holy bishops

by

Sunday, 21 February 2016 : Second Sunday of Lent, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 26 : 1, 7-8a, 8b-9abc, 13-14

The Lord is my Light and my Salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the Rampart of my life; I will not be afraid.

Hear my voice when I call, o Lord, have mercy on me and answer. My heart says to You.

I seek Your face, o Lord. Do not hide Your face from me nor turn away Your servant in anger. You are my Protector, do not reject me.

I hope, I am sure, that I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Trust in the Lord, be strong and courageous. Yes, put your hope in the Lord!

by

Sunday, 21 February 2016 : Second Sunday of Lent, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Genesis 15 : 5-12, 17-18

Then YHVH brought Abram outside and said to him, “Look up at the sky and count the stars if you can. Your descendants will be like that.” Abram believed YHVH Who, because of this, held him to be an upright man. And He said, “I am YHVH Who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as your possession.”

Then Abram asked, “My Lord, how am I to know that it shall be mine?” YHVH replied, “Bring Me a three year old heifer, a three year old goat, a three year old ram, a turtle dove and a young pigeon.” Abram brought all these animals, cut them in two, and laid each half facing its other half, but he did not cut the birds in half. The birds of prey came down upon them, but Abram drove them away.

As the sun was going down, a deep sleep came over Abram, and a dreadful darkness took hold of him. When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot and a flaming torch passed between the halves of the victims.

On that day YHVH made a covenant with Abram saying, “To your descendants I have given this country from the river of Egypt to the Great River, the Euphrates.”

by

Sunday, 14 February 2016 : First Sunday of Advent, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we celebrate our first Sunday in the season of Lent, we always hear about the temptation of Jesus Christ our Lord in the desert by the devil, who tried to tempt Him three times without avail, and who then retreated, trying to undermine the works of the Lord in another way. This temptation of our Lord Jesus Christ is tied closely to our own observation of this Lenten period, and also to the history of our faith.

Mankind, ever since the days of Adam and Eve, our forebears and ancestors, had been afflicted with the disease of sin, as Satan managed to tempt them to disobey the Lord and by making use of our human desires to subvert us and to turn us against God, by disobeying His commandments, and by selfishly giving in to our desires. Satan had many weapons, and his greatest one is our pride, our greed and our insatiable desire to fulfil ourselves and our wants.

In the Gospel, as we heard about Jesus being tempted three times, we are heeded to take note of our weaknesses, and our vulnerabilities, which Satan and his agents can easily take advantage of, in their attempt to destroy us and bring us into the eternal darkness with them. First of all, is the temptation of our stomach, the needs and wants of our body, our flesh, the temptation of food and greed.

We all know that all living things require food in order to continue living and to survive, and without food we will eventually die of starvation and hunger. But we should also be aware of the distinction and the growing gap between the rich and the poor in our world today. All of us are indeed aware, and we should have indeed heard about how many of the poor people in places and parts of Asia, Africa, Latin America, and even in the developed countries and regions, who had not enough food even to sustain themselves, less still for their children and for their families.

And yet, we also know that there are many excesses that people in our time today had committed, squandering much money and wealth in pursuit of good food and good lifestyle, a lifestyle of hedonism and excess, where a lot of waste and a lot of injustice are being done to those who have little or even none for themselves, even to keep themselves alive. And yet, there are those who rejoice, revel at themselves and feast on top of the suffering of others.

This Lent, we are fasting because we ought to resist the temptation of our flesh. Our human needs and wants is such that, hunger and starvation can lead men to hurt or even kill one another, in order to get what we need and want. If we do not restrain ourselves, then surely we shall fall into the deep trap of sin that Satan has prepared for us. Thus, let us heed what Jesus said, that we do not live on bread or food alone, as these give us just what we need in this earthly life, but we should put our trust in the word of God, our true sustenance, for it is through the Word that we can find our way to salvation.

But we have to be careful, lest the devil used our lack of understanding of God’s words in order to deceive us and tempt us further. We saw how the devil was trying to use the verses from the Scriptures to tempt Jesus to show Himself to the people, by jumping off from the pinnacle of the Temple. Indeed, the verse meant that God will protect His people, and He will send His Angels to protect us from harm, but if we test God and try to see if He really will protect us, that means we have no faith in Him.

And the second temptation was also the temptation of pride, for we mankind are all inherently vulnerable to this trait, the pride and haughtiness in each and everyone of us. We see in many people, the desire to be recognised and to be praised, so that someone will praise us and recognise us for what we have done. But at times, we can be so desperate or our desire for such things may be so great, in the end, we lose sight and focus on what we ought to do, and again, we bring harm to others.

We see how people fight and jostle with one another, either with cunning, or trickery, with words of mouth, or even through physical violence, just so that they can have an edge over another people, and gain what they desire, that is power, honour, glory, fame and many others. And this is what the devil tried to tempt Jesu with, in his third attempt, as he brought Him to the highest mountain, offering all the kingdoms of the earth if Jesus would only worship him as lord.

But Jesus was not swayed, and He was not tempted. He knew that power, human praise, fame and glory, all forms of other temptations in the world were superficial and illusory in nature. They do not give lasting satisfaction and happiness, which can only be truly found in God alone. Power in particular is very dangerous, as the saying goes, that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

This means that if we allow ourselves to be tempted, and to seek more things for ourselves, in power and all the goods the world is offering us, then we will only get ourselves dragged deeper and deeper into the darkness, and we will never be satisfied ourselves. We should already know that, it is our tendency that once we have something that we desire, we tend to desire even more.

And this is why we abstain, and do penitential works, during this season of Lent. It was not just a mere obligation or something we have to do as part of our observation of the laws of the Church and the faith. If we look at it as that, then our focus is wrong, and what we have done will avail little at helping us to strive for God’s salvation.

Instead, we have to do what we must do in this period of Lent with proper understanding and with good faith, so that whatever we do, we do it because of our love for the Lord, and the deep and burning desire in our hearts to be cleansed of our sins and wickedness, and the desire to reject Satan and all of his lies, and be freed from our enslavement to our pride, to our greed and all forms of the temptations of the flesh and the heart.

Let us all follow our Lord Jesus’ examples, resisting the devil and all of his temptations, and through our actions during this time of Lent, let us all grow stronger in faith, and spiritually, so that we will grow more capable of resisting the advances of evil and all of its forces in the time to come. Let us all love one another, giving alms and helping those who are less fortunate than us during this time, sharing whatever goods, food or care that we have, so that all of us will be able to live comfortably and harmoniously in this world.

May Almighty God bless us and forgive us our sins, and may this season of Lent be a fruitful one in the salvation of our souls. Amen.

by

Sunday, 14 February 2016 : First Sunday of Advent, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Luke 4 : 1-13

At that time, Jesus was then full of Holy Spirit. As He returned from the Jordan, the Spirit led Him into the desert where He was tempted by the devil for forty days. He did not eat anything during that time, and at the end He was hungry. The devil then said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to turn into bread.” But Jesus answered, “Scripture says : People cannot live on bread alone.”

Then the devil took Him up to a high place, and showed Him in a flash all the nations of the world. And he said to Jesus, “I can give You power over all the nations, and their wealth will be Yours; for power and wealth have been delivered to me, and I give them to whom I wish. All this will be Yours, provided You worship me.” But Jesus replied, “Scripture says : You shall worship the Lord your God and serve Him alone.”

Then the devil took Him up to Jerusalem, and set Him on the highest wall of the Temple; and he said, “If You are God’s Son, throw Yourself down from here, for it is written : God will order His Angels to take care of You; and again : They will hold You in their hands, lest You hurt Your foot on the stones.” But Jesus replied, “It is written : You shall not challenge the Lord your God.”

When the devil had exhausted every way of tempting Jesus, he left Him, to return another time.

by

Sunday, 14 February 2016 : First Sunday of Advent, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Romans 10 : 8-13

True righteousness coming from faith also says : The word of God is near you, on your lips and in your hearts. This is the message that we preach, and this is faith. You are saved if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and in your heart you believe that God raised Him from the dead.

By believing from the heart, you obtain true righteousness; by confessing the faith with your lips you are saved. For Scripture says : No one who believes in Him will be ashamed. Here there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; all have the same Lord, Who is very generous with whoever calls on Him. Truly, all who call upon the Name of the Lord will be saved.”

by

Sunday, 14 February 2016 : First Sunday of Advent, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 90 : 1-2, 10-11, 12-13, 14-15

You who dwell in the shelter of the Most High, who rest in the shadow of the Almighty, say to the Lord, “My stronghold, my refuge, my God in Whom I trust!”

No harm will come upon you, no disaster will draw near your home. For He will command His Angels to guard you in all your ways.

They will lift you up with their hands so that your foot will not hit a stone. You will tread on wildcats and snakes and trample the lion and the dragon.

“Because they cling to Me, I will rescue them,” says the Lord. “I will protect those who know My Name. When they call to Me, I will answer; in time of trouble I will be with them; I will deliver and honour them.”

by

Sunday, 14 February 2016 : First Sunday of Advent, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Deuteronomy 26 : 4-10

Moses said, “Then the priest shall take the large basket from your hands and place it before the Altar of YHVH, your God, and you shall say these words before YHVH, ‘My father was a wandering Aramean. He went down to Egypt to find refuge there, while still few in number; but in that country, he became a great and powerful nation.'”

“‘The Egyptians maltreated us, oppressed us and subjected us to harsh slavery. So we called to YHVH, the God of our ancestors, and YHVH listened to us. He saw our humiliation, our hard labour and the oppression to which we were subjected. He brought us out of Egypt with a firm hand, manifesting His power with signs and awesome wonders.'”

“‘And He brought us here to give us this land flowing with milk and honey. So now I bring and offer the first fruits of the land which You, YHVH, have given me.'”

by

Wednesday, 3 February 2016 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr and St. Ansgar, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, if we heard today’s first reading from the Book of the prophet Samuel, we may become confused by the meaning of the story. After all, it happened during the reign of king David that after God had made his reign secure and defeated all of his rivals and enemies. And then suddenly, God punished David and his kingdom for his supposed disobedience. What did happen actually?

The key here to understand the meaning of the passage, and the actions of those who are involved in the Gospel passage. Why did king David act in the way that he had done? It was likely because of comfort and human tendency to hubris and pride, that when one is given power, authority and affluence, one tends to be complacent and allow pride to enter one’s heart.

King David asked for a census and a count of the entire people of the kingdom of Israel. It seems like something that is normal and not beyond anything strange, but if we see how God had blessed David with so many good graces and blessings, then we should realise how this act showed clearly how David was affected by the poison of pride.

It is the same with many of us mankind. For after we have already gained many things, it is very difficult for us to be satisfied, desiring ever more things and goods, so that we are never satisfied and wanting more things for ourselves. That is why in our greed we often bring about our own destruction, as we end up doing things contrary to what our Lord had taught and shown us, and instead embarking on a path of self-fulfilment.

David wished to count how many people he had, because in his heart, even though he knew how God had blessed him with prosperity, triumphant victories and glory throughout his life and reign as king, but in his heart, he was careless and allowed power and greed to corrupt him, and he desires to know how many subjects he had, to highlight and revel in his own glory, human power and affluence.

Is this not the same with people who always worry about their possessions, and count how many coins and how much money they have? It is because of the concerns of the world, the temptation of possessions, pleasures of the earth and other things that had made so many people to fall down into the pit of sin and darkness. It was what made king David stumble in this case too, just as he once also sinned with Bathsheba, the wife of his own loyal servant.

All these then come to what we heard in the Gospel today, where we heard how our Lord Jesus was rejected by His own townspeople. He was cast out and even the townspeople wanted to kill Him, all because He had shown them many things that they could not comprehend in their minds, and they could not take it upon themselves to believe that He Whom they had known as a simple carpenter, and the Son of a mere carpenter could have been God’s Messiah.

They thought that they knew Jesus and Who He was, where He came from, and what He was capable of, but in their judgmental attitude and bias, they had forgotten that the ways of the Lord are not always the same as the ways of men. And therefore, through Jesus, God made it clear to the world that in order to follow Him, we have to cast aside our human biases, our human ambitions, desires and wants, so that we may not be corrupted by them but instead be purified by the Lord and by His grace.

Today we commemorate the feast of two great and renowned saints, whose deeds and actions had shown how faithful they were to the Lord and how loving they were in their service of His people, in bringing them closer to Him and rescuing the souls of those who have been lost in the darkness. They are St. Blaise, a bishop and martyr of the faith, and St. Ansgar, who was also a holy servant and bishop of God.

St. Blaise was renowned by the blessing of St. Blaise, in which two crossed candles are placed in front of the throats of the faithful as a sign of God’s protection and blessing upon them to guard against the diseases and sickness of the throat through the intercession of St. Blaise. But the history behind this popular and ancient rite went much deeper into how St. Blaise lived his life in faith to God and how he met his martyrdom for His sake.

St. Blaise was a Roman bishop who lived in the area now known as Turkey, where he ministered faithfully to the people of God entrusted to him as their bishop, as shepherd and guide, and he was also a renowned physician who was able to heal many bodily ailments. After having devoted himself to the service of God, he became a great healer of souls, bringing many people back from the darkness and into the light.

It was told that during a particularly vicious persecution by the Eastern Emperor, Licinius, St. Blaise was arrested with many others of the faithful, and when in prison, he helped to heal a sick child who had a fish bone stuck in his throat. Through his prayers and by the grace of God, the child was healed from his illness and recovered. This he had done just prior to his martyrdom, and it was from where the popular devotion and blessing of St. Blaise came from.

Meanwhile, St. Ansgar was a German saint, a renowned preacher and a faithful servant of God, who ministered to the pagans and all the unbelievers who still lived in the area now encompassing the northern regions of Germany. He went from place to place, preaching the word of God and calling for the repentance of sinners, and for their genuine conversion to the faith.

St. Ansgar encountered many challenges, difficulties, oppositions and threats against his safety and life throughout his missions, but he never gave up or feared the challenges presented to him. Instead, he continued to push forward and preached the word of God with even greater fervour and devotion. Many listened to his call, received baptism from his hands and from his followers, and became faithful Christians.

Through his hard work and devotion, not withstanding and submitting to his own desires, St. Ansgar, and similarly with St. Blaise, both of these faithful and courageous servants of God show us that if we are faithful and if we are able to commit ourselves and remove from ourselves the temptations of power, pride and all the things of the world that distract us, we can really go very far in life.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we have to take note of what king David had done immediately after he had realised his error. He did not proudly boast of his achievements or refused to change, but immediately, he lowered himself and humbled himself before God, asking Him to have mercy on him and on his people. This is what we must do as well, whenever we have erred and sinned.

Let us all cast away our shackles of pride, desire, and all the darkness that is in us. Let us then allow the Lord to come into our lives, and let us ask Him to give us His Holy Spirit, so that our bodies, our minds, hearts and souls may be made pure and be worthy of Him. And let us all also do and say things in accordance with His will from now on, following the examples of the great saints, St. Blaise and St. Ansgar.

May God be with His people always, and may He continue to bless us, and keep us in His love always. May He forgive us our sins and bring us all into the eternal life He had promised all of His faithful ones. Amen.

by

Wednesday, 3 February 2016 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr and St. Ansgar, Bishop (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Mark 6 : 1-6

At that time, leaving the place where He raised up the dead girl, Jesus returned to His own country, and His disciples followed Him. When the Sabbath came, He began to teach on the synagogue, and most of those who heard Him were astonished.

But they said, “How did this come to Him? What kind of wisdom has been given to Him, that He also performs such miracles? Who is He but the Carpenter, the Son of Mary, and the Brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? His sisters, too, are they not here among us?” So they took offense at Him.

And Jesus said to them, “Prophets are despised only in their own country, among their relatives, and in their own family.” And He could work no miracles there, but only healed a few sick people, by laying His hands on them. Jesus Himself was astounded at their unbelief. Jesus then went around the villages, teaching.

by

Wednesday, 3 February 2016 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr and St. Ansgar, Bishop (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Bishops)

Psalm 31 : 1-2, 5, 6, 7

Blessed is the one whose sin is forgiven, whose iniquity is wiped away. Blessed are those in whom the Lord sees no guilt and in whose spirit is found no deceit.

Then I made known to You my sin and uncovered before You my fault, saying to myself, “To the Lord I will now confess my wrong.” And You, You forgave my sin, You removed my guilt.

So let the faithful ones pray to You in time of distress; the overflowing waters will not reach them.

You are my Refuge; You protect me from distress and surround me with songs of deliverance.