Bishop of Rome

by

Wednesday, 15 July 2026 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all presented with the works of the Lord as He revealed to us His saving grace. He has given His kindness and love to His people and give justice to them. To those who obey Him and His Laws, He gives blessings and graces, protection and help, while those who haughtily and proudly disobeyed Him, remaining in their way and state of sin, were punished and faced consequences corresponding to their sins and faults, as the Scriptures today had presented to us. All of us are God’s beloved and precious children, and to God our Father Who truly and genuinely loves us, we are all wonderful and amazing in His eyes, and we have no need to worry because 

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard of the words of the Lord as delivered through Isaiah to the people of God in the kingdom of Judah, speaking about the proud and arrogant king of Assyria, whom God would put in his place, humiliate and remind that all of his glory and power were nothing without God’s approval and help. In order to understand the significance of these words and the passage, we have to know the circumstances during that time, when the king of Assyria came to destroy many nations and conquered many countries, including the wicked people of the kingdoms of Israel and Aram in Syria.

Back then, the king of Assyria became proud and arrogant, and thinking that he had all the power and glory in the world, that he went up against the faithful people of God in Judah and Jerusalem. King Sennacherib of Assyria brought his whole massive army to besiege Jerusalem and conquer Judah. Not only that but Sennacherib also boasted before the whole entire people of Jerusalem and Judah, their king Hezekiah, the prophet Isaiah and all assembled that he had conquered many nations and peoples, and how all of their gods and idols could not protect them against his armies, and therefore, God would not have been able to protect Judah and Jerusalem too as what had happened to the other cities that were destroyed and subjugated.

Sennacherib forgot that whatever he had done, all had been made available by God, and in his moment of folly, pride and arrogance, he blasphemed against God and spoke proudly in great sin against Him. Hence, the Lord through His prophet Isaiah spoke to His people offering reassurance for them that He would be with them, and the Assyrians and their king would be humbled and defeated. The blasphemy and wickedness that king Sennacherib had publicly uttered before the Lord and all the assembled people would become his undoing, as later in the history of this Assyrian invasion, it was told that the entire Assyrian forces were wiped out by the power of God.

These are all reminders for all of us that we should not go up against God or in defying Him by following our own ways and paths. Each and every one of us should follow the truth and the path that Christ Himself, the Son of God, has shown us all through His disciples and His Church. In our Gospel passage today, that was what we heard as the Lord Jesus spoke of Himself having come from the Father, revealing to all of us mankind the truth that God has willingly shared with us, so that through that same truth, all of us may find the path and the way to eternal life and true joy in God, the ultimate goal and realisation of our lives’ paths and journeys in this world, all of which are supposed to lead towards God.

That is why today we are reminded that we should renew our trust and faith in God, and learn to follow His path and examples, while resisting the temptations of the world and the pressures all around us which may try to force us to succumb to those temptations and abandon our faith in the Lord. That is why today we should look upon the great faith shown by our predecessors, all those servants of God, disciples and followers of the Lord who had given their all in order to serve Him. Today we celebrate the feast of one of those servants of God, namely St. Bonaventure, a renowned Franciscan bishop, theologian and Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church, who was later on declared as one of the Doctors of the Church for his great contributions to the Christian faith and the Church, as well as his commitment to Church reforms.

He joined the Franciscan Order and had an interaction with its founder, the other renowned saint, St. Francis of Assisi. He wrote extensively on theological matters, so much so that he was known well as the ‘Seraphic Doctor’ by his contemporaries and later Church theologians. He was also elected as the leader of the Franciscan Order as its Minister General, and was instrumental in guiding the order through its works and principles, and at the same time also involving himself in greater and wider whole Church reforms. He was elevated to the Cardinalate by the Pope for his influential efforts and works in securing his election, and in his many other contributions to the good of the Church and the faithful people of God. The great examples of St. Bonaventure still inspired many people right even up to this very day.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore follow the great examples set by St. Bonaventure and many of our other holy predecessors, in doing our very best to glorify the Lord by our works and efforts in every moments of our lives, that by our every actions, words and deeds, we will always put God first and foremost in all things, and not easily swayed by worldly temptations and desires. May the Lord continue to help and guide us all in our journey, in continuing to persevere in being ever more faithful and dedicated as those whom He has called and chosen as His own, now and always. Amen.

by

Wednesday, 15 July 2026 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 11 : 25-27

At that time, Jesus said, “Father, Lord of heaven and earth, I praise You; because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to simple people. Yes, Father, this was Your gracious will.”

“Everything has been entrusted to Me by My Father. No one knows the Son except the Father; and no one knows the Father except the Son, and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.”

by

Wednesday, 15 July 2026 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 93 : 5-6, 7-8, 9-10, 14-15

They crush Your people, o YHVH, they oppress Your inheritance. They murder the widow and the lonely; they massacre the helpless.

“YHVH does not see,” they say, “The God of Jacob does not care.” Remember this, you stupid people; when will you understand, you fools!

He Who made the ear, will He not hear? He Who formed the eye, will He not see? He Who rebukes nations, will He not punish them?

YHVH will not reject His people, nor will He forsake His heritage. Justice will return to the just; and the upright will follow, in its wake.

by

Wednesday, 15 July 2026 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Isaiah 10 : 5-7, 13-16

Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger, the staff of My fury! Against a godless nation I send him, against a people who provoke My wrath I dispatch him, to plunder and pillage, to tread them down like mud in the streets. But the mind of his king is far from this, his heart harbours other thoughts; what he wants is to destroy, to make an end of all nations.

For the King says : “By my own strength I have done this and by my own wisdom, for I am clever. I have moved the frontiers of people, I have plundered treasures, I have brought inhabitants down to the dust, I have toppled kings from their thrones. As one reaches into a nest, so my hands have reached into nations’ wealth. As one gathers deserted eggs, so have I gathered the riches of the earth. No one flapped a wing or opened its mouth to chirp a protest.”

Does the ax claim more credit than the man who wields it? Does the saw magnify itself more than the one who uses it? This would be like a rod wielding the man who lifts it up; will those not made of wood, be controlled by the cudgel? This is why YHVH Sabaoth, is ready to send a wasting sickness upon the king’s sturdy warriors. Beneath his plenty, a flame will burn like a consuming fire.

by

Tuesday, 14 July 2026 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Camillus de Lellis, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are presented with the need for all of us to believe and trust in the Lord, and not be easily swayed or concerned, worried or afraid because of the threats and challenges that we have to face in life. We have to keep our faith in the Lord firm and strong, or else we will easily fall into the temptations to sin and to do what are against God’s will, His Law and commandments. As Christians, we should entrust ourselves in the Lord and believe that in Him there is always hope and way out of our predicament, and in the end, we shall triumph together with Him and He will always be by our side, guiding and strengthening us throughout the journey.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah regarding the words that the Lord delivered through Isaiah to king Ahaz of Judah. Back then, at that time, king Ahaz was one of the kings of Judah who was considered as one of the unfaithful and wicked kings, whose lack of faith in God led to the Lord speaking through Isaiah to deliver the famous prophecy of the Virgin who would give birth to a Son, the Saviour of the world, Emmanuel, as a sign for all the people of God to see. King Ahaz’s lack of faith in God made this happen, as God would prove to him and the people that what He said would come true in the end, as we now know it had happened the way the Lord decreed it. God has always fulfilled everything that He had said and promised to us, without any exception.

In this occasion mentioned in the first reading today, we heard of the time when the kingdom of Judah was threatened by the combined forces of the northern kingdom of Israel, the forces of the king of the Arameans and all those who worked together to destroy the kingdom of Judah and Jerusalem. Israel and Judah, the two halves of the ancient kingdom of David and Solomon had long been locked in a bitter struggle for dominance and control, and this time, it seemed that Judah was doomed because of the forces arrayed against it. Hence, king Ahaz and the people fell into worry and fear for their fates. What they were facing were truly great hurdles and fearsome foes which by any ordinary means would have overwhelmed, crushed and defeated them, but nothing is impossible for God to accomplish even against the impossible odds.

God therefore reassured Ahaz and the people of Judah, and chided them for their lack of trust and faith in Him. They preferred to consult with pagan gods, idols and seers, or settle through worldly means and arrangements rather than to turn towards their Lord and God, Who had helped their ancestors and freed them from the land of their slavery, and God Who had also provided for His people, protected them and guided them. He told them of what He would do in defeating the forces of Israel and Aram on behalf of His faithful ones in Judah, and at the same time also warning them that should they themselves fell into the same path of unfaithfulness, they too would endure the same fate. That was what Isaiah and the other prophets warned against to the king and the people of Judah, that they should not allow themselves to be swayed into the path of sin and wickedness.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard the Lord Jesus proclaiming denunciations and rebuke over several cities and towns of Galilee, namely Capernaum, Chorazin and Bethsaida, and He said how all of those cities and towns were where He had performed many of His works and miracles, and where He had also preached and taught the people, and yet many of them still doubted Him and rejected Him, and some even persecuted Him and His disciples for presenting the truth to their midst. As such, when compared with what happened at the time of the old kingdom of Judah, the unfaithfulness of king Ahaz and the people, we can easily see a clear parallel between them both, and how all these are also important lessons for us all to take note of.

What is the significance of all these Scripture passages to us, brothers and sisters in Christ? It is a reminder that each and every one of us as disciples and followers of Christ, we are all called to believe in God and His truth. All of us have to put our faith and trust in the Lord, and we have to walk ever more carefully and with commitment in His presence. We have to be careful lest we may be distracted and tempted to abandon the Lord’s path because of the efforts and machinations of the devil and his forces, all bent on trying to lead us down the path of ruin and damnation. Each one of us must resist those temptations and always strive to remain true in our faith and love for God.

Let us therefore turn towards God with renewed faith and zeal, and dedicate our whole lives with the aim of serving Him in each and every moments of our lives, in our every words, deeds and actions, so that through them, we may proclaim the truth of God in all things. Let us no longer worry or be afraid of what we will experience and what we will have to endure in our journey, as in the end, God will always be triumphant with us, and if we remain faithful to Him, then we shall share in His glorious inheritance and we shall receive from Him the promise of eternal life and true joy.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Camillus de Lellis, a holy and devoted man of God, who as a priest was remembered for his great care for his great care and compassion for the sick and the dying, and for all who were wounded and hospitalised, based on his own prior experiences, when he was fighting in the military prior to joining the priesthood, where a leg injury and also bad experiences, attitude and problems, that included his aggressive nature and excessive gambling, eventually led him to seek the Lord through the assistance of a Capuchin friar who patiently helped St. Camillus de Lellis to find his way to the Lord. Through that conversion, this sinful man turned into a new life as a priest and man of God eventually felt the calling to serve the Lord and His people in greater ways.

He founded the Order of Clerks Regular, Ministers of the Infirm, also known today as the Camillians after their founder, which members dedicate themselves to the care of the sick and the wounded, assisting in wars and conflicts, and in the care of all those who were not able to take care of themselves. St. Camillus de Lellis himself suffered from ailments and hardships throughout his life and ministry, but he did not let all of those things to dissuade or discourage him from continuing to carry out his works, in reaching out to the sick and suffering, and all to those who were less fortunate, actions that inspired many other people to join and help out in his cause, through his patient efforts and works.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore strive to follow the good examples of our holy and devoted predecessors, and all the reminders that we have received from the Scriptures today. Let us all renew our trust and faith in the Lord our God, doing our very best such that we may always be good role models and examples for everyone around us. May the Lord bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours, now and  forevermore. Amen.

by

Tuesday, 14 July 2026 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Camillus de Lellis, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Matthew 11 : 20-24

At that time, Jesus began to denounce the cities in which He had performed most of His miracles, because the people there did not change their ways.

“Alas for you Chorazin and Bethsaida! If the miracles worked in you had taken place in Tyre and Sidon, the people there would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I assure you, for Tyre and Sidon; it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.”

“And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? You will be thrown down to the place of the dead! For if the miracles which were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would still be there today! But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”

by

Tuesday, 14 July 2026 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Camillus de Lellis, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Psalm 47 : 2-3ab, 3cd-4, 5-6, 7-8

Great is YHVH, most worthy of praise in the City of God, His holy mountain. Beautifully elevated, it is the joy of all the earth.

Mount Zion, heavenly mountain, the City of the great King. Here, within her lines of defence, God has shown Himself to be a sure fortress.

The kings assembled together, advanced toward the city. But as soon as they saw it, they were astounded; they panicked and took to flight.

Seized with fear, they trembled, like a woman in travail, or like ships of Tarshish, shattered by a strong wind from the east.

by

Tuesday, 14 July 2026 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Camillus de Lellis, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Isaiah 7 : 1-9

When Ahaz son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, king Rezin of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah, king of Israel, laid siege to Jerusalem but they were unable to capture it. When the news reached the house of David, “Aram’s troops are encamped in Ephraim,” the heart of the king and the hearts of the people trembled as the trees of the forest trembled before the wind.

YHVH then said to Isaiah : “Go with your son A-remnant-will-return, and meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Washerman’s Field. Say to him, ‘Stay calm and fear not; do not lose courage before these two stumps of smouldering firebrands – the fierce anger of Rezin the Aramean and the blazing fury of the son of Remaliah.’”

“‘You know that Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s son have plotted against Judah, saying : Let us invade and scare it, let us seize it and put the son of Tabeel king over it. But the Lord YHVH says : It shall not be so; it shall not come to pass. For Damascus is only the head of Aram and Rezin the lord of Damascus. Samaria is only the head of Ephraim and Remaliah’s son is only the lord of Samaria. Within fifty-six years, Ephraim will be shattered and will no longer be a people. But if you do not stand firm in faith, you, too, will not stand at all.’”

by

Monday, 13 July 2026 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Henry (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded to be truly faithful to the Lord our God, in all of our actions and deeds. Each and every one of us as Christians ought to strive to live our lives and deepen our spirituality, our relationship with God, so that all of us may grow ever better in our Christian living and in our obedience to God. All of us are called and challenged to live our lives full of Christian truth and discipleship, obedience to the Law and commandments of God, in following the Lord wholeheartedly, doing everything as God had told us to. We are all called to be genuine Christians and true disciples of the Lord, showing our faith at every moments of our lives, in everything that we say and do.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, the words of the Lord to the people through Isaiah, the warning for all those who have committed sins against God. God warned all of them that their sins were known to Him, and those sins would be their undoing unless they turned away from them and repent from them. The Lord was referring to Sodom, which in fact by that time had been a wasteland for a long time since it was destroyed in the rain of brimstone from Heaven, together with Gomorrah. This reference to Sodom was in fact a reference to the sins of the people, which are just like the sins of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah in the past. But before we misunderstand those sins as implicating a certain group of people or sexuality, we must realise that the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah were truly one of maltreatment of guests, dishonour and ostracising of those whom they deemed as foreigners like Lot and his family.

Then the Lord also made references to the people’s offerings and sacrifices. This was actually referring to their hypocrisy and lack of faith. They might still be doing their rituals and worship, which they offered at the Temple in Jerusalem, but it had become superficial and lacking in genuine faith and love for God. The people of God had not done what they should have, in loving God wholeheartedly as they had not obeyed His Law and commandments, and merely paid lip service to Him. Their offerings and sacrifices were made with equal sincerity and fervour to God as they did with the pagan idols and gods. They did not truly believe in God with all their heart and might, and were more concerned by worldly matters and desires than to serve God.

Hence, the prophet Isaiah was sent to the people with the message to remind them all to turn back towards God wholeheartedly, and abandon their sinful and lukewarm attitude in following God. This is something that the Lord had always done to His people, giving them reminders and help, encouragement and strength, although He always encountered stiff and stubborn resistance from many of them who were unwilling to walk in the path that the Lord had shown them, and many of His prophets had to suffer rejection and hardships throughout their ministries and lives in the world. And all these are reminders for each one of us that we must not think that our paths and journey will be smooth and easy going forward because we have been faithful to God, but instead expect that difficulties and obstacles will likely be in our path. Otherwise, we will quickly lose faith in God when troubles come for us.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Matthew in which the Lord told His disciples presenting to them the reality of His coming into the world and how the disciples might have to face sufferings, hardships and persecutions much as how the prophets had faced in the past. This was because contextually at that time, the people generally expected that the coming of the Messiah or the Saviour and Holy One that God had promised to them ought to be accompanied with a lot of rejoicing, happiness and deliverance from the wickedness and evils of the world. That was the general understanding among the people regarding Who the Messiah would be.

The people often expected that the Messiah, the Son of David would be the One to lead them all in a great campaign and rebellion to free them from the tyranny and dominion of their Roman oppressors and overlords. They expected the Messiah to be a new King over them, ruling over the restored Kingdom of Israel. But the reality is such that, the Lord’s coming would in fact create divisions and tribulations for His followers, all because of the stubbornness and the same resistance that the world had often shown Him and His messengers. The truth that Christ brought with Him to this world would tear even families and friends apart, and that would have caused divisions and struggles, even amongst the most ardent of the faithful.

Hence, through all these each and every one of us are reminded that being Christians is not something that is trivial or easily done. There may often be a lot of sacrifices and efforts needed for us to be truly faithful to God. That is why we are all called to be truly faithful to God and not just merely paying lip service or formality as what the Israelites in Judah had done by the time of the prophet Isaiah. All of us should commit ourselves to a new life dedicated to God, and in our every actions and deeds, we should be genuinely filled with the desire to love God and with the desire to embrace His methods and ways. All of us ought to be exemplary in our lives and actions at all times.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Henry, also known as Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor, the paramount secular ruler of Christendom during the High Middle Ages, who lived and reigned exactly a millennium ago from this day. St. Henry was renowned for his great piety and dedication to God, for his love for the Law and precepts of God and for his obedience to the Church. St. Henry spent a lot of effort and time in caring for the needs of his subjects, and all those who have been put under his dominion, and at the same time, he was also ever active in promoting the cause of the Church and that of the Christian faith, by establishing Church institutions and by giving his full support on the mission of the Church and the work of evangelisation, which saw great success in the continued growth of the Church and more and more pagans being converted to the true faith in God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are therefore called to follow the Lord more faithfully following the great examples of our holy predecessors, like that of St. Henry, Holy Roman Emperor, and like that of the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord, living our lives with purpose and clear intention to serve the Lord and to glorify Him through our daily living and actions, by our every interactions and way of living our lives virtuously in the manner that God Himself has shown and taught us. May we continue to touch more hearts and minds by our good works and efforts, and bring more people ever closer to the Lord, our most loving God, now and always. Amen.

by

Monday, 13 July 2026 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Henry (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Matthew 10 : 34 – Matthew 11 : 1

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Do not think that I have come to establish peace on earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. Each one will have as enemies, those of one’s own family.”

“Whoever loves father or mother more than Me, is not worthy of Me. And whoever loves son or daughter more than Me, is not worthy of Me. And whoever does not take up his cross and follow Me, is not worthy of Me. Whoever finds his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life, for My sake, will find it.”

“Whoever welcomes you, welcomes Me; and whoever welcomes Me, welcomes Him Who sent Me. The one who welcomes a prophet, as a prophet, will receive the reward of a prophet; the one who welcomes a just man, because he is a just man, will receive the reward of a just man.”

“And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones, because he is My disciple, I assure you, he will not go unrewarded.”

When Jesus had finished giving His twelve disciples these instructions, He went on from there to teach and proclaim His message in their towns.