great solemnity

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Sunday, 30 August 2020 : Twenty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Jeremiah 20 : 7-9

YHVH, You have seduced me and I let myself be seduced. You have taken me by force and prevailed. I have become a laughingstock all day long; they all make fun of me, for every time I speak I have to shout, “Violence! Devastation!” YHVH’s word has brought me insult and derision all day long.

So I decided to forget about Him and speak no more in His Name. But His word in my heart becomes like a fire burning deep within my bones. I try so hard to hold it in, but I cannot do it.

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Sunday, 23 August 2020 : Twenty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this Sunday we are all brought to attention that the Lord has entrusted to His servants in His Church, the authority and power over the faithful, through His establishment of the Church and the authority He granted to His Vicar in this world, St. Peter the Apostle, the leader of all the faithful and the first Supreme Pontiff and Pope. Through his successors, the Popes as the Supreme Pontiff and Bishop of Rome, the Church has remained as the firm anchor of faith and the deposit of faith throughout the past two thousand years of its history.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, the Lord spoke to Isaiah regarding the man named Eliakim, son of Hilkiah, whose background was in fact the financial manager of the kingdom of Judah and also the royal steward of the palace, as recorded in the Book of Kings. Eliakim took over the duties of managing the finances from a man named Shebna, also another servant of the then king of Judah, Hezekiah.

As the royal steward, the manager of the finances of the palace and the kingdom, Eliakim truly held a very powerful position that is comparable in power and responsibility as a modern day Prime Minister or Premier, definitely the second most powerful person in the entire realm after the king himself. From what the Lord spoke of through Isaiah, although details were scarce, we can conclude that Eliakim was a righteous person and was also a dutiful servant.

Eliakim was entrusted with the treasury of the kingdom and the management of the palace, and this is symbolically presented with the entrustment of the keys of the house of David to Eliakim himself, as he was given the authority of the king and to be even like a father to the kingdom of Judah, its people in Jerusalem and the whole realm. This was truly a position of great honour that spoke of the historic events behind the actual appointment of Eliakim, but then at the same time, God was in fact also revealing a prophecy of what would happen in the future.

For this story of Eliakim, the royal steward entrusted with authority and keys of the house of David is a clear parallel of what happened at the time of the New Testament, specifically referring to our Gospel passage today, in which we heard the Lord Jesus, our God and Saviour, entrusting to His chief disciple, St. Peter the Apostle, then known as Simon, son of John or Simon bar Jonah, the keys of the kingdom of Heaven itself, as well as the foundation of His Church on earth, as Peter, the ‘Rock’.

Thus, as we can see the clear parallel between the past occurrence of Eliakim in the kingdom of Judah and the story of Simon Peter, the disciple of the Lord, Eliakim, the royal steward was the precursor and the prefigurement of St. Peter, who was appointed therefore as the even greater ‘Royal Steward of the King of Kings’. Just as Hezekiah was the king of Judah and the lord and master of Eliakim, thus the Lord Jesus, King of Kings and the Son of David, inheritor of David’s Kingdom, is the Lord and Master of St. Peter, the new steward appointed by God to oversee His people, His Church.

This is a very significant event, as to St. Peter had been granted the authority by the entrustment of the keys of the kingdom of Heaven, that whatever he opens shall be opened, and whatever he shuts shall be shut, as the words of the Lord clearly presented it, ‘whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you unbind on earth shall be unbound in heaven.’ This is the royal authority the Lord entrusted to His Church, and invested in St. Peter and his successors, the Bishop of the Papal and Apostolic See of Rome, right from St. Peter himself up to our current Pope, Pope Francis, the 265th successor of St. Peter.

And there are also other significance of the key of the kingdom of Heaven, for the Church of God, the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church is composed of all the faithful and baptised people of God, all united in the Communion in the Body of Christ, under the leadership of the Pope, successor of St. Peter and Supreme Pontiff, the Vicar of Christ much as Eliakim was the vicar or the most trusted and right hand man of the king of Judah. And the Pope is the chief guardian of the treasure of the faith, the deposit of faith in the Magisterium of the Church and Sacred Tradition.

A key unlocks a door, and without a key, a door cannot be unlocked. Thus, this key is very symbolic of the opening of the doorway to salvation to God, that exists only through God’s Church. And from St. Peter, this authority is passed down to his successors, the Popes, and to the bishops, to the priests, who are the ones who conferred the Sacraments to the faithful, who first received Baptism, and therefore, is welcomed into the Church, in a moment likened to the opening of the gates of the kingdom of Heaven.

And yes, the Church of God itself is the earthly and heavenly manifestation of the kingdom of God, for in the Church, all the faithful are united, both the Church Militant still living on earth, the Church Suffering in purgatory, and the Church Triumphant, our holy predecessors, the saints and blesseds and others now enjoying the glory of heaven. Through Baptism, all of us enter into this great kingdom and receive new life, to which all of us have been called by God.

St. Paul said in his second reading today, in the Epistle to the Church and the faithful in Rome, of the great and immensity of the wisdom and the knowledge of God, which is in fact referring to the fullness of truth and the wisdom of God, that God Himself has revealed to His Church through the Holy Spirit. And the Apostles, having received the Holy Spirit, preserve this wisdom and all the truths, passed on to their successors, the bishops led by the chief of all the bishops, the Pope himself.

From the earliest days of the Church, the Church fathers have spoken on the faith and truth preserved faithfully by the Church, especially by the Apostolic See of Rome, the See of St. Peter, universally viewed as the leader and preserver of the Sacred Tradition of the faith and also the authentic Magisterium and authority on Church matters and all matters of the Christian faith. St. Augustine, one of the most renowned and important Church fathers spoke of ‘among these Apostles, St. Peter alone almost everywhere deserve to represent the whole Church.’

And from the Eastern Church, St. Cyril of Jerusalem, one of the most renowned leaders of the Church in the East spoke of the primacy of St. Peter among the other Apostles and highlighted how he led the other Apostles and disciples during the times of crisis, against the divisions in the Church, against the enemies of the Church and those who opposed them, as he stood by his faith devoutly throughout his ministry.

The Ecumenical Council of Ephesus also formally declared, ‘There is no doubt, and in fact it has been known in all ages, that the holy and most blessed Peter, prince and head of the Apostles, pillar of the faith, and foundation of the Catholic Church, received the keys of the kingdom from our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the human race, and that to him was given the power of loosing and binding sins: who down even to today and forever both lives and judges in his successors.’

The declaration of the Ecumenical Council of Ephesus, which was also supported by the other Ecumenical Councils before and after showed the nature of the Church and how through Peter, the chief of the Apostles, the Vicar of Christ, the Lord has laid down the framework of His Church, united as one Body, one Church, under the authority and primacy of St. Peter and his successors, the holder of the keys of the kingdom of Heaven.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, as Christians, we are all part of this one Body of Christ, and through baptism, we have been brought into this treasure of faith, preserved by the courageous efforts of the leaders of the Church, the successors of the Apostles, our bishops, and especially the successors of St. Peter, our Popes. But it is sad to see how we often do not appreciate just how fortunate we are to be sharers of the Lord’s truth, His wisdom and His love. And we are often divided in the Church, amongst ourselves as we bicker with one another, frequently due to selfish reasons.

The devil knows well that the Church and indeed, a holy and united Church is the greatest obstacle in his efforts to lead us to destruction through sin. That is why, throughout time, as it is today, the Church and its leaders have always been under attack constantly, by those who seek the ruination of souls, and our priests and bishops have been constantly tempted, attacked and had challenges and obstacles put in their path to make them give up the fight against these wicked forces.

As God’s Church and the members of His Body, all of us must stay united and support one another in the constant struggle against evil. We must not allow ourselves be divided and be set up one against another. And first and foremost, our Pope and our other Church leaders, the bishops and the parish priests, all of them need our prayers and our support. We trust in God that His words are truth, that not even the gates of hell can stand up against the Church, for as long as we remain firm in our faith in the Lord and stay within His Church, then we are safe from any harm.

Now, brothers and sisters, we have received the gift of God’s wisdom and truth through His Church. Let us therefore make good use of these gifts and become faithful and genuine witnesses of our Lord and Saviour in the midst of our community today, by obeying Him and His teachings as faithfully preserved in His Church, the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. Let us entrust ourselves to the official teachings and the truths of God as held and espoused by the Church, and help one another to remain faithful.

Let us then also be active as good and contributing members of the Church, in our respective calling and vocation in life, be it as those who have been called to the holy orders, to be shepherds of God’s people, or those who have embraced the call of religious and consecrated life, and even as active members of the laity, as good husbands and wives, as members of faithful and committed Christian families, which are in themselves, the domestic Church where the faith is first nurtured in our young generation.

May the Lord God, our Saviour and our loving Father continue to watch over us and protect us and His Church, protect and guide our Church leaders especially the Pope, His Vicar in this world, and the successor of St. Peter the Apostle to whom He had given the keys of the kingdom of heaven as well as great authority and responsibility. May our Pope Francis, together with his brother bishops, continue to preserve faithfully the whole treasure of the wisdom of God and the truth of God as maintained in our Sacred Tradition, the Scriptures and the Magisterium of the Church, all united in St. Peter and his successors. May God bless us all and be with us always, now and till the end of time, until the day He brings us all into the eternal glory of Heaven. Amen.

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Sunday, 23 August 2020 : Twenty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Matthew 16 : 13-20

At that time, Jesus came to Caesarea Philippi. He asked His disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They said, “For some of them, You are John the Baptist; for others Elijah, or Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.”

Jesus asked them, “But you, who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “It is well for you, Simon Barjona, for it is not flesh or blood that has revealed this to you, but My Father in heaven.”

“And now I say to you : You are Peter; and on this Rock I will build My Church; and never will the powers of death overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven : whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you unbind on earth shall be unbound in heaven.”

Then He ordered His disciples not to tell anyone that He was the Christ.

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Sunday, 23 August 2020 : Twenty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Romans 11 : 33-36

How deep are the riches, the wisdom and knowledge of God! His decisions cannot be explained, nor His ways understood! Who has ever known God’s thoughts? Who has ever been His adviser? Who has given Him something first, so that God had to repay him? For everything comes from Him, has been made by Him and has to return to Him. To Him be the glory forever! Amen.

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Sunday, 23 August 2020 : Twenty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 137 : 1-2a, 2bc-3, 6 and 8bc

I thank You, o YHVH, with all my heart, for You have heard the word of my lips. I sing Your praise in the presence of the gods. I bow down toward Your holy temple and give thanks to Your Name.

For Your love and faithfulness, for Your word, which exceeds everything. You answered me when I called; You restored my soul and made me strong.

From above, YHVH watches over the lowly; from afar, He marks down the haughty. Your kindness, o YHVH, endures forever. Forsake not the work of Your hands.

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Sunday, 23 August 2020 : Twenty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Isaiah 22 : 19-23

You will be deposed, strongman. I will hurl you down from where you are. On that day I will summon My servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah. I will clothe him with your robe, I will strengthen him with your girdle, I will give him your authority, and he will be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the people of Judah.

Upon his shoulder I will place the key of the house of David : what he opens, no one shall shut; what he shuts, no one shall open. I will fasten him like a peg in a sure spot, and he will be a seat of honour in the house of his father.

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Sunday, 16 August 2020 : Twentieth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday each and every one of us are called to listen to the Lord and to open our hearts and minds to welcome Him, for He has indeed called all of us to follow Him, from all the nations, without bias and without prejudice based on race, culture, or by any other parameters and traits we often categorise people in. God wants us to know that we are all equally beloved by God, without exception.

In order to appreciate better the significance of our Scripture readings and the context of our reflection today, we need to understand that for many of the Israelites and their descendants, up to the time of the Lord Jesus and beyond, they saw themselves as God’s chosen ones, as the only ones who deserve salvation and the glory of God, while other peoples, the pagan nations and peoples, all of them would be destroyed and crushed, unless they accepted the Law of Moses in its entirety, essentially becoming one with the Israelites in culture and way of life.

In our first reading today, we heard the words of the Lord spoken through His prophet Isaiah, in which it was explicitly mentioned that the Lord has called foreigners, those so-called pagan people to follow Him and to walk in His path, to preserve His Law and commandments, and how His House will become the house of prayer for all the nations. He spoke of the time where people from all the places and from all countries will come together to glorify God, no longer divided by the mark of their race, origin or by any other parameters.

In our Gospel today, we heard something related when we listened to the story of the Lord Jesus and His interactions with a Syro-Phoenician woman, a non-Jew and Gentile, who came to Him begging Him to heal her daughter who was tormented and suffered from a demonic attack. But the Lord strangely seemed aloof and ignored her pleas saying that He was only sent to the lost sheep of Israel, and even sounded very patronising to her and said bluntly, “It is not right to take the bread from the children and give it to the puppies or dogs.”

This has the strong connotation and example of how the Jewish people looked at their neighbours and treated them, so much so that the non-Jewish people were even treated as less than human and insultingly referred to as dogs. But the Lord did not intend to hurt or humiliate the woman when He said such things, rather He actually wanted to make an example of just how terrible were the prejudice and biases that existed in the community at that time.

And the Lord also wanted to show all the people and His disciples that the woman, despite the supposed ‘humiliation and degrading treatment’ still had faith even more powerful than the faith of those who called themselves the children of Israel. She trusted the Lord and had faith in Him and even humbled herself before Him and everyone saying, that even puppies and dogs eat of the crumbs of the bread that fall from the master’s table. This is a faith that surpassed the lack of faith showed by many among the Jews who had witnessed the Lord and His works, and refused to believe or even opposed Him.

Then, in the second reading today we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in the city of Rome, of the Apostle speaking of his calling as the Apostle to the pagan nations and peoples. St. Paul is known as the Apostle to the Gentiles precisely because of this, as he put his emphasis in evangelising to the pagans, in reaching out not only to the Jews, but also the Greeks, the Romans and all the people to whom he had ministered during his many years of travel all around the Mediterranean region.

St. Paul spoke of how he called many among the pagans to embrace the ways of the Lord, and the frustrations he had in the refusal of many among God’s own people, the Jews and the others living in Judea, Galilee and the Jewish diaspora to believe in God and in His truth. Some among the Jews became the earliest Christians and they, indeed, the Apostles and many of the important disciples of the Lord, were the first foundations of the Church.

But there were great opposition from the chief priests, from many among the members of the Sanhedrin, that is the majority of the Pharisees and the Sadducees, who were opposed to the Lord Jesus, His teachings and works, who adamantly refused to listen to the words of the truth, and preferred to oppress those who spoke of the truth, that is the followers of the Lord. And it was these things that truly frustrated St. Paul, as it was also evident that many among the Jews took great pride in their status as a chosen race as mentioned earlier.

This prevailing attitude made it difficult for the early Christians as if we read the Acts of the Apostles, as the Jewish converts to the Christian faith initially demanded that all the observances of the laws of Moses and the rigour of the Pharisees’ way of observing the Law be kept as a fundamental aspect of the Church teachings and laws. The problem being that to demand of such imposition to the Gentiles or the non-Jewish people were impractical and impossible.

For example, the practice of circumcision and dietary restrictions would be very difficult to implement among the non-Jewish peoples, as the former in particular was seen as a barbaric practice by the Greeks and the Romans, and which in fact had caused tension between the two peoples in the past before. And the strict dietary restrictions of the old Jewish laws were often not compatible to the practices and customs of the Gentiles.

To demand that the Gentiles adopt the practices of the Jewish people wholesale was in fact tantamount to the lingering feeling of superiority that the Israelites and their descendants had in relations to the other, often considered pagan peoples. They argued that unless they adopted the ways of the Jews, then the Gentiles were not worthy of the salvation and grace of God. And this is what St. Paul wanted to dispel, and the whole Church agreed under the leadership of the Apostles, not to impose the excessive old Mosaic laws, but only the most fundamental aspects of the Law, as revealed to the Church by Christ.

And St. Paul also did not condemn his people, the Jews, unlike what many Christians later on would wrongly practice. Many misunderstood the context of the Church teachings and the words of the Apostles into actions against the Jewish people which resulted in centuries of suffering and oppression for many among them. Instead, as he said in our second reading today, that his people, by their ‘jealousy over the the success of the ministry of St. Paul and the Apostles in bringing to righteousness the pagan peoples’ might themselves be saved as well.

Yes, and this means that while the people of Israel were the first ones called and chosen by God, they are by no means the exclusive benefactors of God’s grace and blessings. God created the entire human race because He loved all of them, and through and from the people of Israel, He therefore raised His Saviour, His own Son, Jesus Christ, to be the bearer of the Good News of salvation, calling everyone, all the children of man, to the reconciliation with God.

One fundamental value that we must always keep in mind is the fact that each and every one of us are equal before God and are equally beloved by God. It is therefore not right for any one of us to be prejudiced, to be biased and act in ways that cause hurt and suffering for others just because we consider ourselves as superior or better compared to the other person, race or nation. And it is especially all the more important that as Christians, as God’s own beloved children, we put this as one of the cornerstones of our lives and actions.

This means that as the followers of Christ, we must treat one another equally, with love and with genuine concern for each other. We must not fall into the temptations of pride, ego and greed, all of which encouraged us to look inward, being selfish and self-promoting, seeking our personal joy and satisfaction over that of others. And it is sad indeed to see the history of our world, how people have acted unjustly on one another, persecuted and oppressed others, manipulated and extorted others.

Many people had suffered and died in the various racial and ethnic genocides that happened, wars and conflicts fought over our preference to focus on our differences and disagreements. People hurt one another because they deemed themselves to better and looking down at the others. In such a condition, obviously how can anyone expect to live peacefully and harmoniously with each other? As our long history has proven it, there had been so much sorrow and pain suffered all these while.

And in our world today, it is sad to see a rising tide of intolerance and selfishness once again, worst still at a time when we all need to be more united than ever. When the terrible pandemic swept all over the world, killing many and ruining many people’s livelihood, we saw how people are attributing blame on each other, and targetted people who had historically been discriminated against, and blamed or even attacked those who are different from them, deemed inferior and less worthy.

We heard how communities were threatened with rifts and disagreements, riots and troubles that occurred, when historic hurts and pains of unequal treatments, of prejudices and biases came to the surface again especially when everyone is under great pressure during these days. At the time when we need to be more united than ever, the devil is reaping dividends by sowing seeds of dissension and conflict among us. And unfortunately, many of us Christians are part of these as well.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, today, as we reflect upon the passages of the Scripture and internalise their message, we need to re-evaluate our lives and way of living, especially if we have discriminated against others before, looking down on others and thinking highly of ourselves and our faith. Let us first of all remember that the Lord loves every one of us equally and without bias or distinction. If God has done so, then why can’t we do the same then?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all as Christians be exemplary in our actions, in genuinely loving and caring our fellow brothers and sisters without bias and prejudice. Let us all seek the Lord with all of our hearts and minds together, that we truly may serve Him with faith, and together as one people, one Church of God envisioned by St. Paul, let us all go joyfully to God and His heavenly kingdom. May God, our loving Father continue to love us and bless us, now and always. Amen.

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Sunday, 16 August 2020 : Twentieth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Matthew 15 : 21-28

At that time, leaving that area, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from the area, came and cried out, “Lord, Son of David, have pity on me! My daughter is tormented by a demon.”

But Jesus did not answer her, not even a word. So His disciples approached Him and said, “Send her away! See how she is shouting after us.” Then Jesus said to her, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the nation of Israel.”

But the woman was already kneeling before Jesus, and said, “Sir, help me!” Jesus answered, “It is not right to take the bread from the children and throw it to puppies.”

The woman replied, “That is true, Sir, but even puppies eat the crumbs which fall from their master’s table.” Then Jesus said, “Woman, how great is your faith! Let it be as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at that moment.

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Sunday, 16 August 2020 : Twentieth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Romans 11 : 13-15, 29-32

Listen to me, you who are not Jews : I am spending myself, as an Apostle to the pagan nations, but I hope my ministry will be successful enough to awaken the jealousy of those of my race, and, finally, to save some of them. If the world made peace with God, when they remained apart, what will it be, when they are welcomed? Nothing less than, a passing from death to life.

Because the call of God, and His gifts, cannot be nullified. Through the disobedience of the Jews, the mercy of God came to you who did not obey God. They, in turn, will receive mercy, in due time, after this disobedience, that brought God’s mercy to you. So, God has submitted all to disobedience, in order to show His mercy to all.

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Sunday, 16 August 2020 : Twentieth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 66 : 2-3, 5, 6 and 8

May God be gracious and bless us, may He let His face shine upon us; that Your way be known on earth and Your salvation, among the nations.

May the countries be glad and sing for joy, for You rule the peoples with justice; and guide the nations of the world.

May the peoples praise You, o God, may all the peoples praise You! May God bless us and be revered, to the very ends of the earth.