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Monday, 29 January 2024 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 5 : 1-20

At that time, Jesus and His disciples arrived at the other side of the lake, in the region of the Gerasenes. No sooner did Jesus leave the boat than He was met by a man with evil spirits, who had come from the tombs. The man lived among the tombs, and no one could restrain him, even with a chain.

He had often been bound with fetters and chains; but he would pull the chains apart and smash the fetters; and no one had the strength to control him. Night and day he stayed among the tombs on the hillsides, and was continually screaming, and beating himself with stones.

When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell at His feet, and cried with a loud voice, “What do You want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? For God’s sake, I beg You, do not torment me!” He said this, because Jesus had commanded, “Evil spirit, come out of the man!”

When Jesus asked the evil spirit, “What is your name?” It replied, “Legion is my name, for we are many.” And it kept begging Jesus, not to send them out of that region. Now a great herd of pigs was feeding on the hillside, and the evil spirits begged Him, “Send us to the pigs, and let us go into them.”

So Jesus let them go. The evil spirits came out of the man and went into the pigs; and immediately, the herd rushed down the cliff; and all were drowned in the lake. The herdsmen fled, and reported this in the town and in the countryside. So all the people came to see what had happened.

They came to Jesus, and saw the man freed of the evil spirits, sitting there, clothed and in his right mind; the same man who had been possessed by the legion. They were afraid. And when those who had seen it, told what had happened to the man and to the pigs, the people begged Jesus to leave their neighbourhood.

When Jesus was getting into the boat, the man, who had been possessed, begged to stay with Him. Jesus would not let him, and said, “Go home to your people, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how He has had mercy on you.”

So he went throughout the country of Decapolis, telling everyone how much Jesus had done for him; and all the people were astonished.

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Monday, 29 January 2024 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 3 : 2-3, 4-5, 6-7

O YHVH, how great in number are my foes! How numerous are they who rise against me! How many are they who say of my soul : “There is no help for him in God!”

But You are my Shield, o YHVH, my Glory; You lift up my head. Aloud I cry to YHVH, and from His holy hill He answers me.

If I lie down to sleep, again I awake, for YHVH supports me; no fear of the thousands standing against me.

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Monday, 29 January 2024 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

2 Samuel 15 : 13-14, 30 and 2 Samuel 16 : 5-13a

A messenger came to report to David that the Israelites were siding with Absalom. Then David said to all his servants who were with him in Jerusalem, “Let us flee, for we cannot resist Absalom. Go quickly, lest he come hurriedly and overtake us. Surely he will put the city to the sword if he can bring disaster upon us.”

David himself went up the Mount of Olives, weeping. He was barefooted and had his head covered, and all the people who were with him had their heads covered and wept as they went. When king David came to Bahurim, a man from the clan of Saul’s family named Shimei, son of Gera, came out cursing him. He threw stones at David and his officers although the king’s men and warriors flanked the king on the right and left.

As he yelled curses, Shimei said, “Leave! Leave! You man of bloodshed, you wicked man! YHVH has brought down on your head all the blood of the family of Saul. You became king in his place, but God has now placed the kingdom in the hands of your son Absalom. Ruin has come upon you because you are a wicked man.”

Then Abishai, son of Zeruiah, said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go and cut his head off.” But the king said, “Why should I listen to you, sons of Zeruiah? If YHVH has ordered him to curse me, who shall ask him why he acts like this?”

Then David said to Abishai and his officers, “If my own son wants to kill me, how much more this Benjaminite! Leave him alone and let him curse me if YHVH has ordered him to do so. Perhaps YHVH will look on my affliction and turn to good things the curses heaped on me today.”

So David and his men went on their way while Shimei, following on the hillside opposite him.

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Sunday, 28 January 2024 : Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday all of us are reminded that in the Lord lies our hope and salvation, and He is our God and Master, and we are all His people, His beloved ones who are always cared for by Him, ever always precious in His sight. The Lord has shown His love to us, and fulfilled everything that He has promised to us since the very beginning, and He would not let harm come to us, His beloved ones. This is what He had done and reaffirmed to us again and again throughout time and history, and which we have also heard in our Scripture readings today. All of us should always therefore commit ourselves to the Lord and remain firmly focused on Him at all times, and not be swayed or tempted by worldly desires and evils.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Deuteronomy, we heard how Moses proclaimed to the people of Israel, that the Lord their God would raise up a great Prophet like himself from among them, and how in this Prophet, the Word of God would be revealed and brought into the midst of this world, among God’s people, which is in fact a prophecy and prediction of the coming of the Messiah, the Holy One of God, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Through Christ, the salvation of God and His love has been made clear and evident to us, and He has brought unto us all the reassurances that as long as we all remain faithful to Him, obeying the Law and commandments of God, all of us shall remain in God’s grace and be saved.

In that same reading, we also heard how the Lord warned against all those false prophets and leaders, messengers and all those who sought to misappropriate and misuse the word of God and the truth for their own benefits and advantages. He told the people how all those so-called prophets who would speak differently from what He has shown, taught and revealed, would be crushed, destroyed and they would meet their end, because of the wicked deeds that they would do among the people of God. This is also a reminder for all the people of God, and hence to all of us as well, that we must be careful not to be easily swayed by the lies and falsehoods which the evil one would definitely attempt to plant in our midst, spreading the seeds of discord and doubt among us.

Then, in our second reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, in which the Apostle St. Paul reminded all the people and the faithful in Corinth not to be anxious and not to be overly concerned with their various worldly matters and attachments, and that was why, he told all of them that they should all be focused on the Lord and how to do His will, and to do their respective parts, whether as husbands or wives, which he used as examples, in living their lives worthily in accordance to God’s will, and not to follow the whim of their desires and any other worldly temptations and attachments, which would easily lead them astray down the wrong path of sin and evil.

St. Paul reminded the faithful in Corinth of all these things because at that time, there were strife and division among the Christians in Corinth, as there were oppositions to the teachings and works of St. Paul among a segment of the faithful there, especially from among the Christians recently converted from the Jewish diaspora community. This issue and other disagreements among the faithful in the region of Corinth had caused divisions and conflicts to break out among the members of the Body of Christ, and this led to the disruption in the works and efforts of the Lord’s Apostles and disciples in proclaiming the Good News and the truth, and hence, the faithful were exhorted to remain faithful to the teachings and truth of Christ, and not be easily swayed by all sorts of worldly temptations and desires.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the time when the Lord Jesus performed an exorcism on a possessed man who was afflicted and possessed by evil spirits who attempted to disturb the teaching session which the Lord was having at that time in the synagogue. The evil spirits tried to reveal before the people that the Lord is the Holy One of God, the One Whom the Lord had promised to send unto us His people, as He has promised throughout time and history, such as the one He had promised through Moses. The irony was indeed such that, while many of the people to whom God had sent His Son to refused to believe in the One Whom God had sent, it was the evil spirits who acknowledged and recognised the Lord, and proclaimed Him regardless of their ulterior motives.

The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law who then often obstructed the Lord’s works and ministry were often against the Lord because they refused to accept the fact that their way of believing in things and practicing the Law could have been wrong. They took great pride in their intelligence and sense of superiority over all others, that they became enamoured and corrupted by those, and ended up rejecting the truth and the salvation of God, when they should have been the first to realise Who the Lord Jesus was, and what He has represented and taught among the people. Their pride, ego and greed were great barriers and obstacles which prevented them from opening their hearts and minds to God and His love, His truth and Good News.

This is why through the Scripture passages we have heard this Sunday, all of us are reminded to be always focused on the Lord and centre our lives and existence on Him. We are all reminded that the various temptations present all around us in this world, the falsehoods of the devil and all those seeking our ruin and destruction can bring us to our downfall, and we have to be ever vigilant lest all those distractions and temptations mislead us down this wrong path. We have to put our faith and trust as always in the Lord, and allow Him to lead and guide us down the path of righteousness and grace. This is why we should remind ourselves to grow ever more in our relationship with God, embracing His love and truth, His mercy and kindness at all times, and rejecting the wickedness of the world.

Let us all commit ourselves ever more wholeheartedly to the Lord, and let us do our best so that in each and every moments of our lives, we will always strive to be exemplary and inspirational in our way of life, that through our dedication and good examples, many others may also be helped and inspired to turn away from the path of wickedness and sin, and instead embracing the Lord as their Master and Saviour as all of us had done. May the Lord bless us all in our every good efforts and endeavours, and inspire us all that we may truly be His worthy disciples and followers, and be the shining beacons of His Light in this darkened world today. Amen.

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Sunday, 28 January 2024 : Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 1 : 21b-28

At that time, Jesus taught in the synagogue on the Sabbath day. The people were astonished at the way He taught, for He spoke as One having authority, and not like the teachers of the Law.

It happened that, a man with an evil spirit was in their synagogue, and he shouted, “What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know Who You are : You are the Holy One of God.”

Then Jesus faced him and said with authority, “Be silent, and come out of this man!” The evil spirit shook the man violently and, with a loud shriek, came out of him. All the people were astonished, and they wondered, “What is this? With what authority He preaches! He even gives orders to evil spirits and they obey Him!”

And Jesus’ fame spread throughout all the country of Galilee.

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Sunday, 28 January 2024 : Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Corinthians 7 : 32-35

I would like you to be free from anxieties. He who is not married is concerned about the things of the Lord and how to please the Lord. While he who is married is taken up with the things of the world and how to please his wife, and he is divided in his interests.

Likewise, the unmarried woman and the virgin are concerned with the service of the Lord, to be holy in body and spirit. The married woman, instead, worries about the things of the world and how to please her husband.

I say this for your own good. I do not wish to lay traps for you, but to lead you to a beautiful life, entirely united with the Lord.

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Sunday, 28 January 2024 : Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 94 : 1-2, 6-7, 8-9

Come, let us sing to YHVH, let us make a joyful sound to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before Him giving thanks, with music and songs of praise.

Come and worship; let us bow down, kneel before YHVH, our Maker. He is our God, and we, His people; the flock He leads and pastures. Would, that today, you heard His voice!

Do not be stubborn, as at Meribah, in the desert, on that day at Massah, when your ancestors challenged Me, and they put Me to the test.

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Sunday, 28 January 2024 : Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Deuteronomy 18 : 15-20

Moses said to the people of Israel, “He will raise up for you a prophet like myself from among the people, from your brothers, to whom you shall listen. Remember that in Horeb, on the day of the Assembly, you said : ‘I am afraid to die and I do not want to hear the voice of YHVH again or see again the great fire.’”

“So YHVH said to me : ‘They have spoken well. I shall raise up a prophet from their midst, one of their brothers, who will be like you. I will put My words into his mouth and he will tell them all that I command. If someone does not listen to My words when the prophet speaks on My behalf, I Myself will call him to account for it. But any prophet who says in My Name anything that I did not command, or speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die.’”

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(Usus Antiquior) Septuagesima Sunday (II Classis) – Sunday, 28 January 2024 : Offertory, Secret Prayer of the Priest, Communion and Post-Communion Prayer

Liturgical Colour : Violet

Offertory

Psalm 91 : 2

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

English translation

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

Secret Prayer of the Priest

Muneribus nostris, quaesumus, Domine, precibusque susceptis : et caelestibus nos munda mysteriis, et clementer exaudi. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

With our gifts and prayers accepted, we beseech You, o Lord, both cleanse us by these heavenly mysteries and graciously hear us. 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 30 : 17-18

Illumina faciem Tuam super servum Tuum, et salvum me fac in Tua misericordia : Domine, non confundar, quoniam invocavi Te.

English translation

Make Your face to shine upon Your servant, and save me in Your mercy. Let me not be confounded, o Lord, for I have called upon You.

Post-Communion Prayer

Fideles Tui, Deus, per Tua dona firmentur : ut eadem et percipiendo requirant, et quaerendo sine fine percipiant. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

May Your faithful, o God, be strengthened by Your gifts, that receiving them they may still desire them and desiring them may constantly receive them. 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) Septuagesima Sunday (II Classis) – Sunday, 28 January 2024 : Holy Gospel

Liturgical Colour : Violet

Sequentia Sancti Evangelii secundum Matthaeum – Continuation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew

Matthew 20 : 1-16

In illo tempore : Dixit Jesus discipulis Suis parabolam hanc : Simile est regnum caelorum homini patrifamilias, qui exiit primo mane conducere operarios in vineam suam. Conventione autem facta cum operariis ex denario diurno, misit eos in vineam suam.

Et egressus circa horam tertiam, vidit alios stantes in foro otiosos, et dixit illis : Ite et vos in vineam meam, et quod justum fuerit, dabo vobis. Illi autem abierunt. Iterum autem exiit circa sextam et nonam horam : et fecit similiter. Circa undecimam vero exiit, et invenit alios stantes, et dicit illis : Quid hic statis tota die otiosi?

Dicunt ei : Quia nemo nos conduxit. Dicit illis : Ite et vos in vineam meam. Cum sero autem factum esset, dicit dominus vineae procuratori suo : Voca operarios, et redde illis mercedem, incipiens a novissimis usque ad primos. Cum venissent ergo qui circa undecimam horam venerant, acceperunt singulos denarios.

Venientes autem et primi, arbitrati sunt, quod plus essent accepturi : acceperunt autem et ipsi singulos denarios. Et accipientes murmurabant adversus patremfamilias, dicentes : Hi novissimi una hora fecerunt et pares illos nobis fecisti, qui portavimus pondus diei et aestus.

At ille respondens uni eorum, dixit : Amice, non facio tibi injuriam : nonne ex denario convenisti mecum? Tolle quod tuum est, et vade : volo autem et huic novissimo dare sicut et tibi. Aut non licet mihi, quod volo, facere? an oculus tuus nequam est, quia ego bonus sum? Sic erunt novissimi primi, et primi novissimi. Multi enim sunt vocati, pauci vero electi.

English translation

At that time, Jesus spoke to His disciples this parable, “The kingdom of heaven is likened to a householder, who went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. And having agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.

And going out at about the third hour, he saw others standing in the marketplace idle, and he said to them, “You also go into my vineyard, and I will give you what shall be just,” and they went their way. And again he went out at about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did so in the similar manner. But at about the eleventh hour, he went out, and found others standing, and he said to them, “Why did you stand here all the day idle?”

They said to him, “Because no man had hired us.” He said to them, “You also go into my vineyard.” And when evening came, the lord of the vineyard said to his steward, “Call the labourers, and pay them their hire, beginning from the last even to the first.” When therefore those who came at about the eleventh hour, they received a penny for every man.

But when the first also came, they thought that they should receive more, and they also received a penny for every man. And receiving it, they murmured against the master of the house, saying, “These last have barely worked but one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the heat.”

But he answering, said to one of them, “Friend, I did you no wrong, did you not agree with me for a penny? Take what is yours, and go your way. I will also give to the last even as to you. Or, is it not lawful for me to do what I will? Is your eye evil, because I am good? So shall the last be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few are chosen.”