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Tuesday, 21 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that each and every one of us as Christians as people of Hope and people of the Resurrection, reminding all of us of the ultimate victory and sacrifice which our Lord had paid and offered on our behalf as He took up His Cross and suffered the worst of injustices, rejections, humiliations and sufferings for the sake of us all, and for the great and ever-wonderful love which He has always had for us. Through what He has done for us all, He has opened for us the sure path to eternal life and true happiness with Him, and He has redeemed us from the domination of sin and evil, and release us all from the tyranny of the evil one, the great enemy of all the living.

In our first reading today, we heard from the continuation of the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful in Rome in which we are reminded of everything that Christ our Lord and Saviour Himself had done for our sake, all the love which He has shown us so patiently all these while, all the things He had done for us, by His most selfless sacrifice on the Cross, as He accepted humbly everything that His Heavenly Father has planned for all of us mankind. And this is what we should be ever thankful and appreciative for, because without the ever great and wonderful love that God has always shown us then there would have been no hope for any one of us, and we would have been condemned to an eternity of suffering without any hope or recourse of our situation.

We are reminded that through sin we have fallen from grace and been separated from God and His most wonderful love. But through the perfect obedience of Christ our Lord and Saviour, we have been shown the path to eternity of true joy and wonders, because through His perfect obedience and most selfless love, Christ has undone the damage which had been caused to us by our own disobedience and weakness, our succumbing to the temptations of Satan, the temptations for worldly glory and ambition, as what he had successfully done against Adam and Eve, and our ancestors, and to all of us as well. But the Lord showed us all that Satan and sin do not have the final say and power over us, as through Him and what He had done, He has freed us all from this domination and fate of damnation.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the Lord telling His disciples and everyone of those who listened to Him to be prepared and ready for the Lord’s coming, at the time most unexpected, comparing it to the preparedness of the servants of a master who was returning all of a sudden from a wedding event. That comparison showed the nature of the moment when the Lord would come again at His Second Coming, which the Lord Jesus Himself had foreshadowed and predicted on several occasions, that it will indeed happen at the time when everyone will least expect it to happen. That is why it is important for all of us as Christians to be ever vigilant in our lives and works, so that we will continue to live our lives worthily in God’s Presence.

We are reminded that we should always be active in the living of our faith as Christians, so that in each and every things that we do, in our every words, actions and deeds, we will always be exemplary and be good role models and inspirations for everyone around us, to all those whom we encounter in life. That is why we are reminded this day that we should continue to practice and implement what we have believed in our very own lives, in each and every moments. That is how we truly show our Christian faith and carry out our mission in obeying God’s will and in doing what He has sent us into this world for, to be the living examples of what we believe in, that everyone who witness our actions and works, will believe that we truly belong to God, and hopefully will come to believe in Him as well, through us.

All of us have been blessed and given with various talents, opportunities and means for us to reach out to others around us, showing God’s love and care, His compassion and kindness to everyone through our own actions, works and deeds. In every words we said and in all of our interactions with each other, we should always show our genuine faith in God, and what a true Christian should behave like, in a manner that is truly upright, virtuous and full of love for those whom the Lord had entrusted to us. We should not behave in ways that lead to scandal against our faith, because we cause harm and hurt to others, or by manipulating or exploiting others around us, or by behaving in ways that are selfish and wicked, all of which are unbecoming of us as Christians.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore continue to encourage one another to live our lives to the fullest, doing our part in each day and in each opportunities that God has given to us, so that we may always be the bearers of the truth and Good News of God, in each and every moments of our lives, even in the smallest things that we do. We should always be the inspiration for everyone because of that light of faith and the hope that is always found in us. We should be the ones that people turn to because they know that we are indeed blessed by the light and love of God, through everything that we sincerely do and carry out daily in our respective lives. We should always be active in proclaiming the Lord not only through words but also through genuine and sincere actions grounded in our faith, in even the smallest and least significant things.

May the Lord continue to empower and encourage each one of us so that by our continued dedication and commitment to God, in each and every one of our works, being the bearers of God’s light and hope to our darkened world, being the ones to show the hope in God to everyone around us, especially those who are downtrodden and facing hardships in their lives. May God bless us all and strengthen us in all things, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Tuesday, 21 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 12 : 35-38

At that time, Jesus said to the people, “Be ready, dressed for service, and keep your lamps lit, like people waiting for their master to return from the wedding. As soon as he comes and knocks, they will open the door to him. Happy are those servants whom the master finds wide-awake when he comes.”

“Truly, I tell you, he will put an apron, and have them sit at table, and he will wait on them. Happy are those servants, if he finds them awake when he comes at midnight or daybreak!”

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Tuesday, 21 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 39 : 7-8a, 8b-9, 10, 17

Sacrifice and oblation You did not desire; this, You had me understand. Burnt offering and sin offering You do not require. Then I said, “Here I come!”

As the scroll says of me. To do Your will is my delight, o God, for Your law is within my heart.

In the great assembly I have proclaimed Your saving help. My lips, o YHVH, I did not seal – You know that very well.

But may all those who seek You, rejoice, and be glad in You; and may all who love Your saving grace continually say, “YHVH is great.”

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Tuesday, 21 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Romans 5 : 12, 15b, 17-19, 20b-21

Therefore, sin entered the world through one man; and through sin, death; and later on, death spread to all humankind, because all sinned. All died, because of the fault of one man, but how much more does the grace of God spread, when the gift He granted, reaches all, from this unique Man, Jesus Christ.

If death reigned through the disobedience of one and only one person, how much more, will there be a reign of life, for those who receive the grace, and the gift of true righteousness, through the one Person, Jesus Christ. Just as one transgression brought sentence of death to all, so, too, one Man’s good act has brought justification and light to all; and, as the disobedience of only one, made all sinners, so the obedience of one Person, allowed all to be made just and holy.

But where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, and, as sin caused death to reign, so grace will reign, in its own time, and, after making us just, and friends of God, will bring us to eternal life, through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

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Monday, 20 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that as Christians, that is as those who have believed in the Lord Himself, Our Saviour, Jesus Christ, to be our Saviour, Master and King, all of us truly have to put our trust and faith in Him at all times and in all circumstances. We should not lose our hope and faith in Him even when we may not be able to see immediately what God has promised to us. We have to continue to endure and persevere in life, knowing that despite all the challenges and trials that we have to encounter in our path, God is never far from us and that He will never leave us alone and unsupported. He is always there with us, guiding and strengthening us through various means, and even through ways that we may not be aware of.

In our first reading today, we heard from the continuation of the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful in Rome, the Apostle encouraged all the faithful and people of God there of God’s Providence and faithfulness to the Covenant that He has made with all of them, much as how Abraham once believed wholeheartedly in God and trusted in everything which he had been told and promised by God. Abraham followed wherever the Lord had led him to and he did whatever the Lord had asked and told him to do, because he truly had great and deep faith in God, knowing that God is ever loving and ever faithful, and He would always fulfil everything that He had said. Therefore we too should continue to have faith in God and trust in Him as well.

That was why Abraham was blessed and made to be the father of so many nations, because he believed wholeheartedly even when he could not yet see what the Lord had promised him and whether everything would indeed come true. Abraham trusted in God and he was blessed with the promised son, when he and his wife had been barren for so many years and waited so long. And through that son, Isaac, many nations came to be descended from Abraham, and today we know how God fulfilled everything that He had promised to His servants including that of Abraham himself. How about us then? Are we willing to have the same faith and trust in the Lord as well, even when we have not seen what He has promised to us?

Then, from the Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist in which the Lord Jesus told a man who asked Him to adjudicate between him and his brother for his material possessions, that he and all of us should be wary and careful that we should not give in to those worldly temptations and pressures, all the things that can easily lead to our downfall and destruction if we are not careful, and that is why we must be vigilant so that we do not end up being controlled by the many temptations and pressures of worldly desires, ambitions and all the forces often arrayed against us, which may lead us astray away from God and His path. We are reminded that all of our desires and ambitions can make us overlook the fact that all of them are ultimately fleeting and insignificant compared to what God can provide us.

In that passage, the Lord then went on to share the parable of a rich man who was worrying about how he would store all the excess wealth and possessions that he had obtained from his works and earnings, and he was making many plans and arrangements that he would be able to retain even more of what he already had. He was hoping that he would be able to enjoy all the riches and the fruits of his labour for many years afterwards in comfort and satisfaction, and yet, the Lord rebuked the rich man saying that for all of his worries, plans and machinations, everything in the end would come to waste because he would lose his very own life that very night, and the reality was indeed such that, no matter whatever plans he had put into place, none of those things would matter in the end.

Why is that so, brothers and sisters in Christ? That is because no matter how much we can accumulate in this world, all the wealth, glory and power we can attain, gather and assemble, none of these can be brought by us to the world that is to come, that is beyond death and beyond this current physical existence that we have now in this world. That is why through this Gospel passage today, the Lord wants to remind each and every one of us to work and seek not for the impermanent things of this world, but to do our best in each and every circumstances, to live our lives to the best of our abilities in the manner that God Himself has shown and taught us. And this means that each one of us should focus on Him and not on the many tempting things all around us.

Each and every one of us should realise that we are all truly beloved by God, and God Who has always considered us all His dearly beloved children will not abandon us in our hour and time of need. We should continue to live our lives worthily as good and faithful Christians, in loving God first and foremost, and then to show the same love to all those around us, particularly to all those whom we love and are dear to us, and also of course for all those whom we have encountered in life, all those whom the Lord had placed in our lives to show His love and compassion, mercy and kindness through our own examples, actions and works. Each and every one of us are reminded of this calling which we all have as the disciples and servants of the Lord, to be the shining beacons of His light, hope and truth, that by our own faith in Him, our complete and enduring trust in Him, many more will come to trust in the Lord as well.

May the Lord continue to bless us all and our every good endeavours, and may He continue to empower and strengthen each one of us in our every good efforts and works, all for His greater glory. May He continue to encourage us to have faith in Him and trust in Him always, despite all the challenges and trials present all around us. Let us all not be discouraged but continue to inspire everyone around us with the same faith and hope that we have always had in God, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 20 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 12 : 13-21

At that time, someone in the crowd spoke to Jesus, “Master, tell my brother to share with me the family inheritance.” He replied, “My friend, who has appointed Me as your Judge or your Attorney?” Then Jesus said to the people, “Be on your guard and avoid every kind of greed, for even though you have many possessions, it is not that which gives you life.”

And Jesus continued, “There was a rich man, and his land had produced a good harvest. He thought, ‘What shall I do, for I am short of room to store my harvest? Alright, I know what I shall do : I will pull down my barns and I will build bigger ones, to store all this grain, which is my wealth. Then I will say to myself : My friend, you have a lot of good things put by for many years. Rest, eat, drink and enjoy yourself.'”

“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be taken from you. Tell Me, who shall get all you have put aside?’ This is the lot of the one who stores up riches for himself and is not wealthy in the eyes of God.”

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Monday, 20 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 1 : 69-70, 71-72, 73-75

In the house of David His servant, He has raised up for us a victorious Saviour; as He promised through His prophets of old.

Salvation from our enemies and from the hand of our foes. He has shown mercy to our fathers; and remembered His holy Covenant.

The oath He swore to Abraham, our father, to deliver us from the enemy, that we might serve Him fearlessly, as a holy and righteous people, all the days of our lives.

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Monday, 20 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Romans 4 : 20-25

Abraham did not doubt, nor did he distrust the promise of God, and, by being strong in faith, he gave glory to God : He was convinced, that, He Who had given the promise, had power to fulfil it.

This was taken into account, for him to attain righteousness. This was taken into account : these words of Scripture are not only for him, but for us, too, because we believe in Him, Who raised Jesus, our Lord, from among the dead, He, Who was delivered for our sins, and raised to life, for us to receive true righteousness.

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Sunday, 19 October 2025 : Twenty-Ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday we are all presented with the important reminder that God is always ever present in our midst and He has always cared about us, never abandoning us in our time and hour of need. And even when we may be encountering challenges, trials and difficulties in life, we are never alone because God Himself is always by our side, supporting and strengthening us even through those most difficult obstacles and struggles. That is why today we are all reminded that we should not easily give up and continue to have firm, enduring and genuine faith in the Lord, even through the most difficult moments in our lives. We should remember that no matter how dark the situation and outlook may be for us now, but nothing can overcome the light and hope we have in the Lord.

In our first reading this Sunday, taken from the Book of Exodus, we heard of the account of the moment when a great battle broke out between the people of God, the Israelites and their bitter enemy, the Amalekites. The Amalekites were a race of migratory tribespeople who wandered around the region, and they likely viewed the Israelites as both lucrative targets for raids and also rivals for resources in the region. According to historical evidence and practices, it was likely that the Amalekites attempted to raid the Israelites as they did to the other people of the region to get captives that they could sell as slaves to the slave traders, and slavery was rampant at that time. Thus, the Israelites went to battle against those Amalekites, and God was with them.

We heard how God instructed Moses to go up a high place from where those who were involved in the battle could see him, and he was to raise his hands bearing his staff, and as we heard, as long as Moses raised his hands, the Israelites were winning against the Amalekites while the moment he lowered them, the Amalekites gained the upper hand against the Israelites. We heard then how both Aaron, Moses’ brother and Hur supported Moses’ hands until the Israelites completely defeated the Amalekites. And as we heard these things, we are in fact reminded of how God was always with His people, and when those who were fighting against the Amalekites saw Moses and his raised hands, they certainly have in them the hope that the Lord was with them and fighting their battles with them.

Then, from our second reading this Sunday, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to his protege, St. Timothy, we heard of the words of the Apostle encouraging his protege to continue the good works which he had been doing in being ministers and servants of the Lord in proclaiming the Good News of the Lord to everyone whom they have encountered. St. Paul reassured St. Timothy that they all should continue to proclaim the Gospels joyfully and courageously, following the guidance which God Himself would provide them through His Holy Spirit, because every steps and journey they take, all of those shall be provided for by the Lord, and they would bring great benefits for the salvation of many souls, the souls of those whom they have encountered and touched by their good works.

Lastly, from our Gospel passage this Sunday, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the Lord Jesus speaking and teaching using a parable to teach all the people assembled to listen to Him, with regards of the matter of putting our faith and trust in God, and the value of asking God constantly and persistently of what we seek for. The Lord used the parable of the evil judge and the persistent old woman in order to illustrate and highlight His points, which is indeed very obvious and easily understandable by the people including all of us who have listened to it as well. It is a kind reminder for all of us that persistent effort made with genuine desire and concern, with just reason and  purpose will eventually bear fruits in the end.

Not only that, but by comparing the attitude of the evil judge who feared no one and was the least likely person to listen to the pleas of the old widow to that of the Lord Himself, our most loving God and Father, we can see how if the evil judge eventually chose to listen to the old widow out of his own selfish desire not to be disturbed any further by the widow’s incessant cries and demands for help, then all the more that God, our most loving and compassionate Father will provide for us what we need, when we continue to patiently ask for Him with sincere hearts and minds. This is also in tandem with what the Lord Jesus Himself said in another occasion, when He told His disciples that ‘ask and it shall be given to you, seek, and you shall find, and knock, and the door will be opened for you’, all of which highlighting the ever generous nature of God’s love.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, that is why this Sunday we are being reminded by these Scripture readings of the need for each and every one of us to trust in the Lord and to continue to do our best to live our lives in the manner that the Lord has shown us, and to continue to hope in Him particularly as this year we also continue to celebrate this Holy Year, this Ordinary Jubilee Year of Hope. Throughout this Holy Year we have been constantly reminded of the Lord’s Presence in our lives, in how He has ceaselessly shown us this enduring and patient love, and that we can always hope in Him even through the most difficult and challenging moments of our lives. If we trust in God and put our faith in Him, we will surely never regret having done so, for it is in Him alone we can never be disappointed.

May the Lord continue to strengthen us all with the light of His hope, a Hope that never fades, a Hope that never disappoints, remembering how He has always been there for us throughout our journeys in life, throughout all the darkest and the most difficult moments when we may feel so lonely amidst all the struggles that we have to face and endure. God is always with us through it all, much as He has been with His people Israel against their enemy, the Amalekites and against all the other forces arrayed against them. Let us all therefore put our faith and trust always in the Lord, and in our every words, actions and deeds may all of us continue to inspire everyone around us, so that many more people may come to be stronger in their own faith and hope in God’s Providence and love, now and always. Amen.

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Sunday, 19 October 2025 : Twenty-Ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 18 : 1-8

At that time, Jesus told His disciples a parable, to show them that they should pray continually, and not lose heart. He said, “In a certain town there was a judge, who neither feared God nor people. In the same town there was a widow, who kept coming to him, saying, ‘Defend my rights against my opponent!'”

“For a time he refused, but finally he thought, ‘Even though I neither fear God nor care about people, this widow bothers me so much, I will see that she gets justice; then she will stop coming and wearing me out.'”

And Jesus said, “Listen to what the evil judge says. Will God not do justice for His chosen ones, who cry to Him day and night, even if He delays in answering them? I tell you, He will speedily do them justice. But, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?”