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Sunday, 17 May 2026 : Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 1 : 1-11

In the first part of my work, Theophilus, I wrote of all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning until the day when He ascended to heaven. But first He had instructed through the Holy Spirit, the Apostles He had chosen. After His passion, He presented Himself to them, giving many signs that He was alive, over a period of forty days He appeared to them and taught them concerning the kingdom of God.

Once when He had been eating with them, He told them, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the fulfilment of the Father’s promise about which I have spoken to you : John baptised with water, but you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit within a few days.”

When they had come together, they asked Him, “Is it now that You will restore the Kingdom of Israel?” And He answered, “It is not for you to know the time and the steps that the Father has fixed by His own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the earth.”

After Jesus said this, He was taken up before their eyes and a cloud hid Him from their sight. While they were still looking up to heaven where He went, suddenly, two men dressed in white stood beside them, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking up at the sky? This Jesus Who has been taken from you into heaven, will return in the same way as you have seen Him go there.”

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Sunday, 17 May 2026 : Seventh Sunday of Easter, World Social Communications Sunday (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday all of us are reminded first and foremost of the need for all of us as Christians to be in communication with the Lord our most loving God and Father. And it is not a coincidence that this Sunday, the seventh one in the season of Easter, we also mark the occasion of the World Communications Sunday or the World Social Communications Sunday. On this Sunday, we keep in mind the importance of communication, especially with regards to the communication that we should have with the Lord, our most loving God. The Lord has always loved us and each one of us have always been so fortunate to be beloved in such a manner by God. Yet, many of us have not spent the time to reach out to the Lord and we have often forgotten about Him, ignored His love and attention towards us.

We often refused to embrace His love, hardened our hearts and minds against Him, turning a blind eye and a deaf ear to His constant efforts in reaching out to us, in all the love that He has continuously shown us, all these while. The Lord has sent us His own beloved Son, incarnate in the flesh, the Son and Divine Word of God, Who came into our midst so that we may behold the fullness of God’s love manifested in the flesh. Through Him, all of us have experienced the presence of God so close to us, and it is part of His ever enduring desire to reach out to us, to communicate with us and to be with us all. He went through all these because He truly cares for each one of us, and wants us to be freed from the bondage due to our many sins and wickedness. He does not want us to fall into eternal damnation.

Hence, that is why He taught us all how to pray, like what we heard in our Gospel passage today. We heard the Lord Jesus speaking in prayer to His heavenly Father, glorifying and thanking Him in all that He had done, and in all of His wonders and glory. He also commended and entrusted His disciples and followers to His care and providence, asking Him to protect and guide them, to bless them and to be with them just as He has been with them. The Lord has always thought about us and He therefore asked His heavenly Father to bless us and to give us the strength and the courage, and through Him, the Father has sent unto us the Holy Spirit to be our guide and strength, leading us all to Himself. The Lord Jesus Himself has often communicated with His Father, spending time in prayer and in quiet solace, showing us what it truly means to communicate with our loving God and Father.

We may wonder why is it that Jesus Christ, our Lord, the Son of God Himself, had the need to communicate or pray to His heavenly Father. First of all, that is because it shows us how the Son and the Father are always in harmony, together with the Holy Spirit, in a perfect unity of the Three Divine Persons in one Godhead, the Most Holy Trinity. Not only that, but as the Son of God, He is also at the same time, the Son of Man, born to be one like us, sharing in our human likeness and nature, so that by being the Son of the Father, He may share with us all the same identity as sons and daughters, for each one of us so that we truly can call God as our Father as well. That is why, all of us call ourselves as brothers and sisters in Christ, the same children of our most loving God and Father.

Now, as we heard in our first reading today from the Acts of the Apostles, we heard how the Apostles themselves spent time in prayer as they came back from witnessing the Lord’s glorious Ascension into Heaven, and while waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit. They all prayed seeking guidance from God and remaining in communication with Him, listening to Him speaking in their hearts and minds, and once the Holy Spirit came down upon them at Pentecost, they kept on praying and spending time to attune themselves with God, a connection ever strengthened by the Holy Spirit guiding them, as well as through their constant prayerful life and actions. The examples of these early Christians, our holy predecessors ought to become inspiration and good examples for each one of us to follow just as we ourselves seek to live our lives worthily of the Lord.

How about us then, brothers and sisters in Christ? As we commemorate this World Communications Sunday today, let us ask ourselves and remind ourselves whether we have already done what we should as Christians, first and foremost in communicating with God our Father? Many of us are often so busy and preoccupied with so many things in life that we may have forgotten about God, sidelining Him from our lives and ignoring Him. To not few among us, prayer is something done just as a last resort when all hope is lost, or that we desire that God must do something on our behalf, or for our own benefits. While it is indeed right for us to trust the Lord and ask Him for assistance and help, however, demanding for Him to do something for us and to help us is not alright at all. Unfortunately, that is often how many of us prayed, and instead of genuine communication which is what a prayer truly is, our prayers become litanies of supplications and demands.

We become angry when our prayers are not answered or when it seemed that God did not listen to our prayers, requests or desires. But we forget one important and most fundamental fact that the Lord was in no way answerable to us or obliged to answer us or give us what we demanded of Him. This is what happened when we do not have a strong and genuine faith in Him, and when our faith and commitment to Him is truly fleeting and temporary in nature, that prevented us from truly being able to grow into a truly wonderful, strong and enduring relationship with our most loving God and Father. When we pray and seek the Lord only when we have need for Him, then it is not truly building relationship with God, brothers and sisters in Christ. All of us have to strive to build a strong and lasting relationship with God, one that endures through even the most difficult moments and challenges.

And as Christians, all of us are also encouraged to build up strong and genuine relationships with our fellow Christians, our brothers and sisters in the same Lord, our God and Father. Our Christian faith is not something that thrives in isolation, as we need to be part of a vibrant and living Christian community, all in good communication and contact with each other, so that we may indeed become closer to each other and grow to love and care for our fellow brethren, just as the Lord has commanded all of us to do. Our Christian faith and obligation requires us to spend time not just with God but also with our fellow brethren, to communicate with them meaningfully and to develop strong, living and enduring relationships, through which we will become ever more enriched and stronger in faith and dedication to the Lord. And we are also called even more importantly to love those whom God had placed in our lives, our most beloved and dearest ones, and never taking them for granted, spending quality and important time with them.

Let us all therefore do our best so that we may grow ever better in how we communicate with God through prayers and other means, and also how we communicate with each other, by spending quality time with those who are important and dear to us, and also spending time and effort to interact meaningfully and lovingly with one another, to our beloved ones, in our families and among our friends, and also with the strangers and acquaintances whom we encounter each day. Let us all do this, and commit ourselves to be effective communicators, knowing that by our exemplary lives and good communication skills, we may truly proclaim the Lord and His truth to more and more people from all the nations. May the Lord continue to guide and bless each one of us in our efforts to glorify Him, in each and every moments. Amen.

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Sunday, 17 May 2026 : Seventh Sunday of Easter, World Social Communications Sunday (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 17 : 1-11a

At that time, after Jesus said all that He had said to His disciples, He lifted up His eyes to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come! Give glory to Your Son, that the Son may give glory to You. You have given Him power over all humanity, so that He may give eternal life to all those You entrusted to Him. For this is eternal life : to know You, the only true God, and the One You sent, Jesus Christ.”

“I have glorified You on earth and finished the work that You gave Me to do. Now, Father, give Me, in Your presence, the same glory I had with You before the world began. I have made Your Name known to those You gave Me from the world. They were Yours, and You gave them to Me, and they kept Your word. And now they know that whatever You entrusted to Me, is indeed from You.”

“I have given them the teaching I received from You, and they received it, and know in truth that I came from You; and they believe that You sent Me. I pray for them. I do not pray for the world, but for those who belong to You, and whom You have given to Me. Indeed all I have is Yours and all You have is Mine; and now they are My glory.”

“I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I come to You.”

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Sunday, 17 May 2026 : Seventh Sunday of Easter, World Social Communications Sunday (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 Peter 4 : 13-16

Instead, you should be glad to share in the sufferings of Christ because, on the day His Glory is revealed, you will also fully rejoice. You are fortunate if you are insulted because of the Name of Christ, for the Spirit of glory rests on you.

I suppose that none of you should suffer for being a murderer, a thief, a criminal or an informer; but if anyone suffers on account of being a Christian, do not consider it a disgrace; rather let this Name bring glory to God.

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Sunday, 17 May 2026 : Seventh Sunday of Easter, World Social Communications Sunday (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 26 : 1, 4, 7-8a

The Lord is my Light and my Salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the Rampart of my life; I will not be afraid.

One thing I ask of the Lord, one thing I seek – that I may dwell in His house all the days of my life, to gaze at His jewel and to visit His sanctuary.

Hear my voice when I call, o Lord, have mercy on me and answer. My heart says to You, “I seek Your face, o Lord.”

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Sunday, 17 May 2026 : Seventh Sunday of Easter, World Social Communications Sunday (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

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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Saturday, 16 May 2026 : 6th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, all of us are reminded of the joy by which we should live our lives as Christians, and how we should proclaim the Lord with great joy, in our every day moments and lives, in our every actions and activities, in how we interact with others all around us. All of us are reminded to live our lives with great faith and dedication, following the examples of the Apostles and the many other disciples of the Lord, the holy missionaries and all those who have given their lives to the service of God, in proclaiming His truth and Good News, just as we have heard these from our Scripture passages today, the story of great deeds of evangelisation and missionary works, which we ourselves ought to be inspired to continue in our own way.

In our first reading today, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, we heard of the story of the missionary works of a particular Jewish Christian preacher named Apollos or St. Apollos, who was a contemporary of St. Paul and the other Apostles and early Church missionaries. He was a Jewish Christian convert from Alexandria, and according to the Acts of the Apostles and other New Testament sources, he was likely one of the disciples or followers of St. John the Baptist, as it was mentioned how he knew only of the baptism of John and the teachings of St. John the Baptist. But what was unique about St. Apollos was his great zeal and charism, his eloquence and oratorical skills which was very empowering and brought many people, especially those in the Jewish diaspora community, to become Christian believers. After two disciples of the Lord, Priscilla and Aquila spoke to Apollos regarding the revelation of the Christian truth which Apollos had not yet received, St. Apollos continued his labours therefore with even greater zeal and success.

In this case we have seen how God did His wonderful works through various means and people, even those who have not been properly instructed as what happened with the preaching of the famous and charismatic St. Apollos. And at the same time, we also see the hands of the Lord being with His Church, as He sent the necessary guidance to help His servants to be properly instructed, strengthened and encouraged in the true ways of the faith, as how the faithful guided St. Apollos and other missionaries, and as the Apostles were encouraging and supporting each other. They had their fair share of disagreements and frictions as is expected of the Church built upon various people with differing backgrounds and perspectives, but all these did not stop them from doing their best to work together and overcoming their differences.

The Lord was with His disciples, His servants and all those who have answered His call to be the ones to bear witness to His truth and Good News. God did not leave them alone but provided them with the guidance of His Holy Spirit, which He stirred in the hearts of those who have dedicated themselves for the good and service of the Church. Through all of these God had made lots of good and wonderful works to be accomplished in different manner by His various servants, calling countless people to return to Him, extending the works of His salvation to many of those who have not yet known or recognised Him, and turned the hearts and minds of many among those who have once been opposed to Him. This is how God had indeed been with His Church throughout all this time.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the Lord Jesus speaking to His disciples, telling them how one day the whole truth would be revealed to them, and how at that time, prior to His Passion, death and resurrection, He was still speaking in veiled languages, and how many among the disciples did not really understand or appreciate what He was trying to tell them. But He reassured them that everything would be revealed in due time, and indeed, the Lord revealed all to them, the truth that He spoke of and delivered to our midst, and the Holy Spirit has been sent to us, invigorating and strengthening us, while revealing the fullness of truth that God has been willing to share with us. Through the wisdom of God and the zeal that the Lord has placed in us via the Holy Spirit, all of us have been called and reminded to follow the Lord our God in each and every moments of our lives.

And the Lord Jesus reassured us all that everything we have asked in His Name, we shall receive from God, and we shall not be found wanting because God Himself will be by our side, providing for us at every step of our journey and life. This of course does not mean that we will not encounter difficulties and challenges in our path, and it does not mean that we will have it easy, but with the Lord by our side, providing for us, and by us having trust and faith in Him, we will eventually find our way through all those trials, challenges and difficulties, with God’s help and providence. We have to do our best as well, striving to do as best as possible in everything we do, while persevering with faith and trust that God will always be there with us through the struggles and difficulties.

All of us should be inspired by the examples presented by our predecessors in faith, that is all those who have embraced the Lord’s call and responded positively to His call, in living their lives well in accordance to the way of the Lord and in doing what they could in order to proclaim the Good News of God. We should look upon these examples in order to help and lead us down the right path, and as inspiration to help us to do what we can in our own way, in whatever capacity that the Lord has given us, through whatever graces and blessings that we have received. Each one of us as the disciples and followers of the Lord all share the same mission and responsibility, to bring forth God’s truth and Good News to all the people of all the nations so that more and more may come to believe in God and be saved through Him.

May the Lord be with us always therefore and may His Name be glorified, by each and every one of our actions, words and deeds. May He bless our every efforts and endeavours, guiding us all to walk ever more faithfully in His Presence, so that by our every actions, efforts and contributions, our every good works will be blessed by God and we will always be strengthened and encouraged to do God’s will at all times. May all of us continue to be truly genuine and devoted in our lives and actions as Christians, now and always. Amen.

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Saturday, 16 May 2026 : 6th Week of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 16 : 23b-28

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My Name, He will give you. So far you have not asked in My Name; ask, and receive, that your joy may be full.”

“I taught you all this in veiled language, but the time is coming when I shall no longer speak in veiled language, but will tell you plainly of the Father. When that day comes, you will ask in My Name; and it will not be for Me to ask the Father for you, for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and you believe that I came from the Father.”

“As I came from the Father, and have come into the world, so I am leaving the world, and going to the Father.”

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Saturday, 16 May 2026 : 6th Week of Easter (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 46 : 2-3, 8-9, 10

Clap your hands, all you peoples; acclaim God with shouts of joy. For the Lord, the Most High, is to be feared; He is a great King all over the earth.

God is King of all the earth; sing to Him a hymn of praise. For God now rules over the nations, God reigns from His holy throne.

The leaders of the nations rally together with the people of the God of Abraham. For in His hands are the great of the earth, God reigns far above.

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Saturday, 16 May 2026 : 6th Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 18 : 23-28

After spending some time at Antioch, Paul left and travelled from place to place through Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening the disciples. A certain Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, arrived at Ephesus. He was an eloquent speaker and an authority on the Scriptures, and he had some knowledge of the way of the Lord.

With great enthusiasm he preached and taught correctly about Jesus, although he knew only of John’s baptism. As he began to speak boldly in the synagogue, Priscilla and Aquila heard him; so they took him home with them and explained to him the way more accurately.

As Apollos wished to go to Achaia, the believers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. When he arrived, he greatly strengthened those who, by God’s grace, had become believers, for he vigorously refuted the Jews, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Messiah.