Eastern Church

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Monday, 9 June 2014 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Ephrem, Deacon and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 120 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

I lift up my eyes to the mountains – from where shall come my help? My help comes from the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth.

Will He let your foot slip, the One watching over you? Will He slumber? No, the guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps.

The Lord is your Guardian, the Lord is at your side and you in His shade; Sunstroke will not be for you by day, nor the spell of the moon by night.

The Lord guards you from every evil; He will protect your life. The Lord watches over your coming and going both now and forever.

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Monday, 9 June 2014 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Ephrem, Deacon and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Kings 17 : 1-6

Now Elijah, the prophet from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As YHVH, the God of Israel whom I serve lives, neither dew shall drop nor rain fall except at my command.”

Then the word of YHVH came to Elijah, “Leave this place and go eastward. Hide yourself by the brook Cherith, east of the Jordan. You shall drink from the brook and, for your food, I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.”

So Elijah obeyed the word of YHVH and went to live by the brook Cherith, east of the Jordan. There the ravens brought him bread in the morning and meat in the evening; and he drank from the brook.

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Friday, 2 May 2014 : 2nd Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard of the story of Jesus feeding the multitudes of five thousand people with five loaves of bread and two fishes, and in a great miracle, these few food items managed to satisfy all of them till full and with twelve baskets of leftovers just for the bread alone.

We also heard how the respected leader of the elders of Israel, the Rabbi Gamaliel, counseled patience and caution to the rest of the elders in dealing with the Apostles who were proclaiming the greatness of Christ and taught the teachings of Jesus to the people, and hence rivalling the authority of the Pharisees and the chief priests.

All that we heard today, testify to the one singular fact, that is, we have One Man who came upon us from heaven, sent with power, by the Power Himself, that is none other than Jesus, the Son of the Most High God. Today we celebrate the very nature of Christ who is Son, and who is sent by the Father and bear the power of the Holy Spirit with Him, truly the concept of a Godhead with Three distinct persons yet perfectly in unity, the Holy Trinity.

Today we celebrate also the feast of a saint, a great and holy man, whose life had been given in its entirety to defend this basic and holy truth, the fact that quite a few people of this saint’s time refuse to acknowledge and believe in, and instead they believed in the lies of Satan spread through the heretical teachings of a man called Arius, from whom the Arian heresy got its name from.

Arius and his followers denied the divinity of Christ, by teaching and speculating that the divine and human nature of Christ is separate, and that Jesus Christ who was in this world is merely human created and not equal with the Father, who is God Almighty and all-powerful. For them, it may be unthinkable that God should go through all the humiliating and not-so-good experiences that Jesus had encountered, culminating with the crucifixion and death of Jesus.

They claimed that Jesus is mere man and mere creation of God, albeit One that is special among all other creations. In essence, the view of those who adopted the Arian heresy is not much different from the views espoused by the Muslims who also stressed especially that Jesus is not God in their so-called ‘Scripture’. As such, there had been some people who deemed that the two might be related, and the two heresies might indeed had the same origin.

Nevertheless, all of them were mistaken greatly because they failed to understand the mystery and the sublime nature of God in our faith, that is so great that it begs a better understanding from us. And even with our limited wisdom and knowledge, we are not likely to be able to understand the fullness of God and His mysteries. And that is why our deposit of faith in the Sacred Tradition is so important.

For denying the divinity of Christ is in fact the same as denying the greatness of God Himself, no matter what these people do to justify their ideas and viewpoints born out of mistaken view of the Word of God. They denied the works of salvation carried out by Jesus, for they denied not just Jesus as divine, but also because of that, they denied the salvation that can be offered only by the worthy Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, whose blood made all of us pure and worthy.

If Jesus is not God as Arius and others have claimed, then we have no hope, because the blood of a man alone will not be able to atone for our sins. The blood of Christ saves us exactly because He is divine, both God and man at the same time, one divine person but having two natures, divine and man. This is what we are celebrating today’s saint for, that is in the defense of this truth about the faith, the hard work of St. Athanasius of Alexandria.

St. Athanasius of Alexandria was the Patriarch and leader of the See of Alexandria, which with Rome was the five most preeminent dioceses and centres of the Christian world at the time. St. Athanasius was a great defender of the faith, and despite the popular and provocative teachings of Arius, which brought many people to fall into heresy, he managed to hold on to the firm foundation of faith established since the Apostles, and despite opposition and ridicule by his enemies, St. Athanasius remained firm and faithful.

The hard works of St. Athanasius earned him the faith of the people and the perseverance of many in the face of heresy, and many stood strong for the Lord and did not turn towards the erroneous teachings of Arius. St. Athanasius stood strong for the Lord’s true divine and human nature, and championed the indivisibility of the Most Holy Trinity. He was truly a faithful servant, like that of the Apostles of old.

Remember, brethren, that if Jesus is not God, it will be precisely as what Gamaliel said in the first reading, that the endeavours of man will eventually perish and be gone, but if it is the endeavour of the Lord, not even the greatest force or opposition can make it go away. The Lord will triumph in glory in the end, and this is a fact that we know.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, hence, inspired by the life of St. Athanasius and his actions, shall we walk in the same way as he had walked? Shall we resolve to make a difference in the lives of our fellow men, in a way that we bring the truth of God to them? Shall we bring the light of God to our brethren who are still in darkness, and to those who have been trapped and lured in by the lies of the devil?

May God guide us in our endeavour and our actions, that in all the things that we do, we will always be faithful, strong and completely dedicated to the Lord in all of our days, and show it through our actions and deeds. God bless us all. Amen.

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Thursday, 2 January 2014 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Brothers and sisters in Christ, many of us like to deny the Lord and those who had worked hard to bring God closer to us through their teachings. Instead we often let ourselves be swayed by the forces of this world, that we end up following the ways of the world instead of the ways of God. We doubt the presence of God in us, and put our trust instead in the weakness of men and the pleasures of the world.

Indeed, brothers and sisters in Christ, today, we deal with the theme of the authority of teaching of the faith, and the truth about what had happened as the Lord had done, when He once came into this world as man, Jesus Christ our Lord. This truth had been told across generations through the prophets, before the Lord came, and after His death, resurrection and ascension into heaven, by the Apostles and the countless saints who stood up for their faith in God.

These saints and holy people stood up for the Lord, defending the faith they have in God, protecting the deposit of the faith that is in the one and only Church of God, the Catholic or Universal Church. These teachings were passed down to us today through the bishops and the priests who succeeded the Apostles and the other leaders of the early Church, through whom they passed down whatever had been revealed to them by Christ Himself and by the Holy Spirit.

These saints testified for the Lord who had come to save the world, and through their testimony and their teachings, again passed down to us through the Church. Through these teachings we are brought close to the Lord, and it is revealed to us what the Lord wants from us, that is to follow Him and be saved. But the devil certainly did not stay quiet and let everything go smoothly according to the Lord’s plan.

Just as he had tried so much to undermine the good works of the Lord by tempting Him directly, and when that failed, by opposing Him in every turns and corners, questioning His authority and teaching through the Pharisees and the scribes, and many other ways that he had employed to keep mankind away from salvation in God.

Satan opposed the Lord and all of His faithful ones, by sowing the seeds of dissension, jealousy, pride and arrogance in the hearts of the enemies of Christ. As in the Gospel today, the Pharisees and the scribes questioned the authority of John the Baptist, that is under whose authority he did all the baptisms and the teachings about the coming of the Messiah. They should have known about the coming of John the Baptist as the herald of the Messiah, because after all they are the learnt ones, the ones who knew the Scriptures inside out in their heart.

They instead gave in to their human vulnerabilities, that is they let Satan into their hearts, and they in essence, become the tools of Satan through which he tried to undermine the works of our Lord to save us. Such an irony indeed, and sad indeed, that the very leaders of the people, the supposedly pious and educated ones at that, were the very ones that betrayed the Lord.

This is because they gave in to vanity and human greed, the greed for authority, power, as well as the jealousy of human heart and desire, which is for power and influence within the society, within the society of the people of God. They resented those who they perceived to be undermining their own teaching authority, for the Pharisees and the scribes advocated a very strict observation of the laws of Moses and did not entertain any kind of dissent against what they taught.

And as you know, the Pharisees and the scribes continuously harassed Jesus and His followers, and right up to when they delivered the coup de grace, condemning Jesus to death with false witnesses, testimonies and accusations that led to the crucifixion of Jesus. And Satan surely rejoiced at that moment, for he thought that he had undermined the Lord’s plan to save us. And yet, what he had done was merely part of the Lord’s salvation plan, made fulfilled through the death of Jesus on the cross.

After that defeat, Satan did not give up. He continued to try to deceive the people  of God through his lies spread through many false prophets he sent to the world. Today we celebrate the feast of two great saints of the Eastern Church, who were brave and courageous defenders of the faith, fighting constantly against the heresies of the faith in the Church spread exactly by these false prophets.

They are St. Basil the Great, also known as St. Basil of Caesarea, and St. Gregory Nazianzen, also known as St. Gregory of Nazianzus. Both of them were renowned theologians and leaders of the faithful, living at the time of the fourth century after the birth of Christ, after Christianity had become the majority faith of the people of the Roman Empire.

A preacher named Arius spread unorthodox and heretical teachings about Christ. That Jesus Christ is not equal to the father as the Son of God. Instead of the true faith and teaching that God the Son is equal in all aspects to the Father and the Holy Spirit, one in unity and essence, existing before all ages, Arius preached that the Father is superior to the Son, and Jesus was created rather than existing with the Father, being begotten not created.

Arius’ teachings spread wildly across many parts of the Roman Empire, converting many people to this heretical teaching of the faith. He was wildly popular and swayed many to sin by believing in the falsehood of the devil. It was St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen who led the people of the true and orthodox faith in the campaign against the heresy of Arius, also known as Arianism.

We were warned by St. John the Evangelist on the presence of false prophets who would lead the people astray in their path towards the salvation in God, and the example of Arius had proven just to be the case, as much as many other heretics and false prophets who appeared both before and after him. St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen tirelessly championed the cause of the true faith, often in opposition even to the people whom they were shepherding and leading, who had been corrupted by the false teachings of Arius.

Yet they did not fear and continued to work hard, at times even they have to suffer persecution and suffering, as well as rejection and mockery by those who supported the false faith and the lies of the devil. Nevertheless, they continued to move on, and on, and on, until their death, they never ceased to work hard to purify the faith from these lies of the devil and all the seeds of falsehood that he has planted in the hearts of the Lord’s faithful through his false prophets.

Even today, brethren, false prophets can be abound, numerous, and we often may not know who they are. That is why, it is important for us to deepen the knowledge and understanding that we have of our faith in God. We cannot be idle or lest we risk to fall into the corruption of the lies of the evil one. Hold firmly on the deposit of faith, and the richness of the teachings that had been handed down to us from the Lord and His Apostles, through the Church.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us ask St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen to pray for us, that we will be protected by the Lord and His angels, so that we will not easily fall prey to heresy or succumb to the lies and temptations of the evil one. Let us also help one another, that we can keep all the faithful ones in God to remain faithful, now and till the end of time. God be with us all. Amen.

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Thursday, 2 January 2014 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 1 : 19-28

This was the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites to ask him, “Who are you?” John recognised the truth, and did not deny it. He said, “I am not the Messiah.”

And they asked him, “Then who are you? Elijah?” He answered, “I am not.”

They said, “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.”

Then they said to him, “Tell us who you are, so that we can give some answer to those who sent us. How do you see yourself?” And John said, quoting the prophet Isaiah, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness : Make straight the way of the Lord!”

Those who had been sent were Pharisees; and they put a further question to John, “Then why are you baptising, if you are not the Messiah, or Elijah, or the Prophet?” John answered, “I baptise you with water, but among you stands One whom you do not know; although He comes after me, I am not worthy to untie the strap of His sandal.”

This happened in Bethabara beyond the Jordan, where John was baptising.

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Thursday, 2 January 2014 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 97 : 1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4

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.

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Thursday, 2 January 2014 : Weekday of Christmas Time, Memorial of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 John 2 : 22-28

Who is the liar? The one who denies that Jesus is the Christ. This is an antichrist, who denies both the Father and the Son. The one who denies the Son is without the Father, and those who acknowledge the Son also have the Father.

Let what you heard from the beginning remain in you. If what you heard from the beginning remains in you, you too, will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise He Himself gave us : eternal life.

I write this to you thinking of those who try to lead you astray, you received from Him the anointing, and it remains in you, so you do not need someone to teach you. His anointing teaches you all things, it speaks the truth and does not lie to you; so remain in Him, and keep what He has taught you.

And now, my children, live in Him, so that when He appears in His glory, we may be confident and not ashamed before Him when He comes.

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Friday, 13 September 2013 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Scripture Reflection)

Liturgical Colour : White

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today Christ continued to remind us of the great need to remain humble and loving in our lives, avoiding all sorts of vices, and do only what is in line with the will of God. He cares for us very much, and wants us to be righteous and worthy of Him. He protects and provides for all of us, in the same way that a father cares for his children, and way more than that.

He gave second chances to those who repent, to those who realised the depth of their sins and iniquities as He had done with St. Paul, once the great enemy of the faithful and the Church, and the great persecutor of saints and martyrs, turned into the great champion and defender of the faith, the great missionary of the Lord. Therefore, sinners are great in the eyes of the Lord, because the Lord loves them and cares for them, and wants them to return to Him.

Even saints and holy men and women of God now in heaven were once sinners, great or small. What matters is that they had learnt to manage their human weaknesses and tendency for sin, and overcome the sins they had done, with the help of God and one another, with the love they have in their hearts, and with the faith that they have.

We must therefore not be quick to condemn others or judge on others, especially on their faults or shortcomings, as we have to remember that none of us are perfect or completely filled with good things. All of us have weakness one way or another. We are imperfect, ever since sin has entered mankind’s heart. Yet, some of us would not realise of our own faults, thinking highly of ourselves and our own achievements, and look down on others whom we perceive to be inferior to us.

That was what the Pharisees did, as well as the chief priests and the teachers of the Law did, looking down on others because they thought highly of themselves. They prayed in loud voice and wonderful gestures, and followed the rules of the Law strictly, observing everything to the most minute details, and yet, behind all that, lay a huge problem, a huge fault with them. They have not the Lord in their heart, not even deep within their hearts.

They condemned others and sought faults in others, while they themselves were even more faulty in themselves. That was exactly what Christ condemned them for, their failure to do what the Lord truly asked of them, and even worse that as the leaders of the people, they misled the people and brought them to ruin instead of salvation.

Today, we celebrate the feast of St. John Chrysostom, one of the original four great Doctors of the Church, as one of the most brilliant minds of the Church, the leader of the faithful in Constantinople, St. John Chrysostom was truly an upright man, who lived piously and with deep faith in the Lord their God. He preached often of the need to live in charity and love, that is to show love to one another, especially the ones in need, and he truly practice what he preached.

St. John Chrysostom did not have it easy, as he did face many oppositions, especially from those who followed the heretical teachings, like Arianism, Monophysitism, Nestorianism, and many others. He faced them with firm faith and dedication to God. He was fully aware of his own sins and weaknesses, and therefore he wanted to bring souls to salvation in God, showing his care as a fellow sinner who had been called to guide his lost brethren to the Father in heaven.

St. John Chrysostom did not even shy away or fear of rebuking the Roman Emperor, Arcadius at the time, for the improper behaviour of his wife, the Empress Eudoxia, who resented St. John Chrysostom so much that he was banished from Constantinople and from his post. Immediately God set out to punish those who had conspired against the servant of God, and the Roman capital faced terrible catastrophe. Not even the imperial family was spared, with the Empress dying from childbirth and the Emperor himself a few years later.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we should try to emulate St. John Chrysostom in his actions, in his life, and in his examples, that we should really look into ourselves first before we judge others, and reflect on our lives whether our words and actions had reflected God’s love in them. If we had not done so, then truly now is a good time to do so, while we still have the opportunity in this life. Let us have no fear and keep a steadfast faith like that of St. John Chrysostom, whom in his righteousness rebuked even an emperor and empress who went astray from the Lord.

Let us be always faithful to God, be loving both to Him and our brethren, and finally let us strive to give more of ourselves for the sake of others, the last, the lost, and the lonely, as St. John Chrysostom had done. Pray for us St. John Chrysostom! May God bless us always. Amen.

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Friday, 13 September 2013 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 6 : 39-42

And Jesus offered this example, “Can a blind person lead another blind person? Surely both will fall into a ditch. A disciple is not above the master; but when fully trained, he will be like the master.”

“So why do you pay attention to the speck in your brother’s eye, while you have a log in your eye, and are not conscious of it? How can you say to your neighbour, ‘Friend, let me take this speck out of your eye,’ when you cannot remove the log in your own? “

“You hypocrite! First remove the log from your own eye, and then you will see clearly enough to remove the speck from your neighbour’s eye.”

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Friday, 13 September 2013 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 15 : 1-2a and 5, 7-8, 11

Keep me safe, o God, for in You I take refuge. I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord.” O Lord, my inheritance and my cup, my chosen portion – hold secure my lot.

I bless the Lord who counsels me; even at night my inmost self instructs me. I keep the Lord always before me; for with Him at my right hand, I will never be shaken.

You will show me the path of life, in Your presence the fullness of joy, at Your right hand happiness forever.