great solemnity

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Sunday, 13 November 2022 : Thirty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, World Day of the Poor (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday we heard the words of the Lord through the passages of the Sacred Scriptures telling us that there are plenty for all of us as Christians to do and prepare, for the coming of the end of days or the last days will be swift and unexpected by anyone, and we certainly do not want to end up being judged on the wrong side, with those who have been deemed unworthy and due to be damned for eternity. This Sunday we heard these reminders just as we approach the end of this current liturgical year, and just as the flow of time continues on, we are reminded of the eventual end of our earthly existence, as we are all going to have to account for our earthly experiences, actions and all that we say and do before the Lord.

In our first reading today, we heard of the prophet Malachi speaking the words of the Lord to the people of God, regarding of the coming of the Messiah and also the coming of the end times, the time of judgment. In that short passage, the message for us all is very clear, that those who live righteously and in accordance with God’s will shall be blessed and be found worthy of God and His eternal dominion, to live and exist with Him in eternal happiness and bliss, while all those who live wickedly and refused to obey God’s will shall face the just punishment and consequences due to their wickedness and evil actions, and will be judged as unworthy and cast out into eternal darkness and damnation, all just for their lack of faith and wickedness.

Then in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Luke the words of the Lord to His disciples, followers and all the people, before the Temple of God in Jerusalem, proclaiming the coming of the time of strife and evil for all the people of God, as they all will endure the hardships, challenges, trials and many would have to suffer many losses and even losses of life and deaths, to be endured in the midst of the persecutions and destructions that would come for the faithful people of God. At a glance, the Lord was speaking of the time of the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem and the fall of that city to the Romans, which would happen just less than forty years after the Lord has spoken about all those things.

In the years leading to that event, caused by the rebellion of fanatical Jews against the Romans, the faithful Christians, the people of God also suffered because of repressions from the Jewish authorities and also from the local governors and the Roman overlords alike. There were great tumults and revolts, destructions and sufferings, which culminated in the great Jewish Revolt, which led to the deaths of many thousands upon thousands of people, from both sides in the conflict, and ultimately, the fall of Jerusalem, the destruction of that city and the Temple of God itself, and the Jewish people scattered away from their homeland. Amidst all those strife and destruction, it was indeed easy for anyone to claim that the time of the end of the world, the coming of the final judgment was imminent.

What the Lord made known to His disciples and followers was that, in the end of time, at a time that He alone knows, He will come again to judge all the people, all the living and the dead, from the past, the present, and also the future, of all time. No one can foresee or know when the exact timing of this moment that the Lord has spoken of. And He also rightly warned against all those false prophets and all the false messengers and preachers who would try to subvert the message of God’s truth for their own selfish ideas and desires, as the history of the Church and mankind had shown us in these past two millennia. There had been many occasions where people claimed that the calamities and events happening in the world heralded the end of times and the Last Judgment, and some of them even claimed to be the Messiah returned in glory, all of whom proved to be false.

Hence, what we are reminded this Sunday is that, while we have to be vigilant and ever ready for the Lord’s coming, we also should not easily give in to those who promote false ideas and teachings contrary to the truth that the Lord alone has taught to us and revealed to us through His Church, and which had been preserved by the Church with the guidance of the Holy Spirit for the past two millennia as the deposit of our Christian faith and truth. That is why we have to live our lives worthily of the Lord and do whatever we can to obey the Lord and His commandments, a sentiment that is echoed by what we heard in our second reading today from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in the city and area of Thessalonica.

St. Paul spoke of how all of those who preached the word of God and the leaders of the Church all laboured tirelessly for the sake of God and His people, and doing whatever they could to serve the needs of the people, in doing what they could to do the will of God and to glorify Him by their every actions. He told the people that it is what is expected of all Christians to do, to be active in doing their part in whatever ministry, vocation or calling that each one of them had been called into, and all of them should do whatever they can to do what the Lord had commanded them all to do, and not be idle in their lives. That is because being idle is not what our calling as Christians is all about, and we cannot be ignorant of what the Lord Himself has taught and revealed to us, in how we should commit ourselves to the Lord and His Law and commandments.

What is God’s Law? As the Lord Himself had told us, that in essence the whole entirety of the Law can be summarised in two main commandments, that is first of all of our obligation and mission to love the Lord our God, as the only God with all of our strength and might, with all of our abilities and focus, our whole effort and attention, and then at the same time, we should also love our fellow brothers and sisters, our fellow mankind, in whatever way we can and in whatever capacity we are in. And yes, it is our Christian calling to love, loving God and loving our brethren, be it our family members, our parents, our siblings and our children, and also our extended family and relatives, or our friends and acquaintances, and even strangers and even more so, those who hated us and persecuted us.

We do not have to look far for example, brothers and sisters in Christ. The Lord Jesus Himself, our Saviour, has shown us the perfect example, of how He reached out to us with most generous and enduring love, despite our lack of interest in Him, and despite our stubbornness and constant rebellions against Him, and also despite our easily succumbing nature, as we fell again and again into temptations and chose sin over obedience to God. He loves us all nonetheless, and reached out even to the worst of sinners, journeying with them and caring for them, calling on them to embrace God’s love and mercy, to sin no more and follow Him. He healed their sickness and wounds, and cast out evil spirits and demons from them. He patiently showed His love even to those who persecuted Him.

He endured the worst and most painful sufferings for our sake, enduring bitter rejections and persecutions, humiliations and torture, having His flesh torn from His Precious Body and Precious Blood spilled over as He endured each wound with patience, and took His Cross upon His shoulder with love, love for each and every one of us. And yes, that includes even those who have persecuted and condemned Him to death, those Pharisees, teachers of the Law, elders and chief priests who were opposed to Him and persecuted Him and His disciples. From His Cross, the Lord Himself prayed on their behalf before the Father, asking Him to forgive them their sins and not to hold what they did against them. Truly I am sure we can see just how beloved we are by God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, if God has loved us all so much, that He willingly do all that for us, even to die for our sake, that we may be saved and spared our fate of destruction and damnation, then should we not be stubborn anymore and should emulate His love in our own actions and way of life as well. We should learn to fill ourselves up with more of God’s love, embracing Him with devotion and love, thanking Him for His patience and ever generous love, and also His compassion and mercy in forgiving us our sins. We should also love one another, and learn to forgive one another our mistakes and faults to each other, just as the Lord has forgiven us even the greatest of our sins if we sincerely seek to repent and be forgiven from them. Can we do this, brothers and sisters? Certainly we can. The question is whether we want to do it or not.

Now, on this thirty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time and the second last Sunday of this current liturgical year, we also commemorate the World Day of the Poor as instituted a few years ago by our currently reigning Pope, Pope Francis. On this day, we are reminded of the poor in our midst, and we are called as Christians to remember our call to love and charity, that each one of us may be more generous in loving those who are poor, caring for them and reaching out for those who have no means to provide for themselves. And not only that, being poor in fact is not just being poor in material wealth and possessions only, as there are also other kinds of poverty that we may not be aware of, and yet are also important for us as Christians to reach out to these people suffering from other forms of poverty.

What am I referring to? The poverty for love and care, as there are those who have adequate or even plenty of material possessions, and yet are lacking in love and care. There are those who are ostracised and rejected for various reasons, and it is to all these that we are called to reach out to as well. There are even those who are poor, because they have no love in them, or have little in the means of empathy, care and compassion for others. As Christians, it is our calling and mission, that each one of us, in our respective areas and capacities, show God’s love embodied in our actions, words and deeds, and through our interactions, so that we may hopefully touch the heart and reveal God’s truth and love to those who are still poor in faith, and love for God and their fellow brethren.

Let us all therefore remember to do our best, in whatever we say and do, to reach out to our less fortunate brethren, those who are poor, be it in material, or love or faith or whatever it is that they are poor in. Let us share with them and help them in whatever way we can. Let us journey together with them and show them that they are truly part of our communities, especially those who are also members of our Church. It is indeed often sad to see how many Christians were so aloof and ignorant of the plight of their fellow Christians. Some of them were even those who manipulated and gained from the sufferings of others, and their fellow brothers and sisters. This is not what we should be doing as Christians, and as those whom God had called and chosen from this world to be His own children, people and flock.

Let us all discern how we can be better Christians, to be more committed and loving disciples of our Lord, so that in all the things we say and do, we may continue to show more of our Lord’s love, and be ever more generous in reaching out to the less fortunate around us, be more selfless in our way of life and turning away from sin and all the temptations to sin. May the Lord continue to guide us in our journey of faith through life, and may He empower us all to be good and true disciples, faithful and committed witnesses to His truth and love at all times. Let us help one another, especially the poor among us, to come ever closer to God. Amen.

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Sunday, 13 November 2022 : Thirty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, World Day of the Poor (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 21 : 5-19

At that time, while some people were talking about the Temple, remarking that it was adorned with fine stonework and rich gifts, Jesus said to them, “The days will come when there shall not be left one stone upon another of all that you now admire; all will be torn down.”

And they asked Him, “Master, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?” Jesus then said, “Take care not to be deceived, for many will come claiming My title and saying, ‘I am He, the Messiah; the time is at hand!’ Do not follow them. When you hear of wars and troubled times, do not be frightened; for all these things must happen first, even though the end is not so soon.”

And Jesus said, “Nations will fight each other and kingdom will oppose kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, famines and plagues; in many places strange and terrifying signs from heaven will be seen. Before all these things happen, people will lay their hands on you and persecute you; you will be delivered to the synagogues and put in prison, and for my sake you will be brought before kings and governors. This will be your opportunity to bear witness.”

“So keep this in mind : do not worry in advance about what to say, for I will give you words and wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends, and some of you will be put to death. But even though, because of My Name, you will be hated by everyone, not a hair of your head will perish. By your patient endurance you will save your souls.”

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Sunday, 13 November 2022 : Thirty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, World Day of the Poor (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

2 Thessalonians 3 : 7-12

You know how you ought to follow our example : we worked while we were with you. Day and night we laboured and toiled so as not to be a burden to any of you. We had the right to act otherwise, but we wanted to give you an example.

Besides, while we were with you, we said clearly : If anyone is not willing to work, neither should that one eat. However we heard that some among you live in idleness – busybodies, doing no work. In the Name of Christ Jesus our Lord we command these people to work and earn their own living.

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Sunday, 13 November 2022 : Thirty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, World Day of the Poor (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 97 : 5-6, 7-8, 9

With melody of the lyre and with music of the harp. With trumpet blast and sound of the horn, rejoice before the King, the Lord!

Let the sea resound and everything in it, the world and all its peoples. Let rivers clap their hands, hills and mountains sing with joy.

Before the Lord, for He comes to rule the earth. He will judge the world with justice and the peoples with fairness.

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Sunday, 13 November 2022 : Thirty-Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, World Day of the Poor (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Malachi 3 : 19-20a

The day already comes, flaming as a furnace. On that day all the proud and evildoers will be burnt like straw in the fire. They will be left without branches or roots. On the other hand the sun of justice will shine upon you who respect My Name and bring health in its rays.

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Sunday, 6 November 2022 : Thirty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday all of us are called to remember the faith which we have in the Lord, in His love for us and in His guidance, love and compassion for each one for us, and ultimately, His glorious resurrection from the dead and triumph over sin and death, which is also promised to us. Through His own Resurrection from the dead, the Lord showed all of us that His path leads us to an eternity of life and existence with Him. That is what all of us as Christians believe and ought to have faith wholeheartedly in, as the Resurrection of the Lord is truly the most important and central tenet of our entire Christian faith. Without the Resurrection, then there will be no Christianity and the truth which we hold firm in belief in the Lord.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Second Book of Maccabees the tale of what happened during the intense persecution of the faithful people of God during the time of the Seleucid King Antiochus IV Epiphanes who commanded that all the people throughout his kingdom ought to abandon the customs of their ancestors and adapt the Greek ways and ideologies, their gods and idols. This led to intense persecution of the Jewish people who remained faithful to the Lord their God, the one true and only God. As we heard in the first reading passage, the whole entire family consisting of a mother and her seven sons were forced to abandon their faith in God and to commit sin against Him before the king himself, but each one of them courageously resisted the king’s efforts and chose to face suffering and death instead of disobeying the Lord.

The king offered them great riches and affluence, safety and good prospects should they decide to abandon the Lord and embrace the pagan faith of the king and the Greeks. That path would have been very tempting indeed, as the other path would lead to certain painful suffering and death. From the perspective of one who seek only to treasure what they have in the world and do not believe in the resurrection, to choose otherwise would have been folly, as that would have gained them nothing but the destruction of their lives and the end of their existence in a most humiliating and painful way no less. But that was because those people had no faith or trust in God. For those who trust in the Lord and believe in His Resurrection, the life and existence after death is even more important than this earthly life.

Earlier in the previous week, in one of the weekday readings from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Philippians, we have all been reminded by the Apostle that our ‘true’ citizenship is in Heaven, and that we should eagerly await the coming of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. St. Paul therefore reminded all of us that our earthly existence, as good or as bad as they may be, are merely temporary, and in the end, what comes after is truly what matters. We have just celebrated Allhallowtide earlier in the last week, in which we rejoice in the glory of all the saints, the holy men and women of God who have merited the glory of Heaven on All Saints’ Day, and also the holy souls in purgatory, the souls of all the faithful departed from this world, our beloved ones and countless others, on All Souls’ Day. On those days we remember those who have gone from this world to the afterlife.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the words of the Lord during His encounter and argument with the Sadducees, who opposed Him and questioned Him regarding the belief in the resurrection from the dead. For context, the Sadducees were one of the two very influential and powerful groups within the Jewish community, the other being the Pharisees. While the Pharisees were the intellectuals and those who were very particular in maintaining the strict observance of the Law of Moses, and was very deep into Jewish culture, customs and beliefs, in the spiritual belief in the resurrection from the dead and in Angels, the Sadducees stood at the other end of the spectrum, as they did not believe in resurrection from the dead, Angels or any other spiritual beings or matters.

The Sadducees were influential group of people composed of elders and all those who were likely very much secularised and back then, Hellenised, and influenced by philosophical thinking and ideas of the Greco-Roman world at that time. They likely saw the world as one that is purely material and they saw their existence in this world as the sole existence they had, and hence, nothing spiritual or whatever cannot be explained by the senses, or any belief in the life after death. The Sadducees made a reference to the case when according to the Law, when a woman’s husband died and they had no child, then one of the deceased husband’s brother by Law was compelled to take the widow as his own wife, and the first child born of that union was considered as the deceased man’s child.

Therefore the Sadducees who did not believe in the resurrection from the dead presented their case before the Lord, questioning Him of what would happen then in the case when all seven brothers passed away before they had any children with the woman, and whose husband the wife would be in the afterlife, she was legally married to all the seven brothers. It was then that the Lord rebuked the Sadducees for their narrow-minded attitude and lack of faith in God, and for their stubborn refusal to believe in the resurrection from the dead. The Lord told them that the way that they thought was essentially very worldly in nature, that they thought only of worldly matters like properties, inheritance, relationships and other things, which led them to question their faith and the truth about the resurrection in the first place.

Essentially, unless one understands our true nature and purpose in this world, then we are likely bound to fall into the temptations of worldly pleasures and desires. And if we understand and realise just how strong those temptations can be, then we will be more vigilant in resisting the allure of those temptations and evils. The Sadducees were too attached to their worldly desires, ambitions and ego, that they could not detach themselves from those things, and they could not even imagine what life would be without all those things. Hence, they doubted the Lord and refused to believe in Him, even though He has shown them His wisdom and truth, His power and wonders, through the many miracles that He has performed before all of the people, including the Sadducees themselves.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, our existence in this world is to glorify God and to serve Him. We wander in this world precisely because of our disobedience against God as we would remember from the beginning of the Book of Genesis. But that is not something that is permanent, as our separation from God is due to sin, and God Who loves each and every one of us very dearly, has promised, reached out to us and extended to us His salvation through none other than Jesus Christ Himself, the Son of God, Our Lord and Saviour. All these He had done for us so that we may not perish and be lost to Him forever, and that we can be reconciled with Him, once and for all, and be reunited with Him, to enjoy finally what He has always intended for us, to be the partakers in the most generous love and graceful blessings, in the everlasting life with Him.

That was why the Lord sent to us His only Begotten Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Who endured the most painful sufferings, the most humiliating treatment and the worst of rejections and curses from the very ones He had come to save, so that through whatever He had experienced, He may save us all from everlasting death and damnation. He willingly bore upon Himself the burdens and punishments due to our sins, and He endured those pain and bitterness all because He loves us. And by His suffering and death, we are healed, and by offering Himself as the most worthy sacrifice and offering in atonement for our sins, Christ as our Eternal High Priest has opened for us the gates of Heaven and everlasting life. He has conquered sin and death, and then by His glorious Resurrection afterwards, He proved to us all, to all those who doubted Him, that there is indeed life and existence after death.

By His gift to us of His own Most Precious Body and Blood in the Eucharist, as we all partake in this Most Holy Communion, we have become parts of His own Body, the Church of God. And thus, we have also become sharers in His Passion, suffering and death. And through that, we have been made to pass through the gates of life and death, and just as the Lord Himself has risen gloriously from the dead, hence, we all too, shall rise with Him, on the last day. This is what we solemnly believe as Christians, as one of the core tenets of our faith. Sin has lead us into separation from God and death as our just punishment, but this is not permanent and everlasting, thanks to God Who has reached out to us and showed us His love. Of course, unfortunately, there are those who reject the Lord’s generous offer of mercy and love, to the very end. It is all these people who will face condemnation and an eternity of suffering in the end.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday’s Scripture readings and discourse serve as reminders for us, on whether we have truly appreciated and understood our faith as we should have. How many of us truly believe in the resurrection ourselves? How many of us truly appreciate how important the Lord’s suffering, death and resurrection are to us? And we must not forget that although we may think that we believe in the resurrection, but our actions and deeds, our way of life may speak otherwise. What am I referring to? I am referring to the fact that many among us Christians spent a lot of time and effort, a lot of attention in trying to garner and preserve for ourselves worldly goods and things, spending a lot of effort and time in building up for ourselves a worldly treasure and wealth.

How many of us spent a lot of effort in trying to make ourselves look young, handsome or beautiful, or trying to make ourselves look better and more acceptable by the world? Many of us are often worried of aging and other things, and spent a lot of attention on these. And in doing so, we often neglect our responsibilities as Christians, especially those with regards to our care and love for one another. Some of us even hurt others, manipulate and exploit others just because we want to gain more for ourselves, and all these led to our selfish actions that are unbecoming of us as Christians, as those who profess to believe in God. The Lord has taught us and shown us how we should act and behave, and if we continue to do what we have done, how can we then call ourselves as true and genuine Christians?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore commit ourselves anew to the Lord, that from now on, we should dedicate our effort and time to serve Him better, to live our lives more worthily, and trust in Him more, knowing that in Him alone lies our hope and the path to eternal joy and bliss. We have to grow more in our faith and trust in Him, so that we may put Him in the centre of our lives and existence. Let us all no longer be distracted by the many things that often keep us away from God’s love and grace. And may the Lord continue to guide us and strengthen us, that our faith and belief in Him will ever be stronger, and that we will be worthy of Him, and be reconciled and reunited with Him, in the glory of everlasting life. Amen.

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Sunday, 6 November 2022 : Thirty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 20 : 27-38

At that time, some Sadducees arrived. These people claim that there is no resurrection, and they asked Jesus this question, “Master, in the Law Moses told us, ‘If anyone dies leaving a wife but no children, his brother must take the wife, and any child born to them will be regarded as the child of the deceased.'”

“Now, there were seven brothers; the first married a wife, but he died without children; and the second and the third took the wife; in fact, all seven died leaving no children. Last of all the woman died. On the day of the resurrection, to which of them will the woman be a wife? For all seven had her as a wife.”

And Jesus replied, “Taking a husband or a wife is proper to people of this world, but for those who are considered worthy of the world to come, and of resurrection from the dead, there is no more marriage. Besides, they cannot die, for they are like the Angels. They are sons and daughters of God, because they are born of the resurrection.”

“Yes, the dead will be raised, as Moses revealed at the burning bush, when He called the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. For God is God of the living, and not of the dead, for to Him everyone is alive.”

Alternative reading (shorter version)

Luke 20 : 27, 34-38

At that time, some Sadducees arrived. These people claim that there is no resurrection.

And Jesus replied, “Taking a husband or a wife is proper to people of this world, but for those who are considered worthy of the world to come, and of resurrection from the dead, there is no more marriage. Besides, they cannot die, for they are like the Angels. They are sons and daughters of God, because they are born of the resurrection.”

“Yes, the dead will be raised, as Moses revealed at the burning bush, when He called the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. For God is God of the living, and not of the dead, for to Him everyone is alive.”

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Sunday, 6 November 2022 : Thirty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

2 Thessalonians 2 : 16 – 2 Thessalonians 3 : 5

May Christ Jesus our Lord Who has loved us, may God our Father, Who in His mercy gives us everlasting comfort and true hope, strengthens you. May He encourage your hearts and make you steadfast in every good work and word.

Finally, brothers and sisters, pray for us that the Word of God may spread rapidly and be glorified everywhere as it was with you. May God guard us from wicked and evil people, since not everyone has faith. The Lord is faithful; He will strengthen you and keep you safe from the Evil One.

Besides, we have in the Lord this confidence that you are doing and will continue to do what we order you. May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.

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Sunday, 6 November 2022 : Thirty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 16 : 1, 5-6, 8b and 15

Hear a just cause, o Lord, listen to my complaint. Give heed to my prayer for there is no deceit on my lips.

Hold firm my steps upon Your path, that my feet may not stumble. I call on You, You will answer me, o God; incline Your ear and hear my word.

Under the shadow of Your wings hide me. As for me, righteous in Your sight, I shall see Your face and, awakening, gaze my fill on Your likeness.

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Sunday, 6 November 2022 : Thirty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

2 Maccabees 7 : 1-2, 9-14

It happened also that seven brothers were arrested with their mother. The king had them scourged and flogged to force them to eat the flesh of a pig which was prohibited by the Law. One of them, speaking in behalf of all, said, “What do you want to find out from us? We are prepared to die right now rather than break the law of our ancestors.”

At the moment of his last breath, he said, “Murderer, you now dismiss us from life, but the King of this world will raise us up. He will give us eternal life since we die for His laws.” After this, they punished the third brother. He stuck his tongue out when asked to, bravely stretched forth his hands, and even had the courage to say : “I have received these limbs from God, but for love of His laws I now consider them as nothing. For I hope to recover them from God.”

The king and his court were touched by the courage of this young man, so unconcerned about his own sufferings. When this one was dead, they subjected the fourth to the same torture. At the point of death, he cried out, “I would rather die at the hands of mortals, and wait for the promises of God Who will raise us up; you, however, shall have no part in the resurrection of life.”