coming of the Messiah

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Saturday, 11 January 2014 : Saturday after the Epiphany (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 3 : 22-30

After this, Jesus went into the territory of Judea with His disciples. He stayed there with them and baptised. John was also baptising in Aenon, near Salim, where water was plentiful; people came to him and were baptised. This happened before John was put in prison.

Now John’s disciples had been questioned by a Jew about spiritual cleansing, so they came to John and said, “Rabbi, the One who was with you across the Jordan, and about whom you spoke favourably, is now baptising, and all are going to Him.”

John answered, “No one can receive anything, except what has been given to him from heaven. You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before Him.’ Only the bridegroom has the bride; but the friend of the bridegroom stands by and listens, and rejoices to hear the bridegroom’s voice. My joy is now full.”

“It is necessary that He increase but that I decrease.”

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Monday, 6 January 2014 : Monday after the Epiphany (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 4 : 12-17, 23-25

When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, He withdrew into Galilee. He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum, a town by the lake of Galilee, at the border of Zebulun and Naphtali.

In this way the word of the prophet Isaiah was fulfilled : “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, crossed by the Road of the Sea, and you who live beyond the Jordan, Galilee, land of pagans : ‘The people who lived in darkness have seen a great light; on those who live in the land of the shadow of death, a light has shone.'”

From that time on, Jesus began to proclaim His message, “Change your ways : the kingdom of heaven is near.”

Jesus went around all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom, and curing all kinds of sickness and disease among the people. The news about Him spread through the whole of Syria, and the people brought all their sick to Him, and all those who suffered : the possessed, the deranged, the paralysed, and He healed them all.

Large crowds followed Him from Galilee and the Ten Cities, from Jerusalem, Judea, and from across the Jordan.

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Friday, 3 January 2014 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 1 : 29-34

The next day John saw Jesus coming towards him, and said, “There is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! It is He of whom I said : A Man comes after me, who is already ahead of Me, for He was before me. I myself did not know Him, but I came baptising to prepare for Him, so that He might be revealed in Israel.”

And John also gave this testimony, “I saw the Spirit coming down on Him like a dove from heaven, and resting on Him. I myself did not know Him, but God, who sent me to baptise, told me, ‘You will see the Spirit coming down, and resting, on the One who baptises with the Holy Spirit.'”

“Yes, I have seen! And I declare that this is the Chosen One of God!”

 

Alternative Reading (Mass of the Most Holy Name of Jesus)

 

Luke 2 : 21-24

On the eighth day the circumcision of the Baby had to be performed; He was named Jesus, the Name the angel had given Him before He was conceived. When the day came for the purification according to the law of Moses, they brought the Baby up to Jerusalem, to present Him to the Lord.

As it is written in the law of the Lord : “Every firstborn male shall be consecrated to God.” And they offered a sacrifice, as ordered in the law of the Lord : a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.

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Thursday, 2 January 2014 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 1 : 19-28

This was the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites to ask him, “Who are you?” John recognised the truth, and did not deny it. He said, “I am not the Messiah.”

And they asked him, “Then who are you? Elijah?” He answered, “I am not.”

They said, “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.”

Then they said to him, “Tell us who you are, so that we can give some answer to those who sent us. How do you see yourself?” And John said, quoting the prophet Isaiah, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness : Make straight the way of the Lord!”

Those who had been sent were Pharisees; and they put a further question to John, “Then why are you baptising, if you are not the Messiah, or Elijah, or the Prophet?” John answered, “I baptise you with water, but among you stands One whom you do not know; although He comes after me, I am not worthy to untie the strap of His sandal.”

This happened in Bethabara beyond the Jordan, where John was baptising.

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Tuesday, 31 December 2013 : Seventh Day of the Christmas Octave, Memorial of Pope St. Silvester I, Pope (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and this Word was made flesh, that it came into the world and dwell among us. Brothers and sisters in Christ, today’s Gospel proclaimed to us the truth about Christ and His coming into the world, and what the truth is about the Messiah and His ways.

For, as St. John the Evangelist warned us, in his first letter, that there are antichrist and false prophets who came into this world to mislead us and distract us from the true teachings and the way of the Lord, revealed in Jesus His Son. There are those who taught that Jesus is not God, and that even He is not the Holy One of God, or even that He worked with the power of the evil spirit, and many other.

And there were also those who proclaimed themselves as the Messiah and misled the people of God, both before and after the coming of the true Messiah, Jesus Christ, the Word of God made flesh. That is the truth as proclaimed by the Holy Apostles and martyrs who risked their lived to keep true the revelations as we heard today in the Gospel.

The truth about Jesus is that He is God, and therefore He is Love for God is Love. That was why He came down upon us, incarnate into flesh. He was the Word of God, and of the same essence as God. He was one third of the Holy Trinity, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He was there before time and before all ages, not created, perfect and one in unity, in perfect unity and love as One and only True God with three characteristics.

God the Creator, God the Word, and God the Spirit. These are the persona unified perfectly in God. If you all read the first chapter of the very first book in the Holy Bible, that is the Book of Genesis, you will understand it easily. It was written that once there was nothing and the Spirit of God floats in that nothingness. Then God who was there from the very beginning, and who exists outside of time, spoke and with His Word, made things to be created into existence.

All of those involved are one and the same God, the Creator who is the Father, the Word who is the Son, whom we later know as Jesus, and the Spirit of God, which is the Holy Spirit. That is the reality of our faith, that we believe in One and only One God, but God who in Him exists three distinct yet unified persona, in the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit.

All three of them cannot be separated from each other and they are One in God. Through His own Word, He decreed the universe and all creations into existence. Thus, through that Word of God, we and all the things around us were created. And because He created us, and because His nature is love, He cannot deny us the love He has for us. We have sinned when our ancestors chose to listen to Satan instead of the Lord, and therefore we should have deserves damnation and destruction as our fate.

We have been made unworthy of God because of our rebelliousness, and we who have been tainted by sin should have had no place in the kingdom of God. But God being God, and loving us deeply, gave us a new chance, that is the only way out of the predicament that we were in. That way is in Jesus, who came into this world, the Word who was God and was with God, but emptied Himself of all His glory and descend into this world as one of us.

This is the truth about the Lord, our Christ, the Saviour, the Messiah of the world. Satan certainly did not stay quiet or idle during the works of Christ, but he worked hard to undermine the works of the Lord, and as a result, sent many deceivers to deceive and distract the people of God from the true salvation in Jesus Christ.

Today we celebrate a saint whose feast is the last we have on the year. Pope St. Silvester I or Sylvester I was the leader of the Universal Church as the Bishop of Rome at the time of the reign of the Roman Emperor Constantine during the late Roman Empire period. He succeeded the Pope Miltiades, during whose reign as Pope the Edict of Milan was signed by the Emperor, which ended the state persecution against Christians.

Pope St. Silvester I worked hard to strengthen the Church and rebuilt the faith after centuries and past decades of persecution against Christians. He oversaw the period of great revival of the fortunes of the faith, from one that is constantly persecuted and chased by the state authorities and the pagans, into one that is eventually becoming the state faith of the Empire.

His piety and hard work to consolidate the position of the faith as the guiding beacon for many people, and for helping the pious Emperor Constantine to build up the foundations for the Universal Church in converting millions and more to the cause of the Lord made him a great saint of the Church. Yet, as we celebrate what he had achieved, we must remain wary of the devices and works of the devil aimed at disturbing the good works that Pope St. Silvester I and the other saints had initiated.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we end this year of our Lord 2013, let us look forward to the new year with a new and rejuvenated faith, that we will continue to remain faithful to the Lord and His ways, and not be swayed by the temptations of evil, no matter how attractive they are. Reject the devil as firmly as Jesus had rejected him and cast him away from His side. Reject any false prophet bearing the lies and falsehoods of Satan.

May the Lord strengthen our faith and empower us, to be better able to resist Satan and his temptations on us. That we will remain ever faithful in Jesus, our Lord, the true, one and only Saviour of the world. Amen.

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Monday, 30 December 2013 : Sixth Day of the Christmas Octave (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Brethren in Christ, as we continue to celebrate this season of Christmas, we continue to honour our Lord who was born unto us as one among us. The seer and prophetess Anna rejoiced because in her old age, she had been given the opportunity to see the Saviour of the world with her own eyes. Together with Simeon, they recognised the Messiah when they saw Him and were glad.

They know the Lord because they were given the foresight and the knowledge of the Messiah and His coming by the Lord. Thus they believe and rejoice even though naturally they should not have known Him, for He was still just a baby then. What about us then? Do we recognise Christ our Lord, or do we pretend to ignore Him or are we indeed ignorant of the presence of the Lord in our world?

We should have known the Lord even more, and it should be indeed easier for us to do so. Why? That is because we have so much testimony from the prophets and the saints, the Apostles themselves who gave their life in testimony and defense of the Lord Jesus. The Holy Scripture itself is a testimony of Christ, brethren! In it, we can see what the Lord Jesus had done, and what He had revealed about Himself, and what the prophets and His disciples had written about Him.

So, as we rejoice and make merry in this Christmas season, in all the partying and the festivities, do we profess Christ to be at the centre of our lives, and at the centre of what we celebrate? Christmas was, is, and will always belong to Christ. Christmas is not just any other event or celebration, and it is not just any other shopping opportunity because of the discounts and goods it offer. Christ is about the One, who emptied Himself of His divinity, that He might be born as a lowly man like us, to be our Saviour, the Saviour of the world.

We should be ashamed if we look at what Simeon and Anna had done, when they saw Jesus that day in the Temple of God, when Jesus was offered as per the custom, as the firstborn Son. Simeon and Anna rejoiced to see the Lord, and praised God for the opportunity given to them, even though they did not know who the Lord was, until he saw that baby of Mary and Joseph.

We who have more knowledge of the Lord often do not recognise Him, either because we are simply too busy with our preoccupations in the world, or because we are afraid or feeling shameful of recognising Him in the midst of our friends, families, and relatives who may not approve. We pretend that we do not know Him and continued on with our own respective matter and businesses.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Christmas offer us a big opportunity, to find out more about the Lord and after that, to rejoice in Him, and to profess our faith to Him. Not many people read the Holy Scripture on regular basis, even though what we need to know about the Lord is ever present around us. We profess our faith in words to Him, but yet we often do not practice what we believe, and we do not practice what we preached.

Therefore, brethren, it is most recommended for all of us to know more about the Lord, through the reading of the Holy Scriptures, and by listening and understanding of the teachings passed down through the Church. In our modern and digital world, they are very much available to us, free and easy. But how many of us actually spend the time to know the Lord and to know of His way?

Brethren, let us therefore use this time, and this opportunity to renew our faith and zeal for the Lord, opening to Him the gates of our hearts and mind. That we may seek to find out more about Him and to know more about Him, that we may truly walk blamelessly on His path. So that, we can truly rejoice in Christmas, because we know what it is celebrating, instead of making parties to enjoy the decadence of this world.

May the Lord guide us, that we may rejoice in His Son, through proper knowledge of His Son, and the knowledge of His ways, that we may always remain ever faithful to Him without straying to the left or right. God bless us all and be with us all. Amen.

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Monday, 30 December 2013 : Sixth Day of the Christmas Octave (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 2 : 36-40

There was also a prophetess named Anna, daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. After leaving her father’s home, she had been seven years with her husband, and since then she had been continually about the Temple, serving God as a widow night and day in fasting and prayer.

She was now eighty-four. Coming up at that time, she gave praise to God, and spoke of the Child to all who looked forward to the deliverance of Jerusalem.

When the parents had fulfilled all that was required by the law of the Lord, they returned to their town, Nazareth in Galilee. There the child grew in stature and strength, and was filled with wisdom : the grace of God was upon Him.

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Christmas Message and Reflections, Anno Domini 2013

Christ our Lord is born in Bethlehem, in the city of David. Alleluia!

He who is the king of kings is born among us and dwell among us His people. Alleluia!

Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour is born to us, out of His love that in Him we may have new hope. Alleluia!

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate with the entire Church and with the entire world, the coming of one Man, but not like any man, because He was truly special. Jesus our Lord was born in Bethlehem, in the city of David, as prophesied throughout the ages, as the Messiah who would come to save all of God’s multitudes of peoples.

Christmas is a time for joy, and not just our own joy, but everyone’s joy, because Christ the Messiah is born for us, for our sake. In Christ is the culmination of God’s long-planned salvation for all of us. Mankind waited years and many, many years just for the coming of the deliverer, much like the people of Israel waited many years for the coming of the promised deliverer, suffering for hundreds of years in slavery in Egypt.

With Christ, a new hope for all mankind had dawned, and the royal baby, whose birth we celebrate today is the Saviour. He came into this world not for leisure or for a picnic, but for the deliverance of us all, none other than through His own sacrifice on the cross. Yes, that was the very reason why God came down upon us, incarnate as Man born of the Blessed Virgin Mary, His mother. He came to liberate us forever, from the slavery under sin and the power of evil, and to give us our inheritance, promised to us since the beginning of time. And this is joy!

Christmas is not just joyful because it is a holiday time, or a rime to relax from our work. And Christmas is also not just joyful because of all the partying and all the festivities that our societies often rejoice in. Christmas is not just about the gifts or merely about the shopping spree and the massive discounts that the shops offer us. Christmas is about Christ, and it is about Him. It is His birthday, and yet many of us often seem to forget that reality.

We spend long hours hunting for gifts and spend lots of time decorating our homes and our places, but do we all know the reason why we even do all of these. That is because we have been long immersed in the secularised version of Christmas that took Christ out of Christmas, and made it no different than other festivals and celebrations.

Yet, Christmas, besides that of Easter should be the greatest of our celebrations in the whole of our lives. That is because just as we are often exposed to the fact that Christmas is a season of giving, it is truly a season of giving, but it represents ultimately, the gift of our Lord to us, in Jesus Christ. Remember what is said in the Gospel of John, that God so loved the world, that He gave us His only Son, that all who believe in Him will not die, but receive eternal life.

Christ is the Lord’s gift to us, the ultimate gift of all. And Christmas marked that gift’s entry into the world, when God’s gift is made manifest and true to us. God fulfilled His promises to us, and He gave us the perfect gift, to liberate us from the power of sin and death. In Easter too, is the time of remembrance of the time when Christ gave Himself as a perfect and worthy sacrifice as the reparation for all of our sins.

So, we cannot omit or ignore Christ at all, whenever we make any festivities and celebrations this Christmas. To ignore Christ at His own birthday is pagan, and to exclude the values that Christ had taught us at Christmas is pagan. We cannot be too engulfed in our own joy and happiness, that we forget those who are less fortunate than us. Yes, those who cannot even afford to get their daily food and daily sustenance, much less still to celebrate Christmas in the way that we do.

This brings us yet into another important point to consider about Christmas. Christmas is not about the glamour and the wealth being displayed around, not in the lavishness or size of the gifts that we receive. Yes, Christmas can include all of these, but we cannot miss the true essence of Christmas, that is love. For it is God’s love for us that brought Christmas to us, and it is God’s love that enables us to even rejoice and be glad on this great and sacred day.

Christmas is about love, and about us understanding fully the love of God for us, and the love He had for this world, and also about us sharing, this love that God had shown us, which He had also poured generously on us, with one another. We cannot profess to be Christians, that is to be the believers of Jesus Christ our Lord, if we do not profess love. And what time is better to show that this Christmas? It is a season of giving indeed, but not just of material goods. Instead, let us resolve to also give of our hearts, to share the love, the joy, and the happiness we have with one another.

Seek out those who are without love, and those who are less fortunate than us. We do not have to go far! And indeed, it does not always mean that we have to go to the streets and seek out beggars in order to do so. We can do those things certainly, but what about our own homes, our own families, and our own circle of friends and acquaintances?

Yes, if we know anyone who is forsaken and devoid of love in our own communities, even within our own families, and those who are unloved, and indeed, those who held grudge and hatred against us, this is the time, the perfect time to show the love of God, and share with them what joy we have. For are we not the children of the same God? The same God who had resolved to come upon us to be our salvation through His birth, death, and resurrection?

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Christmas day and the Christmas season is the best day and time to begin life anew. If we have not been professing love, that is Christian love, then let us reflect on the love that God showed us through His Son. Follow what God had done, and show that same love to one another. This is a good time to forgive one another, and let go of our anger, hatred, jealousy, and any kind of ill feeling, and instead rejoice together with the angels and saints as they proclaim the glory of God who was born on Christmas day.

We cannot celebrate Christmas yet, and we are not ready to rejoice too, if we still hold grudge against one another, or against any of our brother and sister in Christ. That is why we often have penitential services and confessions during the Advent season, that is to clear up our sinfulness and to be ready for the celebration of Christmas. If you have not done so, then do not wait, but use this very opportunity to do so, and then rejoice together at the coming of our Lord.

Therefore, may this Christmas be a season of renewal for us all, that we will be renewed in faith and in love. And as much as it is a season of renewal, let it be a season of joy, but that of true joy, and not the masked joy of secularised Christmas celebrations. Yes, let this time be a time of joy, rejoicing in the coming of Jesus Christ our Lord, born a baby in Bethlehem to be the Saviour of all. Let us never forget this, and keep Christ always at the centre of our lives, and at the very centre of our hearts.

May the Almighty God, who had loved us so much so as to give His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, continue to love us, and bless us, that we will be stronger and ever stronger in our faith, our hope, and our love. That our faith and trust in Him will only get stronger and stronger, that our hope in Him and the eternal life He promised will only get firmer and firmer, and that the love He had shown us, we too will be able to replicate in our own lives.

Have a blessed Christmas, and rejoice in the Lord! Rejoice in the coming of our Lord Jesus, Saviour of the world. Merry Christmas! Buon Natale!

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Wednesday, 25 December 2013 : Mass of Christmas Day, Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 97 : 1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4, 5-6

Sing to the Lord a new song, for He has done wonders; His right hand, His holy arm, has won victory for Him.

The Lord has shown His salvation, revealing His justice to the nations. He has not forgotten His love nor His faithfulness to Israel.

The farthest ends of the earth all have seen God’s saving power. All you lands, make a joyful noise to the Lord, break into song and sing praise.

With melody of the lyre and with music of the harp. With trumpet blast and sound of the horn, rejoice before the King, the Lord!

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Wednesday, 25 December 2013 : Mass of Christmas Day, Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Isaiah 52 : 7-10

How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring Good News, who herald peace and happiness, who proclaim salvation and announce to Zion : “Your God is King!”

Together your watchmen raise their voices in praise and song; they see YHVH face to face returning to Zion. Break into shouts of joy, o ruins of Jerusalem, for YHVH consoles His people and redeems Jerusalem.

YHVH has bared His holy arm in the eyes of the nations; all the ends of the earth, in alarm, will witness God’s salvation.