holy saints of God

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Tuesday, 1 November 2016 : Solemnity of All Saints, All Saints’ Day (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate together the great Feast and Solemnity of All Saints, when we celebrate together with the whole Church the holy men and women, all those who have been deemed righteous by the Church, worthy of the eternal glory of heaven which God had prepared for them, and which He has also prepared for all of us who remain true to Him in faith.

Brothers and sisters, the celebrations of today, the All Saints’ Day, and tomorrow, the All Souls’ Day, are designed to remind us of the existence of three parts of the Church, both in this world and beyond. And they are the Church Triumphant, the Church Militant and the Church Suffering, each of which are helping each other, particularly that of the Church Militant and Church Suffering in the goal of reaching out to the Lord and to His salvation.

The Church Militant refers to us all who belong to the Church and still living in this world, carrying out our daily activities and works, and that is why we are called the Church Militant, for we should know that every single moment of our earthly life, we are always locked in that constant struggle between the Lord and those He had sent to our aid, our guardian Angels, against those seeking our downfall, chief of which is the devil, Satan, the evil one, whose designs for us are intended to drag us with him into eternal damnation in hell.

Meanwhile those in the Church Suffering are those who have left this earthly life before us, those who have died and yet deemed to be worthy enough to escape eternal damnation in hell, but because of their sins in life, small and venial, not mortal sins, they were deemed to be still unworthy to directly enter the kingdom of God, for sin has no place in the sight of God.

And thus they are suffering now the consequences of their sins, being purified in the holy flames of purgatory, as the Church taught us about the fate of those who were deemed worthy and yet still bearing the remnants of their venial and unrepented sins, which became a barrier in their path to the Lord. They are suffering because they are so close to God, and yet they are not yet able to be with Him until the time comes when their sins are completely absolved.

So, brethren, what about the Church Triumphant? This is the focus of our celebrations today, as the Church Triumphant refers to the holy men and women which by the virtues of their lives, have been deemed to be worthy enough and good enough to merit directly the glory of heaven upon the end of their earthly lives. And therefore, these are the saints we have today, those whom God had raised into heavenly glory to be our role model, and indeed as our helpers.

What does this mean, brethren? First of all, perhaps we should understand first what it means by the term saints. The saints are not deities or gods, as some of us may have misunderstood who they really are. It is not like those in other false faiths and pagans, who prayed to dead people and asked them to do miracles for them, or to grant them something good based on these dead people’s own powers.

Instead, the saints are just like us, brothers and sisters in Christ, and they used to live on this earth as we now do. It is not that like in some mythologies where some men or women became superman or superwoman because they gained some magical or supernatural powers and then used these to bring good or bad things on others. In fact, saints were sinners like us too, and some of the saints were once great and unrepentant sinners, until one moment in their respective lives when they decided to change their lives.

St. Augustine of Hippo for example, was a delinquent young man who caused his mother, St. Monica, plenty of worries and troubles. He lived through all sorts of debauchery and wickedness, and he wandered through one woman to another, fathering even a child with one of them. It seemed that he would go down that path to his ruin, as one after another, he experienced all the vile deeds of the world.

And yet, through the continuous prayers and never-ending support from his mother, and through his own gradual understanding and discovery that his ways had been wrong, eventually he turned around in his life and dedicated his life from then on in righteousness and obedience to God. Through his many works, writings and efforts, he had done so many good things to those whom he had met and touched, and therefore became a source of inspiration for many others.

That is one example of who saints were, and what they had eventually become. St. Francis of Assisi, the renowned holy man and founder of the Franciscan order was once the son and heir of a rich textile merchant, while St. Ignatius of Loyola was the heir and son of another powerful family in Spain, both of whom were brought up to enjoy earthly life in wealth and revelry, but eventually they also realised that what they were doing were not what satisfied them, and therefore they repented and changed their ways, and thereafter became the sources of inspiration for many others, many of whom also eventually became saints themselves.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we rejoice in the glory of the holy saints of God, first of all we have to understand that each and every one of us has the potential to become a saint ourselves, as if we have done what the Lord had asked us to do, and even more, going forward to show love, mercy, care and compassion to those who need these, and inspire many others to do the same, then we will also be found faithful, worthy and just to enter into the glory of heaven, sharing together the joy of the saints we celebrate today.

Then secondly, we should know what the saints can do to help us all still living in this world. They are our intercessors, those who pray for us on our behalf, asking God to show His mercy and guidance to us, and through our request for their intercession, they helped us in guiding our prayers to God, for after all, they are in heaven, at the sides of the Lord.

And indeed, the greatest of all saints is Mary, the Mother of our Lord and God, Jesus Christ, and thus that is why in the Church we also have a very strong devotion to Mary, for through her and her prayers, as she once did in the wedding at Cana, she helped us all in the same manner as her petitions and requests for her Son to help the struggling wedding couple was heard and fulfilled.

The saints are praying for us all the time, and they all are aware of our sufferings and our current state, particularly that many of us who are still heading down the path towards eternal damnation and downfall. They are always working together with our guardian Angels, those whom God had sent to us to help us, so that we will be able to prevail through the difficulties and challenges found in this world, and eventually be able to find our way to God’s salvation and grace.

And last of all, let us all be inspired by the examples of the saints themselves, that we may find our way to God’s salvation by doing what the saints and the Church had shown and taught us to do. For the saints are like stained glass in the churches that we see and often adore because of their beauty. An untempered and undecorated stained is not beautiful, but once it has been decorated and completed, it becomes a sign of beauty, when light passes through it and illuminate the entire church building.

Therefore, in the same manner, we ourselves are empty vessels without meaning if we have no God living truly inside of us. It is God’s light in the saints that made them to have such amazing lives filled with righteousness and good deeds, and through them, God’s works are made evident in this world, inspiring many others to follow them, and we can do the same as well.

As we rejoice today, let us thus not forget what each of us Christians can do and can become, that is as the reflections of the saints, which in turn are the reflections of God and His light. Let us all be beacons of light for the world, and be not afraid to do what we can in order to evangelise and spread the Good News, lighting up the way to our brethren, particularly those who are still not aware of God and His ways, and those who have lost their way amidst the persuasions and temptations of this world.

May the Lord help us on our journey, and may the inspirations of the holy saints become our sustenance and strength, that we too may share in their glory at the end of our own earthly lives, as we have done what the Lord asked us to do, and even more, helping one another to draw ever closer to the Lord our God. Amen.

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Tuesday, 1 November 2016 : Solemnity of All Saints, All Saints’ Day (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
Matthew 5 : 1-12a

At that time, when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up the mountain. He sat down and His disciples gathered around Him. Then He spoke and began to teach them :

“Fortunate are those who are poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Fortunate are those who mourn, they shall be comforted. Fortunate are the gentle, they shall possess the land.”

“Fortunate are those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they shall be satisfied. Fortunate are the merciful, for they shall find mercy. Fortunate are those with a pure heart, for they shall see God.”

“Fortunate are those who work for peace, they shall be called children of God. Fortunate are those who are persecuted for the cause of justice, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

“Fortunate are you, when people insult you and persecute you and speak all kinds of evil against you because you are My followers. Be glad and joyful, for a great reward is kept for you in God.”

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Tuesday, 1 November 2016 : Solemnity of All Saints, All Saints’ Day (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
1 John 3 : 1-3

See what singular love the Father has for us : we are called children of God, and we really are. This is why the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.

Beloved, we are God’s children and what we shall be has not yet been shown. Yet when He appears in His glory, we know that we shall be like Him, for then we shall see Him as He is. All who have such a hope try to be pure as He is pure.

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Tuesday, 1 November 2016 : Solemnity of All Saints, All Saints’ Day (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 23 : 1-2, 3-4ab, 5-6

The earth and its fullness belong to the Lord, the world and all that dwell in it. He has founded it upon the ocean and set it firmly upon the waters.

Who will ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who will stand in His holy place? Those with clean hands and pure heart, who desire not what is vain.

They will receive blessings from the Lord, a reward from God, their Saviour. Such are the people who seek Him, who seek the face of Jacob’s God.

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Tuesday, 1 November 2016 : Solemnity of All Saints, All Saints’ Day (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White
Revelations 7 : 2-4, 9-14

I saw another Angel ascending from the sunrise, carrying the seal of the living God, and he cried out with a loud voice to the four Angels empowered to harm the earth and the sea, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we have sealed the servants of our God upon their foreheads.”

Then I heard the number of those marked with the seal : a hundred and forty-four thousand from all the tribes of the people of Israel. After this I saw a great crowd, impossible to count, from every nation, race, people and tongue, standing before the throne and the Lamb, clothed in white, with palm branches in their hands, and they cried out with a loud voice, “Who saves but our God Who sits on the throne and the Lamb?”

All the Angels were around the throne, the elders and the four living creatures; they then bowed before the throne with their faces to the ground to worship God. They said, “Amen. Praise, glory, wisdom, thanks, honour, power and strength to our God forever and ever. Amen!”

At that moment, one of the elders spoke up and said to me, “Who are these people clothed in white, and where did they come from?” I answered, “Sir, it is you who know this.” The elder replied, “They are those who have come out of the great persecution; they have washed and made their clothes white in the Blood of the Lamb.”

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Friday, 28 October 2016 : Feast of St. Simon and St. Jude, Apostles (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate with great joy the feast of not just one, but two of the Lord’s very own Twelve Apostles, St. Simon and St. Jude. St. Simon the Apostle was once known as Simon the Zealot, likely from his former work and contributions to the Zealots, a community of people who led an active and passive resistance against the Romans. Meanwhile, St. Jude Thaddeus was a disciple often confused with Judas Iscariot, the traitor, and yet, he had done many wonderful deeds for the Lord and for His people.

In the Scripture readings today, we heard how God called His Apostles from among the people, chose them and charged them to assist Him in His works and missions to help the people of God, to whom Christ had laboured for in His earthly ministry in order to bring them towards salvation. He sent them to help Him in spreading the good works He has intended for His people, and to call them to repentance and to change their ways that they may be saved.

But it was not an easy task, and Jesus our Lord Himself reminded His disciples and Apostles in particular, that challenges facing them would be plenty. They would be tempted to abandon their efforts, just as what the Passion of our Lord showed us. When Jesus was betrayed by Judas Iscariot, who was none other than one among His Twelve Apostles, tempted by money, all the other Apostles and disciples abandoned Him and went into hiding, fearing repercussions from the enemies of their Lord.

And when the Pharisees, the elders and the chief priests commenced persecution of all the faithful, spearheaded by Saul, the future St. Paul the Apostle, some among the faithful faltered in their faith and devotion to the Lord, and faced with the choice between suffering and staying faithful to their God, or to enjoy reprieve and safety in the world and abandoning their God, there were those who chose to do the latter.

These are the challenges facing us Christians, not only just during that time, when the Church was still growing and blooming in its early days, but also throughout the history of Christendom right up to now, to this very day, and also in the foreseeable future that we have and which we will experience. It is the challenge for us to remain faithful to the Lord despite the persecutions and challenges, ridicule and rejection that the world has inflicted upon us.

Are we up to the task? And do we indeed realise that as our Lord’s disciples and followers in this modern era and times, there are still a lot of things left to be done in this world? We are the successors of the works of the Apostles and the Church fathers, who had established the Church on the firm foundation of their faith and courageous devotion. We have to follow in their footsteps and be faithful in all of our ways.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, it was told that St. Simon and St. Jude Thaddeus went to many different places, serving the people in various locations and relating to them the revelation of truth which came from God. Through their works and assistance, many had come to believe in God, and many more have repented from their sins and received the salvation from God.

They were not always welcomed, and there were those who were opposed to their works, both among their own people and among the pagan nations. But they never gave up, and through their persistence, the foundations of the Church in many places had been made strong and firm. They have led by example in their faith, encouraging many to remain strong in the faith.

And eventually, even though they met their ends in the faraway lands, St. Simon in Armenia or Persia, where he might have been crucified or sawn in half, and St. Jude Thaddeus in Syria, where it was told that he was beheaded with an axe, and some accounts had his martyrdom together with St. Simon, which was why their feast days are celebrated together.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, shall we then follow the examples of these holy and venerable saints? Shall we follow in their footsteps as well? There are many things that we can learn from them, and perhaps we really should do so. We are called to continue the good works of the Apostles, and be courageous in spreading the message of the Good News of the Gospel, not worrying and fearing challenges that will come our way.

May the Lord help us in our endeavours and good works in serving Him, and may He ever bless us all always with abundant blessings, and bring us all ever closer to His everlasting love and mercy. Amen.

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Friday, 28 October 2016 : Feast of St. Simon and St. Jude, Apostles (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red
Luke 6 : 12-19

At that time, Jesus went out into the hills to pray, spending the whole night in prayer with God. When day came, He called His disciples to Him, and chose twelve of them, whom He called ‘Apostles’ : Simon, whom He named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James son of Alpheus and Simon called the Zealot; Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who would be the traitor.

Coming down the hill with them, Jesus stood in an open plain. Many of His disciples were there and a large crowd of people, who had come from all parts of Judea and Jerusalem, and from the coastal cities of Tyre and Sidon. They gathered to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases. And people troubled by unclean spirits were cured.

The entire crowd tried to touch Him, because of the power that went out from Him and healed them all.

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Friday, 28 October 2016 : Feast of St. Simon and St. Jude, Apostles (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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Friday, 28 October 2016 : Feast of St. Simon and St. Jude, Apostles (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red
Ephesians 2 : 19-22

Now you are no longer strangers or guests, but fellow citizens of the holy people : you are of the household of God. You are the house whose foundations are the Apostles and prophets, and whose cornerstone is Christ Jesus. In Him the whole structure is joined together and rises to be a Holy Temple in the Lord.

In Him you too are being built to become the spiritual sanctuary of God.

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Monday, 24 October 2016 : 30th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us Christians who believe in God are challenged to lead a real life of faith, that we should devote ourselves not to hypocrisy and all the things that do not lead to salvation in God. The example was given in the Gospel today, when Jesus was angry at those who were in the synagogue and was against His works, healing a woman who had been enthralled by the demons and the evil spirits for years.

All these meanwhile the synagogue officials, the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law constantly opposed the Lord, pretending through their piety that they were doing the works that God wanted them to do. They have taken upon themselves to safeguard the laws and traditions of Moses and their ancestors, but in that process, they truly have forgotten what it meant to be true disciples and followers of the Lord, and instead became blind followers and leaders.

They preached strict obedience and adherence to the Law, and were not hesitant to punish all those who did not follow the Lord as they had done, thinking that they have done the will of God in that way, but in reality, they have only served their own needs and purposes. They had no God in their hearts, but instead their own ego, their own greed and desire for money, for wealth, for possessions of worldly power and glory, and of influence and fame.

That was why these supposedly pious leaders of the people tolerated merchants and all money lenders and corrupt people to set up their businesses at the Temple courtyard, selling and manipulating prices, making profits out of poor and honest people so that those merchants could get rich, and then probably, in the process, also made the Pharisees, the chief priests and the elders rich from the agreement they likely to have made between them.

This was what the warning by St. Paul in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful in the city of Corinth and the Psalm today meant, that those who serve not the Lord but worldly things such as money, wealth, fame and glory, are real threat to us and to our salvation, as these shall bring whoever that are ensnared in their traps, to veer away from the Lord’s ways and salvation, and fall instead into sin and damnation.

And that is a reminder to all of us Christians, just as our Lord made another example in the Gospel today, which we just discussed, that as Christians we cannot imitate the examples of all those who have not shown righteousness in their way of life. We cannot be like those who have given themselves to debauchery and to follow the ways of this world in their actions and deeds.

As Christians, we are called instead to show care and concern for others, especially for the weak, the downtrodden, the less privileged, the poor and all others who are in need of our help. This is the calling which our Lord made to us, even as He Himself led by example, and showed mercy and love to that poor woman who needed help.

Perhaps, all of us should learn from the examples of St. Anthony Mary Claret, the founder of the Claretians religious order, whose feast we are celebrating today. St. Anthony Mary Claret was a holy and devout man, whose works did not just include advising and helping the Queen of Spain at that time, Isabel II of Spain, but also in the matters of advancing the cause of the people who are suffering, weak and poor throughout the dominion of the crown and beyond.

St. Anthony Mary Claret established the religious order that would later on be known as the Claretians, in order to gather more people with the same mind, same intention and devotion to serve the Lord and His people with genuine devotion and commitment, desiring for the betterment of those who are suffering and in pain, and bring people closer to God spiritually, that they may not just become better physically but more importantly, also spiritually, drawing closer to God and to His salvation.

St. Anthony Mary Claret showed us through his examples, writings and many other ways that in order to become good and true Christians, we must be able to live up fully to what the Lord had expected from us, and that is not hypocrisy and empty faith, but faith that is made real by genuine commitment and hard work, devoting oneself to God and to our fellow brethren in need.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all awaken in ourselves the strong desire to love and serve the Lord genuinely, and also to love our brethren with all of our heart, so that we will be able to appreciate how we ought to serve God with love, and thus be able to draw closer to Him and find righteousness in Him. At the end of the days, He will bless us all and call us into the eternal glory and joy He has prepared for us. May God bless us all. Amen.