27th Week of Ordinary Time

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Saturday, 14 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Callistus I, Pope and Martyr (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (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, 14 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Callistus I, Pope and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (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, 13 October 2023 : 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 Lord in the Scriptures, all of us are reminded that we are all truly blessed that we have the Lord our God, Who has always cared for us and never ceased to send us help whenever we need that help. He has always ever been generous with His grace and love, and He wants each and every one of His beloved and faithful ones to be reunited with Him, that we may find our way back once again towards Him. We have once been lost to God because of our disobedience and rebellion against Him, which brought about sin and our downfall. But God has never given up on us, and He has always patiently cared for us and looked out for us despite our frequent and constant rebelliousness and disobedience against Him.

In our first reading today, from the Book of the prophet Joel we heard of the Lord calling on all of His people through Joel to be repentant and to regret their sins and wickedness, remembering how the Lord has been kind and merciful towards them and their ancestors. The prophet Joel was sent to the people of Israel at the time of their sufferings and hardships because they had disobeyed and abandoned the Law and the commandments of God as passed down to them through their ancestors. It was not conclusive according to historical and Scriptural evidence available, whether Joel ministered to the people of God before or after the destruction of Israel and Judah, as the words and the events depicted in the Book of Joel could refer to both before and after the periods when the people of God were exiled from their lands.

Regardless of the fact and the timeline of his work and ministry, the prophet Joel brought about the much needed reminders for the people of God that they should not take God’s love for granted, because the day of God’s reckoning will come for each one of them, and if they are to be caught unprepared and unaware of, steeped in their sins and wickedness, in their evil and vile ways, then unfortunately what remains in store for them will be an eternity of regret and despair. This is because God has always been kind, patient and merciful in all of His actions and outreach towards us, but there is also a limit to how much we can be part of that love and grace, as if we constantly and repeatedly refused and rejected that mercy and love, then it is by our own conscious choice that we have landed ourselves a place in hell and eternal damnation.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the confrontation between the Lord Jesus and some of those who have accused Him of colluding with the demonic forces, that of the prince of demons, Beelzebul, in performing His miracles and works, particularly in the casting out of evil spirits and demons. The Lord immediately rebuked all those who accused Him of such falsehoods, and pointed out the utter folly of such an idea and suggestion, that the forces of evil were divided amongst themselves. As we heard, the Lord used the comparison and analogy with that of a worldly realm and kingdom that would not have been able to stand together and remain strong if its members and parts are locked in disagreements, rebellions and civil wars against each other. Hence, in the same manner, it was a folly and indeed blasphemy for those people to accuse the Lord Jesus of colluding with Beelzebul.

The fact is that, the forces of evil, of Satan, Beelzebul, of all the princes and lords of demons and other evil spirits, all of them may indeed have their own agenda and aims, and they may differ in the methods of their actions and works against us, but they are all no less united in their constant and works in striking out against us, in their campaign and efforts to lead us away from God and His salvation. It is therefore nonsense to say that the devil and his associates are conflicting and being divided against each other, as they were quite united in their hatred and efforts against us, in tearing us away from the path that God has shown us and prepared for us. They repeated and constantly tempted all of us to walk away from the Lord.

In truth, the attitudes of all those who have accused the Lord wrongly of collusion with Beelzebul was yet another effort by the evil ones in trying to divide us all and to turn us away from the path towards God. By attempting to discredit the Lord and His works, His miracles and power, the devil and all of his allies, all the forces of evil were trying and working hard to snatch us away from God and His salvation. They sowed those doubts, mistrusts, lies and all the misinformations in order to confuse us, keeping us away from the ability to fully trust in the Lord, and to hold onto faith in Him. And that is exactly where those wicked forces will come and swoop in, tempting and misleading us down the wrong paths in life.

This is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, just as we remember and reflect upon these readings from the Scriptures today, let us all do whatever we can so that we may rid ourselves of all these corruptions and temptations present all around us. Let us all strive to do our best in living our lives with ever greater zeal and effort, to do what God has taught and shown us to do, which He had done through His own Son, His prophets and servants. We are all reminded that we should always do what is right and just according to the Law of God, and keep ourselves free from the wickedness and sins present all around us, not allowing the wicked and evil spirits to dissuade, mislead and drag us away from the path of God’s salvation and grace. Let us always put our faith and trust in the Lord, now and always.

May the Lord, our most loving God and Father, continue to guide and strengthen us in our journey of faith through our lives, and may He empower each and every one of us with the courage and the willingness to walk in His path, so that in all things we may always ever be faithful and committed to His cause. May all of us dedicate our time and effort, that we may become ever better and ever more faithful role models and inspirations of our Christian faith, in all opportunities and at all times. Can we be the ever more worthy and devoted servants of God, and be His most faithful disciples, now and always, brothers and sisters in Christ? May God bless our every good efforts and endeavours, our works and dedications, at all times. Amen.

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Friday, 13 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 11 : 15-26

At that time, some of the people said, “Jesus drives out demons by the power of Beelzebul, the chief of the demons.” Others wanted to put Him to the test, by asking Him for a heavenly sign.

But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them, “Every nation divided by civil war is on the road to ruin, and will fall. If Satan also is divided, his empire is coming to an end. How can you say that I drive out demons by calling upon Beelzebul? If I drive them out by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons drive out demons? They will be your judges, then.”

“But if I drive out demons by the finger of God; would not this mean that the kingdom of God has come upon you? As long as a man, strong and well armed, guards his house, his goods are safe. But when a stronger man attacks and overcomes him, the challenger takes away all the weapons he relied on, and disposes of his spoils.”

“Whoever is not with Me is against Me, and whoever does not gather with Me, scatters. When the evil spirit goes out of a person, it wanders through dry lands, looking for a resting place; and finding none, it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ When it comes, it finds the house swept and everything in order. Then it goes to fetch seven other spirits, even worse than itself. They move in and settle there, so that the last state of that person is worse than the first.”

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Friday, 13 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 9 : 2-3, 6 and 16, 8-9

The wicked are in power; the weak suffer harassment; the poor become victims of evil schemes. Exploiters boast in their power and greed; the covetous blasphemes and defies God.

All of them saying in their heart, “Nothing will trouble me. I am secure, powerful and happy.” YHVH is King forever and the pagans have vanished from His land.

They lie in ambush near the villages, murdering the innocent and the unfortunate, spying upon their next victim. The evil one lurks in secret, like a lion in its covert, waiting to seize his prey and drag him off in a net.

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Friday, 13 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Joel 1 : 13-15 and Joel 2 : 1-2

Gird yourselves, o priests, and weep; mourn, o ministers of the altar. Come, spend the night in sackcloth, o ministers of my God! For the house of your God is deprived of grain and drink offering.

Proclaim a fast, call an assembly. Summon the elders, and all who live in the land, into the house of your God, and cry out to YHVH, “What a dreadful day – the day of YHVH, that draws near, and comes as ruin, from the Almighty!”

Blow the trumpet in Zion, sound the alarm on My holy mountain! Let all dwellers in the land tremble, for the day of YHVH is coming. Yes, the day is fast approaching – a day of gloom and darkness, a day of clouds and blackness. A vast and mighty army comes, like dawn spreading over the mountain : such as has never occurred before, nor will happen again in the future.

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Thursday, 12 October 2023 : 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 Lord in the Scriptures, we are all reminded that all of us should always listen to the Lord, our loving Father and Creator, and be obedient to His will, His words and commandments. As Christians, each and every one of us have been adopted and made to be God’s own sons and daughters, and therefore, with God as our own Father, we should do what He has taught us to do, and we should not do things which are not in accordance to His will and His ways, or otherwise, we will be held accountable for all of our actions and way of life, and if we have not been doing what we have been asked to do, or if our actions have been wicked and sinful, then we will have to answer and face the consequences of all of those on the Day of Judgment.

In our first reading today, from the Book of the prophet Malachi, we heard of the Lord’s words to His people, reminding all of them how He has always been patient and kind towards them, and how He has always cared for them and loved them despite their many and repeated transgressions. And yet, we also heard how the people were ignorant of their transgressions, wickedness and sins, and hence, they continued to sin against Him. There were of course those who have listened to the Lord and heeded His words, and then returned back to the Lord, being repentant over their sins. The Lord then highlighted to all of the people how the righteous and just would be vindicated, blessed and receive the fullness of God’s grace, inheritance and love, while the wicked would perish by their sins and evils.

This is why all of us are today both reminded of God’s love, mercy and compassion, and at the same time, also His hatred against sin, wickedness and evil, against all sorts of disobedience and vile things of this world, His justice and the punishments that He will mete out against those who have sinned and refused to repent from those sins. God is always full and rich with His mercy, ever generous with His love, compassion and kindness, having always reached out to us, at all times and in all and every opportunities, giving us all many chances, one after another, reminding us and helping us all throughout our way that we may turn away from our wrong, mistaken and evil paths, and embrace once again the path of God’s righteousness and truth, His wisdom and love, and be filled once again with His grace, love and truth. It is our calling as Christians to embrace this path, and to help others all around us to walk down this same path.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Luke, in which the Lord compared the love of God with the love of a most loving father, who has always cared for his beloved children, no matter in what circumstances and what background they have. God had created us all with love, and He has always cared for us, at all opportunities, and hence, He loves us all, cares genuinely for us, and He wants to remind us to always be filled with the same love that He has for us, and to be ever righteous and good to one another all around us. The Lord Jesus mentioned how there is no friend who would not be moved to help should one look for assistance and help, or else, that friend is truly no real friend at all. If a friend can be moved and touched to help and assist us when we are in need, and when we ask them, then all the more that God, our loving Father will help us and assist us, when we are in need and if we ask Him.

However, more often than not, we do not turn to our Lord first, as we often sought for consolation, help and assistance from our worldly means and abilities, our various tools and other worldly methods in order to settle our problems and issues. And that is why we end up getting further and further away from the path that the Lord has set before us, as we ended up following the whim of our own desires, and the many temptations and pressures all around us. Not only that, but we are also often reluctant to ask the Lord for help and assistance, and we keep Him as a distant figure away from us, which we have only remembered whenever we are in desperate need for help, and yet, on other occasions, we tend to forget about Him and ignore Him, His words, His commandments and Law, and choose to live our lives in our own way.

Then, it is also our pride and ego which have often kept us away from the Lord and His path. We are often too proud to admit that we are flawed and imperfect, with inability to do things on our own and without God’s help and assistance. That is why we tend to follow our own path and ways, and do things in our own way, disregarded the Lord’s words and commandments, and ignoring all the advice and help which He has always provided to us all along the way. But, more often than not we ended up doing things even worse, and make things fail even further. For truly without the Lord, our loving God and Father, we cannot truly and fully realise our potential and works in this life. It is only by God’s grace and help, His guidance, wisdom and love, that each and every one can truly walk down the path of true greatness and grace, and be exemplary and great role models of our faith.

That is why all of us must always strive to be humble before the Lord, and to be open-minded and be willing to embrace God and His path, in all of our days, and in all opportunities and moments. We must always be in touch with the Lord’s will, and strive to communicate with Him, and to find out what it is that He has intended for us to do with our respective lives. Otherwise, without that close and vibrant relationship that we ought to have with the Lord, we may end up easily being swayed and tempted by the many currents of worldly temptations and evils, with all the wicked desires and all the things that had kept us away from the Lord. This is why, as Christians, all of us cannot have a shallow faith or faith that is merely superficial in nature. We must have a strong and genuine faith that is rooted in strong love for the Lord, and in the strong desire to commit ourselves to Him, at all times, and we can do that, through our good habits in cultivating a life full of prayer and virtue.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore seek the Lord faithfully from now on, deepening our relationship with Him through prayer and devotion, and by spending more quality time with Him, that we always seek to keep in touch with our loving God and Father in all things. We must not lose focus and attention on the path that God has shown us, and we should always kept Him at the centre and as the focus of our whole lives and existence. May the Lord continue to help and guide us in all of our efforts and journey throughout life. May He empower each and every one of us, and give us the courage and strength to do His will. May God bless us all in our every good efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 12 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 11 : 5-13

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to his house in the middle of the night and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine who is travelling has just arrived, and I have nothing to offer him.’ Maybe your friend will answer from inside, ‘Do not bother me now; the door is locked, and my children and I are in bed, so I cannot get up and give you anything.'”

“But I tell you, even though he will not get up and attend to you because you are a friend, yet he will get up because you are a bother to him, and he will give you all you need. And so I say to you, ‘Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For the one who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to him who knocks the door will be opened.”

“If your child asks for a fish, will you give him a snake instead? And if your child asks for an egg, will you give him a scorpion? If you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.”

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Thursday, 12 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 1 : 1-2, 3, 4 and 6

Blessed is the man who does not go where the wicked gather, or stand in the way of sinners, or sit where the scoffers sit! Instead, he finds delight in the Law of YHVH and meditates day and night on His commandments.

He is like a tree beside a brook producing its fruit in due season, its leaves never withering. Everything he does is a success.

But it is different with the wicked. They are like chaff driven away by the wind. For YHVH knows the way of the righteous but cuts off the way of the wicked.

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Thursday, 12 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Malachi 3 : 13-20a

You say very harsh things about Me, says YHVH, and yet, you say : “What harsh things did we say against You?” You say : “It is useless to serve God. There is no benefit in observing His commandments or in leading an austere life for His sake. Happy are the shameless! Those who do evil succeed in everything; though they provoke God, they remain unharmed.”

Those were the very words of those who fear YHVH. YHVH listened and heard what they said. He ordered at once, that the names of those who respect Him and reverence His Name be written in a record. And He declared, “They will be Mine on the day I have already set. Then I shall care for them, as a father cares for his obedient son. And you will see the different fates of the good and the bad, those who obey God and those who disobey Him.”

The day already comes, flaming as a furnace. On that day, all the proud and evildoers will be burnt, like straw in the fire. They will be left without branches or roots. On the other hand, the sun of justice will shine upon you who respect My Name and bring health in is rays.