early Church

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Friday, 15 July 2016 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Isaiah 38 : 1-6, 21-22, 7-8

In those days Hezekiah fell mortally ill and the prophet Isaiah, son of Amoz, went to him with a message from YHVH, “Put your house in order for you shall die; you shall not live.”

Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to YHVH, “Ah YHVH! Remember how I have walked before You in truth and wholeheartedly, and done what is good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

Then the word of YHVH came to Isaiah, “Go and tell Hezekiah what YHVH, the God of his father David, says : I have heard your prayer and I have seen your tears. See! I am adding fifteen years to your life and I will save you and this city from the power of the king of Assyria. I will defend it for My sake and for the sake of David My servant.”

Isaiah then said, “Bring a fig cake to rub on the ulcer and let Hezekiah be cured!” Hezekiah asked, “What is the sign that I shall go up to the house of the Lord?” Isaiah answered, “This shall be for you a sign from YHVH, that He will do what He has promised. See! I shall make the shadow descending on the stairway of Ahaz go back ten steps.” So the sunlight went back the ten steps it had covered on the stairway.

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Sunday, 10 July 2016 : 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Bible Sunday (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Colossians 1 : 15-20

He is the Image of the unseen God, and for all creation He is the Firstborn, for in Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible : thrones, rulers, authorities, powers. All was made through Him and for Him.

He is before all and all things hold together in Him. And He is the Head of the Body, that is the Church, for He is the First, the First raised from the dead that He may be the First in everything, for God was pleased to let fullness dwell in Him.

Through Him God willed to reconcile all things to Himself, and through Him, through His Blood shed on the cross. God establishes peace, on earth as in heaven.

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Sunday, 3 July 2016 : 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Galatians 6 : 14-18

For me, I do not wish to take pride in anything except in the cross of Christ Jesus our Lord. Through Him the world has been crucified to me and I to the world. Let us no longer speak of the circumcised and of non-Jews, but of a new creation. Let those who live according to this rule receive peace and mercy : they are the Israel of God!

Let no one trouble me any longer : for my part, I bear in my body the marks of Jesus. May the grace of Christ Jesus our Lord be with your spirit brothers and sisters. Amen.

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Sunday, 26 June 2016 : 13th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Galatians 5 : 1, 13-18

Christ freed us to make us really free. So remain firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. You, brothers and sisters, were called to enjoy freedom; I am not speaking of that freedom which gives free rein to the desires of the flesh, but of that which makes you slaves of one another through love.

For the whole Law is summed up in this sentence : You shall love your neighbour as yourself. But if you bite and tear each other to pieces, be careful lest you all perish. Therefore I say to you : walk according to the Spirit and do not give way to the desires of the flesh! For the desires of the flesh war against the spirit, and the desires of the spirit are opposed to the flesh.

Both are in conflict with each other, so that you cannot do everything you would like. But when you are led by the Spirit you are not under the Law.

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Sunday, 19 June 2016 : 12th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Philip Minh, Priest and Companions, Martyrs (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Galatians 3 : 26-29

Now, in Christ Jesus, all of you are sons and daughters of God through faith. All of you who were given to Christ through baptism, have put on Christ. Here there is no longer any difference between Jew or Greek, or between slave or freed, or between man and woman : but all of you are one in Christ Jesus.

And because you belong to Christ, you are of Abraham’s race and you are to inherit God’s promise.

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Saturday, 11 June 2016 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Barnabas, Apostle (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we commemorate the feast of one of the Holy Apostles of Christ, who although he did not belong to the Twelve Apostles, the principal Apostles and disciples of our Lord, but nevertheless, his role in the propagation of our Faith and in the development of the early Church was very crucial indeed.

St. Barnabas the Apostle travelled extensively with St. Paul the Apostle, who was also not counted among the Twelve Apostles, and yet both of them indeed played a very crucial role in the early and developmental years of the Church. Through their work and preachings throughout the Eastern Mediterranean region, from Syria to Roman Asia and Ephesus, to Cyprus and to Roman Greece, Macedonia and beyond, they have laid the important foundations of the Church in those places.

In doing so, he and the other Apostles have done what the Lord Himself commanded them to do, which we heard as part of our Gospel passage today. The Gospel spoke about the Lord Jesus sending out His disciples to preach the Good News and the kingdom of God to the people, and to bring the message of salvation to them.

And they were also sent with the authority to cast out demons and evil spirits, and to heal the sick and minister to the poor and the outcasts of the society. God gave them the power and authority to do so, and giving them the gifts of His Holy Spirit to bless and guide them along the journey, inflaming their hearts with the courage and hope, as well as with strength to carry out the mission which has been entrusted to them. And they did carry the mission with full faith in God and devoted all their time and efforts for that purpose.

And what is that mission, brothers and sisters in Christ? Our Lord Jesus Himself mentioned that just before He departed and ascended in glory to heaven, as the last of His commands to His disciples. The goal of all the faithful is to declare and to preach the Good News and the salvation of God as shown through Jesus Christ, the Saviour and Lord of all, and to bring these to all mankind to the very ends of the earth.

And St. Barnabas had carried out that mission faithfully and with great courage. He met many difficulties, challenges and even harsh persecutions from the Jews and the pagans alike. And with St. Paul he persevered through all of them, even though he had been cursed, rejected, shouted against, had stone cast on him, and cast out of the cities and towns he has been working and preaching in.

The works and examples of St. Barnabas can indeed be an inspiration to all of us. And we all need to realise that the works that the Lord had laid out for His Apostles had not ended yet, and neither had the work been completed, as it is still ongoing and in progress. The Church may be completely different from how it was during the time of the Apostles, at the time when St. Barnabas still lived and walked on this world, but the core mission of the Church remains yet the same.

Now in our world today, in fact the need is even far greater for us to reach out to the world and to all the people whom we have been sent to by the Lord. There are many areas in this world, and many more people who are in need of our help. God has sent us all to bring His word to them, to reveal to them His truth and salvation. But there are yet many more people who have not heard of the Lord, or they have misunderstood His truth, or even rejected Him.

It is important therefore that we should understand how important is the role which we have as part of the Church of God. We have to know that the works of the Apostles that continue on to this very day is now our responsibility and ours to bear. If none of us are to take up the challenge, then who else will? Who else will be there to bring the word of God to the multitude of people who still live in denial and in the darkness?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we live our lives today, let us all realise that there is much that we can do in order to be part of this Church’s effort to bring the light of the world into this world and reveal the wholeness of His truth to mankind. Let us pour forth our effort and works in order to contribute to the evangelising mission of the Church, by starting with ourselves and in our communities, devoting ourselves and our time for the Lord.

May God bless us all and give us the strength and courage to carry out this mission. May we not be daunted by the challenges we are to face ahead of us if we continue on this path, just as St. Barnabas had persevered through those challenges, the rejection from the world and even threats and dangers to his life. Let us never back down from the mission God had entrusted to us, and may we always be forever faithful to Him, now and always. Amen.

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Saturday, 11 June 2016 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Barnabas, Apostle (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Matthew 10 : 7-13

At that time, Jesus spoke to His twelve disciples, “Go and proclaim this message : The kingdom of heaven is near. Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, cleanse the lepers, and drive out demons. You received this as a gift, so give it as a gift. Do not carry any gold, silver or copper in your purses. Do not take a traveller’s bag, or an extra shirt, or sandals, or a staff : workers deserve their living.”

“When you come to a town or a village, look for a worthy person, and stay there until you leave. When you enter the house, wish it peace. If the people in the house deserve it, your peace will be on them; if they do not deserve it, your blessing will come back to you.”

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Saturday, 11 June 2016 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Barnabas, Apostle (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

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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Saturday, 11 June 2016 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Barnabas, Apostle (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Acts 11 : 21b-26 and Acts 13 : 1-3

A great number believed and turned to the Lord. News of this reached the ears of the Church in Jerusalem, so they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw the manifest signs of God’s favour, he rejoiced and urged them all to remain firmly faithful to the Lord; for he himself was a good man filled with Holy Spirit and faith. Thus large crowds came to know the Lord.

Then Barnabas went off to Tarsus to look for Saul and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they had meetings with the Church and instructed many people. It was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians.

There were at Antioch – in the Church which was there – prophets and teachers : Barnabas, Symeon known as Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod, and Saul. On one occasion while they were celebrating the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said to them, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul to do the work for which I have called them.”

So, after fasting and praying, they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

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Sunday, 5 June 2016 : 10th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Galatians 1 : 11-19

Let me remind you, brothers and sisters, that the Gospel we preached to you is not a human message, nor did I receive it from anyone, I was not taught of it but it came to me as a revelation from Christ Jesus. You have heard of my previous activity in the Jewish community; I furiously persecuted the Church of God and tried to destroy it. For I was more devoted to the Jewish religion than many fellow Jews of my age, and I defended the traditions of my ancestors more fanatically.

But one day God called me out of His great love, He Who had chosen me from my mother’s womb; and He was pleased to reveal in me His Son, that I might make Him known among the pagan nations. Then I did not seek human advice nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were Apostles before me. I immediately went to Arabia, and from there I returned again to Damascus.

Later, after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to meet Cephas, and I stayed with him for fifteen days. But I did not see any other Apostle except James, the Lord’s brother.