First Sunday of Lent

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Monday, 19 February 2018 : 1st Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Leviticus 19 : 1-2, 11-18

YHVH spoke to Moses and said, “Speak to the entire assembly of the people of Israel and say to them : Be holy for I, YHVH, your God, am holy. Do not steal or lie or deceive one another. Do not swear falsely by My Name so as to profane the Name of your God; I am YHVH.”

“Do not oppress your neighbour or rob him. The wages of a hired man are not to remain with you all night until morning. You shall not curse a deaf man nor put a stumbling block in the way of the blind; but you shall fear your God; I am YHVH.”

“Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor nor bow to the great; you are to judge your neighbour fairly so as not to share in his guilt. Do not go about as a slanderer of your people and do not seek the death of your neighbour; I am YHVH.”

“Do not hate your brother in your heart; rebuke your neighbour frankly so as not to share in his guilt. Do not seek revenge or nurture a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbour as yourself; I am YHVH.”

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Sunday, 18 February 2018 : First Sunday of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this Sunday, the first one in the season of Lent, all of us are gathered together to celebrate the Eucharist and having heard the word of God from the Scripture passages today, we are all called to remember what we all need to do during this time of Lent, the time of renewal and rejuvenation of our spiritual, mental and physical existence.

The season of Lent spans the forty days period between Ash Wednesday and Holy Thursday, marking a special season and time of preparation and contemplation, during which time we also practice fasting and abstinence, namely the practice of restraining our physical bodies by means of reducing our intake of food to just one full meal and two smaller meals, as well as not eating certain kind of food such as meat during Fridays in remembrance of Our Lord’s sacrifice on Good Friday.

This is a special time set aside by the Church for the good of all the faithful, because all of us indeed need to be fully prepared to celebrate the most important mysteries and tenets of our faith which culminates during the Holy Week and Easter, when we commemorate the suffering, death and resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, Who died on the cross that all of us who believe in Him may live.

Why do we need to prepare ourselves to celebrate those important events of our faith? That is because we should not and indeed must not be giving lip service for our faith, and if we come to the celebrations of the Holy Week and Easter without preparing ourselves first, in body, mind, heart, spirit and soul, we are shortchanging ourselves and not helping ourselves in our journey to seek God’s salvation.

Each and every one of us must take it seriously upon ourselves, to prepare ourselves spiritually throughout this season of Lent. The time of Lent itself, spanning forty days has a very rich biblical background and roots, if we refer back to what we have heard in today’s readings and from our understanding of the Scriptures. The number forty has a very significant meaning, often found throughout the Scriptures representing a significant length of time linked with a time used for preparation before a certain holy occasion.

For example, Moses spent forty days atop the mount Sinai with God, as he listened to Him speaking His words and passing down His laws and commandments as part of the Covenant He made with them, and then the prophet Elijah also spent forty days and forty nights in journey through the desert as he travelled to meet God after he was terribly persecuted in the land of Israel. When Elijah met God, He made it clear to him what He wanted him to do for the sake of His people, to call them to conversion and repentance.

In our first reading today, we heard about the Great Flood which happened at the time of Noah, in the early years of mankind’s history. Much of the world were then filled with wickedness and sin, and Noah alone among all those people, the descendants of Adam and Eve, remained faithful to God and His ways. The Lord sent the flood through non-stop rain and the seas which lasted for forty days and forty nights before it stopped and the water starting to recede after that.

Again, in this case, we see the importance attached to the number forty as a period of time spent, as a major event in the history of our faith took place. Then, later on, in the Book of Exodus, we may also remember how the people of Israel spent forty years in the desert, as they waited for the opportunity to enter the Promised Land after their Exodus from Egypt. The journey should not have taken that long, but the people of Israel rebelled against God, and as they continued to be stubborn and refused to obey Him, God punished them to wander off in the desert for forty years.

In all these, we see the journey and the progression made during that period, be it forty days or be it forty years in the case of the Israelites. From a state of sin, disobedience, wickedness, unworthiness and from the clutches of darkness, those who were involved were transformed by their respective experiences, into a new state, a state of grace, of obedience, of righteousness, of joy and entering into a new Covenant with God.

In the first reading today, God made a Covenant with His servant Noah, after the end of the forty days and night of rain and after the Great Flood receded. He promised him and his descendants that He will never again send any flood to destroy the earth and its entire inhabitants as He had done at that time. He put the bow in the sky, the rainbow as the sign of His covenant and as a remembrance of His saving love, having spared Noah and his descendants, including all of us from total destruction, because of their faith.

And God renewed the Covenant He made with Israel after they had survived the forty years of journey in the desert and entered into the lands which He had promised to them and settled there. It was a time of renewal and a time of renewed grace, which was once lost because of the disobedience of their forefathers. Those who have disobeyed the Lord perished in the desert and were left behind, while those who were faithful were allowed to enter into the Promised Land and settle there.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, how are all these readings and references I brought from the Scriptures relevant to us? They are indeed important for us, to be remembered and to be reflected upon, as we embark on our own forty days of preparation during this season of Lent. The first thing that we must ask ourselves is, ‘What have we done or what do we have in mind, in order to make our observation of Lenten practices more meaningful and fruitful?’

We do not need to look any further than the examples set by the Lord Jesus Himself, Whom in the Gospel today mentioned about His temptation by the devil in the desert as He fasted there for forty days. Again, in this yet another occasion, the number forty made its appearance. This time, it represents the time spent by the Lord right after His baptism by St. John the Baptist before He began His earthly ministry.

The devil tempted the Lord Who was hungry after going for forty days without food and sustenance, telling Him that He could just turn the stones into bread, and His hunger would have been easily satisfied. But the Lord rebuked Satan, saying that ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ Through those words, the Lord Jesus is indeed speaking to us and calling on us to be faithful to Him in this season of Lent.

And how do we do that? In this season of Lent, as mentioned, all of us fast and abstain on certain times and periods, with the purpose of resisting the temptation of greed, of human desires and wants. But do we realise that fasting and abstaining alone is not enough, if we do not fully comprehend its significance? If we just do those practices for our own benefit, then I fear that we may not be doing it right.

Instead, we should heed what the Lord said, ‘but on every word that comes from the mouth of God’ as reminders that we should do our fasting, abstinence and other forms of piety and Lenten observances because ultimately we love the Lord, and we want to listen to Him and do His will, and obey Him in everything that He has commanded us to do. This is what all of us should be doing as Christians.

And then, we should also be always vigilant lest the devil tempt us in many other ways, as he had done to the Lord Himself. The devil tempted the Lord with power and pride, when he asked Him to leap down from the top of the Temple of Jerusalem, arguing that the Angels would not let His feet to hit the ground. Satan tempted the Lord with pride, knowing that it is pride that was the greatest of his own sin, having been proud with his own greatness, once the greatest and most brilliant among the Angels, Lucifer, fallen from grace because of his pride.

But the Lord would not fall into the temptation, and rebuked Satan for his attempt to test God with that act. Yet, Satan is not a being who would just easily give up. If he could not tempt the Lord, he would just continue to tempt us as he had always done, tempting us with pride, and also with power and worldly glory, as how he showed Jesus with all the kingdoms and the glories of the world, saying that he would give it to Him if only He would worship him. The Lord rebuked him and cast him away, saying that God alone is worthy of worship.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, during this time of Lent, we are called to spend our time well, on a time of preparation, on a time of spiritual renewal and the rediscovery of our faith, by means of prayer, by being closer to God, and by resisting the temptations with which Satan and his allies are trying to subvert us and to snatch us away from God and His saving grace.

Are we able to stay strong in our faith and resist the temptations of our flesh, imitating the examples shown by Our Lord Himself? Are we able to move beyond worldly matters and concerns, and grow to love the Lord ever more strongly, as we deepen our prayerful and love-filled relationship with Him? Are we able to show the same love to our brethren as well? There are many out there who are in need of our help and our love.

When we fast and abstain in this season of Lent, instead of just omitting the meal and the food, let us all use the spare food, the blessings and graces we received to be more charitable for the need of those who have little or none on their own. While we restrain our human greed, ambition and desires, let us remember how our greed and our desires have caused many to suffer, from hunger, from lack of love, from destitution and more.

Let us pray, that all of us Christians throughout the world, within our families and among our friends, we may all benefit greatly from this season of Lent, drawing ever closer to God’s grace, and be worthy to receive His love, mercy and compassion. May we spend these forty days with full understanding of how by growing stronger in spirituality and in our relationship with God will enable us to be better disciples and followers of the Lord. Let us all be more charitable, generous with our giving and loving for our brethren, especially those who are in need.

May the Lord be with us throughout this forty days of prayer and contemplation, throughout this season of Lent, that we will be able to make best use of it, for the sake of the salvation of our souls, that we will be worthy in the end, to receive the fullness of God’s promise as He has made through His Covenant with us, made through the sacrifice of Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the cross, the reason why we fast and why we abstain, to prepare ourselves to commemorate the greatest event of our faith, Our Lord’s suffering, death and glorious resurrection. May God bless us all. Amen.

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Sunday, 18 February 2018 : First Sunday of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Mark 1 : 12-15

At that time, the Spirit drove Jesus into the desert. He stayed in the desert forty days and was tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, but Angels ministered to Him.

After John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee and began preaching the Good News of God. He said, “The time has come; the kingdom of God is at hand. Change your ways and believe the Good News.”

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Sunday, 18 February 2018 : First Sunday of Lent (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

1 Peter 3 : 18-22

Remember how Christ died, once, and for all, for our sins. He, the Just One, died for the unjust, in order to lead us to God. In the Body, He was put to death, in the Spirit, He was raised to life, and it was then, that He went to preach to the imprisoned spirits.

They were the generation who did not believe, when God, in His great patience, delayed punishing the world, while Noah was building the Ark, in which a small group of eight persons escaped, through water. That was a type of baptism that now saves you; this baptism is not a matter of physical cleansing, but of asking God to reconcile us, through the resurrection of Christ Jesus.

He has ascended to heaven, and is at the right hand of God, having subjected the Angels, Dominions and Powers.

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Sunday, 18 February 2018 : First Sunday of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 24 : 4-5ab, 6 and 7bc, 8-9

Teach me Your ways, o YHVH; make known to me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and instruct me, for You are my God, my Saviour.

Remember Your compassion, o YHVH, Your unfailing love from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth, but in Your love remember me.

Good and upright, YHVH teaches sinners His way. He teaches the humble of heart and guides them in what is right.

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Sunday, 18 February 2018 : First Sunday of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Genesis 9 : 8-15

God spoke to Noah and his sons, “See I am making a Covenant with you and with your descendants after you; also with every living animal with you : birds, cattle, that is, with every living creature of the earth that came out of the Ark. I establish My Covenant with you. Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

God said, “This is the sign of the Covenant I make between Me and you, and every animal living with you for all future generations. I set My bow in the clouds and it will be a sign of the Covenant between Me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember the Covenant between Me and you and every kind of living creature, so that never again will floodwaters destroy all flesh.”

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Sunday, 5 March 2017 : First Sunday of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we mark the occasion of the First Sunday of Lent, when we heard the customary readings from the Scripture about the fall of mankind, our first ancestors Adam and Eve, and also the reading from the Holy Gospels on the temptation of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who was tempted by the devil during His forty days of fasting and preparation in the desert after He was baptised and before He began His earthly ministry.

In today’s readings, we heard about how frail we mankind are, beginning since the time of our very first ancestors, whom God had created out of love and placed in the Gardens of Eden. We were not intended for a life of suffering and pain, and we were not intended to suffer death at the end of our lives. Indeed, everything was created good and perfect then, and mankind were supposed to live out their days in perfect bliss and harmony with God forevermore.

God has blessed us mankind with many things, and He has put us in charge over all the things that He has created in this world. And yet, as we have heard, seen and witnessed, they were not satisfied with what they had received. That is why we fell prey easily to the temptations of Satan, our great enemy who despised us and wanted to see us destroyed and crushed because of our own folly.

Satan was once known as Lucifer, a great and mighty Archangel of God, who was told to be the greatest and most brilliant of all the Angels of God, but he became proud and filled with greed and desire, thinking of going beyond what was his due, and claimed to be greater than God His Creator, desiring nothing less than the throne of Heaven itself, and led many Angels in rebellion against God. He was defeated and cast down out of Heaven, and became what we know as Satan, the devil, the evil one.

So much had he resented his downfall and defeat, that he resolved to bring ruin upon those whom God had loved most of all the things He had created, that is us all mankind. He played upon our human desires and vulnerabilities, and tempted us with the same vices that he himself had. He tempted us with the knowledge of good and evil, lying that by eating the fruits of the forbidden tree, we will gain power and knowledge much like that of God’s, and therefore became like God Himself.

It is in our disobedience and in our inability to restrain ourselves that we have sinned, not just Adam and Eve with their original sins, but also down throughout time and ages, when mankind frequently and constantly acted waywardly and committed wickedness before God and men alike. We have fallen into sin, which corrupted our hearts and minds and defiled our bodies and souls, preventing us from attaining true grace in God.

It is therefore in this holy season of Lent, the forty days of preparation we have before the celebration of Easter that we are all called to reflect on the state of our sinfulness and wickedness. We have been called to conversion by God, a conversion from our past sinfulness and waywardness, so that we may turn our back against all the disgraceful and selfish acts we had done, which had brought about our separation from God.

What we heard in the Gospel today, on the temptations of the devil upon Jesus our Lord in the desert is a clear reminder for each one of us as we proceed through this season of Lent. Among what we have heard in the temptations, it is a reminder for us to keep our guard up against the sin of gluttony, the sin of greed and desire, and finally the sin of pride.

First of all, Jesus was tempted by the devil who tried to manipulate His hunger and desire for food. He has fasted for a whole forty days and nights without any food or drink, and certainly then, as human as He was, He must have been really hungry. Just imagine for ourselves, that if we just skip one meal in a day, it would have been intolerable for us, not less still missing the meal for the entire day, and even more so for forty days and nights.

And that was what brought down many of the Israelites as they journeyed through the desert. They complained against Moses and against God, because they were hungry and then became angry against Moses and God for having led them out of Egypt, as they would rather live in slavery and had their bellies filled with food, the food of the Egyptians, rather than living in freedom and obeying the will of God their Lord and Master.

Let us all reflect on this, brothers and sisters in Christ. Is it not the same with us? Is it not like just what we mankind often do in our world, both past and present? Many of us are unable to resist the temptations of our flesh, the pangs of hunger and desire of our stomachs. Many of us live lavishly and eat food and drink as if there is no tomorrow. We feast and party among ourselves, while there are many people in this world who cannot even make ends meet, and who hunger for food and are starving to death.

Many of us worry about what we are to eat and drink daily, and we worry about our well-being, but how many of us realise just how much we have been blessed by God day after day? And yet, we are not satisfied and always desire for more things for ourselves. Jesus rebuked Satan and castigated him, saying that food is not all that we need in order to live, but really to obey the Word of God and to listen to His will.

What does this mean, brothers and sisters? It means that we must not allow ourselves to be controlled by the whim of our desire. This is linked to the sin of greed and desire I mentioned earlier on. Gluttony is a result of our desire, and so is lust and greed. We must overcome the temptations of our flesh, and learn to control ourselves. Jesus was tempted by Satan in his third temptation, with the offer of the whole kingdom and wealth of the whole earth, if only that He would worship him as a god.

But Jesus rebuked him once again, saying that God alone is worthy of worship, and He alone is God. It is our desire that had led us astray from God, and instead of obeying the will of God, we end up listening to the will of our own flesh, the will of our own desires, which lead us into committing acts that are abhorrent and wicked in the sight of God and mankind alike.

After all, that is what happened when we mankind fight against each other over prestige, over honour, over wealth and possessions, even over food and basic necessities of life. Wars had been fought and conflicts had raged over something as trivial as human pride and ego, over human desire for more wealth and commodities. The greed and desire of mankind had indeed led to the rich, mighty and powerful to oppress those who are poorer and weak.
But let us not be mistaken, brothers and sisters in Christ. For God is not against the rich and the powerful just because they are so. Do we realise that even the poor often oppress others who are poor like them, just because they have more power, more strength and advantage against those who are weaker from them? Indeed, in this season of Lent, we are all called to restrain our human desires, our greed, the desire of lust, for forbidden pleasures of the flesh, and also to be charitable.

Those who have been given more need to share their blessings with those who have less. And this is what God had commanded His people to do. In this season of Lent, besides fasting and abstinence, through which we restrain ourselves and our desires, we are also asked to do the works of mercy as our penance, loving our brethren and give generously through almsgiving, helping those who have little or even nothing to support themselves and their families.

And finally, it is a moment for us to resist the sin of pride, the most dangerous of it all. As I have mentioned at the beginning of this discourse, it is pride that had brought down even the mighty Angel Lucifer, whose pride overcome him and made him to desire the power and glory of God for himself. Pride and ego is indeed the source of all vices. For it is the ‘I’, the ego we have in us, that led us to selfishness, to desire and to all other things, among which had led our ancestors to sin against God.

When we are so focused on ourselves, and when we are so full of ego and arrogance, it is when we end up selfishly thinking about ourselves, desiring more and more for ourselves, even if these would mean that others may not get a share in what we desire, and if these lead others to suffer just so that we may enjoy what we want.

Satan himself tempted Jesus to jump from the top of the Temple, alleging that the Angels would not let Him to hit the ground and would lift Him up. It is a great temptation for Jesus to show Himself and His might to others, as God and Master of all. But Jesus did not succumb to the temptation of pride, just as He did not succumb to desire, greed, gluttony and others. He rebuked Satan and cast him away from His presence.

All of these are important lessons for us to take note of during this season of Lent. It is an example for us all to follow, that during this penitential season, and indeed from now on, even beyond the end of this season of Lent, that we ought to throw away our ego, far far away from us. We must not be arrogant, be egoistic and selfish, but instead, we must be humble in all of our ways.

Let us all pray to the Lord, that He will give us the grace to be humble, especially as we progress through this season of Lent. Let us pray that He will open our hearts to His love, that we may love generously and share our blessings generously and kindly upon others, giving alms and help to those who need it, and restrain our desires, our selfishness, and instead learn to be selfless and loving to all our fellow brethren. Let us indeed follow the examples of Christ, our Lord, Who was humble and obedient to the will of His Father, and Whose obedience had brought about our salvation, reversing the sin of the disobedience of Adam and Eve.

May the Lord help us all as we progress through this season of Lent, that we may grow ever closer to Him, and grow ever more righteous, just and worthy of Him through all that we have said and done in our lives. May God bless us all and our families, and may He strengthen in us our faith and our desire to love Him above all else, and love His people, our brethren just as we love Him. God be with us all. Amen.

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Sunday, 5 March 2017 : First Sunday of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Matthew 4 : 1-11

At that time, the Spirit led Jesus into the desert that He might be put to the test by the devil. After spending forty days and nights without food, Jesus was hungry. Then the devil came to Him and said, “If You are the Son of God, order these stones to turn into bread.” But Jesus answered, “Scripture says : One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

Then the devil took Jesus to the holy city, set Him on the highest wall of the Temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down, for Scripture says : God has given orders to His Angels about You. Their hands will hold You up lest You hurt Your foot against a stone.” Jesus answered, “But Scripture also says : You shall not put to the test the Lord your God.”

Then the devil took Jesus to a very high mountain, and showed Him all the nations of the world in all their greatness and splendour. And he said, “All this I will give You, if You kneel down and worship me.” Then Jesus answered, “Be off, Satan! Scripture says : Worship the Lord your God and serve Him alone!”

Then the devil left Him, and Angels came to serve Him.

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Sunday, 5 March 2017 : First Sunday of Lent (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Romans 5 : 12-19

Therefore, sin entered the world through one man and through sin, death, and later on death spread to all mankind, because all sinned. As long as there was no law, they could not speak of disobedience, but sin was already in the world. This is why from Adam to Moses death reigned among them, although their sin was not disobedience as in Adam’s case – this was not the true Adam, but foretold the Other Who was to come.

Such has been the fall, but God’s gift goes far beyond. All died because of the fault of one man, but how much more does the grace of God spread when the gift He granted reaches all, from this unique Man Jesus Christ. Again, there is no comparison between the gift and the offence of one man. The disobedience that brought condemnation was of one sinner, whereas the grace of God brings forgiveness to a world of sinners.

If death reigned through the disobedience of one and only one person, how much more will there be a reign of life for those who receive the grace and gift of true righteousness through the One person, Jesus Christ. Just as one transgression brought sentence of death to all, so, too, one Man’s good act has brought justification and light to all; and as the disobedience of only one made all sinners, so the obedience of one Person allowed all to be made just and holy.

Alternative reading
Romans 12 : 17-19

Do not return evil for evil, but let everyone see your good will. Do your best to live in peace with everybody. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but let God be the One Who punishes, as Scripture says : Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord.

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Sunday, 5 March 2017 : First Sunday of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Psalm 50 : 3-4, 5-6a, 12-13, 14 and 17

Have mercy on me, o God, in Your love. In Your great compassion blot out my sin. Wash me thoroughly of my guilt; cleanse me of evil.

For I acknowledge my wrongdoings and have my sins ever in mind. Against You alone have I sinned; what is evil in Your sight I have done.

Create in me, o God, a pure heart; give me a new and steadfast spirit. Do not cast me out of Your presence nor take Your Holy Spirit from me.

Give me again the joy of Your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit. O Lord, open my lips, and I will declare Your praise.