Feast of St. Denis

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Wednesday, 9 October 2024 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded that as Christians, as God’s holy and beloved people, each and every one of us are parts of the one Church of God and we all share together the mission of the Lord in reaching out to more and more people all throughout the whole world. All of us should continue to follow the Lord’s calling and embrace whatever missions that He had entrusted to us. Each one of us have the shared responsibility to proclaim the Gospel, the Good News of God to more and more people so that they may come to know of the Lord and that they may be inspired to follow Him and be saved together with all of us. All of us are called to continue remembering what the Lord has taught us and to follow Him in all of that. 

In our first reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful in Galatia in what is now part of Turkey, we heard of the continuation of the story which the Apostle had told to the people of Galatia regarding his past experiences and journeys, on how he was sent to proclaim the Word of God to the people of various places together with other Apostles and disciples like that of St. Barnabas, and how he had various encounters and experiences with all those people whom he had met. He also recounted his experiences in meeting the other Apostles of the Lord in Jerusalem and Judea where many of them were based in, and how there were tensions within the early Church and Christian community because of the disagreements among those who sided with the view of St. Paul and the majority of the disciples and those who came from the strict Jewish background on the matter of whether the Jews and non-Jewish people among the faithful should mingle together or not.

Those who came from the strict Jewish background such as from among the members of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law held very exclusivist view of the faith, and demanded that the Jewish customs and practices ought to be followed. On the other hand, St. Paul the Apostle championed the view that in order to reach out to the Gentiles or the non-Jewish people, the Church could not demand such unreasonable things from the non-Jewish people and in fact the faithful as a whole because the extent in which the Law of God was observed and practiced by the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law were very excessive, superfluous and extremely demanding, especially for the non-Jewish people to adapt, and hence St. Paul lightly rebuked St. Peter who was afraid offending those converts from the Jewish people and hence appeared to follow their ways.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Luke in which the Lord told His disciples how to pray when they asked Him about it, and He taught them to pray the prayer we all well know as the Lord’s Prayer or the Pater Noster. Through this prayer, the Lord wanted to remind His disciples and hence all of us to continue to remain connected and attuned to the Lord, by constantly communicating with Him through prayers and other means, and growing ever stronger in our love and devotion to God. How we pray is also important, as the Lord has also criticised the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law for having made long prayers and saying litany of self-praise and glorification, and yet, they did not truly focus their attention and hearts towards the Lord.

This is why, as we all listened to these words from the Sacred Scriptures today, we are all reminded that we should always put our faith in the Lord as the focus and emphasis of our lives, and we must be careful that we do not allow ourselves to be misguided by our pride, ego, desires and ambitions around us which may lead us into our downfall and destruction. We should not easily be tempted to follow our own ideals and ideologies, but learning instead to trust in the Lord and in everything that He has taught, provided and revealed to us. We should continue to grow in our relationship and connection to God, spending good and quality time with Him, listening to Him speaking in the depth of our hearts, our minds and our beings, humbly obeying Him and His will.

Today, the Church also celebrate the Feast of great and holy men and women, holy saints and people dedicated to God whose lives and actions can be inspiration for each and every one of us to follow in how we ourselves ought to live our lives with faith and devotion to God. First of all is St. Denis, Bishop of Paris and his companions in martyrdom during the late Roman Empire. At that time, Christians throughout the Empire were under intense persecutions from the state during the reign of the Roman Emperors who were often violent in their attempt to destroy the Church and eradicate Christianity. St. Denis was the Bishop of Parisiorum, what is now Paris, the capital of France. He faithfully and courageously ministered to the faithful during those difficult moments, during the harshest persecutions.

Eventually, the persecutions under the Roman Emperor Decius and his successors caused many of the local Christians to be martyred and lost their lives. The authorities also arrested St. Denis and his companions in martyrdom, and after a long period in incarceration in prison, he and the other Christians were eventually led to the highest hill in Paris, a place now called Montmartre, which literally meant ‘Mountain of Martyrs’ in memory of their courageous defence of their faith and martyrdom. It was told that after he was beheaded, St. Denis did not die immediately and miraculously he continued on preaching, taking up his beheaded head and walking from the place of his martyrdom to the place where now stands the Basilica of St. Denis, the place where he was buried.

Meanwhile, the other saint celebrated today is that of St. John Leonardi, an Italian saint who was the founder of the Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca. He was the youngest of seven children and has always been devoted to the Lord since his youth, ever seeking consolation and refuge in God through prayer and meditation. Eventually he was ordained a priest and together with several other priests, he ministered to the people and reached out to many to strengthen their faith in God, especially during the time of confusion, division and hardships in the Church, being part of the Counter-Reformation efforts against the various heresies and the corruptions facing the Church and Christian faithful at the time. He propagated strong devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and also the popular Forty Hours Devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, which he continued on after he had established his congregation, inspiring many to follow in his examples and efforts as well.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have all discussed through the messages of the Scriptures and from the life and examples of God’s holy saints, namely that of St. Denis and his companions in martyrdom, as well as St. John Leonardi, all of us are reminded that we have been called to share in the journey and faith of our holy predecessors, those who had also encountered lots of difficulties, challenges and obstacles in their own lives. Yet, we must remain strong in faith and we must not allow ourselves to be easily swayed by the temptations and pressures all around us, that we may continue to embody our faith in the Lord ever more worthily by our dedication and commitment to Him. We must be missionary and evangelising in each and every moments of our lives, and even in the smallest and seemingly least significant actions that we do.

May the Lord our ever loving and compassionate God continue to guide us in our respective journey in life, so that we may always continue to be faithful and committed to Him. May He continue to bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours to follow Him and to obey His Law and commandments, and to do what is right and just in accordance with His will. May God bless us all in our every efforts and endeavours, and continue to encourage and strengthen us in all the struggles and in persevering through the hardships and difficulties in our journey towards Him. Amen.

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Wednesday, 9 October 2024 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Luke 11 : 1-4

At that time, Jesus was praying in a certain place; and when He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught His disciples.”

And Jesus said to them, “When you pray, say this : Father, may Your Name be held holy, may Your kingdom come; give us, each day, the kind of bread we need, and forgive us our sins; for we also forgive all who do us wrong; and do not bring us to the test.”

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Wednesday, 9 October 2024 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Psalm 116 : 1, 2

Alleluia! Praise the Lord, all you nations; all you peoples, praise Him.

How great is His love for us! His faithfulness lasts forever.

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Wednesday, 9 October 2024 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Galatians 2 : 1-2, 7-14

After fourteen years, I, again, went up to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and Titus came with us. Following a revelation, I went, to lay before them the Gospel that I am preaching to the pagans. I had a private meeting with the leaders – lest I should be working, or have worked, in a wrong way.

They recognised that I have been entrusted to give the Good News to the pagan nations, just as Peter has been entrusted to give it to the Jews. In the same way that God made Peter the Apostle of the Jews, He made me the Apostle of the pagans. James, Cephas and John acknowledged the graces God gave me.

Those men, who were regarded as the pillars of the Church, stretched out their hand to me and Barnabas, as a sign of fellowship; we would go to the pagans, and they, to the Jews. We should only keep in mind, the poor among them. I have taken care to do this.

When, later, Cephas, came to Antioch, I confronted him, since he deserved to be blamed. Before some of James’ people arrived, he used to eat with non-Jewish people. But when they arrived, he withdrew, and did not mingle anymore with them, for fear of the Jewish group. The rest of the Jews followed him in this pretense, and even Barnabas was part of this insincerity.

When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the Gospel, I said to Cephas publicly : If you, who are Jewish, agreed to live like the non-Jews, setting aside the Jewish customs, why do you, now, compel the non-Jews to live like Jews?

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Monday, 9 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Lord, we are all called and reminded to be loving and kind towards our fellow brethren, as each and every one of us as Christians have to emulate the Lord’s ways and His loving examples, His Law and commandments, in all of our way of life, words, actions and deeds. All of us must do what the Lord has called all of us to do, in our best way, in whatever ways He has taught and entrusted to us, as the ones whom He had called, chosen and revealed His intentions and ways to, in all of our actions and ways throughout this world. All of us should not be ignorant or idle in what we are expected to do, in reaching out to our fellow brothers and sisters, with great love and compassion.

In our first reading, we heard from the Book of the prophet Jonah about the calling and mission which God had entrusted to Jonah, as God told Jonah to go forth to the great city of Nineveh, which was then the capital and great city of the mighty and powerful Assyrian Empire. Contextually, by that time, the Assyrians had rose to power and conquered many nations, and the prophet Jonah lived and was called by God during this period of the Assyrians’ rise to power, about seven or eight centuries before the birth of Christ. At that time, the Assyrians were known for their power, but they had also risen to power amidst a lot of bloodshed and evil deeds, destroying many people and cities, killing countless thousands, tens of thousands and more during their many wars and conquests.

Hence, the Lord was sending Jonah to the people and city of Nineveh, to the Assyrians, their king and nobles in order to warn them of their impending destruction because of their own evil and wicked deeds. The Lord is Lord and God over all the whole world, and not only over the Israelites, His chosen people, only. Hence, just as the Israelites had suffered the consequences of their disobedience, sins and wickedness, thus, the Assyrians would also face similar consequences, just as how the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah in the ancient past, according to the Scriptures, were destroyed by God when their wickedness were truly great and vile. That was how most of the people during the time of Noah were destroyed by the Great Flood, save for that of Noah and his own family, the only ones that remained righteous among mankind.

All these reminded us first of all that God wants us all, His creation, to be truly virtuous, good and free from sin and evil. Sin comes from our disobedience against God, His will, Law and commandments, and through sin, corruption and wickedness come into us, and we will have to face the consequences for sins and all the evils and wicked deeds we have done in our lives. But, just as we have heard how God sent His prophet Jonah to the people of Nineveh, and how He has also sent many other prophets like Isaiah, Elisha, Isaiah and others to His people in both the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, to point out to them their sins and wickedness, and to help guide them to the right path, we can see that God truly loves us all, and what He despises is not us, but rather our sins and wickedness.

This is also where, the contrast between the attitude of the people of Nineveh and those of God’s chosen people, the Israelites can be clearly seen. The people of Nineveh, if we read on further in the accounts from the Book of the prophet Jonah, actually listened to the Lord and heeded Jonah’s warning and proclamation of their doom with repentance and true regret for their wickedness and sins, as the whole entire city, from the king right to the lowest among the people all publicly showed their repentance, wearing sackcloth and declaring fasting and regret over their sins. On the contrary, the people of Israel kept on hardening their hearts and refusing to believe in God, despite repeated reminders, omens and all the punishments that they had all suffered.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the famous parable of the Good Samaritan being told by the Lord to His disciples and followers. The Good Samaritan refers to the Samaritan who bothered to stop by a Jew who was assaulted by robbers on his way to Jericho, when a Levite and a priest each refused to help the injured man. Back then, the Samaritans were hated and despised by the Jewish people, and they were seen by the latter as those who had adopted the heretical and mistaken beliefs incompatible to the version of faith held and preserved by the Jewish people and elders. This came about because the Samaritans were descended from the mixture of the people living in the northern regions of the northern kingdom of Israel, that had been destroyed by the same Assyrians mentioned earlier, and intermingled with the foreigners and other peoples brought in by the Assyrians.

As such, the disagreements and the misunderstandings that existed between both peoples led to the bitter divisions and prejudices between both communities. The Samaritans were despised and hated by the Jews, and were treated no better than pagans and foreigners, or even worse than those, even when the Samaritans actually worshipped the same Lord and God as the Jewish people. But as we heard from the parable, the despised and hated Samaritan was the one who actually had pity on the injured Jewish man, while ironically the Levite and the priest, who were both highly respected and esteemed among the Jewish community, did not even stop to help their own fellow countrymen, as they would have been expected to. They did not even show any care or even bothered to stop.

On the contrary, the Good Samaritan not only stopped by and helped the injured man, but he even took good care of him and paid all the expenses for the injured man and told the innkeeper to settle everything for him, to make sure that he fully recovered, and paid for everything with bonus added. He truly had gone the extra mile with his care and compassion, and through this story, we are all first of all reminded that we must not be prejudiced or biased against anyone simply because of their backgrounds or due to our preconceived notions or often flawed understanding of others. We must always remember that each and every one of us are equally beloved by God, and that everyone has the opportunity and the potential to be like the saints, to be reconciled fully with God and to be filled once again with God’s grace.

What matters now is for us to embrace God’s call and answer Him with faith. We should not be like Jonah, who ignored the Lord’s call and even tried to flee from the Lord, in ignoring the mission which God has entrusted to him. Neither should we be like the priest and the Levite in the parable of the Good Samaritan, who have ignored the pleas and the need of the injured man. Instead, we should enthusiastically and courageously answer God’s call with dedication, just as what the Good Samaritan himself had done. We should always carry ourselves with commitment and faith, and with the genuine desire to love the Lord as well as our fellow brothers and sisters, all around us. Thus, we should also be inspired by the great examples set by our holy predecessors, the saints and martyrs, so that we too can live lives that are truly worthy of God.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Denis and his companions in martyrdom, as well as that of St. John Leonardi, a devout man of God and priest, the founder of the Order of Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca. First of all, St. Denis was the Bishop of Paris during the middle of the third century, in which he was remembered for his most miraculous martyrdom among with many others, who were oppressed and martyred during the intense persecution of Christians by the Roman Emperor Decius. St. Denis was arrested and tortured after his efforts in converting many pagans made many pagan priests and officials to be afraid of them, and he and others were brought to a hill where they were executed, with St. Denis being beheaded. However, miraculously, St. Denis still continued to preach while his head had been severed from his body, walking for a few miles before he finally died at the site where a great Basilica in his honour stands now. Not few were converted to the faith by this miraculous occasion.

St. John Leonardi meanwhile was a priest in what is now Italy, who answered God’s call for him to be a priest, and to serve among the people of God, ministering to their spiritual needs, while spreading the devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the popular Forty Hours devotion, which were instrumental in checking the growth of the heresy of Protestant reformation at that time. He helped spreading the reforms of the Council of Trent, and established the aforementioned Order of Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca. He did not have it easy as he encountered opposition and challenges from those who were politically motivated back then in opposing the establishment of the new religious order, known well as the Lucca Fathers. Nevertheless, St. John Leonardi continued to do his best in doing God’s work among His people.

May the Lord continue to guide and strengthen us in all things, so that we may be inspired and encouraged to follow in the footsteps of our holy predecessors, the saints and martyrs, particularly those of St. Denis and his companions in holy martyrdom, and also the commitment and faith shown by St. John Leonardi. Let us all continue to strengthen and deepen our faith in each and every opportunities provided for us, and draw ever closer to the Lord, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 9 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Luke 10 : 25-37

At that time, then a teacher of the Law came and began putting Jesus to the test. And he said, “Master, what shall I do to receive eternal life?” Jesus replied, “What is written in the Law? How do You understand it?” The man answered, “It is written : You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind. And you shall love your neighbour as yourself.”

Jesus replied, “What a good answer! Do this and you shall live.” The man wanted to justify his question, so he asked, “Who is my neighbour?” Jesus then said, “There was a man going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him and went off, leaving him half-dead.”

“It happened that a priest was going along that road and saw the man, but passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite saw the man, and passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan also was going that way; and when he came upon the man, he was moved with compassion. He went over to him, and cleaned his wounds with oil and wine, and wrapped them in bandages. Then he put him on his own mount, and brought him to an inn, where he took care of him.”

“The next day, he had to set off; but he gave two silver coins to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him, and whatever you spend on him, I will repay when I return.'” Jesus then asked, “Which of these three, do you think, made himself neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

The teacher of the Law answered, “The one who had mercy on him.” And Jesus said, “Then go and do the same.”

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Monday, 9 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Jonah 2 : 3, 4, 5, 8

In my distress I cried to YHVH, and He answered me; from the belly of the netherworld You heard my voice when I called.

You cast me into the abyss, into the very heart of the sea, and the currents swirled about me; all Your breakers and Your billows passed over, engulfing me.

Then I thought : I have been cast out from Your presence, but I keep on looking to Your holy Temple.

When my soul was fainting within me, I remembered YHVH, and before You, rose my prayer up to Your holy Temple.

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Monday, 9 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Jonah 1 : 1 – Jonah 2 : 1, 11

The word of YHVH came to Jonah, son of Amittai, “Go to Nineveh, the great city, and preach against it, because I have known its wickedness.”

But Jonah decided to flee from YHVH and go to Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, found a ship bound for Tarshish, and paid the fare. Then he boarded it and went into the hold of the ship, journeying with them to Tarshish, far away from YHVH.

YHVH stirred up a storm wind on the sea, so there was a sea tempest, which threatened to destroy the ship. The sailors took fright, and each cried out to his own god. To lighten the ship, they threw its cargo into the sea. Meanwhile Jonah had gone into the hold of the ship, where he lay fast asleep. The captain came upon him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your God. Perhaps He will be mindful of us and will not allow us to die here.”

The sailors said to each other, “Let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this disaster.” So they did, and the lot fell on Jonah. They questioned him, “So you are responsible for this evil that has come upon us? Tell us where you are from. What is your country, your nationality?” And Jonah told them his story, “I am a Hebrew and I worship YHVH, God of heaven Who made the sea and the land…”

As they knew that he was fleeing from YHVH, the sailors were seized with great fear and said to him, “What a terrible thing have you done! What shall we do with you now, to make the sea calm down?” The sea was growing more and more agitated.

He said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea. It will quiet down, for I know it is because of me that this storm has come.” The sailors, however, still did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea had grown much rougher than before. Then they called on YHVH, “O YHVH, do not let us perish for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us guilty of shedding innocent blood. For You, YHVH, have done this as You have thought right.”

They took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm again. At this the men were seized with great fear of YHVH. They offered a sacrifice to YHVH and made vows to Him. YHVH provided a large fish which swallowed Jonah. He remained in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights. Then YHVH gave His command to the fish, and it belched out Jonah onto dry land.

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Saturday, 9 October 2021 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priest or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are all called to be faithful to God, and to believe in Him and His providence, to do His will because all of us who are faithful to Him and remain true to our commitment to Him will not be disappointed, as God knows all of our actions and dealings, and whatever we have done, our every small little actions, for the greater glory of His Name, shall be rewarded in the end.

In our first reading today, we heard of the words of the Lord spoken to His people through the prophet Joel, who was active during the years following the return of the descendants of the Israelites from their exile in Babylon. To put things in context, the people of Israel had by then endured a lot of humiliations and sufferings because of their past sins, due to their stubborn refusal to follow the Lord and to believe in His words and the prophets that had been sent to them.

They had been beaten, oppressed and conquered by the Assyrians and the Babylonians. Their cities and towns were destroyed, and they were forced to leave their ancestral homeland for a faraway exile in Assyria and Babylon, and seeing pagans and foreigners taking over the ownership of their lands. Their Holy Temple in Jerusalem, the House of God was destroyed, a House which they themselves had long forgotten and abandoned for the worship of pagan gods and idols.

The Lord never forgot about His people though, and continued to love them despite of all the troubles and the betrayals they had done to Him. He loved them regardless and desired to reconcile themselves to Him, to love them once again and to extend His merciful hands to be reunited with them. He guided them and sent His prophets to them, and after many decades, gathered them back and through King Cyrus of Persia, led them back to their homeland, and allowing them to rebuild their towns and the Temple of God.

Therefore, through the prophet Joel, God wanted to remind His people to stand by His side and to remain faithful to Him so that they will no longer experience those periods of sufferings and challenges, and even if they were to suffer from difficulties and challenges, the Lord would be by their side and they would triumph together with Him, for He will come in the end to gather them all and lead them into the true joy and glory with Him, at the very end of time.

As we heard in our short Gospel passage today, we are all then reminded that in order to do this, what we all need to do is to be faithful to God and to commit ourselves wholeheartedly, by doing His will and obeying His laws and commandments. To do the will of God is the calling for us all as Christians, and we should do our very best to live a virtuous and exemplary life, to the best of our ability, so that even in the smallest things that we do, we will always remain faithful and committed to God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us also follow the good examples set by our holy predecessors, namely St. Denis and his companions in martyrdom, as well as St. John Leonardi, faithful servants of God and saints whose feasts we are celebrating today. We should delve into their lives’ examples and be inspired with how they had led lives that were centred and focused on God, and how they had shown great faith despite the many challenges and trials they had encountered in life.

St. Denis was the Bishop of Paris during the time of the later Roman Empire, during a time of great persecution of Christians by the Roman Emperors and the state. St. Denis was sent from Rome by Pope St. Fabian, and was tasked with the evangelisation and conversion of Roman Gaul, together with several other missionaries. They encountered great challenges while having a lot of successes as well, and that time, when the Emperor Decius declared a great persecution against Christians, he and the other missionaries were arrested.

St. Denis and his companions were tortured and made to suffer for their faith in God, and they refused to give in, and finally, were led to their execution, which St. Denis suffered by beheading, together with his fellow martyrs. However, in a most miraculous and amazing occasion, St. Denis remained alive even after he was beheaded, and he picked up his head, and the head preached to the people as he walked for many kilometres, to many awed witnesses and even those who were involved in the execution. It was at the place where he stopped and finally passed into heavenly glory, that he was buried and where a great church, the Basilica of St. Denis in Paris now stands.

Meanwhile, St. John Leonardi was an Italian priest and founder of the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca, who lived about five centuries ago. As a priest, he was remembered for his great dedication to his flock, the parishioners and the other members of the faithful whom he dedicated himself to, in the formation of young adults in the faith among other things. He also popularised the devotion of the Forty Hours and the Eucharist to the faithful, which was meant to bring them closer to God.

St. John Leonardi also worked hard to implement the many reforms of the Ecumenical Council of Trent, while also proposing to the Pope for the formation of a religious order that is focused on the reforms of the Church and greater discipline in faith, which eventually became a reality with the foundation of the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca, gathering many like-minded people who seek to serve the Lord following the charism and efforts of St. John Leonardi. Through his faith and dedication, and his perseverance, in facing the challenges and opposition he had for his efforts, St. John Leonardi has shown us, just as St. Denis and his companions in martyrdom had, on how to be truly faithful and committed to God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore commit ourselves anew to the Lord and let us do our very best to follow Him, and to walk in His path, so that in everything we do, we will always glorify Him and be exemplary and inspirational in our way of life, such that many more people may come to believe in the Lord through us and our examples. May the Lord continue to guide us and help us in our journey of faith, and may He strengthen each and every one of us to live ever more faithfully from now on. Amen.

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Saturday, 9 October 2021 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priest or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Luke 11 : 27-28

At that time, as Jesus was speaking, a woman spoke from the crowd and said to Him, “Blessed is the one who gave You birth and nursed You!”

Jesus replied, “Truly blessed are those who hear the word of God, and keep it as well.”