Easter 2016

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Sunday, 3 April 2016 : Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Revelations 1 : 9-11a, 12-13, 17-19

I, John, your brother, who shares with you, in Jesus, the sufferings, the kingdom and the patient endurance, was on the island of Patmos, because of the Word of God and witnessing to Jesus. On the Lord’s day, the Spirit took possession of me and I heard a voice behind me which sounded like a trumpet, “Write down all that you see.”

I turned to see who was speaking to me; behind me were seven golden lampstands and, in the middle of these, I saw someone like a Son of Man, dressed in a long robe tied with a golden girdle. Seeing Him, I fell at His feet like one dead but He touched me with His right hand and said, “Do not be afraid. It is I, the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead and now I am alive forever and ever; and Mine are the keys of death and the netherworld.”

“Now write what you have seen, both what is and what is yet to come.”

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Sunday, 3 April 2016 : Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 117 : 2-4, 22-24, 25-27a

Let Israel say, “His loving kindness endures forever.” Let the house of Aaron say, “His loving kindness endures forever.” Let those who fear the Lord say, “His loving kindness endures forever.”

The Stone rejected by the builders has become the Cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing and we marvel at it. This is the day the Lord has made; so let us rejoice and be glad.

Save us, o Lord, deliver us, o Lord! Blessed is He Who comes in the Lord’s Name! We bless You from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God; may His light shine upon us.

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Sunday, 3 April 2016 : Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 5 : 12-16

Many miraculous signs and wonders were done among the people through the hands of the Apostles. The believers, of one accord, used to meet in Solomon’s Porch. None of the others dared to join them, but the people held them in high esteem.

So an ever increasing number of men and women, believed in the Lord. The people carried the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and on mats, so that when Peter passed by, at least his shadow might fall on some of them. The people gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those who were troubled by unclean spirits, and all of them were healed.

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Saturday, 2 April 2016 : Saturday within Easter Octave, Memorial of St. Francis of Paola, Hermit (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today’s Scripture readings are reminders for us all that we ought to go forth and preach the Good News of God to all the peoples, and not to be afraid or to be fearful of repercussion and the persecution by the world. The world may not like us and what we believe in, but remember, brethren, that they have not welcomed the Lord Jesus either, and neither had they welcomed the Apostles and the disciples of our Lord.

We are often not aware that being Christians does not mean just being passive and knowing that all of us have been saved. There are so many things that all of us can still do, and indeed, are expected to do. The Apostles certainly did not remain quiet and passive during the days and months after Jesus had risen from the dead and after He had ascended into heaven.

They healed the people from their sickness, performing many miracles in the Name of the Lord, and they most importantly, preached the truth and the salvation in Jesus Christ to the people, despite the staunch and fervent opposition from the Pharisees, the teachers of the Law, the chief priests and the elders, those who had been against the Lord Jesus once, and now also opposed the good works of God continued through His Apostles and disciples.

But even though they were persecuted and put to trial, mocked and cast out from the society, imprisoned and tortured, they continued to keep up their faith, and they resisted the attempts of those who were trying to persuade them otherwise, either through persuasion or through force. They stood up for the Lord, and for all those who deserve salvation from hearing the word of truth that they preach.

The problem lies in that many of us may think that their work has been completed, and seeing the state of our Church today, with its over a billion members, then surely everything is good, the Church is thriving, and there is nothing much that we need to do, as after all, we are no longer in those eras when the Church and the faithful ones were persecuted. But is this the case? Is it true that there is nothing that we need to do, or that we can do?

No, brothers and sisters in Christ, it is important that we remember how the Lord Jesus commissioned His disciples to spread forth the Good News of salvation to all the peoples all over the world, preaching to them and showing them the truth. But while this have been mostly done, and countless people have heard and been saved by believing in Jesus and His truth, but there are still so many others who are out of reach of the salvation in Christ.

And inside the Church itself, are we confident to say that all of us Christians are truly believing in God and obeying all of His laws and commandments? Do we even realise how many of us in the Church actually do not believe in all of the teachings of the Church, picking only what we want to believe, or like to believe and rejecting those which we do not like? That is not what a true Christian should be.

And how many of us are lukewarm about our faith? How many of us do not see the importance of doing what the Lord had taught us and shown us through His many teachings, and all the truth which He had spoken? This is important, brethren, as if we are not careful, the temptations of the world and even persecution to come, may just be strong enough and persuasive enough to pull us away from the path towards God’s salvation.

Let us all in this Easter season commit ourselves anew to God and to His ways, and in our words, our deeds and actions, in all the things that we do in our respective lives, in our interactions with one another, let us all devote ourselves, our time and effort to bring ourselves closer to God, and to help lead one another into the salvation found only in Christ our Lord. May God help us and bless us in our endeavours always. Amen.

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Saturday, 2 April 2016 : Saturday within Easter Octave, Memorial of St. Francis of Paola, Hermit (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Mark 16 : 9-15

At that time, after Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary of Magdala, from whom He had driven out seven demons. She went and reported the news to His followers, who were now mourning and weeping. But when they heard that He lived, and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.

After this He showed Himself in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. These men also went back and told the others, but they did not believe them. Later Jesus showed Himself to the Eleven while they were at table. He reproached them for their unbelief, and stubbornness, in refusing to believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.

Then He told them, “Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News to all creation.”

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Saturday, 2 April 2016 : Saturday within Easter Octave, Memorial of St. Francis of Paola, Hermit (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 117 : 1 and 14-15, 16ab-18, 19-21

Alleluia! Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, His loving kindness endures forever. The Lord is my Strength and my Song; He has become my Salvation. Joyful shouts of victory are heard in the tents of the just : “The right hand of the Lord strikes mightily!”

“The right hand of the Lord is lifted high, the right hand of the Lord strikes mightily!” I shall not die, but live to proclaim what the Lord has done. The Lord has stricken me severely, but He has saved me from death.

Open to me the gates of the Just, and let me enter to give thanks. “This is the Lord’s gate, through which the upright enter.” I thank You for having answered me, for having rescued me.

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Saturday, 2 April 2016 : Saturday within Easter Octave, Memorial of St. Francis of Paola, Hermit (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 4 : 13-21

The Jewish leaders, elders and teachers of the Law were astonished at the boldness of Peter and John, considering that they were uneducated and untrained men. They recognised also, that they had been with Jesus, but, as the man who had been cured stood beside them, they could make no reply.

So they ordered them to leave the council room while they consulted with one another. They asked, “What shall we do with these men? Everyone who lives in Jerusalem knows that a remarkable sign has been given through them, and we cannot deny it. But to stop this from spreading any further among the people, let us warn them never again to speak to anyone in the Name of Jesus.”

So they called them back and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the Name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered them, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s eyes for us to obey you rather than God. We cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

Then the council threatened them once more and let them go. They could find no way of punishing them because of the people who glorified God for what had happened.

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Friday, 1 April 2016 : First Week of Easter, Friday within Easter Octave (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard about the two Holy Apostles, St. Peter and St. John who gave great testimony in front of all the elders, the leaders, the elites, the teachers of the Law and all those who were influential among the Jewish society at the time, the testimony of their faith in Jesus, through Whom God had brought into this world a great new light.

Those leaders and elders refused to believe in Jesus, and they thought that by sentencing Him to death on the cross, handing Him over to the Romans and after having rejected Him, and turned their backs from Him, humiliating Him and forcing Him to suffer a most painful death, they thought that they have finally succeeded in getting rid of the One Whom they thought to be their rival.

But in the Gospel, we were shown again, how amazing was our Risen Lord, our Lord Jesus Christ, Saviour of the world Who had conquered death itself. He showed Himself to have risen from the dead to the Apostles in several occasions, reassuring them and strengthening their faith, that all was not lost, but in fact was the beginning of a new time of grace.

By His death and resurrection, Jesus has opened the gates to salvation, and He has opened the path for us all to walk in, from the darkness into the light. Through Him, mankind who once thought that everything was lost to them, and that there is no hope to escape from the pain of death, now they all have received a new hope, an assurance of life and everlasting peace, joy and harmony through Him, so long as they make the choice to trust in the Lord and follow Him.

And this is where He also laid the work ahead for all of us, just as He had shown it through His Apostles. Today’s event of the miraculous fishing in the Lake of Tiberias is very important as well as meaningful, because it represents the Church, and all of its works to gather the people from all over the world, from many nations, to the Lord and to His salvation.

For you see, the boat represents the Church, and the Apostles are the servants of God and the members of the Church who have been saved by their faith and by their commitment to God. The net represents the efforts and works of the Church in the evangelisation and conversion of the world. The many fishes represent the people of God coming from different countries, origins and places, having different races, languages and cultures.

Remember that Jesus has called His disciples at the beginning of His earthly ministry, calling simple fishermen such as St. Peter, St. John, St. Andrew and St. James? He called them that they may no longer be just fishing for fish and for sustenance, but instead, from then on, to fish for men, that is to look for the lost souls of mankind, and bring them to the salvation in God.

And their works are not yet done even today, brothers and sisters in Christ, and thus we have a long way ahead of us, and a very important mission through which many of our fellow brethren may be saved and may find their way to the Lord. Thus, in this Easter season, as we all rejoice together in the joy of the resurrection and the promise of the life to come for all of us the faithful ones, we have to realise that we have to bring this joy also to those who have not seen the Lord and His truth, that they too may be saved.

May God awaken in all of us the spirit and the desire to love Him by loving one another, and by helping one another on our path towards redemption and eternal life. Let us seek to bring God’s salvation to all, through our words, actions and deeds that will become examples for all to see. God bless us all. Amen.

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Friday, 1 April 2016 : First Week of Easter, Friday within Easter Octave (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 21 : 1-14

At that time, after Jesus had appeared to His disciples, He revealed Himself to the disciples by the Lake of Tiberias. He appeared to them in this way. Simon Peter, Thomas who was called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee and two other disciples were together; and Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They replied, “We will come with you.” And they went out and got into the boat, but they caught nothing that night.

When day had already broken, Jesus was standing on the shore, but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus called them, “Friends, have you anything to eat?” They answered, “Nothing.” Then He said to them, “Throw the net on the right side of the boat and you will find something.” When they had lowered the net, they were not able to pull it in because of the great number of fish.

Then the disciple Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” At these words, “It is the Lord!” Simon Peter put on his clothes, for he was stripped for work, and jumped into the water. The other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish; they were not far from land, about a hundred metres.

When they landed, they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it, and some bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” So Simon Peter climbed into the boat and pulled the net to shore. It was full of big fish – one hundred and fifty-three – but, in spite of this, the net was not torn.

Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” And not one of the disciples dared to ask Him, “Who are You?” for they knew it was the Lord. Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and He did the same with the fish. This was the third time that Jesus revealed Himself to His disciples after rising from the dead.

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Friday, 1 April 2016 : First Week of Easter, Friday within Easter Octave (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 117 : 1-2 and 4, 22-24, 25-27a

Alleluia! Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, His loving kindness endures forever. Let Israel say, “His loving kindness endures forever.” Let those who fear the Lord say, “His loving kindness endures forever.”

The Stone rejected by the builders has become the Cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing and we marvel at it. This is the day the Lord has made; so let us rejoice and be glad.

Save us, o Lord, deliver us, o Lord! Blessed is He Who comes in the Lord’s Name! We bless You from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God; may His light shine upon us.