Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 118 : 53, 61, 134, 150, 155, 158
I feel indignant at the wicked who have forsaken Your law.
The wicked have me trapped in their snares, but I have not forgotten Your laws.
Rescue me from human oppression, and help me keep Your precepts.
My persecutors close in with evil intent; they are far from Your law.
Salvation is far from the wicked, for they do not seek Your statutes.
I look upon the faithless with loathing, because they do not obey Your ruling.
Liturgical Colour : White
1 Maccabees 1 : 10-15, 41-43, 54-57, 62-64
From their descendants there came a godless offshoot, Antiochus Epiphanes, son of king Antiochus, who had been held as hostage in Rome. He became king in the one hundred and thirty-seventh year of the Greek era, in the year 175 B.C..
It was then that some rebels emerged from Israel, who succeeded in winning over many people. They said, “Let us renew contact with the people around us for we had endured many misfortunes since we separated from them.”
This proposal was well-received and some eagerly went to the king. The king authorised them to adopt the customs of the pagan nations. With his permission, they built a gymnasium in Jerusalem in the pagan style. And as they wanted to be like the pagans in everything, they made artificial foreskins for themselves and abandoned the Holy Covenant, sinning as they pleased.
Antiochus issued a decree to his whole kingdom. All the people of his empire had to renounce their particular customs and become one people. All the pagan nations obeyed and respected the king’s decree, and, even in Israel, many accepted the imposed cult. They offered sacrifices to idols and no longer respected the Sabbath.
On the fifteenth day of the month of Chislev, in the year one hundred and forty-five, in the year 167 B.C., Antiochus erected the “abominable idol of the invaders” on the altar of the Temple. Pagan altars were built throughout the whole land of Judea; incense was offered at the doors of their houses and in the squares.
There wicked men tore up the books of the Law they found and burnt them. They killed anyone they caught in possession of the book of the Covenant and who fulfilled the precepts of the Law, as the royal decree had ordered. But in spite of all this, many Israelites still remained firm and determined not to eat unclean food. They preferred to die rather than to make themselves unclean with those foods prohibited by the Law that violated the Holy Covenant. And Israel suffered a very great trial.
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded that each and every one of us as Christians, as the Lord’s disciples and followers ought to put our faith and trust in the Lord, striving as always to do God’s will and to be truly exemplary in all the things we say and do, so that even in the smallest and seemingly least significant things we do, we will always proclaim the glory of God and lead others to Him. Each and every one of us should always be humble in all things and we must be careful that we do not allow ourselves to be misguided and misled by the temptations of worldly glory, fame and ambitions, all of which can lead us down the path towards our downfall and destruction, if we are not careful about it.
In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard of the words of the Lord reassuring His people, of the blessings and graces that He would send upon Jerusalem and its inhabitants, all the things that He has always reassured and promised them with. Essentially, what the Lord wanted to convey to His people is that, they all had nothing to worry or be fearful about, and they should not spend their time and efforts being concerned about so many things of the world, all the desires and pursuits of worldly joy, pleasures and all the things that they often sought for, but instead, from the Lord Himself would come the fullness of true joy, happiness, satisfaction and fulfilment, which no one else can give to us.
This is why it is a reminder for each and every one of us that we should always trust in the Lord and centre our lives, our focus and attention on the Lord in each and every moments of our respective lives. We should not allow ourselves to be overcome with fear, as what the people at the time of the prophet Isaiah’s ministry might have experienced, which led them to seek fulfilment, satisfaction and hope in other avenues besides that of God. God reassured His people, again and again, that He would always be with those whom He loves, and hence, all of us shall be secure and strengthened if we continue to put our faith and trust in Him, as God’s Providence and strength will never fail us, even if everything else may fail us.
Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus Himself reminding His disciples and followers regarding what it truly means to be followers of His, to be humble and faithful like those of the little children who came to seek Him. The Lord highlighted and emphasised this to His often squabbling and quarrelsome disciples and followers. For the context, the disciples of the Lord often quarrelled and debated among themselves about who among them was the greatest among them all and who would be worthy of God’s kingdom and glory. However, as they kept on disagreeing and debating among themselves, they missed the point and the truth about what it truly meant for them to follow the Lord.
They ended up focusing on themselves and their desires, their ambitions and wants, all of which would distract them from truly being able to commit themselves to the Lord. They were so engrossed on their desires for greatness and glory that they forgot the true essence and meaning of following the Lord. For the context, so that we understand better the motivation behind those disciples, we must understand that the general perception and expectation that the people had on the coming of the Messiah, the One Whom God would send to His people in order to save and rescue them from destruction, was that this same Messiah would lead them into glorious triumph against their enemies, and would restore the Kingdom of Israel as how it was during the days of King David and King Solomon.
Hence, many of those disciples might have harboured the ambition of being close to the Lord so that they would receive the bounties and the benefits of being trusted associates and collaborators of the Lord, that when He won those glorious victories and triumphs that they expected, they too would share in this glory and fame, and they would have expected worldly comforts, pleasures and glories, but the reality is that this is not what the Lord intended for those who followed Him. The reality was that those who followed Him would suffer the same challenges, persecutions and trials that He Himself would be suffering from. And that was why He reminded all of them that they should be humble and simple like those little children, whose love and devotion to Him were indeed pure and uncorrupted, untainted by worldly desires.
Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, also better known by her epithet, St. Therese of Lisieux. St. Therese of Lisieux was born to a loving family of St. Louis Martin and St. Marie-Azelie Guerin, whose devout and happy life inspired many of their own children to seek the Lord and devote themselves, as many among St. Therese’s siblings also joined religious and consecrated life as she did. St. Therese of Lisieux was frail in health since young, but this did not stop her to grow ever stronger in her love and devotion to God, as her family spent significant amount of time in prayer, participating in the Holy Mass daily and other important devotions and works of faith, among other things. This eventually led to St. Therese to feel the calling from God to embrace religious and consecrated life.
St. Therese began to experience visions and mystical experiences, which gradually drew her ever deeper to her calling, and she was drawn towards the Carmelite sisters, which order her eldest sister had also joined. Then, when she wanted to join the Carmelites after having encountered physical and spiritual challenges, she continued to persevere on despite those difficulties and trials. She was initially not allowed to do so because of her very young age, being only around fourteen years old at the time, but eventually her efforts, perseverance and constant persistence gained the admiration of others, even that of the Pope and her local diocesan bishop, who eventually approved her joining the Carmelite sisters despite her young age.
As a young postulant and member of the Carmelite monastery, St. Therese of Lisieux obeyed her superiors faithfully and lived her life with great devotion and commitment to God, doing whatever she could so that she could live her life ever more worthily of the Lord, spending each time and every moments of her life to glorify God, through every small and little actions she did, which would become known later on as mentioned, as her ‘Little Way’, and as she described herself as the ‘Little Flower of Carmel’. All of us are reminded of this great dedication, faith and commitment which the young St. Therese of Lisieux had for the Lord, who committed herself wholeheartedly to the end of her life, and although she passed away at the young age of barely twenty-four, yet, her faith inspired countless people even to this day.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore remind ourselves as we reflect upon the messages of the Sacred Scriptures and the life and works of St. Therese of Lisieux today, on her Feast day. Let us all continue to do our best in our daily lives, in each and every moments and opportunities that God has provided to us, to do our best even in the smallest and seemingly least significant things and actions that we do, so that by each and every one of them we may truly inspire many others around us in how they can also be truly faithful, committed and loving towards God, and towards their fellow brothers and sisters just as the Lord had wanted us to do in our lives. May all of us be true missionaries and evangelisers of our faith, not only through words but also through genuine actions in all things. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
Matthew 18 : 1-5
At that time, the disciples came to Jesus and asked Him, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
Then Jesus called a little child, set the child in the midst of the disciples, and said, “I assure you, that, unless you change, and become like little children, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble, like this child, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, and whoever receives such a child, in My Name, receives Me.”
Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 131 : 1-3
O YHVH, my heart is not proud nor do I have arrogant eyes. I am not engrossed in ambitious matters, nor in things too great for me.
I have quieted and stilled my soul, like a weaned child, on its mother’s lap; like a contented child is my soul.
Hope in YHVH, o Israel, now and forever.
Liturgical Colour : White
Isaiah 66 : 10-14
Rejoice for Jerusalem and be glad for her, all you who love her. Be glad with her, rejoice with her, all you who were in grief over her, that you may suck of the milk from her comforting breasts, that you may drink deeply from the abundance of her glory.
For this is what YHVH says : I will send her peace, overflowing like a river; and the nations’ wealth, rushing like a torrent towards her. And you will be nursed and carried in her arms and fondled upon her lap. As a son comforted by his mother, so will I comfort you. At the sight of this, your heart will rejoice; like grass, your bones will flourish.
For it shall be known that YHVH’s hand is with His servant, but His fury is upon His enemy.
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that as Christians, as God’s holy and beloved people, we must always be truly and genuinely faithful to the Lord our God, and we should not allow ourselves to be swayed by the sin of hypocrisy, of professing to believe in a certain way and yet acting and carrying out our lives in the manner that is truly different from what we professed to believe in. If that is how we live our faith as Christians, then we truly have not lived our lives genuinely as those whom God had called and chosen, and we are no better than the hypocrites whom the Lord had frequently criticised and rebuked during the time of His ministry.
In our first reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful people of God in the city and region of Thessalonica, we heard of the continuation of the Apostle’s exhortation to the faithful people of God there, who had been faithful and true to the teachings of the Apostle and the other Christian missionaries. Earlier on in this Epistle, St. Paul praised the faith of the Thessalonian Christians as compared to the lack of faith and difficulties which he and the other missionaries had been encountering in Philippi, in the nearby region of Greece. Nonetheless, as we heard in that passage today, the Apostle still reminded them to remain true to the teachings of the Church as they have received through the Apostle and the missionaries.
This is because it is easy for any one of us to be easily swayed by the many temptations, pressures, coercions and all the trials and challenges that we may have to face in our journey. And if we are not careful, we may end up falling into this trap and be dragged down the wrong path in life, and hence, this is why we should continue to remind ourselves to be ever more faithful to the Lord in all the things that we do in life. Despite all the temptations and challenges present all around us in this life, we should still strive and do our best to live our lives in each and every moments, in our everyday living to be truly good examples of our Christian faith and discipleship, in being the worthy bearers of God’s truth, Good News and love to everyone around us.
Then, from our Gospel passage today taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the continuation of the series of criticisms and rebuke which the Lord Jesus presented against the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law before His disciples and all the people who were listening to His teachings. We have heard in the past few days of everything that the Lord spoke up against those supposed elders and elites of the Jewish community, who were highly respected and even feared by the people of God. Those Pharisees and the teachers of the Law were the ones that were the most knowledgeable about the Law of God and the teachings and prophecies of the Lord’s prophets, the intellectual elites of the community.
And yet, they did not recognise the Lord and His miracles and wonders, all the signs which He had performed that in fact fulfilled all the prophecies which the prophets had spoken about the Messiah or the Saviour of the world. They were supposed to be the first ones to recognise the signs and miracles of the Messiah, and yet, they hardened their hearts and refused to believe in Him. Not only that, but as we have heard in that same Gospel passage today, the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law often were hypocritical in their way of living their faith, as they were like whitewashed tombs and bones, looking good on the outsides but they were truly empty inside. This means that in them can be found no true and genuine faith or love for God.
While it is then easy for us to attribute the blame to the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, let us all not be quick to point fingers to them, as we should all look upon ourselves and our own actions in life first and foremost. Have we ourselves lived the lives we have in this world in the manner that the Lord has taught and wanted us all to live them, or have we instead lived our lives in the similar way as those Pharisees and teachers of the Law, in hypocrisy and in self-serving, self-righteous attitudes, lacking for true and genuine concern and care for others around us? This is precisely why the Lord criticised those Pharisees and the teachers of the Law because of their selfishness and lack of concern and love for those around them, in them being biased and prejudiced against the less fortunate in their midst.
Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Monica, who is well-known for her being the mother of another great and famous saint, St. Augustine of Hippo, one of the Church’s most famous early Church fathers. St. Monica was a Christian married to a pagan Roman nobleman named Patricius in the fourth century in the region of northern Africa. St. Monica was a pious Christian who was caring and loving towards others around her, giving alms and other efforts for the less fortunate, and spending time in prayer, amidst her own turbulent family life, as her pagan husband had a violent temper and immoral habits. Their son, the future St. Augustine of Hippo grew up in worldly ways as well, and as he was educated in rhetoric and philosophy, he pursued worldly matters and became a Manichaean, to the great distress of his mother.
But St. Monica continued to have faith in the Lord and in her family, and she ceaselessly prayed and made efforts to help her son and husband to be reconciled with her and with God. Eventually, her prayers were answered as first, her ailing husband eventually accepted the Lord and was baptised as a Christian, repenting from his prior wayward way of life, and then, her son, St. Augustine of Hippo, eventually came to seek the Lord as well, abandoning his past hedonistic and materialistic way of life, which included even having a child outside of marriage. St. Monica’s great love for her family members is truly an inspiration for all of us as Christians in how we ourselves should show love and concern, care and compassion to our loved ones, and also to others whom we encounter daily in life.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore be inspired by the great faith and love which St. Monica has shown us all so that we too may truly be loving and genuine Christians in all things, in truly loving God with all of our heart and might, and then to do the same with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, to those whom we love and who are dear to us and also to those whom we encounter daily in life. May the Lord be with us all in our journey in faith and may He strengthen and help us to continue living our lives in the manner that is truly both worthy and faithful, now and always. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
Matthew 23 : 27-32
At that time, Jesus said to the people and to His disciples, “Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, beautiful in appearance; but, inside, there are only dead bones and uncleanness. In the same way, you appear religious to others, but you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness within.”
“Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets, and decorate the monuments of the righteous. You say : Had we lived in the time of our ancestors, we would not have joined them in shedding the blood of the prophets. So, you, yourselves, confess to be the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.”
“And now, finish off what your ancestors began!”
Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 138 : 7-8, 9-10, 11-12ab
Where else could I go from Your Spirit? Where could I flee from Your presence? You are there, if I ascend the heavens; You are there, if I descend to the depths.
If I ride on the wings of the dawn, and settle on the far side of the sea, even there, Your hand shall guide me, and Your right hand shall hold me safely.
Shall I say, “Let darkness hide me, I prefer the night as my light?” But darkness, for You, is not dark.
Liturgical Colour : White
1 Thessalonians 2 : 9-13
Remember our labour and toil; when we preached the Gospel, we worked day and night, so as not to be a burden to you. You are witnesses, with God, that we are holy, just and blameless toward all of you who now believe. We warned each of you, as a father warns his children; we encouraged you, and urged you to adopt a way of life worthy of God, Who calls you to share His own glory and kingdom.
This is why we never cease giving thanks to God for, on receiving our message, you accepted it, not as human teaching, but as the word of God. That is what it really is, and, as such, it is at work in you who believe.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 