holy men

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Saturday, 4 December 2021 : 1st Week of Advent, Memorial of St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Priests)

Matthew 9 : 35 – Matthew 10 : 1, 5a, 6-8

At that time, Jesus went around all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom; and He cured every sickness and disease. When He saw the crowds, He was moved with pity; for they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are only few. Ask the Master of the harvest to send workers to gather His harvest.”

Jesus called His Twelve disciples to Him, and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to drive them out, and to heal every disease and sickness. Jesus sent these Twelve on mission, with the instruction : “Go, instead, to the lost sheep of the people of Israel. Go, and proclaim this message : The kingdom of heaven is near. Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, cleanse the lepers, and drive out demons. Freely have you received, freely give.”

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Saturday, 4 December 2021 : 1st Week of Advent, Memorial of St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Priests)

Psalm 146 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Alleluia! How good it is to sing to our God, how sweet and befitting, to praise Him! YHVH rebuilds Jerusalem; He gathers the exiles of Israel.

He heals their broken hearts and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of stars; He calls each of them by name.

The Lord is great, and mighty in power; His wisdom is beyond measure. YHVH lifts up the humble, but casts the wicked to the ground.

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Saturday, 4 December 2021 : 1st Week of Advent, Memorial of St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Priests)

Isaiah 30 : 19-21, 23-26

O people of Zion, who dwell in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. When you cry, He will listen; when He hears, He will answer. When the Lord has given you the bread of anguish and the water of distress, He, your Teacher will hide no longer. Your own eyes will see Him, and your ear will listen to His words behind you : “This is the way, walk in it.”

He will then give rain for the seed you sow and make the harvest abundant from the crops you grow. On that day your cattle will graze in wide pastures. Your beasts of burden will eat silage tossed to them with pitchfork and shovel. For on the day of the great slaughter, when fortresses fall, streams of water will flow on every mountain and lofty hill.

The light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun seven times greater, like the light of seven days, when YHVH binds up the wounds of His people and heals the bruises inflicted by His blows.

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Tuesday, 30 November 2021 : Feast of St. Andrew, Apostle (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the feast of one of the great Apostles of Our Lord, one of the Twelve Apostles and in fact the first one among them to be called, that is St. Andrew the Apostle, the brother of Simon, who was later known as St. Peter the Apostle, leader of all the Apostles and the Church. St. Andrew was according to the tradition, one of the disciples of St. John the Baptist, and was one of his disciples that decided to follow the Lord right after He was baptised at the Jordan.

As such, he was the first one of the Apostles to be called and to respond to that call, which is why he is also often known as St. Andrew the First-Called. Through him, he likely introduced his brother Simon, the later St. Peter, as well as the brothers St. James and St. John, the sons of Zebedee to the Lord. They were all fishermen at the Lake of Galilee where they worked and laboured every day. The Lord came by there after His baptism and preparation in the desert, calling the first of His disciples to follow Him.

As one of the Twelve Apostles, St. Andrew was a close confidant of the Lord and was present in much of the Lord’s works and ministry, and he was also present at the most important events in the work of God’s salvation. Receiving the Holy Spirit together with the other Apostles and disciples of the Lord, he was empowered and strengthened to carry out the mission entrusted to him and many others to spread the Good News of God to all the nations and peoples.

According to Church tradition and history, St. Andrew went to far-off regions including the area around the Black Sea and the Caucasus, in what is today Ukraine and Crimean region, spreading the Christian faith and the Good News of God to places as far as the northern reaches of Russia. He also went to Greece and other places in the vicinity, helping to build the foundation of the Church in those places. By tradition, during his journey, he also established the foundation of the present day See of Constantinople, then known as Byzantium at the crossroads of Europe and Asia.

That is why St. Andrew is regarded as the Apostolic origin of the current Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, the second most important See in Christendom and also the leader of our separated brethren in the Eastern Orthodox communion. St. Andrew meanwhile was arrested and martyred in the city of Patras in the Peloponnesus region of Greece, for his perseverance in evangelisation and preaching the Good News among the pagans and many people. He was crucified on an X-shaped cross which is now popularly known as St. Andrew’s cross.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we recall the life, work and ministry, the faith and dedication showed by St. Andrew in his mission and life today on his feast day, in fact all of us are also called to reflect on our own lives and our own mission that has been entrusted to each one of us as fellow disciples of Christ. What St. Andrew had done in his life and ministry is part of the greater works and efforts of the Lord through His Church to bring His truth, salvation and Good News to more and more people, and this work is still far from being done.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, just as the Lord has called His disciples and Apostles from various backgrounds, empowered them and gave them the mission to evangelise the Good News, then through our baptism we too have been called to be missionaries of our faith, the faith that we have in the Lord and which we are all called to share with zeal and conviction, and with genuine desire for the salvation of souls and for the love of our fellow brothers and sisters. Are we able to do this, brothers and sisters in Christ? Are we willing to make the commitment to follow the Lord and to do His will in our daily lives?

St. Paul in our first reading today in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful in Rome spoke of are reminded of the faith we have in the Lord and the salvation and wonders that we have received with full assurance from Him. And he reminded us all, the faithful that those who bring with them the message of God’s Good News and truth will be blessed, and God’s grace will be with them. It means that despite the trials and challenges that we may face in our journey as Christians and despite the obstacles we may encounter in our mission as faithful servants of God, we must not be easily disheartened by setbacks and sufferings.

God will be with us and He will be by our side, providing for us and our needs, and even if we suffer, we suffer together with Him, He Who Himself has been persecuted for the truth, and Who had suffered and died for our sake. We do not need to be afraid and be hesitant to stand up to our Christian faith and beliefs, and instead we should inspire one another not just with words, but through genuine actions and commitment in our daily living. After all, it is not by our own power and might that we do the work of God successfully, but God Who empowers us to be His instruments in this world.

Let us all entrust ourselves to the Lord and His providence, and remembering the faith and courage with which St. Andrew, Holy Apostle of Our Lord has laboured hard for the glory of God and for the salvation of all His people, may all of us be inspired to follow in his footsteps and be ever more committed to live our every moment with genuine and devout Christian faith. Let us all make good use of this season of Advent to prepare ourselves wholly, to be worthy to welcome the Lord into our midst, from now on and always. Amen.

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Tuesday, 30 November 2021 : Feast of St. Andrew, Apostle (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Matthew 4 : 18-22

At that time, as Jesus walked by the lake of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. He said to them, “Come, follow Me; and I will make you fish for people.”

At once they left their nets and followed Him. He went on from there and saw two other brothers, James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John, in a boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. Jesus called them.

At once, they left the boat, and their father, and followed Him.

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Tuesday, 30 November 2021 : Feast of St. Andrew, Apostle (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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Tuesday, 30 November 2021 : Feast of St. Andrew, Apostle (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Romans 10 : 9-18

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.

But how can they call upon the Name of the Lord without having believed in Him? And how can they believe in Him, without having first heard about Him? And how will they hear about Him, if no one preaches about Him? And how will they preach about Him, if no one sends them?

As Scripture says : How beautiful are the feet of the messenger of Good News. Although, not everyone obeyed the Good News, as Isaiah said : Lord, who has believed in our preaching? So, faith comes from preaching, and preaching is rooted in the word of Christ.

I ask : Have the Jews not heard? But, of course, they have. Because the voice of those preaching resounded all over the earth, and their voice was heard, to the ends of the world.

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Wednesday, 24 November 2021 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Andrew Dung-Lac, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scripture we are all reminded of the challenges, trials and persecutions that we may have to endure as God’s faithful people, as those who call ourselves as Christians. This is the reality of our faith that we should keep in mind as we live in our world today. As Christians we cannot be idle in how we live our faith and we cannot be passive and be easily swayed by the currents of events and the pressures around us to follow the ways of the world, but instead we have to stand our ground and remain committed wholeheartedly to God.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Daniel we heard of the account of the final days of the Kingdom of Babylon, also known as the Neo-Babylonian Empire, built and made great by King Nebuchadnezzar as we have heard in the readings of these past few days. At that time, decades after the destruction of Jerusalem and many decades after Daniel had been brought into exile in Babylon, King Belshazzar, the last king of Babylon was having a great feast with his nobles and guests using the vessels captured and looted from the Temple of Jerusalem.

That was an absolutely horrible and sacrilegious act by the king, a great blasphemy against God, using those vessels consecrated as sacred to God for profane purposes. It was such that God immediately sent a great warning to the blasphemous and arrogant king, as His hands wrote on the wall, the words MENE, TEKEL, PHARSIN, which terrified the king and all the guests gathered in the party. The king called for Daniel whom he recognised as one of the exiles of Judah and the wisest man of his court.

If we remember what Daniel said before the king, he must have really been so courageous and brave in uttering such words before the king. Indeed, the king had promised him wonderful things, riches, power, favour and all if he could explain the meaning of those words to him, but to say that the king’s kingdom would be destroyed and for his dominion to be ended and passed on over to the Medes and the Persians under Cyrus the Great as how it historically happened would have been treasonous and punishable by death.

Yet, Daniel feared nothing and spoke everything as the Lord guided him to. He did not hide any details and did not change the words of the Lord, in full truth before the king. He spoke everything entrusting his fate to the Lord, believing that whatever it is that would happen, God would be by His side, and He surrendered everything to God’s will. As such, Daniel spoke the truth and hid nothing, and in the end, everything happened as spoken, and the king himself, immediately after hearing Daniel’s words, did not punish him, likely treating it as a mere joke and not taking it seriously, before it was too late for him.

This is the same thing as what we have heard in our Gospel passage today, from the Gospel of St. Luke as we heard the Lord telling His disciples that trials and persecutions would likely happen to them, but they should not be afraid because God Himself would be with them, and He would send them the Holy Spirit to inspire and guide them in their path. The Lord will always be with His faithful ones, protecting them and caring for them and their needs. And even in their sufferings, they will be triumphant at the very end, together with God.

This is what we need to take note of, brothers and sisters in Christ. We have to realise that God is always by our side and we should not allow fear or doubt to influence our actions, whenever trials and challenges are in our way. Today, all of us should also heed the great examples and inspirations shown by St. Andrew Dung-Lac and his numerous companions, the Holy Martyrs of Vietnam, who coincidentally, in accordance with today’s Scripture readings, had suffered and died for their faith in God.

At that time, Christian missionaries began gaining many converts in Vietnam, and many of the Vietnamese began embracing the new faith in God. Some of those converts themselves became priests and members of the clergy, and they were all persecuted by the government who were intensely anti-Christian. Persecutions were intensified against the converts and the missionaries alike, and many were forced to choose between abandoning their faith and death.

Many of the Christian converts refused to abandon their faith and therefore suffered grievously under the harsh official persecution, with many dying as martyrs. Their Christian missionaries also suffered the same if not more painful sufferings, with many of them becoming martyrs, and yet, they courageously faced the persecution with faith, and not being afraid to stand up for their faith just as Daniel once stood before the king of Babylon delivering the truth of God with great honesty.

Are we able to follow in their footsteps, brothers and sisters in Christ? Many of us may not have suffered of being a Christian, and we have a relatively good life in this world, but let us not forget that in this world, many of our fellow brothers and sisters are suffering daily in being persecuted and oppressed because they are followers of Christ. And if trials and troubles do come for us, will we have the courage to stand up for our faith as well?

Let us all pray for one another, for courage and strong faith to remain firm in our dedication to God so that we will not easily be swayed by the temptations of this world, and ask the Lord for His guidance and strength at all times. May the Lord be with us all, and may He strengthen each one of us with faith, now and always. Amen.

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Wednesday, 24 November 2021 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Andrew Dung-Lac, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Luke 21 : 12-19

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Before all these things happen, people will lay their hands on you and persecute you; you will be delivered to the synagogues and put in prison, and for My sake you will be brought before kings and governors. This will be your opportunity to bear witness.”

“So keep this in mind : do not worry in advance about what to say, for I will give you words and wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends, and some of you will be put to death. But even though, because of My Name, you will be hated by everyone, not a hair of your head will perish. By your patient endurance you will save your souls.”

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Wednesday, 24 November 2021 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Andrew Dung-Lac, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Daniel 3 : 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67

Sun and moon, praise and exalt Him forever.

Stars of heaven, praise and exalt Him forever.

Rain and dew, praise and exalt Him forever.

All winds, praise and exalt Him forever.

Fire and heat, praise and exalt Him forever.

Cold and heat, praise and exalt Him forever.