holy missionaries

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Saturday, 1 October 2016 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Feast of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, Patroness of Missions (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the feast of a great saint, the Patroness of Missions and a Doctor of the Church. St. Therese of the Child Jesus, also known as St. Therese of Lisieux was a great woman, very devoted to God in her prayers and devotions, and in her many works and writings, she displayed exemplary faith and commitment which became inspiration to many others who also therefore walked in her path.

St. Therese of Lisieux was a Discalced Carmelite nun, who joined the religious life from early in her youth, desiring a life wholly dedicated to the Lord. She managed to enter the religious life early at the age of fifteen despite many obstacles and difficulties in her path at that time. She was often sickly and weak in her youth, and throughout her convent life, she was still also often bedridden and sick, but these did not dampen her bright spiritual devotion to the Lord.

The sufferings she went through were painful, but on one occasion in her life, she experienced a total conversion and change, a moment of revelation from the Lord, when she was able to overcome the obstacles and obstructions of her physical and mental state, and which would govern her way of life, thinking and action from then on. She grew ever stronger in her devotion to God, and spending many hours each day in prayer and in deep communication with Him.

She lived her life in obedience to God and to her spiritual and religious superiors, writing her experiences and visions, and discussing many aspects of the faith in her works. Many of these still inspire many people even to this day. And most famous of her works and thoughts is the ‘Little Way’ which she propagated and promoted as the way to achieve the salvation in the Lord. As such she was also known as the Little Flower of Carmel.

This little way has many meanings and aspects, brothers and sisters in Christ, but essentially, it is when we use our every actions and little, small acts in life to be showcase of our love, devotion and commitment to the Lord. It is not by great strides and mighty, proud deeds that we mankind will reach to the Lord, for all these instead will tend to cause our downfall through pride and hubris. Rather, the little way of St. Therese of Lisieux encouraged us to become smaller, humbler and like that of a child in the sight and presence of our God.

This is exactly what Jesus our Lord Himself spoke to His disciples in our Gospel passage today. We are quite familiar with that passage, as we should know that God welcomes children to His presence, and on that occasion, He chided them and rebuked them for quarrelling and disagreeing with one another just over the matter of who would be the most important in the kingdom of Heaven.

That is one of our humanity’s weakness, brethren, that we often succumb to our human and worldly desires, to the temptations of power, riches, fame and greatness or glory in this world. We bicker and fight over even the smallest of things, and we often desire what others have, be it position, honour, or appreciation from others around us.

That is why many of us have not been truly faithful to the Lord, and that is why even many Christians committed many sinful deeds that are unbecoming of them. They were unable to detach themselves from the many persuasions and temptations of the world that the devil is putting on our path, in order to make us stumble and fall into sin.

Ultimately, let us all reflect on our own actions. If we have been spending so much time thinking, worrying and trying to obtain more worldly goods, power, fame, influence and all the others for ourselves, let us then ask ourselves, what is the point of all that? If we die tomorrow, if God wills it, then none of these will be carried with us into the afterlife to come. Rich or poor, strong or weak, famous or unknown, all are equal before God, and all will be judged based on their actions or lack of actions.

If our preoccupation with all those things that distract us from the Lord and His ways have made us to ignore and abandon the plights of the weak, the needy and the poor or worse, if we have even manipulated these and made them suffer in our pursuit of worldliness, then we truly need to change our ways. And the best way is to follow the little way of St. Therese of Lisieux, the advice of our Lord Jesus, making ourselves as small as possible, like that of a child.

What does it mean? It means that rather than being swallowed by our ego and pride, we should be like a child in our faith, innocent and true, and just as a child will believe completely and strongly in something that he or she believes, we too should be pure and total in our dedication to the Lord, and not be distracted by the many concerns of the world surrounding us.

May the examples of St. Therese of Lisieux be our inspiration and guide, and may God help us in our effort to reach out to Him and to His salvation. May we all die to our greed and desires, and be reborn in our renewed faith and dedication to the Lord, that we may finally leave the temptations and the pleasures of this world aside, and commit ourselves wholly to the Lord our God. Amen.

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Saturday, 1 October 2016 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Feast of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, Patroness of Missions (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
Matthew 18 : 1-5

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked Him, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

Then Jesus called a little child, set the child in the midst of the disciples, and said, “I assure you that, unless you change and become like little children, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes lowly like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, and whoever receives such a child in My Name receives Me.”

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Saturday, 1 October 2016 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Feast of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, Patroness of Missions (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 131 : 1-3

Remember David, o Lord, and all his readiness, how he swore an oath to the Lord, to the Mighty One of Jacob. I will not enter my house nor get into my bed.

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Saturday, 1 October 2016 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Feast of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, Patroness of Missions (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
Isaiah 66 : 10-14

Rejoice for Jerusalem and be glad for her, all you who love her. Be glad with her, rejoice with her, all you who were in grief over her, that you may suck of the milk from her comforting breasts, that you may drink deeply from the abundance of her glory.

For this is what YHVH says : I will send her peace, overflowing like a river, and the nations’ wealth, rushing like a torrent towards her. And you will be nursed and carried on her arms and fondled upon her lap. As a son comforted by his mother, so will I comfort you.

At the sight of this, your heart will rejoice; like grass, your bones will flourish. For it shall be known that YHVH’s hand is with His servant, but His fury is upon His enemy.

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Thursday, 3 December 2015 : Feast of St. Francis Xavier, Priest and Patron of Missions (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we remember in our memory the great saint and missionary, St. Francis Xavier, patron saint of missions and the saint whose many works had allowed for the propagation of the faith and the spreading of the Church throughout many parts of the world, including and especially that of Asia and its many regions.

St. Francis Xavier is a role model for us all, and many still walked and followed in his footsteps even after all these years. After all, without his contributions, there would not be the Church in the many parts of Asia, such as India, Malaysia, Singapore and Indochina, Indonesian Archipelago, China and further beyond even up to Japan. This great saint is one of the many saints whose efforts spearheaded the evangelising mission of the Church to the many peoples who have not yet heard about the Lord.

And in his journeys he encountered many difficulties, challenges, and even rejections by the people to whom he was going to minister and preach. There were those who refused to listen to the word that he preached, the Good News that he had carried with him, the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. But all these did not make St. Francis Xavier and his fellow missionaries to give up, and instead he tried all the harder.

What we heard in the Scripture readings today are the exhortations and reminders for us that as a follower and disciple of our Lord, we all have certain obligations and missions that have been entrusted to us. And one of our chief tasks is for us to be witnesses of God’s truth and the Good News of His salvation, and preach these to the people, in particular those who have not yet heard of them, or to those who have fallen and failed along the way.

And we cannot think that the works of St. Francis Xavier and all those missionaries who have toiled and laboured hard for God and for His people are done and completed. The work is always there, and there is always likely something for us to do, for the sake of those who are still lost and who are still unable to find their way to reach out to the Lord.

We are the new missionaries of our own time, just as it becomes the obligation of all the faithful to testify for their faith and become witnesses for our Lord, and be the bearers of His salvation to many more people. In this we have to heed the mission which God had entrusted to His Apostles and to the other disciples just before He was about to leave and ascend into Heaven.

His command was so that all the nations will receive the baptism of the Lord and that they will listen to the Good News and believe in all that the disciples of the Lord, as the witnesses God has appointed to be those who will be able to testify the truths that Jesus Himself had revealed to the whole world. And through us, many good works will be done for the greater glory of God and for our own salvation.

As those who have been called and chosen from the world to be the followers of Christ, we cannot profess to be ignorant of the plight of those who have not yet attained salvation in the Lord because they have not yet heard or witnessed the Good News of our God. Instead, it is our duty and obligation to show them the way to the Lord. We have to do our best, so that we may each other be able to find our way to the eternal life God had promised all of His faithful.

Therefore, as we prepare for the coming of the joyous and festive season of Christmas, let us all also take note that we should not forget about the less fortunate and those who are weak, sick and dying. Rather, let us all share whatever goods and blessings we have with one another, so that we can enjoy together and celebrate together the spirit of Christmas, that is thanksgiving for all the goodness and love God had shown us all.

Let us all imitate Him in all of our words, deeds and actions, so that in all the things we do, we will inspire many others, those who look at us, hear us and witness our acts, will see God’s works being done through us. In the footsteps of the missionaries like St. Francis Xavier, we as the new missionaries of the Lord should practice what we believe in, or else no one will believe in what we preach or teach to them.

Let us all lead by example and be inspiration to others around us, inspired by St. Francis Xavier and his works. Let us all devote ourselves, our time and our commitment to bring God’s Good News to more and more people, so that more and more souls can be saved from death and damnation, and be brought together as one people into the glory of Heaven. God bless us all. Amen.

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Thursday, 3 December 2015 : Feast of St. Francis Xavier, Priest and Patron of Missions (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Mark 16 : 15-20

At that time, Jesus told His disciples, “Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News to all creation. The one who believes and is baptised will be saved; the one who refuses to believe will be condemned.”

“Signs like these will accompany those who have believed : in My Name they will cast out demons and speak new languages; they will pick up snakes, and if they drink anything poisonous, they will be unharmed; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”

So then, after speaking to them, the Lord Jesus was taken up into heaven and took His place at the right hand of God. The Eleven went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it.

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Thursday, 3 December 2015 : Feast of St. Francis Xavier, Priest and Patron of Missions (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 116 : 1-2

Alleluia! Praise the Lord, all you nations; all you peoples, praise Him. How great is His love for us! His faithfulness lasts forever.

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Thursday, 3 December 2015 : Feast of St. Francis Xavier, Priest and Patron of Missions (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 Corinthians 9 : 16-19, 22-23

Because I cannot boast of announcing the Gospel : I am bound to do it. Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel! If I preached voluntarily, I could expect my reward, but I have been trusted this office against my will. How can I, then, deserve a reward? In announcing the Gospel, I will do it freely without making use of the rights given to me by the Gospel.

So, feeling free with everybody, I have become everybody’s slave in order to gain a greater number. To the weak I made myself weak, to win the weak. So I made myself all things to all people in order to save, by all possible means, some of them. This I do for the Gospel, so that I too have a share of it.