commitment to God

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Sunday, 8 February 2015 : Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Sexagesima Sunday and Memorial of St. Jerome Emiliani and St. Josephine Bakhita, Virgin (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Corinthians 9 : 16-19, 22-23

Because I cannot boast of announcing the Gospel : I am bound to do it. Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel! If I preached voluntarily, I could expect my reward, but I have been trusted this office against my will. How can I, then, deserve a reward?

In announcing the Gospel, I will do it freely without making use of the rights given to me by the Gospel. So, feeling free with everybody, I have become everybody’s slave in order to gain a greater number.

To the weak I made myself weak, to win the weak. So I made myself all things to all people in order to save, by all possible means, some of them. This I do for the Gospel, so that I too have a share of it.

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(Usus Antiquior) Sexagesima Sunday (II Classis) – Sunday, 8 February 2015 : Epistle

Liturgical Colour : Violet

Lectio Epistolae Beati Pauli Apostoli ad Corinthios – Lesson from the Epistle of Blessed Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians

2 Corinthians 11 : 19-33 and 2 Corinthians 12 : 1-9

Fratres : Libenter suffertis insipientens : Cum sitis ipsi sapientes. Sustinetis enim, si quis vos in servitutem redigit, si quis devorat, si quis accipit, si quis extollitur, si quis in faciem vos caedit. Secundum ignobilitatem dico, quasi nos infirmi fuerimus in hac parte.

In quo quis audet (in insipientia dico) audeo et ego : Hebraei sunt, et ego : Israelitae sunt, et ego : Ministri Christi sunt, (ut minus sapiens dico) plus ego : in laboribus plurimis, in carceribus abundantius, in plagis supra modum, in mortibus frequenter.

A Judaeis quinquies quadragenas, una minus accepi. Ter virgis caesus sum, semel lapidatus sum, ter naufragium feci, nocte et die in profundo maris fui : in itineribus saepe, periculis fluminum, periculis latronum, periculis ex genere, periculis ex gentibus, periculis in civitate, periculis in solitudine, periculis in mari, periculis in falsis fratribus.

In labore et aerumna, in vigiliis multis, in fame et siti, in jejuniis multis, in frigore et nuditate : praeter illa, quae extrinsecus sunt, instantia mea cotidiana, sollicitudo omnium Ecclesiarum. Quis infirmatur, et ego non infirmor? Quis scandalizatur, et ego non uror? Si gloriari oportet : quae infirmitatis meae sunt, gloriabor.

Deus et Pater Domini nostri Jesu Christi, qui est benedictus in saecula, scit quod non mentior. Damasci praepositus gentis Aretae regis, custodiebat civitatem Damascenorum, ut me comprehenderet : et per fenestram in sports dimissus sum per murum, et sic effugi manus ejus.

Si gloriari oportet (non expedit quidem), veniam autem ad visiones et revelationes Domini. Scio hominem in Christo ante annos quatuordecim, (sive in corpore nescio, sive extra corpus nescio, Deus scit 🙂 raptum hujusmodi usque ad tertium caelum.

Et scio hujusmodi hominem, (sive in corpore, sive extra corpus nescio, Deus scit 🙂 quoniam raptus est in paradisum : et audivit arcana verba, quae non licet homini loqui. Pro hujusmodi gloriabor : pro me autem nihil gloriabor nisi in infirmitatibus meis. Nam, et si voluero gloriari, non ero insipiens : veritatem enim dicam.

Parco autem, ne quis me existimet supra id, quod videt in me, aut aliquid audit ex me. Et ne magnitudo revelationem extollat me, datus est mihi stimulus carnis meae angelus satanae, qui me colaphizet. Propter quod ter Dominum rogavi, ut discederet a me : et dixit mihi : Sufficit tibi gratia mea : nam virtus in infirmitate perficitur. Libenter igitur gloriabor in infirmitatibus meis, ut inhabitet in me virtus Christi.

English translation

Brethren, you gladly suffer the foolish, whereas yourselves are wise. For you suffer if a man bring you into bondage, if a man devour you, if a man take from you, if a man be lifted up, if a man strike you in the face. I speak according to dishonour, as if we had been weak in this part.

Wherein if any man dare (I speak foolishly), I also dare. They are Hebrews, so am I. They are Israelites, so am I. They are the seed of Abraham, so am I. They are the ministers of Christ (I speak as one less wise), I am more, in many more labours, in prisons more frequently, in stripes above measure, in deaths often.

Of the Jews five times I have received forty stripes save one. Thrice I was beaten with rods, and I was stoned once. I suffered shipwreck thrice, a night and a day I was in the depth of the sea. In journeying often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils from my own nation, in perils from the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils from false brethren.

In labour and painfulness, in much watchings, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness, besides those things which are without, my daily instance, the solicitude for all the churches. Who is weak, and am I not weak? Who is scandalised, and am I not on fire? If I have to glorify, I will glory on the things that concern my infirmity.

The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is Blessed forever, knows that I do not lie. At Damascus the governor of the nation under Aretas the king guarded the city of the Damascenes to apprehend me, and through a window in a basket I was let down by the wall, and so escaped his hands.

If I must glorify (it is not expedient indeed), but I will come to the visions and revelations of the Lord. I know a man in Christ above fourteen years ago (whether in the body, I do not know, or out of the body, I do not know, only God knows), such a person rapt even to the third heaven.

And I know such a man (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell, only God knows) that he was caught up into paradise, and heard secret words, which it is not granted to man to utter. For such a person I will glorify, but for myself I will glorify nothing, but in my infirmities. For though I should have a mind for glory, I shall not be foolish, for I will say the truth.

But I forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he sees on me, or anything he hears from me, and lest the greatness of the revelations should exalt me, there was given to me a sting of my flesh, an angel of Satan, to buffet me. For which thing I besought the Lord, that it might depart from me. And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in infirmity. Gladly therefore I will glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

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Saturday, 7 February 2015 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we discuss in the readings of the Holy Scriptures, of the nature of our Lord and God as our Shepherd and loving Guide, who cares for all of us, as His beloved children and people. He wants us all to be reunited with Him, and that was why He sent us Jesus His Son, to be the Deliverer and Saviour of us all, to bring us from all evils and liberate us all from all forms of sins.

God did not desire our destruction, but instead He wants us all to be saved from our own destructive attitudes, our rebelliousness and disobedience against His will which directly leads us into sin, and from sin into death, as sin is an obstacle for us to be reunited with our Lord, and without the Lord our God, our Shepherd, we are truly nothing. We cannot survive without the love of our Shepherd, just as sheep cannot survive and prosper without their shepherds.

We have lived for a very long time in the darkness, and we have lost our way in the darkness of this world, and without a guide, we are condemned to an eternity in darkness and suffering, in a state of hopelessness and complete separation from the love of our God. All these are because of our sins, the disobediences we have committed before the Lord and men alike.

But as I have mentioned, the Lord loves us very, very much, and just as the shepherd loves his sheep and cares for all of them without exception, thus the same applies to our Lord, who does not want even a single one of His sheep, that is all of us, to be lost from Him. We can liken this to a shepherd who does not wish his sheep to be lost to the wolves, to be scattered and without a leader to guide them and show them the way to a good life.

Thus this was why if we look at the Gospel passage today, even though our Lord Jesus and His disciples were very tired, particularly our Lord Himself, after ministering without cease on many occasions to the multitudes of the people of God, He still pushed Himself forth and taught more people who were looking for Him for guidance and the way for them to go in their life.

That is because He truly has concern and love for us. He is genuinely worried about us, for what is at stake is nothing other than the eternal fate of us all, and if He did nothing to save us, then all of us would have been lost, body and soul, to the eternal suffering and despair in hellfire. This is the fate that He does not want us all to have, and that was why, He became our Shepherd, to guide us all along the right path and show us all the path towards salvation in Him.

And just as a shepherd is willing to die and give up his life for his sheep, thus our Lord Jesus, our Shepherd is also willing to lay down His life for our sake. He laid down His life to protect us, and indeed to deliver us from the darkness of this world, to pay the price for our sins. Shepherds are willing to put their own lives at risk just so that their sheep may be safe from the depredations of wolves and all others that seek their destruction and harm. And indeed, our Lord is no different.

So for such a great love and care which our Lord had shown us all, even to the point of bearing the consequences of our sins and to even bear enormous suffering and to die for us, have we shown Him the same kind of unconditional and genuine love which we ought to show Him? Most often, we have shown Him contempt and indifference, and we even reject the love He had given us freely.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all appreciate the love which our Lord and Shepherd had shown us, and let us reciprocate it by loving Him back and following Him and the path which He had shown to all of us. Let us follow Him with all of our heart and let us no longer be disobedient but follow Him all the way to the end, where He will reward us with rich rewards and eternal life in bliss. God bless us all. Amen.

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Tuesday, 3 February 2015 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, and St. Ansgar, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we hear about the healing which Jesus performed to the woman who had bleeding in her for twelve years, and also the resurrection of the dead daughter of a synagogue official. And both of them have a great significance for us, as they were both saved and healed because of their faith.

The woman was healed from her bleeding because she believed that Jesus had the power to free her from her afflictions, while the daughter of the official was healed because her father also showed the same faith in the power and authority of Jesus. What Jesus told the woman is important, as He said that the woman’s faith had saved her. This showed that we must have faith in the Lord in order for us to achieve salvation.

However, people tend to interpret this differently, thinking and assuming that faith alone is sufficient for us to attain salvation and liberation from all of our afflictions. Some were misled by the confusion to think that we just need to have faith and to believe in the Lord, and then all of our problem will be gone, and all of our difficulties will cease. But this is a wrong idea, an erroneous thinking and a heresy planted in our minds by Satan.

Our Lord Himself, as the first reading from the Epistle to the Hebrews had testified, is the founder of the Faith we have now, not just because He preached what He had preached, and not just because of all the words and things which He had mentioned and taught to His disciples, but even more importantly, Jesus Himself practiced and made true what He had taught and preached in His own actions.

He persevered and suffered grievously for all of our sins, and He bore that cross that is our sins, holding onto it as He ascended the hills of Calvary, and every single wounds He received is our sins that He patiently and lovingly bore upon Himself. What does this mean, brothers and sisters in Christ? Our Lord loves us all very much, and He wants us all to be saved. He had faith in us all being able to overcome sin, but without action, everything would come to naught.

And that was why, He showed us all the example through His own action, that faith is never complete without action and deed to prove that faith, and without action based on that faith, the faith is essentially dead. The woman with bleeding believed in Jesus, but had she not taken the action to come through the numerous crowd and try her best to touch the cloak of Jesus, she would not have been healed.

It was also the same for the daughter of Jairus, the synagogue official. Had Jairus not make the effort to come down and seek the Lord Jesus, he would not have received the reward for his faith, even though he was indeed faithful to the Lord. Thus, our faith requires effort, a conscious effort and work, which is our faith made alive and real.

Indeed, we cannot profess that we are truly faithful to the Lord, if we had not done anything to show that we are indeed faithful. Therefore, let us all from now on, change our ways and be truly faithful, just as today we celebrate the feast of two saints of the Church, namely St. Blaise and St. Ansgar, the faithful servants of God, whose examples hopefully may inspire us all.

St. Blaise was renowned as the patron saint of throat diseases, and we know of him now primarily because of the custom of the blessing of the throat, also known as St. Blaise’s blessing, with two crossed candles on our throats. St. Blaise was once a physician that cured and healed diseases, but he then settled on in the greater service of God and His people and instead he became the physician of souls.

The works of St. Blaise in calling the people of God to repentance and to a holy lifestyle is a constant reminder to all of us, that we are all always afflicted with the disease of the soul, that is sin, and we have to seek remedy for this affliction, that is by seeking the Lord our God with faith, and by doing what He had commanded us to do, as doing good deeds for others around us is a panacea and medicine against the sickness of sin.

Meanwhile, St. Ansgar showed us that we have much to do as the fellow servants of God, in doing good for one another and in calling many people from the darkness of the world into the Light. St. Ansgar was truly experienced in this as he lived during the early Medieval era Europe, in the midst of the people still gripped by pagan worship and pagan gods, and he was indeed sent to those people to bring the Light of Christ upon them.

St. Ansgar tirelessly worked to bring the Good News and the truth of Christ to them. Amidst all the difficulties and challenges, he managed to convert countless souls and gained them for the Lord, for their own benefit as well. And this should inspire us all to take up the same cross, the same mission to bring more and more people to the salvation in the Lord.

May our Almighty God be with us all, guide us all in our ways that we may always be upright in His eyes and at the end of the days, may we all find salvation and justification in Him, the One who rewards all His faithful with the abundance of graces. God bless us all. Amen.

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Monday, 2 February 2015 : Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, World Day for Consecrated Life (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord Jesus Christ, when our Lord Jesus Christ, the Firstborn Son of Mary, His mother, was presented to the Lord, as written and prescribed by the Law revealed through Moses. And in that presentation and consecration, the Lord was recognised by His faithful servants, Simeon and Anna, who had waited very long for the fulfillment of God’s promise to them, that they would see the Messiah and Lord.

Today we celebrate the day of prayer and celebration for all of those who have committed themselves to the Lord in a holy and devoted life, namely all of the religious men and women, who had joined the various orders designed to be the societies where those men and women can live their lives meaningfully and devotedly according to the ways and rules laid out for them, that they maintain their purity and worthiness before the Lord.

These holy men and women face difficult challenges, even more than all of us do. This is because they have consecrated themselves to the service of God, following in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus Himself, who was presented as the Firstborn One at the Temple. Jesus is the Firstborn of all creations, the One begotten not created by the Father. He became Man so that as High Priest, He would offer the perfect sacrifice of Himself as the Lamb of sacrifice for the reparation of all our sins.

And so, the faithful religious and all those who have dedicated and given themselves to be consecrated to God, namely every single one of our priests, who have been taken from the world and as in our first reading today by the prophet Malachi had mentioned, they have been taken and molded in the Lord’s hands, to be made pure and holy, blameless and worthy, purified and refined, as if gold and silver, to be the ones to offer the same sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ, the sacrifice of Calvary that liberated all of us from the thrall of sin and death.

Yes, while the priests of Israel of old, from the tribe of Levi offered the sacrifice of animals, the blood and the fats of lambs, calves, goats and turtledoves, and while they offered the goods and products of the land, for the sake of their own sins first and then for the sake of the sins of the people, that they may be forgiven. But this sacrifice is temporary, for no amount of animal blood and offerings may remove from us the enormous weight of our sins combined.

Jesus has been offered and consecrated to God, not because He was a sinner or having any form of sins or disobedience in Him. He was consecrated because just as the priests of Israel of old were consecrated, be made pure and ready to serve the Lord at His altar and offer the sacrifices for the sake of the people, then Christ Himself also offered the sacrifice, the greatest sacrifice of them all, that is the sacrifice of Himself on the cross for our sake.

And all of us have been saved by that sacrifice, where our Lord Jesus Christ took upon Himself all of our sins, and as our Great High Priest, He offered the sacrifice for the reparation of all our sins, with exception of one difference, that this sacrifice no longer needs to be repeated again and again. It was because that sacrifice is the only one worthy enough to absolve all of our sins, past, present and future all at once. After all, who else is worthy beside the Lamb of God, the Divine Word of God who gave up all to save us?

And it was in the service of this Great One that all of our priests and the religious, all those who have consecrated themselves to be His servants, that they live this life of holiness, prayer and dedicated service to God. Jesus was consecrated to be an example to all of us, as the High Priest dedicated to God, that all of us who are called to serve, also follow in His footsteps and dedicate ourselves as well.

And different people have different roles and calling. But they all serve the one purpose, that is to bring mankind closer to God, their Lord and loving Father. It is to bring about the reconciliation between God and mankind that they are called for. And indeed, their responsibility and duty is not an easy one, for just as they themselves are tempted as we are tempted, we also like to refuse to follow and obey God’s commandments.

Therefore, their life is one of a constant battle and challenge, struggle against Satan and all of his forces, and they have to bear with all these with prayer, with patience and with dedication that requires our support and help. Our religious and priests need our help, for they are the ones who have consecrated themselves for our sake. And why is this so, brothers and sisters in Christ? That is because they are the ones who stand as the vanguard in the battle for the sake of our souls, protecting and guiding us to the truth of Christ.

Let us also follow in their footsteps and model our words, actions and deeds on theirs and ultimately to follow in the footsteps of our Lord. May all of us be sanctified and be made holy through what we are doing in this life, and let us all shun all forms of sin and accept the fullness of Christ’s truth and love into our lives. Pray for each other, especially for all of our priests and all the religious brothers and sisters committing their lives to God. God bless us all. Amen.

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Sunday, 1 February 2015 : Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Septuagesima Sunday (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Corinthians 7 : 32-35

I would like you to be free from anxieties. He who is not married is concerned about the things of the Lord and how to please the Lord. While he who is married is taken up with the things of the world and how to please his wife, and he is divided in his interests.

Likewise, the unmarried woman and the virgin are concerned with the service of the Lord, to be holy in body and spirit. The married woman, instead, worries about the things of the world and how to please their husband.

I say this for your own good. I do not wish to lay traps for you but to lead you to a beautiful life, entirely united with the Lord.

Alternative reading (Epistle for Septuagesima Sunday – Usus Antiquior)

1 Corinthians 9 : 24-27 and 1 Corinthians 10 : 1-5

Brethren, do you not know that those who run in the race, all run indeed, but only one received the prize? So run, that you may obtain. And everyone who strives for the mastery, refrains himself from all things, and they indeed so that they may receive a corruptible crown, but we receive an incorruptible one.

I therefore so run, not as at an uncertainty, I so fight, not as one beating the air but I chastise my body, and bring it into subjection, lest perhaps, when I have preached to others, I myself should become a castaway.

For I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all in Moses were baptised, in the cloud and in the sea, and all did eat the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink, (and they drank of the spiritual drink that followed them, and the Rock was Christ). But with the most of them God was not well pleased.

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Sunday, 1 February 2015 : Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Septuagesima Sunday (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 94 : 1-2, 6-7, 8-9

Come, let us sing to the Lord, let us make a joyful sound to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before Him giving thanks, with music and songs of praise.

Come and worship; let us bow down, kneel before the Lord, our Maker. He is our God, and we His people; the flock He leads and pastures. Would that today You heard His voice!

Do not be stubborn, as at Meribah, in the desert, on that day at Massah, when your ancestors challenged Me, and they put Me to the test.

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Saturday, 31 January 2015 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Bosco, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we hear about how we ought to have faith in God, the faith which we have in the Lord, and by hearing on the testimony of those who have lived the faith in the past, we too should be inspired to live following the footsteps of our predecessors in faith if we desire to receive the fullness of God’s grace and salvation.

The faith we heard was about the faith of Abraham, the faith of Sarah and all those who have lived according to the way of the Lord. Abraham was once just a mere man who lived in the ancient region of Mesopotamia, in the city of Ur, far away from the lands of Israel. And then one day, God called him to follow where He would ask him to go to. He promised Abraham great rewards and riches should he choose to follow Him, and indeed, Abraham faithfully followed the Lord into the unknown.

God chose Abraham not because He randomly picked people who He deemed suitable to receive His grace, but because He also knows what is in the hearts of men. He knows it all, and to those who have the gift of faith, He shall give more, and bless them even more if they prove to be capable of living up to the faith. And Abraham passed that with flying colours. Not only that he was able to commit himself fully to the Lord, but he was also even willing to sacrifice his own son to obey the will of God.

And in this, we also see the kind of commitment which is required from us, so that we can be truly faithful and devoted to the Lord our God. We cannot be half-hearted or be divided in our attention and focus on the Lord, or otherwise, our faith is not truly genuine and real. After all, the sacrifice of Isaac itself has shown us how faithful our Lord is, in His devotion to all of us. He is ever faithful, while we are always the ones who always broke our promises and obedience to Him.

And the promise of God was made full, real and complete through His giving of His own Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour. Jesus is the perfect fulfillment of God’s promise and love. In need for so much of help are we, that nothing short of what He has done, will be able to deliver us from the grip of sin which had engulfed us for such a long time. Sin has been a great stumbling block in the path of our road to redemption, and as long as we remain immersed in sin, it will be difficult for us to escape.

Indeed, just like the storms and waves in the lake, which the disciples encountered as they were crossing the lake, thus there are many obstacles and dangers that are in our path as we approach the Lord and as we seek the salvation which only our Lord can give us. It may indeed be very fearsome and frightening to be in such a condition, but if only we had placed our trust in the Lord, then we truly should not be afraid, for the Lord Himself will guide us and guard us from the Devil.

When Jesus, our Lord, is at the helm, no one will be able to assail us, and as long as we anchor ourselves to Him, we shall be fine. For by what He has done, God had shown us all how to be truly faithful and devoted to God. If Abraham had endeavoured to sacrifice of his only son, the child of the promise of God, then what God had done for us is even greater.

For He had also given us His own Son, as a loving sacrifice, out of His faithfulness and obedience to the one thing which keeps Him moving in action to save us all, His people, that is the love which He has for each and every one of us, from the least to the greatest. And that is the love which our Lord has shown us, the love which propelled Him to endure all forms of sufferings and to die for us on the cross.

Today, we celebrate the feast of St. John Bosco, a renowned priest and holy man, who was known for his efforts to help the people of God, through his various charitable acts and founding of charitable and educational institutions, meant to help the least in the society, the poorest, the weakest, the least and the ostracised of the society.

St. John Bosco worked hard to spread the Good News of the Lord, and he did it through his actions, helping and loving those who have no others to love them, and caring for all those who have no one else to turn towards. He sheltered many people, especially the youths, who were homeless and under bad influences of the world, and he taught them on how to live their lives well.

What St. John Bosco had done should be an inspiration to all of us, to put all of our faith in God, and put it into real action, by following in the footsteps of all those who have been faithful before us. Abraham, our forefather in faith trusted completely in the Lord, and he walked down the path to the lands promised to his descendants, and he offered even his own son out of obedience to God’s will, knowing that God will give him back his son.

Thus, all of us should also be truly devoted and be faithful to our God, and the best way to do so is by showing it through our words, deeds and actions, loving our fellow brethren and caring for them. Let all of our actions speak loudly and clearly of the love of God, so that more and more people may realise of the love which He had shown all of us. May Almighty God be with us all, love us always, and keep us always in His grace. God bless us all. Amen.

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Saturday, 31 January 2015 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Bosco, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 1 : 69-70, 71-72, 73-75

In the house of David, God’s servant, He has raised up for us a victorious Saviour; as He promised through His prophets of old.

Salvation from our enemies and from the hand of our foes. He has shown mercy to our fathers; and remembered His holy covenant.

The oath He swore to Abraham, our father, to deliver us from the enemy, that we might serve Him fearlessly, as a holy and righteous people, all the days of our lives.

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Saturday, 31 January 2015 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Bosco, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Hebrews 11 : 1-2, 8-19

Faith is the assurance of what we hope for, being certain of what we cannot see. Because of their faith our ancestors were approved. It was by faith that Abraham, called by God, set out for a country that would be given to him as an inheritance, for he parted without knowing where he was going.

By faith he lived as a stranger in that promised land. There he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, beneficiaries of the same promise. Indeed, he looked forward to that city of solid foundation of which God is the Architect and Builder.

By faith Sarah herself received power to become a mother, in spite of her advanced age, since she believed that He who had made the promise would be faithful. Therefore, from an almost impotent man were born descendants as numerous as the stars of heavens, as many as the grains of sand on the seashore.

Death found all these people strong in their faith. They had not received what was promised, but they had looked ahead and had rejoiced in it from afar, saying that they were foreigners and travellers on earth. Those who speak in this way prove that they are looking for their own country.

For if they had longed for the land they had left, it would have been easy for them to return, but no, they aspired to a better city, that is, a supernatural one; so God, who prepared the city for them is not ashamed of being called their God.

By faith Abraham went to offer Isaac when God tested him. And so he who had received the promise of God offered his only son although God had told him : ‘Isaac’s descendants will bear your name.’ Abraham reasoned that God is capable even of raising the dead, and he received back his son, which has a figurative meaning.