHVH, you, who are blameless; and give praise to His holy Name.

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Saturday, 9 October 2021 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (First Reading)

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

Joel 4 : 12-21

Rise up, o people, and come to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, nations. Bring a sickle for the harvest is ripe; come and tread, for the wine press is full, and the vats overflow; so great is their wickedness! Multitudes and more multitudes in the Valley of Verdict! The day of YHVH is near in the Valley of Verdict! The sun and the moon become dark, the stars lose their radiance.

YHVH roars from Zion and raises His voice from Jerusalem; heaven and earth are shaken. Indeed, YHVH is a refuge for His people, a stronghold for the Israelites. You will know that I am YHVH, your God, dwelling on Zion, My holy mountain. Jerusalem will be a holy place; and foreigners will never pass through there again.

On that day, the mountains shall drip wine and the hills flow with milk; all the streams of Judah will run with water; and a fountain will spring from the house of YHVH, and water the valley of Shittim. On the other hand, Egypt will be devastated; and Edom will become a deserted wasteland, because they committed violence against Judah and shed innocent blood in their country.

But Judah will be inhabited forever, and Jerusalem through all generations. And I shall avenge their blood and not leave it unpunished, for YHVH dwells in Zion.

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Friday, 8 October 2021 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are called to believe in the Lord and entrust ourselves in His providence, as we ought to keep ourselves worthy and pure, free from sin and evil. All of us should remain true in our faith in God, and commit ourselves to Him and not to be easily swayed by those who sought to divide and destroy us, by sowing seeds of dissension and doubt in our midst.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Joel of the words of the Lord, which He spoke to His people Israel and according to historians, happened after the people of Israel had returned to their homeland after their exile in Babylon. What the Lord told His people at that time was a reminder of how they themselves had suffered earlier on from those who oppressed and conquered them, destroyed their cities and their homeland, bringing them into their exile.

And the Lord told His people that they ought to be prepared, steadfast and ready to face trials and challenges, as the time shall come when the forces of the evil one will be arrayed and assembled against us. All of us ought to remain steady in our faith and not be swayed by our fears and doubts that the enemy sought to spread among us that they hope to see us sundered from the love and protection of God. This is also where we then heard what happened at the time of the Lord Jesus and His confrontation with the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law who accused Him of colluding with Beelzebul, the prince of demons.

At that time, some of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had often been shadowing the Lord’s ministry, following Him wherever He went and witnessing all that He had done, the miracles and healing, the exorcisms that He performed before all the people. They had also heard His teachings and the truth which He had delivered from the Lord, and yet, instead of believing in Him as they should have done, they slandered Him and went against Him, accusing Him falsely of collusion with demons in performing His miracles and works, hoping that would discredit Him amongst the people of God.

Contextually, at that time, the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law were seen as the intellectual elites and the spiritual leaders and guides of the people, who were highly respected and even feared by many of the descendants of the Israelites, for their very strict and strong enforcement of the orthodox traditions of the Jewish cultural and religious practices, which were centred on the Law of God revealed through Moses, but with numerous excesses and flaws which led to the friction with the Lord Jesus when He came into this world bearing the true meaning and purpose of the Law of God.

As such, due to this rivalry and the jealousy which many among the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had against the Lord Jesus, as He gathered and brought more and more people to His side as His disciples and followers, and the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law grew desperate and used the false accusation to try to discredit the Lord and His works, and to turn the people against Him. However, they made such an outrageous claim that in fact blasphemed against God, by accusing His works as the work of the devil.

Essentially, what those people claimed was that a prince of demons colluded with the Lord Jesus to cast out other demons, which was nonsensical as that would have meant that the evil spirits and demons were divided against each other in their efforts to attack mankind, all of us, God’s people. While those demons, who were fallen angels and spirits might have had their differences and disagreements, there is nothing that unites them more than in their desire to see about our downfall and destruction. Hence, not only that the accusations made by the Pharisees false, but they were outright wicked and blasphemous in nature.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, from what we have heard through the Gospel passage today, it is indeed sad to see how mankind can be so divided against one another in such a vicious manner, when ironically the evil and wicked spirits were much more united in their efforts against us. This is where all of us need to discard our ego, pride and greed, and resist the temptations that are present all around us. The Lord has called us all to put our trust in Him, and we should unite ourselves together to Him, and overcome all the divisions and disagreements we have between us.

Let us all not be divided any longer and let us all not be distracted by the numerous efforts by the wicked and evil spirits, Satan and all those enemies of the Lord who always seek to destroy us all. Let us commit ourselves to a new existence and life in God, and as a united community of the faithful, let us all do whatever we can to glorify the Lord at all times. May God be with us always, and may He strengthen each one of us to follow Him, and may He empower each one of us to walk ever more faithfully in His presence, now and always. Amen.