holy priests

by

Wednesday, 24 July 2024 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charbel Makhluf, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures in which we are all reminded to answer the call which the Lord had made to us, in everything which He had done for us, in leading us all to the right path in life. Each and every one of us have been entrusted with the various and unique gifts, talents, opportunities and capabilities which God had sown in us, so that hopefully we may make good use of them for the benefit of everyone around us, for those whom we are interacting with. Through us and our efforts, and our interactions with others, we may inspire many more people to come and follow the Lord as well.

In our first reading today, we heard of the words of the Lord calling Jeremiah to be His servant, in becoming the prophet to the people of the southern kingdom of Judah, which was then in its last years of existence. The people of Israel, God’s first chosen people back then had been divided into two groups, and they had mostly disobeyed the Lord and His commandments, disregarded and refusing to follow His Law despite the many reminders and help provided to them by the Lord through His prophets and messengers. The northern kingdom of Israel then had been crushed and destroyed by the Assyrians, sent into exile in distant lands. The people of God in the southern kingdom of Judah had similarly lived in the same way, and they would soon share a similar fate to their brethren in the north.

It therefore fell upon Jeremiah to be the one whom God sent to His people to tell them of their impending doom and all that they would have to face as a consequence for their rebelliousness and refusals to follow the path of God. Jeremiah himself was unsure of the responsibilities and the charge placed upon him, but the Lord reassured and encouraged him, saying that He would be with him throughout the way, and He would guide and inspire him in whatever he was to say to those whom he had been sent to. He empowered Jeremiah and strengthened him, so that through His guidance, this simple man would become one of the great prophets, through whom many would be called to return to God and His path.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Matthew in which the Lord Jesus taught and preached to the people with the famous parable of the sower. In that parable, we heard of the Lord speaking to the people using the comparison with a sower that was spreading seeds on different places. The Lord liked to use these parables because many of the people back then were illiterate and uneducated, and they did not know much about the ways of the world outside that of their professions or related ones. Many of the people back then were farmers, shepherds and fishermen, and hence, the Lord used these parables to help them understand what He wanted to tell them.

As we heard in that parable, the sower placed the seeds in various places and the seeds faced different fates depending on where those seeds had landed. This would later on be explained and be elaborated further by the Lord, but let me explain in case some among us may not be aware of the meaning and significance of this parable. The seeds that landed on the roadside were snatched and eaten away by the birds of the air, representing those people who have received the seeds of faith from the Word of God, and yet, allowed Satan and the other evil ones to snatch these truth and virtues away from them, by not taking up these into their hearts and minds, ignoring what the Lord had generously presented and given to them.

Then, those seeds that fell upon the rocky grounds and dried up before they could grow roots represent those who have received the Word of God and His truth, and yet failed to allow these to grow roots in their hearts and minds, as they did not provide good and suitable environment for their faith to grow and blossom in. And those seeds that landed among the brambles and thistles were choked to death as they grew, because those brambles and thistles competed with the plants for nutrients and other resources. These represent all those who allowed the distractions in life to pull them away from the path of righteousness and virtue, instead following the path of greed, desire, ego and ambition, which would lead them to their downfall.

It was only those seeds that fell upon the rich soil that managed to germinate and grow well, healthy and strong, bearing lots of rich fruits and produces, in multiples of what had been planted before. This represents all those who have received the Word of God and truly acted on them, internalising and receiving them with genuine faith, doing their best to embody what they have believed in, so that their faith is not merely just a formality only, but a truly real and living faith. This has also been shown by the example of the prophet Jeremiah from the Old Testament, as well as the many other prophets and servants of God, who have allowed the Lord to guide and strengthen them in their lives so that in everything that they had said and done, they would indeed bear rich and plentiful fruits of their faithful actions and commitments to God.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Sharbel Makhluf, also known as St. Charbel Makhlouf, who was a renowned Maronite Catholic monk living in what is part of Lebanon today, born into a pious family, raised up well in the faith by his family. He would ensure that he had time for prayers and committed himself to God even from a very young age. Eventually, he became a monk after years of preparation and instruction, taking up the name by which he is now famous today, namely that of Charbel, inspired by the saint of that name, a Christian martyr of the region during the early history of the Church. He therefore began a life of seclusion and withdrawal from the world as a hermit for the rest of his life.

St. Charbel lived the rest of his life in pious and prayerful seclusion, and he died about twenty-three years after he began his hermitic lifestyle. Yet, even after his passing, his great holiness and virtues, his examples and great commitment to God brought about great wonders and inspiring things to happen, as he is indeed famous for right up to this day, more than a century after this great saint’s passing. It was told since immediately after his passing that miracles happened aplenty at his tomb, and many people were healed and encountered miracles, and also through the intercession of St. Charbel, many experienced great things and were cured from their diseases and troubles. This led to many people to turn towards the Lord, as among those who sought for the intercession of St. Charbel were unbelievers.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have heard from the inspirational story of the life of St. Charbel Makhlouf, as well as the words we have heard today from the Sacred Scriptures on the calling and commissioning of the prophet Jeremiah, and also the parable of the sower, we are therefore reminded that each and every one of us as Christians, as God’s disciples and followers, have the important responsibility and part to play in ensuring that our lives are truly faithful to the Lord, and that we are always open to the Lord guiding and strengthening each one of us in our respective lives. All of us must be like those seeds that grow in the rich and fertile soil, and hence, we should ensure that our lives and environment, that is our hearts and minds, our whole beings are truly conducive to allow our faith in God and our love for Him to continue to grow and develop.

May the Lord, our most loving God and Father continue to help and strengthen us all, so that in all that we do, we will continue to be inspired and encouraged to do our best, to be ever more faithful and to strive to follow Him in all of our lives. May He empower each one of us and be our source of Hope and encouragement, be our Light and inspiration, now and always. Amen.

by

Wednesday, 24 July 2024 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charbel Makhluf, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Matthew 13 : 1-9

At that time, that same day, Jesus left the house and sat down by the lakeside. Many people gathered around Him. So He got into a boat, and sat down, while the crowds stood on the shore; and He spoke to them in parables about many things.

Jesus said, “The sower went out to sow; and, as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path; and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where there was little soil, and the seeds sprouted quickly, because the soil was not deep. But as soon as the sun rose, the plants were scorched; and they withered, because they had no roots.”

“Again, other seeds fell among thistles; and the thistles grew and choked the plants. Still, other seeds fell on good soil and produced a crop : some a hundredfold, others sixty, and others thirty. If you have ears, then hear!”

by

Wednesday, 24 July 2024 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charbel Makhluf, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Psalm 70 : 1-2, 3-4a, 5-6ab, 15ab and 17

In You, o Lord, I seek refuge; let me not be disgraced. In Your justice help me and deliver me, turn Your ear to me and save me!

Be my Rock of refuge, a Stronghold to give me safety, for You are my Rock and my Fortress. Rescue me, o my God, from the hand of the wicked.

For You, o Lord, have been my Hope, my Trust, o God, from my youth. I have relied on You from birth : from my mother’s womb You brought me forth.

My lips will proclaim Your intervention and tell of Your salvation all day, little though it is what I can understand. You have taught me from my youth and until now I proclaim Your marvels.

by

Wednesday, 24 July 2024 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Charbel Makhluf, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Jeremiah 1 : 1, 4-10

The words of Jeremiah, son of Hilkiah, of a priestly family in Anathoth, in the land of Benjamin.

A word of YHVH came to me, “Even before I formed you in the womb I have known you; even before you were born I had set you apart, and appointed you a prophet to the nations!”

I said, “Ah, Lord YHVH! I do not know how to speak; I am still young!” But YHVH replied, “Do not say; ‘I am still young’, for now you will go, whatever be the mission I am entrusting to you, and you will speak of whatever I command you to say. Do not be afraid of them, for I will be with you to protect you – it is YHVH Who speaks!”

Then YHVH stretched out His hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “Now I have put My words in your mouth. See! Today I give you authority over nations and over kingdoms to uproot and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”

by

Tuesday, 9 July 2024 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Augustine Zhao Rong, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded that we have all sinned against God through our disobedience against Him, and we have disappointed God many times in our respective areas in life. Yet, the same Lord our God still continues to love us, and He still shows His patience and kindness, His ever generous love and commitment to the Covenant which He had made with each and every one of us. We must not take all the love which He has shown us all for granted, and we have to be thankful and appreciative of the many opportunities which He has constantly given to us because He wants us all to be reconciled to Him.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Hosea in which the Lord spoke to His people, the Israelites living in the northern kingdom known also as Israel, and listed down all the complaints and the grievances against all the wickedness and all the sins which they had committed against Him, in their refusal to obey the Law and the commandments which He had given and taught them to follow. The Lord told them all that His anger was blazing against them, against all those who had defiled His Name and the sanctity of His sanctuaries and dwelling places, all the wicked deeds they had committed in worshipping pagan idols and false gods instead of embracing and loving their one and only true God, the One Who had always provided for them in times both good and bad.

The prophet Hosea was sent to the people of Israel towards the end of their existence as an independent kingdom and entity, approximately two and a half centuries after the once united Kingdom of Israel had been divided between the descendants of David in Judah and the rebel regime in the northern regions. At that time, the rising power of Assyria was ascendant, and it would come to pass that everything which the Lord had predicted and warned against His people in Israel, would indeed happen, as soon after, the Assyrians with their mighty armies and forces came to defeat the Israelites and conquered their cities and kingdom, destroying Samaria and bringing the people into exile in distant lands. Their disobedience and their wickedness, their refusal to follow and obey God’s Law led them to ‘return back to Egypt’, which was in fact an allusion of their renewed enslavement by the forces of the Assyrians just as once they had been under the yoke of the Egyptians.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the time from the Gospel of St. Matthew in which the works of the Lord were highlighted to us, in how He miraculously healed the man possessed by a demon, which made him dumb and mute. The Lord showed His power and compassion towards the man, and drove out the demon from within him, which led to an almost immediate ridicule and criticism from the Pharisees who were there, accusing Him of colluding with the prince of demons in doing so. They hardened their hearts and minds because they refused to accept the fact that their ways and actions, their understanding and knowledge of the Law of God could have been wrong or mistaken, and they accused the Lord of wrongdoing because they did not want to admit their weakness and imperfections.

Yet, despite all of that, we heard how the Lord still continued on with His ministry, caring for the people, performing His miracles, signs and wonders regardless, reaching out to those who are poor and needy, those who have no one else to turn to, those who have been neglected and were facing challenges and difficulties in life. He showed pity on them, as we heard how they were described as sheep of the flock without a shepherd. And this highlights what the Lord has done for His people, that He embraced each and every one of us as a loving Shepherd and Guide, as the One Who will lead us all into the path of righteousness and virtue, out from the darkness and wickedness in this world. He wants us all to be reconciled to Him and to find our path out of the destruction and damnation awaiting us if we continue to remain in sin.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Augustine Zhao Rong and his companions, who were persecuted, made to suffer and eventually were martyred in China. At that time, missionaries went to China to bring the Christian faith to many people who have not yet known the Lord, proclaiming the Good News of God to more and more people. However, the Christian faith and the missionaries were seen with great suspicion and even treated with hostility by the government and officials who saw them as threats to their power and control over the people. The government persecuted the Christian missionaries and local converts sporadically and systematically at times, forcing them to abandon their faith in the Lord at the threat of great sufferings and torture.

St. Augustine Zhao Rong himself was a Chinese soldier who accompanied Bishop John Gabriel Taurin Dufresse, a French missionary from the Paris Foreign Mission Society who was persecuted, arrested and then eventually martyred in the capital in Beijing. This experience among others led him to be a Christian convert himself, and eventually he became a diocesan priest serving the local Christian community, facing many challenges and hardships during his missions and works. Eventually, like many other Christians at that time, he was martyred about two centuries ago amidst an intense episode of persecutions against Christians. We remember this day the great courage and faith which St. Augustine Zhao Rong and the many other holy martyrs, the Holy Martyrs of China, have shown in their faith, dedication and commitment to God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore strive to do our best to follow in the great footsteps of the holy martyrs, St. Augustine Zhao Rong and his companions in martyrdom, the Holy Martyrs of China. All of us should realise how much we have been blessed and loved by God, and by calling on us, and by us following Him and embracing His love, His compassion and kindness, we should always do our best to glorify Him and His Name in all things, and we should continue to live in the path of righteousness and justice, no longer distracted and misguided by sin and evil. Let us all be the great examples and inspirations for one another just as the holy martyrs had inspired us all in our own lives. May God be with us always and may He bless us in all of our good endeavours and works, all for His greater glory. Amen.

by

Tuesday, 9 July 2024 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Augustine Zhao Rong, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Matthew 9 : 32-38

At that time, as the two blind men were going away, some people brought to Jesus a man who was dumb, because he was possessed by a demon. When the demon was driven out, the dumb man began to speak. The crowds were astonished and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”

But the Pharisees said, “He drives away demons with the help of the prince of demons.”

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.”

by

Tuesday, 9 July 2024 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Augustine Zhao Rong, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Psalm 113B : 3-4, 5-6, 7ab and 8, 9-10

There in heaven is our God; whatever He wishes, He does. Not so the hand-made idols, crafted in silver and gold.

They have mouths that cannot speak, eyes that cannot see, ears that cannot hear, noses that cannot smell.

They have hands but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk. Their makers will be like them; so will all who trust in them.

O Israel, trust in YHVH; He is your Help and your Shield! You, family of Aaron, trust in YHVH; He is your Help and your Shield!

by

Tuesday, 9 July 2024 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Augustine Zhao Rong, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Hosea 8 : 4-7, 11-13

Without My approval they set up kings and without My blessing appointed leaders. With their silver and gold they fashioned idols to their own ruin. To Me, Samaria, your calf is loathsome; and My anger blazes against you. How long will you remain defiled? The calf is yours, Israel, a craftsman has made it; it is not God and will be broken into pieces. As they sow the wind, they will reap the whirlwind. Stalk without flower, it will never yield flower, or if they do, foreigners will devour it.

Ephraim built many altars; but his altars made him more guilty. I wrote out for him the numerous precepts of My law; but they look on them as coming from foreigners. They offer sacrifices to Me because they are those who eat the meat; but YHVH does not accept their sacrifices, for He is mindful of their sin and remembers their wickedness. They will return to Egypt.

by

Friday, 5 July 2024 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Anthony Zaccaria, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all called to abandon our past sinful way of life and embrace from now on, God’s righteousness and virtues in our lives, in each and every one of our actions, words and deeds. We are all reminded that if we continue to walk in the path of sin and disobedience against God, and if we continue to allow the darkness of this world to mislead and bring us down the path to ruin, then in the end, we will regret our choice and path. The Lord reminded us all that we have been called by Him and given the opportunity to embrace His love and generous mercy, but we must also be willing to make the commitment and to embrace wholeheartedly this love and mercy, or else, we will continue to be separated from Him.

In our first reading today, we heard of the continuation of the passage from the Book of the prophet Amos which we have heard in the past one week or so, in which the prophet spoke of the Lord’s words to His people, the Israelites living in the northern kingdom, also known as Israel, who have disobeyed and disregarded His Law and commandments. The prophet Amos was sent to the people of Israel during the last years of the existence of the northern kingdom of Israel to bring about God’s warning and the revelation of the fate that would soon befall all those people who had hardened their hearts and acted wickedly for so many years in refusing to believe in God and persecuting the many prophets and messengers which God had sent them constantly to help and guide them in their path.

God thus spoke through the prophet Amos, chastising those same people of their many sins and wickedness, as we heard in our first reading today, stating how they had behaved inappropriately as God’s holy and beloved people by manipulating and exploiting the weak and the less privileged for their own personal benefits and ambitions, through their self-serving attitudes and actions, all of which had brought about a lot of misery and hardships for others, leading to more and more wicked actions and things that were truly unbecoming of a people whom God had called and chosen to be His own people. And the Lord also told His people that they were to be chastised and punished so that they might see the errors of their ways, and thus, hopefully that they could then turn away from those sins and wickedness before it was too late for them.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the story of the calling of Levi, the tax collector by the Lord Jesus. Levi decided to follow the Lord, leaving behind his post at the tax collector’s office and committing himself to be a disciple of the Lord. He would henceforth be known as Matthew, and as with other people who changed their names in the other parts of the Scriptures, like Abraham, Jacob, Peter and Paul, this name change indicated the new life and path which Levi had committed himself to take, by which he embraced the Lord fully, and becoming Matthew, a committed disciple and servant of God, a member of the Twelve Apostles and later on as one of the Four Evangelists.

The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law were quick to criticise the Lord when He went to have dinner with Levi and the other tax collectors, as at the time, the tax collectors were widely seen as traitors to the nation and the people of God for their role in collecting taxes on behalf of the rulers and the Romans. They were also seen as sinners and people who were unworthy of God’s grace and salvation, and as common at the time, no one especially the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law would associate themselves with those considered as sinners, like the tax collectors, the prostitutes and those afflicted with certain illnesses and diseases, because they could make them to be considered unclean as well.

But the Lord immediately pointed out that His mission and what He wanted to do is to reach out to the marginalised and those who have been lost to Him, those who have been afflicted the most by the affliction of sin. It was sinners and those who are struggling that need the most help, and it is for them that the Lord had made Himself available through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, Whom God had sent into our midst to be Our Saviour and Hope. He is the Light and Hope for all the people of all the nations, and He shows us all that God truly loves everyone, all of His beloved children and people, without exception. Even the greatest of sinners and those whom others deem to be unworthy, God still loves and desires to be reunited with Him.

That is why all of us are called to embrace God’s love and mercy, to seek Him and His forgiveness for all of our faults and sins. The Lord wants us all to turn away from all of our rebellious ways and to be like His servant, Levi, who have committed himself thoroughly to God’s cause, and gave Himself to the glorification of God. Each and every one of us have also been called to our own respective missions and vocations in life, to do what is right and just, virtuous and worthy in each and every moments in our lives. All of us should make good use of these many opportunities that the Lord had given to us so that we may come ever closer to Him and be forgiven from our many sins and wickedness. Let us all no longer harden our hearts and minds, but humble ourselves, welcoming the Lord Himself into our midst.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Anthony Zaccaria, a renowned servant of God whose life and commitment to God can serve as a good inspiration for all of us to follow in our own lives. St. Anthony Zaccaria was born into a noble family in what is part of Italy today, and he was brought up by his mother mostly after his father died when he was just two years old. From a young age, the young St. Anthony Zaccaria had been exposed to the sufferings of the poor and the needy through his pious and devout mother, who made him as an almoner, to be the one to reach out and care for the poor in the community. He became a physician for a short while before eventually, he joined the seminary and was trained to become a priest.

St. Anthony Zaccaria continued to minister to the poor and the needy as a priest, working in hospitals and other institutions caring for the needy at the time. He and some other like-minded clerics began living a life of love and ministry to the people who were needy and poor, eventually establishing the congregation of the Clerics Regular of St. Paul, also known as the Barnabites, which members are devoted to the service of God’s people, delivering and encouraging the pious practices of the Forty Hours Devotion and the emphasis on the Passion of the Lord to the greater community. Through their many efforts, they helped and sustained the physical and spiritual needs of many people, bringing them ever closer to the Lord. The dedication and faith shown by St. Anthony Zaccaria and his compatriots should inspire all of us to commit ourselves to the Lord in the same way as well.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore continue to do our part in following the Lord ever more faithfully, in doing His will and obeying His Law and commandments at all times. May the Lord continue to help and guide us in our journey throughout life, to do what He has entrusted to us to do. May He continue to bless us all in out every good efforts, works and endeavours, and help us to be His faithful and committed disciples in all things. Amen.

by

Friday, 5 July 2024 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Anthony Zaccaria, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Matthew 9 : 9-13

At that time, as Jesus moved on from the place where He cured a paralytic man, He saw a man named Matthew, at his seat in the custom house; and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And Matthew got up and followed Him.

Now it happened, while Jesus was at table in Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners joined Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “Why is it, that your Master eats with sinners and tax collectors?”

When Jesus heard this, He said, “Healthy people do not need a doctor, but sick people do. Go, and find out what this means : What I want is mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”