Holy Week sermon

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Wednesday, 13 May 2015 : 6th Week of Easter, Memorial of our Lady of Fatima (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the feast day of our Lady of Fatima, the ninety-eighth anniversary since the mother of our Lord Jesus Christ appeared to three young children at Fatima in Portugal almost a hundred years ago, in a series of apparitions where she revealed to them the messages of utmost importance, seeking for the repentance and conversion of the world, and the consecration of Russia to her, which was at that year, precisely at that very moment, was about to fall into the long darkness of communism.

This feast of our Lady of Fatima is a reminder for all of us yet again, how we have been given so many reminders and opportunities to repent and change from our sinful and wicked ways, and the one who had appeared so many times to us so that this may happen, is none other than the loving mother of our Lord, that is Mary, the ever faithful mother of us all. She appeared to us and reminded us from time to time, in her many apparitions, to reveal to us the truth about our sins and about the love and mercy that God is willing to show all those who repent from their sins.

Why does Mary care so much about us, brethren? And why is she our mother when she is clearly the mother of Jesus, our Lord and God? To understand this, we have to understand what happened at the very last moment of Jesus’s earthly life when He was on the cross. While He fulfilled the very act of perfect love by which He redeemed all of us and gave us new hope of life, He entrusted His mother to John, His beloved disciple, and then in the same way, He also entrusted His disciple to Mary, His mother.

This can be easily overlooked, but in that single moment, God had entrusted us all and gave us the very best gift He could give us, that is of His own mother, who in her selfless dedication and love, had cared for Him with ultimate patience and care since His birth, and then on that day, to follow His Son on the way to His suffering and death on the cross, which is for our sake.

Imagine the sorrow and the sadness that assaulted the heart of Mary, as she watched her own beloved Son, as He was mocked, ridiculed, rejected, scourged, carried that heavy and painful cross, fell on the ground three times, having His hands and legs pierced by the nails, lifted up for all to see, and eventually died on the cross. All these, our Lord Jesus Christ had done, so that through Him, we may be saved and not suffer the consequences of our sins, that is death and hell.

Which mother would just ignore the plight and the cries of her children? Therefore, in the same way, Mary, whom God had made to be our mother as well, cares for us deeply and she is concerned for the state of our souls, which if nothing is done, we are truly prone to fall deeper into our sinfulness and the darkness that surround us, so that we are forever lost to the Lord.

And this is what God, and therefore, His mother Mary do not want to happen. He died for us so that we may be saved, and not suffer the eternal death in hell because of our sins. This is why, we have our best ally and friend with us, Mary, our mother, who ceaselessly prays for our sake, with all the other saints and with all of the angels, particularly each of our guardian angels, that we may be awakened from our slumber in the darkness and make the effort to come back into the light.

Thus, our faithful devotions to our Lady of Fatima is a constant reminder for us to keep our own lives in check, so that in all the things we act, say and do, we will always do them in accordance with the will of God, and remain righteous and just in all of our ways without exception. Remember, brethren, that Mary is always interceding for our sake, near to the throne of Jesus, her Son our Lord and God. She weeps for us whenever we commit sin, and rejoices whenever we repent from those same sins.

Let us all therefore put in great effort to fulfill what our Lord mentioned in the Gospel passage we heard today, that if we listen to His words and does His will in all that we do, say and act, then we truly are worthy to be called His friends, His family and as people that belongs to Him alone, and thus, if we are worthy, then the fullness of God’s grace and blessings will be with us, and happiness as well as joy will be with us and never depart from us again.

O, our Lady of Fatima, blessed Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, who had appeared to the children at Fatima calling for the repentance of sinners and the conversion of the world, pray for us all always, so that we may always heed the word of God in all that we do, and abandon all sorts of evil and wickedness. Remember that what matters for us in this life, is the state of our soul, and let us not seek the suffering and damnation of hell, but let us together with our blessed mother Mary, enjoy forever the glory of heaven. God bless us all. Amen.

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Tuesday, 12 May 2015 : 6th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Nereus and St. Achilleus, Martrys, and St. Pancras, Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard about how God is ever faithful and how He will always provide for all those who continue to cling on to Him and not swayed by the tides of the world. In the first reading we heard how St. Paul and Silas his companion were freed from prison by a great earthquake when their enemies plotted against them to destroy them, and in the process the jailer himself was converted to the faith.

And in the Gospel we heard how our Lord Jesus promised the coming of the Helper, the Advocate and the Guide of all things, that is the Holy Spirit, which He would send to His Apostles and therefore to His Church after His suffering, death, resurrection and ascension into heaven. This is to remind us that while this coming Thursday we are going to commemorate our Lord’s glorious ascension into heaven, He is always with us wherever we are.

God dwells in us and He is always with us, and even though we are always disobedient and rebellious, but He is ever faithful. And to all those who keep their faith in Him, He will grant such great favours and graces so as to mark them apart from all others who have not given Him their love and dedication. So we are truly very fortunate if we can count ourselves as one of the faithful ones of God.

God is always with His people, with all of His children that is all of us. He is always on our side, blessing us and giving us His graces from time to time. We have to think about this every time we breathe and have life, every single day of our life. Remember that the Lord, who is Lord and Master of all life have been so gracious and kind so as to overlook our sins and faults, to give us the opportunity for repentance.

It is very easy for the Lord to just destroy us and cast us away from His presence forever. After all, we all have betrayed His trust and His love, and chose to side with Satan and rebel together with him. But His love for us overcomes His anger at us, and His wrath is overcome by the care and pity which He has for us, His children, who are like lost sheep wandering in the darkness of this world.

Thus, He has called us out of this darkness, and to those of us whom He had called, He also entrusted us to call our brethren out of the same darkness. That is why, He gave us His Spirit, which encourages us and gives us the strength and will to overcome all the forms of indecision, fear and apathy, so that we all may help one another to be ever closer to our Lord and be saved by His mercy and grace.

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Nereus, St. Achilleus and St. Pancras, all of whom are martyrs of the faith. They are all the holy defenders of the faith, who did not give up their faith despite the threat of persecution and death by those who were opposed to the Lord and to the truth they were preaching by their words and actions. St. Achilleus and St. Nereus were members of the Roman army while St. Nereus was a noble who all lived at the time of the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian, infamous for his great and harsh persecution of all Christians.

St. Nereus and St. Achilleus was once pagan soldiers who took part in the persecution of the faithful, but after witnessing the example of the faith of many those whom they have persecuted, they themselves became believers and refused to obey anymore orders to persecute the faithful ones. As a result, they were tortured and put to great suffering, until eventually they were beheaded for their refusal to embrace the pagan gods.

St. Pancras was a young noble who was baptised at a young age and who led an exemplary Christian life, donating his goods and possessions to the poor and practicing the faith in his actions, and although he was discovered because of this, he refused to recant his faith in God despite being offered much wealth and power by the Emperor himself. As such, he was also beheaded for his faith after great sufferings.

All the holy martyrs might have met their death and end at the hands of their persecutors and those who do not believe in God, but they receive great and rich rewards in heaven, and through their bravery, courage and examples, they inspired countless others to believe in God and thus saved many more souls for the Lord.

These things are examples that we can adopt and discern on, as we all have also been called to walk in the same path that they have walked. It does not mean that we must antagonise others and face martyrdom, but rather that we all have to trust the Lord fully and completely, and place all of our hope in Him, and be courageous and proactive in how we live out our faith.

May Almighty God guide us and strengthen us in our faith, that by the Holy Spirit which He had sent us, we may become ever more courageous and stronger in our commitment and devotion to spread the word of God to many more people and thus lead more people towards salvation and new life in God. God bless us all. Amen.

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Monday, 11 May 2015 : 6th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we celebrate together this wonderful day, we are all reminded that we are witnesses of the truth and the revelations which our Lord Jesus Christ had brought into the world. We are all called to be the messengers and servants of God’s message of truth and conversion for the whole world, that all who still dwell in the darkness may abandon their sins and be welcomed back into the light.

And what is important for us all to take note is that, if we walk in this path, that is as the faithful servants of our Lord, preaching and proclaiming His truth to the whole world, then our path will not be easy. There will be staunch opposition and rejection from the world and from those to whom we have gone to preach the message of our Lord. There will also be ridicule and persecution of the faithful, that is all of us.

There are many people who still live in the darkness of the world and remain in the state of sin. Some of them will hearken and listen to the word of God, if someone is to bring these words to them. Just like the Apostles in the past, as exemplified by the examples of St. Paul who preached in many cities and places, that his message of the truth of Christ was heard far and wide, and many people turned towards the Lord.

A people who lived in the darkness had seen a great light, and this was the prophecy of the prophets who foretold of the coming of the great Messiah who would liberate His people and bring them into wholesome new life. Christ is this light that shines upon the darkness and reveal to us the truth of God, the truth about ourselves and what we can do to free ourselves from the clutches of darkness.

And He had tasked His Apostles and other disciples with the command to continue His works of revealing to the nations and all of His wayward sheep, the people of God wandering in sin and darkness, the truth which would dispel all the lies of Satan and unveil the wickedness of all of our sins. The purpose of this is so that we may stop sinning and doing wicked things before the Lord, and thus condemning ourselves to eternal suffering of hell.

God loves us so much that although we are sinners, and often unrepentant and rebellious, but He was willing to show His enduring and everlasting love, which He showed through Jesus Christ. God loves us all, and He wants to show His love and mercy, forgiving us from our sins and trespasses against Him. Yet, He also hates and despises each of our sins at the same time. Thus, it was in His desire to reveal to us this fact, so that we may be awakened from our indecision and slumber, into a new life where we actively seek God’s mercy and forgiveness.

It is through us all, we who have been baptised and part of the whole unity of the Church of God, that God is exercising His good works in this world. But the world itself resists, and all the forces aligned with Satan and all evils also resist this revelation. For in this revelation comes to light the ugly nature of sin and wickedness in the world and Satan, and they resent it.

That is why there will be difficulties and great challenges for us all even as walk in this way of faith. It is because of this resentment and opposition, for the world and Satan his master want to keep as many souls condemned and in state of rebellion against God as possible. But God will be with us, and we truly have no need to fear. Satan and his forces can only harm our physical body, but not harm our soul, for our soul belong to God alone.

What we are doing in the Name of the Lord in fact dispel those lies and darkness, helping many of our brethren who are lost and not knowing their way in life, so that they may now find their way to God through actions and deeds, as well as through sincere and devout prayer.

Therefore, we are now called to give our best and to do our best in our respective lives, that we may be ever more faithful and devoted servant of our Lord, through our faithful words, actions and deeds. Let us all show this love for God to our brethren, and by showing how we live a faithful and good Christian life, caring for one another in need, so that all who sees us will come to believe in what we believe, and therefore have the gate to salvation opened for them.

May Almighty God be with us always, that we may be ever more confident and dedicated, to be preachers and proclaimers of His Good News among the nations, bringing salvation closer to ever more souls, and help our brethren to return to our Lord, that we may worship Him together as one people, freed from the bonds of sin and the darkness of this world. God bless us all. Amen.

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Sunday, 10 May 2015 : Sixth Sunday of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this holy day of Sunday of the Lord, the sixth in the Easter season, all of us heard about how God revealed His love for us through His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and how He called all the peoples, of all the nations, to come together and be saved, through the holy waters of baptism, genuine conversion and by receiving the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

The message today is very, very clear, that to all of us the faithful, we are always reminded that God is love, and God is merciful, and He has called us out of the darkness, so that we may abandon the darkness, and embrace the fullness of His mercy, grace and love. And then, it is also very clear, that God calls all peoples, of all nations without bias and preference.

What truly matters is indeed, that we whom God have called out of the darkness, follow Him in all of His ways, and heed His teachings. Before the Lord, all of us are equal and same as brothers and sisters. This was to counter the attitudes of the Jews and the people of Israel, who since the time when they were chosen as God’s first called people, have adopted an exclusivist and elitist attitude, to the condemnation and exclusion of others from the possibility of receiving the grace of God.

They thought that they alone were worthy of God’s salvation because they were God’s chosen people and often took for granted the grace and the patience which God has always given to them and show them. As such, they were often rebellious and unrepentant, and they even refused to listen to reason and the truth, when the Lord sent them repeated reminders and revelations through His prophets, and last of all, through the Lord Jesus Himself.

This also continued with the conflicts and struggles between the Jewish members of the faithful and their Gentiles counterparts. The Gentiles are all the non-Jews, which include people from various nations and origins, primarily the Greeks, many of whom had accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour, and by the works and the teachings of the Apostles, they had walked in the way of the Lord.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, God had made it clear, that He intends for the salvation and liberation of all peoples. That is because the new Passover and salvation He brought is a new and more perfect one as compared to what He had given the people of Israel in the past, when He liberated them from the Egyptians through the hands and works of Moses, His servant.

This new Passover is the Passover of the Paschal Lamb, which we are particularly celebrating on in this season of Easter. The Paschal Lamb, that is our Lord Jesus Christ, had become the new Lamb of sacrifice, by whose Flesh and Blood, He had made righteous and chosen, a people whom He had chosen for Himself, and whom He had called from among the nations, that is all who sincerely believe in Him and in all of His teachings.

In that way, He had chosen us, and by His sacrifice and death, which we profess in our faith and proclaim to others, He had freed us from the eventual fate of suffering, pain, despair and destruction in hell. Instead, to those who have accepted Him as their Lord and Master, He grants a new life filled with hope, love and grace. And this is regardless of our background, regardless of our origin and race.

Everyone who heeds God’s call and does His will are worthy of Him and all that He had prepared and promised to them. They have been marked by God for salvation just like the people of Israel had been marked with the blood of the sacrificed Passover lambs. And further on, God did not just wash away our sins through the waters of baptism, He also gave us the Holy Spirit, to dwell in us and to become the source of our hope and inspiration.

The Gentiles received the Holy Spirit as a clear sign from God that everyone without exception enjoy the favour of God as long as they follow His commandments that is Love. As long as we have love in us, and we give that love firstly to our Lord and God who had loved us first, and then also give the same love to our fellow men, by caring for one another and showing care and concern for all those in need, we have been found worthy in the eyes of the Lord.

And today we are all reminded that, all of us have a mission which our Lord Jesus Christ had commanded us all to do, just as He had given the commands to His Apostles. This is to love one another just as He had loved us first, for such a great love that even though we are sinners through and through, rotten to the core and to our souls, but He was willing to come down in humility and obedience, and to give up His life for us on the cross that we may have life.

And therefore, we must show this love to others, especially to all those who have yet to know of this love, and who are still languishing in the darkness, not knowing the way to go. We have to be the ones to bear the light of our Lord to them, by showing it through real and concrete actions, so that when they see us doing love, practicing love and showing love in all things, they too may be moved in their hearts and soul, that they may abandon their sinfulness and wicked world and follow the Lord as we all have done.

Let us all never be judgmental upon others just because we see that they have done something wicked. Let us not judge sinners as we have to remember that we are once sinners too, be it small or great. Our duty and responsibility is to lead them all to mercy and forgiveness by God, and to allow them to see the light through our actions, so that they too may become the children of God.

But we must be careful not to offer false mercy to others who need mercy. False mercy is for us to bring forgiveness to others unconditionally. Yes, it is important for us to be merciful and to forgive, but it also requires others to be repentant, and indeed to be truly sorry for their sins and commit themselves to no longer doing the same sin for the rest of their lives. This is true mercy and not false mercy. False mercy that does not bring about repentance only cause further injustice and wickedness.

Therefore, let us all carry forth this mission with great courage and joy. All of us Christians who have been baptised in the Name of our Lord, and who have received the Holy Spirit ought to, and indeed we must be witnesses of our faith, as witnesses of our Lord’s love in His death and resurrection to all the nations. May all peoples, all mankind be hearkened to come to the throne of our Lord’s most merciful love, so that as many souls as possible are saved from the destruction because of our sins.

May Almighty God be with all of us, that in all of our deeds and actions, He may always remind us in our heart and mind, to be faithful to Him and to show others what it truly means to be a Christian. God bless us all. Amen.

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Saturday, 9 May 2015 : 5th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard the Lord reminding His disciples that if they were to follow Him and continue to walk in His path, then it will not be easy for them. There will be difficult times and challenges for them, as the way of this world is not the same as the way of the Lord, and indeed, it is diametrically opposite to it.

That is why, while we champion the sanctity of life, and how every single life is important and necessary, the world championed the culture of death, that is the destruction of the meaning and holiness of all life, and also the disregard for people’s livelihood, in an environment that is often based on the survival of the fittest and the suffering of everyone else.

Meanwhile, we believe in the values of Christian charity and love, that we should show love to all of our brethren without exception, even to our enemies and to all those who hated us. This is the wonders of our Christian faith, and which the Apostles stood up proudly for, defending that faith against the wickedness of this world. And the world that despised Christ will also despise us too.

The Apostles encountered difficulties, challenges, rejection and other troubles throughout their ministry and work, but they rejoiced at the thought of being persecuted for the sake of defending their faith to God, and thus being persecuted for the sake of Christ Himself. Remember that Jesus Himself said, that all those who are persecuted because they believe in Him will receive great rewards? This is exactly what He means.

We do not have to be hostile to the world, or to withdraw ourselves completely to the world, as these attitudes would instead backfire on us. This is because doing such things means that we isolate ourselves from the world, and ultimately from the many souls and peoples whom we are able to rescue and save from the darkness by our actions, our words and our deeds.

Yes, all of us baptised into the Church of God have received the same Spirit, the Holy Spirit which the Apostles had received from the Lord. And with this Spirit we ought to be courageous and reach out to all those who have yet to hear the Word of God, so that they too may be saved, by turning their backs against the sinfulness and wickedness which they have committed previously.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all persevere and resist the challenges and difficulties of this world, with which Satan always tries to lure and trap those who lack vigilance and awareness, with temptations and persuasions, so that we may be praised and accepted by the world. Remember, brethren, that we should not seek what is temporary and illusory. The wealth, possessions, goodness, fame and all the praise of this world count for nothing, if we do not build for ourselves a rich heavenly inheritance.

Therefore, let us all from now, start building up our treasure in heaven, by following the Lord closely and faithfully in all His ways, that beginning from ourselves, we may inspire many others to also follow the Lord and walk in His ways, and thus be saved.  This is what we ought to do, brothers and sisters. Let us not wait until it is too late for us. May God guide us in this path and keep us straight in that path, so that we will remain always faithful to Him, and therefore receive our just rewards of everlasting life. Amen.

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Friday, 8 May 2015 : 5th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we all ought to reflect on the nature of God’s love for us. His love for us is true, genuine, perfect and transcending all forms of selfish love and worldliness, and His love is given to us freely! And yet, it is us all who have often rejected His love. We prefer the love of this world and the love of ourselves.

And this is why all of us have to learn that if we become the disciples of our Lord, them all of us ought to grow stronger in our humility and dedication to one another, and to be less in the attention which we pay to ourselves and to our desires. We must die to our desires and our greed, and rise up at the call of others, when they cried for justice, for food and for love, which many in our world today lacks.

As we have discussed earlier on this week on the matter of the observation of the laws of Moses, the customs of Israel, the over-emphasis on such strict observation of the faith by the Jews and their demands that all the faithful followed such strict laws caused the people to lose sight of what being a true disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ really means.

To be the true disciples of our Lord, we have to be completely and thoroughly changed in our ways and be converted to His cause, not just externally, but also internally as well. We cannot be so focused on ourselves and then be blind to the plight of others who are around us. Thus, as we seek to obey the Lord and follow His commandments, we cannot blindly follow them and worse still, to do them for the sake of being seen and praised for having obeyed the Law of God.

The Jews themselves, as emphasized by the examples of the Pharisees, were too caught up in the act of maintaining the law at the strictest possible application, that they ended up doing the law injustice, for they failed to understand the real and true meaning of the Law. The Law is meant to guide us in the way of love, that is teaching us on how to love one another, and also to love God.

As such, we have to understand what Jesus had taught us about the commandments and Law which He had given us. To love God means to give ourselves completely in our being to Him, and with all of our strength and might we ought to focus all of our attentions to Him, so that whenever we do something we always give glory to God and we will not even contemplate doing something that will go against the way of the Lord.

And if we love God, then we will also definitely follow in His footsteps and not turn left and right in the pursuit of other things. We will be faithful no matter what challenges and temptations that lie on our way. This is our faith, and this is what we should do in the name of our faith to the Lord. And if we love God, then we will also love our fellow men, so that in all that we do, we may bring goodness to others around us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reflect on this occasion, on what we can do more to love our Lord and to love one another. If we have not shown love in our actions, then perhaps this is the time for us to begin to do so. May God guide us on our ways and help us to keep faithfully all of His commandments and remain true to Him, our Lord and Saviour. God bless us all. Amen.

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Thursday, 7 May 2015 : 5th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we all heard how Jesus our Lord exhorted His disciples to follow the way of the Lord, that is to follow all of His teachings and all that He had revealed about God, the Creator and Master of all, if they are truly faithful to Him. If we truly love God, then certainly, we would have dedicated ourselves to His ways and in all of our actions we should indeed be much like Him.

And Jesus mentioned that those who belong to Him and those who are faithful to Him will do His commandments, the Law of God, that is essentially, as He had often explained, Love. The Law of God, the commandments of God, all are essentially about two things as Jesus explained, that is the love we ought to have for God, our Lord, Father and Master, as well as the love that we all should have towards one another.

Therefore, this is the focus of our life and what we all should aspire to, that is to practice our faith with real and genuine sincerity, in all of our every words, deeds and actions without exception. But as we heard in the readings, there are difficulties and challenges awaiting us. Externally, as the world and its ways as we know are diametrically opposite to that of the way of our Lord, and therefore, temptations and challenges will surely come our way.

And then challenges also comes from within as well, from the example of what we heard in the first reading today from the Acts of the Apostles. The Jews have arguments and conflicts with the non-Jews or the Gentiles, both of which groups had embraced the faith and believed in Jesus. The Jews contended that to be truly faithful, then everyone, including the Gentiles have to observe the entirety of the laws of Moses, the set of very expansive and exhaustive laws, rules and regulations, that governed many things in the lifestyle and customs of the Jews.

It is not only that this set of laws, which apparently numbered about six hundred and thirteen in all, if not more, that has brought a great burden to the others, and even to the Jews themselves who were in fact often not able to fulfill the entirety of its requirement, but also because, while the practices and customs were held by the Romans and Greeks to be strange and foreign, to the point of being barbaric and unsightly, but as long as they remained with the Jews, they might ignore it.

However, if the Gentiles who have accepted Jesus as their Saviour and believed in the truth had to also embrace the fullness of such a draconian and burdensome set of laws, which the Jews themselves were unable to fulfill completely, then it would result in great difficulty for the Gentiles themselves. For the Romans and the Greeks despised and looked at the Jewish customs with suspicion and also loathed the practice of circumcision that they did.

Therefore, what the Apostles had suggested for the whole Church to do indeed was the obvious choice, that instead of being bound and set rigid by the set of laws mostly made by men, although its core was divine, being the Law which God first revealed through Moses, but the purpose of the Law and our obedience to it should be so that we may be true disciples and followers of our Lord, not just in externals and appearances, but instead more importantly, in our inner beings.

That means instead of being fussy over the circumcision of the externals, we must seek the circumcision of the internals, that means, to purge our hearts of all sorts of malice and wickedness, and all sorts of impurities, of impure thoughts and intentions, impure emotions and dark thoughts, and anything that would bring us astray from the righteous path of the Lord.

If we have true faith in God, we will surely love Him and all those around us, our brothers and sisters in the same Lord, our Father. And therefore, let us all reflect on our own actions so far in life. Have we been truly faithful by practicing our faith in our own actions and deeds? Have every word that leaves our mouth show that we truly are the people that belongs to the Lord?

May Almighty God be with us and guide us all from now on, so that in all things we do, we may bring greater glory to Him who had been with us, loved us and cared for us all the days of our life. God bless us all and all of our endeavours. Amen.

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Wednesday, 6 May 2015 : 5th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we hear again on the parable of the vine, where Jesus compared Himself to a vine, which was tended by the vinegrower, who is the Father in heaven. We are His branches, that come out branching from the vine. This is a very good and indeed perfect representation of how God does His work in this world and in all of us.

We who are living have all been created by the Lord, who then breathed life into us through the Spirit. All of us share the same life that God had granted us, and this life is a blessing. We are all like the branches that share the same life and are sustained by that life which the stem and the vine provides. If the branch falls of from the stem and vine, then it will die, for it no longer has any connection with the life-giving vine.

Thus, without the Lord, we can have no life in us, and we ought to be thankful for this life which He had granted us. And then, we are all also part of His living Church, that is His Body. With Christ as the Head of the Church, we are all united as part of this same Body, united by the communion we share with His Most Precious Body and Blood, which we all receive regularly through the Most Holy Eucharist.

That is why, all of us when we receive the Eucharist, it is important for us to realise how crucial this is, that we have received the Lord, who is Life and the sources of all life, into ourselves, that we have Him inside us, and therefore, as Jesus Himself once said to the Samaritan woman, that whoever drinks the water He provides will never be thirsty again, for indeed, He dwells in us all and become an eternal spring of water and life that satisfy us and make us to never be lacking again.

This means that as long as we adhere ourselves to the ways and the teachings of the Master of Life, then we will have life in us. And His way is love, that is to love both God and men alike. The way of the Lord is simple, and yet difficult to be done as it is very easy for us all to be tempted away from the truth and into the falsehoods of Satan, the pleasures of the flesh and the other factors that make it difficult for us to execute the will of God faithfully and courageously.

The most important matter is for us to achieve a state of harmony in our hearts and our being with the way of the Lord. This means that in all of our words, deeds and actions we must always proclaim the Lord and testify for His truth. If the Lord dwells in us, then our actions must profess Him and show that we are truly faithful to Him. In the first reading today from the Acts of the Apostles, we saw how there were tensions between the believers of Jewish and non-Jewish origins. And the tension is on the matter of whether the laws of Moses should be observed by the non-Jews as well.

Those laws, while centred on the Law of God, given through Moses, had many human additions and embellishment that were placed in, for the sake of the maintenance and preservation of the practices and customs of the Jews. Those who argued that the non-Jews had to also fulfill the entirety of the laws of Moses failed to see that truly, to be God’s followers and disciples, it would not be enough to just fulfill the outward application of the Law of God, but more importantly, is the conversion of our inner beings that we are truly the followers of God in all things.

Many of the laws of Moses deal with the purity of the exterior and appearances, and while these may be good, they often may distract us from the true goal, that is to be righteous and just in the presence of God, obeying His will and practicing our faith through real words, deeds and actions. That is why, St. Paul and the Apostles, led by St. Peter, eventually judged that the whole world does not have to observe the fullness of the laws of Moses, but as long as they do what is expected of them as the members of the Church of God and one of the faithful, then it would be enough.

Therefore, it is a good lesson for us, that we should not think of something big and beyond our means to do, as we live out our faith. But indeed we must begin with small and simple things, that in every small and little actions that we do, we must proclaim and glorify the Lord. Let us all therefore take small but concrete steps to change our lives for the better and walk more in the way of the Lord. May Almighty God be with us, guide us and strengthen us in our faith. God bless us all. Amen.

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Tuesday, 5 May 2015 : 5th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we come together and witnessed how God was with the Apostles and the disciples as they went forth and spread the message of the Gospel and its Good News to the regions which have yet to hear the message, and the Church continued to grow at that time, despite opposition and persecution from the Jewish authorities and the Romans and local authorities alike.

There were challenges and trials facing the Apostles and all the other disciples who went to many places to spread the word of God. Jesus Himself had warned His disciples that this would happen to them, because of the opposition of the world that did not know Him and His ways. But God is with them, and He sent to His faithful ones the Helper, or the Advocate, that is the Holy Spirit, as aid and guide, to help them to overcome the mentioned challenges and difficulties.

The disciples took their duties and missions very seriously, and they walked on many paths to deliver the message of God’s truth to many nations. They did not mind or fear persecution, rejection or opposition because they knew that no matter what happens, Satan and his forces could not harm them, for God is with them and protecting them at all times. Satan, the prince of this world and ruler of all that is wicked can only harm the flesh but not the soul.

Thus, the Apostles, St. Paul and many other disciples rejoiced at the thought of having to suffer persecution for the sake of the Lord and in being rejected by the world, for this showed that they truly belonged to the Lord and not to the world, for the world does not know God and thus, what the Apostles had done is an aversion to it. And great is the reward of those who have walked in the path of righteousness and those who bring goodness to others around them by preaching and examples of faith.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today’s Scripture readings remind us that there are still many things that we can do as the members of His Church in this world. Much like the time of the Apostles, this world is still covered in darkness, and even worse that many who had once been faithful to the Lord are turning their backs against Him and betrayed Him for the many idols of this world.

There is always a need for faithful disciples to carry out and continue the works of the courageous and holy Apostles who first preached the Good News to the multitudes living in the darkness. We are all called by our baptism and therefore by our membership and shared responsibility in the Church of God, to be witnesses of the Good News of God through not just our words and preaching, but also through all our deeds and actions that make alive all that we have spoken in the Name of the Lord.

On this day, therefore, let us all sincerely and deeply reflect in our hearts, on whether we have done anything or if we have done enough to merit being called the children of God and a member of His Church. If we have not done enough, then perhaps it is time for us to do more, and devote ourselves more to the cause of our Lord Jesus Christ by loving our brethren more and showing mercy and compassion to all who need them.

May Almighty God be with us always and bless all of our dealings and works, that in all of them we may always be justified by them, and therefore be worthy to receive God’s salvation and the eternal life and true joy that He had promised all those who are faithful to Him. Amen.

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Monday, 4 May 2015 : 5th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard a central theme to today’s Scripture readings, which is indeed a very important aspect of our life. And this theme is obedience and humility, that is the obedience to the will of God and the humility to recognise our shortcomings and weaknesses, and that in all the things that we do, we ought to give thanks to God and give glory to Him, instead of taking all the credits for ourselves.

Jesus made it clear in the Gospel today, that whoever loves Him will do as He had taught them, and they will not contemplate doing things that are beyond the scope of what is expected from them as the people of God and servants of the Light. Those who love the Lord will keep His words and follow His commandments, practicing their faith and devoting their efforts to walk in the righteous path of God.

This will be the case if our faith is real and genuine, and we truly have faith in God, and not merely lip service or be faithful for show or appearances before others. Everything that we do in this life, everything that we say and utter from our mouth, and every thoughts that come in our minds, and every single breath we take in and expel, all of these will be filled with the purpose of God, and be filled with that sole and clear purpose of serving the Lord our God and give glory to His Name.

St. Paul and St. Barnabas clearly showcased this to us, when they healed the sick people in Lycaonia, in the region of the Asia Minor. Most of the people in that region and indeed throughout the Roman Empire at such an early period in the Church were still pagan believers, who believed in the traditional pagan gods. They believed in the traditional Greek gods such as Zeus, Hercules, Hermes, Ares, and many others, and each of which have their own priests and customs.

And it is against this tradition that the two Apostles and disciples of the Lord went up against, as they preached the true faith to the people. When they healed the sick and the dying from their sickness, it is when the mentality of the people and their beliefs kicked in. They thought that the gods themselves had taken up human form and walked among them. For those of us who are familiar with the Greek mythology, this is a recurring theme, that the gods walked among men and performing wonders.

The Greek gods were vain and they were just like men, that is filled with all sorts of emotions, both good and bad. As a matter of fact, they and the many other false pagan gods are often the personification and manifestation of the people’s desired and emotions, which they paired together with what they observed around them in natural phenomena and miraculous wonders.

But the Lord showed through St. Paul and St. Barnabas that it is He who is the One and only True God, with all power and authority that the other gods of gold, silver and stone cannot show. Yet, the people misunderstood its meaning and they instead worshipped both Paul and Barnabas as the avatars and manifestations of their supposed Greek pagan gods.

In our human nature, we are by our nature always predisposed to pride, arrogance, greed and other desires we have in us. It is therefore must have been difficult for any man to resist the temptation of power, fame and greatness when presented with the same situation that was faced by both St. Paul and St. Barnabas in Lystra and Derbe. But the two of them showed us all a great example how a disciple and follower of Christ should act.

They rebuked the people and preached to them the truth, although certainly the temptation of praise, power and pride must have assailed them. Imagine if you are being surrounded by so many people who cheered for you and said great things about you because of what you have performed admirably and greatly in their sight and presence.

But they knew that all the things they had done came from the Lord, and it is for His glory that they had done all those wonders and miracles. Today’s psalm perfectly captures this, by its first few lines. The phrase which in Latin reads, “Non nobis Domine, sed Nomine Tuo da gloriam” that means, “Not to us o Lord, but to Your Name we give glory.” Indeed, it is not for human glory we should act and work, but for the greater glory of God.

Therefore, today, as we reflect on these readings from the Sacred Scripture, let us all realise how we should be humble in all of our dealings and works. Let us learn to be humble and obey the Lord in all things, so that we may listen to Him and know what He wants from us. Let us all grow lesser and smaller in our pride and hubris, and grow deeper and stronger in our humility and obedience to God, that in all the things we do, we proclaim the great glory of God. May God be with us always. Amen.