Christian sermons

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Thursday, 5 January 2017 : Weekday of Christmas Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard from the Scriptures, about the calling of Nathanael the wise, who would also be known as St. Bartholomew, one of the Lord’s Twelve Apostles. He was an educated and intelligent person, whose wisdom was known, but he was always seeking for something in his life that was missing, and he found it in the Lord Jesus Christ.

It was also told how the Lord had brought with Him love as He entered into the world. Once, darkness and evil reigned throughout the whole world, ever since sin and wickedness entered into the hearts of men. Ever since the days of sin’s first entry into the world, many wicked deeds had been done by men, from the slaying of Abel by Cain, to the attempted murder of Joseph by his brothers, the plotting of Saul against David, and many others.

All these were caused by sin, by the weaknesses of our human flesh, the temptations which many of us are unable to resist. We fell into the temptation of greed, of our desire for power, for fame and worldly glory. Sin have caused us to do bad and evil deeds, causing hurt, pain and even death for our fellow mankind. And these were exactly what the Lord wanted to eradicate through His coming and entry into the world.

He came into the world, bearing His love into a world darkened with sin and evil. This is the light and the hope which He had shown to His people, and also to Nathanael, bearing to them the warmth of His hope and love, to soothe the people who have suffered under the wickedness of evil, and from each others’ evil deeds. He showered them with love, care and mercy, and revealed to them what they ought to do in order to receive His mercy and forgiveness.

And God did not just say that He loved us all, but He also showed it by true example. He came unto us, walking in our midst, healing those among us who were sick, suffering and dying. He restored hope to the hearts of those who had been oppressed and shunned by the society. He blessed and healed the ones who were rejected and hated because of their background, their social status and their conditions.

And above all, He surrendered Himself to the cross, willingly took it up and bearing on it all the huge and seemingly insurmountable and impossible weight of our sins, all of its burdens and consequences, so that instead of us, He would be the One to bear all of them, and be punished instead of us. It was His love which had made Him to do all of these.

By His love God had shown us Himself that instead of hatred and jealousy, we can learn how to forgive and to love one another, and instead of desiring and being desperate in greed for worldly glory and fame, we can seek fulfilment in the Lord and whatever He will provide us all. He showed us that love and mercy is the way forward for all of us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, now the question is, will we follow the lead of our Lord? Will we follow Him in what He had taught us? Will He find in us love and mercy? Are we not the children, the sons and daughters of God? If He is our Father, then should we not follow Him in our ways and deeds? Otherwise, would we not then bring shame and scandal to Him?

Let us all reflect on this, brethren, and think carefully of what we can do as Christians, to live up to our faith and to be more committed in all of our ways to the Lord our God. May through us and our examples in life, we may inspire many others to walk in His presence and to follow us all together into His salvation. May God help us in our good endeavours, and may He forgive us our sins and wickedness, and welcome us into His everlasting grace. Amen.

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Wednesday, 4 January 2017 : Weekday of Christmas Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard from the Scriptures about the revelation of the Lamb of God and Saviour of the whole world, Jesus Christ our Lord and Master, Who had been revealed to the whole world, to each and every one of us, so that we may discover the path towards salvation through Him, our Lord and Saviour.

We have once lived in the darkness, sundered from God and His love because of our sins. Through our sins and disobedience we have been brought low. But God loves us all, brethren, and He was willing to forgive us and be reconciled with us. And to that extent, showing His infinite love and grace, He gave us the greatest gift and help of all, by the giving of His own Son, Who willingly out of love came down upon us and dwelled among us.

It was this very same Master and Lord which St. John the Baptist was preaching about throughout his ministry in the deserts of Judea. He proclaimed the repentance and baptism of sinners, that they might be cleansed from their sins and unworthiness before God, and therefore merit to receive eternal salvation from the Lord Himself. And he also preached to them about the One Who was to come after him, the One Whom he served, Who would come and brought salvation over all.

And St. John the Baptist did not hesitate to proclaim Him among all the people of Israel, calling His as the Lamb of God and the world’s saviour to even all of his own disciples. And therefore, that was how Jesus found the first among His holy Apostles, St. Peter and St. Andrew, St. James and St. John, the first ones whom Jesus our Lord had called into His service.

Perhaps many of us would not have seen the significance and the importance of this event in our journey towards the salvation in God. But this is where we as Christians need to imitate what St. John the Baptist had done, and be witnesses of our Lord and our faith in Him, to call many others into the salvation which can be found in the Lord alone.

It is through our witness and our examples that others are called to the faith, just as we ourselves have received the faith from our teachers in faith, be it members of the laity, the catechists and educators, or priests and even bishops who helped us, guided us and led us on this path towards the salvation in God. And ultimately, all these came down to us from the Apostles themselves, whom God had chosen and blessed with His love, to be witnesses of His works and salvation.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, now the challenge is for us to be witnesses for our faith and for our Lord in the same manner as the Apostles and the other holy disciples of our Lord had done. We have to live out our faith and commit ourselves wholeheartedly to our Lord in order to be able to do so. How can we convince others to believe in the Lord if we ourselves are not doing what we have been expected to do?

Our faith must be living and genuine, and only then, people who see us will know that we really and truly belong to God, and thus will believe in whatever we say to them. Witnessing about our faith and being a good Christian does not start with great and mighty deeds, but instead from ourselves, from seemingly simple things we always do in our lives and yet often forgotten.

That is why, brethren, it is important for us all to reevaluate our lives, in how we have lived it through and in how we have acted in our own daily lives. Let us all rededicate ourselves to God, and follow Him in all of our ways, just as the Lord had called His Apostles to follow Him, so let us all also walk in His ways, and lead others to Him all the same. God bless us all. Amen.

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Tuesday, 3 January 2017 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the feast day of the Most Holy Name of Jesus, which we often have not used and mentioned properly. We have to remember first and foremost, the third commandment in the Ten Commandments which Moses had received from God Himself. It said, “Keep holy the Lord’s Name”.

In the prayer Pater Noster, or the Lord’s Prayer which our Lord Jesus Christ had taught us, we also heard the words, “Holy is Your Name”. Then we should ask ourselves, brothers and sisters in Christ, in our daily lives, in the days past, have we mentioned or uttered the Holy Name of the Lord without thinking and with abandon? Have we desecrated the Holy Name of God by what we have done? If we have done so, remember that it is a great sin to do so.

The Name of the Lord was so holy that in the past, it was considered a great sin, indeed a blasphemy to even say it out, even in private, and less properly even so in public. The Most Holy Name of God was supposed to be unutterable, the Name YHVH, which many of us nowadays also used with abandon in our praise songs and celebrations. And the Lord’s Name, the Name above every other names, Jesus Christ, has been revealed to us, and yet some even used it when they uttered vulgarities and wicked words. Do we even realise what a sin it is that we have done?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, it is sad and indeed lamentable how we mankind have misused and mistreated the Holy Name of our Lord, when the devil and all of his wicked allies fear His holy Name, running and scattering when they heard someone utter it with proper and devout faith. They feared the Holy Name just as much as the evil spirits feared very much when Jesus cast them out from the bodies of the people whom they had possessed if we read through the Gospels.

It is exactly just like when we call our friends’ names and our family members’ names. When we call their names, they know they have been called and they will come. In the same way therefore, when we call on the Holy Name of the Lord, He will come upon us, and no evil spirit, even Satan himself, will be able to bear to be in the Holy Presence of our God. They will all run away in fear and leave us alone, if we call on Him with faith.

It is sad also to note how the venerable practice of bowing at the Holy Name of Jesus, and indeed genuflecting or kneeling during certain times of the year, including that of today, when we hear the Name of Jesus mentioned, had vanished from many of our churches and parishes around the world. This has contributed to the decrease in our respect and appreciation of the Holy Name. And that is why we disrespect and misuse and think lightly of uttering our Lord’s Name without care.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all reflect on our own lives. Have we been truly worthy of the Lord to mention His holy Name? Are we all truly knowing of what we are doing in this world? Let us all contemplate on this as we embark through this new year. Shall we treat the Holy Name of God with respect, and indeed, utter it with pride and faith, knowing that all who hear it, will know that we belong to Him.

Let us all thank God for His love for us, He has willingly become Man for our sake, so that through Jesus Christ our Lord, we may receive salvation and the grace of eternal life from Him. Let us all give Him thanks and praise Him, bow down before Him and rejoice whenever we hear His holy and wonderful Name being mentioned. That is because His Name is not just like any other names, but through that Name, we have been saved.

May the Lord bless us all and keep us, and may He strengthen each and every one of us to become ever more devoted disciples and followers of His. Let us draw closer to Him and find our way to Him, and let us put our complete trust in Him from now on. May the Holy Name of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us, and may He answer when we call on Him in our times of need, to defend us from evil and darkness. Amen.

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Monday, 2 January 2017 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard about those who rejected the Good News of the Lord, those who also purposely led the others astray by the means of lies and false messages. It is a reminder to all of us that we can be easily deceived by wrong messages delivered by false prophets and agents of the devil designed to trick us and to bring us away from the salvation in God.

They have many ways to deceive and mislead us. Some will deny our Lord Jesus Christ while claiming that they serve the Lord and claiming that their way is the truth, while others will tweak the messages and teachings of God and made them to suit their own wicked purposes. And lest our faith is strong, we will easily fall prey into the hands of those who seek after our souls.

That is why we need to stand firm in our faith, by listening to what St. John the Apostle and Evangelist had said in his Epistle, our first reading passage today. He spoke of us all who have been anointed in the Lord’s Name, and indeed, we have also received the Holy Spirit from Him through the Church. We have therefore received the truth of God through what we have received by the Holy Spirit and taught unto us by the Church.

However, it is important that we should hold fast and firmly to these teachings lest the temptations and persuasions of those whom I mentioned, seeking to corrupt and derail our paths to the Lord, would lead us astray from the truth and from finding the way to the Lord and therefore towards our salvation in Him. We have to be strong and be devoted in all of our ways to God, so that we will not be easily swayed by all these.

Let us all look at the inspiring examples of the two great saints whose feast we are celebrating today, who are two of the most important figures and leaders of the Church in its early days particularly in the Eastern portion of Christendom at that time. St. Basil the Great, or also known as St. Basil of Caesarea was the Bishop of Caesarea during the fourth century after the birth of Christ. Meanwhile, St. Gregory Nazianzen was the Archbishop of Constantinople at roughly the same period of time as St. Basil.

Both of them were strong proponents and defenders of the orthodox and true faith as passed down through the Church from the Apostles and ultimately from our Lord Himself. And this was very crucial at that time, when the Church was greatly troubled for many years, and indeed many decades and centuries by the many false teachings, false prophets and all who sought to twist and corrupt the truth in order to serve their own purposes. And many people did fall into their heresies and were lost to the Lord.

St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen were ardent defenders of the true faith, defending important tenets of our faith against those who claimed that Jesus Christ as the Son of God was not equal to God and was a mere creation, as espoused by the Arians. There were also those who claimed that because Jesus had a human body, therefore He was a lower being despite having a Divine soul, a view called the Apollinarian heresy. They defended the true faith, in which we believe that Jesus our Lord is both God and Man at the same time, and He is equal to the Father, having existed before all ages, begotten but not created by the Father.

There were many other false teachings that threatened the souls of many of the faithful and threatened to splinter the Church apart, but St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen fervently and tirelessly worked hard among their own flocks and also with the other faithful bishops, elders and priests of the Church, in order to stem the tide of heresy and to uphold the true faith.

They were influential in the Ecumenical Council of Ephesus in the year 381 AD, and their teachings continued to influence the Church for many years to come, and helped the Church to steer itself through the turbulent times, which saw many of the heretics being formally outlawed and removed from the Church, and at the same time, through the good works of many of God’s faithful servants, including St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen themselves, many had been converted back to the Lord and were saved.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all imitate these holy saints, and follow in their footsteps. Let us all deepen our understanding of our faith, by learning through the Church and through the right channels, seeking help for us to understand what our faith is truly about. And let us all also help one another to persevere in faith and remain true to the truth found only in the Church.

May the Lord bless us all and keep us safe in His grace. And may all of us remain true and devoted to the Lord our God, and not falling into temptations of the world and not listening to the falsehoods and lies of the devil and his agents, but instead putting our full trust in the Lord, Who had revealed His truth to all of us. Let us hold strongly to that truth as St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen had done. Amen.

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Sunday, 1 January 2017 : Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God, Theotokos, World Day of Prayer for Peace (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day, the first one in the Gregorian calendar, the year 2017 of our Lord Jesus Christ, two millennia after He was born into the world as our Saviour, we celebrate together the New Year’s Day, but even more importantly as Christians, we also honour and glorify Mary, the blessed Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has been honoured by many titles, but all of which stemmed from the very one title that made her deserved all the others.

And it is this title which we all celebrate today, that Mary as the Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ is the Mother of God, or Theotokos in the Greek language, coming from the word Theos or God in Greek, and also Tokos or Mother in Greek. The equivalent term in Latin is Dei Genetrix, both terms of which have been in use since the earliest days of the Church. It is this very special role that Mary played in the history of our salvation that made her so venerable throughout the history of the Church.

If we want to understand the significance of today’s celebration of Mary as the Mother of God, then we must look back long ago into the early days of the Church, up to the time of the first Ecumenical Council of the Church held in the city of Nicaea in the year 325 AD. During that time and in the earlier days of the Church, there were many people proclaiming different teachings from what the Church had passed down through the Apostles and the saints, the bishops and the priests who were their successors.

In that Ecumenical Council of Nicaea, the successors of the Apostles all worked and discussed together guided by the Holy Spirit, and most of them but a few rejected soundly the heresy of Arianism, as propagated by the heretic Arius, claiming that Jesus as Son of God was not equal with the Father, and was a mere creation by the Father. And there were also more extreme heresies that claimed that Jesus was mere Man, and not God.

The Nicene Creed that we recite at every celebration of the Holy Mass is a reminder of the strong stance that the faithful servants of God took against all these false teachings. And because Jesus is the Son of God, the One Who is God, and Who was with God from before the beginning of time, His mother can therefore also be called as the Mother of God.

And Mary was formally accorded with that most honourable title at the Third Ecumenical Council held in Ephesus in the year 431 AD, a century after the Ecumenical Council at Nicaea. There were the heresies of Nestorianism and others who claimed that the natures of God and Man in Jesus our Lord was separate, and that Jesus Christ as Man Who walked in this world is existentially and really distinct from the Divine Word of God He claimed to be.

Our faith taught us that Jesus is both God and Man at the same time, possessing the two distinct natures of God and Man, and yet they were united in the person of Christ, and cannot be separated one from the other, although distinct. Those who upheld the heresy claimed that because Jesus Christ was merely a Man and not God, then Mary is merely just the mother of a Man, no different from any other people, or from any other mothers.

This was what was rejected by the Church fathers and the faithful bishops and priests, who honoured Mary formally as the Theotokos, Dei Genetrix, the Mother of God and Lord of all the Universe. It was a sound and complete rejection of the false teachings of those who proposed that Jesus Christ was merely Man and not God. Thus Mary as the Theotokos, as the Mother of God is closely tied to our faith itself, for if we believe that Mary is the Mother of God, then we also believe in the divinity of Christ.

But then one might ask, why then the great honour we have given to Mary? Why is it that the Church had devoted so much time and effort in order to venerate her and glorify her? There are indeed some who criticised and even opposed the Church and our faith because they thought that we as Catholics and as Christians worship Mary just as if she is a goddess. But this was exactly where they got it wrong, for Mary is not a deity in her own right, and we honour her above all other created beings because of the virtue of her Son.

In the kingdom of Israel, as with many other kingdoms, while the king or the monarch is the highest authority in the entire realm, whose authority is absolute and great, but there was also another person whose presence, authority and advice were respected by the entire kingdom, and also by the king himself. And that person is the queen mother, the mother of the king.

And therefore, since Jesus our Lord, as both a Man born from His earthly mother by the power of the Holy Spirit, and also God as the Divine Word incarnate, and because of that, He is God, so as God is the King of all kings, Ruler and Master of the entire universe, hence His own mother is honoured as the Queen Mother of heaven and earth, of all creation. It was not by her own virtue, but because of the virtue of her Son, Christ the King of kings.

The fourth commandment in the Law of God or the Ten Commandments says, “Honour your father and mother.” And Jesus our Lord honours His mother and father, obeying them in all they had taught him, from the guidance of St. Joseph, the foster-father of our Lord, to the love and care of Mary, His mother, whom He had then elevated above every other men and women, and in our faith, we believe that He even granted her the singular exception that she would not suffer death.

And that is what we believe in the Blessed Virgin Mary, assumed into the glory of heaven, and we believe that she is there now seated at the right hand of her Son, as the great advisor and intercessor for our sake, at the head of the company of saints and martyrs, all of whom are our intercessors before God. They all pray for our sake and intercede on our behalf, beseeching that God will show mercy on us sinners still living and walking in this world.

That is precisely why we venerate Mary, we praise and glorify her, as because of her, her obedience and commitment to fulfilling to completion the Lord’s plan of salvation for us mankind, she had brought upon us the Saviour of the world. And our Lord Himself from the cross had entrusted her to us, just as at the same time, He has also entrusted all of us to her care, when He entrusted her to the care of His Apostle John, and vice versa.

Mary also loves each and every one of us like a mother, for indeed she is our mother. If Jesus has counted us among His brethren, as His brothers and sisters, then should we not then receive the same care, love and tenderness that our Lord has received from Mary? She is our greatest intercessor before her Son, and that is why we often ask her to intercede for our sake. We do not pray to her or ask her to perform miracles for our sake. Instead, we ask her to petition her Son that He will help us in our time of need.

Take for example the time when Jesus performed His first miracle in Cana, during a wedding when the bride and bridegroom had run out of wine for the guests. Mary was told of the situation, and she told her Son Jesus to help the wedding couple from embarrassment. Jesus was reluctant but His mother still wanted to help them, and therefore, she told the assistants to follow exactly as Jesus told them. In the end, He did listen to her plea for help, and thus performed His first miracle there at Cana. Jesus will listen to His own loving mother.

At the same time, not only that she intercedes for us, but she is also our role model in faith, for it was her obedience to the will of God despite all the uncertainties and fears she had, which had allowed her to persevere on throughout her life and throughout the time when she had Jesus with her. Otherwise, she would not have been able to endure the great pain of having to witness her own Son condemned to die like a criminal on the cross, rejected and humiliated by all. She never left the side of her Son, no matter what.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as all of us gather together to celebrate the Mother of our Lord and God, Jesus Christ, Mary most holy and blessed among all women, and indeed among all creation, let us all spend some time to reflect within ourselves, within our hearts. Are we able to follow in her footsteps and live our lives as Mary had lived hers? Are we able to commit ourselves to the Lord in the same manner as Mary had committed her whole life to her Son?

Today, each and every one of us Christians are challenged, just as embark and begin on this New Year, to make that important resolution. For many of us, we often think that resolution means that we want to desire for success, glory and fame in the year to come. But what about aiming to be a better disciple and follower of our Lord? Should we not rather seek the true treasure of our life rather than what is temporary and perishable?

We should be resolved to devote ourselves more as we open this new year. We should begin the new year not with excessive parties and celebrations, but with stronger resolve and faith, and to live every day of our lives from now on, that in all the things we say, act and do, we will always proclaim the Lord to all those who see us, witness us and hear our works.

Are we ready to do this, brothers and sisters in Christ? Today we also mark the occasion of the World Day of Prayer for Peace, and we should indeed reflect on the state of our world today. In the past year there had been many acts of injustice, of greed, of hatred upon one another, all of which had caused great pain and sufferings among us.

Can we be resolved to champion peace, harmony, forgiveness and mercy among ourselves, within our own respective communities and societies? Are we able to make a difference in the lives of our brethren? We do not have to make ambitious plans, but what we really need is to begin from our own lives, and from our own families. Let us devote more time this year to do acts of love and mercy, especially to our brethren in need.

Let us all look upon Mary as our example, as our guide, for the saying is indeed true, “To Jesus through Mary,” which highlights to us that through Mary, the mother of our Lord, and who is also our own loving mother, she will guide us all to reach out to her Son, and therefore through her, the Co-Redemptrix of us mankind, God her Son may exercise His mercy on us, and we may be forgiven from our trespasses, and one day be found worthy to be together with Mary and all the saints, in the holy presence of God forevermore. May God be with us and guide us through all of our endeavours. Mary, Mother of God, Theotokos, pray for us now and to the hour of our death. Amen.

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Saturday, 31 December 2016 : Seventh Day within Octave of Christmas, Memorial of Pope St. Silvester I, Pope (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this last day of the Gregorian Calendar year, and therefore as we approach the coming of the New Year, let us also remember that we are still in the midst of the Christmas season, and we ought to look back at our past year and see in what way have we been faithful to the Lord our God, Who out of His love for us, have come into the world to save us from certain destruction because of our sins.

He has come into the world at Christmas, firstly about two millennia ago, when He was born in Bethlehem, as St. John put it at the beginning of his Gospel, which is our Gospel passage, that He is the Word of God, Who is God and Who is with God ever since the beginning of time. And the Lord has endeavoured out of His love, to bring forth the Word into the world by His will, and assume the flesh of Man. And thus that was how He entered the world, and that was how He became the One through Whom God saved us by His death on the cross.

But as we come to the end of the Christmas season, and as we approach the beginning of another new year, each and every one of us must remember that Christmas is not just about the Lord and Saviour Who had once come into the world. Rather, it is also about the Lord Who has promised us that He will come again at the time of His choosing, and at that time, He shall deliver all of His beloved people, those who are faithful to Him, from the darkness and into the light of His eternal life.

And in the first reading today, St. John the Apostle and Evangelist reminded us all that the hour will come, and we should not assume that we have a lot of time to prepare ourselves for the eventual coming of the Lord. Rather, we should assume that it is indeed the final hour, and every single moment of our lives is a blessing for us, and we should thank Him for all the opportunities we have been given.

And he also warned us that there will be false prophets who had come, and who will come into this world, the antichrists, the agents of the devil and his fallen angels, designed and tasked to confuse us and lead us into the false paths, that we lose our way and fall into temptation, and instead of joining the Lord in His grace, we fall into the eternal damnation of hell with Satan and his angels.

That is why, today, brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us should commit ourselves to the Lord anew and strengthen our faith in Him so that we will not falter amidst the challenges and the temptations of this world. We should devote some time today and from now onwards to think about what are we going to do to prepare ourselves to welcome the Lord when He comes again for us. Are we going to wait and do nothing? Or are we going to take charge of our lives and do what He had asked us to do?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us also look upon the example of Pope St. Silvester I, the saint whose feast day we celebrate today. As the Pope and leader of the Universal Church at his time, he lived during a time of a great change in the. Church and in the world. He reigned as Pope following the reign of Pope St. Miltiades, during whose time the Edict of Milan was proclaimed by the Roman Emperor Constantine, ending centuries long persecution of the Christian faith and the Church.

At that time, the Church was divided between many factions, with many believing in the false teachings and tenets of Arius, who claimed that Jesus our Lord was mere Man and not both God and Man. Arius and many other false prophets deceived many in the Church, and they became heretics who misled others to follow their own path and false ways.

That was why at that time, Pope St. Silvester I and his contemporaries persuaded the Emperor Constantine, who was favourable to the Christian faith and teachings, to convene the first Ecumenical Council at Nicaea in the year 325 AD in order to address the issues of these apostates and false teachings, and thus to prevent the false teachings from further dividing the Church and misleading the faithful.

And it was in that Ecumenical Council that the false teachings of Arius and the other heretics were formally condemned, and the same Creed of faith which has been passed down to us from the Apostles and the Church fathers, the Nicene Creed was formulated. And this is also closely linked to the great Solemnity that we are going to celebrate tomorrow, namely that of the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, mother of God.

If the teachings of Arius had been true, that Jesus was merely a creature of the Lord, a mere Man and not Divine, then Mary would indeed be just a mere mother of man, just like any other women and mothers. But no, Pope St. Silvester I and the faithful bishops and leaders of the Church stood by the true faith, believing in the Lord Who is both God and Man at the same time, possessing two distinct natures which are nevertheless inseparable from each other.

Brethren, what we have heard today with regards to Pope St. Silvester and his life should inspire us all as Christians that we should not take our faith for granted. There are many of those who desire our downfall, and by many means they will do their best to prevent us from reaching the goal of our salvation, either by persuasion, temptation, or even by force and persecution.

We should prepare ourselves for the eventual coming of our Lord, that we make use of this opportunity which has been granted to us, in order to be righteous and just in all of our deeds, so that the Lord will find us worthy when He comes into this world, and all of us will receive grace and everlasting life from Him. Let us all begin a New Year from tomorrow onwards with a new, courageous and determined hearts and minds, desiring to give of ourselves fully to the Lord.

May the Lord help us and guide us, and may He ever strengthen our resolve to live fully in accordance with His will and grace. God bless us all, and may He bless our year ahead with good things and many blessings. Amen.

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Friday, 30 December 2016 : Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate together the great Feast of the Holy Family, the Holy Family of our Lord Jesus Christ with His mother Mary and with His foster-father, St. Joseph. On this day we remember that holiest of all holy families, centred on our Lord Himself, and surrounded by the loving and tender care of Mary and Joseph, as He was born into this world, which we celebrate as Christmas.

And perhaps today, on this Feast, we should look into the examples set by that holiest and most blessed of all families, and in each of its members. Each and every one of them can show us all how we all should live as Christians, and how each and every one of us should behave as Christian families, as they are role models for our very own families. When we follow their examples surely then our families too will be holy and will be blessed by God.

Jesus was the Son, the One to Whom Mary and Joseph as His parents showered their love, care and concern. He was the Baby born in a manger to Mary His mother, which we celebrate at Christmas, as the moment when the Saviour of the world, the Son of God was born into this world. But although He is the Son of God, He is also the Son of Man, and as all babies are, at that time, when He was just born, as we heard in the Gospels, the Baby Jesus was in danger from His many enemies, first of which was King Herod of Judea, who felt that his throne was under threat from the coming of the True King, Who is Christ.

And that was where Joseph and Mary protected Him, and with the guidance of the Angel of God, Joseph as the father led the Holy Family on the journey to Egypt, in order to hide the Child Saviour from His enemies, king Herod first of all, and waited there until the danger was over, before returning to the land of Israel. And in this we see Joseph as the foster-father of Jesus, acting as the head of the family, as all fathers would have, and he did so dutifully even though Jesus was not his biological Son. He loved and cared for Him regardless.

Joseph worked hard as a carpenter, most likely to provide for himself and his family, for Mary and Jesus. His family was not a rich one, and indeed most likely was a poor one, since carpenters worked hard but they were hardly appreciated, and their income were often low. And yet, he worked hard and was known for his upright attitude and devotion. He was also certainly a devoted father and a faithful husband.

Mary meanwhile, was the mother of the family, the one who provided food and love for the family, including for Jesus her Son. She showed us all the life of a faithful wife and a good woman and daughter of the Lord, who obeyed the Lord in all of His laws and commandments, and lived righteously and justly, obedient to her husband and caring and loving for him and for her Son.

Both Mary and Joseph must have been crucial in their respective roles in guiding and leading Jesus through His growing years, during which time, just as all parents do, and indeed should do, they must have brought Him up well, as well as a man and a woman can do together to raise up their children. And that family was therefore blessed and filled with as much love and joy as they could have.

Jesus Himself as the Son also obeyed His parents, as was evident when He was twelve years old and were left behind in the Temple, because He wanted to stay there in the place where His Father is. Yet, He obeyed His earthly parents when they looked for Him and showed their care and concern, being very worried when they could not find Him in the company of their relatives.

In the Holy Family, all of us can see how we all should live our Christian lives beginning from our own families. Family is a basic unit of our Christian faith and the Church, and without strong foundation in our families, and if our families do not show the true Christian character akin to that found in the Holy Family of our Lord Jesus Christ, Mary His mother and St. Joseph His foster-father, then that is where the beginning of the downfall of many Christians began.

We often blame the Church and its members, the faithful priests and servants of God for the troubles that befell the Church, as well as for the loss of its members, but in reality, that is because many of us do not realise that a strong and Christian family foundation are often the cause for these troubles. Have we asked ourselves, if we have prayed together as a family daily, during the time when we have meals together, and when we are about to do our activities?

Have we done all these? Or are we instead too busy and too preoccupied with many other things such as work, other attractions, things that often cause our families to drift apart? Have we ever thought that all the things we thought we were doing for the sake of our families, such as working extra hard for the extra money but at the expense of our interaction with our youths and children had made families to be broken and weak?

Let us all reflect on all of these, and look upon the examples of the Holy Family, that each and every one of us, in our own families, may be able to grow better in faith together as families blessed by God. Let us also remember to put Christ at the centre of our family lives, or else, our families will be easily unravelled, because Christ should and indeed is the foundation of our Christian families.

May the Lord bless our families, and make them holy, in the imitation and following the example of His own most blessed and holy Family, so that each and every one of us may practice the same love and care that Mary and Joseph had shown Him, and also have peace and harmony in all the things we do together. May the Lord be with us and our families, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Thursday, 29 December 2016 : Fifth Day within Octave of Christmas, Memorial of St. Thomas Becket, Bishop and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we are all reminded by the readings from the Holy Scriptures that we just heard, that in order for us to be disciples of Christ, it is required that we should obey the Lord and fulfil His commandments, and not pretending to believe in Him, and yet in our actions we are corrupt, wicked and contrary to what the Lord had taught us to do.

God Himself has come into the world through Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, born of the Blessed Virgin Mary, His mother. And this is the perfect manifestation of His laws and commandments, which are made perfect and fulfilled through Christ. That is because the laws and commandments of God are the commandments of love. And God Himself is love, and through Christ, He has shown each and every one of us what love truly means.

And why is this so? God Himself has become Man willingly out of His love for us. For Him to assume the humble and mere flesh of our humanity is not something that is just insignificant or easily done. How many of us are willing to part with all the greatness, glory and inheritance that we have, for the sake of another person? And how many of us are willing to forsake everything and die for the sake of another person? And indeed, how many of us are willing to do so for the sake of evil and wicked people?

That was what Christ had exactly done. As St. Paul said in his Epistle, very few would have wanted or be willing to die for the sake of another person, even if that person was an upright and good person. Less so would anyone be willing to suffer and die, if that person is a wicked person and a sinner. But that was what Christ had done for us, willingly bearing the cross and our sins, and dying on the cross for us sinners, so that we who believe in Him may live.

And He showed us obedience to the law of God, by obeying the will of His Father perfectly. He did not let His human weaknesses and the temptations of the flesh to bring Him down. He put His complete trust in His Father’s will, and because of that, we are all saved. The chief priests and the elders could not understand why He did not try to save Himself while He had saved many others, mocking Him from below His cross. That was because they were unable to understand His ways, as they were people of this world and had been corrupted by the ways of this world.

And what is that? Perhaps by looking at the life and examples of the great saint whose memory we cherish and celebrate today, we will be better able to understand how we really ought to be living as Christians, and not as the people of this world. St. Thomas Becket was the Archbishop of Canterbury and thus was the Primate of England and the chief of the Catholic bishops in the kingdom of England, about nine centuries ago.

He was once the chancellor to the king of England, the right hand man of the king, who was entrusted by the king with much power and authority, and was involved in much worldliness and the pursuits of power and the flesh, imitating the behaviours of the nobles and the kings of those days. And everything changed the moment when the king appointed him to be the successor to the Archbishop of Canterbury, expecting him to be as loyal to him as he had been as his chancellor.

But St. Thomas Becket had a great conversion and change of heart, as he became a devout and ardent defender of the faith from then on, to the irritation and annoyance of the king and his nobles. Expecting a submissive and obedient Archbishop of Canterbury and Church, instead, the king got obstacles and challenges as he attempted to undermine the Church and increase his own worldly authority and power.

Tension arose as St. Thomas Becket was increasingly conflicted against the king and his nobles on the other side. But St. Thomas Becket did not fear the world and its opposition, and he held fast to the strong faith he had in the Lord, and when a noble was accused of murdering a man of God, who was indeed a priest, St. Thomas Becket excommunicated the noble despite opposition from the king and the nobles.

Eventually, some nobles, with tacit approval from the king, assassinated St. Thomas Becket, murdered him as he celebrated the Holy Mass. This was met with a huge outcry from the populace and the Church throughout Europe, and the nobles were excommunicated and were forced to undergo penance and carry out service to the Church for many years as penance, and even the king had to publicly shame himself for his role in the murder of this holy saint. But, the legacy of St. Thomas Becket and his examples continue to this very day.

From what he had done in his life, we see how we Christians should be like, that is to reject our worldliness and all the forms of temptations of the flesh, of greed, power, ambition, desire for human glory and fame, all which brought us to corruption and sin, and incompatible with God’s ways. As I have said at the beginning of this discourse today, we must not pay lip service for our faith to the Lord, meaning that we cannot be Christians and yet our actions show contrary to that faith.

Let us all dedicate ourselves anew to the Lord this Christmas, remembering once again what is the purpose of our lives as Christians, to serve God with all of our heart, obeying Him with all of our body, mind, heart and soul just as Jesus has obeyed the will of His Father, and willingly die out of love for our salvation. Let us all remember our Lord Who have come in the human flesh as Jesus our Lord, through Whom we receive every blessings and grace. May God be with us all, and may St. Thomas Becket intercede for us sinners. Amen.

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Wednesday, 28 December 2016 : Feast of the Holy Innocents, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we commemorate the memory of the Holy Innocents, the martyrs of the faith who were slaughtered on the orders of king Herod of Judea, who murdered them in his futile attempt to destroy the Messiah and Saviour of the world, the True King Whom Herod feared would topple him and take over the kingdom and power and rule from him.

King Herod was known to be an Idumaean, who through his alliances with the Romans had gained the control over the whole kingdom of Judea from the Jewish monarchs known as the Hasmoneans, who belonged to the family of the Maccabees which had its roots in the Book of the Maccabees in the Scriptures. As such, King Herod was in a sense not the true king of Judah but a usurper, who gained power through worldly means and deceit.

He was a proud king who did not tolerate any opposition to his rule, no less the King of Israel and Saviour of the world Who had come into the world to usher in His kingdom of love and peace to all those who believe in Him. Pride is indeed a very dangerous enemy to us all, as it is pride that had caused Lucifer the Archangel to fall and became Satan the great enemy and the Accursed One, and it was pride that caused many men to fall and fail on their way to reach God’s salvation.

St. John also addressed this issue when he wrote in his Epistle that we heard as the passage today, speaking about those who said that they had no sin, that they deceived themselves and brought not salvation for themselves but instead ruin and destruction. St. John reminded us of the stubbornness of the Pharisees and the elders of Israel and Judah, who refused to believe in Jesus because they thought of themselves as righteous.

It was their self-perception of righteousness and pride in their own power, intellect and ability which became their downfall. They became haughty, ambitious and power-seeking, and they were unwilling to part with all the good things that they had enjoyed in life. And it was that same pride which had brought down King Herod that brought them down as well.

If Herod murdered many innocents, blameless and those who should not have been harmed, just in order to safeguard his interests, then we can see how the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law constantly bickered with the Lord Jesus and His disciples, as they did with John the Baptist as well, because they were trying to safeguard and satisfy their own human interests. Is this what we want for ourselves, brethren?

It is a reminder from the Lord that this season of Christmas is a time when we should look beyond ourselves, perish our greed and pride, and seek instead to bring glory to the Lord and His Name, obeying His will and commandments rather than our own will and desires. The Holy Innocents are those who have perished from the result of the greed of men and the desire of those who hunger for worldly goodness and desires.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, there had been many other victims to human greed and ambition. Many people have suffered and perished because of our inability to resist the temptations of power and glory. In the same way, we too have often mistakenly celebrated this season of Christmas with revelry and rejoicing, celebrating our human achievements and deeds, but we forget about God, and we also forget about our brethren in need.

As Christians, we are today challenged to break free from the grip of our own greed and human ambitions and pride, so that we may learn to be loving and to be generous with our giving and mercy to our brethren in need. We should open our hearts to the Lord and welcome His love, trusting ourselves entirely, and not hardening our hearts and minds against Him as king Herod and the Pharisees and teachers of the Law had done.

May the Lord help us in our journey of life, and devote ourselves wholeheartedly and commit ourselves to Him in all of our deeds and actions. May He remind us always of the Holy Innocents who have died because of our human greed and ambition, that we may always seek to be humble and to give it all to God instead of trusting in our own human power and intellect. Amen.

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Tuesday, 27 December 2016 : Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day, after yesterday we celebrated the feast of St. Stephen, the first martyr of the Church, today we remember and honour one of the twelve principal and most important disciples of our Lord, and one of the four writers of the Holy Gospels, namely St. John the Apostle and the Evangelist. He was the disciple beloved by the Lord and the only one among the Twelve Apostles who did not suffer martyrdom.

He was also likely the writer of the Book of the Revelations or the Apocalypse, which contains the visions of what is to come for us in this world, as the Lord revealed His will to St. John, the warnings about the persecution that is to come for the faithful, and the challenges many of them will have to endure as those who believe in the Lord and as those who walk in His ways.

St. John has followed the Lord Jesus from the very beginning, as he was one of the four fishermen whom the Lord called at the beginning of His earthly ministry, together with his brother, St. James, with St. Peter and St. Andrew, the fellow Apostles of the Lord. He witnessed all that the Saviour had done, in all His teachings and works of mercy among the people, healing those who were sick and with afflictions.

And despite the doubts that he and his fellow Apostles had, and the amazement and wonders they always had at what Jesus did, St. John and his fellow disciples of the Lord believed in Him, and by the power and inspiration of the Holy Spirit, they became witnesses to the Lord’s actions among the people, spreading the Good News of God’s salvation to all of them.

And so that the people would be able to remember what they have testified and witnessed for the sake of the Lord, St. John together with some other Apostles and disciples wrote down what they have preached and said, in the many letters and Epistles that they wrote, and also the four holy Gospels, one of which was written by St. John, relating about the life of Jesus and the proof of His earthly ministry.

Through all of these we have received the same witness which the Apostles and the disciples had made before the world, just as many generations of the faithful throughout the ages had also received the same witnesses of faith through the Scriptures. Let us remember that saints and martyrs, our forefathers had to toil and suffer for the sake of their faith, risking their lives so that many more people could be saved through their efforts, including eventually all of us as well.

Now, the challenge is for us to continue their works, as the work of the Apostles is not yet complete. There are still many people who have not yet heard of the Lord and His salvation, and it is now up to us to do the work to spread the Good News of the Lord to our brethren who are in need and continue the good works the Apostles have started. And we do this, by applying what we believe into our own actions and deeds.

It is important that we should do as we preach and say, or else no one will believe in us. The Apostles including St. John demonstrated it to us well, as they were ready to live fully in their faith, including standing up for the Lord’s sake against those who would accuse them and cause harm against them. He did not fear the persecution of the world, but remaining true to the mission which had been entrusted to him and the other Apostles, that is to show the love of God to all the nations and call them into repentance and to turn themselves to God.

They showed love, care and concern for the poor and the less fortunate, caring for their flock as the Lord had instructed them. And they shared their joy and blessings among themselves, helping each other out of charity and love. They did what the Lord had asked them to do and taught them to do, and as a result, many people saw what they did and listened to their witnesses and believed. The same too should be done by each and every one of us.

Therefore, brethren, in the spirit of what St. John the Apostle and Evangelist had done for the good of the Church and of God’s people, let us all as Christians dedicate ourselves anew to God and to His ways. Let us commit ourselves wholeheartedly to His ways, and no longer believing Him just through words but also through actions. Let our Christmas season and celebration be filled with joy, as we share our joy with those who have little or none to celebrate with.

May the Lord bless us all and keep us in His grace. And may St. John the Apostle and Evangelist intercede for our sake before Him, that He may awaken in each and every one of us the strong desire to love Him and to obey His will as St. John himself had once done. May God be with us all and with our endeavours, now and forevermore. Amen.