Liturgical Colour : Green
1 Corinthians 7 : 29-31
I say this, brothers and sisters : time is running out, and those who are married must live as if not married; those who weep as if not weeping; those who are happy as if they were not happy; those buying something as if they had not bought it, and those enjoying the present life as if they were not enjoying it. For the order of this world is vanishing.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Psalm 24 : 4-5ab, 6 and 7bc, 8-9
Teach me Your ways, o YHVH; make known to me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and instruct me, for You are my God, my Saviour.
Remember Your compassion, o YHVH, Your unfailing love from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth, but in Your love remember me.
Good and upright, YHVH teaches sinners His way. He teaches the humble of heart and guides them in what is right.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Jonah 3 : 1-5, 10
The word of YHVH came to Jonah a second time : “Go to Nineveh, the great city, and announce to them the message I give you.”
In obedience to the word of YHVH, Jonah went to Nineveh. It was a very large city, and it took three days just to cross it. So Jonah walked a single day’s journey and began proclaiming, “Forty days more and Nineveh will be destroyed.”
The people of the city believed God. They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, He had compassion and did not carry out the destruction He had threatened upon them.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday all of us are reminded of what each and every one of us as Christians have been called to do what God has called and told us to do, in each and every missions and works that He has entrusted to us. All of us have the been called to follow the Lord and walk in His path, to be good and faithful Christians, as examples, role models and inspirations for everyone all around us. We are reminded that our lives and our actions throughout every moments must be truly good and worthy of God, because each one of us are called to be holy just as the Lord our God is all Holy and Perfect.
In our first reading today, we heard of the reading from the Book of the prophet Samuel in which the young Samuel was called by God in the night, and how the young Samuel thought that it was his mentor, the priest and Judge Eli who was calling him. At that time, the young Samuel had been entrusted and offered by his mother Hannah to be priest and servant of God, as she had promised to the Lord Himself for his miraculous conception and birth. The young Samuel was blessed by God and was filled with his grace, and God was with him, and hence, this was when the Lord first called him and speak to him. Eli realised that it was God Who was calling the young Samuel, and he told Samuel to respond to the Lord.
Samuel had been called by God to do great things among His people, to lead and guide them all back towards Him. Unlike the the sons of Eli, who had been appointed as priests and guides over the people, which the Scriptures highlighted that they were wicked and corrupt in their ways and actions, Samuel was upright and just, and he obeyed the Lord in His commands and all that He has entrusted to him to do. We heard from the first reading today how the Lord was with him, and everything that he said became true, as a sign of Divine providence and favour, as he continued to labour hard for the glory of God and for the well-being and salvation of the people of God, which he led out of the darkness and corruption of the world, and into the light of God’s truth and love.
In our second reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in the city of Corinth, the Apostle reminded all of the faithful, and hence all of us that we are all the holy people of God, consecrated and dedicated to Him, and our whole beings, our bodies, hearts, minds and souls are all sacred, having been dedicated to God. Through baptism, all of us have been made members of the Church of God, partakers of the Most Holy Eucharist, the Most Holy and Precious Body and Blood of Christ, and hence, we are all truly the Temples of the Lord’s Holy Presence just as St. Paul the Apostle had reminded all of us. This is because God Himself dwells in us and amongst us, and all of us are truly like His holy Tabernacles, the Living Church.
Therefore, just as St. Paul mentioned in his Epistle, all of us should strive to keep ourselves away from all sorts of evil, fornications and sin. We must always do our best that our every words, actions and deeds, our every interactions and our way of life should always be filled with righteousness, virtue and justice, living our lives in the manner that the Lord has taught us to do, with faith and dedication to Him, and with courage in living our lives at each moment with the desire and the commitment to walk in the path that the Lord has shown and taught us. Each and every one of us must make ourselves truly worthy of God’s presence and love, as He Himself has come into our midst and dwelled in our midst. Hence, we must not allow ourselves to fall into sin and evil, and we have to strive to live our lives to the fullest with faith.
In our Gospel passage today, the Lord Jesus called His disciples, who came to Him firstly through the testimony of St. John the Baptist who told two of his own disciples that the Lord Jesus is the Lamb of God, the One Whom St. John the Baptist himself has been proclaiming and labouring about. Those disciples therefore followed the Lord and sought Him, and they walked with Him, calling upon their relatives to the Lord as well. They left behind everything, listened to the Lord and embarked on the journey with Him, to wherever He led them towards. We heard how the fishermen of Lake of Galilee, Simon son of John and the sons of Zebedee followed our Lord, and He entrusted them with the works and missions to evangelise to the world, giving the name Peter, meaning Rock to Simon, signifying this new beginning in his life and that of the others whom He had called.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we all have heard from the passages of the Sacred Scriptures today, let us all be reminded of what each and every one of us as Christians have been called to do in our respective lives so that our lives and actions, our every words and interactions may indeed be truly worthy of our identity as Christians, as God’s beloved people and children, those who belong to Him. All of us have been called and gathered from this world by the Lord, and He has entrusted to us His Church and the various missions which He gave to us, in bringing His light and truth, His Good News and the manifestation of His love to more and more people. Each and every one of us are the ones through whom God’s love and truth are made manifest in this world, spread and known to more and more people.
Let us all therefore renew our faith and commitment to the Lord. Let us all strive to do what is right, virtuous and just according to God’s will at every possible opportunities. Let us all be like the young Samuel and the disciples of the Lord, who put their full trust and faith in God, leaving behind everything and following Him. Let us all do what God has called us to do in our respective lives, in whatever areas and parts of life, in our various vocations and calling in life, so that our lives may truly be exemplary and good, and be the shining beacons of God’s truth and love, proclaiming Him to everyone all around us at all times. May God bless us all in our every good works, efforts and endeavours, in all that we say and do, now and always. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green
John 1 : 35-42
At that time, John was standing at the River Jordan, with two of his disciples. As Jesus walked by, John looked at Him and said, “There is the Lamb of God.” On hearing this, the two disciples followed Jesus. He turned and saw them following, and He said to them, “What are you looking for?”
They answered, “Rabbi (which means Master), where are You staying?” Jesus said, “Come and see.” So they went and saw where He stayed, and spent the rest of that day with Him. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon.
Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who heard what John had said, and followed Jesus. Early the next morning, he found his brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah (which means the Christ),” and he brought Simon to Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon, son of John, but you shall be called Cephas (which means Rock).”
Liturgical Colour : Green
1 Corinthians 6 : 13c-15a, 17-20
Yet the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord is for the body. And God, Who raised the Lord, will also raise us with His power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ?
On the contrary, anyone united to the Lord becomes one spirit with Him. Avoid unlawful sex entirely. Any other sin a person commits is outside the body; but those who commit sexual immorality sin against their own body.
Do you not know that your body is a Temple of the Holy Spirit within you, given by God? You belong no longer to yourselves. Remember at what price you have been bought, and make your body serve the glory of God.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Psalm 39 : 2 and 4ab, 7-8a, 8b-9, 10
With resolve I waited for YHVH; He listened and heard me beg. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.
Sacrifice and oblation You did not desire; this, You had me understand. Burnt offering and sin offering You do not require. Then I said, “Here I come!”
As the scroll says of me. To do Your will is my delight, o God, for Your Law is within my heart.
In the great assembly I have proclaimed Your saving help. My lips, o YHVH, I did not seal – You know that very well.
Liturgical Colour : Green
1 Samuel 3 : 3b-10, 19
Samuel also lay in the house of YHVH near the Ark of God. Then YHVH called, “Samuel! Samuel!” Samuel answered, “I am here!” and ran to Eli saying, “I am here, did you not call me?” But Eli said, “I did not call. Go back to sleep.” So he went and lay down.
Then YHVH called again, “Samuel!” and Samuel stood up and went to Eli saying, “You called me; I am here.” But Eli answered, “I did not call you, my son. Go back to sleep.” Samuel did not yet know YHVH; and the word of YHVH had not yet been revealed to him. But YHVH called Samuel for the third time; and he went again to Eli saying, “I am here for you have called me.”
Eli realised that it was YHVH calling the boy. So he said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and if He calls you again, answer : ‘Speak, YHVH, Your servant listens.’” Then YHVH came and stood there calling “Samuel! Samuel!” as He did before. And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant listens.”
Samuel grew. YHVH was with him and made all his words become true.
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we all celebrate the great Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, marking the occasion which the Lord revealed Himself to the nations, to the non-Jewish peoples or also known as the Gentiles. This is also one of the moments commemorated in Christmas, as part of the revelation of the salvation which our Lord and Saviour had revealed through His Incarnation and appearance in this world, in Jesus Christ, the Son of God Most High, born the Son of Man through His Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary. On this Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, we are called to remember the moment that God made known His will and desire to bring all mankind, regardless of race, background or origin, to His Presence, and unite us all to Himself.
Through this important event of the Epiphany, which came from the Greek word Epiphaneia – that means something like manifestation or appearing, as we are reminded of God manifesting Himself to the nations, represented by the Three Magi or the Three Wise Men, who came from very far lands to visit and pay homage to the One Whose coming they had predicted, and following the great Sign in the sky, the Star of Bethlehem, that appeared above the place where the Lord Jesus was born. All the Three Magi set off on a long journey from their lands, at a time when travel was arduous, difficult, lengthy and slow, traversing long distances so that they might come to come and see the Holy One of God, the One Whose coming was proclaimed by the great Star.
They were likely astrologers and educated members of their communities, and hence they were known as the Three Wise Men. The appearance of the great Star of Bethlehem was indeed the sign of God’s call to the nations, as He wanted to tell more and more people all throughout the whole world of the coming of His salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ. The Three Wise Men represented the nations, of all the peoples coming to seek the Lord just as prophesied by the prophets, especially that of the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah proclaimed that people from all the nations, of all races will come to seek the Lord, and will proclaim Him as their Lord and Master, and the Lord will be God over all the whole world, and not merely just the Israelites.
In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard the words of the prophet speaking to the people of God in Israel and Judah, telling them of the coming of the salvation in God, which would come soon through the Messiah, the Saviour which God has promised to all of them. The prophet was encouraging a people that by then had suffered a lot of hardships and difficulties, obstacles and challenges. He told them that the Lord would not forget about them, and He would send them His deliverance, which would come with a great Light coming among the people of God. Indeed, the Lord would send His salvation through His people, born of a people whom He had first called, the people of Israel, of the children of Abraham, fulfilling everything that He has promised to His faithful servants.
Through this great Light, which is in Christ the Lord, all people will come to see the salvation of God, which has been unveiled and shown to us, through His Nativity and Epiphany. If His Nativity marks the moment when He was born into this world, and was announced by the Angels of God to the people of Israel through those shepherds of Bethlehem in the wilderness, then the Epiphany marks the moment when He revealed Himself as the Saviour of all, as the Almighty God and King, born into this world to gather everyone to Himself, to every nations and peoples, for He is not just God of Israel or over the land of Israel, but He is God, Ruler and King over the whole Universe, and this is what the Lord has revealed to us all, through the events of the Epiphany.
The Star of Bethlehem is a sign of the Messiah, and is also a symbol of faith or ‘Signum Fidei’ because the Three Wise Men went on that very long journey in seeking the One Whom they believed in, as a great Figure and Master, and although they did not yet know Who He truly was, but the Spirit of God present in all the peoples, even then, moved their hearts, and brought them on the journey of faith towards the Lord. The gifts which they brought to the Lord had made people to speculate the places of their origins, with the countries of Sheba and Seba in what is now Ethiopia and Yemen respectively as possible candidates. Those gifts echoed what the prophet Isaiah spoke about in the first reading today, of the caravan of camels from Sheba and Seba coming to the Lord, glorifying Him and praising Him.
The three gifts of the Three Magi are themselves also very symbolic and a revelation of Who the Lord Jesus truly was, in the gift of the gold, frankincense and myrrh. Gold represents the kingship and the glory of Christ, while the frankincense represents both His Divinity and also His role as our Eternal High Priest, and lastly the myrrh represents the way how the Lord would accomplish His mission, through the suffering and death that He would have to endure during His Passion, for our sake and our salvation. Through all these three gifts therefore, we all come to know the full extent of Who the Lord our God is, and what He has done for us through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. This is the essence of what the Epiphany celebration is all about.
First of all, the gift of gold is a very symbolic sign of the kingship of Christ, as gold has always been a very valuable commodity and noble metal used in coinage and in collection of wealth, and they are often associated with power and worldly glory, and they also have associations with the Divine, as gold is often used on the ornaments and the worship of gods and idols in various cultures and traditions. Gold in this case symbolised that Christ is truly our Lord and King, the King of Kings, Lord and Master of all, all of creation and the whole of the Universe. It also showed the glory and divinity that our Lord and God has, and how each and every one of us are expected to give Him honour, glory and homage, as the King over all of us.
Then, the gift of frankincense is a representation as earlier mentioned, of the divinity of Christ, as incense is often used in religious festivities and worship, and incense is used until this day in the Church to indicate the prayers of the faithful people of God rising towards God. At the same time, incense was also usually used by the priests in offering the sacrifices and offerings to God. Hence, this frankincense, which is among the finest type of incense available, is a representation that Christ our Lord is truly Divine, the Almighty God Who manifested Himself in the flesh, to be in our midst. Then, at the same time, it also highlighted Christ’s role as our one and true Eternal High Priest, the One Who would offer on our behalf the perfect and worthy offering, for the absolution and forgiveness of all of our sins.
Lastly, the gift of myrrh is the representation of what the Lord would do for our salvation, as myrrh is a precious spice used for the embalming of the bodies of the dead. It may indeed be a rather strange and curious gift for a newborn Child, but in this case, it is a representation of how Christ would suffer and die from the Cross that He Himself would bear, and through His death He would redeem all of us, by making us all free from sin, and then by His glorious Resurrection, He would lead us all into a new life, no longer subjected to sin and death, to evil and destruction. This is what the gift of myrrh had revealed to us, and we are all reminded that we are all truly so fortunate that God has done all of these for our sake. We must be thankful for all that He has done, and we must return to seek the Lord and His salvation.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore on this great Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, each and every one of us must always remind ourselves that the Lord our God, Who has revealed Himself to all peoples, His Epiphany, is the One Who is truly Lord and Master over all of our lives. Each and every one of us are truly blessed that God Himself has reached out to us with His perfect and wonderful love, that He endeavoured to appear to us in this manner, so that His Love is no longer hidden from us, but becoming tangible, real and reachable by us. All of us have seen His Light, known His truth and ways, heard and witnessed His Good News, and we are all called to be His beloved ones, His people and flock. The Light of Christ has illuminated us, our lives and our paths, and we should pass on this Light that more people may come to know Him, following in the footsteps of the Three Wise Men.
Let us all therefore strive to do our best so that in all that we do, we will always be filled with faith and love for God, and that we will always strive to bear witness to His truth and Good News at all times. Let our lives and actions be the means through which more and more people may come to know God, Who has revealed Himself to us, and made His love known to us. Like the Three Wise Men, let us all journey with faith towards God, and lead more and more people we encounter in our respective lives, on a journey towards our Manifested God, Whose love has been revealed to all. May the Lord continue to bless our every good efforts and endeavours, so that in everything that we say and do, we will always be the faithful and worthy bearers of His Good News, and be ever more committed and filled with His grace and love, now and always, forevermore. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
Matthew 2 : 1-12
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, in Judea, during the days of king Herod, wise men from the East arrived in Jerusalem. They asked, “Where is the newborn King of the Jews? We saw the rising of His star in the East and have come to honour Him.”
When Herod heard this he was greatly disturbed, and with him all Jerusalem. He immediately called a meeting of all high-ranking priests and scribes, and asked them where the Messiah was to be born.
“In the town of Bethlehem in Judea,” they told him, “For this is what the prophet wrote : And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, you are by no means the least among the clans of Judah, for from you will come a Leader, the One Who is to shepherd My people Israel.”
Then Herod secretly called the wise men and asked them the precise time the star appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem with the instruction, “Go and get accurate information about the Child. As soon as you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may go and honour Him.”
After the meeting with the king, they set out. The star that they had seen in the East went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the Child was. The wise men were overjoyed on seeing the star again. They went into the house, and when they saw the Child with Mary His mother, they knelt and worshipped Him. They opened their bags and offered Him their gifts of gold, incense and myrrh.
In a dream they were warned not to go back to Herod, so they returned to their home country by another way.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 