23rd Sunday of Ordinary Time

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Saturday, 10 September 2022 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

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

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the communion of the faithful together with the Lord and with one another. The communion of the faithful refers to the union that every Christian believers have through the gift of the Holy Eucharist. Through the Eucharist, the Lord has united us all to Himself, and through that unity, He made us all part of His one Body and one Church. Through this tangible and spiritual union, we are all brought together as one people, sharing in the same gift of the Spirit, and the same assurance of eternal life and salvation.

In our first reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in the city of Corinth, we heard of how St. Paul elaborated to them on the matter of the partaking of the Holy Eucharist, the Holy Communion of the faithful, and how each and every Christians should take it seriously as they should not partake the offerings that had been offered in the pagan ceremonies and worship, as was common at that time in the Greco-Roman state paganism. There were likely moments when Christians still partake in the goods and items that had been offered to the pagan idols and deities.

Not only that, but it was likely that there were also those who actively participated in the pagan ceremonies and other events that might scandalise the faithful and others in the community. Why is that so, brothers and sisters in Christ? That is because while there might be various reasons why the members of the Christian community partook in the pagan offerings and ceremonies, be it on their own volition or due to coercion or force, but if other members of the community were to witness these, that would then jeopardise the Communion within the Church, that visible and tangible unity between the members of the Church with one another, as well as with their Lord and Saviour.

Essentially doing so would also count towards the violation of the First Commandment in the Ten Commandments, namely, ‘You shall not have any other gods before Me, and you shall not have or make any graven images…’ which essentially highlighted that our practices and way of life as members of the Church and as one the Christian faithful cannot be contradictory between our obedience and faith in God, and our apparent obeisance and worship of the pagan and false gods and idols as what the Church members and the faithful in Corinth had done, which led to St. Paul exhorting them not to do so.

Then in our Gospel passage today, we heard of the Lord speaking to His disciples and to the people with a parable, highlighting how no good tree can produce bad fruit and vice versa, and how all of us will be good or bad, righteous or wicked depending on what our hearts, minds and interior disposition are like. And He also then used another parable immediately afterwards, describing those who have truly obeyed the Lord and loved Him, as those who had built their houses upon the firm foundation of stone, while those who have not truly had faith in Him, listened to Him but did not act on what He had taught them to do as those who had built their houses without any foundations, and therefore, they would fall in no time.

What do all these mean for us, brothers and sisters in Christ? The Lord essentially called on all of us to put ourselves in His path, dedicating and committing ourselves to His cause, and remaining steady in our faith in Him, and not merely just paying lip service, professing to believe in Him and yet, we offer ourselves to serve the pagan idols and gods, and the many other idols and other distractions that can be found aplenty all around us. And we also must realise that these idols and distractions are not merely those pagan idols and statues which the faithful in Corinth once dabbled with, and which caused a scandal among the faithful and the Church.

Instead, just as St. Paul mentioned in another occasion in his Epistle to the Colossians, the idols that are present all around us, and even to this day, is the idol of our own human pride and ego, our greed and ambition, our worldly desires and all the many other things that often become serious obstacles and barriers in the path of our journey towards God, His salvation and grace. And if we continue to indulge in these idols and temptations all around us, then we may end up being dragged deeper and deeper into the path towards sin and wickedness, towards our downfall and destruction. We are reminded today that we should not allow those idols from ruining our lives and misleading us down the wrong paths.

Instead, we should endeavour and strive our best to resist the temptations to sin, and to keep ourselves in good faith and in obedience to God, His Law and commandments. As Christians, each and every one of us, while also called to be good and law-abiding citizens of this world, we are expected to put the Lord and our faith in Him first and foremost above all else. It means that we have to be genuine in our faith and dedication to God, and we cannot be lukewarm in our faith, and neither can we be hypocrites who profess to believe in God and yet being two-faced in our way of life and actions, which can bring about scandal to our faith. We have to stand up for our beliefs and remain true to the Lord despite the many trials and challenges present in this world.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore renew our commitment to the Lord, dedicating our time and effort to glorify Him by our lives. Let us all turn towards Him with all of our strength and might, and endeavour to be good role models and examples, through which we can be good inspiration for many others that they too may come to believe in God through us and our many good, righteous and wonderful examples in life. May God bless us all in all our good efforts, our works and efforts, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Saturday, 10 September 2022 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

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

Luke 6 : 43-49

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “No healthy tree bears bad fruit, no poor tree bears good fruit. And each tree is known by the fruit it bears : you do not gather figs from thorns, or grapes from brambles. Similarly, the good person draws good things from the good stored in his heart, and an evil person draws evil things from the evil stored in his heart. For the mouth speaks from the fullness of the heart.”

“Why do you call Me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ and do not do what I say? I will show you what the one is like, who comes to Me, and listens to My words, and acts accordingly. That person is like the builder who dug deep, and laid the foundations of his house on rock. The river overflowed, and the stream dashed against the house, but could not carry it off because the house had been well built.”

“But the one who listens and does not act, is like a man who built his house on the ground without a foundation. The flood burst against it, and the house fell at once : and what a terrible disaster that was!”

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Saturday, 10 September 2022 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

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

Psalm 115 : 12-13, 17-18

How can I repay the Lord for all His goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the Name of the Lord.

I will offer You a thanksgiving sacrifice; I will call on the Name of YHVH. I will carry out my vows to YHVH in the presence of His people.

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Saturday, 10 September 2022 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

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

1 Corinthians 10 : 14-22

Therefore, dear friends, shun the cult of idols. I address you as intelligent persons; judge what I say. The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a communion with the Blood of Christ? And the bread that we break, is it not a communion with the Body of Christ?

The bread is one, and so we, though many, form one body, sharing the one bread. Consider the Israelites. For them, to eat of the victim is to come into communion with its altar. What does all that mean? That the meat is really consecrated to the idol, or that the idol is a being.

However, when the pagans offer a sacrifice, the sacrifice goes to the demons, not to God. I do not want you to come into fellowship with demons. You cannot drink, at the same time, from the cup of the Lord and from the cup of demons. You cannot share in the table of the Lord and in the table of the demons. Do we want, perhaps, to provoke the jealousy of the Lord? Could we be stronger than He?

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Friday, 9 September 2022 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Claver, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures we are presented with the reminder that as Christians we should not live our lives with arrogance, pride and ambition in our minds and hearts, and we should instead constantly place the Lord and His truth as the centre and focus of our lives, our works and our every efforts. We should allow the Lord to guide us in our works and journey, while at the same time we should also be fully attuned with Him and recognising our own frailty and vulnerability, our sinful and wicked state which had separated us from the fullness of God’s love and grace.

In our first reading today, we continue to hear from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in Corinth, in which the Apostle spoke regarding the importance of serving God faithfully and putting Him above all of our own personal agendas and desires, that we may always prioritise Him above all else. All of us should do what we can to make good use of our talents, abilities and gifts in order to glorify God, and we ought to do so because we are inspired to live lives that are worthy of God and are full of commitment and love for Him, so that in everything we say and do, we will always prioritise Him, and be good role models and examples for others to witness so that they may also come to believe in God.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Lord Jesus speaking to the people and to His disciples regarding the faith of those who were hypocrites, using the parable of the splinter and the plank, in which the Lord criticised those hypocrites who liked to condemn others and present themselves as better and more righteous than everyone else. The Lord condemned them for their attitude and haughtiness, their pride and arrogance, all of which had led and contributed to the scandal among the people, as those same people who claimed themselves to be righteous and good, and oppressed others for their beliefs and ways, were themselves flawed and wicked in other ways.

The problem is that those people did not realise that they themselves were flawed or wrong, and they thought that they were better than others, and that others deserved to be corrected and it was rightful for them to correct others for their supposed errors without realising and understanding that they themselves were in need of correction as well. They prided themselves in their ways and their misguided observances of the Law of God, and all these had clouded their judgment and blinded them, preventing them from being able to see the truth. They were misguided by their pride and ego, their ambitions and desires, and by the worldly praise and glory.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all of these serve to remind us that we should not let pride, ambition, worldly glory, fame, our many desires and greed, all these from distracting us off the path towards God and His righteousness. Each one of us should do our best to prioritise God and His ways above all else, and learn to recognise our own shortcomings and what we need in order to come closer to the Lord. All of us are reminded to distance from evil and wicked ways, and to turn away from those things that can mislead us down the wrong path towards disobedience against God, the wrong path of selfishness and manipulation of others for our own self-benefits and more. Instead, we should do our best to follow the Lord by looking upon the examples of those who have lived their lives worthily before us, the saints, the holy men and women of God.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Peter Claver, a holy and faithful servant of God whose examples hopefully can serve as a good inspiration for us to follow in how we ought to be good and faithful servants of God in our lives from now on. He was renowned for his extensive works among the poor and the slaves, in the areas where he ministered in the then what was known as the New World, in the Americas. He was a Spanish Jesuit priest and missionary who dedicated himself to a life of service to God and His people, spending his whole life in particular for the care of the African slaves, when slavery was truly rampant back then.

He cared for the needs of the African slaves who were mistreated and mismanaged back then, treated horribly and unfairly by their masters and employers throughout the areas of his ministry, and despite the many challenges and trials he had to face, St. Peter Claver never let all those to discourage or prevent him from continuing to struggle for the sake of those slaves. He showed them the love of God and the path towards His salvation, and was credited for the baptism of over three hundred thousand people throughout his lifetime of service, and he heard numerous confessions while also helping to lead many of them to the path of Christ.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all that St. Peter Claver had done for the sake of these marginalised and least in the society, all that he had shown for the love of God and His people alike, all these should inspire all of us to live our lives in a similar manner, that we may dedicate ourselves to love the Lord and to reach out to our brethren in need in the same way. St. Peter Claver has shown us that as Christians we have to be caring and loving towards one another and be filled with concern not for ourselves and our selfish desires, but rather to reach out to others who are in need all around us, recognising that there are many of those who need our care and love.

Let us all hence do whatever we can to follow the Lord ever more wholeheartedly from now on, and committing ourselves to love one another more than we love ourselves. May God continue to strengthen us in faith and may He continue to bless us in all of our good efforts and endeavours, and empower us all to walk ever faithfully in His presence. May God bless us in all things, and may the intercession of St. Peter Claver be with us always. Amen.

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Friday, 9 September 2022 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Claver, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Luke 6 : 39-42

At that time, Jesus offered this example, “Can a blind person lead another blind person? Surely both will fall into a ditch. A disciple is not above the master; but when fully trained, he will be like the master. So why do you pay attention to the speck in your brother’s eye, while you have a log in your eye, and are not conscious of it?”

“How can you say to your neighbour, ‘Friend, let me take this speck out of your eye,’ when you cannot remove the log in your own? You hypocrite! First remove the log from your own eye, and then you will see clearly enough to remove the speck from your neighbour’s eye.”

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Friday, 9 September 2022 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Claver, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Psalm 83 : 3, 4, 5-6, 12

My soul yearns; pines, for the courts of YHVH. My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest where she may lay her young, at Your altars, o YHVH of hosts, my King and my God!

Happy are those who live in Your house, continually singing Your praise! Happy, the pilgrims whom You strengthen, to make the ascent to You.

For YHVH God is a sun and a shield; He bestows favour and glory. YHVH withholds no good thing from those who walk in uprightness.

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Friday, 9 September 2022 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Claver, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

1 Corinthians 9 : 16-19, 22b-27

Because I cannot boast of announcing the Gospel : I am bound to do it. Woe to me, if I do not preach the Gospel! If I preached voluntarily, I could expect my reward, but I have been trusted with this office, against my will. How can I, then, deserve my reward? In announcing the Gospel, I will do it freely, without making use of the rights given to me by the Gospel.

So, feeling free with everybody, I have become everybody’s slave, in order to gain a greater number. So, I made myself all things to all people, in order to save, by all possible means, some of them. This, I do, for the Gospel, so that I, too, have a share of it.

Have you not learnt anything from the stadium? Many run, but only one gets the prize. Run, therefore, intending to win it, as athletes, who impose upon themselves a rigorous discipline. Yet, for them the wreath is of laurels which wither, while for us, it does not wither.

So, then, I run, knowing where I go. I box, but not aimlessly in the air. I punish my body and control it, lest, after preaching to others, I myself should be rejected.

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Thursday, 8 September 2022 : Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates together the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which marks the birthday of Mary, the Mother of God, the moment when she came into this world, as the future Mother of the Saviour of the world. Today the whole Church rejoices in this anniversary of the birthday of this most blessed Woman through whom the salvation of this world has come from. The Lord has fulfilled His long-awaited promise to His people through Mary, the simple young woman living in the unassuming small town of Nazareth in Galilee, and who would become the great Mother of our Saviour and also the greatest among all the saints. That is what we are celebrating today, the memorial of our blessed Mother Mary on her birthday.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Micah, we heard the Lord’s reassurance for His people that His salvation would come to them just as He has promised previously through the other prophets. We heard how the Lord proclaimed that Bethlehem, the city of David, would be the place where His Saviour and Deliverance came from, and although that city might have been a small and insignificant one among the other cities of Israel and Judah, but it was through this place that the Lord’s great plan of salvation would be accomplished, through the Woman whom the Lord Himself proclaimed to be the bearer of the Messiah or Saviour.

That was how the Lord brought His salvation into this world, through a humble woman from a small little town at the periphery of the Jewish community at that time, someone utterly unremarkable in the eyes of the world. And yet, it was through Mary that God willed to bring His salvation into this world, Christ, His own Begotten and Beloved Son, the Divine Word Incarnate, born of the House of David through Mary’s marriage to St. Joseph, the one who was descended and also the rightful heir of David. According to Scriptural evidence and Apostolic traditions, Mary herself also belonged to the House of David as well.

Through Mary and her motherhood, the Lord made manifest His love for each and every one of us mankind in the flesh, as He embraced us all through Jesus Christ His Son, the Divine Word of God Incarnate. Mary has been prepared by God’s will and grace, made Immaculate and conceived without the taint of sin, and throughout her life, she has always been full of grace, free from the taint of sin because she has been full of love for her Son, and for the Lord, obeying Him and following Him in whatever He has told her to do, and she followed her Son throughout His later ministry and even to the foot of His Cross and beyond.

It was through Mary and her full and active participation in the Lord’s work of salvation which allowed us to see the light of God’s hope as revealed to us through His Son, Jesus Christ, born into this world through Mary’s womb. Thus, today as we celebrate the birthday of Mary, the Mother of God, it is also a celebration of the hope of our Light and Salvation in Christ. And today all of us are also reminded that Mary is truly the surest path for us towards God and His salvation, as she is the one closest to her Son, and she is also truly close to us, as she has never forgotten to think about us all daily, all the time.

Why is that so, brothers and sisters in Christ? That is because the Lord Himself has entrusted Mary, His mother to us, from His Cross just as He has also entrusted us all to her, that we may be her children just as He is her Son, and that she may also be our mother just as she is His Mother. And that is why we celebrate all the more joyfully because we remember our own beloved mother’s birthday today, as we remember the love she has for us, all the intercessions she had made on our behalf, whether we realise it or not. Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, as our mother, Mary has always gazed upon us and wanted us all to be saved through her Son, and she certainly never ceased reaching out to us with love.

She has appeared to many throughout the past centuries, most famously at Guadalupe, Lourdes and Fatima, and there were many more approved apparitions of Mary throughout history, highlighting just how much beloved we are to her, and how concerned she has been regarding us. Mary our mother often made her appearances especially after a period and time of strife and chaos, during a time of crisis and spiritual troubles in our human history, and she wanted to help us all find our way to return back to her Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour. That is why today, just as we commemorate and celebrate her birthday or Nativity, we ought to remind ourselves to follow her examples in faith.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, each one of us should remember to dedicate ourselves to the Lord through following His mother’s examples, her dedication and faith, the great obedience and love she has shown throughout her love for the Lord and His precepts, her humble nature and submission to God’s will and willingness to allow herself be led to the path that God wants her to go through, showed us that Mary is truly a prime role model and example for all of us in how each one of us should live our own lives with faith and dedication, with humility and the desire to serve the Lord and to glorify Him by our every actions, words and deeds throughout our lives.

May the Lord continue to guide us and strengthen us in our journey, and may He empower each one of us that we may continue to walk ever more faithfully in His path, guided through the patient love of His mother Mary, who is our loving mother too, and may her constant intercession and care for us continue to inspire us to persevere in faith in each and every moments of our lives. May God bless us all in our every good efforts and endeavours. Amen.

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Thursday, 8 September 2022 : Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 1 : 1-16, 18-23

This is the account of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, Son of David, Son of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah (their mother was Tamar), Perez was the father of Hezron, and Hezron of Aram. Aram was the father of Aminadab, Aminadab of Nahshon, Nahshon of Salmon.

Salmon was the father of Boaz. His mother was Rahab. Boaz was the father of Obed. His mother was Ruth. Obed was the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of David, the king. David was the father of Solomon. His mother had been Uriah’s wife. Solomon was the father of Rehoboam. Then came the kings : Abijah, Asaph, Jehoshaphat, Joram, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon, Josiah.

Josiah was the father of Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the deportation to Babylon. After the deportation to Babylon, Jechoniah was the father of Salathiel and Salathiel of Zerubbabel. Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud, Abiud of Eliakim, and Eliakim of Azor. Azor was the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Akim, and Akim the father of Eliud. Eliud was the father of Eleazar, Eleazar of Matthan, and Matthan of Jacob.

Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and from her came Jesus Who is called the Christ – the Messiah. This is how Jesus Christ was born : Mary His mother had been given to Joseph in marriage, but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph, her husband, made plans to divorce her in all secrecy. He was an upright man, and in no way did he want to discredit her.

While he was pondering over this, an Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. She has conceived by the Holy Spirit, and now she will bear a Son. You shall call Him ‘Jesus’ for He will save His people from their sins.”

All this happened in order to fulfil what the Lord had said through the prophet : The Virgin will conceive and bear a Son, and He will be called Emmanuel, which means God-with-us.

Alternative reading (shorter version)

Matthew 1 : 18-23

This is how Jesus Christ was born : Mary His mother had been given to Joseph in marriage, but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph, her husband, made plans to divorce her in all secrecy. He was an upright man, and in no way did he want to discredit her.

While he was pondering over this, an Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. She has conceived by the Holy Spirit, and now she will bear a Son. You shall call Him ‘Jesus’ for He will save His people from their sins.”

All this happened in order to fulfil what the Lord had said through the prophet : The Virgin will conceive and bear a Son, and He will be called Emmanuel, which means God-with-us.