Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 56 : 8-9, 10-12
My heart is steadfast, o God, my heart is steadfast. I will sing and make music. Awake, my soul. Awake, o harp and lyre! I will wake the dawn.
I will give thanks to You, o Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praise to You among the nations. For Your love reaches to the heavens, and Your faithfulness, to the clouds. Be exalted, o God, above the heavens! Let Your Glory be over all the earth!
Liturgical Colour : White
Acts 15 : 22-31
Then the Apostles and elders together with the whole Church decided to choose representatives from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. These were Judas, known as Barsabbas, and Silas, both leading men among the brothers.
They took with them the following letter : “Greetings from the Apostles and elders, your brothers, to the believers of non-Jewish birth in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia. We have heard that some persons from among us have worried you with their discussions and troubled your peace of mind. They were not appointed by us.”
“But now, it has seemed right to us in an assembly, to choose representatives and to send them to you, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, who have dedicated their lives to the service of our Lord Jesus Christ. We send you then Judas and Silas who themselves will give you these instructions by word of mouth.”
“We, with the Holy Spirit, have decided not to put any other burden on you except what is necessary : You are to abstain from blood from the meat of strangled animals and from prohibited marriages. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.”
After saying goodbye, the messengers went to Antioch, where they assembled the community and handed them the letter. When they read the news, all were delighted with the encouragement it gave them.
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate a great feast of the Church, that is of St. Joseph, the foster-father of our Lord Jesus Christ. If we are wondering why we are celebrating this feast day again so soon after another feast day of St. Joseph on the nineteenth of March, then we should reflect on the importance of the figure of St. Joseph in our faith.
St. Joseph is the foster-father of our Lord Jesus Christ, that is the adopted father of our Lord by his marriage to the mother of Jesus, Mary. And even though he is not the real or biological father to our Lord, but in his role as the legal father to our Lord, as his earthly father, he has been a great father and a role model for all fathers and for all families.
St. Joseph in this day is celebrated in his aspect as the Patron Saint of all workers, and all who labour. Today we commemorate the memory of this humble and yet God-fearing and hardworking carpenter of Nazareth, whose exemplary life and actions, as well as total devotion and obedience to the will of God marked him different from the rest among his profession and from among his people.
Jesus was mocked by His own people, His own townspeople in Nazareth, because they thought of Him as a mere carpenter’s Son, who somehow impossibly gained such a great and vast wisdom that could not be explained by His background and upbringing. This is because even though a carpenter’s work is a noble and honest one, but no one looked up at carpenters and other manual labourers, whom people often looked down at and ignored.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, if we heeded the earlier readings we heard, then we know that our Lord Himself had worked when He created the heavens and the earth, when He created all the things living on the earth, in the seas and on the sky. He laboured and toiled to create all these things, and He rested on the seventh day. This shows us that working is part of the nature of this universe, and no one who slacks and does nothing can gain anything or be any part of the Lord’s design.
And thus, today, we celebrate the feast of St. Joseph, whose works and dedicated efforts remind us that there is no place in our faith and in our Church for people who idles and slacks. Firstly, as I have often mentioned, our faith requires active action and commitment, that we do not just pay lip service to God, but that we must also practice that same faith in our own actions and deeds.
And then, secondly, that as we work, we have to remember that we labour not for our own glory nor it is just for us to gain more money and possessions for ourselves, but rather, it should be for us to help one another and give glory to God through all of our works. This is where the phrase, Ora et Labora, comes to my mind. Prayer and work, and indeed, faith and works. These two are indispensable and inseparable elements of our lives.
As we know, our faith is one that requires inner spirituality, as well as outer action. Our faith is dead without action and work, as without action, our faith is meaningless, empty and superficial. And without faith and devotion, all of our works are meaningless as well. This is because our works without faith and devotion, would inevitably lead to the glorification of the self and the fulfillment of one’s own desires. And it is in selfishness and greed that our destruction is present at.
As we continue to live our lives in this world, let us all be awakened to the realities of our faith, that there are so many things which all of us can do, in order to make this world to be a better place. There are so many things which we can do, in order to help our brethren around us, especially those who are in need, and if we are able to help. Let our faith be one that is real, concrete, vibrant and filled with love and devotion towards one another.
May Almighty God, our Lord and Father awaken in us the spirit of workmanship and dedication, the spirit of respect for all workers, and to be filled with vigour and strength to carry out all of our works of faith, that we may be like St. Joseph, as brave and dedicated servants of our Lord. God bless us all. Now and forever. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
John 14 : 1-6
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Do not be troubled! Trust in God and trust in Me! In My Father’s house there are many rooms; otherwise, I would not have told you that I go to prepare a place for you. After I have gone and prepared a place for you, I shall come again and take you to Me, so that where I am, you also may be. Yet you know the way where I am going.”
Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going; how can we know the way?” Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”
Alternative reading (Mass of St. Joseph)
Matthew 13 : 54-58
At that time, Jesus went to His hometown and taught the people in their synagogue. They were amazed and said, “Where did He get this wisdom and these special powers? Is He not the carpenter’s Son? Is Mary not His mother and are James, Jacob, Simon and Judas not His brothers? Are all His sisters not living here? How did He get all this?” And so they took offense at Him.
Jesus said to them, “The only place where prophets are not welcome is their hometown and in their own family.” And He did not perform many miracles there because of their lack of faith.
Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 2 : 6-7, 8-9, 10-11
YHVH said, “Behold the King I have installed, in Zion, upon My holy hill!” I will proclaim the decree of the Lord. He said to Me : “You are My Son. This day I have begotten You.”
“Ask of Me and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance, the ends of the earth for Your possession. You shall rule them with iron sceptre and shatter them as a potter’s vase.”
Now therefore, learn wisdom, o kings; be warned, o rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and fall at His feet; lest He be angry and you perish when His anger suddenly flares. Blessed are all who take refuge in Him!
Alternative reading (Mass of St. Joseph)
Psalm 89 : 2, 3-4, 12-13, 14 and 16
Before the mountains were formed, before You made the earth and the world, from eternity to eternity – You are God.
You turn humans back to dust, saying, “Return, o mortals!” A thousand years in Your sight are like a day that has passed, or like a watch in the night.
So make us know the shortness of our life, that we may gain wisdom of heart. How long will You be angry, o Lord? Have mercy on Your servant.
Fill us at daybreak with Your goodness, that we may be glad all our days. Let Your work be seen by Your servants and Your glorious power by their children.
Liturgical Colour : White
Acts 13 : 26-33
Paul said to the Jews, “Brothers, children and descendants of Abraham, and you also who fear God, it is to you that this message of salvation has been sent. It is a fact that the inhabitants of Jerusalem and their leaders did not recognise Jesus. Yet in condemning Him, they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath but not understood.”
“Even though they found no charge against Him that deserved death, they asked Pilate to have Him executed. And after they had carried out all that had been written concerning Him, they took Him down from the cross and laid Him in a tomb. But God raised Him from the dead, and for many days thereafter He showed Himself to those who had come up with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem.”
“They have now become His witnesses before the people. We ourselves announce to you this Good News : All that God promised our ancestors, He has fulfilled for us, their descendants, by raising Jesus, according to what is written in the second psalm : ‘You are My Son, today I have begotten You.'”
Alternative reading (Mass of St. Joseph)
Genesis 1 : 26 – Genesis 2 : 3
God said, “Let us make man in Our image, to Our likeness. Let them rule over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the cattle, over the wild animals, and over all creeping things that crawl along the ground.”
So God created man in His image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it, rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the sky, over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
God said, “I have given you every seed-bearing plant which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree that bears fruit with seed. It will be for your food. To every wild animal, to every bird of the sky, to everything that creeps along the ground, to everything that has the breath of life, I give every green plant for food.” So it was.
God saw all that He had made, and it was very good. There was evening and there was morning : the sixth day. That was the way the sky and earth were created and all their vast array. By the seventh day the work God had done was completed, and He rested on the seventh day from all the work He had done. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on that day He rested from all the work He had done in His creation.
Alternative reading (Mass of St. Joseph)
Colossians 3 : 14-15, 17, 23-24
Above all, clothe yourselves with love which binds everything together in perfect harmony. May the peace of Christ overflow in your hearts; for this end you were called to be one body. And be thankful.
And whatever you do or say, do it in the Name of Jesus, the Lord, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. Whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly, working for the Lord, and not for humans. You well know that the Lord will reward you with the inheritance. You are servants, but your Lord is Christ.
Liturgical Colour : White or Red (Martyrs)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard again about the giving of our Lord’s own Body and Blood, the Flesh and Blood of our Lord Himself as the spiritual nourishment and sustenance for us, as the Bread and Food that brings about life and renewal of the body and soul, as well as salvation for all of us. This is our faith and this is what we believe in, that we are all members of the one and same Body of Christ, by the sharing of this heavenly meal.
And that is the one desire of the Lord, that we repent from our sins and our waywardness, and walk from now on in the path which He had shown us all, the path to salvation and eternal life. And it is exactly what we heard in our first reading today from the Acts of the Apostles, which told us about the entire meaning of God’s love and care for us all.
The conversion of Saul, the great enemy and persecutor of the Church and all its faithful, to be later known as St. Paul the Apostle, the Apostle to the Gentiles and the brave Defender and Champion of the Faith is nothing less than extraordinary indeed. How God chose His greatest tool and champion from the worst and the most steadfast enemy of His Name, is a proof how God does things in ways often beyond our understanding, and yet, in the end, it brings about great good for us.
Saul was a young man with much zeal and energy, but unfortunately, he was grossly misled and too fanatical and unbending on his ways, to the point that he persecuted the faithful so harshly, rounding up and causing great sufferings for untold numbers of the people of God. But it is exactly the same qualities present in Saul, which God knew and which He recognised, as a great asset waiting to be used and to be awakened from the darkness, to be a servant of the Light.
In the same way therefore, God called us all out of the darkness, each of us in our own way, with our own personal background and history. He called us to be saved and to become one of His chosen, to abandon forever our sinfulness and our wickedness and instead forever to remain in God’s grace and love. This is what the Lord wants with us.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the feast of St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen, a priest and martyr of the faith. He was a faithful servant of God, a priest and monk of the Capuchin religious order, who was one of the most important figures in the Counter Reformation efforts about five hundred years ago. During that time of great upheaval and confusion caused by Satan, many have turned away from the faith to seek the false teachings of the agents of Satan and those tricked by Satan’s influence, that they fell into heresy.
St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen went around many places to preach the true faith in God and revealed to many people the errors of their ways. Eventually many of them were converted back to the faith and thus returned to the holy Mother Church. But as more and more were touched by his works and were converted back into the faith, there were increasingly more people who were set in their heresy that threatened St. Fidelis and called for his death.
St. Fidelis knew about this and accepted his death willingly at the hands of his enemies, forgiving them for their deeds, and praying for their eventual repentance and return to the Church. Many converted after his death and the faith also eventually triumphed, with many thousands after thousands more returning to the truth that is in Christ and abandoning all the falsehoods and lies of Satan.
Brethren, let us also therefore renew our faith and commitment to the Lord in the same way. If we are already faithful, then we should become even more faithful, and if we have lapsed in our faith, then we should find our way back to the Lord and obey His ways again. We have to make the effort to do this, or else we are likely to be drawn back again into the sins which we had committed and thus drift away from the salvation in God.
To be united with God through the Most Holy Eucharist, by sharing His Body and Blood should be our ultimate goal in life, that we may have life in Him as Christ is in us and dwells within us, by the giving of Himself, His own Body and Blood for us as food to eat, food that does not just satisfy our needs but also transform us into the Temple of His Holy Presence and make us worthy of Him.
May Almighty God be with us all, and may He grant us strength and courage to carry out our faith in life with great devotion. May He lead us to life everlasting, a life filled with His grace and blessings. God bless us all. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White or Red (Martyrs)
John 6 : 52-59
At that time, the Jews were arguing among themselves, “How can this Man give us flesh to eat?” So Jesus replied, “Truly, I say to you, if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood lives eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
“My flesh is really food, and My blood is truly drink. Those who eat My flesh and drink My blood, live in Me, and I in them. Just as the Father, who is Life, sent Me, and I have life from the Father, so whoever eats Me will have life from Me. This is the Bread which came from heaven; not like that of your ancestors, who ate and later died. Those who eat this Bread will live forever.”
Jesus spoke in this way in Capernaum when He taught them in the synagogue.
Liturgical Colour : White or Red (Martyrs)
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.
Liturgical Colour : White or Red (Martyrs)
Acts 9 : 1-20
Meanwhile Saul considered nothing but violence and death for the disciples of the Lord. He went to the High Priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues of Damascus that would authorise him to arrest and bring to Jerusalem anyone he might find, man or woman, belonging to the Way.
As he travelled along and was approaching Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul! Why do you persecute Me?” And he asked, “Who are You, Lord?” The voice replied, “I am Jesus whom you persecute. Now get up and go into the city; there you will be told what you are to do.”
The men who were travelling with him stood there speechless : they had heard the sound, but could see no one. Saul got up from the ground and, opening his eyes, he could not see. They took him by the hand and brought him to Damascus. He was blind and he did not eat or drink for three days.
There was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias, to whom the Lord called in a vision, “Ananias!” He answered, “Here I am, Lord!” Then the Lord said to him, “Go at once to Straight Street and ask, at the house of Judas, for a man of Tarsus named Saul. You will find him praying, for he has just seen in a vision that a man named Ananias has come in and placed his hands upon him, to restore his sight.”
Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many sources about this man and all the harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem, and now he is here with authority from the High Priest to arrest all who call upon Your Name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go! This man is My chosen instrument to bring My Name to the pagan nations and their kings, and the people of Israel as well. I Myself will show him how much he will have to suffer for My Name.”
So Ananias left and went to the house. He laid his hands upon Saul and said, “Saul, my brother, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me to you so that you may receive your sight and be filled with Holy Spirit.” Immediately something like scales fell from his eyes and he could see; he got up and was baptised. Then he took food and was strengthened.
For several days Saul stayed with the disciples at Damascus, and he soon began to proclaim in the synagogues that Jesus was the Son of God.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 