disciples of Jesus Christ

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(Holy Week) Sunday, 9 April 2017 : Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red
Isaiah 50 : 4-7

The Lord YHVH has taught Me so I speak as His disciple and I know how to sustain the weary. Morning after morning He wakes Me up to hear, to listen like a disciple. The Lord YHVH has opened My ear. I have not rebelled, nor have I withdrawn.

I offered My back to those who strike Me, My cheeks to those who pulled My beard; neither did I shield My face from blows, spittle and disgrace. I have not despaired, for the Lord YHVH comes to My help. So, like a flint I set My face, knowing that I will not be disgraced.

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Friday, 27 January 2017 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Angela Merici, Virgin (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Virgins)
Mark 4 : 26-34

At that time, Jesus also said, “In the kingdom of God it is like this : a man scatters seed upon the soil. Whether he is asleep or awake, be it day or night, the seed sprouts and grows, he knows not how. The soil produces of itself : first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. And when it is ripe for harvesting, they take the sickle for the cutting : the time for the harvest has come.”

Jesus also said, “What is the kingdom of God like? To what shall we compare it? It is like a mustard seed which, when sown, is the smallest of all the seeds scattered upon the soil. But once sown, it grows up and becomes the largest of the plants in the garden, and even grows branches so big, that the birds of the air can take shelter in its shade.”

Jesus used many such stories, in order to proclaim the word to them in a way that they would be able to understand. He would not teach them without parables; but privately to His disciples He explained everything.

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Thursday, 26 January 2017 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Timothy and St. Titus, Bishops (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate the feast day of two of St. Paul’s followers and fellow leaders of the early Church, St. Timothy and St. Titus, who accompanied him during certain parts of his apostolic journeys, and with whom he kept correspondences, which are then compiled and become part of the New Testament of our Sacred Scriptures today.

These two were among those whom the Apostles had appointed as the episcopi, overseers or bishops among the people of God. They have been chosen to help in the works of the Apostles, and to be their successors to continue the works that the Apostles had started. From them too, came forth many more successors and bishops, who followed on through time, as those who have given themselves to the service of the Gospel for the sake of mankind’s salvation.

And in the Gospel, Jesus our Lord also appointed seventy-two disciples in addition to the twelve Apostles He had chosen. The seventy-two disciples are those whom God had chosen to assist in the good works which the Lord had appointed them to do. They had been instructed by the Lord to go to every places He was to go, to prepare His way for him, and to bring the Good News to the people in those places.

All of us Christians have also been called to do the same, as Jesus Himself had aptly said, that while the harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few. The harvest refers to the richness of opportunities in this world for evangelisation and conversion, of many people who have yet to receive the Good News of God, and the many people who are still living in sin and darkness, in the ignorance of the light of Christ.

The labourers of the harvest are all those whom God have called to help gather His harvest, namely those who have answered His call and accepted their new role as the devoted servants of God. They are our priests and bishops, those in the holy orders and religious life, who have given themselves and their whole lives for service to God, in the same manner as St. Timothy and St. Titus, and many other holy saints had been.

There are many things that these servants of God had to do, preaching the Good News, healing the sick and caring for them, as well as for all those who are without hope, downtrodden and rejected by the society. And they will also be accepted in places, but rejected in even more places. There will be many of those who refuse to listen to them, and instead of obeying their precepts, continued to live their old and sinful way of life.

In all of this, we should look upon the examples of St. Timothy, St. Titus and all the holy saints who have devoted their life to God. They went from places to places, ministering for the people who need them, both in physical and also spiritual, but more importantly, they provided for them the sustenance of their faith, showing them examples of how they ought to live their lives in good faith.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we are all called to serve the Lord in our different capacities and opportunities, that as Christians and thus members of the Church, we may be true bearers of the message of God’s Holy Gospels, and awaken in many others, the faith that have laid dormant in their hearts. Let us all inspire one another, and help guide each other on our journey of faith towards the Lord.

May the Lord bless us all, and awaken in us the desire to serve Him, so that some amongst us may be stirred when He calls us, to be His servants, to take up the cross and follow Him, and support and continue the good works of the Apostles and disciples, and their successors. May the Lord help us all and be with us always. Amen.

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Thursday, 26 January 2017 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Timothy and St. Titus, Bishops (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
Luke 10 : 1-9

At that time, the Lord appointed seventy-two other disciples, and sent them two by two ahead of Him to every town and place, where He Himself was to go. And He said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. So you must ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers to His harvest.”

“Courage! I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Set off without purse or bag or sandals; and do not stop at the homes of those you know. Whatever house you enter, first bless them, saying, ‘Peace to this house!’ If a friend of peace lives there, the peace shall rest upon that person. But if not, the blessing will return to you. Stay in that house, eating and drinking at their table, for the worker deserves to be paid, do not move from house to house.”

“When they welcome you to any town, eat what they offer you. Heal the sick who are there, and say to them : ‘The kingdom of God has drawn near to you.'”

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Thursday, 26 January 2017 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Timothy and St. Titus, Bishops (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 95 : 1-2a, 2b-3, 7-8a, 10

Sing to the Lord a new song, sing to the Lord, all the earth! Sing to the Lord, bless His Name.

Proclaim His salvation day after day. Recall His glory among the nations, tell all the peoples His wonderful deeds.

Give to the Lord, you families of nations, give to the Lord glory and strength. Give to the Lord the glory due His Name.

Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!” He will judge the peoples with justice.

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Thursday, 26 January 2017 : 3rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Timothy and St. Titus, Bishops (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
2 Timothy 1 : 1-8

From Paul, Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, for the sake of His promise of eternal life in Christ Jesus, to my dear son Timothy. May grace, mercy and peace be with you from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

I give thanks to God Whom I serve with a clear conscience the way my ancestors did, as I remember you constantly, day and night, in my prayers. I recall your tears and I long to see you that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, so like the faith of your grandmother Lois and of your mother Eunice, which I am sure you have inherited.

For this reason I invite you to fan into a flame the gift of God you received through the laying on of my hands. For God did not confer on us a spirit of bashfulness, but of strength, love and good judgment. Do not be ashamed of testifying to our Lord, nor of seeing me in chains. On the contrary, do your share in labouring for the Gospel with the strength of God.

Alternative reading
Titus 1 : 1-5

From Paul, servant of God, Apostle of Christ Jesus, at the service of God’s chosen people, so that they may believe and reach the knowledge of truth and godliness. The eternal life we are waiting for was promised from the very beginning by God Who never lies, and as the appointed time had come, He made it known through the message entrusted to me by a command of God, our Saviour.

Greetings to you, Titus, my true son in the faith we share. May grace and peace be with you from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I left you in Crete because I wanted you to put right what was defective and appoint elders in every town, following my instructions.

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Saturday, 10 December 2016 : 2nd Week of Advent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Matthew 17 : 10-13

At that time, the disciples of Jesus asked Him, “Why do the teachers of the Law say that Elijah must come first?” And Jesus answered, “So it is : first comes Elijah to set everything as it has to be. But I tell you, Elijah has already come, but they did not recognise him, and treated him as they pleased. And they will also make the Son of Man suffer.”

Then the disciples understood that Jesus was referring to John the Baptist.

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Friday, 9 December 2016 : 2nd Week of Advent, Memorial of St. John Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Saints)
Matthew 11 : 16-19

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Now, to what can I compare the people of this day? They are like children sitting in the marketplace, about whom their companions complain : ‘We played the flute for you, but you would not dance. We sang a funeral song, but you would not cry!'”

“For John came fasting, and the people said, ‘He is possessed.’ Then the Son of Man came, He ate and drank, and people said, ‘Look at this Man! A glutton and drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet the outcome will prove Wisdom to be right.”

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Thursday, 10 November 2016 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Leo the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
Luke 17 : 20-25

At that time, the Pharisees asked Jesus when the kingdom of God was to come. He answered, “The kingdom of God is not like something you can observe, and say of it, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘See, there it is!’ for the kingdom of God is within you.”

And Jesus said to His disciples, “The time is at hand, when you will long to see one of the glorious days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. Then people will tell you, ‘Look there! Look here!’ Do not go with them, do not follow them. As lightning flashes from one end of the sky to the other, so will it be with the Son of Man; but first He must suffer many things, and be rejected by this generation.”

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Monday, 17 October 2016 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day, we are reminded again how we have been saved through the loving action and through the mercy of God, Who have forgiven our trespasses and opened for us the path to salvation and eternal life, a liberation from the darkness and the corruptions which had trapped us all these while.

God has by His grace allowed us to receive the good fruits of His blessings, and through Him He has enabled us all to enjoy the promise of everlasting life, the hope amidst all of the despairs of this world. Yet, we mankind are the ones who are often obstinate and adamant in our ways, refusing to believe in Him and even rejected Him for lesser beings, false idols and all other distractions of this world.

We trust more in our own judgments and desires rather than listening and obeying to the Lord our God. And in doing so, we have often fallen into sin and deeper into the darkness. Our desires pull us ever more to try to attain for ourselves even more of what satisfied our flesh, the pleasures of our bodies, that we acted in ways as mentioned by Jesus in the Gospel today.

He mentioned about a rich man who had plenty of wealth, in his barns, crops and coins he possessed. And yet, he still desired for even more of these wealth, and thinking as well as worrying about what to be done to his ever growing wealth. He had planned long into the future to accumulate all the more of what he had attained, and to gather even more of what brought him satisfaction, fame, glory and prosperity.

And yet, God reminded him and indeed all of us, each and every one of us, that for all the wonders and the good things we have, all of these do not last forever. And just as much as we mankind can plan for all the things we want to do in life, ultimately, it is God Who decides our fate, and it is He alone Who understands us fully and knows the exact lengths of our earthly existence. He gave us life, and He alone can take the same life back.

It is a lesson and a reminder for us all Christians that our existence and our salvation depends on God, and indeed our lives depend on God, and His love is the one that made everything possible for us. He is generous and rich in mercy and love, but are we doing anything in order to accept these rich offerings of love? The love of God is ours to take, but do we love Him in the same manner and just as much as He has loved us?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are all called to appreciate more what God had given us, and then to take up into ourselves the responsibilities and the tasks which He had entrusted to us just as He entrusted those same tasks in His commands to His Apostles that many years ago just before He left to ascend to His heavenly glory.

We are all called to serve the Lord with faith and zeal, and to deliver unto the whole world, the revelation of God’s salvation and of His hope for us all, that through believing and accepting that the Lord Jesus Christ is their Lord and Saviour, and through complete and total change in life attitudes and actions, all of them, all of us mankind may be brought to the salvation God promised His faithful ones.

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch, a very influential and important disciple of the Lord who was the successor of St. Peter the Apostle in his capacity as the Bishop of Antioch, and therefore was its second bishop, in a city where the Church was first established and where the faithful were also first known as Christians.

St. Ignatius of Antioch was very devoted to the Lord, giving his best in the works to establish and to strengthen the foundations of the Church in the region and beyond after he converted to the faith and became one of the leaders of the Church. It was because of his hard work and contributions from the other faithful and Church leaders that the Church endured through the difficult first decades of its existence.

He wrote extensively about the teachings of the Lord and published these among the faithful, encouraging them to keep the faith courageously even amidst threat of persecution and suffering imposed by the Roman authorities. He often led by example, serving the poor and the weak ones in the community, and the numbers of the faithful continued to grow during his leadership of the Church in Antioch.

While he was eventually martyred in Rome as the traditions held, truly, he had no regret or fear, for unlike those who have endeavoured to build for themselves earthly wealth and treasures. For he had built up for himself immense treasure in heaven, one that truly matters. For no one who have placed their trust in the Lord shall be disappointed, and neither was St. Ignatius of Antioch and the many other holy saints and martyrs.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore join our efforts together, to bring the Good News of God to all the peoples, to our brethren by our own faith and fidelity to our faith and to the teachings of the Church. May God help us on our journey and may He help us to draw closer to Himself, leaving behind our sinful past and embrace a new future filled with love and joy. Amen.