holy bishops

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Monday, 5 June 2023 : 9th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Mark 12 : 1-12

At that time, using parables, Jesus went on to say, “A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a hole for the wine press and built a watch tower. Then he leased the vineyard to tenants and went abroad. In due time he sent a servant to receive from the tenants his share of the fruit. But they seized the servant, struck him and sent him back empty-handed.”

“Again the man sent another servant. They also struck him on the head and treated him shamefully. He sent another and they killed him. In the same way they treated many others : some they beat up and others they killed. One was still left, his beloved son. And so, last of all, he sent him to the tenants, for he said, “They will respect my son.”

“But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the one who is to inherit the vineyard. Let us kill him and the property will be ours.’ So they seized him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. Now what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”

And Jesus added, “Have you not read this text of the Scriptures : The stone which the builders rejected has become the keystone; this is the Lord’s doing, and we marvel at it?”

They wanted to arrest Him, for they realised that Jesus meant this parable for them, but they were afraid of the crowd; so they left Him and went away.

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Monday, 5 June 2023 : 9th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 111 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Alleluia! Blessed is the one who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in His commands. His children will be powerful on earth; the upright’s offspring will be blessed.

Wealth and riches are for his family, there his integrity will remain. He is for the righteous a light in darkness, He is kind, merciful and upright.

It will be well with him who lends freely, who leads a life of justice and honesty. For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered and loved forever.

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Monday, 5 June 2023 : 9th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Tobit 1 : 3 and Tobit 2 : 1b-8

I, Tobit, have walked in the ways of truth and justice all the days of my life; I have given many alms to my brethren and to those of my countrymen who were deported with me to Nineveh, a city in the country of the Assyrians.

At the feast of Pentecost, the sacred feast of the Seven Weeks, they prepared a good meal for me and I sat down to eat. I saw the many dishes and said to my son : “Go and bring as many as you can find of our relatives who are in need and who remember the Lord. I will wait here for them.”

When Tobias returned, he said : “Father, one of ours has been strangled and thrown into the public square.” Before I ate anything I hurried out and carried this man into the house and waited till sunset to bury him. When I returned home I washed myself and ate my food in sorrow.

I remembered the prophecy which Amos uttered against Bethel : “Your feasts will be turned into mourning. All your songs will be turned into lamentations,” and I wept. After sunset I went out and, after I had dug a trench, I buried the man. My neighbours mocked me, saying : “He no longer fears to be put to death for doing that; he had to flee but look he is again burying the dead.”

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Saturday, 27 May 2023 : 7th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Augustine of Canterbury, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, all of us are reminded of the need for all of us to continue living our lives faithfully as Christians at all times, in carrying out the will of God and in doing what we can to proclaim His truth and Good News in all possible opportunities that God has provided to us, following the good examples that the Apostles and many other saints and holy people of God, our holy predecessors had done. Each one of us have been called and sent to do whatever the Lord has willed for us to do, in our respective various areas of responsibility, and in whichever places and communities that God has desired us to be, all according to His will.

In our first reading today, we heard of the ministry of St. Paul the Apostle who had come to Rome at the end of his long travel from Jerusalem and after enduring a shipwreck that brought him to the island of Malta and gave him the opportunity to evangelise to the people there. St. Paul went to Rome upon answering God’s call, as He told St. Paul of everything that he would do for His glory, in fulfilling His wishes, that St. Paul ought to proclaim the Good News to the faithful at the very heart and centre of the Roman Empire. The Lord has sent St. Paul to perform His good works among His people, and through the Apostle, He laid the firm foundation of His Church, strengthened by the faith and the dedication of His Apostles like St. Paul, St. Peter and others.

As we heard in our Gospel passage today, we listened to the conversation between the Lord Jesus and His disciples, in which St. Peter asked the Lord about the saying that one of them, the youngest among them, St. John the Apostle, to whom the Lord had entrusted His own mother Mary, would not die till the day the Lord comes again. The Lord then told St. Peter that if He wanted St. John or anyone to live till the day He comes, that is His decision and His prerogative alone, and everything will indeed happen as He desires it to be. In a way, this would be fulfilled as St. John was the one to whom the Lord showed the heavenly and otherworldly vision of the end of time, which he recorded and wrote in the Book of Revelations.

Thus, in a way, St. John indeed did not die before he saw the coming of the Lord, as in his visions, St. John did indeed see the triumphant Second Coming of the Lord, and wrote about it in his Book so that all of us, the faithful people of God may remain firm in our faith and know what is coming ahead for us. All of us are reminded that each and every one of us as God’s followers are called to carry on with our mission, in our respective areas of responsibility and calling, in our own communities and in wherever the Lord has called and sent us to, just like how He has called and sent His Apostles. Each and every one of us are members and parts of the same Church of God, and hence, we are part of the ever growing efforts and works of the Church to reach out to more and more souls out there.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day, at the penultimate day of the season of Easter, with the Solemnity of the Pentecost Sunday happening just tomorrow, all of us are therefore reminded that we are all part of the Church’s important evangelising mission and works, in reaching out to all those who are still not yet aware of the Lord, His truth and Good News, and everything that He has done for us. All of us are parts of this missionary work, the same mission which He Himself has entrusted and commanded to His disciples, that is to go forth to all the people of all the nations, and to baptise them all in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

All of us are strengthened and encouraged with the hope that the Lord has given us, and through the Holy Spirit that He has bestowed upon us, His Church. Through the guidance and strength that we have been provided with, we have gone truly very far in our journey of faith and work, and we have already grown ever stronger in our efforts and works to glorify Him and in doing whatever it is that the Lord has taught us to do. And each of our actions and contributions do matter, and we should not be disheartened if we think that we have not done a lot for the Lord. After all, each and every one of our actions are part of the greater works of the Church, and we must realise that no one can do all those great works all by themselves. All of us have to help and assist each other, and help one another in fulfilling what the Lord has called us all to do, and strengthen one another that we may always be firm in our faith and dedication.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence renew our commitment and desire to serve and follow the Lord, to do His will and to proclaim His Good News just as the Apostles and our other holy predecessors had done in the past. All of us have been given the various talents, abilities and gifts in order to do God’s will and to carry out our missions in life. Each and every one of us should do whatever we can so that we may inspire more and more souls to come closer towards God and His grace and love. We must also realise that eachh one of us are capable of doing just so many great and wonderful things if we put our heart into our efforts, and do whatever we can to obey the Lord and His commandments, and to do what we can to serve the Lord at all times.

St. Augustine of Canterbury, whose feast we celebrate today, can inspire all of us in our actions and works as well, since this great saint and man of God had given his whole life to the service and the glory of God. He was a monk who was entrusted with the mission to proclaim the Christian faith in the British Isles, to proclaim the truth of God to those who have lost their path and to those who have not yet heard or known about the Christian faith and truth, the Good News of God. He was sent by Pope St. Gregory the Great to evangelise to the people of the British Isles, especially to England, where he ministered faithfully for many years, as the first Archbishop of Canterbury, establishing the first firm foundation for the Church in England. His courage and dedication should serve as inspiration to all of us as Christians.

May the Risen Lord, through His faithful Apostles and disciples, St. Paul the Apostle, St. Peter and St. John, among many others, including that of St. Augustine of Canterbury, continue to strengthen all of us in our faith. May the Lord continue to empower us all and give us the strength and courage to walk ever more faithfully in the path that He has shown us and led us to. Through the Holy Spirit, may He continue to inflame in us the spirit and the passion to do His will, as always. May the Lord be with us always and bless our every good works and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Saturday, 27 May 2023 : 7th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Augustine of Canterbury, Bishop (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 21 : 20-25

At that time, Peter looked back and saw that the disciple Jesus loved was following as well, the one who had reclined close to Jesus at the supper, and had asked Him, “Lord, who is to betray You?”

On seeing him, Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, what about him?” Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain until Income, does that concern you? Follow Me!” Because of this the rumour spread in the community that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus had not said to Peter, “He will not die,” but, “Suppose I want him to remain until I come.”

It is this disciple who testifies about the things he has written here, and we know that his testimony is true. But Jesus did many other things; if all were written down, I think the world itself could not contain the books that should be written.

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Saturday, 27 May 2023 : 7th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Augustine of Canterbury, Bishop (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 10 : 4, 5 and 7

The Lord is in His holy place – our God Whose throne is in heaven. He looks down to earth to observe the race of Adam.

The Lord searches both righteous and wicked. He hates those who delight in violence, for the Lord is righteous; He loves justice. The upright will see His face.

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Saturday, 27 May 2023 : 7th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Augustine of Canterbury, Bishop (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 28 : 16-20, 30-31

Upon our arrival in Rome, the captain turned the prisoners over to the military governor but permitted Paul to lodge in a private house with the soldier who guarded him. After three days, Paul called together the leaders of the Jews.

When they had gathered, he said to them : “Brothers, though I have not done anything against our people or against the traditions of our fathers, I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans. They examined me and wanted to set me free, for they saw nothing in my case that deserved death.”

“But the Jews objected, so I was forced to appeal to Caesar without the least intention of bringing any case against my own people. Therefore, I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I bear these chains.”

Paul stayed for two whole years in a house he himself rented, where he received without any hindrance all those who came to see him. He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught the truth about Jesus Christ, the Lord, quite openly and without any hindrance.

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Tuesday, 2 May 2023 : 4th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, all of us are reminded of the call and responsibilities that each and every one of us have as Christians in proclaiming the truth of God to more and more people around us, to all those who have not yet heard of Him and those who have yet to know Him. All of us are called to be the bearers of God’s truth and love to the world, through our every words, actions and deeds. All of us ought to proclaim our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, the Risen Lord, and everything that He had done for us, in bringing us all out of the darkness and into the light, in saving us all from the threat of eternal damnation and death by freeing us from our sins. As Christians, each and every one of us are called and reminded to be good and faithful missionaries through our lives and our good examples.

In our first reading today, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, we heard of the continuing growth of the early Church, as there were more and more people who came to believe in the Lord and became believers, were baptised and welcomed into the community of the Christian faithful. It was told how the Apostles sent St. Barnabas to Antioch upon hearing of the vibrant and rapid growth of Christians in those regions, and despite the many challenges, trials, persecutions and hardships that they faced, it was said that the Lord was with His disciples and faithful ones, as He guided and strengthened them, protected and provided them throughout their journey of faith and life. The Apostles through St. Barnabas ministered to the Christian faithful, spreading the Good News of God and proclaiming His truth, calling on many to turn towards the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour.

The Lord has shown us all His faithfulness and love through this, and through many more examples, as He was with them all through even the most difficult and challenging moments, as a Good Shepherd guiding His beloved sheep in His flock, as we heard in our Gospel passage today. He cared for them, for their needs and provided for them, guarded and protected them, and gave them the love and attention, leading them from the darkness of this world into the true Light of His glory and truth. All of us are reminded that Christ is truly our Good Shepherd, the most loving Lord and God Who has showered and shown us His most generous love and attention, Who knows each and every one of us very well, and Who wants all of us to follow Him and become members of His flock, as Christians, those whom the people of Antioch called as such because of their belief in the Risen Christ.

Now, all of us are reminded today if we have lived our lives as the Lord has taught us to do, and whether we have committed our time and effort to glorify Him by our lives. As Christians, we are all those who have committed ourselves to the Risen Lord, Whom we have taken as our Lord, Master and Saviour. However, if we spend some time to look deep into ourselves and our way of life, very soon we may realise that it was often that we did not act in the way that the Lord has called and expected us to do, and on the contrary, we often acted in ways that were contrary to His teachings and truth. Many of us failed to embrace His path wholeheartedly and not only that, but often through our wayward actions and way of life, we turned people away from the Lord and His Church, because our actions, words and deeds, our way of life were abhorrent and against what our faith truly is.

That is why today all of us are reminded that as Christians all of us must first of all do what the Lord has commanded and taught us to do, to be devoted and committed to Him in all things. Each and every one of us have been given the gifts, grace and blessings, the opportunities and the abilities to carry out our respective parts in doing the work of God, to be faithful and committed in our lives as Christians. All of us should do our best and strive to be good role models, inspirations and examples to one another in our faith and way of life. For we have to realise that it is by our works and deeds, by our words and interactions with others that we may let the world know of the truth and the identity of Our Lord and Saviour, the One Whom we ought to be proclaiming about. But too often we allowed ourselves to be tempted by various temptations, and chose to walk the path of wickedness and evil instead.

Today, let us all be inspired by the great examples shown by the great servant of God, St. Athanasius, a renowned and most faithful disciple of the Lord, a most courageous and fearless defender of the faith, whose feast day we are celebrating on this very day. St. Athanasius was also known as St. Athanasius the Great or St. Athanasius of Alexandria, and was the Bishop of Alexandria, also known as the Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria, as one of the most prominent leaders of the Church during his time. He led the Church of Alexandria and was involved greatly throughout Christendom for a long period of forty-five years, which was intermittent due to the challenges and trials that he had to face during his ministry, which saw him being exiled and punished several times by those who opposed and oppressed him.

St. Athanasius lived and ministered to the faithful during a time of great change to the Church, as it was the years and decades following after the end of the long state persecution of Christianity by the Romans, with the Edict of Milan by the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great, ever sympathetic to the Christian cause. However, this joy at the end of the persecution of the Church and Christians was then overshadow by the intensifying divisions within the Church due to various heresies, and most importantly then, was the rapidly rising heretical teachings of the arch-heretic Arius, a very popular preacher that claimed and taught that Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Messiah, was not equal to God the Father, but rather subservient to Him and existed after the Father, not Co-Eternal and not Co-Equal, neither Consubstantial with Him.

This heretical teachings gained wide support throughout Christendom and gained the support and belief of even many among the Church leaders and bishops, especially throughout the Eastern part of the Roman Empire, including Alexandria where St. Athanasius himself was Bishop at, with Arius himself hailing from the same region as well. St. Athanasius was very passionate and courageous, hardworking and zealous in his many efforts against the Arian heresy, resisting those who sought to subvert and divide the Church for their own selfish ambitions and desires. St. Athanasius did not give up even when many of the upper echelon of the Roman society and government were swayed by the Arians and some of them even becoming ardent supporters of the Arians and their false faith.

St. Athanasius faced a lot of struggles and hardships, having to endure persecution and even exile from his See of Alexandria, by the order and working of those who were favourable and supporters of the Arians. But he continued to faithfully carry out his works, writing extensively on the matters of the faith, supporting and strengthening all the others who also struggled with the various persecutions, hardships, divisions, heretical teachings and other challenges that they had to face throughout their lives and ministry. Despite the repeated challenges, exiles, hardships and all the other things that he had to endure, St. Athanasius continued to remain faithful to the calling and mission he had as the shepherd of the Lord’s flock, to the very end, and his courage and faithfulness, his persistence and perseverance in carrying out his works and mission should inspire us all as Christians to do the same as well.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all be inspired by the good examples of St. Athanasius, holy servant of God, our role model and most courageous defender of the Christian faith. Let us all be good role models and inspirations to one another as well, through our every words, actions and deeds, so that we may inspire more and more people to be ever more committed to the Lord and to follow Him. That is our calling and that is what we should be doing in our daily lives as those who truly believe in the Lord. May the Lord, our Saviour and Good Shepherd, be our guide and help and may He empower us all to be like His servants, like St. Athanasius and others in their faith and commitment. May God bless our every good works and efforts, for the greater glory of His Name. Amen.

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Tuesday, 2 May 2023 : 4th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 10 : 22-30

At that time, the time came for the Feast of the Dedication. It was winter, and Jesus walked back and forth in the portico of Solomon. The Jews then gathered around Him and said to Him, “How long will You keep us in doubt? If You are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”

Jesus answered, “I have already told you, but you do not believe. The works I do in My Father’s Name proclaim Who I am, but you do not believe because, as I said, you are not My sheep. My sheep hear My voice and I know them; they follow Me and I give them eternal life.”

“They shall never perish, and no one will ever steal them from Me. What the Father has given Me is above everything else, and no one can snatch it from out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are One.”

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Tuesday, 2 May 2023 : 4th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 86 : 1-3, 4-5, 6-7

He Himself has built it in His holy mountain; the Lord prefers the gates of Zion to all of Jacob’s towns. Great things have been foretold of you, o city of God.

Between friends we speak of Egypt and Babylon; and also Philistia, Tyre, Ethiopia : “Here so-and-so was born.” But of Zion it shall be said, “More and more are being born in her.” For the Most High Himself has founded her.

And the Lord notes in the people’s register : “All these were also born in Zion.” And all will dance and sing joyfully for You.