charity and love

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Wednesday, 17 December 2014 : Third Week of Advent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple or Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today it was told to us about the genealogy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is a descendant of Abraham, the father of many nations and our father in faith, and also a descendant of Jacob later known as Israel, who is the one blessed by God to be the chosen people, Israel, His people. He is also the descendant of David, the King of Israel, who belonged to the tribe of Judah.

We can see that Jacob, who in our first reading today from the last chapters of the Book of Genesis, blessed his children one by one, pronouncing their future and their goodness, showed how God had shown to Jacob the vision of what would happen in the far future after his own time. Jacob must have seen the vision of the coming of the Messiah, although he did not know exactly who He is, but he knew that He is to come.

And indeed, He was to come through Judah his own son, whom Jacob then blessed more than all of his other sons, even more than his eldest Reuben and even more than his most beloved ones, Joseph and his two children and Benjamin. For Judah had been prophesied to be the from whom the King of kings would come from, the one from whom would come a king who would rule all of Israel, and this was David, the one whom God had appointed in place of Saul as the king of Israel, and on whom God had promised that his throne will remain secure forever.

The sceptre of power and rule will be given to the descendant of David, the Shoot of David, who is the One we are going to celebrate this coming Christmas. Yes, the Christ, whose birthday is on Christmas. The Christ who was given the Name above every other name, Jesus, our Lord. For He is indeed the Son of David, his Heir who will rule over all Israel, and not just Israel, but the whole world, the Son of Man through Mary His mother, but also the Son of God, the Divine Word incarnate into the flesh of Man.

He is a King with power and authority, the source of all worldly power and authorities, but yet, He is not the kind of king that we commonly know about in this world. Jesus Himself said that His kingdom is not of this world, because His kingdom is the kingdom of God, not like any of the kingdoms of the world, which are built on possessions, material wealth, power, land, peoples and many others. The kingdom of God is the place where God and His beloved people may live together, those who have been found to be worthy, to enjoy forever the blessings and graces of God.

Jesus is a King, but He is simple and humble, and He showed His authority and power not by intimidation and fear, but through service and love towards all those who have been placed under His authority. He showed His leadership and kingship by service, showing care and genuine love for the poor, defending the rights of the weak and challenging those who have persecuted these people for their own benefits.

It is this King who we are welcoming into our midst in this coming Christmas, the Royal Baby born for us, so that through Him we are to get salvation and liberation from sin and evil. We must not forget this fact, or else, our Christmas celebration is meaningless and empty, filled with worldly desires and things of this world. We celebrate not to show off our wealth, not to be engulfed in excesses and drunkenness, but we celebrate because the Hope of this world, and the Hope of all mankind, had been born.

This Advent, as I have often mentioned, is a time for preparation for the coming of our Lord and Saviour. Not just to prepare for Christmas, but also to prepare for His coming again at the end of time, when He will come to judge all creations, and all of us according to our deeds. How do we prepare properly for this then? It is by exactly doing what Jesus had done throughout His ministry, what He taught His disciples to do, and we ought to follow them too.

Thus this Advent we should involve ourselves in more charitable and loving actions to our brethren in need. We should share the joy we have, the fortune and happiness we have with those who have less or none. In doing all these, we will be able to find the true meaning of Advent, and the true meaning of Christmas, that is to celebrate with God, our Lord Jesus Christ, for the love, hope and peace which He had brought into us all, so that we may rejoice with Him.

May Almighty God be with us all and awaken in us an ever stronger desire to seek Him and to love Him, as well as our brethren around us. May this Advent be a fruitful one for all of us, and may the coming Christmas bring God’s love ever closer to us. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/16/wednesday-17-december-2014-third-week-of-advent-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/16/wednesday-17-december-2014-third-week-of-advent-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/16/wednesday-17-december-2014-third-week-of-advent-gospel-reading/

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Saturday, 13 December 2014 : Second Week of Advent, Memorial of St. Lucy, Virgin and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we continue again to hear about the prophet Elijah and John the Baptist in our Scripture readings. Why is this so, brothers and sisters? That is because in this Advent season, it is particularly appropriate for us to heed their actions and their words, the proclamations of these faithful servants of God, who were sent to the people in order to turn their hearts back to the Lord.

They were sent to a people who had long lived in darkness and sin, and therefore, through their works, God hoped to bring back a people whom He loved to Himself so that they would be lost no more. Yes, He is the Good Shepherd who looks actively for His lost sheep, and desires greatly that all of us be reunited with Him. He wants us all to be freed from our bondage to the darkness of sin, and to this extent, He did the unbelievable, yes, indeed, for all those who did not have faith indeed, it was unbelievable, for He gave Himself, as the One through whom mankind would be saved.

Which other gods or entities who claimed divinity do this? None, and none beside our Lord and God, the One and only True God, who loves all that He created, and loves us in particular so much that He sent us Jesus, the incarnation of the Divine Word of God, to be our salvation. But so that the works of Jesus may come to a full completion and perfection, therefore, before His coming, God sent His servants to prepare the way for Him.

That was the purpose of the prophets and the messengers of God, great and chief among whom were St. John the Baptist and Elijah, who were in fact the one and same person, called to the service of God at two different times and eras, but nevertheless, they were called to the same mission, to call the people to repentance and for them to seek the mercy of God, and to change their ways and sin no more.

This is in perfect resonance to the very purpose and reason of this season of Advent, which means literally ‘coming’ or the coming of Christ our Lord at the end of time, when He will come again in glory to judge all the living and the dead, and it is for that coming of Christ that we should prepare ourselves thoroughly and completely. And in this, we should heed the examples of the prophets and the messengers of God.

All of us who have been baptised in the Name of Father, Son and the Holy Spirit had been made children of God, and also therefore as the members of His Body and His Church, the unity of all the faithful ones in the Lord. But at the same time, through our baptism, we have been given a mission, the same mission which Christ had given His Apostles and disciples before He left this world for heaven at the Ascension.

That mission was to proclaim the Good News and the salvation in Jesus Christ to all the nations, to all the peoples of the world, without exception, and to baptise them in the Name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. It is a call for all of us to walk in the same path as the prophet Elijah, who called for the people of the northern kingdom of Israel to repent from their sins, and also St. John the Baptist, who cried out in the wilderness for the people to repent and change their ways, to prepare for the coming of God’s kingdom, and who baptised them with the baptism of water.

We have the faith in us, and we have been granted God’s grace through baptism. Therefore, it is only fitting that we help one another, especially those who are still lost and in the darkness of the world, to find their way to God, so that at the end of the day, God may see in all of us, the same faithfulness shown by Elijah and John the Baptist.

Today, we also celebrate the feast of a martyr and holy virgin, St. Lucy, whose actions may also inspire us further to live according to the will of God, and according to what we have just discussed. St. Lucy was a young Christian maiden, who lived in Syracuse in the island of Sicily. St. Lucy or St. Lucia was a martyr of the Faith during the last great persecution of the faithful by the Roman Emperor Diocletian, and according to tradition, she was executed for being faithful and refusing to recant her faith to the Lord.

St. Lucy devoted herself totally to the Lord, and like many of her contemporaries, she committed herself to a life of sanctity and chastity, vowing to remain in holy virginity for the sake of the Lord. But her mother, not knowing of this and sickened with disease, betrothed her to a rich young man from a pagan family. Nonetheless, through the intercession of St. Agatha, St. Lucy’s mother was healed and St. Lucy managed to persuade her to donate in charitable acts, her riches and wealth to help the poor of the society.

St. Lucy thus showed her genuine and real faith through her loving actions to her brethren in need, and thus stand as a witness of the Lord and of the faith in Him by her concrete actions. Her betrothed complained against her actions to the local governor, who demanded that she offered sacrifices to the Emperor, which she refused immediately and firmly.

St. Lucy was therefore tortured and punished severely, and the authorities tried to kill her by various means, but they always failed. The wood would not burn when they tried to burn her at a stake. She eventually was martyred by the sword. Nevertheless, through her witness and defense of the faith, she became a great inspiration to many of the later generations, and many were saved by her intercession and examples.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, here we have seen what the faithful, that is all of us, have to do. The examples of St. Lucy and what we have discussed earlier showed that all of us have a responsibility to be witnesses of the faith, just as Elijah and St. John the Baptist had once done, to call the people who have lived in sin and darkness to return to the light of Christ, our Lord.

Indeed, it does not meant that we have to follow St. Lucy into martyrdom for this, but what is necessary is that we must realise that our faith cannot be a lukewarm one. We cannot sit on the fence and wait for things to happen. It is essential that we are proactive in our faith and actively spreading the Good News of our Lord, not just by words, but also through our concrete actions and love towards one another.

May St. Lucy intercede for us, that God may strengthen our faith and affirm us all in His love. May day by day we all grow stronger and more devoted in our lives. God bless us all, now and forever. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/12/saturday-13-december-2014-second-week-of-advent-memorial-of-st-lucy-virgin-and-martyr-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/12/saturday-13-december-2014-second-week-of-advent-memorial-of-st-lucy-virgin-and-martyr-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/12/saturday-13-december-2014-second-week-of-advent-memorial-of-st-lucy-virgin-and-martyr-gospel-reading/

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Request of Prayer for the People of the Philippines asking for the Lord’s protection from Typhoon Hagupit

Dear brothers and sisters, just as November last year brought the Super Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) to the Philippines, which devastated many regions in Central Philippines and causing numerous death, displacement and sufferings, this month of December, we witness yet another Super Typhoon, Hagupit, on the same path as Haiyan and it has the potential to wreck even more damage and suffering to those who are still suffering from the effects of the last year Super Typhoon.

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The above prayer is a prayer for deliverance from the calamities, especially from the typhoon as given by His Eminence Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Manila. Let us all pray together as one people and one Church of God, that the Lord may show His mercy and love on His beloved people, those suffering, in the Philippines and also in the other parts of the world.

Pray, brethren, pray and devote our wishes to the Lord!

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Saturday, 6 December 2014 : First Week of Advent, Memorial of St. Nicholas, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Bishops)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, the readings of the Holy Scriptures today have one clear theme, that is healing and reconciliation. The Lord our God came into the world as our Messiah, to release us from our bondage to sin, which is the disease and sickness of our soul, corrupting it and preventing us from sharing the joy in the Lord. Therefore, He came Himself, into the world out of His great love for us, to heal us from this affliction.

Indeed we have been sinful and wicked in our actions. Sin separates us from God, and it is the reason for mankind’s downfall from grace. Our ancestors, our forefathers and all of us, all mankind were created with love by God, not to suffer and die, but to live forever in complete harmony, joy and bliss with the Lord our God, to enjoy forever all of God’s wonderful creations. It was our pride, our greed and our sinfulness that caused us to disobey God, sin and therefore had to endure the punishment for our sins.

And yet, God did not intend to punish us forever for our sins. This is because, just as much as He hates our sins and all the wickedness which we have committed in our lives, He still loves us as much as He hates our sins. After all we are the most beloved of all His creations, created in His very own image. But this is where He wants us all to know His intentions, that is for us all to be healed from our afflictions, to be lost no more, and to return back to His loving embrace.

Yes, that means, while God loves us all, it does not mean that He condones our sinful ways, and He does not want us to remain in sin. Remember, what is at stake is none other than the salvation of our souls. If we do not make a difference and change our ways, then we are truly in great danger of losing our souls to eternal damnation and the suffering in eternal hell.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, that is why in the Gospel today, very importantly, we heard how Jesus commissioned His disciples and the Twelve Apostles to go out and be the witnesses and preachers of the Good News of the Lord. It was indeed just as what He had witnessed, that the people were like lost sheep, directionless, confused and confounded, like sheep without a shepherd. It is therefore our Lord’s priority to bring a new and clear direction to all the people, to guide them so that they will no longer be lost.

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Nicholas, also known by the name of St. Nicholas of Myra, who was a bishop in the approximately fourth century after the birth of Christ in Anatolia, what is now the Asian part of Turkey. St. Nicholas of Myra is also much more famously known as the source of inspiration for the ubiquitous Santa Claus, the elderly figure with red and white winter sweater, whom we know as the one who gives children numerous gifts at Christmas time.

Yet, what we think of Santa Claus, or Father Christmas, was truly a distortion, manipulated version of what St. Nicholas of Myra had once done. It was told that St. Nicholas of Myra loved children and often blessed them and gave them gifts. This seems to be where the legend of St. Nicholas of Myra evolved to what we now know as Santa Claus. Yet, unfortunately, what we have today is a false representation of the bishop and an attempt by the world to tempt us with materialism and human desires.

Christmas celebrations which we have now in our world, in the society around us is a celebration centred on human desires, on the culture of waste and excess. Christ is no longer at the centre of the celebrations but instead, what we have money and wealth at the centre of our joy. The perpetuation of the false image of St. Nicholas also helped to fuel our human desires, by promoting a culture of excess among us, and a culture of entitlement.

By feeding on our desires, the world is trying to fuel more and more demands for our greed and desire, and therefore helping to create a materialistic nature, where everything is done in order to satisfy our demands and our wishes, and a place where our greatest concern is how to satisfy ourselves. This is part of the sin which have separated us from our Lord and condemn us to a life in eternal suffering unless we change our ways.

Remember, brethren, our ancestors sinned before God because they were not able to restrain themselves and their desires. They chose to satisfy their curiosity and desire rather than to obey the Lord and therefore they were cast down from heaven. Hence, it is important for us to use this opportunity provided for us in life, particularly in this special season of Advent, the season of preparation for the coming of Christ, to change our sinful ways, sin no more and embrace the fullness of God’s love and mercy.

Do you know, brothers and sisters, that St. Nicholas of Myra once punched a heretic directly in the face for spreading his heresies? Yes, brethren, just as much as he loved children and was gentle towards them, he showed no mercy to those who had tried to mislead the people of God and lead them towards darkness. As a bishop, he had a great responsibility for the souls of the faithful entrusted to him, and that was exactly he did in order to fulfill that great responsibility.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we proceed further into the season of Advent, let us all realise that we are sinners, and we have not deserved the goodness of God, and yet He came to save us all and heal us from the afflictions of our sins. And therefore, let us all be thankful and be grateful for all that our Lord had done for us. Let us accept His generous offer of healing and mercy, and most importantly, sin no more and live in His grace from now on always.

And let us also realise, that all of us have the responsibility, as the followers of Christ, just as Christ sent His Apostles and disciples to the nations to preach the Good News to them and to find all the lost sheep and those lost to the darkness, therefore, all of us can also play our part in the Lord’s plan of salvation for all mankind.

Hence, that is why we need to be role models of the faith, by first changing our ways and abandoning all the wickedness we had done. We have to practice and live out our faith sincerely and devoutly, so that all those who see us may believe in the Lord and be saved together with us. Let us ask the Lord for the gift of courage and strength, so that inspired by the faith and examples of St. Nicholas of Myra, emulating his love and charity for others, and also his steadfastness in faith, we too may be worthy to receive eternal glory in Him. God bless us all. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/04/saturday-6-december-2014-first-week-of-advent-memorial-of-st-nicholas-bishop-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/04/saturday-6-december-2014-first-week-of-advent-memorial-of-st-nicholas-bishop-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/04/saturday-6-december-2014-first-week-of-advent-memorial-of-st-nicholas-bishop-gospel-reading/

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Saturday, 6 December 2014 : First Week of Advent, Memorial of St. Nicholas, Bishop (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Bishops)

Matthew 9 : 35 – Matthew 10 : 1, 5a, 6-8

At that time, Jesus went around all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom, and He cured every sickness and disease.

When He saw the crowds, He was moved with pity, for they were harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are only few. Ask the Master of the harvest to send workers to gather His harvest.”

Then He called His twelve disciples to Him, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits, to drive them out and to heal every disease and sickness. Jesus sent these twelve on mission with the instruction : “Go to the lost sheep of the people of Israel. Go and proclaim this message : ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, cleanse the lepers, and drive out demons. You received this as a gift, so give it as a gift.”

 

Homily and Reflection :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/04/saturday-6-december-2014-first-week-of-advent-memorial-of-st-nicholas-bishop-homily-and-scripture-reflections/

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Saturday, 6 December 2014 : First Week of Advent, Memorial of St. Nicholas, Bishop (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Bishops)

Psalm 146 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Alleluia! How good it is to sing to our God, how sweet and befitting to praise Him! The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem; He gathers the exiles of Israel.

He heals their broken hearts and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of stars, He calls each of them by name.

The Lord is great and mighty in power; His wisdom is beyond measure. The Lord lifts up the humble, but casts the wicked to the ground.

 

Homily and Reflection :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/04/saturday-6-december-2014-first-week-of-advent-memorial-of-st-nicholas-bishop-homily-and-scripture-reflections/

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Saturday, 6 December 2014 : First Week of Advent, Memorial of St. Nicholas, Bishop (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Bishops)

Isaiah 30 : 19-21, 23-26

O people of Zion, who dwell in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. When you cry, YHVH will listen; when He hears, He will answer. When the Lord has given you the bread of anguish and the water of distress, He, your Teacher, will hide no longer. Your own eyes will see Him, and your ear will listen to His words behind you : “This is the way, walk in it.”

He will then give rain for the seed you sow and make the harvest abundant from the crops you grow. On that day your cattle will graze in wide pastures. Your beasts of burden will eat silage tossed to them with pitchfork and shovel. For on the day of the great slaughter, when fortresses fall, streams of water will flow on every mountain and lofty hill.

The light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun seven times greater, like the light of seven days, when YHVH binds up the wounds of His people and heals the bruises inflicted by His blows.

 

Homily and Reflection :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/12/04/saturday-6-december-2014-first-week-of-advent-memorial-of-st-nicholas-bishop-homily-and-scripture-reflections/

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Monday, 24 November 2014 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Andrew Dung-Lac, Priest and Companions, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, the readings of today remind us how to live out our lives faithfully, according to what God had taught us through the Church and through the understanding of the Sacred Scriptures. These are necessary for us, if we are to seek salvation and eternal life and grace in the Lord. What is basic is that, we need to love our Lord, and do so genuinely, with the whole of our heart’s strength, and with all of our attention and our minds’ capacities, and with all the powers of our body.

This is one of the basic commandment which Jesus taught us, the commandment of love. The other commandment is similar, namely to love one another, to love our neighbours, our brothers and sisters around us, just as much as we have loved ourselves. If we follow these commandments, then rich will be our rewards in the presence of God, as we will be found worthy by Him.

The Gospel today speaks of an elderly lady who gave two pieces of small coins as her tithe and gift to the Lord at the Temple in Jerusalem. It is customary and part of the Law that the people of God ought to give a part of their income and possession to be offered to the Lord, but what happened at that time, as described in the Gospel, showed how the gifts offered can differ in terms of benefits to us, depending on our sincerity and our desire to love God.

The elderly lady offered two pieces of coins while the rich offered lots of gifts, yet what Jesus wanted to show is that, while the elderly woman gave less, but given the fact that she had less possessions as a whole, for her to give those coins showed how much she loved God by giving those precious coins she could have saved and used to buy things for her to eat and survive this life instead.

She clearly did what Jesus taught us, that, those who seek to preserve themselves in this world will lose it, while those who have lost their lives for the sake of the Lord, they will gain eternal life as reward. The elderly woman put her trust completely in God, knowing that the Lord will give and provide her all that she needs in life, and by giving her gifts, she assured her salvation by loving her Lord and God with all of her heart.

But be warned, brothers and sisters in Christ, as this does not mean that the rich who gave their gifts to God and others are utterly condemned and hopeless, and neither the poor who gave their gifts are utterly good and blessed. The truth is that sincerity depends not on wealth and its amounts, but rather on the desire of the heart to love God.

Yes, indeed, there are rich people whose hearts are generous and loving towards both God and men, and they gave whatever they could spare and give, a lot of it, to help the poor and the least fortunate, and for various purposes in this life. Indeed, the tendency is for wealth to blind us and harden our hearts by increasing our selfishness, desire and greed, but if we are able to resist that temptation and commit to loving sincerely and genuinely, that wealth can become a great asset and potential to help others.

Wealth and possession themselves are neither evil nor good in nature. They are capable of being used for good purposes as well as evil purposes. What matters is indeed how we use them. The tendency is again of course for us to be tempted to us them for our own good, to satisfy our own selfishness, and to increase our own prosperity at the expense of others, but if we are truly capable to resisting these temptations, we can then use those that we have for the benefit of others instead.

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Andrew Dung-Lac and his companions, the martyrs of the faith from Vietnam, who suffered the persecution of the faithful by the authorities who were strongly opposed to the Faith. To be one of the faithful at the time would mean great difficulties and sufferings, as they had to practice their faith in secret, for fear of the government’s oppression.

St. Andrew Dung-Lac, a priest, among one of the first local Vietnamese to be ordained into the sacred priesthood, was one among many and among the first to suffer very grievous and terrible sufferings under the regime of the fiercely anti-Christian government. They were forced to undergo terrible treatments, losing their limbs and being hacked to pieces, burnt alive and other very sinister and horrible methods, so that they would recant their faith, and yet they persevered on.

Numerous people, both the local Vietnamese faithful and the French missionaries alike, as well as other missionaries, who were all suffered death very painfully and very difficulty, and yet, they have no need to fear anymore. For the Lord their God and our God, who knew perfectly what they had done, have rewarded them with the gifts and graces of eternal life and glory with Him in heaven.

Why is this so, brothers and sisters in Christ? That is because although they did not have anything or much to offer to the Lord, and the fact was that even though many of them were stripped of their titles and wealth, they still gave whatever was left with them as gift to the Lord, namely their own lives and the love of their hearts for the Lord. And this love is the same kind as the old woman’s offering as mentioned by Jesus, as they gave their all to God, and their offering would not be overlooked.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, today let us heed these words of the Scripture and learn to give the wholeness of ourselves, our hearts and our love, as the elderly and poor woman, and as the Vietnamese Martyrs had once done, not holding back anything when they gave it all to the Lord. Remember, brothers and sisters, that Jesus also did not hold back anything when He suffered and died for our sake on the cross.

Let it be that through the intercession of St. Andrew Dung-Lac, and all of his companions in martyrdom, the holy Vietnamese Martyrs, we may all be able to follow their examples and be genuine and completely sincere in our faith, so that when the Lord comes again, He will find us worthy and just to receive the eternal life and glory He had promised us, and be counted among the righteous symbolised by the hundred and forty-four thousand assembled before the Lamb of God. God bless us all. Amen.

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/23/monday-24-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-andrew-dung-lac-priest-and-companions-martyrs-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/23/monday-24-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-andrew-dung-lac-priest-and-companions-martyrs-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/23/monday-24-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-andrew-dung-lac-priest-and-companions-martyrs-gospel-reading/

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Sunday, 23 November 2014 : 34th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Memorial of Pope St. Clement I, Pope and Martyr, and St. Columban, Abbot (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the great feast day and solemnity of the Church, that is the Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ the King, King of all creation and of all the universe. This celebration also marks the ending of our liturgical year, as next Sunday we will begin the season of Advent in preparation for Christmas, and this Sunday is the last great celebration of a liturgical year in the calendar of the Church celebrations.

And the theme of the Kingship of Christ ties closely to the future promised coming of our Lord Jesus into this world. The readings for this period, including the readings for today’s solemn occasion therefore is a reflection of this truth and this fact, that God will come again at a time He has appointed, and He will come again to judge all the living and the dead, as we believe in our Faith. In this we hope, as He will come again to gather us from the nations and bring us to His eternal love and glory.

As the Lord mentioned in the first reading, taken from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel, even though mankind and the people of God had sinned and therefore suffered its consequences, being torn apart as a people and scattered through the nations, He did not abandon them, but still loved them all the same. At the time of the prophet Ezekiel, the northern kingdom of Israel had been destroyed by the Assyrians and its people brought into slavery and exile. The same had also happened to the southern kingdom of Judah, which population was brought to Babylon in a period known as the Babylonian captivity.

While those things had happened because of the sins of the people, who were not faithful to the covenant of the Lord, but it does not mean that God did not give them a second chance. If only that they would repent and change their sinful and evil ways, and adopt the ways of the righteous, then the Lord who is their Lord and Shepherd will gladly welcome them back into His embrace.

The psalm today is the renowned Psalm on ‘the Lord is my Shepherd’, which shows the nature of God as our loving Shepherd, as our Guide and as the provider of everything that we will ever need. And while we follow our Shepherd, who is the Lord, we will have no need to fear anything, as neither the power of the evil one nor the powers of this world and the evils in it have any power over us if we are ever faithful and solidly attach ourselves to our Lord and our Shepherd.

This is the nature of our Lord and Master’s Kingship, that is a Shepherd Kingship, not one where the king enslaves everyone to do his bidding and will, but instead a servant leadership. Remember what Lord Jesus did on the day of the Last Supper, when He acted as a servant, washing the feet of all His disciples. He taught the Apostles that a leader should lead by giving examples and serving others entrusted under his care, and not to lord over the other or even to oppress them.

And like a shepherd, who cares gently and tenderly for his sheep, our Lord’s kingship is one of service and love. He guides His sheep, that is all of us into the right paths and provide us all that we need. We need not fear the powers of evil and death if we stick closely to our Lord, as He is the only One who can bring harm to our soul. Though the powers of this world may be able to harm our body, they cannot do anything to harm our soul.

That is because, the faithful, though persecuted and oppressed by the world, they will be greatly rewarded at the Last Judgment, and their souls will be saved. We have no need to fear, brothers and sisters, if we follow the Lord. Persevere and remain faithful. Remember that in another part of the Gospel, Jesus said that those who seek to preserve themselves in this world will lose it, but those who do not mind to lose themselves will gain eternal life?

Through Christ, we have been made justified and righteous, as He is the new Adam by virtue of His incarnation as Man, as the prime example of the faithful and the just. The first Adam, our ancestor, had been unfaithful, and he followed his own personal greed and desire, and being thus taken in by Satan’s lies, and disobeying God, he had sinned, and sin entered into the hearts of men.

Jesus therefore is the role model for all of us, as the new Adam, who led a life opposite of the first Adam. While the first Adam was unfaithful and sinful, Christ the new Adam was completely faithful and devoted to God, free of any taints of sin in life. And meanwhile the first Adam thought first about himself and succumbed to his desires, Christ the new Adam thought first not of Himself, but of the One who had sent Him into the world, and obeyed the will of His Father perfectly and fully, that He brought about our salvation from sin and death.

And thus, in the second reading today, taken from letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians, it was mentioned that for the obedience and the actions Christ had taken, as our King, and yet as a humble and servant King, God was pleased to subjugate all things and all peoples under His authority, that is precisely what He will do in the end of time, the Last Judgment, as the Judge to judge all the living and the dead.

At the end of time, our Lord Jesus will come to judge us all, and nothing that we have done or we have not done will not be uncovered. He knows everything about us, and there is nothing that we can hide from Him. Not even the deepest of our hearts’ secrets will remain hidden before God. The Book of Life and the other books mentioned in the Book of revelation and the Gospels contain all of our actions, our deeds and our words, every single things that we have committed.

Remember, brothers and sisters in Christ, that our Lord as our King, has two aspects, just as all the other kings also have. First, our King shows us mercy and love, His desire for all of us to be reunited with Him. However, as King, He also has to mete out justice and judgment, which must be impartial. Thus, while He is merciful and loving towards us, but He hates our sins, the taints and blemishes which separate us from the perfection of His love.

In the Gospel we heard how Jesus detailed on what will happen at the Last Judgment. All will come before the Lord their King, and He will judge them equally based on their actions. There were two groups of people at that judgment, and the judgment results are clear cut. It is either that they have done what is right in the eyes of God, or if they have done what is wicked, or failed to do what is right in the sight of God.

This should then bring our attention to the nature of sin. The most common sin known to us, is the sin of action, that is sins committed by doing things abhorrent and wicked before God and men, such as stealing, murder, jealousy, coveting others’ belongings, disobedience against God, fornication of the flesh and many others. However, many of us often do not realise or forget that there is another type of sin that is equally bad, and this is the sin of omission.

What is the sin of omission? As the name said, it is sin committed when we are perfectly in place and capable of doing something good, and yet we consciously choose not to do so, and instead, we often care for ourselves first, succumbing to our ego, pride and greed. Just as the first Adam, we have the tendency to be selfish, to think of ourselves first, and to satisfy our own needs first. And while he got the knowledge he wanted, he sinned.

What did Jesus say to those whom He judged to be on His left? He cursed them and condemned them because they have had many opportunities to do good things and to help the many people around them who are in need, and yet they ignored them and went on doing their own businesses, caring only about themselves. Their ignorance and refusal to lift up and raise their hands to help, had been accounted for, and these weighed in against them at the final judgment.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, on this celebration of the Solemnity of Christ the King, what we can we do to improve ourselves and to ensure our salvation? It is by following the example of our Lord Himself, who is King, Lord and Master of all the Universe, and yet, He was humble, obedient and loving in all of His actions. He served those entrusted to Him, and also loved the poor, the meek and lowly, the ostracised and the castaways of the society. He showed His mercy and love to sinners, the prostitutes and tax collectors.

In following the actions and ways of Jesus our Lord and King, we will be able to do what is right, and give to our brethren in need, the love and support which we should give to them, especially whenever we are in position to give our help and our love. Do not forget also, that we must therefore avoid the sin of omission, which means that we should not be complacent or lazy whenever we are able to commit good deeds for the sake of our brethren.

Today, we also celebrate the feast day of both Pope St. Clement I, Pope and Martyr, and also St. Columban, an abbot. The actions of these saints were in accordance to the actions of Christ, and they showed care and love for their friends and neighbours around them. Pope St. Clement I was the Pope in the early Church, one of the first direct successors of St. Peter the Apostle as the Bishop of Rome. Meanwhile, St. Columban was an abbot who lived during the early Dark Ages.

Pope St. Clement I was one of the earliest Popes, and records suggested that he was directly chosen by St. Peter to be one of his successors together with Pope St. Clement’s immediate predecessors. He was pious and devoted to God, and he tirelessly worked for the sake of the faithful. He was a man of prayer and love, often caring for those less fortunate under his care. He provided for them spiritually as well as in material, as far as he could.

It was told that he was exiled under the orders of the Roman Emperor Trajan, who sent him to the far corners of the Empire at Chersonessos, to work in a mine there. He carried out his work dutifully without fear, and when there was a draught in the mine, he prayed to God, and immediately a clear spring appeared, to the delight of his fellow exiles and workers.

It was clear from these examples, that Pope St. Clement I is another role model we can follow, as he truly practiced his faith, and when he was able to, he helped those around him by using the grace God given him, the grace of prayer and faith, which he used to bring goodness to the others poor, oppressed and exiled from their houses.

Meanwhile, St. Columban was an Irish missionary, who travel widely across Europe and Christendom at the time, spreading the faith in various locations, serving and helping others around the places during his journeys. St. Columban established many monasteries around Europe and Christendom, becoming eventually an abbot himself.

The works and dedications of St. Columban might have been different from that of Pope St. Clement I, but nevertheless, what he had done, was also done to help the least of the society, those who have been lost to the darkness, and by giving places to the faithful who sought to devote themselves more to God in prayer, he had done much great goodness for the Lord and His people.

Hence, as we end our liturgical year with this celebration of the Solemnity of Christ the King, and with the understanding that upon baptism, we too have shared in the Kingship of Christ, let us all be ever more resolute in truly living our faith, so that in all that we do, and in all that we say and in our actions, we may be loving towards our brethren, especially those who are in need of our help.

Let us be like our Lord and King, who did not boast and be proud of His authority and kingship, but rather remain humble and serve those who had been entrusted to Him. Through our baptism, we share in the kingship of Christ, and we have to realise that all of us have the responsibility to take care of one another, to keep each other in the path of the Lord. May our Lord and King watch over us always, and help us, so that we may remain ever faithful, and in the end, when He comes again, He may find us righteous and just, and thus are worthy of His eternal kingdom. God be with us all. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/19/sunday-23-november-2014-34th-sunday-of-ordinary-time-solemnity-of-our-lord-jesus-christ-king-of-the-universe-memorial-of-pope-st-clement-i-pope-and-martyr-and-st-columban-abbot-first-readi/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/19/sunday-23-november-2014-34th-sunday-of-ordinary-time-solemnity-of-our-lord-jesus-christ-king-of-the-universe-memorial-of-pope-st-clement-i-pope-and-martyr-and-st-columban-abbot-psalm/

 

Second Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/19/sunday-23-november-2014-34th-sunday-of-ordinary-time-solemnity-of-our-lord-jesus-christ-king-of-the-universe-memorial-of-pope-st-clement-i-pope-and-martyr-and-st-columban-abbot-second-read/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/19/sunday-23-november-2014-34th-sunday-of-ordinary-time-solemnity-of-our-lord-jesus-christ-king-of-the-universe-memorial-of-pope-st-clement-i-pope-and-martyr-and-st-columban-abbot-gospel-read/

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Sunday, 23 November 2014 : 34th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Memorial of Pope St. Clement I, Pope and Martyr, and St. Columban, Abbot (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 25 : 31-46

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “When the Son of Man comes in His glory with all His angels, He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be brought before Him, and as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, so will He do with them, placing the sheep on His right hand and the goats on His left.”

“The King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, blessed of My Father! Take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed Me. I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink. I was a stranger, and you welcomed Me into your house. I was naked, and you clothed Me. I was sick, and you visited Me. I was in prison, and you came to see Me.'”

“Then the good people will ask Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and give You food; thirsty, and give You something to drink; or a stranger, and welcome You; or naked, and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and go to see You?'”

“The King will answer, ‘Truly I say to you : whenever you did this to these little ones who are My brothers and sisters, you did it to Me.'”

“Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Go, cursed people, out of My sight into the eternal fire, which has been prepared for the devil and his angels! For I was hungry, and you did not give Me anything to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not welcome Me into your house; I was naked, and you did not clothe Me; I was sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.'”

“They, too, will ask, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, thirsty, naked or a stranger, sick or in prison, and did not help You?’ The King will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you : whatever you did not do for one of these little ones, you did not do it for Me.'”

“And these will go into eternal punishment, but the just to eternal life.”

 

Homily and Reflection :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/19/sunday-23-november-2014-34th-sunday-of-ordinary-time-solemnity-of-our-lord-jesus-christ-king-of-the-universe-memorial-of-pope-st-clement-i-pope-and-martyr-and-st-columban-abbot-homily-and/