29th Week of Ordinary Time

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Saturday, 25 October 2025 : 29th 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 all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that each and every one of us are called to live our lives faithfully in each and every moments, to walk in the path which the Lord has shown and taught us to walk through, to do what is right and just, in inspiring faith and confidence in everyone we encounter in our daily living, by our own actions, words and deeds. All of us should always do our best in the manner we live our faith genuinely as Christians so that everyone who witness us and our works will come to know that we truly belong to God. That is what our faith calls us to do, to be truly dedicated to the Lord in all things, in what we do and not merely just in what we say only.

In our first reading today, taken from the continuation of the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful people of God in Rome, we heard of the words of St. Paul the Apostle reminding the faithful there of the true nature of their salvation and redemption by Christ, their Lord and Saviour, Who has opened the gates of Heaven and shown the sure path to eternal life for all of them. St. Paul continued on with his discourse on the nature of sin and how our physical bodies and selves are naturally predisposed to sin and evil, due to the corruption that the evil ones had inflicted upon us and also our own disobedience against God. But St. Paul also then said that while sin and evil bound us all to death and destruction, our Spirit, that is the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Life that God has placed in us, seek redemption and freedom.

And that was what the Lord had done for our sake in sending unto us His Beloved Son, with the assurance of salvation that He Himself had brought and presented to us through that same Son, Who has taken up our human existence and walked amongst us, showing us all the perfect manifestation of God’s Loveand grace in our midst. Through Him, we have been shown the perfect example of obedience, of what it truly means to follow the Lord our God with all of our heart and strength just as the Law of God had commanded us to do, and to love one another in the same manner that we have loved God and as we have loved ourselves. These two most important aspects of the Law were in fact what the Lord Jesus Himself shown and taught to His disciples and hence to all of us as Christians.

Therefore, each and every one of us who have become members and parts of God’s Church ought to realise that we have been called to a greater existence through Christ our Lord, to be the worthy examples of our Christian faith in our world today. In each and every moments of our lives, we are called to be exemplary, to be the worthy bearers of God’s truth and love in our society today, towards everyone whom we encounter each day, in even the smallest of our actions, works and deeds, in our every words and interactions with one another. However, the sad reality is such that, many among us who call ourselves as Christians, we do not truly practice our faith genuinely, and many among us even brought scandal to the Lord and sully His Holy Name by our actions and deeds, that showed our hypocrisy and lack of true and genuine faith in Him.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel of St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the Lord Jesus telling His disciples and all those people who were gathered to listen to Him, speaking to them regarding the matter of the recent tragedies that happened to some Galileans that were massacred by Pontius Pilate, the governor of Judea, as well as the collapse of the Tower in Siloah. At that time, the people believed that if a person encountered misfortune or trouble, that was because the person must have done something wrong or committed sin against God. Hence, a person who encountered tragic events like what the Lord Himself described must have been great sinners, and therefore they became prejudiced against those.

However, what the Lord pointed out was that this was not the right mindset that the people ought to have, and each and every one of us in fact all sinners deserving death and destruction. And yet, just as we have discussed earlier from the passage by St. Paul the Apostle to the faithful in Rome, God has sent us all His deliverance through none other than Jesus Himself, Who spoke to His disciples and others who were listening to Him, of the very reassuring words that God has shown us all love, compassion and mercy, and He has given us chances and opportunities, one after another so that we may rectify our lives and our ways, that we may no longer be in discord against Him and will once again be reconciled fully with Him.

That is what the Lord Jesus meant when He shared the story of the parable of the fig tree, where the gardener told the master to give the fig tree a chance to grow when it was found to have yielded no fruits at all. The gardener told the master that the fig tree ought to be given a chance, given fertilisers and means to help it to yield the fruits expected of it, and only if it still failed to bear fruits after that period of a year had passed, then it could be uprooted and discarded. This is a reminder for all of us of the many opportunities that the Lord Himself has given to us all, to come back to Him and to turn away from the path of sinfulness and evil, and He has presented to us many means to help us to get back to the path towards Him and His salvation.

Let us all therefore strive to do our best at each and every moments in life, to be ever more courageous and dedicated in living our lives as Christians, in each and every actions, words and deeds we do in life. Let us all be great role models and examples for all, and be the shining beacons of God’s light and truth, and bear His love and compassion into our world today, touching the lives and hearts of many of those whom we encounter daily, by living our own lives in the best and most Christian way possible, now and always. Amen.

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Saturday, 25 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

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

Luke 13 : 1-9

At that time, one day, some people told Jesus what had occurred in the Temple : Pilate had had Galileans killed, and their blood mingled with the blood of their sacrifices. Jesus asked them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered this? No, I tell you. But unless you change your ways, you will all perish, as they did.”

“And those eighteen persons in Siloah, who were crushed when the tower fell, do you think they were more guilty than all the others in Jerusalem? I tell you : no. But unless you change your ways, you will perish as they did.” And Jesus continued, “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it, but found none. Then he said to the gardener, ‘Look here, for three years now I have been looking for figs on this tree, and I have found none. Cut it down, why should it continue to deplete the soil?’”

“The gardener replied, ‘Leave it one more year, so that I may dig around it and add some fertiliser; perhaps it will bear fruit from now on. But if it does not, you can cut it down.’”

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Saturday, 25 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

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

Psalm 23 : 1-2, 3-4ab, 5-6

The earth and its fullness belong to the Lord, the world and all that dwell in it. He has founded it upon the ocean and set it firmly upon the waters.

Who will ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who will stand in His holy place? Those with clean hands and pure heart, who desire not what is vain.

They will receive blessings from the Lord, a reward from God, their Saviour. Such are the people who seek Him, who seek the face of Jacob’s God.

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Saturday, 25 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

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

Romans 8 : 1-11

This contradiction is no longer exists for those who are in Jesus Christ. For, in Jesus Christ, the Law of the Spirit of life has set me free from the law of sin and death. The Law was without effect, because the flesh was not responding. Then God, planning to destroy sin, sent His own Son, in the likeness of those subject to the sinful human condition; by doing this, He condemned the sin, in this human condition.

Since then, the perfection intended by the Law would be fulfilled, in those not walking in the way of the flesh, but in the way of the Spirit. Those walking according to the flesh tend toward what is flesh; those led by the Spirit, to what is Spirit. Flesh tends toward death, while Spirit aims at life and peace. What the flesh seeks is against God : it does not agree, it cannot even submit to the Law of God.

So, those walking according to the flesh cannot please God. Yet your existence is not in the flesh, but in the spirit, because the Spirit of God is within you. If you did not have the Spirit of Christ, you would not belong to Him.

But Christ is within you; though the body is branded by death as a consequence of sin, the spirit is life and holiness. And if the Spirit of Him Who raised Jesus from the dead is within you, He Who raised Jesus Christ from among the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies. Yes, He will do it through His Spirit Who dwells within you.

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Friday, 24 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we heard the words of the Lord contained in the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that all of us as Christians we must always continue to live our lives worthily and to the best of our abilities in being good role models and examples in our respective way of life, so that we may indeed bring forth the truth and Good News of God, manifesting His love and compassion in our world today, through even the smallest and the seemingly least significant aspects of our actions and works, in all that we say and do, in how we interact with one another. All of us as Christians are reminded that we should always strive to live righteously in God and to resist at all times the temptations of evil and sin.

In our first reading today, taken from the continuation of the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful in the city and region of Rome, we heard of the reminders from the Apostle of our human nature, our worldly existence that is tainted by sin and by all the vulnerabilities that we have towards the temptations and the pressures of this world. Due to this, it is our human nature for all of us to continue to falter and fall again and again into sin, which I am sure we ourselves have experienced at each and every moments, and yet, God in His great and ever wonderful love and mercy constantly reached out to us and showed us all His power, showing us the path for us all out of the darkness and the tyranny of sin into His eternal light and salvation.

He has sent us His deliverance and made it real and true for us through none other than His own Beloved Son, Whom He had sent into our midst, into this world to bring us all the long awaited salvation and the perfect fulfilment of His promises, as He Himself had told us. Through Christ our Lord and Saviour, Who has offered Himself most lovingly and selflessly on His Cross, He has opened for us the gate of Heaven and the sure path to eternal life with Him. And this is why St. Paul reminded all the faithful in Rome and elsewhere, including all of us, that we should always strive to focus our attention on Him and do our very best in each and every moments of our lives to continue journeying towards God even when we constantly continue to stumble and fall through the temptations to sin.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, we heard of the account from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist in which the Lord Jesus Himself told His disciples on the matter of reading the signs of times, by using the conventional and well-known wisdom of seeing the signs in the skies for weather and other knowledge, to know what would come to happen in due time. He also mentioned about how those who had troubles and issues and wanted to settle a court case ought to try to settle the issue with the accuser before they reached the judge and the courthouse, where if they had not settled the issue amicably and peacefully, it would have led to one of them being punished and having to face potentially severe consequences.

Through what the Lord Himself mentioned in this passage, He is reminding us that we too should take seriously our relationship with God and one another, and we should not wait until it is too late for us all, as we ourselves will face the moment of judgment and the time when we have to ultimately account for all of our lives, our every actions, words and deeds, our every interactions and even our failures to act upon what the Lord Himself had entrusted to us. All of us should always seek to forgive one another our trespasses, faults, mistakes and any hurt we cause to each other, so that just as we always prayed in The Lord’s Prayer, ‘Forgive us our trespasses just as we forgive those who trespass against us’, all of us as Christians should always lead by example in our attitudes and actions.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Anthony Mary Claret, the founder of the religious order of the Claretians also known as the Congregation of Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, named after its founder. St. Anthony Mary Claret was an archbishop and renowned missionary, who lived approximately two centuries ago, laboured and worked as God’s servant in various places especially Spain and in the colonies of the Spanish Empire, such as in Canary Islands, and also in other areas. He was a great missionary with zeal and love for God, felt and embraced the call to the priestly life, and thereafter went on missions to evangelise and to spread the Good News of God to more and more people. He faced a lot of challenges along his mission and journey, but he always did his best to proclaim the Lord faithfully and courageously.

St. Anthony Mary Claret spent a lot of time in preaching among the people, which became very popular, and many people came to listen to his preachings. He also spent a lot of time in the confessionals, helping many people to come closer to the Lord, by reconciliation and healing, and by listening to their troubles and problems. Many were touched by the courageous and clear sermons from this holy man of God, and by his dedication as a shepherd of the Lord’s flock. He established the Claretians soon after he returned from his missionary works in the Canary Islands, and then later on was quickly appointed as Archbishop of Santiago de Cuba, in which he continued his mission as shepherd and missionary in the territory of Spanish Cuba, reforming the diocesan seminary, establishing schools and hospitals, and founding another religious order named Religious of Mary Immaculate.

St. Anthony Mary Claret continued to serve the people of God with amazing commitment and dedicating his great charism with most passion and commitment, and many came to be saved through his efforts. Miracles and wonders were attributed to him, as according to accounts and eyewitnesses, he levitated during prayers and celebrations of the Mass, and his prayers stopped even calamities like storms and earthquakes, and supernatural lights and phenomena would be seen as he celebrated Mass, facts which astounded many and attested to his great personal holiness and virtues, and he was also given gift of foresight and revelation, as the Lord revealed to him several challenges and trials that the world and the Church would be facing.

St. Anthony Mary Claret eventually became the personal confessor of the Queen of Spain, Isabella II. He continued to do his many works for the glory of God and for the good of his fellow men in his various capacities, continuing to commit himself wholeheartedly for the Lord’s mission and works. He continued to inspire many people in generations after his passing to this very day, and his religious orders continued to work and being inspired by their founder’s great examples. Therefore, each one of us should also be inspired to do God’s will and to follow Him wholeheartedly as St. Anthony Mary Claret and many other holy men and women of God had done. Each and every one of us as Christians should always strive to do what the Lord has taught and shown us all to do.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reflect on what we have heard from our Scripture passages today and from the great life and works of St. Anthony Mary Claret. Let us all continue to do our best in each and every moments of our lives so that we will continue to be great examples for all those around us, and be inspiration for all those whom we encounter in our paths. Let our lives be the beacons of God’s light and hope at all times, and let us continue to walk ever more courageously and faithfully at all times, as good and faithful Christians, now and always. Amen.

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Friday, 24 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Luke 12 : 54-59

At that time, Jesus said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it happens. And when the wind blows from the south, you say, ‘It will be hot’; and so it is. You superficial people! You understand the signs of the earth and the sky, but you do not understand the present times.”

“And why do you not judge for yourselves what is fit? When you go with your accuser before the court, try to settle the case on the way, lest he drag you before the judge, and the judge deliver you to the jailer, and the jail throw you into prison. I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the very last penny.”

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Friday, 24 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Psalm 118 : 66, 68, 76, 77, 93, 94

Give me knowledge and good judgment, for I trust in Your commands.

You are good, and Your works are good; teach me Your decrees.

Comfort me then with Your unfailing love, as You promised Your servant.

Let Your mercy come, to give me life; for Your Law is my delight.

Never will I forget Your precepts; for with them, You give me life.

Save me, for I am Yours, since I seek Your statutes.

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Friday, 24 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Romans 7 : 18-25a

I know, that what is right, does not abide in me, I mean, in my flesh. I can want to do what is right, but I am unable to do it. In fact, I do not do the good I want, but the evil I hate. Therefore, if I do what I do not want to do, I am not the one striving toward evil, but sin, which is in me.

I discover, then, this reality : though I wish to do what is right, the evil within me asserts itself first. My inmost self, agrees and rejoices with the Law of God, but I notice in my body, another law, challenging the Law of the Spirit, and delivering me, as a slave to the law of sin, written in my members.

Alas, for me! Who will free me from this being, which is only death? Let us give thanks to God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord!

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Thursday, 23 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John of Capestrano, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all gather together to listen to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that as Christians, when we follow the Lord, each and every one of us are called to reject the path of worldliness, sin and the temptations of the world, all of which can lead us astray from the path towards God and His salvation. Each and every one of us have been shown the truth of God’s way, the virtues and righteousness which He has taught and revealed to us, against the wickedness of the world. And therefore, we are also reminded that it is inevitable that there will be friction, hardships, challenges and problems that we may face in this world if we continue to live our lives faithfully in God’s Presence.

In our first reading today, we heard from the continuation of the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful people of God in Rome in which the Apostle continued to speak on the matter of sin, which has caused us to fall into the path that leads away from God. St. Paul reminded the faithful how they were once the slaves of sin, and being slaves of sin they had been destined to destruction and damnation, but God had provided the sure path for them all out of the path of sin and into the path of righteousness towards Him. Through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Himself, He has established His Church in this world, and by the authority presented to His Church, He has given us the gifts of the Sacraments, especially that of baptism by which we have been cleansed from the taints of our original sins and welcomed into the Church of God.

However, it does not mean that once we are baptised and become members of God’s Church, then we are absolutely free from the threat of sin, as sin can once again threaten us all and as long as we exist in our mortal and worldly existence in this world, we will always be vulnerable to the temptations and pressures to sin, by disobeying God and disregarding His Law and commandments, and by not doing what He has asked and told us to do. Each and every one of us as Christians are still in this long journey through this life towards God, the journey that we all undertake in our own respective paths, facing the ever present threats and attacks from the evil ones around us, all those seeking our destruction and downfall. If we remain firm and strong in our faith in God, then we will be able to persevere against all these.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the rather harsh words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples as He told them that He came into the world bearing the truth and the Good News which would not necessarily lead to peace and harmony unlike what many of His disciples thought that He would do. We must first understand that at that time, the understanding and appreciation of the Jewish people regarding the Messiah or the Saviour promised by God, was one of happy and jubilant expectation, as they considered the Messiah to be the One Whom God would send into the world to restore the glory of the Kingdom of Israel, to return the people of Israel and their descendants once again to the glorious days of King David and King Solomon.

However, the Lord Jesus Himself said that this was not to be, and He told the disciples that the reality was rather that, those who followed Him and put their faith in Him would in fact face hurdles and struggles because of what they believed. That was why He told them that He would bring divisions and struggles, conflicts and hardships between members of the family, even those who were closest to each other. This would indeed come true as if we were to read the story of the lives of the martyrs and members of the early Church, where those early Christians often faced persecutions and oppositions, and these came not only from the Roman state or the Jewish authorities, but from their own closest ones, their own family members and close friends, who disagreed with their Christian faith.

It is an important reminder that being Christians is not something that may necessarily be easy for all of us to do. If we have lived our lives mostly comfortably as Christians, which can and do indeed happen, but more likely because we have not truly lived our faith seriously and genuinely. From time to time, when we live our lives faithfully and courageously, in how we truly love God and put Him at the centre of our own lives, and when we love sincerely those whom God had put in our paths and lives, those whom the Lord had entrusted to us to our care. There will be challenges and frictions, even with those close to us, and what we may find most uncomfortable is that, those who make our lives and faith miserable may be even our fellow Catholics, those who are supposed to be our fellow brothers and sisters, and yet, they may be the one who caused us the most harm and sorrow.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. John of Capestrano, whose life and examples should inspire us all in how we can be better disciples and followers of the Lord in all things. St. John of Capestrano was a famous Franciscan friar and priest, and a courageous and dedicated preacher and servant of God who committed himself wholeheartedly to the Lord, in obeying the commandments and the Law of God. He was a renowned theologian whose works and efforts, in spreading the Good News and the truth of the Gospel of Christ have borne a lot of good fruits, in proclaiming the salvation of God to more and more of those who have not known them. He preached to huge crowds that came to listen to him, which numbered even more than a hundred thousand people in one occasion, and he also attained great successes in other places as well.

St. John of Capestrano also dedicated himself to the Lord, putting Him above all else, even volunteering to raise and lead a large army together to fight against the forces of the Ottoman Turks that were threatening Christendom at that time, fighting in a Crusade launched by the Pope to resist the mighty forces of the enemy and unbelievers. He kept on inspiring all the soldiers who fought during that Crusade and conflicts, and while he eventually survived the battle, he fell ill from the bubonic plague and passed away shortly after. Nonetheless, the memories of his courage, commitment to God and efforts in proclaiming the Lord, in giving himself completely to the Lord and His cause are remembered by many long after his death, even to this very day.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today therefore as we listened to the story of the life and works of St. John of Capestrano and as we reflected earlier on the words of the Scriptures, we are reminded that we should continue to have faith in God even amidst all the challenges and difficulties that we may have to face in our lives. We should not easily give up the struggle and faith, in all the things we do in life, so that by our every efforts and good works, we will continue to inspire faith and hope in everyone around us. We should continue to do our best to live truly good, faithful and worthy lives, one that shine wonderfully with God’s light and truth, at all times. May God bless us always, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Thursday, 23 October 2025 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John of Capestrano, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Luke 12 : 49-53

At that time, Jesus said to the people, “I have come to bring fire upon the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! But I have a baptism to undergo, and what anguish I feel until it is finished! Do you think that I have come to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. From now on, in one house five will be divided : three against two, and two against three.”

“They will be divided, father against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother; mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”