holy women

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Tuesday, 22 July 2025 : Feast of St. Mary Magdalene, Apostle of the Apostles (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Song of Songs 3 : 1-4a

On my bed at night I looked for the one I love, I sought him without finding him; I called him and he did not answer. I will rise and go about the city, through the streets and the squares; I will seek the love of my heart…

I sought him without finding him; the watchmen came upon me, those who patrol the city. “Have you seen the love of my heart?” As soon as I left them, I found the love of my heart.

Alternative reading (Second Reading if this Feast is celebrated as a Solemnity)

2 Corinthians 5 : 14-17

Indeed, the love of Christ holds us, and we realise, that, if He died for all, all have died. He died for all, so, that, those who live, may live no longer for themselves, but for Him, Who died, and rose again for them. And so, from now on, we do not regard anyone from a human point of view; and even if we once knew Christ personally, we should now regard Him in another way.

For that same reason, the one who is in Christ is a new creature. For him, the old things have passed away; a new world has come.

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Friday, 4 July 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we listened to the words of the Lord contained within the Sacred Scriptures today, we are reminded that God has always kept us in His mind, caring for us and showing us all His most generous love at all times, reaching out to us and providing for us everything that we need in our lives, and we need to trust in Him and follow Him when He calls upon us to follow Him, in whatever paths that He has led us into. We should always put our trust and faith in the Lord, not worrying about what we will receive in life, but trusting instead that He will always provide for us. Like what He has done to those whom He had called, and those who willingly embraced Him and followed Him, we should allow the Lord to transform us and our lives so that we may truly be worthy of Him at all times.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Genesis, we heard of the time when Sarah, the wife of Abraham died in the Promised Land. She had followed Abraham in his journey to the land that God had called him to, and miraculously gave birth to Isaac, the son that was promised by God and which yet seemed to be impossible at that time, as Sarah was already way past childbearing age, and she was already waiting for ages to try to have a child with Abraham without avail. And yet, God fulfilled her dreams beyond her imaginations, and gave her the son that she had wanted for so long. Isaac, that promised son, grew great in stature and wisdom, and God was with him, and when Sarah passed away, both Abraham and Isaac grieved greatly for their loss.

But the Lord also continued to provide, giving Isaac a bride from among his own people, by Abraham sending Isaac back to his homeland, in asking for the hand of Rebekah, from among his own relatives, to be the one to accompany Isaac. And we heard how Isaac made the journey and eventually encountered Rebekah, and they came together, were married and became the continuation of the fulfilment of God’s promises to His people, His promise that Abraham would become the father of many nations. Through Isaac would be born Esau and Jacob, the forefather of the Edomites and the Israelites respectively. And it was through the younger son Jacob, whose descendants were chosen as God’s holy and beloved people, the first ones He called, that God accomplished everything that He had promised.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus called one of His Twelve principal disciples, namely that of St. Matthew himself, the author of today’s Gospel reading. Back then, St. Matthew was known as Levi, a tax collector, and tax collector at that time had a rather bad image among the people of God. They were seen as being greedy and wicked, overcharging the people for their own benefits, and some also saw and considered them as traitors to the people due to the nature of their work in collecting taxes on behalf of the Romans or the Herodians, or both, which often brought great hardships on the people who were struggling to make ends meet.

As such, they were often considered, especially by the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law as sinners, defiled and corrupted, and unworthy therefore of God’s love and grace. To interact with a tax collector is considered to be taboo because by the standards of the time, that would have caused those who interacted with them to be defiled as well, something which was shared by the others deemed to be sinners and unclean, like the prostitutes, those who were afflicted with diseases and possessed by evil spirits. And yet, the Lord Jesus reached out to the tax collectors and was kind and compassionate towards them, and He called Levi to follow Him, to be His disciple and follower, because He knew that in his heart, he had the desire and the potential to be a great servant of God.

And Levi did respond to the Lord’s call, and he answered in the most wholehearted manner, welcoming the Lord into his own household and gathering his fellow tax collectors to come and listen to the Lord. He also left behind everything, all of his work and possessions, and committed himself thoroughly to the Lord henceforth, becoming one of His closest and most faithful disciples. He changed his name to Matthew, just as Abraham was once known as Abram and Sarah was known as Sarai, symbolising that great change and conversion in life which all of them had experienced. And thanks to this, many great things happened because of what St. Matthew had dedicated himself towards the works of evangelisation, as well as in his authorship of the Gospel that we heard from today.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Elizabeth of Portugal, who was the Queen of Portugal for more than four decades as the wife of the King of Portugal then, King Denis. She was born as a princess of the Kingdom of Aragon in Spain, and she had been brought up in a very pious manner from her early youth. She was married to the King of Portugal at the age of eleven, and had a great married life with the King. She continued to be pious and devoted in all of her actions and works, committing herself as Queen to the care of the poor and the sick throughout the kingdom. She was also known for her role as a peacemaker, making peace between the warring kingdoms of Castile and Aragon in what is today part of Spain. And after her husband, the King of Portugal passed away, she retired to a monastery, while continuing with her charitable efforts and even in her peacemaking works.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore be inspired and strengthened by the words of assurances that we have heard from our Scripture readings today and from the life of St. Elizabeth of Portugal. Let us all be reminded that we are always beloved by God, and we will always be blessed and guided by Him, given the providence and protection that we need in our paths and journeys in life. We just have to trust fully and wholeheartedly in God’s guidance, doing our very best to glorify Him by every actions and good works that we do in our daily lives. May our lives be truly fruitful in the Lord, be blessed and empowered by God’s Presence in our lives. May He bless our every good works and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Friday, 4 July 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Matthew 9 : 9-13

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

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

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

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Friday, 4 July 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Psalm 105 : 1-2, 3-4a, 4b-5

Alleluia! Give thanks to YHVH, for He is good, for His love endures forever. Who can count YHVH’s mighty deeds, or declare all His praises?

Blessed are they who always do just and right. Remember me, o YHVH, when You show favour to Your people.

Rescue me when You deliver them; let me see the triumph of Your faithful; let me share the joy of Your nation; and join Your people in praising You.

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Friday, 4 July 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Genesis 23 : 1-4, 19 and Genesis 24 : 1-8, 62-67

Sarah lived a hundred and twenty-seven years. She died at Kiriatharba – that is Hebron – in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to weep and mourn for Sarah. Abraham left his dead one and spoke to the Hittites, “I am only a stranger among you; give me a burial place among you, so that I may bury my dead.”

After this Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of Machpelah. Abraham was now old and well on in years, and YHVH had blessed him in every way. Abraham said to his senior servant, who was his steward, “Put your hand under my thigh and you will swear to me by YHVH, God of heaven and earth, that you will not choose a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom we live; rather it is to my country and my kinsfolk that you will go to choose a wife for my son, Isaac.”

The servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman will not want to follow me to this country. In that case should I take your son to the country you came from?” Abraham said to him, “In no way will you take my son back. For YHVH, God of heaven and God of earth, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my birth, spoke to me and swore to me that He would give this country to my race.”

“He will send His Angel before you, that you may find a wife for my son. But if the woman is unwilling to follow you, you will be free of this oath. In any case you are not to take my son down there.”

Now Isaac had come from the well of Lahai-roi, for he was living in the Negeb. As Isaac went out in the early evening to meditate in the field, he looked up and saw camels coming. Rebekah also looked up and when she saw Isaac she alighted from her camel and said to the servant, “Who is this man in the field coming to meet us?”

He replied, “It is my master!” She then covered her face with her veil. The servant related to Isaac all that he had done, and Isaac brought Rebekah into the tent of Sarah, his mother. He made her his wife, and he loved her; and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

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Saturday, 31 May 2025 : Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today marks the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, on this last day of the month of May, which we all know is the month of Mary, the Mother of God. As we come to the end of this Marian month, we remember the great faith and role model that Mary has shown us all as the ideal and most amazing saint, as well as being our loving Mother, entrusted to us by the Lord Himself from His Cross. And this day in particular we remember that occasion when Mary was visiting her cousin Elizabeth, and both of them were pregnant at that time, with pregnancies that were both miraculous and wonderful in nature. The visitation of Mary upon Elizabeth and what happened during that event is a powerful reminder for us of God’s constant love for us and His ever powerful providence and help.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Zephaniah, we heard of the words of the Lord spoken through Zephaniah in which the Lord reassured all of His people, referred to as the daughters of Zion and Israel, that God would rescue all of them and restore them all once again to greatness, which they had lost because of their past and disobedience. The prophet Zephaniah carried out his ministry and works during the time and reign of King Josiah of Judah, towards the end of the days of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. By that time, the northern kingdom of Israel had been destroyed for about a century, with its people scattered and brought in exile by their conquerors, forced to wander off in distant and foreign lands, away from the lands of their ancestors.

At that time the kingdom of Judah itself was not really in a good shape, surrounded by its many enemies and powerful neighbours, and the end of the kingdom itself was fast approaching, although during the time and reign of the faithful king Josiah, this was not so evident and Judah was experiencing some resurgence during his reign. Nonetheless, it was far cry from the glorious days of the once united and powerful kingdom of the time of King David and King Solomon. Therefore, what the Lord told His people in Judah regarding these promises and reassurances are reminders that God has always loved His people unconditionally, no matter what, and He has always been very patient in reaching out to them and waiting for them to return to Him and to be reconciled to Him.

Even when those same people had erred against Him and frequently disobeyed Him and His Law, the Lord still patiently sent His prophets and messengers, His servants and many others to help lead and guide the people to return to Him, to walk once again in the path that He has taught and shown them. That is truly how much the Lord loved His people, and the other first reading passage today from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Romans told us all that we should embody this same love, this same unconditional and patient love that God has shown to us His people in how we love one another, with generosity and sincerity. And what St. Paul told the faithful in Rome is essentially what the Lord wants us all, His people to carry out in each and every one of our lives, to be truly good and faithful in all of our deeds and actions, in our every interactions and dealings with one another.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, we heard of course the account of the moment of the Visitation itself, when Mary went to visit Elizabeth, her elderly cousin, to find out about what the Archangel Gabriel had told her regarding her miraculous pregnancy, when she herself was also with Child in her, miraculously conceived by the will of the Father and by the power of the Holy Spirit. In both of Mary and Elizabeth therefore were contained the fulfilment of God’s great promises, which He has shown to His faithful, the long-awaited coming of His salvation, brought into this world through the Virgin, and the Herald that had also been promised, to be the one to prepare the path for the Saviour, the Holy One of God.

What happened then was Mary being filled with the Holy Spirit when Elizabeth greeted her as the Mother of her Lord and God, and we heard her song full of praise and thanksgiving to God, which we also know as the Magnificat, a great song of praise by Mary, highlighting her great joy and also summarising the joy that all of us mankind had felt and experienced as the Lord finally fulfilled everything that He has promised to us throughout all of history. And what is most significant and wonderful is the fact that the Lord had done all of these not through grand and mighty gestures or came as a conquering King, but He did so in His own mysterious and wonderful way, in miraculously lifting the shame of barrenness from an elderly woman, and also by fulfilling His promise of bringing forth the salvation through the Virgin.

All these remind us of the great love and kindness which the Lord has constantly shown us, in His patient and ever present love, compassion and kindness towards each and every one of us. He has never abandoned us in our hour and time of great need, but instead, He always fulfils His promises, and gave unto us all the most perfect of all gifts and wonders in His Son, Whom He has sent to be born of Mary, and through Him, and by His mother’s obedience, all of us have received the sure guarantee and assurance of eternal life and grace. And that is why we should truly be thankful and appreciative of everything which we have enjoyed through His love and kindness, and not to take all of these for granted. And we should also be inspired by Mary’s faith, obedience and examples in how we ought to live our lives as well.

May the Blessed Mother of God, Mary, our loving mother, continue to pray and intercede for all of us sinners, and may she continue to inspire us all by her own faith and examples, and by her tireless commitment and dedication to help us all, her beloved children, to bring us all ever closer to her Son, now and always. Mary, Holy Mother of God, pray for us all sinners now, and at the hour of our death. Amen.

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Saturday, 31 May 2025 : Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 1 : 39-56

Mary then set out for a town in the hill country of Judah. She entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leapt in her womb.

Elizabeth was filled with Holy Spirit, and giving a loud cry, said, “You are most blessed among women, and blessed is the Fruit of your womb! How is it that the mother of my Lord comes to me? The moment your greeting sounded in my ears, the baby within me suddenly leapt for joy. Blessed are you who believed that the Lord’s word would come true!”

And Mary said, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit exults in God my Saviour! He has looked upon His servant in her lowliness, and people forever will call me blessed.”

“The Mighty One has done great things for me, Holy is His Name! From age to age His mercy extends to those who live in His presence. He has acted with power and done wonders, and scattered the proud with their plans. He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and lifted up those who are downtrodden. He has filled the hungry with good things, but has sent the rich away empty.”

“He held out His hand to Israel, His servant, for He remembered His mercy, even as He promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever.”

Mary remained with Elizabeth about three months, and then returned home.

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Saturday, 31 May 2025 : Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Isaiah 12 : 2-3, 4bcd, 5-6

He is the God of my salvation; in Him I trust and am not afraid. YHVH is my strength : Him I will praise, the One Who saved me. You will draw water with joy from the very fountain of salvation.

Praise to the Lord, break into songs of joy for Him, proclaim His marvellous deeds among the nations and exalt His Name.

Sing to the Lord : wonders He has done, let these be known all over the earth. Sing for joy, o people of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

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Saturday, 31 May 2025 : Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Zephaniah 3 : 14-18

Cry out with joy, o daughter of Zion; rejoice, o people of Israel! Sing joyfully with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem! YHVH has lifted your sentence and has driven your enemies away. YHVH, the King of Israel is with you; do not fear any misfortune.

On that day they will say to Jerusalem : Do not be afraid nor let your hands tremble, for YHVH your God is within you, YHVH, saving Warrior. He will jump for joy on seeing you, for He has revived His love. For you He will cry out with joy, as you do in the days of the Feast.

I will drive away the evil I warned you about, and you will no longer be ashamed.

Alternative reading

Romans 12 : 9-16b

Let love be sincere. Hate what is evil and hold to whatever is good. Love one another and be considerate. Outdo one another in mutual respect. Be zealous in fulfilling your duties. Be fervent in the Spirit and serve God.

Have hope and be cheerful. Be patient in trials and pray constantly. Share with other Christians in need. With those passing by, be ready to receive them. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not wish evil on anyone. Rejoice with those who are joyful, and weep with those who weep.

Live in peace with one another. Do not dream of extraordinary things.

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Thursday, 22 May 2025 : 5th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Rita of Cascia, Religious (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we continue to be reminded of the importance of following the Lord our God in the right manner, and not be divided against each other because of our prejudices and different preferences in ideologies and ways of observing God’s Law and commandments. We are reminded that what is truly important is to truly love God wholeheartedly and to commit ourselves to His ways, through proper understanding and appreciation of His will and teachings, and not to be easily divided because of our personal preferences that can lead us to be pitted one against another, which is exactly what the evil ones want with us, in attacking us and the unity of the Church.

In our first reading today, from the Acts of the Apostles we heard of the moment when St. Peter the Apostle, the leader of the Apostles and the Church stood up in the assembly of the faithful, which would later on be known as the First Council of Jerusalem, speaking in favour of relaxing the demands for the imposition of the whole Jewish laws, rules and customs on the whole Body of the faithful, the Church. The context of such a dispute which need a serious effort at reconciliation and resolution was that there were those followers of the Lord that came from among the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law who were very strict in their interpretation of God’s Law and in their insistence that all of the Lord’s followers must therefore also follow the same laws and commandments in full.

St. Paul and St. Barnabas, who had been sent to minister among the Gentiles or the non-Jewish people like the Romans, Greeks and many other races in the region, protested against this attempt at imposing the Jewish customs and practices on the non-Jewish people, as having experienced their ministry among the Gentiles and also being aware of the cultural differences betweent the Jews and the Gentiles, they knew that such an imposition would have led to great harm to the efforts of the Church’s evangelisation. This is due to the cultural differences and hurdles, such as the great disapproval, disgust and abhorrence that many of the Gentiles held against the Jewish customs and practices such as circumcision and the dietary restrictions they practiced.

That was why, the argued that such restrictions and obstacles should not be placed onto those Gentiles who did agree and desire to seek baptism and becoming therefore members of the Church of God. And that was brought into deliberation by the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord, together with the whole assembly of the faithful in the Council of Jerusalem. St. Peter led the whole Church and assembly to discern carefully through prayer and the Holy Spirit, and through the discussions, St. Peter proclaimed the decision of the disciples and the assembly, in maintaining the unity of the Church and also the unity in its beliefs, that this issue would not bring about schism and divisions among the Church and its members.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard the Lord reminding His disciples that they all should remain in His love, as well as continuing to obey the commandments and the will of God the Father, calling them all to follow His path faithfully and devote themselves and their efforts and time to glorify Him always by their lives and actions. As Christians, as the Lord’s followers, this is therefore a reminder for all of us to be always focused on the Lord and commit ourselves to His cause at all times. We must not be divided amongst each other like what we have just heard in our first reading passage today, and we should not allow ourselves to be swayed by the many worldly temptations and coercions present around us that may lead to the divisions in the Church.

That is why what the Lord reminded to His disciples is very important indeed and we are reminded to continue to root ourselves firmly on God and His love so that we may not end up falling into the wrong paths, especially with the many experiences that the Church and its long history had provided to us. Throughout history, many times, schisms and divisions had caused great harm to the Church and the faithful, causing many to be lost to God and to the path towards downfall and damnation. However, God was always with His Church, never leaving any of us behind alone, and He has always been faithful to the Covenant which He had made with us, guiding us all patiently along our journey in life, and doing our very best to bring ourselves ever closer to Him and His path to salvation, inspiring others to follow in our journey and way.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Rita of Cascia, a renowned saint and an Augustinian nun, known for her great sanctity and her self-mortification, living an exemplary life dedicated to God. She was married at a very young age of twelve to a nobleman, who was deeply involved in the internecine conflicts between the rival Italian families at that time. Her husband was also a rather immoral and wicked man, whom St. Rita patiently loved and cared for, as she went to raise her children faithfully and obediently. That marriage lasted for a whole period of eighteen years, throughout which St. Rita was an exemplary model of faith amidst the world and her community filled with hatred and violence, which would eventually claim her husband’s life due to the rival families’ bickering.

St. Rita pardoned those who have murdered her husband at his funeral, publicly pardoning them and forgiving them. However, her husband’s brother wanted to continue the feud and tried to goad St. Rita’s young children to take part in the feud to avenge their father. As such, St. Rita according to her saintly tradition, asked the Lord to take her children away from this world, rather than for them to commit sins that would have brought them into their downfall and eternal damnation. The Lord listened to St. Rita’s prayers, and it was told that both of her sons soon fell ill during an epidemic that happened then and passed away. St. Rita thereafter dedicated herself as a widow and becoming a member of the Augustinian nuns, living the rest of her life in great dedication to God and prior to her entering the monastery, she also managed to resolve the feud between the families.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us have heard ourselves from the Scriptures today and from the life and works of St. Rita of Cascia, reminding all of us to be always faithful to God and not to be easily swayed by our worldly ambitions, desires and pursuits which may lead us down the path of divisions, disagreements and violence, all of which would lead to more and more harm and destruction as what had happened to the families involved in the feud during the time of St. Rita of Cascia. Instead, as God’s followers and as His holy people, all of us are called to put our faith and trust, our focus and emphasis once again on the Lord our God, dedicating our time and efforts once again to glorify the Lord by our lives. Let us all not be distracted by all these worldly ambitions, but instead focus ourselves wholeheartedly ever towards God, now and always. Amen.