heart and soul

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Tuesday, 10 February 2015 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Scholastica, Virgin (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we continue the theme of the readings as we heard yesterday, of the Lord creating the whole world and the entire material universe as we know it now. He made all things good and perfect, all free from the taints of imperfections and evil in the beginning. Then indeed, we may be asking, how come then is it that there is so much evil things in the world now? How come is it that there is so much hatred, violence, jealousy and greed around us?

The answer lies in what mankind had committed in disobedience against the Lord, the sins which they have done in the presence of the Lord and men alike. Sin is a sickness of the soul, a blemish in the otherwise perfect and immaculate creations of God, especially for mankind, the greatest of all God’s creations. That is why there is so much evil in the world, so much sadness, sorrow and conflict that strike us all on daily basis.

And that was why God sent His Son Jesus into the world, in order to bring about the true purification of all mankind from the taints of sin. And today’s readings indeed share the same theme, that is cleansing and purification. However, we can see clearly in the Gospel today, the conflict that existed between Jesus our Lord and the Pharisees in how they approach this.

As I have often mentioned, the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law are notorious for having adopted an excessively strict and unforgiving stance on the interpretation and application of the Law. As a result, they gave a great burden for the people of God to bear. There are many laws, rules and regulations which the people to obey, from things that are truly important to trivial matters and things such as the cleansing of the hands before meals, just as the one mentioned in the Gospel today.

The hereditary laws and customs of the Jewish people stipulated that each person should undergo ritual cleansing, washing and purification regularly, and this includes the ritual washing before meals, where each person are supposed to wash up to and including their elbows. Indeed, such is the complicated nature of the laws, to the point that obeying them and following them required a great deal of effort, and it is likely also that many would lose the true and real intention behind why they even observed those laws in the first place.

And that was why Jesus criticised the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law so much, because they are focused so much on the external cleansing and the purity of their exteriors, that they completely forgot about their insides, that is their heart and soul. It is useless if we are concerned only about the cleansing of our bodies and the exterior, ignoring the correct alignment of our heart, that is our interior.

Why is this so, brothers and sisters in Christ? Christ had mentioned in another passage that to be concerned about which food that is worthy or unworthy, clean or unclean does not make sense, for that which brings about sin and corruption comes not from the outside but rather from the inside. External dirt and filth while unappealing do not bring about the corruption of our beings, but the corruption that is within us will eventually corrupt our bodies and externals as well.

Already this can be seen in how the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law reacted to the teachings of Jesus. They professed to be faithful to the Lord and liked to show off their piety by public display through prayers and other actions in the public places, and yet they were so judgmental to sinners and all those who genuinely needed God’s help that you truly would not believe at all that they belonged to the Lord in the first place.

They also rejected Jesus and His teachings and they spat upon His actions, which were clearly the actions of God made real in this world, the manifestation of God’s love and mercy. Instead, they were so blinded by their pride and their hubris, that these eventually led to their eventual downfall. Just as they have rejected the Lord, so will the Lord reject them.

Today, we also celebrate the feast day of St. Scholastica, a holy virgin and saint of God. St. Scholastica by tradition was the twin sister of St. Benedict of Nursia, another great and renowned saint well known for his holiness and dedication to the Lord. Both St. Scholastica and St. Benedict were devoted servants of the Lord who made monastic lifestyle an appealing way of life to the people of God.

Monastic lifestyle is for those who have decided to give all of their lives in complete and total dedication to the Lord. They withdrew from the world and from all forms of worldliness and instead, dedicate themselves in a life of prayer. As such, they commit themselves to a life of contemplation, of looking into themselves and the emptying of oneself of personal ego, but seeking the cultivation of individuals filled with the love of God.

In that way, rather than seeking the purification of the externals first, we focus on the purification of our interiors first, that is to shun all forms of temptations of sin, the lies and sweet words of Satan designed to bring about our downfall. That is what the Lord wants from us, that we all genuinely reject sin and all forms of wickedness and instead follow Him with all of our heart.

May all of us be awakened and see in Christ and all He had done, the abundance of love and mercy which God wants to shower us with, if only that we can listen to Him and learn to practice the faith we have by action and real dedication from the heart. Let us not lose our focus as the Pharisees had lost theirs and let us all be truly faithful, not just in external appearances, but truly love God from the deepest depth of our hearts. God bless us all. Amen.

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Monday, 17 November 2014 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Hungary, Religious (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are shown that those who are faithful in God and those who have endured persecution for that faith will be rewarded greatly and wonderfully by the Lord. In the first reading, from the Book of the Revelations or Apocalypse of St. John the Evangelist, in the vision of the end of times which he received from the Lord at the island of Patmos, it was written about the Lord commending the Church in Ephesus, for their perseverance in faith.

In that revelation, the Lord sent His messages, praise and also warning to the faithful in the various principal Churches of the early Christianity. The Church in Ephesus had persevered amidst the difficulties and persecutions they had to endure, but yet they also have lapsed in some aspects of their faith, and they had not been completely faithful to the Lord, and the Lord wanted to remind them that fact.

In the Gospel is the story of how Jesus healed the blind man from his affliction, enabling him to see once again. In that story, we hear how the blind man knew that Jesus was coming towards him, and he asked humbly and with great persistence, calling Him as the Son of David. This is significant, consider that he could not even see, but yet he knew that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of David, and the One who would bring mankind to salvation.

Why is this so, brothers and sisters? In another occasion, when Jesus also healed another blind man, He mentioned how the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, who opposed and criticised Jesus in His every actions by their hypocrisy and strict observance on the Law, were truly blind even though they physically could see with their eyes.

The blind man on the contrary, can truly and perfectly see, even though he may appear to be blind. That is because, ultimately, our true eyes lie in our hearts. The eye of our hearts is the one that truly sees all around us and also at the same time, show who we are inside of us. If our eyes on our head that can see visually all things around us, fail to see truth, then it is useless.

The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, they were not able to look at the truth or face the truth, that the One whom they have opposed all that time, was the One who had been promised by God to be their salvation. Yes, Jesus came to this world out of the love of God, to save all mankind, even those who hated and rejected Him. He came into this world to dispel the darkness that veiled men’s hearts, the true eyes of theirs, so that they can see once again.

The blind man recognised the light of Christ from within his heart, as even though he was unable to see, but the presence of Christ is known to him. The eyes of his heart can see clearly amidst the darkness. Meanwhile, the jealousy, pride and arrogance of the Pharisees had clouded and blinded their eyes, closing the doors of their hearts from the possibility of them accepting Jesus as their Lord.

Therefore, it is a call to all of us, so that we may abandon and reject all forms of wickedness and evil from our lives, that we do not follow the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law to their doom. Those people were not able to recognise the Lord and accept Him because of their jealousy and hatred for Him, seeing Him as a great rival to their worldly power and influence. They have seen much in world, and the temptations and seductions of Satan swayed their heart over, and they were corrupted.

The blind man, who was not able to see for many, many years, if not the whole of his life, was pure and innocent, for he was not able to see the tempting things in the world, and therefore, he was able to recognise God when He came. This means that our eyes that see many things around us, are the gateways to our hearts. And if they are corrupted, our hearts inside us too will likely to be corrupted as well.

Therefore, we have to be careful in our actions, and we have to discern well everything that we are to say or do. Let our eyes not corrupt us and resist the temptations of pride, of greed, of anger, of jealousy and of any other negativities with which the devil is trying to subvert us against the Lord. Let us break through the veil of darkness which covers our hearts, that from there, we may be like the blind man, who sincerely and genuinely seek the Lord, knowing that He is there.

Yes, our loving God is always there for us, and it only takes us to ask Him, and seek Him with all of our hearts, for us to gain His graces. Remember what He told His disciples? Ask and you shall find, knock and the door will be opened to you? Therefore, let us all ask God for His grace, that we may recognise Him and His presence in our lives, and through our interactions with those around us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today is also the feast of a holy woman, St. Elizabeth of Hungary, whose life can be a great inspiration to all of us. St. Elizabeth of Hungary was a princess of the Kingdom of Hungary during the High Middle Ages. She was of the royal blood and of very high social class, betrothed and married to the family of another ruler, and yet in all of her actions, she was very devout and charitable.

St. Elizabeth of Hungary was the patroness of many religious works, evangelisation and mission efforts, and especially, the patroness of many charitable organisations. She donated much money and funds to help the poor, and occasionally also took part in directly helping the poor themselves. She was widowed later on, and after her widowhood, she devoted herself completely to the Lord.

St. Elizabeth of Hungary donated whatever she had in her possession to charity and for the sake of the poor. She also devoted herself as a religious nun, and gave her all to God from then onwards, just as she had devoted herself earlier on through her actions. This is an example we can and indeed should follow, as with love and charity, our faith will be strong, and a strong faith will help us to keep our vision straight and clear, avoiding and resisting all the temptations and false promises of the evil one.

May Almighty God, who gave us the grace and blessing in St. Elizabeth of Hungary, a holy woman and a person of charity and love, a person of true faith and devotion, help us to also be able to walk in her path, that all of us will have our faith in Him strengthened and at the end of time, we will be found righteous and be worthy of the glories of heaven. God bless us all. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/16/monday-17-november-2014-33rd-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-elizabeth-of-hungary-religious-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/16/monday-17-november-2014-33rd-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-elizabeth-of-hungary-religious-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/16/monday-17-november-2014-33rd-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-elizabeth-of-hungary-religious-gospel-reading/

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Wednesday, 6 August 2014 : Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate a significant and very important feast day in our Church, that is the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Today we celebrate the occasion when Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour was glorified on Mount Tabor, when He revealed His glory and the true nature of divinity to His disciples, the one and only time He did so before His death and resurrection.

To the disciples who witnessed it, Peter, James and John, this was truly a moment of brief showcase and foretaste of the glory of God that is to come through Jesus Christ. Yet at that time, they have yet to be able to understand what it means by the Transfiguration, and the significance of the events and the actions which Jesus took with the two great prophets of God.

The two prophets and leaders of God’s people, Moses and Elijah are the preeminent ones among many others, in that they were the chief amongst all others whom God had sent into the world in their respective missions. To Moses, whom God had appointed as the leader and guide for His people Israel, He had imparted the very Laws that He had established with mankind, the Ten Commandments and the accompanying laws and statutes as encoded in the Law of Moses.

Thus, Moses represented the Law, which God had given to mankind to guide them and govern them in their attitudes and behaviour, that they may conform more closely to the way of the Lord. Meanwhile, the prophet Elijah, whom God appointed to prophesy to the people of the northern kingdom of Israel was the greatest among the prophets, and representing the prophesies of God, which promised the people the coming of the salvation in the Messiah.

And why did both of them appear to Jesus at the Mount Tabor on the Transfiguration? That is because Jesus is the perfect fulfillment and completion of the Law and the prophecies of the prophets. He was the fulfillment of all that God had revealed to men as well as all the things unrevealed and hidden from men, perfecting and unveiling the true full meaning of the Law, and the fulfillment of the long awaited prophecies by the prophets of old.

Therefore, the two great servants of God made their appearance in what is likely to be a very significant and symbolic meaning in the history of God’s plan for the salvation of mankind, but it is most likely that they also came to give strength and support for Jesus as He embarked on the final part of His mission on this world, that is towards His suffering and death on the cross in Jerusalem, the Holy city of God.

They were there to affirm Jesus in His mission, to encourage Him and give Him support, as surely all of heaven, all the angels and the holy men and women who had departed the world at the time were all in full awareness of the supreme importance of this singular mission that Jesus Christ was about to undertake for the sake of salvation of all mankind.

Yet, indeed, the Feast of the Transfiguration also reminds all of us of an important fact, that life is not all happy and good, and neither will it be all smooth and easy. And we are bound to have to face up to the challenges in life and the difficulties that are to be part of our lives. We are like the disciples on that mountain. When Peter said to Jesus, for them to build three tents for Himself and the two great servants of God, it showed reluctance to leave all things that are good.

But God made it plain to the disciples, and showing in His majesty, He made them listen to the will of His Son, who told them to come down with Him from the mountain where He showed His glory and majesty. From then on, He walked down that mountain towards the valley of His death, the suffering and rejection in Jerusalem. But the Lord did not fear, and therefore neither should we.

This Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord therefore does not just show us the true nature of our Lord, Saviour and God, Jesus Christ, whom the prophet Daniel in the first reading had described in his vision of the things that was to come and be fulfilled in Jesus. But, as mentioned, this Feast of the Transfiguration also reminds all of us that we too should also walk the same path as Christ, and not to be afraid of facing the difficulties and challenges awaiting us if we walk the path towards God.

May our Lord continue to shine on our path, that we may continue to follow Him, taking up our own crosses, and to suffer the persecution and rejection of this world as He had once done, so that eventually in the end we will receive the crown of everlasting honour and glory, the deserved reward we should receive as part of our heavenly inheritance.

May Almighty God, Transfigured and Revealed in His glory and majesty be aith us, protect us and remain with us forever. Amen.

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Tuesday, 5 August 2014 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Dedication of a Basilica)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate a great feast in the Church of Rome, commemorating the dedication of one of the four great Basilicas of Rome, or also known as the Papal Basilicas. And this Basilica is the Basilica of St. Mary Major, also known in its Italian name of Santa Maria Maggiore. This is an important patron saint of the city of Rome, the mother of our Lord also known as the protector of the city of Rome and its people.

She was also known by the appellation of our Lady of the Snows, because of an apparition and miracle which happened right at the site more than a thousand years ago, showing that Rome, the centre and heart of Christendom is under the protection of the Blessed Virgin. This happened when a devout Roman couple prayed to the intercession of the Virgin Mary, for a way that they may bestow their property to her honour as they were without child and heir.

The prayers was heard, and on this very day, on the fifth day of the month of August in the middle of the fourth century, at the height of summer, snow fell on the top of the Esquiline hill, the very site where the Basilica of St. Mary Major would then be built. The Pope at the time, Pope Liberius also received a vision and dream, leading him to the site where the snow fell during the height of summer. Consequently, a great basilica was built there.

This basilica was built in the honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary recently after the completion of the Ecumenical Council of Ephesus in 431AD, which is the Council that definitively settled the issues on, and honoured the Blessed Virgin with the title of the Mother of God or Theotokos, which had been accorded since the Council of Nicaea a century earlier, but opposed by many schismatics and heretics after that.

An icon representing the Mother of our Lord was then crafted and enshrined in that Basilica, which remained standing until this very day. That holy icon is revered as the image of St. Mary Major, the patron saint of the city of Rome, the See of St. Peter and St. Paul and the heart of Christendom. It would in time grow to become one of the most important shrines of Christendom, reflected in its status today as one of the four Papal Basilicas to exist.

This celebration today ultimately comes together to point out one thing, and only one thing most important over all else, that is God loves us, and He will give us everything that He has, if only that we also love Him the same way that He had loved us. And in order to love Him, we have to listen to Him and follow His will. As Jesus mentioned in the Gospel today, those who followed the will of God and walked in His ways are the ones truly blessed.

This means that our interior disposition and our spiritual development must be foremost in all things. We cannot ignore our own hearts and souls, that these must be clean and pure, and all must be in accordance with the will of God. God loves us, and He wants us back into His presence, but it is only we who have the decision whether to do as God wants us, or whether we should walk our own paths to doom.

In the Gospel Jesus also pointed out the futility of those who sought the purity of the externals, and the purity of appearances without care and attention to the purity of the heart and soul. This is what happened to the Pharisees, the elders of the people and the teachers of the Law who followed the Laws of God in the Mosaic laws so strictly that they forgot the true meaning of those laws, and what they were intended for.

They kept themselves outwardly pure and they could boast to the people and showed them how pure and holy they were, but the truth is that on the inside, they were thoroughly dirty and unclean. Their hearts were not filled with God’s love, but with their own pride, ego and human desires. They did not love God and His people, but instead they love themselves and all of their worldly desires.

This is why keeping strict religious dietary laws and habits, as well as any proscriptions or prohibitions against certain kind of food or things that we fear may ‘defile’ us is foolish and stupid. It is pointless to do so as Jesus Himself had said, that nothing dirty from outside can dirty and affect us permanently, if it is not accompanied with the internal corruption of the soul and the heart.

What is important is therefore, that we have to ensure that our actions, deeds and words, namely everything that come out from us, from our mouth, from our heart, mind and soul be clean, pure and free from evil and deceit. It is indeed what comes out from within us and not what enters into us, be it food or whatever that causes us to be defiled.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all devote ourselves to God anew, and strengthen our faith ever stronger in Him. And let us all ask for the intercession of the Blessed Mother of our Lord, that she who is the protector of the city of Rome, may also come to our aid, protecting us and guiding us, that our faith may grow stronger and stronger. May Almighty God bless us and keep us in His love always. Amen.