Friday

by

Friday, 21 February 2020 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are presented through the Scripture passages we heard, of the topic which often came up in the discussion of our faith, especially regarding the matter of salvation and faith. We are reminded that our faith cannot be empty and devoid of good and concrete actions, or good works based on that faith, because without those works, our faith is truly empty, meaningless and dead.

That is the essence of what St. James had mentioned in his Epistle, that faith without good works is the same as having a dead faith, and having a dead faith is meaningless and pointless to us, as it does not lead us towards God but instead to eternal damnation like those who have sinned and disobeyed God, and refused to repent from their sins. For faith, by itself, without the backing of concrete action, is no better than just formality or even hypocrisy for some.

St. James used the example of how even the demons and evil spirits, who rebelled against God and were formerly angels of heaven that were thrown down because of their sins, still believed in God and had to obey Him as their Lord and Master, no matter how they begrudged it or hated it. After all, they were created by Him and they still have to acknowledge His authority and power. That was why the demons and evil spirits obeyed Jesus when He ordered them to get out of the people they had possessed.

Yes, indeed, they believed and had faith in God much as we do, but the evil spirits and demons did not hold fast to their faith and instead put their trust in their own pride and rebellion, following Lucifer, their leader, whom now we know as Satan in their rebellion of pride and vanity, and they all fell and were condemned. They had faith but acted otherwise, no different from many among the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law whom the Lord Jesus often rebuked because of their hypocrisy and lack of true faith.

In our Gospel passage today, the Lord spoke about those who were unfaithful and preferred to save themselves rather than to gain the kingdom of God. These people were those who were too engrossed in their desires for worldly ambitions and pleasures, that they would rather save their lives in this world rather than to save themselves in the world that is to come. They put faith as a mere formality and at face value, but inside their hearts, there was no love for God.

The Lord spoke of this again with reference to the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law who often opposed Him and worked against Him all the time. They had faith in God indeed, and they claimed to be the most faithful and pious of all God’s people, and yet, their faith were superficial and for show, as they prayed publicly and made show of their piety that they might be praised and honoured for that, and they revelled and enjoyed in such treatment.

Those people had faith in God and yet did not show their faith through genuine good works, and instead, they acted in ways contrary to their faith and to what they had been teaching the people, and that was why they were considered as hypocrites. Their love for themselves and their own ego and desire surpassed and overcome their faith in God, and that was why, they refused to believe in the Lord’s truth and all the wonderful and miraculous deeds He has performed before their own eyes.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are therefore called to be truly faithful to God, not just in name or as a formality only, but that we must be genuine in wanting to follow God and His ways at every moments of our lives. We are called to be His witnesses in our respective communities and places, to proclaim His glory and truth by our lives, lived with faith and true dedication, and not just faith in name only.

Today, we can look upon the good examples set by one of Our Lord’s faithful saint, whose life and works are truly an inspiration for all of us as Christians. This saint is none other then St. Peter Damian, a holy bishop, Cardinal of the Church and a Doctor of the Church whose feast we celebrate today. He was a member of the Benedictine Order, and was remembered to be a great reformer of the Church and the Christian faith.

St. Peter Damian devoted much of his life to serve the Church in various capacities, beginning from religious life as part of the Benedictine monks, and his tremendous piety and love for God were evident even from those early days. He worked closely with some of the Popes, and was involved in the major reforms of the Church at that time which was facing my corruptions and immoral behaviours of its members, especially that of the clergy, from the influences of the secular world.

For his many works and contributions, the then reigning Pope wanted to make St. Peter Damian a Cardinal, a great honour which he resisted and rejected for quite some time before finally he accepted the important role as the Cardinal Bishop of Ostia, one of the most prestigious role in the Roman Church, becoming the right hand man of the Pope in reforming many Church practices and disciplines, guiding many back to the path of obedience to God.

For that and his many other contributions, we can see how St. Peter Damian was not just a man who had an empty and meaningless faith. Instead, he showed us all what it means for us to have a genuine, living and worthy faith, faith that according to St. James as faith which is lived through good works, and through those same good works and faith, we will be blessed by God and brought to salvation.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we carry on living our lives in this world from now on, let us all reflect on today’s Scripture readings and the words of St. James, and being inspired by St. Peter Damian and his lifelong dedication to God, let us all strive to dedicate ourselves to God with a newfound zeal and strength. May God be with us throughout this journey, and may He bless us all now and forevermore. Amen.

by

Friday, 21 February 2020 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Mark 8 : 34 – Mark 9 : 1

At that time, Jesus called the people and His disciples, and said, “If you want to follow Me, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow Me. For if you choose to save your life, you will lose it; and if you lose your life for My sake and for the sake of the Gospel, you will save it.”

“What good is it to gain the whole world, while destroying your soul? There is nothing more precious than your soul. I tell you : If anyone is ashamed of Me and of My words among this adulterous and sinful people, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the Glory of His Father with the holy Angels.”

And He went on to say, “Truly I tell you, there are some here who will not die before they see the kingdom of God coming with power.”

by

Friday, 21 February 2020 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Psalm 111 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Alleluia! Blessed is the one who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in His commands. His children will be powerful on earth; the upright’s offspring will be blessed.

Wealth and riches are for his family, there his integrity will remain. He is for the righteous a light in darkness, he is kind, merciful and upright.

It will be well with him who lends freely, who leads a life of justice and honesty. For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered and loved forever.

by

Friday, 21 February 2020 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

James 2 : 14-24, 26

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, to profess faith, without showing works? Such faith has no power to save you. If a brother or sister is in need of clothes or food, and one of you says, “May things go well for you; be warm and satisfied,” without attending to their material needs, what good is that? So, it is, for faith without deeds : it is totally dead.

Say to whoever challenges you, “You have faith and I have good deeds; show me your faith apart from actions and I, for my part, will show you my faith in the way I act.” Do you believe there is one God? Well enough, but do not forget, that the demons, also, believe, and tremble with fear!

You foolish one, do you have to be convinced, that faith without deeds is useless? Think of our father Abraham. Was he not justified by the act of offering his son Isaac on the Altar? So you see, his faith was active, along with his deeds, and became perfect by what he did. The word of Scripture was thus fulfilled, Abraham believed in God so he was considered a righteous person and he was called the friend of God.

So you see, a person is justified by works, and not by faith alone. So, just as the body is dead without its spirit, so faith, without deeds is also dead.

by

Friday, 14 February 2020 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard the continuation of the story from the Book of Kings on the kingdom of Israel after the time of king Solomon. At that time, after king Solomon has passed away, the kingdom passed to his heir Rehoboam, who followed in the sins of his father’s last years of reign and disregarded God’s will and wisdom, reigning tyrannically and ended up causing the division of Israel as God had foretold His people.

Jeroboam was given the command and kingship over the northern portion of the kingdom of Israel, consisting of the ten tribes of the Israelites who went up in rebellion against king Rehoboam and the house of David. This division happened because of the disobedience that Solomon and then his son Rehoboam had shown before God. And unfortunately, Jeroboam himself also fell into sin and disobeyed the Lord, and as a result, his family’s rule too eventually did not last, and other kings took over the throne of the northern kingdom.

All of these accounts of the downfall of the glorious days of the ancient united kingdom of Israel highlighted to us how in God we can have reassurance and true happiness, while away from Him there can only be division, misery and darkness. Many of the kings of Israel and Judah were unfaithful to God and led the people further and further into sin, embroiling them into bitter conflicts and wars that eventually led to the downfall and conquest of both kingdoms by the Assyrians and the Babylonians respectively.

Then we have our Gospel passage today, in which the Lord Jesus healed a man who was deaf and mute, by touching His ears and tongue, saying the word, ‘Ephphata!’ that means ‘Be opened!’ which caused the man to be immediately healed from his afflictions and was able to speak and hear again. Through the Lord’s hands and power, the man was cured and made whole again, and everyone who saw the miracle believed in Jesus.

And this is the fulfilment of the prophecy which the Lord gave to His people through His prophets, that His salvation would come to them through His Messiah, the Saviour Whom He promised to them all. And Our Lord Jesus Christ is the promised Saviour, Who came bearing God’s truth and His salvation, touching those who were sick and troubled, and calling many to repent from their sins and to turn towards righteousness in God.

The essence of our Scripture passages today is therefore a reminder that while we may have fallen into sin and become afflicted, struck with divisions and troubles because of those sins and disobedience, but God is the One Who is able and indeed the only One Who can truly heal us from our afflictions and deliver us from our troubles and issues. And what we must all realise is just how much God loves each and every one of us, and how He wants us to be reconciled to Him.

And that is why He gave us His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ to be our Saviour and Redeemer, to loosen the tongues of those who are mute, open the ears of the deaf, make the blind see, allow those who are paralysed to move and work again, and even raise the dead back into life. Through Him, we mankind are restored and made whole, to be reconciled with God the Father, through His singular act of supreme and ultimate love, that is His sacrifice on the Cross.

But do we appreciate what God has done for us? More often than not we ignore His love and generous offer for forgiveness and mercy. We turn a blind eye and brush aside His compassionate care for us. We prefer to carry on living in sin, and allow ourselves to be tempted again and again by the devil rather than to walk in His path, just as how the people of Israel and Judah once lived, rebelling constantly against God, eventually leading to their own downfall and exile.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we need to embrace a new way of life, that is the way of Christ. Let us all now take a look at the lives and inspiring examples of two saints who have been made the Patron Saints of Europe for their wonderful many contributions to evangelisation and the conversion of many souls. They are St. Cyril and St. Methodius, who were two brothers highly credited with bringing the Christian faith to the Slavic peoples in Eastern Europe and for codifying the Cyrilic alphabets, named after St. Cyril himself, now widely used in that region.

St. Cyril and St. Methodius were born in Greece and later on were sent on missions to different areas and territories across Eastern Europe and Western Asia, spreading the Christian faith and conducting diplomacy with the foreign powers in the regions they visited. They were then sent to the Slavic areas upon invitation from one of the kings who requested missionaries to evangelise the people who were mostly still pagan then.

St. Cyril and St. Methodius dedicated themselves to the mission they have been entrusted with, and did even more than what they have been called to do, in helping not just the conversion of the people but even as mentioned, the ordering of the Slavic alphabets and language, as well as codification of laws and customs modelled on the laws of the Roman Empire and the laws of the Church at that time. They truly showed what it means for us to be Christians, in serving God with all of their heart and might.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, are we able to follow in the footsteps of St. Cyril and St. Methodius? Are we willing to commit ourselves anew to the Lord, and devote our lives from now on with greater love and fidelity to God? Let us all seek to be ever more faithful, each and every days of our lives, making good use of all the opportunities that God has given us in this world. May God be with us always and may He bless us with faith and strength to live our lives according to His will, and heal us from our afflictions. Amen.

by

Friday, 14 February 2020 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Mark 7 : 31-37

At that time, again Jesus set out : from the country of Tyre He passed through Sidon and, skirting the sea of Galilee, He came to the territory of Decapolis. There, a deaf man, who also had difficulty in speaking, was brought to Him. They asked Jesus to lay His hand upon him.

Jesus took him apart from the crowd, and put His fingers into the man’s ears, and touched his tongue with spittle. Then, looking up to heaven, He said with a deep sigh, “Ephphata!” that is, “Be opened!”

And immediately, his ears were opened, his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak clearly. Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone about it; but the more He insisted, the more they proclaimed it. The people were completely astonished and said, “He has done all things well; He makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak.”

by

Friday, 14 February 2020 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 80 : 10-11ab, 12-13, 14-15

There shall be no strange god among you, you shall not worship any alien god, for I, YHVH, am your God.

But My people did not listen; Israel did not obey. So I gave them over to their stubbornness and they followed their own counsels.

If only My people would listen, if only Israel would walk in My ways, I would quickly subdue their adversaries and turn My hand against their enemies.

by

Friday, 14 February 2020 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 Kings 11 : 29-32 and 1 Kings 12 : 19

Once, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah of Shiloh found him on the road. The two of them were alone in the open country when Ahijah, who had a new garment on, clutched and tore it into twelve pieces.

He then said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself for this is the word of YHVH, the God of Israel : ‘I am about to tear the kingdom from Solomon’s hands to give you ten tribes. Only one tribe shall be left to him for the sake of My servant David and Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.’”

So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to the present time.

by

Friday, 7 February 2020 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the words of the Scripture comparing two kings, namely David and Herod, in how they acted in their reign and life. One was faithful to God and committed himself to serve his Lord and Master, although he did fall at times and faltered but he remained true to his commitment and was righteous and just as a king. On the other hand, the other one was unfaithful, placed himself and his interests above that of his own people and did not follow God’s laws and commandments.

King David was the epitome of a faithful servant, who although a powerful and mighty, successful king, but he did not allow himself to be swayed by the temptations of his pride and desires. It was only rare occasions that he did fall into those temptations, but in all those occasions, David knew that he was at fault and repented deeply for his sins. God was always foremost in his mind and he devoted much of his reign in leading the people of Israel to be closer to God.

On the other hand, we have king Herod who succumbed to the many temptations he had, especially that of power and lust. First of all, as mentioned in our Gospel passage today, king Herod took his own brother’s wife, Herodias to be his own wife. This happened when Philip, Herod’s brother was still in fact well and alive, and then, Herodias and Philip already had a daughter from that earlier marriage, who was likely the daughter of Herodias mentioned in our Gospel passage today.

In that manner, the action of Herod constituted a serious adultery, as Herod embraced a relationship that was not approved or sanctioned by the Law of God. And in his position as king over the people of Judea, to embrace such an action so blatantly and publicly would equate to a terrible role model for the people he was king over. His actions brought scandal and wickedness, and St. John the Baptist rightly rebuked him before the people for his refusal to obey God and live righteously as he should have.

Then, we heard an even greater mistake that king Herod had done in our same Gospel passage today, when he allowed himself to be tempted even more by his desire and lust, when he was tempted even by his own stepdaughter, the one that Herodias had with Philip, Herod’s daughter. When Herod was immersed in the party he conducted and became enamoured with desire even for his own stepdaughter, Herod showed us how dangerous it is for us to allow the devil to tempt us and to twist us with all those wicked thoughts and desires.

In the end, because of that, king Herod caused the death of St. John the Baptist, God’s faithful servant, although he did not intend to do it. Herodias took the opportunity to strike a revenge at St. John the Baptist for having insulted her with his rebuke of the adulterous relations between her and Herod. All these happened ultimately because Herod and all the parties involved allowed themselves to be swayed by their desires and the temptations to sin.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day all of us are called to reflect on these matters and consider how each and every one of us should be careful in living our lives that we do not end up like Herod who gave in to the temptations in life and sinned against God by his actions and deeds. Instead, we should look upon the good examples set by king David, just as Solomon, his son looked up to him for example and thanked God for all that his father had done in righteously serving God all his life.

It will not be easy for us to serve the Lord as there will indeed be plenty of temptations in life, and there will be lots of challenges we may have to face along the way. Are we able to resist those temptations and desires that are making us go astray from God and His path? Are we willing to commit ourselves to the Lord with faith from now on, knowing that as Christians this is our obligation and calling in life? Let us all be inspired to live as how God’s faithful servants had lived, like king David and many other saints and holy men and women, whose lives are readily available for us to emulate and follow.

May the Lord be with us and may He guide us all to live courageously with faith from now on. May God bless us all, now and forevermore. Amen.

by

Friday, 7 February 2020 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 6 : 14-29

At that time, king Herod also heard about Jesus, because His Name had become well-known. Some people said, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in Him.” Others thought, “He is a prophet like the prophets of times past.” When Herod was told of this, he thought, “I had John beheaded, yet he has risen from the dead!”

For this is what had happened : Herod had ordered John to be arrested, and had had him bound and put in prison because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. Herod had married her, and John had told him, “It is not right for you to live with your brother’s wife.”

So Herodias held a grudge against John; and wanted to kill him, but she could not, because Herod respected John. He knew John to be an upright and holy man, and kept him safe. And he liked listening to him, although he became very disturbed, whenever he heard him.

Herodias had her chance on Herod’s birthday, when he gave a dinner for all the senior government officials, military chiefs, and the leaders of Galilee. On that occasion the daughter of Herodias came in and danced; and she delighted Herod and his guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask me for anything you want and I will give it to you.”

And he went so far as to say with many oaths, “I will give you anything you ask, even half my kingdom.” She went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” The mother replied, “The head of John the Baptist.” The girl hurried to the king and made her request, “I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist, here and now, on a dish.”

The king was very displeased, but he would not refuse in front of his guests because of his oaths. So he sent one of his bodyguards with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded John in prison; then he brought the head on a dish and gave it to the girl. And the girl gave it to her mother.

When John’s disciples heard of this, they came and took his body and buried it.