Friday

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Friday, 17 March 2023 : 3rd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 80 : 6c-8a, 8bc-9, 10-11ab, 14 and 17

Open wide your mouth and I will fill it, I relieved your shoulder from burden; I freed your hands. You called in distress, and I saved you.

Unseen, I answered you in thunder; I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Hear, My people, as I admonish you. If only you would listen, o Israel!

There shall be no strange god among you, you shall not worship any alien god, for I the Lord am your God, who led you forth from the land of Egypt.

If only My people would listen, if only Israel would walk in My ways. I would feed you with the finest wheat and satisfy you with honey from the rock.

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Friday, 17 March 2023 : 3rd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Hosea 14 : 2-10

Return to your God YHVH, o Israel! Your sins have caused your downfall. Return to YHVH with humble words. Say to Him, “Oh You Who show compassion to the fatherless forgive our debt, be appeased. Instead of bulls and sacrifices, accept the praise from our lips. Assyria will not save us : no longer shall we look for horses nor ever again shall we say ‘Our gods’ to the work of our hands.”

I will heal their wavering and love them with all My heart for My anger has turned from them. I shall be like dew to Israel like the lily will he blossom. Like a cedar he will send down his roots; his young shoots will grow and spread. His splendour will be like an olive tree. His fragrance, like a Lebanon cedar.

They will dwell in My shade again, they will flourish like the grain, they will blossom like a vine, and their fame will be like Lebanon wine. What would Ephraim do with idols, when it is I Who hear and make him prosper? I am like an ever-green cypress tree; all your fruitfulness comes from Me.

Who is wise enough to grasp all this? Who is discerning and will understand? Straight are the ways of YHVH : the just walk in them, but the sinners stumble.

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Friday, 10 March 2023 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, the Lord reminds us all in this season and time of Lent to remain vigilant against the many temptations all around us, especially all those things that could lead us down the path of sin and evil. All of us are reminded to resist those temptations and to root out from ourselves the corruptions of pride, ego, jealousy, worldly desires and attachments, all of which could lead us down the path of sin. That is why we are reminded again and again during this period of time, to be more aware of our sinful state and how we often need help and healing from God, the only One Who can heal us from our afflictions of sin. We should spend our time and effort to come closer to the Lord and to embrace His love and mercy.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Genesis the account of the moment when the sons of Jacob or Israel were involved in the heinous act against one of their own, Joseph, the second youngest son of Jacob. Joseph was beloved by Jacob especially because he was born from Jacob’s beloved wife, Rachel, and together with Benjamin, his youngest, they were the only two born from Rachel from among all of his twelve sons. Jacob therefore treated Joseph much better than the others, which led to the ire of the elder brothers. As we heard that story, we also heard how Joseph’s gift of dreams, that he received from God, were resented even more by the brothers, as they heard how he spoke of them all bowing down before him. This was in fact a premonition of would happen much later, when Joseph had been made the Regent of all Egypt.

Based on historical and Biblical conjecture, Joseph was likely still very young then, and when he shared his dream with his brothers, he did not really do it with malicious intent or pride, but just willing to share what he had seen in his dream to his brothers, his closest ones. Unfortunately, to Joseph’s brothers, the other sons of Jacob, what they had heard, together with Jacob’s preferential treatment of Joseph made them all to be blinded by jealousy and fear in their hearts. Why is that so? That is because they likely feared that Joseph would take away all of their inheritance or would lord it all over them despite him being a younger child. Their resentment, jealousy and fear eventually led them to commit what they truly should not have done. Some of them wanted to kill their own brother at first, but one of them, Reuben, the eldest son, tried to save Joseph by suggesting that they should not kill him, their own brother.

Eventually, they decided to sell him off to the Midianite merchants on their way to Egypt, and in that way, that was how Joseph ended up in Egypt, which in the greater scheme of things, God turned that misfortune into His providence, as He not only protected and saved Joseph in Egypt, but made him powerful and great in Egypt, as the Regent of the whole kingdom and the trusted right hand man of the Pharaoh of Egypt. Eventually he also laid the foundation of the nation of the Israelites in Egypt, by providing for his brothers and his family, when they were eventually united during the great famine of seven years, which would have wiped out his family had Joseph not been sent earlier to Egypt with the foresight granted by the Lord to safeguard against the famine. Many more people would have perished from the famine as well.

In the end, we see how the jealousy and evils in our hearts can lead us to do unimaginable and evil things like the brothers of Joseph selling off their own brother, and even wanting to kill him at first. This same attitude was highlighted in the case of the Gospel passage today as well, in which the Lord told His disciples about the parable of the evil tenants. The evil tenants have greedily refused to pay their due for the land that had been rented out to them, and when the landowner sent his servants to get them to pay their dues, those wicked tenants resisted, persecuted and even murdered those servants. They even plotted against and murdered the son of the landowner who was sent to them, with the desire in their hearts that they could gain everything they wanted if they were to murder the son and heir of the ownership of the vineyard.

What drove those wicked tenants to such vile attitudes and actions? It was greed and fear of losing, jealousy of what others had, just like what happened to the brothers of Joseph. This is why each one of us are reminded today that we have to guard ourselves against those wicked desires and everything that can cause us to sin and to disobey God’s Law and commandments. We have been reminded of how we can be easily dragged by our temptations and emotions, and all those things that can prevent us from truly attaining righteousness and grace in God. That is why this Lent we are reminded to resist those temptations and discipline ourselves so that we may not fall into the traps that those things may lead us into. During this Lent we are also reminded to come closer to God and spend more time with Him, communicating with Him through prayer and other means.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all commit ourselves with renewed vigour to turn away from sin, to face the Lord with renewed faith and commitment, and do whatever we can to glorify Him by our lives. We are all capable of doing many great things that are in accordance with God and His path. The question is whether we are willing to make the commitment to walk in the right path, or whether we continue to allow ourselves to be misled and dragged down the path of sin and wickedness as we have often allowed ourselves to. Let us all make our Lenten observance and time meaningful and fruitful, doing whatever we can, to live our lives in a more Christian manner, as is fitting for all of us who profess to believe in the Lord. Each one of us should not be hypocrites who profess to believe in something, and yet, live our lives and act in ways that contradict our faith.

May the Lord continue to help and guide us in our journey especially during this time of Lent, that we may continue to lead a more holy and worthy life, truly worthy of the Lord and His grace. May God bless us all and be with us always, and may He empower us to be more courageous and committed in our lives, to be ever more faithful and able to resist the many worldly desires, attachments and all the things that often led us down the path towards damnation. May all of us have a blessed season of Lent. Amen.

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Friday, 10 March 2023 : 2nd Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 21 : 33-43, 45-46

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Listen to another example : There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a fence around it, dug a hole for the winepress, built a watchtower, leased the vineyard to tenants, and then went to a distant country.”

“When harvest time came, the landowner sent his servants to the tenants to collect his share of the harvest. But the tenants seized his servants, beat one, killed another and stoned a third. Again the owner sent more servants, but they were treated in the same way.”

“Finally, he sent his son, thinking, ‘They will respect my son.’ But when the tenants saw the son, they thought, ‘This is the one who is to inherit the vineyard. Let us kill him, and his inheritance will be ours.’ So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.”

“Now, what will the owner of the vineyard do with the tenants when he comes?” They said to him, “He will bring those evil men to an evil end, and lease the vineyard to others, who will pay him in due time.” And Jesus replied, “Have you never read what the Scriptures say? The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, and we marvel at it.”

“Therefore I say to you : the kingdom of heaven will be taken from you, and given to a people who will yield a harvest.”

When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard these parables, they realised that Jesus was referring to them. They would have arrested Him, but they were afraid of the crowd, who regarded Him as a Prophet.

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Friday, 10 March 2023 : 2nd Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 104 : 16-17, 18-19, 20-21

Then the Lord sent a famine and ruined the crop that sustained the land; He sent a man ahead of them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave.

His feet in shackles, his neck in irons till what he foretold came to pass, and the Lord’s word proved him true.

The king sent for him, set him free, the ruler of the peoples released him. He put him in charge of his household and made him ruler of all his possessions.

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Friday, 10 March 2023 : 2nd Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Genesis 37 : 3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28

Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other children, for he was the son of his old age and he had a coat with long sleeves made for him. His brothers who saw that their father loved him more than he loved them, hated him and could no longer speak to him in a friendly way.

His brothers had gone to pasture their father’s flock at Shechem, and Israel said to Joseph, “Your brothers are pasturing the flock at Shechem.” So Joseph went off after his brothers and found them at Dothan. They saw him in the distance and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him.

They said to one another, “Here comes the specialist in dreams! Now is the time! Let us kill him and throw him into a well. We will say a wild animal devoured him. Then we will see what his dreams were all about!” But Reuben heard this and tried to save him from their hands saying, “Let us not kill him; shed no blood! Throw him in this well in the wilderness, but do him no violence.” This he said to save him from them and take him back to his father.

So as soon as Joseph arrived, they stripped him of his long-sleeved coat that he wore and then took him and threw him in the well, now the well was empty, without water. They were sitting for a meal when they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, their camels laden with spices, balm and myrrh, which they were taking down to Egypt.

Judah then said to his brothers, “What do we gain by killing our brother and hiding his blood? Come! We will sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother and our own flesh!” His brothers agreed to this. So when the Midianite merchants came along they pulled Joseph up and lifted him out of the well. For twenty pieces of silver they sold Joseph to the Midianites, who took him with them to Egypt.

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Friday, 3 March 2023 : 1st Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded to be truly faithful to the Lord and not just merely paying lip service or maintaining an appearance of being faithful, or worse still to make a show of our faith in order to gain praise and acclamation from others. Such a faith is not what we as Christians are expected to have, and we should not also allow the temptations of the world to prevent us from being truly faithful to God. God has given us many means and help through which we all can get closer to Him and find our way to Him, but it is really up to us whether we want to follow Him and commit ourselves to His path, as we have been given the freedom to choose our path in life, whether we want to obey the Lord or whether we want to continue down the path of sin and evil.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel in which God told His people through Ezekiel how everyone will be judged and have their fates determined by each and every one of their actions and deeds, their words and interactions in life. The Lord essentially told His people that there is no one who is already condemned from the beginning, and opportunity is always provided to all those who seek for reconciliation with Him. God is always ever generous with His love and mercy, and He never ceases to love us all, caring for us and giving us the necessary guidance and help in life, so that by all these, He hopes that each and every one of us may find salvation through Him, and be truly free from our bondage and enslavement by sin. Sin is a great enemy to all of us, and one which we have to overcome in order for us to come closer to God.

The Lord told His people that those who were considered as righteous can fall into sin and be damned for their sins they committed, if those sins truly were serious and were not repented or overcome, forgiven by God and absolved by Him. Meanwhile, all those considered and deemed as wicked, evil and sinful, could be saved if they repented from their sins and change their ways. The Lord will forgive all those who came seeking Him and His forgiveness, with the sincere and real desire to love Him and to return to Him, and this is what the Lord wanted all of His people, including all of us to know. Back then, during the time of the prophet Ezekiel, the people of God had suffered a lot and been humbled and thrown down, for all the wickedness that they and their ancestors had committed, and even so, God still loved each and every one of them, and desired for them to be reconciled with Him.

He called on them to return to Him, and gave them help, reassurance and assistance all throughout their way, sending His prophets, messengers and guides to them, and eventually, even His own beloved Son, the One promised to be the Saviour of all mankind, Our Lord Jesus Christ. In our Gospel passage today, the Lord said to His disciples of how they ought to be truly faithful and dedicated to God, and that they have to be genuine in their beliefs, and their way of life ought to truly reflect of their status as God’s beloved children and people, and that is, they have to be truly good and righteous in all of their ways and actions. Otherwise, if we profess to believe in God and yet act in ways that are contrary to our faith and beliefs, we are then no better than hypocrites and unbelievers in our faith and way of life, and worse still, we can even cause scandal for our faith and tarnish the Lord’s Holy Name.

We have to be truly faithful to God, filled with love and devotion to Him, and also love for our fellow brothers and sisters, as best as we are able to. In that same Gospel passage, the Lord spoke against those whose faith were superficial and all those who despised their fellow brethren, or had evil or bad intent against them. All of these were just as what the prophet Ezekiel had spoken before the people, that all those who commit bad and wicked deeds will be judged by their evil and sinful deeds, by their actions in bringing harm and suffering on others, or by their lack of care and attention to others, in being selfish and self-centred in their attitudes. Instead, as Christians, as all those who profess to believe in the Lord, all of us are called to be filled with the virtues, righteousness and love of God in all things. Unless we are truly filled with all these, it may be difficult for us to find our way back to the Lord, as they often become great obstacles in our path.

That is why during this season of Lent all of us are called and reminded of our calling and vocation as Christians, first of all to be holy just as the Lord our God is Holy. All of us are reminded that because God is our loving Father, as His children, all of us should reflect Him in our way of life and attitudes, in our actions and interactions with one another. All of us should spend this time and season of Lent growing ever stronger in our commitment to the Lord and His path. All of us should do whatever we can to live our lives with true Christian charity and generosity, doing everything we can to glorify the Lord by our lives. We should spend more time with the Lord, communicating with Him and listening to His words being spoken deep within our hearts and minds, turning away from the many distractions and temptations from all around us in this world.

That is why we should spend more time in prayer, reaching out to our most loving and caring Father in every possible opportunities, praying to Him and communicating with Him, listening to Him calling upon us to follow Him in the path He has pointed out to us and shown us. We should do whatever we can to restrain our worldly desires and distance ourselves from unhealthy attachments and distractions through our practice of fasting and abstinence, done with the right focus in helping us to come closer to the Lord and to His righteous and virtuous path instead of as a means of boasting and showing off of our faith to others. And lastly, we should continue to show more love, care and generosity through almsgiving and care, all of which we are called and encouraged to do more during this season of Lent, reminding us of our nature as Christians, as God’s beloved and holy people.

May the Lord continue to bless our every efforts and actions, and may He empower each and every one of us to live our lives more courageously and with greater commitment in His path and love. May He guide us and strengthen us to be ever stronger in standing up for His truth in our communities today, and to live our lives most faithfully as good and devout Christians, in every possible opportunities, and at all times. Amen.

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Friday, 3 March 2023 : 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, 3 March 2023 : 1st Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 129 : 1-2, 3-4ab, 4c-6, 7-8

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, 3 March 2023 : 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.”