First Week of Lent

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Friday, 6 March 2020 : 1st Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, through our Scripture passages today as we continue to progress through this season of Lent, we are all reminded that we cannot be complacent in life and in our way of living our faith, as we can easily slip and fall into the many temptations and trials found in life all around us, and be trapped once again in the dangerous trap of sin. The devil knows this very well and he will indeed try his best to tempt us and to drag us deep into sin.

In our first reading today, as we heard of the passage taken from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel, we heard God speaking to all of His people through the prophet Ezekiel revealing how He loved each and every one of us, His beloved children and people, and He wanted us all to be reconciled with Him and be saved from certain destruction because of our own sins. He revealed that He did not wish for the destruction of sinners and their damnation, but the reality is such that those who are condemned did so by their own conscious rejection of God’s righteous ways.

In that same passage then, we also heard how our salvation in God is not a done deal or assured for us unlike what some of us have preferred to believe, those who claimed that once we have been saved by faith, we will always be saved no matter what. Instead, God revealed to us all through the prophet Ezekiel that our faith and our salvation by that faith is also dependant on our actions and direction in life.

Those who are righteous, if they fall into sin and wickedness, will be judged by those same sins they committed, and if found wanting, will be condemned because of them. On the other hand, those who are wicked, if they repent from their wickedness and act righteously, they will be saved by those righteousness and faith that they have shown through their change in attitude in life. This is the essence of what we have heard in our that passage from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel today, that God loves us all and despises our sins.

God treasures us, His people though we are sinners, because He ultimately created us out of love and has that strong desire to love all of us and share His love with us. It is our wickedness and sins that made us to be unworthy and corrupted, regardless of whether we have been considered as righteous or wicked previously by others. That is why we are reminded not to be complacent in how we live our faith and our lives, that we have to be always ready and prepared to face the temptations and pressures that will come our way.

The devil and all of his wicked allies, the demons and evil spirits are always ready out there to tempt us, to sway us and to force and coerce us to go down the path of sin and darkness, and no one among us is free or immune to their corrupting influences and efforts. The more righteous we are and the better we have been in living our faith, the busier the devil and all of his wicked allies will in fact be, in trying to subvert us and to turn us into the path of sin.

That is why, we have to be vigilant all the time and strive to be righteous in the eyes of God and men alike. And it is also very important that we must have humility within us, as without humility it is likely that we will be easily overcome by pride and arrogance, hubris and the ego in our hearts and minds. And when we allow pride to overcome us, it is when it will be very easy for the devil to wrest us away from God’s path into the path of sin. After all, when we allow pride to overcome us and control our lives, we will end up focusing on ourselves more and God will be put aside and become secondary to us in importance.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we progress through this blessed season of Lent let us all make good use of the time and opportunity that God has given us so that we may rediscover our faith in the Lord once again, and allow ourselves to centre ourselves once again on Him. This is why this time of Lent is the perfect opportunity for us to reorientate ourselves and to turn away from sin, be more humble before God and admit before Him our sinfulness and wickedness, all our shortcomings and mistakes.

Remember, brothers and sisters in Christ, that God alone can forgive us our sins and heal us from this terrible affliction on our souls. If we allow sin to inhabit our hearts and minds, our beings for any moment longer, and worse still, to indulge on those sins, sooner or later we will fall deeper and deeper into the path of wickedness, and in the end, be judged by those wickedness we have committed. Instead, let us all heed what the Lord Himself had spoken to us in our Gospel passage today, calling on all of us to be righteous in all things and to be truly faithful in all of our ways in life.

Let us all be more loving towards our fellow brethren from now on, and let us devote more of our time and attention to the Lord and follow His Law and commandments daily. Let us show mercy and compassion on those who have wronged us and let us be more loving and compassionate in all of our actions and deeds. May God be with us always, and may He strengthen us all that we may have the courage to carry on living our lives with genuine faith from now on. May God bless us all, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Friday, 6 March 2020 : 1st Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 5 : 20-26

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “I tell you then, if you are not righteous in a much broader way than the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was said to our people in the past : Do not commit murder; anyone who does kill will have to face trial. But now I tell you : whoever gets angry with a brother or sister will have to face trial.”

“Whoever insults a brother or sister deserves to be brought before the council. Whoever calls a brother or a sister, ‘Fool!’ deserves to be thrown into the fire of hell. So, if you are about to offer your gift at the altar, and you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar, go at once and make peace with him, and then come back and offer your gift to God.”

“Do not forget this : be reconciled with your opponent quickly when you are together on the way to court. Otherwise he will turn you over to the judge, who will hand you over to the police, who will put you in jail. There you will stay, until you have paid the last penny.”

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Friday, 6 March 2020 : 1st Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 129 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-7a, 7bc-8

Out of the depths I cry to You, o Lord, o Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears pay attention to the voice of my supplication.

If You should mark our evil, o Lord, who could stand? But with You is forgiveness.

For that You are revered. I waited for the Lord, my soul waits, and I put my hope in His word. My soul expects the Lord more than watchmen the dawn.

O Israel, hope in the Lord, for with Him is unfailing love and with Him full deliverance. He will deliver Israel from all its sins.

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Friday, 6 March 2020 : 1st Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Ezekiel 18 : 21-28

If the sinner turns from his sin, observes My decrees and practices what is right and just, he will live, he will not die. None of the sins he committed will be charged against him, he will live as a consequence of his righteous deeds. Do I want the death of the sinner? – word of YHVH. Do I not rather want him to turn from his ways and live?

But if the righteous man turns away from what is good and commits sins as the wicked do, will he live? His righteous deeds will no longer be credited to him, but he will die because of his infidelity and his sins. But you say : YHVH’s way is not just! Why, Israel! Is My position wrong? Is it not rather that yours is wrong?”

“If the righteous man dies after turning from his righteous deeds and sinning, he dies because of his sins. And if the wicked man does what is good and right, after turning from the sins he committed, he will save his life. He will live and not die, because he has opened his eyes and turned from the sins he had committed.”

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Thursday, 5 March 2020 : 1st Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we listened to the words of God in the Scriptures, our attentions are brought upon the wonderful love of God and His powerful deliverance and providence for us all from our troubles, as the many historical precedents and examples of the past can testify for us. And today our attention is brought to the time of the Queen Esther of the Persian Empire, who was born a Jewish exile in the land of Babylon, and eventually rose by the grace of God to be the great Queen of the Empire.

And on the same occasion, another person, named Haman, a descendant of the Amalekites also rose to great position of power. Haman despised the descendants of Israel as his ancestors had a great enmity against the people of God, and he tried with many plots trying to destroy the entire race of the people of Israel, by manipulating the King into ordering the extermination of the Israelites. As the then law of the Persian Empire was absolute and binding, and Haman had managed to put the extermination order into the law, it seemed to be the end for all the Israelites then living throughout the Persian Empire.

The Israelites needed help, and one of the prominent members of the community, Mordechai, who was also Queen Esther’s relative, came to her saying that it might indeed be because of God’s plan and will that Esther had become the Queen so that through her, God might yet intervene to save His people from certain destruction. And indeed, Esther promised Mordechai and her people that she would do her best in the situation to protect her people.

And this is how we come to the portion in our first reading today as we heard Esther’s prayer to God, asking Him for deliverance for His people Israel, who were about to be annihilated as a nation by their enemies. And Esther prayed this just before she was about to present herself before the King at her own accord, something that was expressly forbidden in the Persian customs, as that was tantamount to disobedience to the King, something which had cost Esther’s predecessor, the former Queen Vashti, her position as Queen and also getting exiled.

But Esther was ready to do anything for the sake of the Lord and for her people, and she asked God for strength, guidance and courage as she was about to face the greatest challenge of her life, risking her very life and position for what she was about to do, to plead for the safety of her people before the King. She asked for the Lord to guide her and to give her the courage to face her enemies and to soften the heart of the King, and through her prayers, the Lord guided her to triumph against Haman and all those plots he had made against Israel.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the story of Queen Esther is linked to what the Lord Jesus spoke to the people with regards to the matter of asking God and to put our trust in Him. How is this so? The Lord made a comparison of God with a loving father, and said that we need only to ask God, and God will, in accordance to His will and love, provide us with what we need. That was exactly what He has blessed Esther with, the courage, guidance and strength to intercede for the Israelites before the ruler of Persia against their enemies.

However, the sad reality is such that many of us do not ask the Lord or put our trust in Him. We did not seek Him for help, and instead we sought refuge and help through many other sources of the world. We trust our own human strength, ability, intellect and resources more than God, and we believe that we can do everything on our own. And this is why many of us fall deeper and deeper into sin, and got further and further away from God, because we have no firm anchor in our lives which God alone can provide us.

And many of us who do believe in God and place our hope on Him think wrongly that we then can impose our will on God, as we demand Him or plead to Him to give us what we wanted to have, or which we desired in our hearts and minds. But this is not right, brothers and sisters in Christ, as God ultimately is supreme and everything in this world will happen according to His will and not our will. Nonetheless, because God loves each and every one of us, He will provide for us and take good care of us, but in His way, and not in the way that we desired it.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, now as we progress through this season of Lent, let us all strive to be more faithful to God and to put our trust in Him like Queen Esther has shown us. Let us ask the Lord for His guidance and companionship as we journey along through this life, that we may persevere through the challenges and trials that may come our way. Let us also help one another to remain true to our faith, and devote our time and attention to purify our lives and make ourselves truly worthy of God once again.

May the Lord be with us all and may He strengthen us in our resolution to live our lives from now on with ever greater faith and devotion. May God, our loving and compassionate Father in heaven bless us all and all of our good works and endeavours, for His greater glory. Amen.

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Thursday, 5 March 2020 : 1st Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 7 : 7-12

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened. For everyone who asks, receives; whoever seeks, finds; and the door will be opened to him who knocks.”

“Would any of you give a stone to your son, when he asks for bread? Or give him a snake, when he asks for a fish? As bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him?”

“So, do to others whatever you would that others do to you : there you have the Law and the Prophets.”

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Thursday, 5 March 2020 : 1st Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 137 : 1-2a, 2bcd-3, 7c-8

I thank You, o Lord, with all my heart, for You have heard the word of my lips. I sing Your praise in the presence of the gods. I bow down towards Your holy Temple and give thanks to Your Name.

For Your love and faithfulness, for Your word which exceeds everything. You answered me when I called; You restored my soul and made me strong.

With Your right hand You deliver me. How the Lord cares for me! Your kindness, o Lord, endures forever. Forsake not the work of Your hands.

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Thursday, 5 March 2020 : 1st Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Esther 4 : 17n, p-r, aa-bb, gg-hh (Latin Vulgate version – Esther 14 : 1, 3-5, 12-14)

Seized with anguish in her fear of death, Queen Esther likewise had recourse to the Lord. Then she prayed to the Lord God of Israel : “My Lord, You Who stand alone, came to my help; I am alone and have no help but You. Through my own choice I am endangering my life.”

“As a child I was wont to hear from the people of the land of my forebears that You, o Lord, chose Israel from among all peoples, and our fathers from among their ancestors to be Your lasting heritage; that You did for them, all that You have promised.”

“Remember us, Lord; reveal Yourself in the time of our calamity. Give me courage, King of gods and Master of all power. Make my words persuasive when I face the lion; turn his heart against our enemy, that the latter and his like may be brought to their end.”

“Save us by Your hand; help me who am alone and have none but You, o Lord.”

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Wednesday, 4 March 2020 : 1st Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Casimir (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are reminded that we need to be humble and to have faith in God, through our Scripture passages which brought to our attention what our predecessors had done in the past. We heard first the story of the prophet Jonah in Nineveh, the mighty capital city of the Assyrian Empire in our first reading today, while in the Gospel we heard the Lord Jesus speaking in rebuke to the people who still doubted Him and asked Him to show them signs when He had done all those miracles before them.

In our first reading we heard the prophet Jonah who have arrived in Nineveh, after he tried to flee from the Lord and the mission He gave him earlier on, only to encounter a terrible storm that ended up with him asking to be thrown into the sea to spare the rest, and was saved in the belly of a whale for three days and three nights. Jonah then obeyed the Lord and proceeded with his mission to bring the message of doom and the upcoming judgment and destruction of Nineveh.

At that time, the city of Nineveh was one of the greatest cities in the world, with population as mentioned in the Scripture as being over a hundred and twenty thousand, which was a truly monumental population for the time. It was the capital and most important city of the vast and powerful Assyrian Empire, which had expanded rapidly and conquered many nations, and it was also the Assyrians who conquered the northern kingdom of Israel, destroyed its capital Samaria and brought the northern tribes of Israel into exile.

For all of these, and for all the wars and destructions that the Assyrians wrought, and the likely decadent lifestyle in the court of the King of the Assyrians, the sins of Nineveh and its people were truly numerous and terrible, well known to everyone, and it was Jonah who was tasked by God to proclaim His judgment and the upcoming destruction to the entire city and all of its people. No one in the city, from the King to the lowest slaves, even the animals would be spared.

Certainly we may remember another occasion in the Scripture where not just one but two cities were destroyed because of their sins, that is the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Both cities were destroyed with a mighty rain of fire and brimstones from the heavens, and save for the righteous Lot and his family, everyone in the two cities perished because of their sins. It was likely then that this fate would have befallen Nineveh and its people as well.

Yet, what distinguished Nineveh from the earlier case of Sodom and Gomorrah was that immediately after they heard the words and the terrible premonition of the prophet Jonah, the whole city of Nineveh went into great mourning and repentance before God. Everyone from the King, who issued the order to the whole city and its people to repent from their sins, right down to the lowest among the people, all humbled themselves, tore their clothes and wore sackcloth as a sign of penance.

God saw and knew the sincerity of their repentance and He spared the whole city and its people from the punishment they were about to suffer then. Compared to Sodom and Gomorrah, which did not repent from their sins but instead doubled down further in their wickedness, the repentance and humility of Nineveh had won for them the forgiveness and reprieve from God for their numerous, terrible sins and mistakes.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, it was these signs and actions that the Lord Himself then referred to as He addressed the people who doubted Him and demanded miraculous wonders and signs from Him as described in our Gospel passage today. Jesus Himself has performed many wonders and miracles openly before the people, and many had witnessed and seen for themselves the glory of God at work. Yet, unlike the people of Nineveh who repented and believed in God, many among the people of the time of Jesus, especially the Pharisees, hardened their hearts and refused to believe.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the important lesson from this for all of us is the reminder that humility is a very important trait we must have for us to achieve forgiveness and reconciliation with God. Conversely, pride is our greatest obstacle and our greatest enemy in our fight and struggle against sin and evil. As long as we have pride in us and we indulge in that pride, we will find it difficult to seek God’s forgiveness, mercy and love.

In this season of Lent, we are called to resist that pride in us, and instead grow in humility. Today, let us all look at the good examples and virtues set by one of our holy predecessors, namely St. Casimir, a holy noble and one of the heirs of the Kingdom of Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania, who was renowned for his great piety, personal humility and virtues, and for his great love and dedication to God and His Church.

Although St. Casimir was born as the heir of the two powerful realms which during that time was among the mightiest kingdoms in Christendom, but like the King of Nineveh, that did not cause him to be prideful and filled with hubris. Instead, he exhibited great piety and humility, known for his charitable efforts and works among the poor and the sick, caring for the needs of those who were less fortunate and ignored by the society.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us as Christians can also follow in the footsteps of St. Casimir, in humbling ourselves before God and in loving Him, by dedicating ourselves to the many works of mercy and love for our fellow brethren, which are indeed highly encouraged for us to do during this blessed season of Lent. Let us all then discern what we are going to do to enrich and make best use of our Lenten observation, and commit ourselves to God anew from now on.

May God bless us always, and may He strengthen our faith in us and may He help us to remain true and faithful to Him, and to be humble at all times following the humility and great piety of His servant, St. Casimir, holy prince and servant of God. St. Casimir, pray for us! Amen.

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Wednesday, 4 March 2020 : 1st Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Casimir (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Luke 11 : 29-32

At that time, as the crowd increased, Jesus spoke the following words : “People of the present time are troubled people. They ask for a sign, but no sign will be given to them except the sign of Jonah. As Jonah became a sign for the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be a sign for this generation.”

“The Queen of the South will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and here, there is greater than Solomon. The people of Nineveh will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for Jonah’s preaching made them turn from their sins, and here, there is greater than Jonah.”