Easter season

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Thursday, 11 May 2017 : 4th Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
Acts 13 : 13-25

From Paphos, Paul and his companions set sail and came to Perga in Pamphylia. There John left them and returned to Jerusalem, while they went on from Perga and came to Antioch in Pisidia. On the Sabbath day they entered the synagogue and sat down. After the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the officials of the synagogue sent this message to them, “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the assembly, please speak up.”

So Paul arose, motioned to them for silence and began, “Fellow Israelites and also all you who fear God, listen. The God of our people Israel chose our ancestors, and after He had made them increase during their stay in Egypt, He led them out by powerful deeds.”

“For forty years He fed them in the desert, and after He had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, He gave them their land as an inheritance. All this took four hundred and fifty years. After that, he gave them Judges until Samuel the prophet. Then they asked for a king and God gave them Saul, son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, and he was king for forty years.”

“After that time, God removed him and raised up David as king, to whom He bore witness saying : ‘I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all I want him to do.’ It is from the descendants of David that God has now raised up the promised Saviour of Israel, Jesus.”

“Before He appeared, John proclaimed a baptism of repentance for all the people of Israel. As John was ending his life’s work, he said : ‘I am not what you think I am, for after me another One is coming Whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.'”

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Wednesday, 10 May 2017 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we continue to progress through the season of Easter, through the Scripture passages we heard, we are reminded that it is important for us to draw closer to the Lord, for if we do not come to the Lord and experience living in His light, then we remain in the darkness, the darkness of sin.

We often think that the Lord our God is a loving and merciful God, which is indeed true, but we often forget that in His love and mercy, He also demands and requires from us our obedience and adherence to His laws and precepts. It does not mean that He loves us then we are free to do in our lives as however we wish it to be. We are free to do things as long as it is in accordance with God’s will, and not committing sinful deeds.

Remember, brothers and sisters in Christ, that the Lord our God loves each and every one of us, but at the same time, He also despises all forms of sins, all forms of perversions and corruptions, all the wickedness of man and the evils in this world. No sin may come before Him, and if an unrepentant sinner continue to live in the state of sin, then he or she shall perish because of his or her sins.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, it is indeed right what the Lord Jesus had said in the Gospel today, that it is not Him Who shall judge the people, not because He does not judge them, indeed He judges all the people, as the Judge mentioned at the Last Judgement accounts, but Jesus our Lord does not judge arbitrarily or without good reason. Instead, it is our very own sins that will judge us on the last day.

Our sins will be removed from us if only that we are sincere in seeking forgiveness for those sins, and if we repent from them, making the commitment to abandon those sins and our sinful deeds, and from now on to live faithfully and righteously in God. Otherwise, our sins will remain in us, and it is by those sins, be it unconfessed or not repented, that we will be judged by.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore the challenge given to us today, as we continue living as Christians, is for us to live righteously and justly as the Lord had taught us, by obeying His commandments and laws, and to help one another to live in such a way, adhering closely to the Lord. It is our obligation and calling for us to bring our fellow brethren from the darkness, calling them to the same light of Christ, in which we are living in today.

That was what the Apostles had done, by preaching the truths of the Gospel and the message of the Good News to the people, of many nations and races, to the Gentiles and the pagan nations, and also to the Jewish people. They preached about the salvation found only in Jesus Christ, that they all should abandon their old sinful and mistaken ways, and follow from thereafter, only the Lord, the One and only true God.

Of course, such an undertaking was not an easy one for the Apostles and the disciples of the Lord to bear. They encountered many difficulties and much opposition to their works. The same will be our lot when we walk in their footsteps and do the same in our own lives and in our own communities. But that is the crosses which the faithful Apostles had born upon themselves, and which we too should bear on ourselves, our crosses in life.

And we should carry them on, putting our faith in the Lord as we do so, carrying our crosses together with Christ. Therefore, let us all renew our commitment to love and serve the Lord our God, and in the same manner, love our fellow brethren, and teaching one another the truth of God, by practicing in our lives genuine faith and commitment to the ways of the Lord, so that all of us may draw ever closer to the Lord, and therefore come closer to attain salvation through Him.

May the Lord bless us all, forgive us all our sins, and renew our faith in Him, so that we may courageously live our lives filled with faith and love, becoming true and committed disciples of His. Amen.

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Wednesday, 10 May 2017 : 4th Week of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
John 12 : 44-50

At that time, yet Jesus had said, and even cried out, “Whoever believes in Me, believes not in Me, but in Him Who sent Me. And whoever sees Me, sees Him Who sent Me. I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in Me may not remain in darkness.”

“If anyone hears My words and does not keep them, I am not the One to condemn him; for I have come, not to condemn the world, but to save the world. The one who rejects Me, and does not receive My word, already has a judge : the very word I have spoken will condemn him on the last day.”

“For I have not spoken on My own authority; the Father, Who sent Me, has instructed Me in what to say and how to speak. I know that His commandment is eternal life, and that is why the message I give, I give as the Father instructed Me.”

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Wednesday, 10 May 2017 : 4th Week of Easter (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 66 : 2-3, 5, 6 and 8

May God be gracious and bless us, may He let His face shine upon us, that Your way be known on earth and Your salvation among the nations.

May the countries be glad and sing for joy, for You rule the peoples with justice and guide the nations of the world.

May the people praise You, o God, may all the peoples praise You! May God bless us and be revered, to the very ends of the earth.

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Wednesday, 10 May 2017 : 4th Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
Acts 12 : 24 – Acts 13 : 5a

Meanwhile the word of God was increasing and spreading. Barnabas and Saul carried out their mission and then came back to Jerusalem, taking with them John also called Mark.

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.

These then, sent by the Holy Spirit, went down the port of Seleucia and from there sailed to Cyprus. Upon their arrival in Salamis they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogue.

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Tuesday, 9 May 2017 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, in today’s readings taken from the Scriptures, we heard how the Church was flourishing and growing, among the Jews and the Gentiles alike, after St. Paul had evangelised to the people in many places, and after the grace of God allowing the faithful to multiply in number quickly despite the challenges and persecutions facing them.

It is a sign that God was with His people, as it was then at that time, and all the way to today, the same Church and the same people which God had chosen from the world, to be those to whom He had granted His grace and salvation. And those who place their trust in God will not be disappointed, for He is ever faithful and ever trustworthy. All those who place their trust in Him will find full satisfaction.

The hand of the Lord was with the Apostles as mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles today, and He guided them through their works and efforts, leading them through from place to place, even though they faced much troubles, persecutions, challenges and oppositions from the world, from the authorities and from all those who closed their hearts against God and rejected His words.

That is because the devil, Satan, our old enemy is always busy at work, trying to oppose the good works of God. He is always hard at work trying to undermine the Church and seek out the faithful, like that of wolves seeking for the sheep to be caught and eaten. The devil and his allies are busy at work trying to steal the souls of the faithful, but God will not allow them to have a free reign at hand in doing so.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as long as the Lord is with us, we shall not falter. He has promised this Himself when He established His Church in this world, by saying unto St. Peter the Apostle that, the Church He has established will be able to stand up against even the gates of hell itself. Nothing shall avail itself against the Church and the faithful, providing that the faithful stand together and put themselves to trust in their Master and Shepherd.

This is the promise which the Lord gave to us, but all of us must also work and put our efforts together in order to keep one another away from the clutches of the evil one. As He is our Good Shepherd, therefore as Christians, truly we have two obligations, and the first one is obvious, that is to follow our Shepherd and Master wherever He leads us to, and whatever is His will for us. This is our obedience to His will, and if we obey Him in all the things we say and do, it will never go wrong for us.

Then, another responsibility that we must bear, and one that requires our effort is that, just as He had taught us and shown us the way through His own actions and words, therefore, all of us must also commit ourselves to Him in the same way, and this means that we all must be shepherds for one another, guiding each other and helping one another, fellow brethren in the Lord, in our way to Him.

Therefore, all of us are called to be role models in our faith and in our lives, so that all those who see us will come to believe in God, as they see the actions of our Lord, the Good Shepherd of all mankind, through our own works and actions. If we do not do as He had done, then we will in fact drive people away from the Lord, for they then find it hard to believe in the Lord whose love must be made evident through us.

May the Lord, our Good Shepherd be our Guide in life, and may He strengthen our faith, and give us the courage to live day after day, filled with faith and commitment to Him. May He empower us to become His disciples, and allow us to serve Him in whatever way we can, for the salvation of all mankind, our brethren. Amen.

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Tuesday, 9 May 2017 : 4th Week of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
John 10 : 22-30

At that time, the time came for the Feast of the Dedication. It was winter, and Jesus walked back and forth in the portico of Solomon. The Jews then gathered around Him and said to Him, “How long will You keep us in doubt? If You are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”

Jesus answered, “I have already told you, but you do not believe. The works I do in My Father’s Name proclaim Who I am, but you do not believe because, as I said, you are not My sheep. My sheep hear My voice and I know them; they follow Me and I give them eternal life.”

“They shall never perish, and no one will ever steal them from Me. What the Father has given Me is above everything else, and no one can snatch it from out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are One.”

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Tuesday, 9 May 2017 : 4th Week of Easter (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 86 : 1-3, 4-5, 6-7

He Himself has built it in His holy mountain; the Lord prefers the gates of Zion to all of Jacob’s towns. Great things have been foretold of you, o city of God.

Between friends we speak of Egypt and Babylon; and also Philistia, Tyre, Ethiopia : “Here so-and-so was born.” But of Zion it shall be said, “More and more are being born in her.” For the Most High Himself has founded her.

And the Lord notes in the people’s register : “All these were also born in Zion.” And all will dance and sing joyfully for You.

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Tuesday, 9 May 2017 : 4th Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
Acts 11 : 19-26

Those who had been scattered because of the persecution over Stephen travelled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, telling the message, but only to the Jews. But there were some natives of Cyprus and Cyrene among them who, on coming into Antioch, spoke also to the Greeks, giving them the Good News of the Lord Jesus. The hand of the Lord was with them so that 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.

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Monday, 8 May 2017 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, following the celebrations yesterday of the Good Shepherd Sunday, the fourth Sunday in the season of Easter, today’s Gospel continue speaking about the Lord as our Good Shepherd, as the One Who cares for us and loves us so tenderly, that He is a loving Shepherd to us, desiring nothing else but our redemption and reconciliation with Him.

He has chosen us all His beloved people, by calling us to Himself, like a shepherd calling upon his sheep to gather to him. A shepherd knows all of his sheep, and it is often that each of them has a way to identify each one of them, by their appearances, by marks, or by assigning names to them. In that way, he would know if any of them are not around or are lost from him.

The sheep know their shepherd, and they will only follow him. If another person is to come and call them, they will not follow the stranger. Yet, it is possible indeed for the sheep to be led astray at times, and they become lost. In this, we see the reality about ourselves, how all of us, each of whom belonging to the Lord’s own flock, as He is our Shepherd, can be lost to Him through sin.

The devil has lured us all through his lies and falsehoods, empty and sweet words, filled with false promises, which however sound very alluring and attractive to us. Just as when he tempted our ancestors, Adam and Eve, who got attracted to his lies, and therefore disobeyed God and sinned. And ever since then, Satan, the devil, has worked busily day and night, all the time, trying to lure us away from God’s salvation.

This therefore bring us to the need to realise the fact that in this world, there are still many lost sheep out there, the people who have been separated from God and the rest of His flock. There are still a lot of people who have not yet known the love of God, and are still either ignorant or unaware of His love, His ways and His teachings. And there are many people who have lived in a state of sin, doing things that disobey the will of God, and therefore causing them to be separated further and further from God.

That was what happened at the time of Jesus and His Apostles as well. At that time, the revelation of the truth of God was limited mostly to the Jewish people, the descendants of the people of God, whom He had chosen from among the children of Abraham. However, there were numerous other peoples, originating from various other nations, cultures, races and languages, who have not yet believed in God, and indeed had not yet heard of His salvation.

And because the Lord loves every single one of us mankind, without any exception, for He is our loving God and Creator, and because as our Shepherd, He is the Lord and Master over all of us, even the greatest of sinners, therefore, He does not want any of us to be lost to Him. And as such, He calls everyone to Him, to turn themselves away from their sinfulness, and find their way to Him.

But such is the difficulty of accomplishing the task, that it requires all of our combined efforts in order to make sure that this can succeed. For what is at stake is none other than, and nothing less than the fate of the souls of mankind, the souls of our own brothers and sisters. And the Apostles and disciples had been given the commandment to spread the Good News and the truth to the whole world, that the light of Christ may come to all the peoples, of all races, languages, and origins.

And we are their successors, continuing the good works they had started. We must not falter in our efforts to evangelise, not just by mere words and proclamations, but more importantly, also through action, just as the Lord, our Good Shepherd has shown us His love by dying on the cross for us. We too, therefore, should become shepherds for one another, helping each other on our way to the Lord.

Let us all keep ourselves faithful and true to the faith we have in God. Let us help guide each other on the way of the faith, so that none of us will be lost to the temptations of the devil, but will remain true in faith in all the things we say and do, in our whole lives. May God bless us all, now and forever. Amen.