Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)
Psalm 112 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6
Alleluia! Praise, o servants of the Lord, praise the Name of the Lord! Blessed be the Name of the Lord now and forever!
From eastern lands to the western islands, may the Name of the Lord be praised! The Lord is exalted over the nations, His glory above the heavens.
Who is like the Lord our God, who sits enthroned on high, but also bends down to see on earth as in heaven?
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the feast day of St. Dominic, or also known by his full name of St. Dominic de Guzman, the famous founder of the Dominican order, named after him, known officially as the Order of Preachers or O.P.. The Dominican order had been renowned as a religious order that was often at the forefront of evangelisation and the spreading of the Good News, in perfect accordance to their names as the Order of Preachers.
St. Dominic himself was born in Medieval Spain, a time of much changes and difficulties, and he was a truly devoted and faithful son of the Lord, who eventually joined a holy order and devoted himself fully to God and His people. St. Dominic became a beacon of light to many of those who remain in the darkness, as had been foretold even since before his birth.
His mother, Joan of Aza, received a vision which showed a dog that carried a lit torch that spread light brightly throughout a darkened place, and little that she knew, that this vision would become a reality in her son, St. Dominic de Guzman, who through his actions, and the actions of his compatriots and successors, became a great source of light for those who still dwelled in the darkness of the world.
St. Dominic is an example to all of us, and we all should be inspired by his actions and deeds. We too should follow his footsteps in bringing many more people, our brethren closer to the Lord, just as St. Dominic himself had done before. And that was exactly what the Lord wants from us, to be wholly and completely transformed in our lives that we may glorify and proclaim Him in our actions and deeds.
In the Gospel today, Jesus told His disciples that if they want to follow Him, they need to carry their crosses and follow Him. And that is the reality of life, in which we have to face difficulties in life, if we are to follow the Lord and adhere to His will. It will be different if we choose to conform to the ways of the world, where we will be welcomed by the forces of this world and face less persecution and opposition, but at what cost? Nothing less than the fate and salvation of our very souls.
God had mentioned it clearly at the passage we heard today taken from the Book of the prophet Nahum, who wrote how God would restore those who had been faithful to Him and bless them with greatness, but for those who did not obey Him and walked the path of evil, He would cast out from His path and into the greatest darkness, into an eternal suffering that is without end.
God is merciful and loving, but only to those who repent their ways of evil and abandon their sinfulness will receive grace and eternal rest from the Lord and be saved in eternal grace. He does not desire our destruction or for us to perish as a consequence of our sins, but He gave us a freedom of choice, of whether we want to reject Satan and together then reject sin or whether we embrace sin in our actions, submitting to the temptations of Satan.
What St. Dominic did was that by preaching courageously and strongly against any forms of debauchery and corruptions of sin, he brought many people away from their sinful ways and into the kingdom of God. Many people remained in the darkness because they did not have the opportunity to hear, to see and to feel the light, which St. Dominic and his order of preachers, the Dominicans rectified by bringing the word of God and His truth closer to mankind, especially those who are in darkness.
We too have our parts to play, brothers and sisters, and that is to also bring the word of God to those around us who had fallen along the way on their way towards God and His salvation. And also to those who had yet to listen and know the truth about God, let us all bring His light unto them. This is done not just by words alone, but also through actions and deeds, that in all the things we do, we should do it according to God and His ways, and show that we truly belong to the Lord, and not to Satan and his evil forces instead.
May Almighty God therefore guide us on our ways, that we may be the bearers of the light and the truth, so that in all the things we do and we say, we may truly proclaim the Lord as our Lord and God, and rebuke Satan and his lies, designed to deter us and prevent us from ever reaching our loving God. Let us also ask for the intercession of St. Dominic, that we may be faithful and courageous in showing our faith to others just as he had once been faithful. God be with us all. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we hear how the Lord renewed His covenant with His people, a covenant that was once broken through the disobedience of the people of God, now made anew and renewed through the offering and sacrifice of none other than the very Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom the Lord had sent into the world, so that the world may have hope again.
Yes, a hope that was once dashed, first when men first fell into sin, through the disobedience of our great ancestors, Adam and Eve, the first among mankind. Their disobedience brought men into sin, and as a result, they were cast out from the glory and joys of heaven into a world of suffering, trials and tribulations. And then, while God extended His hands to welcome them back, they refused many, many times, and in their wickedness, they suffered further.
And when He chose for Himself a people from His faithful servant Abraham, the people He had chosen and then delivered from the hands of their enemies broke their promises and devotions, even as early as when the Lord had just given them the set of Laws to be followed and to be obeyed. The people showed wickedness and acted as they liked, following their own desires rather than the way the Lord wanted them to follow.
They worshipped pagan gods, rejected God’s love, trampled on His laws, complained against His kindness, and acted all sorts of wickedness that were abhorred by God. They killed, murdered, blasphemed, fornicated themselves and sold themselves and their souls to the devil. And hence, they were scattered and crushed under the weight of their sins, suffering the consequences of their rebelliousness.
But our Lord is not such a heartless God, and in fact, so great was His mercy and love that He was willing to give mankind yet another hope and another chance. And Jesus is the One through whom God made this mercy and love evident for all to see, and in fact not just to be seen, but also to be followed. In the first reading today from the Book of the prophet Jeremiah, God mentioned that He was going to make a new covenant with His people, and He did indeed.
And this covenant, unlike the previous covenants, is everlasting and will not end. Yes, it is a new and eternal covenant, which God had sealed with nothing else and nothing more precious than the offering of His own Body, and by the shedding and outpouring of His own Blood. Yes, this is the ultimate sacrifice which our Lord Jesus Christ went through during His Passion, and as He died on the cross at Calvary.
Satan definitely did not remain silent or inactive throughout all of these, as he did his best to undermine the Lord’s efforts to bring salvation to mankind by various means and yet without success. Satan tried to play and build up on men’s fears and uncertainties to carry out his devious plots and plans, and that was how he used Peter’s doubts and fears to strike at the Lord Jesus and attempted to stop His work of salvation.
But Jesus was not deterred by Satan’s works, and He rebuked this devil and cast him out of His presence. And this gave us all an example to follow, that in our lives we ought to be courageous and steadfast as well in our faith, that we would not be easily persuaded by the temptations of the evil one, and that we may faithfully walk in the way of the Lord, following the new covenant He had established with us.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the feast of two saints of the Church, the first of which is the Pope of the early Church, Pope St. Xystus II or Pope St. Sixtus II and St. Cajetan, a priest of the late Renaissance age Italy. Both of them were truly great and faithful servants of the Lord, who worked hard to advance the cause of the Lord in this world.
Pope St. Sixtus II lived during the reign of the Roman Emperor Valerian, who launched a particularly vicious opposition and persecution campaign against Christians in the Empire, and as part of that persecution, countless thousands of the faithful ones were captured and tortured, before they were martyred in the defense of their faith.
Pope St. Sixtus and other priests, deacons and many servants of the Lord were also captured and tortured for their faith, but they did not fret or be fearful. Instead, they faced suffering and death with gladness and joy, knowing that the Lord is waiting for them at the end of their suffering in order to give them the crown of everlasting glory and the reward of eternal life and salvation.
Meanwhile, St. Cajetan was an Italian priest who had a more normal life of sorts, but he had also experienced difficulties and challenges when he lost his father at a very young age of two. Nevertheless, he studied hard and eventually became a respectable priest and servant of God, well endowed with great intellect and hardworking attitude, which served him truly well during his service to the Church and God’s people.
St. Cajetan did numerous good works for the people of God, especially for those who were poor, sick and weak. He worked hard for them, and he also helped found several religious communities to bring the work of God even closer to mankind. In this, St. Cajetan showed us that, we should not fear or be worried to become a servant of the Lord, but rather we have to be courageous and defend our faith with our entire might.
Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all renew our commitment to the Lord, and ask the Lord to continue to guide us and bless us in this life. May Almighty God keep us forever in His love. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate a significant and very important feast day in our Church, that is the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Today we celebrate the occasion when Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour was glorified on Mount Tabor, when He revealed His glory and the true nature of divinity to His disciples, the one and only time He did so before His death and resurrection.
To the disciples who witnessed it, Peter, James and John, this was truly a moment of brief showcase and foretaste of the glory of God that is to come through Jesus Christ. Yet at that time, they have yet to be able to understand what it means by the Transfiguration, and the significance of the events and the actions which Jesus took with the two great prophets of God.
The two prophets and leaders of God’s people, Moses and Elijah are the preeminent ones among many others, in that they were the chief amongst all others whom God had sent into the world in their respective missions. To Moses, whom God had appointed as the leader and guide for His people Israel, He had imparted the very Laws that He had established with mankind, the Ten Commandments and the accompanying laws and statutes as encoded in the Law of Moses.
Thus, Moses represented the Law, which God had given to mankind to guide them and govern them in their attitudes and behaviour, that they may conform more closely to the way of the Lord. Meanwhile, the prophet Elijah, whom God appointed to prophesy to the people of the northern kingdom of Israel was the greatest among the prophets, and representing the prophesies of God, which promised the people the coming of the salvation in the Messiah.
And why did both of them appear to Jesus at the Mount Tabor on the Transfiguration? That is because Jesus is the perfect fulfillment and completion of the Law and the prophecies of the prophets. He was the fulfillment of all that God had revealed to men as well as all the things unrevealed and hidden from men, perfecting and unveiling the true full meaning of the Law, and the fulfillment of the long awaited prophecies by the prophets of old.
Therefore, the two great servants of God made their appearance in what is likely to be a very significant and symbolic meaning in the history of God’s plan for the salvation of mankind, but it is most likely that they also came to give strength and support for Jesus as He embarked on the final part of His mission on this world, that is towards His suffering and death on the cross in Jerusalem, the Holy city of God.
They were there to affirm Jesus in His mission, to encourage Him and give Him support, as surely all of heaven, all the angels and the holy men and women who had departed the world at the time were all in full awareness of the supreme importance of this singular mission that Jesus Christ was about to undertake for the sake of salvation of all mankind.
Yet, indeed, the Feast of the Transfiguration also reminds all of us of an important fact, that life is not all happy and good, and neither will it be all smooth and easy. And we are bound to have to face up to the challenges in life and the difficulties that are to be part of our lives. We are like the disciples on that mountain. When Peter said to Jesus, for them to build three tents for Himself and the two great servants of God, it showed reluctance to leave all things that are good.
But God made it plain to the disciples, and showing in His majesty, He made them listen to the will of His Son, who told them to come down with Him from the mountain where He showed His glory and majesty. From then on, He walked down that mountain towards the valley of His death, the suffering and rejection in Jerusalem. But the Lord did not fear, and therefore neither should we.
This Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord therefore does not just show us the true nature of our Lord, Saviour and God, Jesus Christ, whom the prophet Daniel in the first reading had described in his vision of the things that was to come and be fulfilled in Jesus. But, as mentioned, this Feast of the Transfiguration also reminds all of us that we too should also walk the same path as Christ, and not to be afraid of facing the difficulties and challenges awaiting us if we walk the path towards God.
May our Lord continue to shine on our path, that we may continue to follow Him, taking up our own crosses, and to suffer the persecution and rejection of this world as He had once done, so that eventually in the end we will receive the crown of everlasting honour and glory, the deserved reward we should receive as part of our heavenly inheritance.
May Almighty God, Transfigured and Revealed in His glory and majesty be aith us, protect us and remain with us forever. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 145 : 2abc, 2d-4, 5-6
I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to God while I live.
Do not put your trust in princes, in a great one who cannot save. Not sooner his spirit has left, that he goes back to the earth; on that very day, any plan comes to nothing.
Blessed are they whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God, Maker of heaven and earth, the sea and all they contain. The Lord is forever faithful.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)
Psalm 58 : 2-3, 4-5a, 10-11, 17, 18
Deliver me from my enemies, o God, from those who rise up against me. Deliver me from evildoers; rescue me from the bloodthirsty.
Look, they lie in wait for my life; the mighty conspiring against me, for no fault of mine, o Lord. I have done them no wrong, yet they prepare to attack me.
O my Strength, I look up to You, for You, o God, are my fortress. My loving God will come to help me and let me see my enemies fall.
But I will sing of Your might; in the morning I will sing of Your love. For You have been a fortress to me, a refuge in time of distress.
O my Strength, I will sing praises to You, for You, o God, are my stronghold; You are a loving God.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Romans 8 : 28-30
We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love Him, whom He has called according to His plan. Those whom He knew beforehand, He has also predestined to be like His Son, similar to Him, so that He may be the Firstborn among many brothers and sisters.
And so, those whom God predestined He called, and those whom He called He makes righteous, and to those whom He makes righteous He will give His Glory.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)
Jeremiah 2 : 1-3, 7-8, 12-13
A word of YHVH came to me, “Go and shout this in the hearing of Jerusalem. This is YHVH’s word : I remember your kindness as a youth, the love of your bridal days, when you followed Me in the wilderness, through a land not sown. Israel was holy to YHVH, the first-fruits of His harvest. All who ate of it had to pay and misfortune fell on them – it is YHVH who speaks.”
“I brought you to a fertile land to eat the choicest fruit. As soon as you came you defiled My land and dishonoured My heritage! The priests did not ask, ‘Where is YHVH?’ The masters of My teaching did not know Me; the pastors of My people betrayed Me; the prophets followed worthless idols and spoke in the name of Baal.”
“Be aghast at that, o heavens! Shudder, be utterly appalled – it is YHVH who speaks – for My people have done two evils : they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, to dig for themselves leaking cisterns that hold no water!”
Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 62 : 2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9
O God, You are my God, it is You I seek; for You my body longs and my soul thirsts, as a dry and weary land without water.
Thus have I gazed upon You in Your sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory. Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You.
I will bless You as long as I live, lift up my hands and call on Your Name. As with the richest food my soul will feast; my mouth will praise You with joyful lips.
For You have been my help; I sing in the shadow of Your wings. My soul clings to You, Your right hand upholds me.
Liturgical Colour : White
Song of Songs 3 : 1-4a
On my bed at night I looked for the one I love, I sought him without finding him; I called him and he did not answer. I will rise and go about the city, through the streets and the squares; I will seek the love of my heart…
I sought him without finding him; the watchmen came upon me, those who patrol the city. “Have you seen the love of my heart?” As soon as I left them, I found the love of my heart.
Alternative reading
2 Corinthians 5 : 14-17
Indeed the love of Christ holds us and we realise that if He died for all, all have died. He died for all so that those who live may live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again for them.
And so from now on, we do not regard anyone from a human point of view; and even if we once knew Christ personally, we should now regard Him in another way.
For that same reason, the one who is in Christ is a new creature. For Him the old things have passed away; a new world has come.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 