Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that God had never intended for us all to be facing and enduring these sufferings that we have in this world as He has always meant for us to enjoy the good fruits of His blessings and graces from the very beginning, but sin came in the way and hence caused us to fall into this great predicament. At the same time, since we are also God’s creatures, we are also His servants and people, and this comes with expectations and responsibilities that are demanded and required for us to follow. Each and every one of us should always do our part in living our lives so that we will always do God’s will and serve Him faithfully at all times as we should.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Wisdom, we heard of how each and every one of us created in God’s own image and likeness have been meant to exist in perfect bliss and harmony with God, and not to suffer from the many trials that we are currently facing in this world. Yet, because of our disobedience against Him, we have become separated from God and the fullness of His love, as sin corrupted us and our souls, our whole beings, and prevented us from truly being together with God. And yet, even though we mankind have fallen into such a state, God did not neglect or abandon us, or seek for us to be destroyed and annihilated for our mistakes and faults.

On the contrary, God continues to love each one of us nonetheless, opening wide the doors of His mercy, compassion and love, providing help and assistance at each and every moments so that we may be able to return to Him and be fully reconciled with Him. He has done this through the giving of His own Beloved Son to us, our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. He has also provided and sent us His Holy Spirit to nurture and guide us in our paths so that we may continue to journey towards Him, with the Wisdom and gentle guidance that He has provided to each one of us. God calls us all to follow Him and gave us that desire to seek Him and to be fully reunited with Him in the end.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples telling them that all of them, and also all of us, as the followers of the Lord, are all His servants and we are therefore expected to do what He has told and instructed us to do, and hence, we have to do what we are required and expected. In each and every moments of our lives, we should always do our best such that we are always doing what God, our Lord and Master wants us to do in each opportunities and circumstances. The question is, are we all willing to commit ourselves to do what God has instructed and shown us to do in our lives?

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of a great saint of God, a great and dedicated servant of God whose righteous deeds and works, outstanding and exemplary life can become great examples and inspirations for us all to follow in how we live our own lives with faith in God. St. Martin of Tours was a soldier turned man of God, who was renowned for his commitment and faith in God, his virtuous life and actions, from even before he gave everything to the Lord. St. Martin of Tours was once a soldier in the Roman army during the late period of the Roman Empire, and it was told that he was called by God during his time as soldier, and one of that unique experiences is when he encountered the Lord Himself disguised as an old man in a blizzard.

At that time, according to the story, St. Martin of Tours was travelling on horseback in his centurion’s armour, and he encountered an old man in the midst of a blizzard or cold weather, who was naked and had nothing to protect him against the cold. It was there and then that St. Martin of Tours cut half of his cloak with his own sword, and then used that half of the cloak to cover the old man’s body. Later on, as he was sleeping, St. Martin of Tours encountered a vision of the Lord appearing to him, and revealing to him that the old man was after all, the Lord Himself in disguise. Through this experience and others, St. Martin of Tours eventually left his life as an army centurion behind, and thereafter, he dedicated himself to God, following the teachings and examples of another great saint, St. Hilary of Poitiers.

Eventually, he became a hermit and preacher, committing himself to preach the word of God and to evangelise to the people, in which many people were convinced and became believers in Christ. Later on, he was chosen by acclamation by the people to become the Bishop of Tours, in which capacity, St. Martin continued to do his best in caring for the needs of the flock entrusted to him. He cared for their spiritual needs and served them well, and established good administration and missionary works in his Diocese, while protecting his flock from the effects of various heresies and falsehoods running rampant at that time. Right up to the end of his life, St. Martin of Tours dedicated himself completely to God and to the people whom He had been entrusted with, truly a great example and role model for us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reflect upon the good examples set by St. Martin of Tours and do our part such that we may continue to be faithful in all things and at all circumstances, following the good examples and inspiration from St. Martin of Tours and many other examples from our holy predecessors. Let us all continue to walk faithfully in the Presence of God at all times, allowing Him to gently guide us through this journey of life towards Him. Amen.