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Monday, 1 December 2014 : First Week of Advent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple or Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today’s readings talk about us as the people of God, ought to go and seek the Lord, to find Him and follow His ways. Thus, we are urged to live according to what the Lord had taught us, and there are many ways to do this. But I would like to bring to your attention, our Gospel of today, which is about the faith of an army centurion or captain, whose faith in Jesus was so great that it was truly amazing for him to exhibit such a faith and Jesus praised him for such faith.

It is in fact also the kind of faith which all of us should have, a faith that is strong, genuine and sincere, and yet at the same time, it is humble, unassuming and also undeterred. What the centurion did was exactly what we always say to the Lord at the celebration of the Holy Mass, every time the priest shows us the Most Precious Body and Blood of Christ after the singing of the Agnus Dei. Remember the words? ‘I am not worthy, that You should enter under my roof, but only say the word, and my soul shall be healed.’

These words are almost a direct representation from the words of the centurion, who said to Jesus, that he was unworthy to have Jesus to come to his house, sinful as he was, and he asked only that for the Lord to give the word, and then his servant shall be healed, by the power of Jesus. That is a true, sincere and genuine faith, the kind which our Lord seeks from all of us.

It is important then that we understand the circumstances, the background and the reality behind the story of the Gospel today. Judea at that time was under the rule of the descendants of king Herod the Great, but in reality their role and power was mostly just honorary. The real power and authority lie with the Romans. The military at the time was also dominated by the Romans, with some local and Temple guards, but the army were mostly Roman, the legions stationed in Judea as a garrison army.

Therefore, the army centurion was likely not a Jew in origin, and even most likely might have been a Roman, and to the Jews, the Romans, as with the other Gentiles or the non-Jewish people were considered pagan, unclean and unworthy of God. And the army centurion was likely fully aware of this fact. Thus, even though he was truly desperate to have his servant healed and brought from the brink of death, he was aware that inviting Jesus to his house might have dire implication for himself, and even more so, for Jesus.

He likely did not want Jesus to be harassed and badmouthed by the Pharisees and the Temple authorities for associating with one such as himself. These people had already made it difficult for the Lord by slandering Him for His associations with the tax collectors, the prostitutes, the Gentiles and many other people, whom the Pharisees and the Temple authorities deemed to be sinners and unworthy of salvation.

But did Jesus care about what they thought of Him? No, not at all! That is because He is solely concerned about the salvation of the souls of mankind, of sinners who has no one else to turn to but God. This concern is what made our Lord to go out and seek the sinners and the condemned, in order to bring them back from the precipice of darkness and damnation, and to return them into the light and the grace of God.

The army centurion was fully aware of his unworthiness, and he came forth to beg the Lord’s love and mercy, and with complete and full trust in the Lord, he knew that, while he was unworthy to receive the Lord in his own house, but whatever the Lord would do for his sake, would truly come true. This is the kind of great faith which the army centurion had, and which the Pharisees and the Temple authorities did not have.

Do we all remember about the doubting disciple, Thomas, who doubted the resurrection of Christ? Who refused to believe until the Lord Himself showed Himself to him? The same therefore occurred for the Pharisees, the Temple authorities, and to be frank, with many if not most of us. We want physical and visual evidence when we want to believe in something, and if we are not shown what we want to see, then we will not believe.

Yet, we have to notice that the army centurion did not even ask for Jesus to come and heal his servant physically and directly, so that he might see and believe. No, in fact he had already believed even not by seeing, and by his faith and belief in Jesus, he put his trust completely in God, and what he asked for was fulfilled completely. The Pharisees on the other hand, they had frequently seen and witnessed what Jesus had done throughout His ministry, in their futile attempts to discredit and destroy Him in their jealousy. And indeed, they failed to see the truth of God’s works in Jesus and they did not have the faith.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, we have a choice today, and on this season of Advent, there is indeed no better time to do so, that is to reflect on our own faith and on our own life. Have we been faithful in the way of the Pharisees and the Temple authorities? Is our faith like theirs, that is proud, unbending, arrogant and self-serving? Do we recognise the Lord when He comes again? Or are we too caught up in our own self-preserving attitudes, pride, jealousy and greed that we fail to recognise Him?

Certainly, we want to avoid this. And the way to truly live our lives is to be like the army centurion. Let us truly mean what we always say every time at the Mass, ‘I am not worthy, not worthy’, and not worthy we are indeed of the Lord, for we have sinned before God. Far less worthy we are indeed to even receive Him into ourselves. We have to realise this and be humble, just as the army centurion was, he who had admitted publicly that he was not worthy for Christ to come to his house and heal his servant.

And yet, our Lord Jesus, out of His great and infinite love for us, desires us to be reconciled to Himself, and He has the power and authority to heal us and make us whole, just as He had healed the servant of the army centurion. All that we need to do, is just ask, like the army centurion. He asked in great humility, sincere devotion and genuine faith, and he received his reward.

The Lord had already said to us, that we need to only ask, and we shall receive, and we need to only knock at the door, and the door shall be opened for us. Thus, this Advent season, let us use the opportunity given to us, to respond to God calling deep in our hearts, for us to repent and change our ways, and for us to walk in His ways and follow Him once again. Let us put our complete trust in Lord like the centurion, who have strong and genuine faith, without the need for doubt or proof. Do not be like the Pharisees, who have seen plenty, and yet refused to believe.

May Almighty God be with us all, and guide us all this Advent, that He may bring us all ever closer to His salvation and eternal glory, by making our faith more and more like the faith of the centurion. May we grow stronger and deeper in our humility and in our love for God. Doubt no more but believe! And let us prepare for the Lord who will come again to claim us all His people and bring us into His eternal kingdom. God bless us all. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/30/monday-1-december-2014-first-week-of-advent-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/30/monday-1-december-2014-first-week-of-advent-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/30/monday-1-december-2014-first-week-of-advent-gospel-reading/

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Sunday, 30 November 2014 : First Sunday of Advent, Feast of St. Andrew, Apostle (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple or Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we mark the beginning of the season of Advent, the special season in our liturgical year, which we also begin anew today, that marks the season of preparation before the great feast and solemnity of Christmas, which will occur in about four weeks from now. The celebration of Christmas is about the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, commemorating the occasion when He first came into our world, He who is Divine and yet willing to assume the appearance and substance of a humble Man, in order to bring salvation to all of us.

We have two great celebrations in our liturgical year, namely the solemnities of Christmas and Easter, both of which commemorate the most important events in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ on earth. The former celebrates His birth and entry into the world as mentioned, and the latter celebrates the even greater event of His suffering, Passion and way to the cross, death and ultimately His resurrection from the dead. These are the two great celebrations of our Faith, and we put special importance to them.

And that is why for both occasions, we have two special seasons to prepare for them, as a season of penitence and self-introspection, a time for reflection and for us to look deeply into our lives. For our Lord is coming to us, just as He had come before, and like someone who is inviting guests to a party, would it not be fitting for the host to be prepared beforehand?

Thus why those seasons I have mentioned are very important? That is because these two seasons, Advent and Lent are the time for us to be prepared to celebrate with all of our heart, the joy and the truth of our Lord’s life events, in the Christmas and Easter celebrations. If we do not prepare ourselves fully beforehand, then the meaning of the celebrations may be lessened, as what many of us often encountered in our own lives.

The celebrations and festivals which grew around both events, Christmas and Easter had become increasingly more and more distant from their original meaning and purpose, and in this world, which values money and possessions above everything else, the true meaning of the celebration, in particular of Christmas had been lost, in the midst of commercialisation, branding and attempts to sell Christmas for money and profit.

How many of us grow to see Christmas only in terms of the parties and celebrations it brings with it? And how many of us associate it with shopping and gifts? Presents, new clothes and new things for our homes? How many of us associate Christmas with Santa Claus, the Christmas tree, the gift boxes and the various other so-called Christmas apparels and decorations? If we have done so frequently, then do not be afraid brethren, for many of us certainly have done so too.

It is the way of the world, and by extension, the works of Satan, in order to divert us from the true focus of Christmas. It is certainly not wrong for us to celebrate Christmas and be happy with all the celebrations. But are we really celebrating for the right purpose and with the right attitude? This is a question which all of us must ask ourselves, and for us all to be aware of.

Christmas is truly about Christ, the birthday Boy, the One whose birth we are celebrating, and nothing more important than this. We can celebrate and be happy about all the feasts and celebrations, but we must have Christ in our celebrations, and in our hearts we have to understand the significance of His birth and coming into the world. Otherwise, our Christmas celebrations will be empty, meaningless and directionless.

You may be wondering why I am talking so much about Christmas, and even Easter and all the festive and celebration seasons of the Church, even though Christmas itself is still about a month away, and we are just barely beginning the season of Advent. That is because the season of Advent is intimately and very closely related to Christmas itself, and our four weeks of Advent will be meaningless if we do not understand the true meaning of Christmas. It is just necessary that we start this Advent season right.

And in the same way, Christmas and all of its celebrations will be meaningless as I have mentioned, if we have not amply and sufficiently prepared ourselves, and that is why we have this season of Advent to serve as an opportunity and guide for us, to sit back and move away for a while from the busy schedules and activities we have in our lives, and take the opportunity to reflect, and to also confess our sins that as we enter later into the season of Christmas, our hearts, minds, body and souls will be ready for the Lord.

That is also the essence of the Scripture Readings which we heard today, from the first reading, to the second reading and the Gospel itself. The Lord Jesus who has come once before, will come again one day to judge all the living and the dead, and this is what we believe. And it is necessary that we begin the preparations for what is to come. For Advent itself means to prepare and to welcome in expectation for, from the Latin, ‘Adventus’ which literally means ‘coming’, the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The first reading from the Book of the prophet Isaiah focuses on the nature of our Lord as our Redeemer, who will wash away our sins and iniquities, providing that we want to change our ways and repent all of our sinfulness. Isaiah the prophet had indeed acknowledged our sinfulness, and how wicked we have been, but he also showed that while our Lord is angry with our sins and attitudes in life, but He also opens the way for our salvation and repentance.

The psalm spoke of our Lord as our Shepherd, and this relates to how Isaiah the prophet said that the Lord is like our Potter, who shaped us all like a potter shaped the clay jugs and items. He guides us and leads us like a shepherd guiding his sheep from places to places. But it is also easy for the clay to lose its structure and shape, and for the sheep to be lost to the shepherd, if the condition of the clay is not satisfactory, or if the sheep is misled and misguided by other things other than the shepherd.

Thus, as I have elaborated earlier on, it is easy for us to lose our path in life, and to lose focus in our faith, that we forget the true meaning of our faith, of all the celebrations we have and why we even call ourselves a Christian and come to celebrate the Holy Mass together as the Church. We have to therefore be vigilant and strong, and seek help from whatever source available, to strengthen our faith and be ready, for when the Lord comes again.

The second reading from the letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians and the Gospel from the Gospel according to St. Mark truly spoke of one thing, that our Lord is coming again, and the time of His coming will not be known to us. But we have no need to fear if we put our trust and faith in Jesus completely, for He will guide us and show us the way. Thus, it is of great importance for us, to use this perfect opportunity of the Advent season now, to prepare thoroughly, for the eventual and inevitable coming of our Lord and Saviour.

On this day, we also celebrate the feast of one of the great holy Apostles, the feast of St. Andrew, the brother of St. Peter, the chief of all the Apostles and Vicar of Christ. St. Andrew was the first to be called among all the Apostles, at the shore of the lake of Galilee by Jesus, who then called his brother Simon, then to be named Peter by the Lord. As he was the first to be called among the Apostles, and also the first to believe in the Lord Jesus as the Messiah who came into the world, he is also known widely as St. Andrew the First-Called.

And it happens also that as the brother of St. Peter, he was also the founder of the brother of the premier see and diocese in Christendom. He was the founder of the See and Diocese of Constantinople, then known as Byzantium, a quiet city at the edge of Europe at the boundary between Europe and Asia, which is at the site now known as the city of Istanbul. However, it is truly still known by its true name, Constantinople or New Rome or Second Rome.

The city of Constantinople was founded by the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great who was the first Christian Emperor and who ended the great persecutions of the faithful and convoked the first Ecumenical Council in Nicaea in the year 325. The city of Constantinople therefore became a second capital of the Roman Empire, and as such, in the next few decades, the See founded by St. Andrew would grow to a great importance, as the second most important in Christendom after Rome, the See of St. Peter, the Vicar of Christ.

Thus, today we see that among our separated brethren in the Eastern Orthodox Communion, the Archbishop of Constantinople is the most important among all the bishops, and styled himself the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. Our Holy Father and Vicar of Christ, Pope Francis is visiting Constantinople today to celebrate this occasion of the feast of St. Andrew, and to foster unity between the Church established by the Apostles, and rediscover the close bond and brotherhood between the Apostles St. Peter and St. Andrew.

But what is truly the significance of this feast of St. Andrew for us? And how is it relevant to our celebration of the First Sunday of Advent? Truly, we have to know first what St. Andrew had done for the Lord and for the faithful. St. Andrew was one of the Twelve Apostles, and although details about him other than his calling by Jesus were scant in the Gospels and also in the rest of the New Testament, it was known by Tradition that he also did what the other Apostles did, in spreading the Good News to many lands and helped to establish many dioceses and structures of the Church.

St. Andrew worked hard and zealously to bring the Good News of the Lord to the people who have yet to hear of it, and he and his fellow servants of God faced difficulties and challenges, until eventually, he was martyred in what is now Greece, as he went about spreading the Gospel. He was crucified like that of his brother, St. Peter in Rome. While St. Peter chose to be crucified upside-down, St. Andrew was crucified on an X-shaped cross, which we are now familiar with as the cross of St. Andrew.

The lesson from the life of St. Andrew, how he was called and how he carried on his faith is very relevant to us, on this very occasion of the very first day of this season of Advent. The Lord Jesus is coming soon, and when He comes again, in sudden and unannounced arrival, He will proceed to measure the worth of us all, in whether we have been faithful and devoted to Him. He Himself had told His disciples and all of us many times of what will happen.

The signs are clear, brethren, and the evidence is clear. If we have faith in God, then why hesitate anymore? We have to use whatever opportunity we have now, and this Advent is a perfect reminder to all of us, that we have to prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord. This Advent is more than just a preparation for Christmas and Christmas is more than just festivities and celebrations. They are all part of our larger preparation in expectation of the coming again of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ into this world as King, and this time to bring us all into the eternal glory and happiness He had promised all of us.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us use this opportunity to the maximum, and let us be proactive in our faith. Just as St. Andrew believed in John the Baptist when he said about the Christ, ‘there is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world’ and immediately set about following Him as the first-called among many, we too should follow his example and set about following the Lord now.

Do not wait until the last minute, lest we may be like the foolish and unwise women who were not prepared with oil in their lamps as told in the parable of the five wise women and the five unwise women. When the Lord comes again suddenly, they will be caught unprepared and no goodness will come to them. Instead, be ready and be vigilant, be prepared with all things, that is our heart, mind, body and soul, that we are ever ready to welcome the Lord our God in His glory.

May Almighty God bless us all and guide us all in this season of Advent, that all of us may come to greater realisation of the need to prepare for the coming of Christ, and therefore to prepare ourselves thoroughly and fully, that when He comes again in glory, reminiscing His first coming at Christmas, we may be found ready and worthy, as like St. Andrew, be made worthy of the kingdom of God. God bless us all. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/28/sunday-30-november-2014-first-sunday-of-advent-feast-of-st-andrew-apostle-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/28/sunday-30-november-2014-first-sunday-of-advent-feast-of-st-andrew-apostle-psalm/

 

Second Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/28/sunday-30-november-2014-first-sunday-of-advent-feast-of-st-andrew-apostle-second-reading/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/28/sunday-30-november-2014-first-sunday-of-advent-feast-of-st-andrew-apostle-gospel-reading/

 

Epistle (Usus Antiquior) :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/28/usus-antiquior-first-sunday-of-advent-i-classis-sunday-30-november-2014-epistle/

 

Gospel (Usus Antiquior) :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/28/usus-antiquior-first-sunday-of-advent-i-classis-sunday-30-november-2014-holy-gospel/

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Saturday, 29 November 2014 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today is the last day of our current liturgical year, which is liturgical year A, and from tomorrow onwards, we will begin a new liturgical year cycle, beginning with the season of Advent, a season of preparation for all of us to be ready to celebrate the great solemnity of our Lord’s birth and nativity in Christmas. Therefore, the readings today from the Scriptures were very appropriate in that they all proclaim of what we all should do to prepare ourselves, and what does the coming of our Lord mean to all of us.

The Gospel today speaks of our Lord Jesus who again constantly reminded the people to always be prepared and to stay vigilant, that is to be ready for the coming of our Lord as He had promised, lest they be caught unaware and unprepared. Thus, while we prepare for the joyful celebrations of Christmas, and as we embark on the Advent journey tomorrow, let us all also prepare ourselves body, heart, mind, soul and indeed our entire being to welcome the Lord and be ready for when He comes again in glory.

For we believe that while Christmas celebrates our Lord’s coming into the world as a Man in Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Son of Man, but that was His first coming into the world, when He revealed the fullness of God’s truth and the plan of God’s salvation for us all. That was the time when He walked among us as one of us, and lived as humans like us do, and He suffered and died for us, carrying the burdens of our sins even though He is without sin.

But we also expect His future coming into the world, this time not as a humble Man but as a victorious, triumphant and conquering King, who will be the Judge of all, and who will gather all the righteous ones to Himself. All those whom He judged to be worthy, He will bring to His everlasting glory, as we read today in the first reading taken from the last part of the Book of the revelations of St. John the Evangelist.

In that reading, after the tribulations of the faithful, the final plagues and the final victory against the devil and all of his followers, and after the final and last judgment of all the living and the dead, the Lord will welcome all those He had deemed to be righteous, good and just to come into His holy city, the place of abundance and everlasting grace, as well as perfect bliss, harmony and happiness.

There will be no more death, no more tears or sadness, and there will be no more sorrow, pain or suffering. There will be no more need for fear or hesitation, doubt or uncertainty, for our Lord will be there for us at all times, and He will rule over us forever and ever. We will be His beloved people, and we will enjoy forever the fullness of His love, His grace, blessing and inheritance He had promised us all.

But, all these does not come free and easy, brothers and sisters in Christ. For in order for us to achieve all these, we must be faithful, and that is not easy either. For being faithful to the Lord often means that we walk in the opposite way as the world, and for us to disregard the common ways of the world. We will often face difficulties, challenges, divisions and even opposition from those closest and dearest to us.

However, if we are able to persevere and move on, and remain true to our mission in this life, then our reward is great. Being faithful to the Lord entails being truly devoted and to be a practicing and proactive member of His faithful. Yes, it requires a faith that is based and founded upon a strong foundation of love and love in action. For example, if we are faithful, then surely we will see and notice the plight of those around us who lacked love and who have difficulties themselves.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we are the children of God and therefore we are the children of the Light. And the way of the Light is to bring love and compassion to all peoples, and to bring harmony and peace to all societies. And ultimately the way of Light is to preach truly and courageously the truth of our Lord, Jesus Christ, He who had given it all to save us from the powers of darkness, and deliver us into the new life in Him.

Hence, brothers and sisters, let us not wait any longer or be idle any longer. Let us begin to take action from now on. Remember, that the Lord also mentioned in the first reading we heard today, “I am coming soon!” and this is very real. Yes, He will come again and He will come again soon, at a time that we cannot predict and a time which we do not expect.

Do not wait until it is too late. Profess our love for Him now, so that when He comes again, we will be ready, and He will find us righteous and just, and He will then bring us to enjoy forever the fruits of eternal life, the fruits of our faithfulness, obedience, righteousness and love for Him. If we have done what is good and what He has asked us to do, as I have said earlier on, then we have nothing to worry. If we have not, then let us begin from now on and never wait. God be with us all. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/27/saturday-29-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/27/saturday-29-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/27/saturday-29-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-gospel-reading/

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Friday, 28 November 2014 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the readings are about what is to come at the end of time, the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ as King and Master of all, and ultimately as the Judge of all creations. Our Lord Jesus Christ is going to come in triumph and glory, vanquishing and defeating evil once and for all, and cast them all into the utter darkness and the eternal lake of fire prepared for them.

In the first reading, it was told about the final defeat of Satan, who will be cast down and have his power forever broken. The authority which Satan once has over us, through sin, has been broken through the actions of our Lord Jesus, by His death and resurrection, and then the might and kingdom of Satan itself will be crushed when the Lord comes again.

That is because, brothers and sisters in Christ, as long as mankind still commit sin and evil in their actions, in their words and deeds, they will always come again under the rule and tyranny of Satan, who is the lord over evil and sin. As long as we sin and commit things evil and abhorrent in the eyes of God, Satan is our master and we are his thralls.

And as long as we remain in sin, and allow sin to affect our hearts and our lives, then death will also have power over us. This is the first death, and also will be the second death for us, if we do not change our ways. What is the first death and the second death, brothers and sisters? The second death was mentioned in the first reading today taken from the Book of Revelations. It is an eternal death and an eternal suffering, from which, all those who suffer that second death, will never be able to escape.

All of us mankind were not meant to suffer death or suffering, brethren, for our ancestor Adam, the first man, and his wife, Eve, the first woman, were created to enjoy the eternal bliss and happiness of the Lord’s creations in Eden. They were meant to enjoy for eternity the goodness of God and not to suffer death and suffering in this world. Alas, sin entered the hearts of men by the disobedience of men, who listened to the sweet lies of Satan, who charmed and twisted them away from true devotion to God.

Satan appeared to Eve as a snake, the most cunning and intelligent of all the creatures, and it is the same old snake that the angel of God will chain up at the end of times, Satan the deceiver, to be bound up so that all of us may be freed from his tyranny and control. Satan played on our desires and our curiosity, and those took the better of us, when he managed to persuade the first men to eat from the forbidden tree and thus sinned against God.

After mankind sinned against God, then we deserve to be punished, and that punishment, is to suffer in our life, whereas the original intention had been for us to enjoy our life in bliss and happiness, and then also to die, suffering from death, just as the words say that, ‘from dust you have come, and to dust you shall return’. This is the first death, the death because of men’s disobedience against God, and all of us mankind are subject to this.

Yes, one day we will all die, and all those who have gone before us have also tasted death, and those who are yet to be born, will one day also suffer death, the first death, but not a final death. For our Lord Jesus Christ had come as our Saviour, who offered a new hope and light amidst the darkened outlook of our future. By His death on the cross, He broke free the chains of sin that enslaved us to death, and by His resurrection, He brought us the offer of a new life everlasting.

And thus, we have no need to fear death, the first death. After all, all of us will go through it at one point of time or another. We will all die, but what matters is, if after that first death, whether we will suffer the second death or instead go into the eternal life promised by our God. This will depend on our actions and deeds in this life on earth, and will be judged upon us at the time of the Last Judgment.

Yes, the second part of our first reading today tells us about the Last Judgment, where the Lord will separate those who have done good and those who have failed to do so, or those who did what are wicked in the sight of God. The good ones He will give His promised reward of everlasting life, in the fullness of glory and happiness which He had always intended for His beloved men from the very beginning, but taken away from us because of the sins of our ancestors and also our own sins.

How about those who are found to be wicked and unworthy then? They will be judged and condemned for their actions, and the second death will be their portion. The second death is eternal, hell-like suffering of total and eternal separation from God and His love, and no hope is to be found there, for there is no escape, and those who are found wicked will be cast down there together with Satan and his fellow fallen angels, who also rebelled against God and brought mankind down with them.

Ultimately, the Gospel today reminds us of the fact that we need to do something, and that we can no longer be passive in our faith and in our lives. Jesus was talking about the signs of nature and the seasons, and how if the people of His time could tell of the coming of the season and time by observing the nature around them, then the coming of the Lord Jesus and the end of time can surely also be known by us, not in exact timing, but in the imminency of it.

Jesus always told us that the coming of the kingdom of God will be like that of a thief, sudden and unannounced. And indeed, only God Himself knows the exact time of His coming. If we think that we still have time and remain idle, not doing things which may help us to secure our salvation, then we may be caught unaware and unprepared, and at that time, if we are judged to be among the wicked, then no amount of pleading or begging will help us anymore.

Therefore, what we need to do brothers and sisters in Christ? We have to be proactive in our faith, and practice it with full sincerity and genuinely show love, as what the Lord had taught us. We have many opportunities in this life, every single day, hour or even minute. Whenever we see that there are people being ostracised, treated badly against, hungry or lonely, are we courageous enough to show them our love? Or do we prefer to remain idle and ignore them?

The choice is clearly ours, to be loving and good, or to be selfish and wicked. The ball is in our court, and it is our choice whether to take up the opportunity and use them, or let them go to waste. May Almighty God awaken in us the courage as well as the sense of urgency to seek Him and do what He had taught us to do, so that at the end of the days, He may find us worthy and righteous, and worthy to enjoy the eternal graces and happiness which He had prepared for all of us. God bless us all. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/26/friday-28-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/26/friday-28-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/26/friday-28-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-gospel-reading/

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Thursday, 27 November 2014 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we come ever closer to the end of our liturgical year this year and as we look forward to this Sunday, when we will celebrate the beginning of the next liturgical year, with the beginning of the season of Advent, we come together to listen to the usual heeding and warnings from the Scriptures, on the imminent and inevitable coming of the end times.

In the first reading from the Book of the Revelations of St. John the Evangelist, we hear about the downfall of the great city of Babylon, which is the representation of all the evils in the world, the power and authority of Satan over the nations and over all the worldly forces, resources and desires. The use of the name Babylon to represent the ultimate force of evil is linked to the fact that the first to destroy Jerusalem and its holy Temple, was the Babylonians, under the rule of King Nebuchadnezzar.

The people of Israel at the time was humiliated, their cities destroyed, chief of which was Jerusalem and its Temple, and they were brought to exile and slavery in Babylon for many years. They suffered tremendously being away from their homeland, their country, and scattered among nations, having to go through the humiliation by the other nations who mock them in their exile.

Thus in the same way, the faithful people of God will suffer, as the ways of this world, under the control of Satan and his angels, are diametrically opposite to the ways of the Lord. If we follow the Lord and profess our faith in Him, then we are on a direct collision course with the ways of Satan, who will then send all of his might and forces to destroy us, to humiliate us, and to make us suffer, as the Israelites had in the past.

The tribulation of the faithful will continue and increase in intensity before the coming of the Lord, just as Jesus had mentioned in the Gospel today. Jesus was speaking about the downfall and destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans which would happen a few decades after His death and resurrection. However, in the same way, He was in fact also referring to what will also happen at the end times, when He will come again.

The coming of the end of time is not known to us, and only the Lord Himself knows of when He will come again and judge this world. But those who know His ways and those who understand His teachings will know better rather than to fear or be worried of what will happen in the future. For fear and worry indeed do not bring anything beneficial to us, and instead they may prove to be our downfall.

How often is it that we heard, brothers and sisters, that there are those who are so paralysed with fear and worry that they were unable to do anything, and just sit there to await their fates? This is exactly what will also happen to us, if we let our fear or worry cloud our judgment and ability to live our faith with great sincerity, courage, and with proactive attitude. Just ask ourselves a question, if we are crossing a road, and a large truck is out of control and speeding rapidly towards us, what shall we do?

We have clear choices in that situation, brothers and sisters on Christ. It is either that we allow our fear, indecision and worry to overcome us, and therefore paralysing us in fear, unable to move or to decide any action. The truck will then surely hit us and we will perish. Instead, what we should indeed do, when presented with this dilemma, is for us to take immediate action, to wake up from our slumber and inaction, from indecisiveness and hesitation, and make a move.

And in the same way therefore, all of us who have put our trust in the Lord, shall gain our salvation. It is not by inaction or passivity that our faith has saved us, but through real and concrete action, which we need to take every single day of our lives, no matter in how small an action that is. Our faith must be a genuine and living faith, founded on actions filled with love, that is love for our neighbours and brethren around us, and ultimately, the love we must have for God.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listen to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, first let us all be reminded of the future coming of our Lord and Saviour, and how we should be prepared for such an eventuality. And then we have to realise that we have been gifted with much blessings and graces, through which we can make a lot of difference, not just for ourselves but also for many others around us, helping them to resist and to overcome the temptations of the world and the lies of evil.

We have no need to fear, brethren, for our Lord will be triumphant and victorious. The final victory will be His, and everything shall bow before Him, even Satan and his allies in the works of evil. Thus the great Babylon will fall and never to rise again, and the faithful will claim their place in the great victory of the Lord and partake in His celebrations. For a race of people once thought lost to Him, will finally be reunited forever with Him.

Let us all thus reaffirm our faith in the Lord, not by mere words or passivity, but with real and concrete actions of love, whenever and wherever we can and whenever we are in the position to help each other, and to show our love to those around us who need it. Then, we will be justified in our faith and our Lord will reward us with life everlasting and to share with Him the glory of heaven. God be with us all, now and forever. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/26/thursday-27-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/26/thursday-27-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/26/thursday-27-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-gospel-reading/

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Wednesday, 26 November 2014 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today’s readings remind us of the truth of our Faith and how things will happen to us if we are to be the disciples of Christ, and if we remain faithful to Him. Suffering and difficulties will be our lot and part of our lives, but we do not need to worry, as our Lord is with us, and He will guide us to the final triumph and victory against evil, and into our eternal reward and glory.

In the Gospel reading, Jesus told His disciples and the people who heard His teachings, and from them to us. We clearly heard of what challenges the faithful will encounter for the sake of the Lord. The world, which is our world, with all of its forces and powers, with all of its influences and temptations, are against the Lord and all of His ways. The ways of this world are the opposite of the ways of the Lord.

And as such, the world will always stand against the Lord and His efforts to bring light into it. The darkness of this world, the powers of Satan and his angels want us to remain in darkness and lost to the Lord, that we may remain forever in sin and debauchery. But the Lord Jesus wants an end to all of these, as He loves us and He wants us to be rescued and brought into the light.

Thus He sent His messengers and servants into the world, and through His teachings, the Apostles and the saints went forth around to spread His Good News to all the nations and all the people. They persevered in their missions, accepted in some but rejected in many places. There were many persecutions against them, betrayal by those they have trusted, betrayal by those who professed the same faith to God but who failed to persevere and were tempted by the world, and many other sufferings.

Many including St. Paul were sent to prison and suffered grievously in incarceration, and they were betrayed by their own people, reported and punished by the Sanhedrin, the Jewish High Priesthood and council, which jealously watched after their actions and tried many times to bring them to court and kill them for what they stood up for. And what did these holy servants of God stand up for? None other than the truth, as the Lord Jesus had revealed to them, and now these truths have also been revealed to us.

But the works of the Apostles, the disciples and servants of the Lord are not yet done. This world is always covered in darkness and sin, just as it had been in the past. Many among the people of God are still longing for the light, and many had been misled by the lies of the devil, and to follow the ways of the world. And who will be there to give the light of our Lord to them? It is none other than all of us, brothers and sisters.

For through our baptism, when we were born anew in the Lord, we have been made one as the Church of God, and as its members, we too share the same mission which had been given to the Apostles, the disciples and the servants of our Lord, that is to evangelise and spread the Good News of the Gospel to the whole world, and thus to enlighten a people who still live in the darkness of this world, and bring them all into the light just as we are already in the light of Christ.

It is important for us to realise that each and every one of us have been entrusted with many gifts of the Lord, for the use in the benefit of those who are around us. All of us have the responsibility and obligation to help our brethren in need. For surely, if we have done nothing to help them, then they will be lost to the darkness forever in damnation, and our Lord will then judge us for our failure to help when we are able to do so.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we continue our day today, and from now on henceforth, let us all realise that we need to stay true to our faith in God, and in that therefore, we have to live our faith and commit ourselves completely to the Lord, and in order to do so, we have to be a witness of the Faith and our Lord through our actions, words and deeds that truly proclaim the Lord and that we are indeed His followers.

We do not have to worry or fear about what we will encounter. We will indeed encounter challenges and difficulties in this life, but we have to keep our spirit up, knowing that we will be triumphant in the end. There is nothing that Satan and his allies can do to harm us, as they have no power over us, as long as we stay true to the Faith and refrain from sinning.

At the end of days, when our Lord and Master comes again in His glory, we shall be united in His triumph and enjoy forever our rightful reward. His wrath, as born by the seven angels will not befall us. The seven plagues of the Book of revelations will only affect all those who have not walked in the way of the Lord but instead prefer to give in to the world’s desires and temptations.

May Almighty God help to keep us faithful to Him, and awaken in us the desire to help one another, to keep each other vigilant and devoted to the Lord, so that at the end of time, when our Lord comes again to make a reckoning with the world and all of His children, He may find us righteous and faithful to the end and thus worthy of His eternal promise of life everlasting. God bless us all. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/25/wednesday-26-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/25/wednesday-26-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/25/wednesday-26-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-gospel-reading/

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Tuesday, 25 November 2014 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Catherine of Alexandria, Virgin and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard the words of the Holy Scriptures, which told us about when Jesus foretold the great destruction that was about to befall the city of Jerusalem and the Temple of God there, because of the wickedness of the people who lived there. Then in the psalm we heard of the songs of joy and exultation which came from all of creation to praise the Lord who is to come to save His people.

And in the first reading we heard about the warning and prophecy of what is about to come in the future, at the end of times, when the Lord deems it is time for the ending of the world as we knew it. When everything is at hand, what had been said in the Scriptures, will be completely fulfilled. There are two meanings of the reaping of the earth in the first reading today from the Book of the revelations of St. John.

The first one is related to the parable of the fig tree where the Lord rebuked the fig tree for having bore no fruit, and it withered, and also to the parable of the sower, where the seeds sown in a rich and fertile soil grew to such an extent that they bore a thirtyfold, or a sixtyfold, or a hundredfold return in bountiful fruits and products. Therefore, this means that at the time, when the Lord’s chosen ones had been completed in their fullness, and in the fullness of their faith, He will come again.

The time is not known to us, and only He who knows it all, has control over it. We who have been chosen and we who chose to put our faith in Him has therefore one task for ourselves, that is to live faithfully and genuinely in our love for Him, so that through our actions, we may be filled with such goodness and grace, so that we bear the fruits of love, that is the fruits of the Holy Spirit.

We are the grapes of the Lord, sown with love by our Lord Himself, the vineyard owner. The angels are His servants, who will go forth into the world to reap whatever can be reaped on the day of the harvest. If we do not bear fruit within us, then when the time of reckoning, that is the harvest time, comes, then the angels will find no fruit in us, and we will end up as useless plants.

What is our fate then if that is the case? Our fate will therefore be to share the fate of Satan and his angels, who had been the first ones to disobey the Lord and His will, bearing themselves no good fruit in them. And the same goes if the fruits we produce are rotten or no good at all in quality. No vineyard owner would like to have bad or rotten grapes as his harvest produce, and these will be thrown into the fire to be destroyed, lest they contaminate the good grapes. Hence, the same will happen to us, at the Last Judgment.

The second meaning of the reaping of the earth in the first reading today, is that the grapes when they are pressed, they produce rich liquid that if we look at the most commonly used grapes at the time, the red variant, produce a deep red grape juice, which if we look at it, does look like blood. And this is another meaning of the reaping of the earth at the end of time.

If we read in another part of the Book of the Revelation of St. John, we will see a passage on the Mother Harlot, the great Babylon, seated on the beast, which represent the evil forces and all the wickedness of this world and whoever it is that do not have faith in the Lord. The harlot was drunk with the blood of martyrs, and the anger of God was very great against the world because of that.

That means, when the wickedness of the world was such, and the persecution of the holy martyrs was such that their blood cries out to the Lord for justice, then the Lord will heed their call, and at His appointed time, come to judge and destroy all the wickedness in this world. This is therefore related to the first interpretation of the meaning of the reaping of the world by the angel. In what way is this so?

It means that, just as Jesus warned of a great tribulation would soon befall Jerusalem, its destruction and the mayhem it would cause, that would only be a precursor and a brief insight into what will happen when the Lord is about to come again, just as St. John has seen them all in his revelation. Nations will fight against nations, and many will be misled by the forces of evil, seeking to turn us away from the way of the Lord and to worship and serve the devil instead.

In this therefore, the temptation will be great for us to turn from being a good and faithful vine, producing good and sweet grapes, into one corrupted and sickened by diseases, namely the disease of sin, which cause us to produce bad and rotten fruits instead. And the persecution of those who believe in the Lord will be growing more and more, greater and greater, and at times, even our lives and our blood will be at stake.

It is therefore a reminder for us, that first, we have to be thoroughly and completely faithful to the Lord, without doubts or second thoughts. We cannot serve both the Lord and the devil, and if we are to serve the Lord, we have to take our clear stand with Him, regardless of what the world may do to us for doing so. Do not fear the world, for it can only harm our body temporarily, but they cannot touch even a single bit of our soul, which is eternal.

Then, it is also a reminder that if we follow the Lord and remain faithful to Him, everything will not be easy or happy all the time. Difficulties and challenges will surely come our way, but if we are resolute and dedicated in our faith, then be assured, brothers and sisters, that we will be well taken care of by the Lord, and our reward is very great in heaven.

Today, we remember the memory and celebrate the feast of a great martyr and saint, whose example may help us to strengthen our own faith and effort to defend it, in the face of the difficulties and challenges presented by this world. The saint of today is St. Catherine of Alexandria, a holy virgin and martyr of the faith, who died heroically defending her faith and the Lord, as well as her purity, from the corruptions of sin and the world during the last of the great persecutions of the Faith by the Roman Empire.

St. Catherine of Alexandria was born a noble lady, the daughter of the rulers or governors of Egypt, a wealthy and influential province of the Roman Empire. Her beauty, wisdom and skills were such that, many people were her suitors. However, St. Catherine, who was a convert to the faith in her youth, was to dedicate herself and her love only to One, and that One is the Lord.

St. Catherine devoted herself to perpetual and perfect virginity, maintaining her purity, by offering herself totally and completely to the Lord, as a spiritual bride of the Lord, rejecting all the offers of all those who pursued her, even though she was showered with gifts of wealth, riches, power, influence, fame and many others. Eventually, even the Emperor himself, Maxentius, who would later perish against the first Christian Emperor, Constantine the Great, was also taken in by her beauty, but he failed to persuade her as well.

It was told that St. Catherine tried to persuade Emperor Maxentius to stop the persecution of Christians and to make him to see the errors of his ways of idol worship and to embrace the true Faith. The Emperor was not persuaded and he tried to employ several pagan philosophers to debate with her, and instead, those philosophers were persuaded and some joined the Faith.

Eventually St. Catherine of Alexandria was martyred, suffering terribly for defending her Faith and the truth, but in doing so, she had stood up for her faith, and brought witness and testimony to the truth, that inspired even others and brought others to salvation. She is our role model, brothers and sisters, as her actions in life is the example of what we should do in this life, to gain righteousness in God’s sight.

Therefore, with the intercession of St. Catherine of Alexandria, let us all renew our commitment to the Faith, strengthening our resolve to love and serve the Lord in all things, so that we may be true disciples of the Lord, rejecting all the falsehoods of Satan and his allies. Their lies and temptations are plentiful, cunning and wicked.

Remember what our Lord said in the Gospel today, that there will be lots of false prophets and false leads, and if we are not careful, we may fall into the traps of the devil. Let us therefore be courageous to live fully in the Lord, and at the same time, be vigilant and careful in all the things we do, so as to avoid committing sin and falling into damnation. God bless us all. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/24/tuesday-25-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-catherine-of-alexandria-virgin-and-martyr-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/24/tuesday-25-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-catherine-of-alexandria-virgin-and-martyr-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/24/tuesday-25-november-2014-34th-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-catherine-of-alexandria-virgin-and-martyr-gospel-reading/

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(Usus Antiquior) Twenty-Fourth and Last Sunday after Pentecost (II Classis) – Sunday, 23 November 2014 : Homily and Scripture Reflections

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we come to celebrate the last Sunday after Pentecost, the final Sunday before the season of Advent, we are always reminded of the fact that time is ticking and opportunity for us is running out, in order to secure our inheritance and salvation in God. The readings for this Sunday always focuses on the coming future, on the fact of the future coming of Jesus our Lord when He comes again to judge all the living and the dead.

As we always recite at the Creed, we believe that our Lord Jesus who have died and risen from the dead, and then ascended into His glory in heaven, He will come down in glory at the end of time, to judge the living and the dead. This is the final judgment, or the Last Judgment, when all the people will be divided and separated based on what they have done or what they have not done.

We fully believe in this, and we keep our faith in this. Yes, it is the hope for the coming of Christ, when He will again dwell among us and bring all those who are faithful to Him, to be united with Him in perfect love, harmony and glory. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, we have been made righteous before God, and if we all are truly faithful to Him, we shall be richly rewarded.

However, it is highlighted in the readings of this day, that we have to pray and pray often, that God will strengthen us and our spiritual defenses, so that we will not fall prey to the attacks and the lies of the devil. There will be a lot of challenges and false leads that will threaten to derail us away from the true path towards salvation, and we have to be careful in choosing our steps.

As mentioned, there will be false prophets and those who claimed to be the Christ, in order to mislead us and to fulfill their own selfish desires, and indeed these serve not God but themselves and Satan. There had been many cases both in the past and present, of those claiming to be the Lord who comes again into the world, declaring the coming of the end times, in their doom-filled messages.

Many of these tried to drive fear into the hearts of men, by claiming that God’s coming is around, and claimed to be the messengers of divine will. Unfortunately, many of the people of God were weak in their faith and they failed to understand the truth which the Gospel today highlighted. The coming of the Son of Man, that is the Great Judge, our Lord Jesus Christ, will be sudden and unexpected, fast and rapid like that of a lightning.

Yes, His coming into this world will come unannounced and even though there will be clear signs that He is to come again, as mentioned in the Gospel, no human being or worldly authority may ever claim to know the wisdom and knowledge of God with relation to the second coming of Christ. That is because Jesus Himself mentioned in another part of the Gospel, that only the Father knows the Son and therefore, vice versa, only the Son knows the Father.

This means that, whatever God has planned, He has planned everything thoroughly and meticulously, including our salvation from the hands of evil and death. Only He knows the fullness of truth of His plans for us. And Jesus also said that, the Son reveals to those whom He wants to reveal to. Who do you think that Jesus reveals part of His truth to? It is to the Church of God, through the Apostles, those beloved servants of Christ who were with Him and knew what He had done.

It is why a very important aspect of our faith is that we have to adhere closely to the teachings of the Church and reject all forms of temptations and falsehoods of the world, as the Church has that deposit of the Faith, which it had carefully guarded through the years and generations, that through the Church, God will have a strong anchor in this world, around which His faithful may cling to and remain faithful.

And finally, the Gospel today highlights what is required from us. Jesus was very clear, when He spoke of what will happen at the end of time. Those who had done what is good to those who are weak, downtrodden, abandoned, ostracised and disadvantaged against will receive rich rewards, for when they do so, they showed their love for their fellow men, just as what the Lord had asked us all to do.

Those who did not do so, and preferred to let the poor and the weak to suffer, while they enjoyed themselves, will be punished, and the Lord is sternly clear, that our action upon our brethren in need makes the difference between whether we will be judged among the sheep, the righteous ones, or to be judged among the goats, the wicked and unfaithful ones.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we end this liturgical year and approach the beginning of Advent, let us all reconsider how we all live out our lives. If we have done what the Lord had asked us to do, then well done, and we ought to continue living justly and righteously, not letting carelessness or our human frailties to cause us to be diverted from the path towards salvation.

Then, if we can still consider ourselves to be counted among those on the left, among the wicked, then while we still have the time, let us all take action. Our faith cannot just be mere words or observations alone. Remember that faith without action is dead, and a dead faith is meaningless and useless for us. The Lord who sees our dead faith will chide and rebuke us for our lack of action and judge us to be among the damned, if this is the case.

Remember, the Lord will come again at a time unknown to us, and He will come like a thief, unannounced and sudden. This is a reminder for us not to delay or postpone in changing our lives and our actions, if we have not done so. Otherwise, when He suddenly appears again in His glory, at a time unknown to us, we shall be caught unprepared and be judged to be among damned.

Hence, let us all be proactive in our faith, helping one another as we make our journey towards the Lord. Let our actions speak loudly of our faith, showing our Lord, Master and Judge, that we have all been faithful and devoted, and are worthy of His kingdom and promised inheritance. May Almighty God, our Lord Jesus Christ, bring us back to Him, our Good Shepherd, that we may forever enjoy the fullness of His love and care in the bliss of eternal heaven. God bless us all. Amen.

 

Epistle :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/19/usus-antiquior-twenty-fourth-and-last-sunday-after-pentecost-ii-classis-sunday-23-november-2014-epistle/

 

Gospel :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/19/usus-antiquior-twenty-fourth-and-last-sunday-after-pentecost-ii-classis-sunday-23-november-2014-holy-gospel/

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Saturday, 22 November 2014 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the feast day of St. Cecilia, virgin and martyr of the Faith. St. Cecilia was also well known as the patron saint of Church music and hymns, and as the patron of choirs. She was a Roman noblewoman who lived a pious Christian life, and was martyred for her faith together with her husband, and other Christians, who were also counted the holy martyrs.

St. Cecilia is one of the most renowned and prominent saints of the Church, as she is the patron of musicians and songs made to glorify God. St. Cecilia married her husband, whose name was Valerian, and during the wedding it was said that St. Cecilia sang in her heart full of joy and praise to God, which then became the reason why she is associated with musicians and all those involved in Church music.

When the time came for her to consummate her marriage to her husband, an angel of the Lord appeared to her and proclaimed to her that the wrath of the Lord would come upon whoever it was that tried to violate the virginity of St. Cecilia. When her husband inquired about the angel, St. Cecilia pointed out where he could witness the sign of God, and as a result, her husband became a believer of Christ and was baptised.

St. Cecilia was martyred and her memory was preserved by veneration of the faithful. Her former residence became the site of the Church of St. Cecilia, to where many people thronged to, even until this day. St. Cecilia became a long time patron of music, and in particular the beautiful Church music and symphonies of praise to God, and numerous musical establishments and choirs were named in her honour.

Today, as we come together to celebrate the feast of this great saint and martyr, we listened to the words of the Sacred Scripture, in the Gospel we heard how the Lord rebuked the Sadducees, the faction of the people of Judea who did not believe in the resurrection from the dead, angels, or any other supernatural phenomena, beyond what they could prove with their senses.

The Sadducees thought that resurrection of the dead was meaningless and a nonsense, using the example of a woman who was betrothed to seven brothers as a justification. But their view and opinion on the laws of Moses was twisted and false. They thought not in terms of the divine, but in terms of the flawed senses of men. They trusted their own judgments and wishes rather than to trust in the Lord.

They thought in terms of human lust and desires, and they thought that this life in this world ought to be given to hedonistic pleasures and desires. But they failed to realise that in the world that is to come, all will have no more need for worldly things and desires, for the faithful will be made perfect and united in full perfection with the Lord. And what matters is the purity and sanctity of one’s soul. Being united with God makes us all perfect and all our needs are satisfied. And thus it is shown as if we are like angels before God, praising and singing hymns to God at all times.

Do you know, brothers and sisters in Christ, that singing with devotion is worth twice the prayer? Thus, on this feast day of St. Cecilia, patron saint of music and hymns, let us all seek to bear witness to the Lord through sacred music. Just as in the first reading today, it was told of the witnesses of God who would come at the end of time to preach the truth of God, we too should be witnesses of the Lord, and there is indeed no better way to do so, than to sing hymns of praise to God with the full devotion and focus of our hearts.

The songs of our heart should be song of joy and rejoicing, mimicking the song of the glory of the Lord sung by the angels. That is because we know that we have hope through the Lord who had forgiven us our sins, and to those of us who remain faithful to Him, as St. Cecilia had been, our victory and triumph against evil and darkness is already assured.

St. Cecilia was resolute and firm in defending her faith, and she was also firm in maintaining the purity of her soul, by maintaining her sacred virginity as ordained by God. Through that grace, she had saved not just herself, but also her husband and all those whom she had met and encountered, and many more people inspired by her examples also received the same grace of God.

This is the proof of what Jesus had told to the Pharisees, that in this world, life is more than just enjoyment and pursuit of worldly desires, but indeed, our lives should be filled with meaning and purpose, just as St. Cecilia offered herself to the full and total service to God, singing the hymn of her faith and joy, knowing that she has been found worthy of the Lord and be made pure just as our Lord is pure and good.

The holy witnesses from the Book of revelations were also resolute and firm in their faith, and amidst opposition and threats to them, they remained fully faithful and devoted. And through their witnessing of the faith, they had shown to us, that there is indeed nothing to fear from the power of evil and death, for if we are faithful and truly devoted to God, we have absolutely nothing to fear. The beast might have been able to destroy the body, but it cannot harm our soul. The souls of the faithful are pure and holy, and they are under protection of the Lord, our loving God.

Therefore, be not afraid, brethren! But sing the song of our joy and adulation for the Lord, who alone is worthy of all praise, and be brave in defending our faith and the purity of our hearts. Let us not be like the Sadducees and those others who put their trust in themselves and in the things of this world. Be courageous and faithful in living our faith life, and let us all, inspired by the examples of St. Cecilia, raise the song of our Lord’s praise from our hearts, that through our joyful and triumphant song, we may bring more souls to salvation in Jesus Christ, our Lord.

May Almighty God bring us into His eternal kingdom, which He had prepared for those who had laid down their lives for Him, and also for those who had remained faithful despite the temptations of the world. Let us all be like angels in our honour and praise to God, that our song will echo throughout the heavens and the earth, proclaiming His glory and majesty for all eternity. God bless us all. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/19/saturday-22-november-2014-33rd-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-cecilia-virgin-and-martyr-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/19/saturday-22-november-2014-33rd-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-cecilia-virgin-and-martyr-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/19/saturday-22-november-2014-33rd-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-st-cecilia-virgin-and-martyr-gospel-reading/

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Friday, 21 November 2014 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate together the feast of the presentation of the Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, that is Mary, Theotokos or Mother of God. She was chosen by God from among many of the children of mankind, to be the one who was destined to be the vessel to bear the coming of the Saviour into this world, and in that, to bear the Lord and Master of all the creations Himself, when He was incarnate into flesh.

As our Lord is perfect and perfectly good, without sin and any taint of evil, thus His blessed mother, Mary, was also therefore conceived without the taint of sin, of the original sin of Adam and Eve, the first ancestors of mankind. She was conceived free from sin, immaculate and pure, worthy to be the Mother of our Lord and Saviour, as decreed by God. And today, we celebrate the memory of her presentation at the Temple of the Lord.

In the Jewish custom, as according to the Law of God revealed through Moses, the firstborns of Israel are dedicated to the Lord, through a presentation ceremony, as ceremonially belonging to the Lord. This is a strong reminder of what they had encountered in Egypt, during the time of their liberation from slavery. At that time, God sent ten great plagues to pressure the Pharaoh to liberate the people of Israel and allow them to go back to the land of their ancestors in freedom.

The last of the ten plagues, and the most terrifying of them all, is the death of all the firstborns of the Egyptians, including the firstborn of the Pharaoh himself. No firstborn was spared, and the firstborn of humans and animals of the Egyptians alike were destroyed, for the sins of the Pharaoh and the Egyptians. The firstborn of the people of Israel however, were spared, because of the Lord’s promise to them, and His instruction, that they be presented and offered to Him, and they ever since belonged to the Lord who spared them from the power of the angel of death.

Thus, Mary, who was the firstborn of the couple, Joachim and Anne, whom we know now as St. Joachim and St. Anne, was offered at the Temple of God, according to the Law. Thus from that day of the presentation onwards, Mary was entrusted completely to God, and she remained pure and blameless, as God had intended her to be, as the new Ark of the new Covenant, which was made through Jesus her Son.

Jesus too was presented at the Temple when He was eight days old, in the same manner of His mother Mary, as her firstborn Son. And from this offering of the blameless and pure sacrifice, Christ, who is the Lamb of God, offered Himself to be the One to bear the burdens of the sins of the world, and thus purify us from our sins and allow us to escape the claws of death, which is caused by sin.

The festival of the Jewish Passover, which commemorated the ‘passing over’ of the angel of death over the faithful people of God, who sacrificed a lamb and shed its blood on their doors’ lintels and surfaces, is therefore completed in its perfection through Jesus, the One and True Lamb, whose Blood is shed over all mankind, and therefore those of us who believe and receive His Body and Blood had been marked to be saved, and to be passed over by death, which is the lot of those who are wicked and unfaithful.

Thus, this feast of the presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, is a reminder for us all, that we who believe in Him and faithfully receive His Body and Blood, had also received grace and salvation through the death and resurrection of our Lord. However, this does not mean that this alone is enough for us to be saved.

When we present something to the Lord, certainly we do not offer something that is wicked, evil, tainted and filled with sin. We ought to offer something that is pure, filled with love and righteousness, with genuine faith and understanding of what that faith is about. Thus, let this day’s celebration be a wake-up call to all of us, so that we may look deep into ourselves and see where we have been faithful, and more importantly, where we have fallen short and where we have failed in our faith.

Let us all follow the example of Mary, the mother of our Lord, whose life is completely and totally devoted to the Lord and His ways, and in all that she did in her life, she did them with complete and full faith in God, knowing that God knows best for His servants and handmaids, and she also acted with love, justice and in accordance with all that the Lord had taught His people.

Mary is our role model, and we should follow her examples. Let us not wait any longer, lest the Lord comes again in surprise, and catch us unprepared. Remember, brothers and sisters in Christ, what is at stake, is the salvation of our souls, and whether, on the day of judgment, we will be ‘passed over’ by eternal death and then proceed into eternal life and bliss, or whether we will suffer the penalty of death for sins we have been unrepentant from.

Mary, mother of us all, pray for us all sinners, that we may learn to change our ways, to follow your examples, and therefore we will be able to offer ourselves anew and refreshed, pure and freed from the taints of sin. Pray for us that we may do our best to distance ourselves from sin and all things wicked in the sight of God. May Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, bring us to eternal life. Amen.

 

First Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/18/friday-21-november-2014-33rd-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-the-presentation-of-the-blessed-virgin-mary-first-reading/

 

Psalm :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/18/friday-21-november-2014-33rd-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-the-presentation-of-the-blessed-virgin-mary-psalm/

 

Gospel Reading :

https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2014/11/18/friday-21-november-2014-33rd-week-of-ordinary-time-memorial-of-the-presentation-of-the-blessed-virgin-mary-gospel-reading/