Christmas homily

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Wednesday, 27 December 2017 : Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate the feast of the holy Apostle St. John, the brother of St. James the Apostle, and who happens to be also one of the four writers of the Book of the Gospels, and thus he is also known as St. John the Evangelist. He was the disciple whom the Lord Jesus loved and was always at His side, because of his great faith and devotion.

St. John was the only one among the Twelve Apostles who did not die from martyrdom, but died a peaceful death last among all of them, around a century after the birth of Our Lord Jesus, many decades after the events surrounding His crucifixion, death and resurrection. St. John died after having received the vision of the end of time, which he wrote in the Book of the Apocalypse or the Revelations according to St. John, the last book in our Bible.

He was the one to whom the Lord entrusted His mother Mary, and she lived with him from the moment when Jesus entrusted her to him from the cross. At the same time, He also entrusted him to her, to be her adopted son. St. John was also featured prominently in the other parts of the Gospels, as the one who was often present during important events in the life of Jesus, with St. Peter the Apostle, the leader of the Twelve, and with St. James, the brother of St. John.

Why was that St. John featured so prominently throughout the Gospels? That is because, while St. John was the youngest among all the Twelve Apostles, yet, despite of his youth, he was very faithful and devoted to the Lord. He was always listening to the Lord and was loyal to Him, even to the very end, when He was betrayed by Judas Iscariot. In the Gospel of St. John, he stayed behind and fled only when he was chased by the Temple guards.

And as mentioned in the Gospel passage today, St. John was among the first to witness the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, along with St. Peter the Apostle, and of course the women who went to the tomb earlier on that Easter Sunday. And he believed in all that he saw, the stone that was rolled off the tomb entrance, the missing Body of the Lord Jesus, and His promise that He would rise from the dead.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, St. John the Apostle and Evangelist showed all of us the way to follow the Lord, through faith, dedication and obedience. He had a pure faith and a committed heart, dedicated to serve and worship the Lord, and until the end of his earthly life, enduring one persecution after another, and one exile after another, including the one to the island of Patmos where he received the visions of the end times, St. John continued to be faithful, and helped many of the early Christians to continue persevering in the faith.

Let us all imitate his examples, and as Christians let us all have that strong and genuine faith in the Lord. Are we able to dedicate ourselves, our whole lives, and commit them to the Lord? This is what we need to do, if we are to become true disciples of the Lord, like that of St. John, and through our faith, just like his, we will inspire many others to do the same, and more people will be saved by our good works of faith.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, as we continue to rejoice in this wonderful and blessed Christmas season, let us all remember always of the reason of our joy, that is Christ, and with Christ as the focus and the centre of our lives, let us all always strive to live in accordance with His ways, and walk always in His grace. May the Lord bless all of us, and be with us always, all the days of our life. St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, pray for all of us sinners, that the Lord may eventually bring us to His eternal glory. Amen.

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Tuesday, 26 December 2017 : Feast of St. Stephen, Protomartyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day after Christmas day we always celebrate the occasion of the Feast of the Protomartyr or the first martyr of the Church, namely St. Stephen the Deacon, one of the first seven holy deacons of the Church mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles. He was chosen with the other deacons to minister to the people of God in the early Church, in the distribution of goods and care for them.

He was assailed by the enemies of the Church, the chief priests and the Pharisees who were annoyed and felt threatened by his preachings among the people about Jesus the Lord and Saviour and his great wisdom, which none of them could match, because the Lord and His Holy Spirit was with him, guiding his works and words. As we heard in the Acts of the Apostles, St. Stephen spoke courageously with guidance of the Holy Spirit, chastising the people for their lack of faith in God Who has shown them His ways for a long time.

St. Stephen was not afraid to stand up and defend his faith, even though he was alone against a large crowd who were hostile to him, and refused to listen to him earnestly. He preached to them the truth, and pointed out to them how their ancestors had treated the prophets and messengers sent by God to them in the same manner, persecuting them, torturing them and killing them.

And thus, the enemies of the Lord rushed against St. Stephen and stoned him to death. He became the very first martyr of the Church, as martyrs are those who died defending their faith in the Lord, refusing to give up and abandon their faith and their God. There were many martyrs who followed after St. Stephen, having to suffer and die for their faith in God, against the Jewish authorities, against the Roman Emperor and the authorities, and more.

You may be wondering, why is it that on this joyous and festive occasion of Christmas, that we celebrate the memory of a martyr, who died a painful death and was the first among the many holy martyrs of the Church, a memory of the difficult and terrible years of the early Church, when being a Christian could equate with imprisonment, torture, suffering, exile, being ostracised and death?

That is because Christmas reminds each and every one of us as Christians of our true calling and mission, that we ought to proclaim the truth of God, Who was born two millennia ago and celebrated as Christmas, as the Man, Jesus Christ, Son of God and Son of Man. Many at that time, and even until this very day, refused to believe in this truth, as they refused to acknowledge Jesus as Messiah or Saviour, while others refused to acknowledge that He is the Son of God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, it is this truth that St. Stephen had suffered and died defending for. He refused to choose life and abandoning his faith in the Lord, but rather, he stood up for the truth and died faithfully in the Lord, defending it. Yet, at the same time, following the example of Christ, he forgave his enemies, and prayed for their sake, that God would forgive him from the sin caused by their murder.

What should all of us as Christians make of this, brothers and sisters in Christ? It is a timely reminder for all of us as Christians, that this season of Christmas, while it is a joyful season, we must not be carried away with our celebrations and revelries, without understanding the full meaning of Christmas. As I have often mentioned, what is most important about Christmas, is God’s love for us, which He has given us through Jesus Christ, born into this world two millennia ago.

And as we remember this love which He has given us, then shall we not forget to love Him back in the same manner too? We can do this by devoting ourselves, our time and attention to Him, and while we do not need to go to the extent of the martyrs, who died defending their faith, shall we stand up for our faith whenever it is necessary to do so? Let us be sources of inspiration and strength for each other, in keeping ourselves faithful to the Lord, all the days of our life.

May the Lord, through His blessed servant, St. Stephen the Protomartyr, awaken in each and every one of us a strong zeal and love for Him, inflamed by the Holy Spirit, that we may proclaim His truth to the world, through our actions in life, taken and done while being ever mindful of God’s laws and commandments, that we may be true disciples of His, now and always. May God bless us always. Amen.

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Monday, 25 December 2017 : Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, Christmas Day (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this joyous day we finally come together to celebrate the Nativity or the birth of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, Who was born more than two thousand years ago in the quiet city of Bethlehem, in a small and dirty stable fit for animals, not for man, less so a king, and much less still for the King of kings. Yet, that was how He came into this world, a King Who came not to be served, but to serve.

This is the reality and the truth about Christmas, which is the moment when the King of kings and Master of the Universe willingly chose to become small, to be insignificant and to empty Himself, by humbling Himself beyond anything that we can possibly imagine, that the Lord and Saviour of this world should enter into this world in such a manner. And yet, it happened, and because of that, this world and all of us mankind has a new hope because of Him.

Christmas is much more than just all the festivities and celebrations that we see all around us, all the partying and merry-making we often associate with this joyous season and time. Christmas is a joyful time because it is about Christ, about the One Who came for us, and willingly entered this world for our sake, bearing the fulfilment of God’s long promised salvation and liberation from our fated destruction due to our sins.

Without Christ, our Christmas celebrations become empty and meaningless. And if we sideline Christ and replace Him with other things, as how the world commonly celebrate Christmas, in the secular and materialistic manner, then it is no different from any other forms of merry-making and seeking of worldly pleasures and excesses. Yet, that is sadly how many of us have been swayed and influenced by the society and the temptations around us.

How many of us actually put Christ at the centre of our Christmas celebrations and joy? How many of us prepare ourselves for Christmas and remember why is it that we rejoice in this momentous occasion of Christmas? How many of us actually spend some time to reflect on the importance of Christmas to ourselves, and took the necessary steps to prepare ourselves that we may celebrate Christmas worthily and with good understanding?

Many of us think of Christmas as a good time to celebrate together because of its numerous shopping opportunities, where we throng the shopping malls and other places where plenty of lucrative Christmas deals and discounts are being touted. Many of us then worry about what we are to buy, since there are so many options to choose from. We want to look good in front of others, and we adorn ourselves with the best of accessories we can get, and prepare the greatest and most lavish banquets and celebrations.

Yet, do we know that we are losing the point of our Christmas celebrations and joy? If Christmas is so much about ourselves, about our vanity and ego, then, we have wandered off too far away from a meaningful celebration of Christmas. It is often that we do not realise what Christmas is really about, and how significant it is to all of us, each and every one of us who are sinners, without exception.

Christmas by its nature cannot be separated and should not be celebrated without a clear link and understanding of its relation to Easter, the other great feast time of the Church. Without Christmas, Easter’s meaning is diminished and altered, and the same applies for Christmas, as without Easter, Christmas itself has no clear meaning and reason. For both of these great events in the Church gave the entire meaning to the work of God’s salvation, which He had done through Our Lord Jesus Christ, His Son, Whose birth into this world we celebrate this Christmas day.

Let us now spend some time to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. What is Christmas truly about? Christmas is not the moment when Our Lord was conceived, for that happened the previous nine months from this date. Rather, as we all should know, it is the moment of Our Lord’s birth after He has spent nine months in the womb of His mother, Mary, born into the world, as the Divine Word of God, Son of God Most High, as announced by the Archangel Gabriel, and yet, by the power of the Holy Spirit and through Mary, He was also fully Man, as the Son of Man.

It is a core part of our faith and the teachings of the Church, that we believe in Jesus Christ, Son of God and Son of Man, Who is part of the Holy Trinity, co-equal with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit as God the Son, but yet, having a human nature and existence, assuming the flesh and appearance of mankind, and born of a mother. He has two distinct natures, one that is His divinity, and the other that is His humanity.

Yet, these two distinct natures are perfectly and indivisibly united in one person, Jesus Christ. It is thus wrong to distinguish or to separate or treat Him as either man or divine without acknowledging the other. If Jesus is merely just Man, then His Blood and sacrifice offered for our sake during His Passion and death on the cross would not avail us, as no amount of mortal blood or offerings would have been able to redeem us from our sins.

If Jesus is merely just Divine, and not Man, then how would we explain His human traits and nature? He was born of a woman like that of any other men and women. He experienced sorrow and pain, and He was also tempted in His humanity by the devil in the desert. He wept for His friend Lazarus, and felt hunger and humanity’s other traits. All these pointed out to the fact that in Christmas, the Baby born and placed on the manger, is none other than God Himself, Who has appeared as Man, as one of us, fulfilling His promise that He shall dwell among us, Emmanuel, that God is with us.

God could have just saved us by His will alone. After all, He has created each and every one of us by the mere action of His will and His words. He spoke and everything came to existence. Yet, by the very action of His assumption of humanity, in Jesus Christ, He wanted to show all of us, the fullness and the perfect love He has for each one of us. Jesus Christ, the Baby Jesus born on Christmas day, is the love of God made tangible and visible, for God is Love and He has since then dwelled among us.

Christmas therefore is a truly joyful day and an event worth celebrating, and we all rejoice because God has loved us, and He has loved us so much that He had gone through all the trouble, to come into our world, and to be born through His mother Mary, that all of us may be able to see His love, through Christ, and by His loving sacrifice, the ultimate love He showed us from the cross, He saved all of us who believe in Him.

God has shown us His love, so that we who follow Him and believe in Him may also show love to one another. He came into this world as King, but He did not come to be served, but to serve His beloved people. His kingship is not one filled with pride and worldly ambitions, but instead it is a kingship of love. Thus, all of us rejoice this Christmas, because of God’s love for us, and consequently, we must, first and foremost, put the Lord at the centre of our Christmas celebrations.

Then, in order to make our Christmas celebrations more meaningful and worthy, we should also share the joy and blessings we have received with those who have less or even none. Let Christmas be a time for us to be more generous in sharing and giving, rather than a season of material excesses and excessive merry-making without regards for those who are suffering and lonely.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all embody the true spirit of Christmas, following the examples of Our Lord Jesus Himself. If God Himself has loved the world and all of us so much that He gave us the ultimate gift in the Baby Jesus, Our Saviour born and celebrated this Christmas day, then we should also love each other following His example. Let us all remember those who are in need, not just for material goods, but also, for love and attention. Let us not rejoice alone above the sufferings of others but let us share together the joy and therefore rejoice together this Christmas.

May the Lord bless us and bless our Christmas celebrations, that we may find true joy in Him and not in the pleasures that the world offered us and inundated us with. Let us draw ourselves closer to Him and do our best to live in accordance with His ways, that we may be reconciled with Him and find justification through He Who came in Christmas and Who will come again at the end of time to gather all of His faithful ones. May we then be counted among those worthy of His eternal glory. Have a blessed and wonderful Christmas everyone! Amen.

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Monday, 9 January 2017 : Feast of the Baptism of the Lord (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we commemorate the Feast of the Baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ, which falls after the Solemnity of the Epiphany, the moment when Jesus was revealed to the world for the first time through the actions of the Three Wise Men or the Magi. These events mark the ending of the season of Christmas today, as the readings of the Scripture shift from the events surrounding the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, into one that begins His earthly ministry.

The baptism of our Lord Jesus at the Jordan River by St. John the Baptist was a momentous event which marked the beginning of our Lord’s work on earth, to fulfil the mission which He had been sent into this world for. Jesus was then thirty years old, fully grown as a Man, endowed and blessed with all the good human upbringing that His mother Mary and His foster-father St. Joseph had given Him throughout all those years.

Thus the baptism of our Lord Jesus can be seen as the coming of age event, through which a formal beginning of the ministry of the Saviour of the world was marked. After the baptism, the Lord went on to prepare Himself through fasting for forty days and nights before He was ready to set forth and teach the people the Good News of God.

It is indeed a reminder of our own baptism that we celebrate this feast of the Baptism of our Lord today. Let us ask that simple question, which answer has often stunned many of us Christians until today. What does our baptism mean to us, brothers and sisters in Christ? What is its significance to us, to our faith and to our respective lives? And indeed, can we remember the day of our own baptism?

If we cannot remember the day of our own baptism, then it means that we do not care how important is baptism and the moment of baptism to all of us. Baptism is very important and indeed crucial to us, as Jesus Himself had demonstrated through His own baptism, that each and every one of us, through baptism, received the grace to become the sons and daughters of God. For God, through His Son Jesus Christ, have made us to share in His baptism, as His brethren.

And what is baptism about? There are many symbols used in baptism, primarily which is blessed and holy water. It is a symbol of cleansing and healing, representing how Jesus was baptised by St. John the Baptist at the Jordan river, and also how the people of Israel passed through the waters of the Red Sea, when God brought them out of Egypt, and also later on when He brought them to the land of promise, opening up the Jordan river for them to pass through.

It is a symbol of the destruction of our past and sinful lives. We have been immersed in the water just as our Lord Jesus was, and we share in His death together, His death on the cross. And water is also a symbol of life, for water is needed for us to continue living. Thus, it is also a symbol of our sharing of the Lord’s glorious resurrection from the dead, that each and every one of us who have been baptised now have in us the promise of everlasting life Jesus had made to His disciples.

The holy oil of chrism is a reminder of the anointment which our God had given us, just as He had anointed His Messiah or Saviour, to be the One through Whom salvation would come into this world. We receive the Holy Spirit through Him, and the Spirit of God Himself lives inside of us. And therefore all of us have been made the Temples of the Holy Spirit, the Temples of God. For God Himself is amongst us, and He resides within us.

We received the candle lighted with the flame from the Easter Candle, and this is the representation of the Light of Christ, the Risen Lord, through Whom we have seen the true Light and rejoice, because we have been living in the darkness, and He has come to save us all from the darkness of this world, and bring us into a new world of light.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all today remember the day of our baptism, and if we were still then too small and too young to remember what happened, then at least let us all reflect on all the significance of our baptismal ceremony and what it means for us all Christians to become the sons and daughters of God by our baptism, which we share with the Lord Jesus, our Lord and God.

And most importantly, we have to remember that just as Jesus began His earthly ministry by His baptism, each and every one of us as Christians have been entrusted with the divine ministry by our Lord Himself, Who tasked us all to go forth and to bring the Good News to all the peoples of all the nations. And we need to do this by being genuine disciples and followers of our Lord, and by practicing our faith through real actions, through our good works.

May the Lord be with us all, and may He also strengthen our faith, which we have with us ever since the day of our baptism. May we all grow stronger in our conviction and desire to serve Him, our Lord and Master, and be more courageous and dedicated in the mission which He had entrusted to all of us. God bless us all. Amen.

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Sunday, 8 January 2017 : Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the great Solemnity of the Epiphany of our Lord Jesus Christ. Many of us will remember that this Solemnity of the Epiphany is related to the Three Wise Men, or the Three Magi or Three Kings, which figurines are always accompanying the Christmas crib, bearing gifts of gold, myrrh and frankincense for our Lord Jesus. But then, what is the true meaning and significance of this Epiphany feast?

The word Epiphany came from the Greek word ‘Epiphaneia’, which means the manifestation or appearance, coming from the word ‘Appear’. This feast is also sometimes known as the Theophany, also from the Greek word ‘Theos’ which means God. Thus, this Solemnity of the Epiphany is truly a celebration of the revelation and manifestation of the Lord God, Who made Himself apparent to the whole world through the means of the Three Wise Men or the Three Kings.

It was a feast originally celebrating the Baptism of our Lord Jesus, as at Baptism, when St. John the Baptist baptised Jesus, many people who were there could witness the Holy Spirit descending as a Dove and landed upon the head of Jesus, and the voice of the Father speaking, revealing to all, particularly to St. John the Baptist, that Jesus is the Son of God, and that He is the long awaited Messiah and Saviour of the world.

But over time, especially in the tradition of our Faith, the focus shifted to the moment surrounding the Nativity of our Lord, the moments surrounding His birth. The Angels had appeared to the shepherds of Bethlehem and proclaimed to them the great joy of the coming of the Lord and Saviour, the Good News which mankind had awaited for long, and which God had promised to them for many ages through His prophets and messengers.

Yet it was at the events celebrated this Epiphany when the Lord revealed Himself to His people who were of non-Jewish origin, namely the Gentiles, people from faraway lands, who also came to worship God, and who wanted to believe in Him and in His ways and messages. The Three Wise Men, or the Magi, represented these people, who came following the Star of Bethlehem and came bearing gifts to Jesus our Lord, paying Him homage as their one and true King.

There are many symbolisms surrounding the event of this Epiphany, and which we should try to understand so that we may make use of them as best as we can in order to benefit ourselves in our developing faith in our God. For in the Epiphany, we should be able to relate to ourselves and our journey in faith to God, and in the identity of the One Whom we worship, the Lord God of all creation.

The Three Kings or the Three Wise Men are representatives for us all, people from every nations, from every languages and origins, from all the ends of the earth, who came to worship the Lord and who want to believe in Him. They were following the Star of Bethlehem, which represented the coming of the Lord, Who is indeed the Light of the world. Amidst the darkened sky, the star shone brightly, visible from afar, all the way to the lands where the Magi lived in.

That was just like how we saw the Lord, the Light of our lives, amidst the darkness of this world, and we see in Him, the Light which we ought to follow, and which we indeed want to follow. It is also because of faith that they have travelled long distances, enduring difficult conditions of their journey to come and pay homage to the King of kings. That is why the star of Bethlehem is also a sign of faith, the same faith which we share in our own journey of faith. We may have different stories of how our lives had developed, but nevertheless, all of us believe in God and want to look for Him.

Through this event, we know how the Lord wanted to save us all from the threat of our destruction. He did not intend just for the salvation of certain group of people, but all of mankind, including Jews and non-Jews alike. At that time, there were those who thought that being the chosen people of God, the people of Israel were the only ones who were worthy of God’s salvation, particularly among the Pharisees and the elders of the people.

These people shunned the pagans and foreigners, whom they called as Gentiles. They thought of these people as unclean and unworthy of God and His love, and even considered coming into contact and entering their houses as being defiling and brought impurities upon them. But it was God Himself through Jesus Who broke the barriers and the perceptions, proclaiming to all that God loves all people, all of His children, both Jews and Gentiles alike.

We can see the contrast in many occasions throughout the Gospels, when the supposedly pagan Gentiles, from the Greeks to the Samaritans, actually welcomed the Lord and His teachings through Christ, while the Jews themselves were not always receptive to Him, and in some occasions they even rejected and opposed Him, as what the teachers of the Law, the Pharisees and the elders of the people did.

God, through His revelation in this Epiphany wanted to show all of His people, that He is God, Who had come into the world in the form of Man in Jesus Christ, through Whom He would bring His salvation to all of His people without exception. It will not be based on the birth or background of His people that He would save them, but instead, He would save them through faith. Those who believe in Him and place their trust in Him will be saved.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, now that we have discussed about how and why God revealed Himself to the whole world, then now let us all discuss how God revealed Himself to the world through the Three Wise Men. They brought to Jesus our Lord three different and truly unique gifts. Do we all know the significance of those gifts? Each of them had a meaning, and each of them indeed are parts of the revelation of Who Jesus truly is.

The gift of gold, frankincense and myrrh are indeed strange gifts to be given to a newborn Child. Now let us go through each one of them. Gold is a precious metal which since long ago have become a source of wonder and amazement to many people around the world, and it has long become a symbol of wealth and power. And it was often that gold are fit only for the rulers, the royalty and all those who were endowed with power and authority. Not just any person were able to afford t possess gold.

Thus gold represented Jesus Who came into this world as a King, and not just like any other kings, but as the King, the one true King, from Whom all power and authority came from. All the other rulers of this world ultimately derived their authority and power from the Lord, Who blessed them and granted them the guardianship over His people on earth.

Yet we can see just how amazing our Lord and our King is, for although He is a great King, Lord and Master of all the Universe, He is humble, loving and caring for all of His people. And He is showing all by His own examples. He is a leader, a King Who does not sit above everyone else and oppress those who are under Him. Instead, He is a servant leader, Who went through the lowest and the most difficult things a leader had to do, that is to actually go and do the works in order to help His people.

And indeed, even as God, He is not a distant and fearsome God Who oppresses His people. The frankincense is the best quality incense which are both rare and expensive, and are only used for the most solemn of purposes for worship. Incense had been used for a long time as well, in many religious purposes, for the worship of deities and gods, as well as an aromatic perfume because of its aroma and good smelling smoke.

Thus the frankincense represents the divinity of Christ, that Jesus, while He was a mere Baby, weak and fragile, born in a dirty and cramped stable fit only for animals, not for a man, less so a king, and even less so for the King of kings and as the Creator and only God of the whole Universe, was and is indeed God, the only One Who deserves to be worshipped and adored by all of creation.

Through those two gifts, the story of the Epiphany, the visit of the Three Magi or Wise Men has inspired in the hearts of many people about the birth of our Lord, Who has willingly come down upon this world as a Man, taking up the flesh of Man, and born in the worst possible condition, in a poor and dirty stable, and yet, He is indeed the God and King of this world, and this universe. He is both God and Man at the same time, all united in the person of Jesus Christ, Who had two natures, the Divine Nature of God, and the Human nature of Man.

But all these would not be complete, neither would it make sense without the third gift of the Three Magi, which revealed to us all, the very purpose of why Jesus came into this world, why God would want to enter into this world as a mere Man. Myrrh is an aromatic compound commonly used in the past for the purpose of embalming dead bodies, to preserve the dead bodies from decomposition and from emanating foul odours.

It would indeed be weird for someone to give the gift of myrrh to a baby, and less so, to the King of kings and the Creator God of all. But that myrrh represent nothing other than the Passion of our Lord Jesus, what we are celebrating at every Holy Week, of Jesus Christ our Lord, Who willingly took upon Himself the burdens of our sins, the sins of our forefathers, and indeed of all mankind. And He bore it all upon Himself, bearing His cross to Calvary, where He laid down His life for all of us, that we may live.

Thus in Epiphany and what we celebrate today, we see the perfect embodiment and fulfilment of God’s love, in the person of Jesus Christ, the Child Who was born that night in Bethlehem two millennia ago, and to Whom the Three Magi or Wise Men paid homage to, bearing the three gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, signifying and revealing to all the whole world that He is not just a mere Child, but indeed the King of the whole world, God of all creation, Who out of His infinite love and mercy for us, willingly took up the flesh of Man, incarnate through the Blessed Virgin Mary, His mother, to be our Saviour.

Now, what we need to ask ourselves as Christians, is simple indeed. As Christians, do we truly believe in God’s love through Christ? Do we take Him as our King and our Lord? Have we lived in accordance with His ways, in our actions and deeds? If we say that God is our King and Lord, and yet our actions, words and deeds do not reflect our obedience and adherence to His ways, will it not cause shame and scandal to our Lord’s great and holy Name?

Let us all spend time to reflect on ourselves and our respective lives as we celebrate and rejoice together in this feast and Solemnity of the Epiphany of our Lord. Let us all first of all be thankful to God Who has loved us so much, that He is willing to reveal Himself and His love through Jesus Christ His Son, His greatest gift to all of us. He has sent us the means of our salvation, our liberation from our sins and the One through Whom all of our past trespasses will be forgiven.

May we all grow ever deeper in our relationship with God, and by understanding more about our Lord, by receiving His revelations and understanding them, by our prayerful life and good works, we may receive from Him the gift of everlasting life and grace. May God be with us always and may He bless us in all of our life’s endeavours. Have a blessed and wonderful celebration of the Epiphany. Amen.

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Saturday, 7 January 2017 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of St. Raymond of Penyafort, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today’s Scripture readings spoke to us about believing in God and following His ways. And a warning has also been given to us, in order to warn us against those who would corrupt us and mislead us into sin, namely the wicked spirits and the false prophets, the agents of the evil one. And the key to differentiate the truth from the false ideas, as mentioned, lay in knowing the good works of God, through which God by His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, had redeemed us.

Those who believe in the Lord and in His ways will be able to know if someone is genuine or fake in their devotion to the Lord. They will know this through witnessing and seeing the actions of those who claim to have come from the Lord. No matter how good they are in trying to subvert the messages of the Lord and in trying to trick us into doing evil, those who serve the evil one will not be able to proclaim and recognise that Jesus is their Lord and Master, and it will also show through their actions.

Indeed, there are many obstacles and challenges for us Christians. There are many difficulties that we have to overcome in order to be able to reach out to the Lord and to His salvation. There will be those who try to bar us from reaching Him, and there will also be many people who will criticise us and oppose us in our works and in our attempt to be faithful servants of our Lord. But that is because the ways of the Lord we are following, are against the ways of the world.

The world preaches a life of sin and wickedness, a life filled with the pleasures and desires of the flesh, with all sorts of corruption and unworthiness before God. It is a world which has been filled with all sorts of sin and wickedness, ever since mankind first disobeyed God and preferring to listen to the devil and his lies. It is a world of darkness, where we are blinded by the darkness of our own sins and human weaknesses, where we did not know the path and the way forward.

But we have to know that God loves each and every one of us, and through that same love, He had endeavoured to send unto us the true Light, the Light which has penetrated the darkness of this world, and became the light that guided us through the journey of this life, and filling us with a new hope, that is a hope for the salvation of our souls.

He came into the world, as mentioned in the Gospel today, with the mission to heal the sick and the afflicted from their sickness and afflictions. He touched the lepers, the blind and the deaf and mute people, and these were healed from all of their physical afflictions. But ultimately, Jesus also healed us all from the greatest affliction of all, that is the scourge of sin. By healing us from our sins, He had made us whole again and once again were made worthy of the kingdom of God.

It is therefore the same calling and mission which our Lord had entrusted to us, that we may show the love of God, the mercy of God, and the healing with which He had made many people whole once again, to all of our fellow brethren, especially to those who are still living in the darkness of this world. When there are those who seek to mislead and to bring the people of God to ruin and damnation, we should be those who help to guide one another on the path towards God.

Let us therefore on this day remember the life of the holy saint whose feast we celebrate on this day, so that we may imitate the examples of this holy servant of God, and find our way to God’s salvation. St. Raymond of Penyafort was a holy and devoted man, a holy priest of God who belonged to the Order of Preachers or the Dominican Order.

St. Raymond of Penyafort was renowned for his many good works for the sake of the Church, helping many people on their path towards redemption. He helped the Church and the Pope to reform the Church and the lives of the faithful. Through him, many people turned back towards the Lord and reformed their sinful lives into a life worthy and righteous to God.

It was also told in one very well-known tale, that he even rebuked the king of Aragon in Spain, to whom he was a confessor, for his sinful ways. The king was a good and faithful person, but at the same time, he allowed his lust and the temptations of the world to take over him. The holy saint repeatedly asked the king to dismiss his concubine, but the king refused to do so.

And when the king also refused to let the holy man go, because St. Raymond could no longer tolerate the king’s sinful ways, he said to the king that the Lord, Who is the one true King over all, will show him His power and rebuke the wicked king’s deeds. It was told that St. Raymond took off his Dominican preacher’s cloak and spread it on the water, on which he sailed through the sea, a great miracle witnessed by many, which also made the king to believe and to repent his ways.

Each and every one of us as Christians also have the same obligation to keep one another in the faith, so that each and every one of us will continue to walk in the way of faith, and not falter and fall into temptation. St. Raymond of Penyafort had shown us one such example, and also many other examples not mentioned today. We do not have to perform miraculous deeds as he had done, but at least from ourselves, we should devote our time to care for our brethren, and to help each other to watch our path that we will not be lost to sin and eternal damnation.

May the Lord help us on our path, that we may remain ever faithful amidst this world filled with all sorts of temptations. May we remain in the Lord’s grace and be filled with faith, that all of us may be worthy of Him when He comes again, and He will bring us all into the everlasting inheritance and bless us with eternal life filled with true joy. God be with us all. Amen.

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Friday, 6 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 coming of the Lord into this world, and how He has been acclaimed and acknowledged through the three testimonies, of water, Blood and the Spirit. And from the Scriptures itself, we can find these testimonies, the testimonies of faith for our belief in Him, through Whom God willed to save us from the eternal damnation.

First of all, the testimony of water was witnessed by St. John the Baptist who baptised our Lord Jesus in the Jordan. The moment that he baptised Him, as He was plunged into the waters of the river, the heavens opened, and the Holy Spirit descended from it to rest upon Jesus, and the voice of the Father declaring that Jesus is the holy Son of God, the One Whom He had sent into the world, and through Whom He had sent His salvation.

And the testimony of the Blood came through the Passion of our Lord, Who have suffered for us and for our sake, bearing the burden of the cross, when His Blood was shed for the salvation of the whole world and all mankind. The Lord gave His own Precious Body and Blood, so that all of us who share in them and receive them worthily will have life in us, and we will not perish but live forever with Him. It was only the Blood of the Lamb of God that is worthy enough to redeem us all from the entirety of our sins.

Lastly, the testimony of the Spirit refers to the Holy Spirit that first came on Jesus at His Baptism, declaring together with the Father, the true nature of the Saviour of the world, and Who was later promised by the Lord to His disciples and followers, that all who believed in Him would receive the Holy Spirit that He promised. And indeed, the Holy Spirit later came on them, and He spoke the same thing that Jesus Himself had taught them.

All the three testimonies of water, Blood and Spirit agreed together that Jesus is Lord, Jesus is Saviour of all, and through Him salvation would come upon all who have shared in His baptism, when we all receive the Sacrament by the pouring or immersion in the holy water of baptism, and then receive the Most Precious Body and Blood of our Lord Himself in the Eucharist, and finally the gift of the Holy Spirit through the Sacrament of Confirmation.

All these are the three important Sacraments of Initiation that all Christians ought to undergo to complete their journey of faith, symbolising a complete union with the Lord through the Church. And therefore, through the holy water of baptism, by receiving the Most Precious Eucharist and being anointed with the holy oil of chrism at Confirmation, we have received the fullness of our faith as passed down to us from the Apostles of our Lord.

And now that we have received the fullness of this faith, then what are we do with it, brethren? It is now then that we should pass on this faith for others around us who have not yet heard or believed in the Lord. This was how the faith was passed on from the Apostles to the people, through whom then, down the centuries and through many interactions, that they passed down the faith all the way to us.

The Lord has tasked us all with the responsibility and duty to carry out His Good News to all the peoples, that is to continue the good works which had been done for the many years past, so that even more people would come to know of the love of God and receive therefore the salvation from Him by their faith and devotion to the way which He had shown them.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this means that each and every one of us ought to do something with our lives, practicing our faith with devotion and with real action, so that all of us may convince many more people who see us, and witness in us the good works and the love of our God, and therefore, they will also be convinced and be called to walk the same path as we have walked, on our way together towards God’s grace and salvation.

May the Lord bless us all, and may He strengthen in our hearts the commitment and zeal we have for Him, so that in all things, we will always bring glory to Him and help one another to seek our way to reach out to Him. May the Lord be with us all, now and forever. Amen.

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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.