holy priests

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Thursday, 30 September 2021 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jerome, Priest and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Nehemiah 8 : 1-4a, 5-6, 7b-12

In the seventh month, all the people gathered as one man in the square before the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra to bring the book of the Law of Moses, which YHVH had given to Israel. Ezra brought the Law before the assembly, both men, women and all the children who could understand what was being read.

It was the first day of the seventh month. So he read it before the plaza in front of the Water Gate from dawn till noon, before the men, women and those children who could understand. All the people were eager to hear the book of the Law. Ezra, the teacher of the Law, stood on a wooden platform built for that occasion.

Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was in a higher place; and when he opened it, all the people stood. Ezra praised YHVH the great God; and all the people lifted up their hands and answered, “Amen! Amen!” And they bowed their heads to the ground.

The Levites explained the Law to the people who were standing. They read from the book of the Law of God, clarifying and interpreting the meaning, so that everyone might understand what they were hearing. Then Ezra, the teacher of the Law, said to the people, “This day is dedicated to YHVH, your God, so do not be sad or weep.”

He said this because all wept when they heard the reading of the Law. Then he said to them, “Go and eat rich foods, drink sweet wine and share with him who has nothing prepared. This day is dedicated to the Lord, so do not be sad. The joy of YHVH is our strength.”

The Levites also calmed the people down, saying, “Do not weep. This day is a festival day. Do not be sad.” And the people went their way to eat, drink and share, and they had a great feast, because they had understood the words that had been proclaimed to them.

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Monday, 27 September 2021 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Vincent de Paul, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scripture, we are all called to follow the Lord and to obey His will, to put our trust in Him and not to be vain in our desire to recognised and honoured, and rather, we should seek the greater glory of God in all things. We should seek to be humble and strive to resist the temptations to satisfy our own ego and personal ambitions so that we may truly be faithful disciples and followers of the Lord.

In our first reading today taken from the Book of the prophet Zechariah, we have heard the words of the Lord to His people telling them and reassuring them that they were His people and He would be with them, blessing them and protecting them, as He would dwell once again in their midst in Jerusalem, the place where the Temple and House of God was. At that time, during the years following the return from the Babylonian exile, many of the Israelites were still scattered all around and Jerusalem was not yet fully rebuilt.

The Israelites had earlier on been humiliated and crushed, as their nations of both the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah were destroyed by the Assyrians and the Babylonians respectively. Most of the people of Israel were conquered and brought into exile in far-off land away from their ancestral lands, and their cities destroyed, while the Holy Temple of God in Jerusalem was also utterly destroyed and ruined.

However, God never abandoned and forgot about His people, and they were always foremost in His mind. This was also the case despite their wayward behaviour and actions, and God still wanted to forgive them for their sins and desired to see them turn away from those sins and wickedness that they have committed earlier on. As He brought them back to the land of their ancestors through the emancipation of King Cyrus of Persia, He wanted to remind them once again that they were His people and that He would always be with them.

As He said through the prophet Zechariah, He would gather the scattered people from all over the world and from all the nations, to gather them back once again into His presence. God would gather His people and bless them again in His presence, all reunited as one flock, and this is what He has promised to them. He even sent them His own Son to be born into the world as their Saviour. He gave them all His promised inheritance through Christ, Who opened for us all the path to eternal life and true glory with Him.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us are called through Christ to embrace God and to do His will wholeheartedly in our lives, as we heed His words in our Gospel passage today, that all those who welcomes the Lord faithfully and sincerely, and opens themselves to the Lord shall be great in His kingdom and shall be the first to be saved. All of us are called to partake in the efforts and great works to glorify the Lord through all that we do and through our contributions.

Today, all of us ought to reflect on the good examples of St. Vincent de Paul, whose feast we are celebrating today. We are all called to emulate the great life of this great saint, whose dedication to the Lord and actions were truly exemplary in helping so many people to find their way to the Lord, either by his direct actions or through the efforts whom he had gathered and inspired to follow in his footsteps. St. Vincent de Paul was very widely remembered for his role in founding the Congregation of the Mission also known after their founder as the Vincentians, as well as the inspiration in the establishment of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul after his passing, all inspired by his generosity and humility.

St. Vincent de Paul himself had a very eventful early life during his youth, as he was ordained a priest in his early years after being educated in a seminary, only to be taken captive by Barbary pirates and enslaved. He suffered in slavery for two years passing from master to master, before finally coming to the possession of one Guillaume Gautier, a former priest who had been enslaved himself and apostatised in order to be freed from slavery. Through the acts of one of Gautier’s wives, who was intrigued by St. Vincent’s Christian faith, eventually that led to St. Vincent de Paul returning to Christendom together with his former master.

St. Vincent de Paul thereafter continued his ministry and later on founded congregations and societies of Apostolic life inspired by his previous experiences including that of his capture and enslavement. He ministered to the poor, the captives and slaves, the weak and those who were oppressed and marginalised. Through the aforementioned Congregation of the Mission, the Vincentians, St. Vincent de Paul inspired many people to reach out to the least among their brethren and made many people to become aware of the plight of their fellow brethren.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, how about us? Are we able to follow in the footsteps of this faithful servant of God, Whom the Lord had led and guided to become great inspiration for so many including that of ourselves? Shall we not learn to love the Lord and commit ourselves to Him just as He has been so kind and generous to us? Let us all be generous and charitable in giving just as St. Vincent de Paul had done, in giving his time, effort and attention to those who need them. We should love one another just in the same way that the Lord Himself has loved us.

Let us all reflect carefully on everything that we have discussed thus far today. May the Lord help us in discerning our path, that we may find our way amidst this world, amidst all the challenges and temptations that we may be facing daily in life. May God be with us always and may He strengthen us to be ever faithful to Him, at all times. Amen.

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Monday, 27 September 2021 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Vincent de Paul, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 9 : 46-50

At that time, one day, the disciples were arguing about which of them was the most important. But Jesus knew their thoughts, so He took a little child and stood him by His side. Then He said to them, “Whoever welcomes this little child in My Name, welcomes Me; and whoever welcomes Me, welcomes the One Who sent Me. And listen : the one who is found to be the least among you all, is the one who is the greatest.”

Then John spoke up, “Master, we saw someone who drives out demons by calling upon Your Name, and we tried to forbid him, because he does not follow You with us.” But Jesus said, “Do not forbid him. He who is not against you is for you.”

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Monday, 27 September 2021 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Vincent de Paul, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 101 : 16-18, 19-21, 29 and 22-23

O Lord, the nations will revere Your Name, and the kings of the earth Your glory, when the Lord will rebuild Zion and appear in all His splendour. For He will answer the prayer of the needy and will not despise their plea.

Let this be written for future ages, “The Lord will be praised by a people He will form.” From His holy height in heaven, the Lord has looked on the earth to hear the groaning of the prisoners, and free those condemned to death.”

Your servants’ children will dwell secure; their posterity will endure without fail. Then the Name of the Lord will be declared in Zion, and His praise in Jerusalem, when the peoples and the kingdoms assemble to worship Him.

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Monday, 27 September 2021 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Vincent de Paul, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Zechariah 8 : 1-8

The word of YHVH, the God of hosts was directed to me in this way, “I am intensely jealous for Zion, stirred by a burning anger for her sake. YHVH says : I will return to Zion and live in her midst. Jerusalem shall be called the city of faithfulness and the mountain of holiness.”

YHVH, God of hosts speaks, “Old men and women will again sit in the squares, each with a stick in hand on account of their great age. The squares of the city will be filled with girls and boys playing.”

YHVH, God of hosts declared, “If that seems impossible in the eyes of those who have returned from exile, will it be impossible for Me as well?” – word of YHVH. YHVH, God of hosts says, “See, I am going to save My people, bringing them from the east and from the west; and they will live in Jerusalem. They will be My people and I shall be their God, in truth and in justice.”

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Thursday, 23 September 2021 : 25th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Pius of Pietrelcina, Padre Pio, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scripture, we are all called to reflect on what we have just heard and discern in how we can be living our lives in a more Christ-like manner, in following the Lord’s call and devoting ourselves wholeheartedly to Him. God calls on us all His faithful ones to follow Him and to do His will, and this is what we should be doing with our lives, to shine forth with the light of God in our lives and be role models for our fellow brothers and sisters.

In our first reading today, taken from either the Book of the prophet Haggai or the Book of the prophet Ezra, we heard of the Lord’s emancipation of His people, as He moved the heart and mind of the Persian King Cyrus to allow the exiled Israelites to return to their homeland and rebuild their country and cities. However this process took some time, as the ancestral lands of the Israelites had been left devastated and in tatters by the Babylonian and Assyrian conquests a century and more earlier on.

Thus, while the people of God had returned to their lands, as mentioned in the Book of Ezra, but that was merely just the beginning of the restoration of their fortunes and their homeland. It was implied in the Book of the prophet Haggai that took place during the reign of King Darius of Persia, which was one of the successors of King Cyrus of Persia, two or so decades after the emancipation of the Israelites, that the Temple of God in Jerusalem had not yet been rebuilt by that time.

Ezra the priest and prophet of God had been instrumental in leading the people and establishing the firm foundation of the faith among the returned exiles. What the prophet Haggai spoke of then was the urging for the people to begin to take their faith seriously, in committing themselves and their resources to complete the rebuilding of the House of God, the Temple in Jerusalem. Although the foundation and preparation must have begun immediately after the exiles had returned to Judah and Jerusalem, but it seemed that many of the people still hesitated to commit themselves wholeheartedly to the Lord, and left His House in ruins for many years.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this is then related to what we have heard in our Gospel passage today, as the Lord spoke of the parable of the lamps and the lampstand. He spoke of how no one would put a lamp hidden, for it would have made it useless and meaningless. Instead, at the time when electrical lighting and other sources of light were still scarce, oil lamps were truly precious commodity and items that were very important for the people’s livelihood. As such, by using that parable, the Lord wanted us all to clearly understand that we cannot be idle in our faith and in living our lives.

Just as the Israelites had been idle in dragging their feet and in delaying the building the House of God, the Lord does not want this to be our approach in life and our attitude towards our faith. Instead, we are expected to be more active in living our lives with faith, and we are all expected to do our part in obeying the Lord’s will, His Law and commandments at every possible opportunities. Are we willing and capable of doing this, brothers and sisters in Christ? Are we willing to commit ourselves and our efforts to Him from now on?

Today we all celebrate the Feast of a great saint, whose life and actions may serve as great inspiration for all of us in how we live up our own faith. St. Pius of Pietrelcina, also much better known as Padre Pio, was a great priest and a Franciscan who was greatly renowned for his stigmata, or the appearance of the miraculous wounds of Jesus on his hands and feet, as well as for his great piety and love for God.

Padre Pio was born into a deeply religious family, exposed to the faith and its practices from very early on. Even since youth, it was told that he has received mystical visions and experiences, which he would come to experience more and more throughout his life. He joined the Franciscans since the young age of fifteen, becoming a novice and gradually progressing to be ordained a priest. Even during these early years, there had been credible accounts of miraculous events happening to Padre Pio, as he was once seen levitating and other wonders happening around him.

Suffering from ill health throughout his life, nonetheless despite experiencing the stigmata of the Lord, Padre Pio continued to live very simply and led a rigorous discipline of prayer and fasting, and he was soon visited and followed by many people who wanted to see and to seek confession with this miraculous priest and servant of God. Yet, this popularity also drew concern and censure from the Church authorities, who questioned Padre Pio and even for a time, forbade him from publicly celebrating the Sacraments and ordered him to be secluded from others.

Nonetheless Padre Pio obeyed humbly and committed himself even more deeply through prayer and other actions, that as the years went by, more and more people became inspired by the holiness and the exemplary life led by this holy man of God, who suffered constantly from the physical wounds of his stigmata, as well as from other spiritual attacks from the devil, as it was told that the devil and other evil spirits would often strike at Padre Pio from time to time. He endured faithfully and committed his time and effort to the Lord more and more until the end of his life. And even after his passing, numerous people still devote themselves to the Lord through St. Pius of Pietrelcina.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore emulate the good examples and the faith showed by St. Pius of Pietrelcina, in our own daily lives and actions. Let us all strive to be ever more faithful and dedicated at all times, and seek the Lord with ever greater sincerity and conviction from now on, with the intercession of St. Pius of Pietrelcina, the ever faithful holy Padre Pio. May God bless us all, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Thursday, 23 September 2021 : 25th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Pius of Pietrelcina, Padre Pio, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 9 : 7-9

At that time, king Herod heard of all that Jesus and His disciples had done, and did not know what to think, for people said, “This is John, raised from the dead.”

Others believed that Elijah, or one of the ancient prophets, had come back to life. As for Herod, he said, “I had John beheaded. Who is this Man, about Whom I hear such wonders?” And he was anxious to see Him.

Alternative reading (Lectionary of Saints)

Luke 8 : 16-18

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “No one, after lighting a lamp, covers it with a bowl or puts it under the bed; rather, he puts it on a lamp stand, so that people coming in may see the light.”

“In the same way, there is nothing hidden that shall not be uncovered; nothing kept secret, that shall not be known clearly. Now, pay attention and listen well, for whoever produces, will be given more; but from those who do not produce, even what they seem to have will be taken away from them.”

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Thursday, 23 September 2021 : 25th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Pius of Pietrelcina, Padre Pio, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 149 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6a and 9b

Alleluia! Sing to YHVH a new song, sing His praise in the assembly of His saints. Let Israel rejoice in his Maker; let the people of Zion glory in their King!

Let them dance in praise of His Name; and make music for music for Him with harp and timbrel. For YHVH delights in His people; He crowns the lowly with victory.

The saints will exult in triumph; even at night, on their couches, let the praise of God be on their lips. This is the glory of all His saints. Alleluia!

Alternative reading (Lectionary of Saints)

Psalm 125 : 1-2ab, 2cd-3, 4-5, 6

When YHVH brought the exiles back to Zion, we were like those moving in a dream. Then, our mouths were filled with laughter, and our tongues with songs of joy.

Among the nations it was said, “YHVH has done great things for them.” YHVH has done great things for us, and we were glad indeed.

Bring back our exiles, o YHVH, like fresh streams in the desert. Those who sow in tears will reap with songs and shouts of joy.

They went forth weeping, bearing the seeds for sowing, they will come home with joyful shouts, bringing their harvested sheaves.

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Thursday, 23 September 2021 : 25th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Pius of Pietrelcina, Padre Pio, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Haggai 1 : 1-8

In the second year of the reign of Darius, on the first day of the sixth month, a word of YHVH was directed to the prophet Haggai, for the benefit of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest.

So says YHVH of hosts : This people claim that the time to rebuild the House of YHVH has not yet come. Well now, hear what I have to say through the prophet Haggai : Is this the time for you to live in your well-built houses while this House is a heap of ruins? Think about your ways : you have sown much but harvested little; you eat and drink, but are not satisfied; you clothe yourselves, but still feel cold; and the labourer puts the money he earned in a tattered purse.

Now think about what you must do : go to the mountain and look for wood to rebuild the House. This will make me happy; and I will feel deeply honoured, says YHVH.

Alternative reading (Lectionary of Saints)

Ezra 1 : 1-6

In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, YHVH willed to fulfil the word He had said through the prophet Jeremiah. So He moved the spirit of Cyrus, king of Persia, to issue the following command and send it out in writing to be read aloud everywhere in his kingdom : “Thus speaks Cyrus, king of Persia : YHVH, the God of heavens, Who has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, has ordered me to build Him a Temple in Jerusalem, in the land of Judah.”

“To everyone belonging to His people, may his God be with him! Let them go up to Jerusalem with the help of their God and, there, build the House of YHVH, the God of Israel; the God Who is in Jerusalem. In every place where the rest of the people of YHVH live, let the people of those places help them for their journey with silver, gold and all kinds of goods and livestock. Let them also give them voluntary offerings for the House of YHVH which is in Jerusalem.”

Then they rose up – the heads of the families of Judah and Benjamin, the priests and the Levites, and all those whose spirit God had stirred up – and they decided to go and build the House of YHVH. And all their neighbours gave them all kinds of help : gold, silver, livestock and precious objects in great quantity, besides every kind of voluntary offering.

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Thursday, 9 September 2021 : 23rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Peter Claver, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we listened to the words of the Lord in the Scriptures, we are all reminded to be genuine Christians in all things, in our every actions and dealings, in even the smallest things we say and do, so that we will always be the Lord’s faithful witnesses and that by our every words, actions and deeds we may glorify His Name and inspire many others to follow the path that we ourselves are walking down towards the salvation in God.

As Christians, we are all called to be filled with God’s love and to be loving as the Lord Himself has loved us, just as the Apostle St. Paul mentioned in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful in Colossae, in our first reading today. In that passage, we heard St. Paul encouraging the faithful to ‘clothe themselves’ in the raiments of God’s truth and virtues, to follow the Lord wholeheartedly in all things, to be filled with compassion and love for all, and to be righteous and just in all of their way of life.

Essentially, to be Christians, we have to adopt a total conversion of our hearts and minds, of our whole being and our entire way of life, embracing God and His love, and to immerse ourselves in that love, taking that up to be our own love, and our own compassionate care and concern for others whom we encounter in life and throughout our ministry and calling in this world. St. Paul asked the faithful to do everything for the glory of God, and to allow the Lord to lead them to the right path, that they may be the inspiring examples for one another, in how they remain faithful to God.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the Lord speaking to His disciples regarding how each and every one of them ought to learn how to love one another as Christians, in the most Christ-like way, and in reaching out in love even to all those who have not loved us, and be kind and compassionate even to those who have rejected us and made us to suffer. He has revealed to us that as Christians we ought to love unconditionally, and to show that same genuine love for all of those who need them.

He told the people that loving only those who love us back, is something that even the wicked could easily do, as this kind of love is often found in a transactional and even selfish kind of love, as we desire to be loved back in the same or even greater way than how we have loved others. In that way, our love is not yet one of genuine Christian love, for we love only because we expect something in return, and not truly because we are really moved to love those who have nothing to give back to us, and has nothing to benefit us with.

That is why, as the Lord had Himself said, that true and genuine Christian love, is about a selfless and unconditional love that is rooted in giving and not in expecting returns, in the sharing of oneself and one’s joy and love, to everyone regardless of their background and origins, regardless of their status and preferences. And the best example of this kind of love is none other than the Lord’s own loving example, as He laid down His own life on the Cross for each and every one of us.

When He told the people about giving one’s cheek and offering it to be struck when one has been struck in the face, and praying for and blessing those who have cursed and made us hurt, forgiving those who have brought pain upon us, it is a reminder of how the Lord Himself was bruised and broken during the time of His Passion, as He was whipped and tortured, humiliated and spat against, ridiculed and rejected by the people and their leaders, condemned to death like a criminal and put to bear the burden of the Cross, which He willingly took up for our sake.

The Lord took it all with love, with compassion and mercy, for all those who have wronged Him, abandoned Him and rejected Him. Yes, and that was why He even prayed for all those chief priests and those who have persecuted Him and condemned Him to His death. He prayed for their sake and asked the Father not to hold their sins against them, essentially seeking all of them to be forgiven, and to be reconciled with God, that they might be willing to listen to the truth, despite all that they had done.

The Lord’s self-giving and most selfless love is a great example and He Himself is the great and perfect role model for all of us, in doing what we should do as dedicated Christians, filled with God’s love and compassionate care for others. We are all in fact challenged to love in the same manner as the Lord, and we are all called to be sincere in loving others, and be less self-centred and selfish in our attitudes. Instead, we are all called to do our best to love God first and foremost, and then to love one another just at least as much as we love ourselves.

Certainly, this is something that is much more easily said than done. That is why, we should encourage each other to pick up these crosses of our callings, to be true and faithful disciples of Our Lord, in all things especially in loving one another. And today, we should also be inspired by the examples of our holy predecessor, namely St. Peter Claver, whose feast day we are celebrating on this very day. St. Peter Claver was a truly dedicated servant of God and a great missionary and priest, who spent much of his life in seeking for the betterment of the poor and the marginalised, and whose works and efforts saw the conversion of not just few, but hundreds of thousands of unbelievers into the true Faith.

St. Peter Claver was a Spanish Jesuit priest and missionary who decided to dedicate himself to the mission of the Church and the works of evangelisation, setting for the New World, the American continent, where he dwelled ever since, where he spent many decades working among the poor and the slaves who were aplenty at that time, as they were treated badly and sold to the highest bidder from time to time, treated often less than human beings and having no rights on their own. St. Peter Claver championed their cause and ministered to many of them, an effort which eventually led to more than three hundred thousand people baptised personally by St. Peter Claver throughout his ministry.

St. Peter Claver always treated the slaves with dignity and saw in them as fellow Christians, loving them and caring for them when no one else would love them or even treated them inhumanely. St. Peter Claver dedicated his time and efforts, and through all of those, showed us all truly what true and genuine Christian love is all about, which we ourselves should be inspired to follow and emulate in our own lives. Are we willing and able to do so, brothers and sisters in Christ? Are we willing to love one another unconditionally and be as selfless as St. Peter Claver had been?

Let us all discern these things carefully and ponder on the calling that the Lord has given us all, to be loving Christians and to be dedicated to our fellow brothers and sisters, especially to those who are in need of our love, care and compassion. Let us all grow ever more generous in loving and in forgiving one another our faults, and let us be ever more sincere in how we live our lives with true Christian spirit and love. May God bless us always in our every good endeavours and works, now and always. Amen.