4th Week of Easter

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Monday, 27 April 2026 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded to put our trust in the Lord instead of in our own prejudices and flawed way of understanding the will of God, and not to blindly just follow the teachings and ways of the Church without properly understanding them, appreciating its context and how they ought to be applied to each and every one of our unique circumstances. We must understand that first of all God’s love for us is universal, most generous and beautiful above all things, and we must realise that God also does not play favourites, as all of us are equally dear and beloved to Him. That is why we must keep this in mind in how we interact with each other and in how we should never think that we are better or more qualified than anyone else.

In our first reading today, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, we heard of the time when St. Peter the Apostle came to address the assembly of the faithful in Jerusalem, where the Jewish believers argued with him regarding how he had gone to visit the house of a Gentile and had meal with them in their house. First of all, we must understand the context of this interaction and why those Jewish believers said such words to St. Peter. Those Jewish believers very likely referred to the early Christian believers that belonged to the group known as the Pharisees and their supporters, some of whom were empathetic to the Christian teachings and were willing to embrace Christ as the Lord and Saviour as opposed to the majority who refused to accept Jesus’ claim as the Messiah.

However, those Jewish believers unfortunately also brought with them their own prejudices and ideals, as they had very strong belief that they, as the direct descendants of the people of God living in the kingdom of Judah, as the members of the Twelve Tribes of the Israelites, were superior as the chosen people of God over all the other people and races, all those non-Jewish people collectively referred to at that time as the Gentiles, which means essentially as strangers and even as foreigners. It is not that the Jewish people consider that the Gentiles could not be saved, but they were very prejudiced against them, and for a Gentile to be saved, they essentially had to follow all the laws and tenets of the Jewish Law and customs, practices and everything that effectively turn them into another Jew.

But St. Peter shared his experiences in the household of Cornelius, whose whole household believed in the Lord and in His message of truth, and showed great faith in God not even found among many of the Jews themselves. And earlier on before that, St. Peter himself received a vision from God before he visited Cornelius’ house, as he hesitated for exactly the same reason given earlier by the Jewish believers. As a Jew himself, St. Peter was hesitant to visit the house of a Gentile as that would have made him, according to Jewish tradition and beliefs, unclean and hence sinful. But God revealed to St. Peter in the vision, a great multitude of animals considered unclean and hence not to be eaten, asking him to eat those animals.

And when St. Peter refused to eat those because they were considered unclean, the Lord told him not just once, but three times that what He had deemed to be clean, St. Peter should not consider to be unclean and not to eat them because of whatever rules and norms were put in place beforehand. This is one of the evidences and revelations which the Lord gave to St. Peter, convincing him and through him, many others of the faithful that His love is meant for everyone and none of His people should ever be biased, prejudiced and judgmental against anyone simply because they did not subscribe or conform to the practices and customs of the Jewish people, and it was exactly what St. Peter shared with those Jewish believers, telling them of the strong and genuine faith that the Gentiles had in the Lord.

He also shared with them how the Lord has sent His Holy Spirit to be with everyone, as he himself had witnessed, regardless whether they were Jews or Gentiles. This is the proof that every one of us should put our faith and trust in the Lord, and allow Him to lead and guide us all, instead of being blinded by prejudice, bias and feelings of superiority over others, which is in fact a kind of pride and arrogance, which unfortunately many of those Jewish believers and the other Pharisees tended to have in them. It is a reminder hence for all of us that we should develop faith that is truly organic, genuine and based on proper understanding and appreciation of God’s Law, His nature and the nature of our faith and existence rather than blindly obeying and rigidly applying the teachings of the Church as many had done even in our present day world today.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, the famous account of the Lord describing Himself as the Good Shepherd, and how all of His sheep, that is representing each and every one of us, knows Him just as He knows all of us. This is a reminder for all of us that God loves every one of us despite our differences, just as the various sheep may have lots of varieties and differences, and not even those sheep that has been lost from Him, He would ever abandon or leave behind. And linking to what we have heard in our first reading passage today, on the matter of inclusivity and trusting in God rather than in traditions, customs and rigid understanding and application of the Scriptures and God’s Law, we are reminded therefore as the Lord said that He is the ‘Gate of the sheep’ while others are the thieves and false shepherds seeking to steal the sheep.

This is a reminder for all of us to not trust blindly in the teachings of the Church, but understand and appreciate them from genuine appreciation and understanding of what the Lord has always intended, as He Himself constantly reminded His disciples, of His ever generous, infinite and unconditional love for all of us, calling on each and every one of us regardless of our background and origins, to come towards Him, embracing His ever generous love, compassion and kindness, while remembering our calling to show that same love to all those around us, our brothers and sisters, especially those whom God had placed in our lives to love us, and to be loved by us. Let our actions, our words and deeds be always filled with the love of God, which we show it to those around us as best as we are able to, following the very examples of our own Good Shepherd, Lord and Master Himself.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all gather together to reflect on these words of the Sacred Scriptures therefore, let us all hence continue to strive to follow our loving God in all that He has shown us, in everything which He has taught and revealed to us through His most beloved Son, so that we may truly understand His love and His intentions, living our lives in the most genuine and faithful manner, not depending on blind obedience or following of the tenets of our faith, but rather through deep understanding and appreciation of what the Lord has revealed to us. May the Lord our most loving God and Father, our ever compassionate Master continue to bless us all in our every actions, in guiding us throughout even the most challenging moments of our lives. May God be with each and every one of us, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 27 April 2026 : 4th Week of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 10 : 1-10

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly, I say to you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber. But the shepherd of the sheep enters by the gate. The keeper opens the gate to him and the sheep hear his voice; he calls each of his sheep by name and leads them out.”

“When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but rather they will run away from him, because they do not recognise a stranger’s voice.” Jesus used this comparison, but they did not understand what He was saying to them.

So Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, I am the Gate of the sheep. All who came were thieves and robbers, and the sheep did not hear them. I am the Gate. Whoever enters through Me will be saved; he will go in and out freely and find food. The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy, but I have come that they may have life, life in all its fullness.”

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Monday, 27 April 2026 : 4th Week of Easter (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 41 : 2-3 and Psalm 42 : 3, 4

As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for You, o God.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I go and see the face of God?

Send forth Your light and Your truth; let them be my guide, let them take me to Your holy mountain, to the place where You reside.

Then will I go to the Altar of God, to God, my gladness and delight. I will praise You with the lyre an harp, o God, my God.

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Monday, 27 April 2026 : 4th Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 11 : 1-18

News came to the Apostles and the brothers and sisters in Judea that even foreigners had received the Word of God. So, when Peter went up to Jerusalem, these Jewish believers began to argue with him, “You went to the home of uncircumcised people and ate with them!”

So Peter began to give them the facts as they had happened, “I was at prayer in the city of Joppa when, in a trance, I saw a vision. Something like a large sheet came down from the sky and drew near to me, landing on the ground by its four corners. As I stared at it, I saw four-legged creatures of the earth, wild beasts and reptiles, and birds of the sky.”

“Then I heard a voice saying to me : ‘Get up, Peter, kill and eat!’ I replied, ‘Certainly not, Lord! No common or unclean creature has ever entered my mouth.’ A second time the voice from the heavens spoke, ‘What God has made clean, you must not call unclean.’ This happened three times, and then it was all drawn up into the sky. At that moment three men, who had been sent to me from Caesarea, arrived at the house where we were staying.”

“The Spirit instructed me to go with them without hesitation; so these six brothers came along with me and we entered into the man’s house. He told us how he had seen an Angel standing in his house and telling him : ‘Send someone to Joppa and fetch Simon, also known as Peter. He will bring you a message by which you and all your household will be saved.”

“I had begun to address them when suddenly the Holy Spirit came upon them, just as it had come upon us at the beginning. Then I remembered what the Lord had said : ‘John baptised with water, but you shall be baptised with the Holy Spirit.’ If, then, God had given them the same gift that He had given us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to resist God?”

When they heard this they set their minds at rest and praised God saying, “Then God has granted life-giving repentance to the pagan nations as well.”

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Sunday, 26 April 2026 : Fourth Sunday of Easter, Good Shepherd Sunday and Vocation Sunday (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 10 : 1-10

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly, I say to you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber. But the shepherd of the sheep enters by the gate. The keeper opens the gate to him and the sheep hear his voice; he calls each of his sheep by name and leads them out.”

“When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but rather they will run away from him, because they do not recognise a stranger’s voice.” Jesus used this comparison, but they did not understand what He was saying to them.

So Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, I am the Gate of the sheep. All who came were thieves and robbers, and the sheep did not hear them. I am the Gate. Whoever enters through Me will be saved; he will go in and out freely and find food. The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy, but I have come that they may have life, life in all its fullness.”

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Sunday, 26 April 2026 : Fourth Sunday of Easter, Good Shepherd Sunday and Vocation Sunday (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 Peter 2 : 20b-25

But if you endure punishment when you have done well, that is a grace before God. This is your calling : remember Christ Who suffered for you, leaving you an example so that you may follow in His way. He did no wrong and there was no deceit in His mouth. He did not return insult for insult and, when suffering, He did not curse but put Himself in the hands of God Who judges justly.

He went to the cross bearing our sins on His own Body on the cross so that we might die to sin and live an upright life. For by His wounds you have been healed. You were like stray sheep, but you have come back to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.

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Sunday, 26 April 2026 : Fourth Sunday of Easter, Good Shepherd Sunday and Vocation Sunday (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 22 : 1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul.

He guides me through the right paths for His Name’s sake. Although I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are beside me : Your rod and Your staff comfort me.

You spread a table before me in the presence of my foes. You anoint my head with oil; my cup is overflowing.

Goodness and kindness will follow me all the days of my life. I shall dwell in the house of the Lord as long as I live.

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Sunday, 26 April 2026 : Fourth Sunday of Easter, Good Shepherd Sunday and Vocation Sunday (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 2 : 14a, 36-41

Then Peter stood up with the Eleven and, with a loud voice, addressed them, “Let Israel then know for sure that God has made Lord and Christ this Jesus Whom you crucified.” When they heard this, they were deeply troubled. And they asked Peter and the other Apostles, “What shall we do, brothers?”

Peter answered : “Each of you must repent and be baptised in the Name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins may be forgiven. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise of God was made to you and your children, and to all those from afar whom our God may call.”

With many other words Peter gave the message and appealed to them saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So those who accepted his word were baptised; some three thousand persons were added to their numbers that day.

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Saturday, 27 April 2024 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we all listened to the words of the Scriptures in which we are reminded yet again of the responsibilities and the calling we have as Christians to proclaim the Risen Lord to all the people, just as He has told His Apostles and disciples to do, and which works and ministries have not yet been completed. In this world today, there are still many more opportunities and occasions in which we have been provided with in order to proclaim the Lord and His truth to the many people all around us, in our workplaces and schools, and in the various other occasions and places where we may be in our lives, where many people have yet to know the truth about Christ, our Risen Lord and Saviour, and have yet to witness His light and truth, experience His love and grace.

In our first reading today, we heard from Acts of the Apostles in which the Apostles St. Paul and St. Barnabas were mentioned as ministering to the faithful and proclaiming the truth of Christ to the people during their missionary journey and time in the region known as Pisidia in Asia Minor, where there were both Jews and Gentiles alike who responded positively to the message which both Apostles were bringing and proclaiming to them. St. Paul had spoken at length earlier on about everything that the Risen Lord Jesus had done for the salvation of all the whole world, and convinced quite a few among the Jewish diaspora to become the followers and believers in Christ, while the others among the Jewish population refused to believe in the Lord, hardening their hearts and minds against Him and His Apostle.

That was why from those Jewish diaspora population who resisted the Lord and His truth, the two Apostles faced a lot of opposition and obstacles. This was likely because those Jewish people belonged to the group of the Pharisees, many of whom rejected the Lord, refused to believe in Him and stubbornly persecuting Him and His disciples simply because they did not agree with the Lord’s way and teachings. The Pharisees believed and adopted a very strict and rigid interpretation of the Law of God, immersing themselves in the intricate details and rules of the Law and its practices, all the rituals and observances which made them to criticise almost everything that the Lord and His disciples had done, thinking that they were better and knew things better, or more worthy in the eyes of the Lord.

In addition, many of them also held the belief that the descendants of Israel, the children of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the first chosen people of God were superior and preferred than everyone else. They took it to the extreme by thinking that salvation and grace of God only belonged to the Jewish people, and that the non-Jewish people or the Gentiles had no place in God’s Kingdom, unless and only unless they adopted the whole entirety of the Jewish customs and practices, laws and rules, essentially making them to be part of the Jewish nation and people. Some of the early Christians who converted from among the Pharisees shared this view and attempted to enforce Jewish customs and practices on all the early Christians and the Church, but the Apostles led by St. Peter decided against this erroneous path and idea.

St. Paul and St. Barnabas were among those who championed better outreach and support for the none-Jewish people, embracing them and not enforcing the Jewish customs and practices on them, requiring them only to obey the central tenets of the Christian faith as taught by the Lord and agreed and decided by the authority of the Church through the Apostles. As we heard, this quickly earned the ire and opposition from the Jewish people who opposed the teachings of the Lord, when they heard how the two Apostles proclaiemd that the Lord’s salvation was also given to the Gentiles, and how the Lord’s grace and love have been extended to everyone, and not just to the Jewish people only. This led to the friction and hardships endured by St. Paul and St. Barnabas, who were cast out of the town by the efforts of those Jewish opponents of the Lord.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the conversation between the Lord Jesus and His disciples, represented by St. Philip the Apostle, who asked the Lord to show them the Father, which the Lord responded with some frustration and disbelief at how His disciples still failed to appreciate what He had been doing all those while, having told them everything about the Father and having shown them the love of the Father manifested in Himself, as the Son of God, the perfect manifestation of God’s Love in the flesh, having been shown to us, made approachable and tangible that while once God is One Who is infinitely far beyond us, now we can truly experience His love and compassion, through what His Son had provided to us. The Lord told all of His disciples and followers that everything that He had revealed to them truly came from the Father, and is the absolute truth.

This is therefore the same truth which St. Paul and St. Barnabas had proclaimed as mentioned in our first reading today, and which the other Apostles and disciples of the Lord had also proclaimed throughout their various missionary journeys and works. Through their efforts, their works and sacrifices, the time that they spent in telling the people about the Risen Lord and the salvation that God had promised through His Son, all these had brought many people to come towards His grace, opening the doors of His mercy and forgiveness to countless people who have come to seek His love and mercy. They courageously went forth to do so despite the challenges and oppositions that they had to encounter from the enemies of the Lord and from all those who rejected His love and truth.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, each and every one of us as Christians are therefore reminded of the important obligations that we have in proclaiming Christ our Lord and Saviour through our way of life, our every actions, words and deeds. May the Risen Lord continue to strengthen and encourage us all in our every path, and in what we do, for His greater glory, so that by our exemplary lives and efforts, we may truly bring the Lord and His truth, His salvation and grace ever closer to all those whom we encounter in life, now and always. Amen.

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Saturday, 27 April 2024 : 4th Week of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 14 : 7-14

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “If you know Me, you will know the Father also; indeed you know Him, and you have seen Him.”

Philip asked Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and that is enough.” Jesus said to him, “What! I have been with you so long and you still do not know Me, Philip? Whoever sees Me sees the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me?”

“All that I say to you, I do not say of Myself. The Father Who dwells in Me is doing His own work. Believe Me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; at least believe it on the evidence of these works that I do. Truly, I say to you, the one who believes in Me will do the same works that I do; and he will even do greater than these, for I am going to the Father.”

“Everything you ask in My Name, I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. Indeed, anything you ask, calling upon My Name, I will do it.”