holy apostles

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Tuesday, 14 May 2024 : Feast of St. Matthias, Apostle (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Matthias the Apostle, one of the Twelve Apostles of the Lord, and the one who was not originally a member of the Twelve chosen by the Lord Himself to be among His chief disciples. There was a vacancy that arose due to the betrayal of Judas Iscariot, one of those Twelve, who betrayed the Lord Jesus to the chief priests and then took his own life shortly afterwards out of guilt and regret. As we heard in the Scriptural account from the Acts of the Apostles, the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord discerned about this matter and chose from among those deemed worthy to be the twelfth member of the group of the Twelve Apostles.

Historically and according to the tradition of the Church fathers, this took place after the Lord had ascended into Heaven and before the coming of the Holy Spirit in the time of the Pentecost. This happened therefore in that ten days period between the Ascension of the Lord and the Pentecost, when the disciples were gathered in Jerusalem to discern their path forward after the Lord had ascended and was no longer physically with them. But although the Holy Spirit had not been given to them through the Pentecost, it did not mean that the Lord did not act through His Church. As we all heard that the disciples, while were still full of fear then because of the threats and persecutions from the Jewish elders and the chief priests, they were led to consider the needs of the Church and its future, and they discerned well through prayer that God might guide them in the right path.

And that was how St. Matthias was elected to be the one to fill up the vacancy among the Twelve, as the number twelve has a great significance representing the Twelve tribes of the people of Israel, and hence could not be left empty then. Through the election of St. Matthias, and the subsequent descent of the Holy Spirit upon all the Lord’s disciples, the Lord sent forth His Church to proclaim His Good News and salvation to the nations just as He had intended. He sent them all so that more and more people may come to know the One and only true God, through Whom alone all grace and salvation can come from. The Apostles therefore went forth afterwards to the many places all throughout the known world then, places distant and even risky, where they had to labour hard and suffer persecutions at times to proclaim the Good News of God.

St. Matthias according to the Church and Apostolic traditions went to the region of Cappadocia in Asia Minor, proclaiming the Word of God and His salvation to the people living there, calling upon them to follow the Lord and to believe in Him. He also went to various parts of the Levant or the Holy Land early in his ministry, and in some traditions, also went to the land of Ethiopia to proclaim the Gospels, and in his efforts, he gained many people who embraced the Lord and had faith in Him because of everything that He had told them all. However, just like the other Apostles and missionaries of the Lord, he also encountered significant opposition from all those who refused to believe in God and persecuted those who believed in Christ, including the missionaries like St. Matthias himself.

According to one of those traditions, St. Matthias was martyred in that region of Ethiopia during his mission there, as he encountered opposition to his preaching and efforts to proclaim the Good News of God there from the unbelievers. In another tradition, he was martyred in Jerusalem in Judea by the local populace, the Jewish people who refused to believe in the Lord and His message. Regardless of the exact details of the events and where he had been martyred, the fact is that St. Matthias committed himself thoroughly to fulfil whatever missions and works that he had been entrusted with by God, and suffered greatly in the midst of doing all of his ministry, and yet, he remained courageous and strong in proclaiming God’s truth and salvation to the very end.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this is what we are all reminded to do as well in our own lives. As Christians, each and every one of us are called to follow in the footsteps of the Apostles and disciples of the Lord, those holy predecessors of ours who have gone before us, and have dedicated themselves and their lives to God in all various manners and ways. Yet, they all proclaim the Lord and showed everyone what it truly means for us to become disciples and followers of God by living the message of the Gospel of Christ, that is what we have heard in today’s Gospel passage. The Lord told all of them to love one another just as He has loved all of them, and how the Father has loved all, because the way and the path of the Lord is truly that one of Love and compassion.

This means that to be genuine and true Christians, we must always be filled with love, first and foremost of course directed towards God, but then we must also show the same kind of love towards our fellow brothers and sisters around us. Without love we cannot truly call ourselves as Christians, as the Lord Himself, Our Lord and Saviour, has shown us the example of perfect love and compassion towards us, by reaching out to us sinners. He shouldered for each and every one of us the burdens and the consequences of our many faults, mistakes and sins, nwillingly suffering and dying for our sake on the Cross at Calvary. This is the perfect and most selfless love that God wants us to have as well, in how we live our lives, ever loving God and our brethren.

Let us all therefore walk faithfully in the footsteps of the Holy Apostles, committing ourselves thoroughly and doing our very best so that in everything that we do, we will always glorify God and be good role models and examples for one another. Let us all be the great inspiration for our brothers and sisters so that through us, more and more may come to know the Lord, and more may be willing to walk in the path of the Lord. May St. Matthias, Holy Apostle and good servant of the Lord continue to intercede for us sinners, and help us in our journey and path towards God, inspiring us all to be more like Him in all of our actions, words and deeds, now and always. Amen.

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Tuesday, 14 May 2024 : Feast of St. Matthias, Apostle (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

John 15 : 9-17

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “As the Father has loved Me, so I have loved you. Remain in My love! You will remain in My love if you keep My commandments, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and remain in His love.”

“I have told you all this, that My own joy may be in you, and your joy may be complete. This is My commandment : Love one another as I have loved you! There is no greater love than this, to give one’s life for one’s friends; and you are My friends, if you do what I command you.”

“I shall not call you servants any more, because servants do not know what their master is about. Instead, I have called you friends, since I have made known to you everything I learnt from My Father. You did not choose Me; it was I Who chose you and sent you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last. And everything you ask the Father in My Name, He will give you.”

“This is My command, that you love one another.”

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Tuesday, 14 May 2024 : Feast of St. Matthias, Apostle (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 112 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

Alleluia! Praise, o servants of YHVH, praise the Name of YHVH! Blessed be the Name of YHVH now and forever!

From eastern lands to the western islands, may the Name of YHVH be praised! YHVH is exalted over the nations; His glory above the heavens.

Who is like YHVH our God, Who sits enthroned on high, but also bends down to see on earth as in heaven?

He lifts up the poor from the dust and the needy from the ash heap. He makes them sit with princes, with rulers of His people.

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Tuesday, 14 May 2024 : Feast of St. Matthias, Apostle (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Acts 1 : 15-17, 20-26

It was during this time that Peter stood up in the midst of the community – about one hundred and twenty in all – and he said, “Brothers, it was necessary that the Scriptures referring to Judas be fulfilled. The Holy Spirit had spoken through David about the one who would lead the crowd coming to arrest Jesus. He was one of our number and had been called to share our common ministry.”

“In the Book of Psalms it is written : ‘Let his house become deserted and may no one live in it.’ But it is also written : ‘May another take his office.’ Therefore, we must choose someone from among those who were with us during all the time that the Lord Jesus moved about with us, beginning with John’s baptism until the day when Jesus was taken away from us. One of these has to become, with us, a witness to His resurrection.”

Then they proposed two : Joseph, called Barsabbas, also known as Justus, and Matthias. They prayed : “You know, Lord, what is in the hearts of all. Show us, therefore, which of the two You have chosen to replace Judas in this Apostolic ministry which he deserted to go to the place he deserved.”

Then they drew lots between the two and the choice fell on Matthias who was added to the eleven Apostles.

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Friday, 3 May 2024 : Feast of St. Philip and St. James, Apostles (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of not just one but two of the Twelve Apostles of the Lord, namely that of St. Philip the Apostle and St. James the Apostle. The latter should not be confused with St. James the brother of St. John the Apostle, who was also an Apostle of the Lord. This St. James whose feast we are celebrating today with St. Philip was also known as St. James the Less or St. James the Lesser, called so not because he was less distinguished but rather because he was physically shorter than St. James the Greater, the brother of St. John. Both St. Philip and St. James the Less dedicated themselves to the Lord and to the missions entrusted to them, and they were faithful to the very end of their lives.

St. Philip was mentioned several times throughout the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles, as he accompanied the Lord on His mission and doing the works of the disciples of the Lord, and later on after the Lord had died, risen from the dead, and finally ascended into Heaven, St. Philip would go forth and do just as the other Apostles had done, in proclaiming the Good News of the Lord to many people, initially in the regions of Samaria where quite a few among the Samaritans had been receptive and welcoming towards the Lord and His messages and truth. St. Philip therefore continued the good works that the Lord and His disciples had begun in that region, as he laboured hard to preach the truth of God to more and more people.

According to the Acts of the Apostles, St. Philip was the one who preached the Good News to an Ethiopian official who was on his way back home from Jerusalem. St. Philip spoke with great wisdom and truth, and managed to convince the Ethiopian official, who agreed to be baptised and becoming a disciple of Christ, and hence, bringing the Christian faith back to his Ethiopian homeland. St. Philip would continue to carry on various works for the Lord, going forth on missionary journeys to various places, such as Greece, Syria and Asia Minor, where he spent time and effort going from place to place, town to town to spread the Gospels and to teach the people about the Lord, about His truth and salvation. Through his efforts, many were converted to the faith and became believers, although he did encounter significant opposition and obstacles as well.

St. Philip went through lots of tribulations and yet he still courageously carried on with his responsibilities, spending much time and sacrifices to do the will of God, endlessly and faithfully carrying out the mission entrusted to him. According to Apostolic tradition of the Church fathers, like most of the other Apostles, he went through sufferings and martyrdom at the end of his ministry and life, which happened in the region of Hierapolis in Asia Minor, where he performed his preaching and miracles, which led to the healing and conversion of the wife of the local proconsul, which enraged the latter and led him to order the arrest, torture and finally the martyrdom of both St. Philip and another Apostle, St. Bartholomew, who in some traditions were crucified upside-down.

Meanwhile, St. James the Less also carried out similar works of evangelisation and spreading of the Good News, beginning from the land of Judea and then to other places. Less information were available about him due to the frequent confusion between the identity of the one identified as St. James the Less, as some attributed him to St. James, son of Alpheus, one of the Twelve, and yet others attributed him to one St. James the Just, who was the first bishop of Jerusalem, and who was one of the Lord’s relative. Regardless of the true facts or the true identity of St. James, he did wonderful works for the Lord’s sake, and he patiently endured all the challenges and trials, guiding the faithful people of God to the right path, and was also martyred at the end of his life and ministry.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we recall the memory of their great faith and contribution to the Church and the faithful people of God, we remember how St. Philip and St. James the Less dedicated themselves to the Lord and spent their whole lives and ministries in trying to proclaim the truth and Good News of God to more and more people. They did not spare the effort and not even their own lives in doing so, and by their great examples and way of life, they have truly shown everyone what it truly means to be a disciple and follower of Christ, and how one should truly live his or her life so that he or she can truly be worthy of Him. The Lord had guided and strengthened them, and in the same manner, He has also guided and strengthened many others of our predecessors who have given their lives and efforts to glorify the Lord.

Now, what each and every one of us are called to do is to embrace God’s calling, to take up the missions which He had entrusted to us, in all the great diversities and types of missions, vocations and whatever it is that we have been entrusted with, in the various commitments, opportunities and in all the talents and abilities that we have been blessed with. Each and every one of us as members and parts of the Church of God, the same Body of Christ, are the ones who have been entrusted with the same missions as those of the Apostles. Therefore, we are also expected to do our best to proclaim the Lord, His Good News and truth to all the people in all the occasions and opportunities we have been presented with in our respective lives.

Let us all therefore continue to live our lives most worthily in the Lord, doing our very best so that in everything that we say and do we will always be ready to glorify God by our lives. Let us all be ever ready to walk the path that the Lord has shown us, even amidst the trials, challenges and obstacles that we may face in our daily living. Let the examples of the Holy Apostles, especially St. Philip and St. James continue to strengthen and encourage us to do our best in being worthy and faithful evangelisers and missionaries of the Lord, in even the smallest things that we do, in showing God’s Love and truth to all the people, through our own exemplary lives and actions. May the Risen Lord be with us all and may He empower us all to do His will, and to be His faithful disciples always. Amen.

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Friday, 3 May 2024 : Feast of St. Philip and St. James, Apostles (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

John 14 : 6-14

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. If you know Me, you will know the Father also; indeed you know Him, and you have seen Him.”

Philip asked Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and that is enough.” Jesus said to him, “What! I have been with you so long and you still do not know Me, Philip? Whoever sees Me sees the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me?”

“All that I say to you, I do not say of Myself. The Father Who dwells in Me is doing His own work. Believe Me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; at least believe it on the evidence of these works that I do. Truly, I say to you, the one who believes in Me will do the same works that I do; and he will even do greater than these, for I am going to the Father.”

“Everything you ask in My Name, I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. Indeed, anything you ask, calling upon My Name, I will do.”

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Friday, 3 May 2024 : Feast of St. Philip and St. James, Apostles (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 18 : 2-3, 4-5

The heavens declare the glory of God; the firmament proclaims the work of His hands. Day talks it over with day; night hands on the knowledge to night.

No speech, no words, no voice is heard – but the call goes on throughout the universe, the message is felt to the ends of the earth.

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Friday, 3 May 2024 : Feast of St. Philip and St. James, Apostles (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

1 Corinthians 15 : 1-8

Let me remind you, brothers and sisters, of the Good News that I preached to you and which you received and on which you stand firm. By that Gospel you are saved, provided that you hold to it as I preached it. Otherwise, you will have believed in vain.

In the first place, I have passed on to you what I myself received that Christ died for our sins, as Scripture says; that He was buried; that He was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures; that He appeared to Cephas and then to the Twelve. Afterwards He appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters together; most of them are still alive, although some have already gone to rest.

Then He appeared to James and after that to all the Apostles. And last of all, He appeared to the most despicable of them, this is to me.

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Tuesday, 9 April 2024 : 2nd Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 4 : 32-37

The whole community of believers was one in heart and mind. No one claimed private ownership of any possessions; but rather, they shared all things in common. With great power, the Apostles bore witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, for all of them were living in an exceptional time of grace.

There was no needy person among them, for those who owned land or houses, sold them and brought the proceeds of the sale. And they laid it at the feet of the Apostles, who distributed it, according to each one’s need. This is what a certain Joseph did. He was a Levite from Cyprus, whom the Apostles called Barnabas, meaning : “The encouraging one.” He sold a field which he owned and handed the money to the Apostles.

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Tuesday, 26 March 2024 : Tuesday of Holy Week (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

John 13 : 21-33, 36-38

At that time, after He said a discourse to His disciples after He washed their feet, Jesus was distressed in Spirit, and said plainly, “Truly, one of you will betray Me.” The disciples then looked at one another, wondering whom He meant. One of the disciples, the one Jesus loved, was reclining near Jesus; so Simon Peter signalled him to ask Jesus whom He meant.

And the disciple, who was reclining near Jesus, asked Him, “Lord, who is it?” Jesus answered, “I shall dip a piece of bread in the dish, and he to whom I give it, is the one.” So Jesus dipped the bread and gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. And as Judas took the piece of bread, Satan entered into him. Jesus then said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.”

None of the others, reclining at the table, understood why Jesus said this to Judas. As Judas had the common purse, they may have thought that Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or “Give something to the poor.” Judas left as soon as he had eaten the bread. It was night.

When Judas had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in Him. God will glorify Him, and He will glorify Him very soon. My children, I am with you for only a little while; you will look for Me, but as I already told the Jews, so now I tell you : where I am going you cannot come.”

Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, where are You going?” Jesus answered, “Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but afterwards you will.” Peter said, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I am ready to give my life for You.”

“To give your life for Me?” Jesus asked Peter, “Truly I tell you, the cock will not crow, before you have denied Me three times.”