holy bishops

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Saturday, 17 September 2022 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Robert Bellarmine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church and St. Hildegard of Bingen, Virgin and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops or Holy Virgins)

1 Corinthians 15 : 35-37, 42-49

Some of you will ask : How will the dead be raised? With what kind of body will they come? You fools! What you sow cannot sprout unless it dies. And what you sow is not the body of the future plant, but a bare grain of wheat or any other seed.

It is the same with the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in decomposition; it will be raised never more to die. It is sown in humiliation, and it will be raised for glory. It is buried in weakness, but the resurrection shall be with power. When buried, it is a natural body, but it will be raised as a spiritual body. For there shall be a spiritual body, as there is, at present, a living body. Scripture says that Adam, the first man, became a living being; but the last Adam has become a life-giving Spirit.

The Spirit does not appear first, but the natural life, and afterward comes the Spirit. The first man comes from the earth and is earthly, while the second One comes from heaven. As it was with the earthly one, so is it with the earthly people. As it is with Christ, so with the heavenly. This is why, after bearing the image of the earthly one, we shall also bear the image of the Heavenly One.

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Friday, 16 September 2022 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Cornelius, Pope and Martyr, and St. Cyprian, Bishop and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are reminded of the hope which the Lord had brought upon us, the hope of the glorious resurrection and new life which our Lord and Saviour has brought upon us, the life that is blessed and filled with grace, with the righteousness of God. God has granted us this new hope and light through His Son, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, Whose own suffering and death, and then glorious Resurrection from the dead become the source of our hope and the light that illuminates our path, long darkened by the despair and the evils of the world.

In our first reading today taken from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in the city of Corinth, the Apostle spoke clearly regarding the belief in the Resurrection from the dead, just as the Lord Jesus Himself has been risen from the dead. The belief in the Resurrection of the Lord is one most fundamental part of the Christian faith which set it apart from other faiths and beliefs, that marked it as the one true Faith. The Christian faith is anchored in the belief in the Resurrection of the Lord, without which then our faith in Him would have had no sense or meaning, as without the Resurrection, then we are merely just believing in a dead person who had not existed anymore in this world and who cannot help us, and we are also reminded that there is no hope beyond death otherwise.

Yet, the Lord rose gloriously from dead, and in His triumphant glory, He defeated sin and death, crushing the dominion of Satan and all the forces of evil over us, showing us definitively that there is a sure and clear path to redemption and reconciliation between God and mankind. Through Christ, all of the people of God have been given the passageway towards the eternal and new life in God, as He offered Himself as the worthy Paschal Lamb of sacrifice, to atone for our many sins and to reunite us with our loving God and Creator. By His death, all of us have been sharing in the death to our past sins and wickedness, and by His Resurrection, we have been invited to anticipate our own resurrection into glory and eternal life.

And the Apostles were true witnesses of all these, and they professed their faith, preaching the Good News and the truth of God, guided by the Holy Spirit. St. Paul presented all these as the sole truth, and how if they had not been the truth, then everything that Christians had believed would have been a lie, and all those martyrs who had died defending their faith would have died in vain, and everything and everyone that had placed their faith in the Lord would have done so in folly. Yet, that was not what happened, and the Apostles, including that of St. Paul had spoken so courageously and with such conviction because they themselves had witnessed the truth of the Lord and received wisdom from the Holy Spirit.

Through His coming into this world, the Lord Jesus has shown us the love of God personified and manifested in the flesh, that God’s ever enduring and infinite love has now become tangible and approachable to us. He came in our midst through His Son, Who has willingly embraced us and helped us to overcome our troubles and predicaments, and bore upon His own shoulders, the heavy burdens of our many and innumerable sins. He bore upon Himself the punishments due for all those sins and faults, and offered on our behalf the most worthy offering of His own Precious Body and Blood, that through His loving sacrifice and offering, we may have the certainty of eternal life.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to these readings and passages from the Scriptures, we are all reminded that as Christians, we are all witnesses of our Lord’s truth, death and Resurrection. We have received the same truth that the Apostles had spoken so courageously about, and for which many martyrs had laid down their lives for the sake of the glory of God and for the salvation of His people. And therefore we are called to do the same as well in our own lives, and we should do our best to carry out our mission in life in being good and faithful disciples of our Lord in all the things we do, in our every interactions and efforts to glorify Him by our lives.

Today, all of us should be inspired by the good examples set by Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian, whose feast day we celebrate this day. Pope St. Cornelius was the Bishop of Rome and Pope, the leader of the Universal Church at the time when there was intense persecution against the Church and all Christians by the Roman state. At that time, both Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian, the Bishop of Carthage were contemporaries who were not only facing the challenges from the persecutions by the Roman government on their flocks and themselves, but also the divisions which were caused by the Novatianists or the Novatian heresy.

Back then, there were disagreements and discords within the Church because there were those like Novatian who refused to admit those lapsed Christians and all those who had partaken in pagan sacrifices and ceremonies, and those who like Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian that supported the reconciliation of those lapsed Christians. Novatian and his supporters argued that once those Christians lapsed, betrayed and abandoned the Lord, there could be no return for them, while Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian championed the cause of the reconciliation of those lapsed Christians, reminding the faithful of the ever generous mercy and compassion of God for His people.

In the end, Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian managed to overcome the obstacle and united the Church behind the true path that they championed, rejecting the beliefs of the Novatian party as a heresy, and excommunicated Novatian after he refused to change his views and ideas. All of the other great works that these two saints had done continued to help the Church and the people of God in various other ways, and in the end, each one of them were martyred by the intense Roman persecutions of the Church mentioned earlier, and their courage in remaining faithful to the very end were sources of great inspiration to the faithful people of God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore be inspired by the examples of Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian of Carthage, in their dedication to God and at the same time, in how they extended God’s love and mercy to His people, to those who have by various reasons, lapsed from the Christian faith, fell into sin or forced to participate in the pagan rituals, that they still have the opportunity to repent and turn back towards the Lord, just as how the Lord Himself had reached out to those considered as great sinners, like prostitutes and tax collectors among others, even criminals and all those who were possessed by evil spirits, and those rejected and ostracised by the society.

Let us all therefore remember to bring forth the love of God into our communities, remembering how the Lord Himself has loved all of us and brought His light and hope into our midst as He came to us, through His Son, Jesus Christ, by Whose suffering, death and resurrection, we have been made sharers in the inheritance of eternal life and glory that will be ours if we remain ever faithful to Him. May the Lord be with us always, and may He continue to strengthen us in our faith in Him and help us to continue to love Him, now and in each and every moments of our lives. Amen.

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Friday, 16 September 2022 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Cornelius, Pope and Martyr, and St. Cyprian, Bishop and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Luke 8 : 1-3

At that time, Jesus walked through towns and countryside, preaching and giving the Good News of the kingdom of God. The Twelve followed Him, and also some women, who had been healed of evil spirits and diseases : Mary called Magdalene, who had been freed of seven demons; Joanna, wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward; Suzanna; and others, who provided for them out of their own funds.

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Friday, 16 September 2022 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Cornelius, Pope and Martyr, and St. Cyprian, Bishop and Martyr (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 16 : 1, 6-7, 8b and 15

Hear a just cause, o Lord, listen to my complaint. Give heed to my prayer for there is no deceit on my lips.

I call on You, You will answer me, o God; incline Your ear and hear my word. For You do wonders for Your faithful, You save those fleeing from the enemy as they seek refuge at Your right hand.

Keep me as the apple of Your eye; under the shadow of Your wings hide me. As for me, righteous in Your sight, I shall see Your face and, awakening, gaze my fill on Your likeness.

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Friday, 16 September 2022 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Cornelius, Pope and Martyr, and St. Cyprian, Bishop and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

1 Corinthians 15 : 12-20

Well, then, if Christ is preached as risen from the dead, how can some of you say, that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is empty, and our belief comes to nothing. And we become false witnesses of God, attesting that He raised Christ, whereas He could not raise Him, if indeed, the dead are not raised.

If the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith gives you nothing, and you are still in sin. Also, those who fall asleep, in Christ, are lost. If it is only for this life, that we hope in Christ, we are the most unfortunate of all people. But no, Christ has been raised from the dead, and He comes before all those who have fallen asleep.

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Tuesday, 13 September 2022 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the words of the Lord in the Scriptures reminding us that all of us have been gathered as one people and one flock by the Lord to be His followers and disciples, and to receive the bountiful gifts of His graces and blessings. The Lord has gathered us all from the nations and from the world, regardless of our background or origins, all equally beloved by God and all equally precious to Him. And through Him, we shall receive the assurance of eternal life, true happiness and joy, and we will find the path to eternal bliss with Him, at the end of time.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in Corinth regarding how the Church is united as one body, the one Body of Christ, composed of all believers, not distinguished by anything or by any considerations of their background, be it whether the faithful were Jews or Greek, at the time when the Jewish people were often harbouring prejudice and dislike for the non-Jewish peoples, also known as the Gentiles, most of whom were Greeks and those who were steeped in the Greco-Roman culture and ways, as opposed to those who fervently and zealously kept the Jewish laws and customs.

St. Paul also highlighted the unity of the Church and the faithful although its members came from among the free and the rich, as well as from among the slaves, the poor and the marginalised in the community. All of the people, regardless of their origins, backgrounds and others, who have been called by God and received baptism through Him, have been made sharers of the same Body of Christ and became that one united Body of believers. And amidst the divisions and the struggles that the different factions of the faithful in Corinth experienced back then, this was a truly powerful, important and timely reminder from the Apostle.

This is a reminder that as one faithful people and community of Christians, all of us in the Church should not be prejudiced, biased or divided against each other. We should not let our differences, whether in opinion or whether in our background and status to be stumbling blocks and obstacles in preventing us from achieving true unity in God. We have to remind ourselves that in the Church we are serving the Lord and not our own selfish desires, ambitions and other things. We are God’s servants and followers, and we should focus our attention on Him, our efforts on glorifying Him rather than seeking attention towards ourselves.

Through the Lord we have received the assurance of salvation and eternal life, an existence beyond death, which all of us in one way or another, and which eventually will experience, as all of us are mortal and will not live in this world forever. As highlighted in our Gospel passage today from the story of the widow of Naim, death is something that will claim us all, and we heard of the sorrow that accompanied this, especially the widow who had to see her own son pass away before herself. Yet, the Lord showed that He is truly the Lord and Master of all life, as He raised the widow’s son from the dead, just as He had done so with the daughter of the synagogue official, Jairus, and with Lazarus, one of His close friends.

All of these showed us that while death exists as a punishment for our sins, that came with the taint of sin which entered to our humanity through our disobedience against God, but the Lord in His most wonderful and loving way has extended His most gracious love and mercy towards us, through His Son showing us that death does not hold dominion over us. Not only through the miraculous resurrection from the dead, but even more importantly, through His own suffering and death on the Cross, and then His own glorious Resurrection, Christ conquered sin and death, and presented to us the sure path out of the darkness and into the light and life eternal.

Today all of us are reminded therefore to focus our attention on the Lord, and on the love and truth which He has revealed to us through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. All of us have been so fortunate to receive this assurance of love, and hence, we should do our best to live our lives worthily as Christians, that is as God’s disciples and followers, in the footsteps of our holy predecessors, the saints and martyrs, who should be our inspiration and role models. St. John Chrysostom, whose feast we are celebrating today, is one of them. He is the Archbishop of Constantinople, the then capital of the Roman Empire and also recognised later on as one of the great Doctors of the Church.

St. John Chrysostom was attracted to the Christian faith and studied theology as well as experiencing ascetic lifestyle as a hermit before he became a deacon, and later on becoming a great priest in Antioch, renowned for his eloquent and courageous sermons, which stirred the hearts of many people. He placed particular emphasis in the care for the poor and was particularly against the abuse of power and privileges by the rich and the powerful against the poor and those who were marginalised by the community. He preached directly to the people, with simple terms and words which helped him to connect well to those whom he was preaching to, helping him to convert countless thousands to the faith.

Eventually this holy man and servant of God was appointed as the Archbishop of Constantinople, and his works and reforms immediately gained opposition from the members of the rich and privileged, the nobles and the powerful clergy who opposed his more simple and disciplined approach in the Church affairs. It was particularly known that he was the enemy of the powerful Roman Empress Aelia Eudoxia, whose extravagant lifestyle was opposed by St. John Chrysostom, and the former also thought that St. John’s sermons were directed against herself. As such, by the efforts of those opposed against him, St. John Chrysostom had to endure exile from his See, and he was banished not just once but twice, as frictions continued to exist between the Empress and her supporters and St. John Chrysostom and his supporters on the other side.

The holy man of God nonetheless never gave up, and continued to serve the Lord faithfully, dedicating himself to whatever tasks and ministries he could perform, even while in exile, until his death. The dedication and hard works of St. John Chrysostom should therefore inspire all of us to trust in the Lord and allow Him to lead and guide us in our journey of faith and life. We have to remind ourselves that we have to serve God in this life and proclaim His truth and love by our lives. Let us all remind one another that God and His love for us have made us truly blessed and fortunate, for by His love, He has gathered us all from all the peoples and all the nations, to be His one flock, one Body of Christ, the Church.

May the Lord continue to bless us and strengthen us in all things. May He empower and strengthen us to be able to face challenges and trials in life. May He give us the courage and the energy to resist against the temptations of this world, and help us to remember that we are all His people, and that we should always be united in love with each other, and not be divided one against another. May God be with us always, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Tuesday, 13 September 2022 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 7 : 11-17

At that time, a little later after Jesus healed the servant of a captain in Capernaum, He went to a town called Naim. He was accompanied by His disciples and a great number of people. As He reached the gate of the town, a dead man was being carried out. He was the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; there followed a large crowd of townspeople.

On seeing her, the Lord had pity on her and said, “Do not cry.” Then He came up and touched the stretcher, and the men who carried it stopped. Jesus then said, “Young man, I say to you, wake up!” And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.

A holy fear came over them all, and they praised God saying, “A great Prophet has appeared among us; God, has visited His people.” The news spread throughout Judea and the surrounding places.

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Tuesday, 13 September 2022 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 99 : 2, 3, 4, 5

Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.

Know that the Lord is God; He created us and we are His people, the sheep of His fold.

Enter His gates with thanksgiving, His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and bless His Name.

For the Lord is good; His love lasts forever and His faithfulness through all generations.

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Tuesday, 13 September 2022 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 Corinthians 12 : 12-14, 27-31a

As the body is one, having many members, and all the members, while being many, form one body, so it is with Christ. All of us, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, have been baptised in one Spirit, to form one Body, and all of us have been given, to drink from the one Spirit. The Body has not just one member, but many.

Now, you are the Body of Christ, and each of you, individually, is a member of it. So God has appointed us in the Church. First Apostles, second prophets, third teachers. Then come miracles, then the gift of healing, material help, administration in the Church and the gift of tongues. Are all Apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Can all perform miracles, or cure the sick, or speak in tongues, or explain what was said in tongues? Be that as it may, set your hearts on the most precious gifts.

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Tuesday, 2 August 2022 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Eusebius of Vercelli, Bishop, and St. Peter Julian Eymard, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops and Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are called to believe in God and to trust in Him, despite all the challenges and trials that we may have to face and endure throughout our journeys of faith and life. Each and every one of us are called to devote our time, effort and attention to the Lord, and to put our trust in Him that He will guide us through the ups and downs of this life we have in this world, and in the end, we shall be triumphant with Him, hand in hand. We shall not be disappointed if we have faith in the Lord.

In our first reading today, we heard the words of the Lord speaking to us from the Book of the prophet Jeremiah in which the prophet spoke of God’s words to His people, the Israelites particularly in Judah, a people who had become wayward in their ways, wicked in their deeds and who had fallen away from the path of God’s righteousness. They had abandoned God, His Law and commandments, persecuting all those whom God had sent to them to remind and call them to repentance. As such, God said that by their own wickedness and deeds, they would be judged and would have to suffer the consequences of their sins.

But at the same time, just as the Lord has spoken the ominous words of warning and voicing out His displeasure at the wickedness of His people, He also reaffirmed them in His love, reminding them that while He disapproved of and hated their sins, and would discipline them for their misbehaviours, ultimately, His love for them was still and would still be greater than His disgust for their sins. He would gather them back and be reunited and reconciled with them. Through their sincere repentance and desire to return to Him, God would forgive His people and bring them all back to His loving embrace.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the famous story of how the Lord Jesus appeared to His disciples in the middle of a great storm by the lake, in which the disciples’ boat was travelling in. The storm, the gale, the wind and the waves were so intense that the boat was in real danger of being sunk, and the disciples must have been very terrified. It was then that the Lord miraculously appeared before them, in the flesh, as He walked towards them on the raging waters. As we heard from the Gospel, the disciples were initially frightened and spooked out, thinking that they had seen a ghost.

The Lord reassured His disciples and told them all that it was Him indeed, and St. Peter then jumped into the water, walking towards Him, both with faith and desire to come to the Lord as well as doubt and uncertainties, thinking that if it was indeed the Lord, then he would be able to walk on the water towards Him. St. Peter walked towards the Lord for a few steps, miraculously able to walk on the water. However, it was then told that he wavered, likely overwhelmed by fear and doubt, which made him to begin to sink into the water, and he cried out to the Lord for help. The Lord helped St. Peter out and chided him for his lack of faith in Him and for his doubts.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, through the story of Jesus walking in the water to His disciples, and how He made St. Peter walked on the water and how He assisted him afterwards, all of us are reminded that each one of us should not be afraid of the challenges and trials of the world, as the Lord is and will always be by our side, helping us to endure through the many challenges and trials that we may have to face throughout life. The boat represents all of us, God’s people and His Church, while the disciples represent each and every one of us, all of us with our faith and doubts, with our courage and uncertainties.

The storm, the gale, the wind and the waves on the other hand represents the trials and challenges that we have to face in our lives, as we live through the many obstacles that we encounter daily in their various forms. Like St. Peter and the other disciples, sometimes we have no faith in God and we did not trust Him enough to lead us out of harm’s way, and we became doubtful and fearful, worried that we would suffer and lose everything. But today’s story reminded us that God is and will always be there by our side, if we only learn to focus on Him and not be distracted by the many trials and challenges present all around us.

Today, all of us should be strengthened and inspired by the good examples set by our holy predecessors, the holy saints, holy men and women of God, especially that of St. Eusebius of Vercelli and St. Peter Julian Eymard, whose feast we are celebrating this day. St. Eusebius of Vercelli was the Bishop of Vercelli in what is now northern Italy during the tumultuous years of struggle between the true Christian faith and the popular heresy of Arianism. He had to endure many trials and challenges throughout his ministry and work, and was even persecuted, humiliated and made to suffer, dragged through the streets for his continued faith and adherence to the true faith. And yet, all those things did not dampen his faith at all.

St. Eusebius of Vercelli continued to labour hard and gave his energy, time and effort to lead the faithful from the clutches of the heretical teachings. He patiently endured the challenges and trials, all the oppressions and persecutions he faced from those who sided and sympathised with the heretics and their false teachings. St. Eusebius of Vercelli showed us his resolve and what each one of us should do in the face of hardships, and to continue to trust in the Lord at all times and opportunities. Like St. Peter and the other Apostles, and like the prophet Jeremiah and the other prophets, St. Eusebius of Vercelli committed his life to God and entrusting God with that life.

Meanwhile, St. Peter Julian Eymard was a renowned priest who was particularly devoted to the Blessed Sacrament and the Real Presence in the Eucharist, spending a lot of time and effort to popularise the devotion to the Eucharist, the respect and understanding of the Lord’s Real Presence among the people that he ministered to. He dedicated his life and his time to glorify the Lord, reaching out to all those who have been separated from God, calling on them to return to the Lord and to put their faith and trust in Him once again. He spent countless hours in his ministry, and also founded two religious orders to support his mission, the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament and the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have heard from the great examples of our holy predecessors, let us all therefore turn to the Lord with renewed faith and courage, and not be easily swayed by our fears and temptations anymore, knowing that the Lord, our God and Saviour is always ever by our side, and He will never abandon us in our hour and time of greatest need. May the Lord continue to guide us and give us the courage to live our lives ever more worthily, now and always. Amen.