gifts of the Holy Spirit

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Saturday, 30 May 2015 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 18 : 8, 9, 10, 11

The Law of the Lord is perfect : it gives life to the soul. The word of the Lord is trustworthy : it gives wisdom to the simple.

The precepts of the Lord are right : they give joy to the heart. The commandments of the Lord are clear : they enlighten the eyes.

The fear of the Lord is pure, it endures forever; the judgments of the Lord are true, all of them just and right.

They are more precious than gold – pure gold of a jeweller; they are much sweeter than honey which drops from the honeycomb.

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Saturday, 30 May 2015 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Sirach (Ecclesiastes) 51 : 12a-20

That is why I will give You thanks and praise and bless the Name of the Lord. In my youth, before I set out on my travels, I openly sought wisdom in prayer; before the Temple I asked for her and I will pursue her to the end of my days.

While she blossomed like a ripening cluster, my heart was delighted in her; my feet followed the right path, because from my youth I searched for her. As soon as I began listening to her, she was given to me, and with her, much instruction. With her help I made progress and I will glorify Him who gives me wisdom, for I decided to put it into practice and ardently seek what is good. I shall not regret it.

My soul has struggled to possess her. I have been attentive to observe the Law, and after my faults I have stretched out my hands to heaven and lamented my ignorance of her. My love of her increased and I found her in repentance. It was through her from the beginning that I learnt to possess my heart. She will not forsake me.

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Friday, 29 May 2015 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard about the glory of the saints, and all of the faithful servants and followers of God, whose lives had been righteous before God and exemplary before men. This is a reminder for all of us that we too can be like them, and we also can walk in their footsteps, doing the things that they have done, that is to love and serve the Lord with all of their heart and strength, and to do the same to their fellow men. In doing so, God will also find us to be just and righteous, and we will have the same share of grace and glory as all the saints in heaven.

And in the Gospel today we heard about how Jesus cleared the Temple and its ground from the filth and corruption of worldliness, by casting out all the money changers, merchants of animal sacrifices, and other forms of vices that had corrupted and tainted the Temple and its premises. The house of prayer and the dwelling of God on earth has become a marketplace, a place of worldliness and sin. That was why Jesus was so angry and His wrath was so great that He cast them out in anger.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this story may be very well known to us, and we knew what Jesus did that day in the Temple. After all this has been replicated many times in the documentaries and films about the life of Jesus. But do we understand its true significance? It is not just about the Temple of God in Jerusalem, but indeed it is about all of us who have been chosen and taken out of the world to be the disciples and children of God.

All of us who have accepted our Lord as our God and Saviour have been marked with the seal of baptism, the seal of confirmation and the seal of the Most Holy Eucharist, and this means that the Lord Himself, by the Eucharist which we have received, have entered into our bodies and hallowed it, made it holy to be the Temple of His Presence. The Holy Spirit has dwelled in us also by the Spirit given to us by the Sacrament of Confirmation, and the life which we have itself, is the proof of the presence of God our Father, our Creator who gave us life.

In all this, it is beyond deniable fact that the Lord dwells in us and we are His holy Temple. If we defile this Holy Temple, that is our body, our soul and our very being, then we know that just as we knew the story of Jesus clearing the Temple from all the filth of corruption, the same anger and wrath that God had shown then will be directed to us as well.

But we do not have to be fearful or afraid, and that is because what matters is for us to change our ways and find a way to repent and turn our hearts back to face the Lord, for He is merciful and willing to forgive us, but only if we ourselves are willing to make a difference in our own lives. Remember, brethren, the fact is that we all ought to be ashamed and indeed angry, when we look at ourselves.

Why is this so? That is because if we are truly concerned about ourselves, then we ought to see the kind of mess and the abundance of filth and corruption that had marred the Temple of God, that is our body, our heart, our mind, our soul and our very being. Are we not ashamed to have such a dirty and wicked dwelling for our Lord? But instead of being ashamed forever, we must indeed jolt ourselves awake and ask ourselves, what we can do from now on.

Let us all be thoroughly reformed. If we have sinned constantly until now and refused to follow the way of the Lord, then let us stop all things that we do and reevaluate our lives and priorities. Remember that the grace and forgiveness of God will be ours only if we make the conscious effort to seek it by humbly asking for His forgiveness and mercy. Let us all seek God’s grace by doing what is right and just before His eyes, beginning from ourselves and then by doing good and loving one another just as He had taught us.

Just as Christ had purged the Temple from all the merchants and the wicked things that dwelled there, let us all also purge our own Temple, our own body, heart, mind and soul from the wickedness that had marred the purity of our very own Temple, where the Lord Himself dwells. God be with us all. Amen.

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Friday, 29 May 2015 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 11 : 11-25

At that time, Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the Temple. And after He had looked all around, as it was already late, He went out to Bethany with the Twelve.

The next day, when they were leaving Bethany, He felt hungry. In the distance He noticed a fig tree covered with leaves, so He went to see if He could find anything on it. When He reached it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. Then Jesus said to the fig tree, “May no one ever eat your fruit!” And His disciples heard these words.

When they reached Jerusalem, Jesus went to the Temple, and began to drive away all the people He saw buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the stools of those who sold pigeons. And He would not let anyone carry anything through the Temple area.

Jesus then taught the people, “Does God not say in the Scriptures : My house will be called a House of Prayer for all the nations? But you have turned it into a den of thieves.”

The chief priests and the teachers of the Law heard of this, and they tried to find a way to destroy Him. They were afraid of Him, because all the people were astonished by His teaching.

When evening came, Jesus left the city. Early next morning, as they walked along the road, the disciples saw the fig tree withered to its roots. Peter then said to Him, “Master, look! The fig tree You cursed has withered.”

And Jesus replied, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and have no doubt in your heart, but believe that what you say will happen, it will be done for you. Therefore, I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it shall be done for you. And when you stand to pray, if you have anything against anyone, forgive.”

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Friday, 29 May 2015 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 149 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6a and 9b

Alleluia! Sing to the Lord a new song, sing His praise in the assembly of His saints. Let Israel rejoice in his Maker, let the people of Zion glory in their King!

Let them dance in praise of His Name and make music for Him with harp and timbrel. For the Lord delights in His people; He crowns the lowly with victory.

The saints will exult in triumph; even at night on their couches. Let the praise of God be on their lips, this is the glory of all His saints. Alleluia!

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Friday, 29 May 2015 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Sirach (Ecclesiastes) 44 : 1, 9-13

Let us now glorify illustrious men, the ancestors of our people. Others are not remembered and have disappeared as if they never existed. It is the same for their children. But now consider the godly men whose good deeds have not been forgotten.

Those who came after them benefitted from the rich legacy they left; their race remained faithful to the Covenant, their children followed their example. Their family will endure forever and never will its glory be tarnished.

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Thursday, 28 May 2015 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard the very beautiful and encouraging words from the Holy Scripture, beginning with the dissertation from the book of the prophet Sirach, who spoke about the nature of God and all of His wonders. He spoke of how God has created all things good and perfect, for us all to enjoy together, but it was because of our disobedience and sins that the perfection became marred and destroyed.

The light that once filled up this world has been veiled by darkness, that is the darkness of our sins. Our wickedness has served to be hindrance and obstacle for us to know how good and how great is the blessings and love which God has shown all of us. Therefore, we truly are blind, blind to the love of God, just as the blind man in the Gospel today cried out to Jesus, asking for His help to heal him from his blindness.

And that Gospel passage on the healing of the blind man by Jesus, is a reminder to all of us to reflect on our own actions in life. What are we now doing with regards to our lives filled with sin? What have we done so far in order to overcome the evils that had consumed us and what have we done to bring ourselves to the light? Do we act like the blind man who recognised who Jesus was and begged Him for mercy, to be healed from his blindness? Or are we content to stay on in our ignorance and blindness in the darkness of the world?

The blind man cried out to Jesus asking for Him to heal him, and he recognised Jesus as the Son of David, the One with power and authority to make him whole again. And he did not give up, even when the people tried to shut him up and scorned him. He refused to give up and continued to ask the Lord for His mercy, and eventually, by the faith which he has, he was healed and made whole.

Have we been like the blind man who was so persistent in asking for God’s mercy and forgiveness? Or are we equally stubborn in refusing to accept the fact that we are afflicted and in trouble and therefore need a profound change in our attitudes and actions so that we will not fall into damnation and eternal suffering? The fact is that God always attunes His ears to listen to our cries and pleas for mercy, and He tirelessly continues to remind us to repent and change our ways.

Let us all be inspired by the blind man and his total faith in the Lord, so that we too may also follow suit and do the same, proclaiming our faith and devotion to He who can heal us from our afflictions that is sin, the darkness that had clouded our minds and beings, to the point that we are unable to see beyond the darkness. If we know that we are in danger, then all the more we should put in the effort to change our lives for the better and seek the salvation which only our Lord can give.

Remember, brethren, that the Book of Sirach had also reminded us of the love of God, which He would shower on all those who cling faithfully to Him. He is ever faithful to all those who are also faithful to Him, and all that have done His will shall not be disappointed. The love of God endures, even though our sins have become like a mountain. What matters is that we respond to that love and mercy which our Lord had shown.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us be drawn ever closer to the throne of our Lord’s mercy and open wide the floodgates for the love of God to enter into our hearts. This is the time for change, the time for mercy, for us to seek the forgiveness of God for our sins and sin no more, so that we may be truly free from the blindness that have afflicted us, and welcome the Light into our lives. May Almighty God have mercy on us and forgive us our sins, and may He lead us on this new life filled with grace and blessings. Amen.

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Thursday, 28 May 2015 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 10 : 46-52

At that time, Jesus and His disciples came to Jericho. As Jesus was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a large crowd, a blind beggar, Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth passing by, he began to call out, “Son of David, Jesus, have mercy on me!”

Many people scolded him and told him to keep quiet, but he shouted all the louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called the blind man, saying, “Take heart! Get up, He is calling you!” He immediately threw aside his cloak, jumped up and went to Jesus.

Then Jesus asked him, “What do you want Me to do for you?” The blind man said, “Master, let me see again!” And Jesus said to him, “Go your way, your faith has made you well.” And immediately he could see, and he followed Jesus along the road.

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Thursday, 28 May 2015 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 32 : 2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9

Give thanks to Him on the harp and lyre, making melody and chanting praises. Amid loud shouts of joy, sing to Him a new song and play the ten-stringed harp.

For upright is the Lord’s word and worthy of trust is His work. The Lord loves justice and righteousness; the earth is full of His kindness.

The heavens were created by His word, the breath of His mouth formed their starry host. He gathered the waters of the sea into a heap, and stored the deep in cellars.

Let the whole earth fear the Lord, let the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spoke and so it was, He commanded, and everything stood firm.

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Thursday, 28 May 2015 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Sirach (Ecclesiastes) 42 : 15-25

Now I shall remind you of the works of the Lord and relate what I have seen. The Lord’s works depend on His word, and creation obeys His will. The sun shines on everything and the work of the Lord is filled with His glory. Not even to His holy ones has the Lord given full knowledge of all His marvellous works.

The Lord, Master of the universe, has ordained that all should stand firm in His glory. He penetrates both the depth of the abyss and the human heart and knows their secrets. For the Most High has full knowledge and ordains the signs of the heavens.

He knows the past and foretells the future and reveals the traces of the world’s mysteries. No thought escapes Him, no word is hidden from Him. He has ordered the marvellous works of His wisdom, from ever and forever. Nothing can be added, nothing can be taken away and He has no need of counsel.

All His works are beautiful, even to the smallest spark of light. All this lives and endures forever : all is useful and obedient to His will. All things are in pairs, one opposite the other, and nothing He makes is in any way deficient. One thing emphasises the excellence of the other; who could ever weary of admiring His glory?