7th Sunday of Ordinary Time

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Monday, 20 May 2024 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady, Mother of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today on the day after Pentecost Sunday, as we begin once again the second part of the Ordinary Time during this current liturgical year after the completion of the Easter season, we celebrate together as one whole Church the Feast of Mary, Our Lady, the Mother of the Church, or Mater Ecclesiae. On this day we remember the role which Mary, the Mother of God played in bringing together the Church of God through her Son, as well as her presence during the time when the Church of God was born, which happened on Good Friday, and how the Lord entrusted her to us, and vice versa, us to her, for her be our Mother and we to be her children. Mary was then also present at the moment when the Church was revealed to the world, and began its evangelising mission, which happened at the Pentecost.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Genesis detailing to us the moments right after mankind had fallen into sin at the beginning of Creation by disobeying God’s will and disregarding His warning not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam and Eve chose to eat from the fruits of that tree and they fell into sin as they did not listen to the Lord and chose to believe in the false lies of Satan and his temptations instead. But at that same time, as the Lord told them that they would have to wander off in the world and to suffer the consequences of their sins, He also reaffirmed that He still loved them all despite of their many sins and wickedness, and He revealed that one day, salvation would come to us all through a Woman, who would crush the machinations and the power of Satan, the great enemy who had brought about our downfall.

This revelation is a prediction of the role which Mary, the Woman mentioned by the Lord would play in the history and path of our salvation. Through Mary, who accepted her role entrusted to her by God to be the Mother of God, the Son of God incarnate in the flesh through her, and through Mary therefore the salvation of God had been made manifest in the world to us all, by the will of God the Father and through the power of the Holy Spirit. And as God later went on to establish His Church, it can be said that all these were made possible by Mary’s role in accepting the mission entrusted to her by the Lord, by embracing the Lord’s mission with faith and commitment, entrusting herself to her Lord and Master, and in committing herself thoroughly to this same mission.

In the alternative first reading today, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, we heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus had ascended into Heaven but before that of the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, where the Lord’s disciples were mentioned, the Twelve Apostles and the other disciples, and Mary, the Mother of Our Lord was also mentioned there being part of the group, praying together and gathering as one people, united in purpose and awaiting the coming of the Holy Advocate or Helper, that is the Holy Spirit. Mary being present at that moment signified her closeness and participation in the affairs of the early Church, being the Mother of the Lord and also the Mother of all the believers and the holy people of God. She cannot be separated from the Church as she herself is part of that Church and she truly occupies a very prominent place in it.

At the time of the Pentecost, Apostolic traditions state that Mary was present with all the other disciples, and the Holy Spirit descended on all of them. Mary, being full of grace and having the Holy Spirit worked through her before in the Incarnation of the Lord, the Holy Spirit that came upon Mary and all the disciples symbolises this presence of the Holy Spirit that has made the love of God manifest in this world, manifesting His Church to the whole world. And Mary being there as a rather central figure at the moment of Pentecost signified her closeness to the Church and her being the Mother of the Church, guiding all the faithful people of God, her own beloved children to her Son, Our Lord and Saviour of all.

The Pentecost itself is often misunderstood as the ‘Birthday of the Church’, while according to the Church fathers and Apostolic tradition, as written in the Catechism of the Catholic Church was ‘born’ and established from the side of the Lord, from the outpouring of the Blood and water that came from the Lord’s Body, lay broken and crushed on Good Friday, at the end of His Passion, His suffering and death. Through His earlier institution of the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist and the Ministerial Priesthood at the Last Supper, and through His completion of the perfect offering and sacrifice of the New and Eternal Passover, the New and Eternal Covenant, Christ has formed the Church that is His Body, uniting all of the believers with Himself.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard then of the account of the events during the culmination and height of the Passion of the Lord, on Good Friday, when the Lord Jesus lay dying on His Cross at Calvary, the birthday of the Church as mentioned actually happened on Good Friday itself, at that moment when the Lord gave His life for our salvation, and when He also entrusted all of us to His beloved Mother so that she can be our Mother, and we all can be her children. By this important symbolic act therefore, the Lord established His Church, which He entrusted to His Apostles and first of all also to His Mother Mary, who became the Mother of the Church, to be the loving Mother to love and care for all of us in the Church of God.

That is why today we all rejoice ever so greatly and wonderfully for our loving Mother, Mary, our Mother and the Mother of the Church. We give thanks for the great examples and inspirations which our loving Mother has shown us in being ever faithful and committed to her mission and calling, and in all that she had ever done for us all, in always praying and interceding for us by the side of her beloved Son in Heaven. Mary has repeatedly intervened and helped many of us throughout time and history, making appearances in various places, such as Lourdes, Fatima, among others, through which she has inspired and helped even more people, more of her beloved children in finding their way towards salvation in her Son, Our Lord and Saviour.

Having constantly witnessed and experienced the great maternal love which Mary, the Mother of the Church has to all of us, parts of the same Body of Christ, the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, all of us whom Mary has considered to be her own beloved ones, let us all therefore strive to follow her good examples and her faith in God, and also show the same love which she has shown us, in first of all loving her Son, Our Lord and God with all of our hearts and with all of our might, as well as loving our fellow brothers and sisters with all sincerity and genuine desire to care for one another, to be loving just as the Lord and His blessed Mother, who is also our Mother, have loved us. May the Lord continue to bless us all and may His loving Mother, the Mother of the Church, continue to help and guide us all in God’s Church, so that in our every efforts, good works and endeavours, we will continue to glorify God by our lives and proclaim His truth to more and more people. Amen.

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Monday, 20 May 2024 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady, Mother of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 19 : 25-34

At that time, near the cross of Jesus stood His mother, His mother’s sister Mary, who was the wife of Cleophas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw the mother, and the disciple whom He loved, He said to the mother, “Woman, this is your son.” Then He said to the disciple, “This is your mother.” And from that moment the disciple took her to his own home.

Jesus knew all was now finished and, in order to fulfil what was written in Scripture, He said, “I am thirsty.” A jar full of bitter wine stood there; so, putting a sponge soaked in the wine on a twig of hyssop, they raised it to His lips. Jesus took the wine and said, “It is accomplished.” Then He bowed His head and gave up the Spirit.

As it was Preparation Day, the Jews did not want the bodies to remain on the cross during the Sabbath, for this Sabbath was a very solemn day. They asked Pilate to have the legs of the condemned men broken, so that the bodies might be taken away. The soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man and of the other man, who had been crucified with Jesus.

When they came to Jesus, they saw that He was already dead, so they did not break His legs. One of the soldiers, however, pierced His side with a lance, and immediately there came out Blood and water.

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Monday, 20 May 2024 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady, Mother of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 86 : 1-2, 3 and 5, 6-7

He Himself has built it in His holy mountain; YHVH prefers the gates of Zion to all of Jacob’s towns.

Great things have been foretold of you, o city of God. But of Zion, it shall be said, “More and more are being born in her.” For the Most High Himself has founded her.

And YHVH notes in the people’s register : “All these were also born in Zion.” And all will dance and sing joyfully for you.

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Monday, 20 May 2024 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady, Mother of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Genesis 3 : 9-15, 20

YHVH God called the man saying to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard Your voice in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.” God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree I ordered you not to eat?”

The man answered, “The woman You put with me gave me fruit from the tree and I ate it.” God said to the woman, “What have you done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me and I ate.”

YHVH God said to the serpent, “Since you have done that, be cursed among all the cattle and wild beasts! You will crawl on your belly and eat dust all the days of your life. I will make you enemies, you and the woman, your offspring and her offspring. He will crush your head and you will strike his heel.”

The man called his wife by the name of Eve, because she was the mother of all the living.

Alternative reading

Acts 1 : 12-14

Then they returned to Jerusalem from the Mount called Olives, which is a fifteen minute walk away. On entering the city they went to the room upstairs where they were staying. Present there were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James, son of Alpheus; Simon the Zealot and Judas son of James.

All of these, together, gave themselves to constant prayer. With them were some women, and also Mary, the mother of Jesus, and His brothers.

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Tuesday, 21 February 2023 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, each and every one of us as Christians are called to be righteous and good, worthy of our Lord, virtuous and full of God’s grace in all things. All of us are called to be humble and good disciples and followers of our Lord, doing His will and committing ourselves to His cause first and foremost in our lives, and not giving in to the many temptations all around us, the temptations of pride and our human ego, and of worldly greed and desires, which can lead us down the wrong path of sin and evil. This is particularly timely and apt considering that we are going to begin the season of Lent tomorrow with Ash Wednesday, and hence, today we should spend some time to reflect on what we have just heard in the Scriptures.

In our first reading today, we heard from the prophet Sirach the words of reminders and encouragement which he spoke to the people of God regarding the matter of following the Lord and obeying His Law and commandments. The prophet Sirach told the people of God that they ought to be righteous and to do good always in their lives, in their every actions, and that they should be ready to endure challenges and trials for the sake of the Lord and for their faith in Him. He reminds all the faithful that their calling as the people of God is to keep their faith and trust in God even in their darkest and most difficult moments in life, and they ought to remain focused on God and His path despite the many temptations, pressures and coercions to do otherwise.

Contextually, the Book of Sirach was written by the author about two centuries prior to the birth and life of Our Lord Jesus Christ, a few centuries after the destruction of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the destruction of Jerusalem and the exile to Babylon. During all those centuries and right up to the time of the prophet Sirach, the people of God had often been disobedient and rebellious against God, often not following the Law and commandments that He has set before them and preferring to do things in their own way, and allowing themselves to be led by their own wicked desires and ambitions, their pride and ego, which led them to their downfall. The prophet Sirach himself lived at a time of renewed difficulty for the faithful as it was during the beginning of the persecution of the faithful by the Greek authorities of the Seleucids, which would eventually lead to the Maccabean Revolt.

Hence, the prophet Sirach’s words were timely reminder to the people of his time and even to all of us that they must always remain true to their faith in God despite the many trials and challenges that they might have had to face along their life and journey. The prophet told them all to remain strong in faith and to do what the Lord had taught and commanded them to do so that in all things they would be truly worthy of God, and be righteous and good examples in the midst of their own community and as inspirations and good role models for many others all around them. All of them are reminded to be humble in accepting God’s help, grace and guidance in every single moments of their lives. They should inspire others to live their lives faithfully as well and not instead be sources of scandal for the Lord and their faith because of their actions.

In our Gospel passage we then heard of the Lord speaking to His disciples and teaching them that, in order for them to truly become His disciples, they all must be ready to abandon their prideful and ambitious thoughts, and their many temptations of worldly glory and status, power, influence, fame and more, among many other things. This happened just after the disciples failing to cast out the evil spirits from a boy who was possessed and struck deaf and mute, as we heard in the Scripture readings yesterday. The disciples were unable to do so because they were lacking in faith, and were likely swayed by pride and hubris, thinking that all the miracles and wonders they performed were due to their own powers and abilities, and forgetting that they did all that by the grace and power of God.

They were all reminded that in following the Lord they must be humble and obedient to God, and to put themselves after Him and others around us. Basically, pride, hubris, ego, ambition, greed and all those things will not bring us any good things at all. It will only end up leading us down the wrong path in life, bringing us further and further away from the righteousness of God. All of us as disciples and followers of the Lord must be like what the Lord Himself said, as He took up one child and told them that their faith ought to be like that of the little child. Why is that so? That is because the faith of a child is truly pure, pure in faith and purpose, as unlike all of us who are laden with worldly concerns, desires and attachments, a child had none of that yet. Essentially as Christians, all of us are reminded to have the same kind of faith and life, wholly centred on the Lord and His truth.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Peter Damian, a great saint and Church father, whose life and works can truly inspire all of us to be faithful to the Lord in many ways, as he himself led a good and devout life, filled with faith and dedication to God. St. Peter Damian was a great intellectual and theologian who gave up the greatness of secular and worldly life to become a Benedictine monk. He was renowned for his great piety and dedication to his mission and works, in his efforts in reforming the Church and Christian faithful, beginning with his own Benedictine community, and then in tandem with the efforts of a few Popes of that time, beginning with Pope Gregory VI and up to Pope St. Leo IX and his friend, Pope St. Gregory VII.

Back then, the corruptions of worldly vices, attachments, ambitions and sins have slowly crept up into the Church and into its various communities, affecting both the clergymen and the laity alike. St. Peter Damian helped to reform the Church through his great vision and desire to root out from the Church those worldly corruptions and vices which had caused so many scandals and for so many of the faithful to fall into sin and evil ways. He rooted out corrupt practices and helped to straighten the ways of many of the faithful, in his various capacities as Papal envoy and legate, and as a member of the College of Cardinals, his role as a Cardinal and hence close Papal confidant and advisor was crucial in the reestablishment of order and virtue in the life of the Church of that time. And despite his high office and influential position, St. Peter Damian remained humble and thoroughly committed to his calling, and not swayed by worldly temptations of power and glory.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all discern what we have just discussed, including the life and examples of St. Peter Damian in remembering that as Christians each and every one of us are also expected to live our lives with genuine faith in the Lord, and root out from ourselves, from our hearts and minds, the corruption of sin and temptations of pride, ego, ambition, hubris, greed and others. Let us all remind ourselves of this as we are embarking on the journey through the season of Lent beginning tomorrow on Ash Wednesday, that through this penitential time and season, we may always be growing ever closer to God and distance ourselves from sin and its wickedness. May God bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours, all for His greater glory, now and always. Amen.

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Tuesday, 21 February 2023 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Mark 9 : 30-37

At that time, after leaving the place where He cast out evil spirit from a deaf and dumb boy, Jesus and His disciples made their way through Galilee, but He did not want people to know where He was because He was teaching His disciples. And He told them, “The Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men. They will kill Him, but three days after He has been killed, He will rise.”

The disciples, however, did not understand these words and they were afraid to ask Him what He meant. They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house, Jesus asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” But they did not answer, because they had been arguing about who was the greatest.

Then He sat down, called the Twelve and said to them, “If someone wants to be first, let him be last of all and servant of all.” Then He took a little child, placed him in their midst, and putting His arms around him, He said to them, “Whoever welcomes a child such as this in My Name, welcomes Me; and whoever welcomes Me, welcomes not Me but the One Who sent Me.”

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Tuesday, 21 February 2023 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Psalm 36 : 3-4, 18-19, 27-28, 39-40

Trust in the Lord and do good, dwell in the land and live on it. Make the Lord your delight, and He will grant your heart’s desire.

The Lord watches over the lives of the upright; forever will their inheritance abide. They are not crushed in times of calamity; when famine strikes, they still are satisfied.

Do good and shun evil, so that you will live secure forever. For the Lord loves justice and right, and never forsakes His faithful ones. The wicked instead will perish and their breed will be cut off.

The Lord is the salvation of the righteous; in time of distress, He is their refuge. The Lord helps them, and rescues them from the oppressor; He saves them for they sought shelter in Him.

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Tuesday, 21 February 2023 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Sirach 2 : 1-13 (Greek Septuagint version – Sirach 2 : 1-11)

My son, if you have decided to serve the Lord, prepare yourselves for trials. Keep your heart upright and remain resolute; do not be upset in the time of adversity. Hold fast to the Lord, do not separate yourself from Him so that you may be successful to the end of your days.

Accept all that happens to you, be patient when you are humbled, for as gold is tested in the fire, so those acceptable to God are tested in the crucible of humiliation. Have confidence in Him and He will take care of you; follow the right path and hope in Him.

You who fear the Lord, wait for His mercy and do not turn away lest you fall. You who fear the Lord, trust Him and you will not lose your reward. You who fear the Lord, hope for all good things; hope for eternal joy and mercy. Remember what happened to your ancestors. Who has ever trusted in the Lord and been confounded? Who has persevered in fear of the Lord and been abandoned? Who has called upon Him and not been heard?

For the Lord is compassion and loving kindness; He forgives our sins and saves us in time of distress.

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Monday, 20 February 2023 : 7th 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 contained within the Scriptures, each one of us are reminded to have faith in the Lord and to entrust ourselves to the Wisdom and the providence that God has provided us with, as He has always ever been faithful to the Covenant which He had made with us and our ancestors. All of us should keep in mind to do what the Lord has told us to do, living our lives wholeheartedly to walk in His presence at all times. Each one of us are called to be good and faithful disciples of the Lord, giving our time, effort and attention to Him, and to do His will at all times, and to follow Him with faith, making sure that we remain well connected and attuned to Him in our lives so that we may truly be close to Him, and committed to Him in each and every moments of our lives, being good examples and role models to each other.

In our first reading today from the Book of the prophet Sirach, we heard the words of the prophet Sirach speaking about the Wisdom of God, which He has imparted on all those who trust and believe in Him, as He is the source of all Wisdom, knowledge and truth. The prophet Sirach also highlighted how there are many things in this world, in this universe and existence that are not known to us, and even the best of our human intellect and understanding cannot comprehend the full truth and knowledge of the universe, as we can only behold parts and pieces of the knowledge and the truth. But through the Lord and the Wisdom He has imparted to us, all of us have received greater understanding and appreciation of the truth from God, and we have better understanding of how God has loved us so much and did so much wonders all around us, all these while.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of how there were argument between the disciples of the Lord and the teachers of the Law who disagreed with the Lord and His disciples, as the disciples of the Lord there then also failed to heal the possessed son of a person who brought him to them, hoping that the disciples could heal him and cast out the evil spirits and demons from him. It was there then that the Lord admonished the people and His disciples, all those who still did not have genuine faith in Him and His power, and instead depending on their own flawed and imperfect knowledge, power and intellect rather than to trust in the Lord and to believe in His Wisdom and power. That was why those disciples failed to cast out the demons from the possessed son, as they did not have enough faith in God to do so.

Rather, they most likely must have trusted more in their own power and abilities, or might likely even think that it was by their own power and greatness, their own abilities and intellect that they had cast out the demons and evil spirits, performed other miracles and great deeds that they had done in the past. However, they forgot that they all did everything by the grace of God, guiding them and providing for them. It was the Lord Who gave them the authority, power and ability to forgive sins, to heal the sick and to cast out demons, and to make whole those who have been afflicted with various sickness and troubles. Yet, those disciples had grown proud and ambitious, and thought of themselves as greater than they were supposed to be, as if it was by their own power and abilities that they had performed all those miracles. That was why they could not heal the possessed son.

At the same time, those teachers of the Law and the Pharisees who doubted the Lord, His power and authority, were also those who were blinded in the similar manner by their own achievements, position and ambition, as they thought that they were the sole possessor of wisdom and power over the people of God. They were always highly regarded and respected by the rest of the community, and this made them to be very careful and particular in guarding their privileges and powers, not allowing those like the Lord and His disciples to threaten them in any way. That was why, despite their supposedly superior knowledge, intellect, capacity and expectation, and despite their knowledge and understanding of the Law and the Prophets, they failed to recognise the Lord’s coming, His truth and His Wisdom which He had often made truly evident and real before them.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, having discussed and discerned the words of the Lord contained within the passages of the Scriptures today, let us remind ourselves how the season of Lent is coming very soon, as it begins just this Wednesday with the Ash Wednesday celebration. All of us should make good use of the opportunities provided to us to get ever closer to Him, to renew our relationship and bond with God so that we may come to understand better His truth and love for us, and everything that He had done for our sake. We must not allow ourselves to be swayed by the temptations of pride, ego and ambition, and all the worldly desires and wickedness present all around us which may end up causing us to fall into the path of rebellion and sin, and to fail in our faith just as the disciples of the Lord and those Pharisees and teachers of the Law had done in the past.

Let us all hence continue to live our lives and moving forward with faith, renewed and rejuvenated, strengthened and encouraged by all that we have heard today. God has always been generous with His love, kindness and wisdom, and He has given us everything we need to progress forward in His path, showing us His guidance and help through various means. Now what is left is for us to have the humility in our hearts and minds, to allow Him to lead and guide us down the right path. We also ought to have faith and trust in the Lord, and do whatever we can to let His Wisdom and strength to encourage us to continue to struggle and to persevere even amidst the toughest challenges and hardships, and continue to do what we can as good and faithful disciples and followers of our Lord.

May the Lord continue to guide us in our faith journey especially as we are about to enter into the season of Lent this week. May He guide us in all of our actions, words and deeds, empowering us with the Wisdom and providence, allowing us to do great and wonderful things for His greater glory, now and always, at all times. May God bless us all in our every good efforts and endeavours, and may He bless us always and more, and inspire us all to be ever good role models and examples, for the help of others around us. Amen.

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Monday, 20 February 2023 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 9 : 14-29

At that time, when Jesus and His disciples, Peter, James and John came to the place where they had left the disciples, they saw many people around them and some teachers of the Law arguing with them. When the people saw Jesus, they were astonished and ran to greet Him.

He asked, “What are you arguing about with them?” A man answered Him from the crowd, “Master, I brought my son to You, for he has a spirit, deaf and mute. Whenever the spirit seizes him, it throws him down and he foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth and becomes stiff all over. I asked Your disciples to drive the spirit out, but they could not.”

Jesus replied, “You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him to Me.” And the brought the boy to Him. As soon as the spirit saw Jesus, it shook and convulsed the boy, who fell on the ground, and began rolling about, foaming at the mouth.

Then Jesus asked the father, “How long has this been happening to him?” He replied, “From childhood. And it has often thrown him into the fire and into the water to destroy him. If You can do anything, have pity on us and help us.”

Jesus said to him, “Why do you say, ‘If You can?’ All things are possible for the one who believes.” Immediately the father of the boy cried out, “I do believe, but help the little faith I have.” Jesus saw that the crowd was increasing rapidly, so He ordered the evil spirit, “Dumb and deaf spirit, I command you : Leave the boy and never enter him again.”

The evil spirit shook and convulsed the boy and with a terrible shriek came out. The boy lay like a corpse and people said, “He is dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him and the boy stood up. After Jesus had gone indoors, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not drive out the spirit?”

And He answered, “Only prayer can drive out this kind, nothing else.”