Friday

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Friday, 18 March 2022 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Lord speaking to us reminding us not to dwell in our worldly desires, temptations and the many other things that may distract us and keep us away from the path of God and His salvation, from His righteousness and justice, just as our predecessors had done, in their failure to resist those temptations and instead, allowing those things to cloud their judgment and made them to commit grievous errors and sins.

In our first reading today, we heard of the story from the Book of Genesis in which we were told of what happened to the sons of Jacob, also known as Israel, the ones who would become the progenitors of the twelve tribes of the Israelites. Jacob had a total of twelve sons, born from different wives and from the servants of his wives. The most beloved among all those sons were naturally Joseph and Benjamin, who were born to Jacob through his most beloved wife Rachel.

This led to the preferential treatments that Joseph enjoyed over that of his brothers, which made them to be angry against their younger brother, and all these despite each of them still enjoying the great bounty of the riches of Jacob and his family. They became even angrier when Joseph, who received many visions and dreams began speaking of how his own brothers and even father would come to bow down before him. All these were in fact premonitions of what would happen in the future, but no one, including Joseph knew what they were all about.

Despite the urgings of some of the brothers from restraint, the older brothers of Joseph plotted against him, and planned to have him killed. But at the coming of a Midianite caravan on the way to Egypt, the more moderate brothers managed to persuade all of them to spare his life and sell him to the merchants instead. And that was how Joseph would end up in slavery and then sent up to Egypt, as part of his mission to prepare the path for his family, though no one then knew of this yet.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard how the Lord spoke using the parable of the evil tenants before the people and the Pharisees who have often made His works difficult, placing a lot of obstacles and barriers in His path. Through that parable, the Lord related a story to all that the greed and wicked desires of the evil and ungrateful tenants had led them to persecute, oppress and even kill the servants of the owner of the vineyard who had every right to remind those tenants to pay their due to him.

In the end, this even led to them killing the son of the owner himself who was sent at long last to remind them. This was in fact a veiled criticism and rebuke by the Lord at the actions of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, all those ‘tenants’ whom God, represented by the owner of the vineyard, had entrusted with the care of His ‘vineyard’, namely His people, His flock, the people of Israel. They and their ancestors had not been truly faithful to God and instead, they often served their own interests, persecuting those whom God had sent into their midst, and up to and including the Lord Himself.

It was also a premonition of what would happen to the Lord at His Passion, His suffering and death, when by the actions of the same leaders and elders of the people, the Lord would face rejection, condemnation, forced to endure the most humiliating and painful punishment on behalf of all of us, His beloved ones. All that happened because those who condemned the Lord, were all swayed and tempted by their worldly desires, pride, ego and ambition among other things.

That is why, through the examples of Joseph and his brothers, what they had done, and what the Lord had reminded all of us through the example of the parable of the evil tenants, we are all called to remember the importance to resist the many temptations of the world, and to remain true to Him in faith. We must not easily give in to the temptations of the evil ones, and we must not give in to the pressure for us to follow the whims of our desires and the want for pleasure and temporary satisfaction.

Instead, as we continue to walk through this journey of life with faith, particularly through this season of Lent, we are all reminded to follow the good examples of our holy predecessors, one of whom, St. Cyril of Jerusalem, whose feast we celebrate today, ought to inspire us with his enduring faith and dedication to the Lord. He was the Bishop of Jerusalem who was remembered for his great love for both the Lord and the people entrusted under his care, as well as his dedication to the truth and the well-being of the whole entire Universal Church then threatened by various heresies and divisions.

He resisted the many oppositions, attacks and pressure from the Arian heretics and all those who supported them, including even the powerful nobles and the Roman Emperors themselves, suffering multiple exiles and persecutions, having to endure many false accusations among other hardships during his ministry. Yet, St. Cyril of Jerusalem remained steadfast in faith and did not give in to those who sought to undermine the unity and identity of the Church, holding his flock firm in his hands, leading them towards God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all walk in the footsteps of St. Cyril of Jerusalem and the innumerable other saints who had walked faithfully before us towards the Lord. Let us follow them and be inspired by their good examples in how we should live our own lives with faith as well. May God be with us always, and may He continue to watch over us and strengthen us, that we may always be vigilant, and be ready to guard ourselves against any temptations of evil. Amen.

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Friday, 18 March 2022 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (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, 18 March 2022 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (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, 18 March 2022 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (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, 11 March 2022 : 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 righteous and good in all of our actions and deeds, and to be truly faithful to God. Otherwise, we will be judged by whatever wicked and evil things we have committed, by whatever sins we have done, just as our good deeds will also be weighed in our judgment. In the end, those who are truly faithful to God will flourish while those who are lacking in faith will fall into damnation and eternal suffering. The Lord has reminded us of this as we enter into this season of Lent for our own benefit.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel in which the Lord told His people through Ezekiel that He did not desire the death and destruction of any one of His beloved children, that is all of us. The Lord has expressed the truth that His love for us is enduring even despite all the disobedience and rebelliousness that we have often displayed all these while, and He has always been willing to be reconciled with us, calling us to return to Him with contrite hearts and repentant attitudes, desiring to reject our sins and evils.

He also reminded all of us that all of us will be judged by our deeds and all that we have done in this world, whether by words or real deeds and actions. And no one is truly beyond God’s salvation and grace, as He mentioned how even the sinners will be saved should they repent and turn away from their sins, just as much as the righteous will perish and be judged against by their evil deeds, if they persist in doing so. What the Lord wanted to point out is that there is truly no limit to His love, mercy and compassion, and each one of us are called to share in this love.

At the same time, we are reminded not to be complacent in living our faith and lives so that we do not end up falling into the temptations of sin or thinking that we are better than others and holier in any way. Even if this is true, we are called not to compete about this or attempt to discredit and undermine each others’ journey towards salvation, but rather, to help each other in our journey and way towards God. The Lord wants us all to show love for our fellow brothers and sisters, and not be selfish, thinking only about ourselves.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the words of the Lord saying to His disciples of how they ought to be faithful to God, in all the things they do in life. They are all called to be truly faithful and not just being hypocritical or self-serving in their attitudes. In order to follow the Lord wholeheartedly, we have to be ready to forgive each other, to be reconciled with our fellow brethren, for if we cannot even forgive our brothers and sisters for their smaller faults and mistakes to us, then how can we expect to be forgiven for our comparatively much greater sins?

That is why, during this season of Lent, all of us are called to reach out to one another, to show love to our fellow men, and to be merciful and forgiving, letting go of our pride, our ego and stubbornness, opening our hearts and minds, our entire beings to God’s love and grace. We should allow God to work His wonders and love through us. That is why we are all called to turn back towards the Lord and to repent from our sinful ways, and help each other in this respective journeys of faith we have. It is not a competition, for in the end, what awaits us in God is the same result and outcome.

In this season of Lent, let us all spend more time in prayer and contemplation, deepening our relationship with God and building a genuine connection with Him. Too many of us do not even have a superficial connection and relationship with God, less still a good and vibrant one. We are often too busy to even recognise God’s presence in our lives, ignoring His love and attention to us. He has always watched over us and patiently guided us towards Himself, but it is we who often neglected our responsibilities and abandoned our faith in God.

Let us all therefore strive to do our best to be better Christians in each and every moments of our lives, and this Lent is the best time for us to begin charting our path forward in being faithful to God and in living our lives to the best we can as Christians in our respective communities and places. May the Lord be with us all, and may He empower each and every one of us to walk with Him faithfully each day, living virtuously, now and always. Amen.

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Friday, 11 March 2022 : 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, 11 March 2022 : 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, 11 March 2022 : 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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Friday, 4 March 2022 : Friday after Ash Wednesday, Memorial of St. Casimir (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures and as we embark on this journey of the Lenten season, all of us are called to remember why we observe this season of Lent, with plenty of fasting, abstinence and almsgiving. We are reminded that all that we have done, we did them not for ourselves or for our own satisfaction and convenience. All of these we have done because we desire to seek the Lord and to be forgiven from our many sins and faults, to be reconciled fully with our most loving and compassionate God.

In our first reading today, we heard from the prophet Isaiah, the words of the Lord chastising His people in the kingdom of Judah, where Isaiah was ministering in. The Lord chastised His people because they had not truly been faithful to Him, and those who professed to be faithful, did not truly follow Him in the way that they should have, as they merely paid lip service through their actions. It was mentioned how they fasted and yet at the same time, they oppressed the weak and the poor, bringing sorrow and hardships to others, all for their own personal benefits and glory.

This was what the Lord chastised His people for, which was their attitude that did not reflect true faith and commitment in the Lord and His path. He told them that they could not profess to believe in Him and yet, acted in ways contrary to what they have believed in. Otherwise, they would be hypocrites and lacking in true faith. They have to be truly faithful and not just doing things and obeying the rules and laws just for the sake of obeying them. If they fasted and yet, they bickered and oppressed others who were less fortunate, then whatever virtues and good things they have gained would have been nulled by the wickedness they committed.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the Lord speaking to the disciples of St. John the Baptist who came to Him asking why His disciples did not fast the same way that they and the Pharisees had fasted. Contextually, we have to understand that the disciples of St. John and especially the Pharisees had followed a very strict interpretation of the Jewish laws and customs, and which particularly for the Pharisees, they took great emphasis and care in enforcing that fast and how the fast were to be done, and criticised all others who did not fast the way that they had done it.

This was where the Pharisees had ended up losing sight on the true intention and meaning of fasting, of why fasting was done in the first place. For as the Lord Himself had said in our first reading today, if we fasted and then yet, we oppressed, persecuted and made others’ life difficult, through how the Pharisees had criticised and persecuted the Lord, His disciples and the other people, then what they had done were not in accordance with God, His teachings and truth. They did not fast as how the Lord wanted them to fast.

For their fasting ended up serving their own desires, in wanting to be recognised and praised for their own piety, in their faith and virtues. They sought that glory and worldly fame, attention, influence and other things, that they ended up forgetting why they ought to have fasted, which was in fact contrary to what they had done. Fasting was meant to curb all those desires instead of embracing them, and fasting was meant to bring one closer to God and help one to focus on God rather than to end up focusing more on oneself and their own’s selfish desires.

That is why, today as we remember these words from the Scriptures, all of us are yet again reminded that in our Lenten practices and observances, we must not do them blindly and without understanding their true significance and importance. It means that we should not just fasted and abstained from meat like for example on this day, being a Friday, on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and any other Fridays, but we have to have an interior conversion and change of heart and mind. For fasting and abstinence must not just be an end on themselves, but they must lead to a genuine conversion and change of heart.

It means that we have to grow ever more in our faith in the Lord, and be sincere in our desire to follow the Lord. We must not merely pay lip service in our faith, and this Lent should be a great opportunity for us to embrace the Lord and His mercy and love. This Lenten season should be a time for us to grow more in humility and in our relationship with God rather than for us to show off our faith with pride or worse still, for us to compare with one another who is being more worthy and holier in our ways before the Lord.

Today we should be inspired instead by the good examples set by our predecessors, especially that of St. Casimir, whose feast we are celebrating today. St. Casimir was a prince of the Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania in the late Middle Ages, the second son of the King of Poland-Lithuania. Even in his youth, he was renowned for his great piety and faith in God, in his many charitable and generous actions for the poor and the sick, as he dedicated himself to the care of the less privileged. He also dedicated himself to a life of virtue and holiness, not indulging in the excesses of worldly living as what many of the royalty and nobles at that time often enjoyed.

Through his faith, life and dedication, St. Casimir, faithful servant of God has shown us all how we can also be faithful to the Lord in our own actions. Are we then willing and able to commit ourselves to the Lord in the same way, brothers and sisters in Christ? Can we be more humble in life, recognising our sinfulness and our vulnerabilities and weaknesses, and at the same time also growing ever more generous in loving and giving to others, in the manner that St. Casimir and many others of our holy predecessors had done?

Let us all make great use of this blessed time of Lent for us to reorientate our lives back towards the Lord, to return to Him and to embrace Him with genuine love once again. Let us all turn towards Him with faith, and commit ourselves to a new life of virtue and faith, renewed with zeal and courage, to take up our crosses in life and following the Lord, walking in the path that He has shown us all. May the Lord continue to guide us and strengthen us, and may He empower us all to be able to serve Him at all times, through our lives and examples. Amen.

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Friday, 4 March 2022 : Friday after Ash Wednesday, Memorial of St. Casimir (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 9 : 14-15

At that time, the disciples of John came to Jesus with the question, “How is it, that we and the Pharisees fast on many occasions, but not Your disciples?”

Jesus answered them, “How can you expect wedding guests to mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The time will come, when the Bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then, they will fast.”