human pride

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Saturday, 27 February 2016 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard the familiar story of the prodigal son, who went away from his father to live in sin and wickedness, and then who returned to his father in shame and in humility, begging for mercy and to be forgiven, and the father accepted him back with great joy and gladness, celebrating how the lost prodigal son had been found and had returned to him in safety.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, what we heard today in the Gospel and in the other readings have just summarised the entire meaning of our observations of the rules and customs of the season of Lent which we are in the midst of at this moment. We are the prodigal sons, and we are those who have gone astray in our path towards God, our Lord and Father, Who is filled with love and mercy for our fate, and Who wants us all to be redeemed through Him.

Through our sins and our disobedience against God, even no matter how small it was, we have been sundered and separated from the fullness of God’s love. We have to realise, brethren, that while God loves us, but no sin and wickedness can remain in His presence and go unaccounted for. If we sin and do not repent, we will have no part in Him. It is the same desire for sinning that is also the same desire causing the younger, the prodigal son to choose to go away from his father, carrying all of his wealth and inheritance with him.

In the same way therefore, all of us have been given by God, the free will to choose how we are to live our own lives. Thus, we can indeed choose to be like the prodigal son, and leave behind our Father, that is God, and all of His ways and instead following our own will and desires. Therefore this means we give in to sins and to the wicked ways of the world. The path will indeed seem to be easier, and all the allures of the world, the pleasures and happiness we encounter will persuade us to go and dwell in deeper into that path.

But after all of them ended, what will we get in the end? The story of the prodigal son told to us how after the prodigal son spent all of his wealth and squandered all of them in a life of hedonism and sin, he was truly left with nothing, and he could not even afford to eat a proper food, since he had nothing left with him. And when he tried to work at a pig farm and eat the same food that the pigs were eating, nobody allowed him to do so.

In that scenario, he became even less than a pig, an animal considered unclean at the time of Jesus by the Israelites, and therefore, he was treated as a nobody. And indeed, it is going to be the same with us, once we exhausted our time enjoying all the false happiness and joy, all the pleasures that the world is offering and giving to us. We would have nothing but desolation and destruction, and doom is upon us without hope of succour or redemption if it is too late for us.

That is also the same feeling whenever we come to realise how sinful we have become, how wicked were the things that we had done, and how great was the extent of our sins. And the danger here is that we fear, and we are afraid to retrace our steps and come back to the Lord, because we are afraid that He will be angry with us because of our disobedience.

And thus, this is why many people were not able to repent and change their ways. They are afraid that God will punish them and rebuke them. But the reality is that it is better for us to be rebuked by God rather than for us to be lost forever to the darkness. That is why, we have to take note of the resolve of the prodigal son to return to his father despite all the things he had committed.

Shall we therefore also seek to return to our Lord with a heart filled with regret and sorrow, the desire for the forgiveness of our sins? Shall we commit ourselves to a life of repentance and be forgiven for our trespasses? This is the best time for us to do so, to be like the prodigal son who regretted his sin, and resolved to return to his father seeking forgiveness.

And then, let us also not forget that, heeding the example of the elder son, it is important that we also take note the lesson from there. The elder son represented the actions of those who have been made righteous, but then they succumbed to their sense of selfishness and jealousy, and they resented the love that God gave to sinners and all those who had erred in their path, and yet forgiven by God when they repented.

We should not resent those who have yet to be saved and still living in darkness, or be disgusted at them for their sins. Remember, we ourselves were once like them, sinners and delinquents, rebels in the sight and presence of God. Condemning or being disgusted at others who have sinned, or still living in the state of sin is just like being disgusted at ourselves.

If all that we can do is just to condemn others, to be disgusted at what we ourselves had once done ourselves, and then doing nothing to help these people, then we are truly responsible for their downfall on the day of judgment. Do not think that if we do not do anything wrong or wicked, then we are certainly safe and immune from being judged, as we have to remember, that failing to do good while we are perfectly capable of doing so, is just as bad as doing something that is bad and wicked.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, in this holy season of Lent, let us make best use of the time available to us, in order to change our ways and dedicate ourselves to help one another to find our ways to the Lord. Let us no longer be apathetic or indifferent to the sufferings of others, especially those who are still trapped in the darkness of this world.

May Almighty God, our Lord and Father, awaken in us all the love which we all ought to have for Him, and may He bless us with the hope and the strength with which all of us may persevere in our path towards Him, that resisting and rejecting all forms of sin, we may always seek to be faithful to Him in all things. God bless us all. Amen.

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Friday, 26 February 2016 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard two stories from the Holy Scriptures, the first being taken from the Book of Genesis, about Joseph, the son of Jacob, descendant of Abraham, who was hated by his brothers because of his special position in his family, and they plotted to remove him from their presence, firstly by trying to murder him, but then, having been stopped by some among themselves, they sold him into slavery instead.

And we see the parallel with what we heard in the Gospel today, about the parable which Jesus spoke about in the parable of the vineyard, where evil and wicked tenants plotted against the master of the vineyard and the son, as well as his servants, refusing to do as what they were expected to do, and instead desiring to have the vineyard for themselves.

But the master of the vineyard did not stay silent for all the things that these wicked tenants had done to destroy him and his works, and he cast these evil and wicked tenants out, and subjecting them to utter and complete darkness. Those who do not deserve to be part of the inheritance and the goodness as had been promised to them. They deserve to be cast out and be destroyed.

Now we have to ask ourselves, are we like the brothers of Joseph, who were swallowed by their jealousy and by their hatred? Are we like the evil tenants who were also swallowed by their greed and desire so as to disobey the orders and wishes of the master who had allowed them to dwell and prosper on the land they had rented? In fact, many of us had walked in this path before, but we did not realise it.

This path is the path of worldliness, of pride, of greed, of desire, of jealousy, of hatred and many other negative emotions and things that kept us separate from the love of God. If we walk on this path, then we should realise that we will only grow ever more distant and further away from God’s grace and salvation. If we do not turn away from this path soon, we may be further trapped in the vicious trap of sin and evil.

In this time of Lent, we have to realise that we all in this world must find the way to the Lord through penitence and forgiveness, and through the fullness of cooperation with the love and mercy of God. God offers us all freely this mercy, but He does not allow wickedness and vile things to prevail over whatever is good. Mankind may plot for certain things and think of certain things, but in the end it is the will of God that will prevail.

This is why in the Scripture readings today and from what we know from the knowledge of the Bible, we heard and know how eventually, Joseph, whom the brothers had sold into slavery to Egypt, he became an agent of God’s salvation of countless people and countless souls from famine and destruction, and in the end even saved the very same brothers who had sold him out. And the master of the vineyard also dealt with the wicked tenants in the way that they had deserved.

Let us in this season of Lent open our hearts, and seek the light of God and find the way to reach out to Him. Let us find out what He wants from each one of us, and most likely this will be the desire for our repentance, for us to turn away from our wickedness and return to righteousness and justice. In this time, the perfect time for mercy and forgiveness, let us all reflect on all of our actions, words and deeds.

Let us no longer be attached to our greed and desire, and let us no longer seek to satisfy our ego and pride. We have to dedicate and commit ourselves anew to the Lord, and in our faith, the faith we have for Him, let this faith shine forth and guide us on the path to salvation and eternal life. May God bless us all, and may He guide us in this way to eternal glory. God bless us all. Amen.

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Thursday, 25 February 2016 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we are all reminded of the fate that awaits all those who have not been faithful and to God, namely all those who have committed sin in His presence. The story of Lazarus and the rich man underlined the division that existed between the world and the Lord in their respective ways. And God reminded us that the fate awaiting those who have not been righteous, then they shall fall down into the depth of hell and the eternal fire.

Those who are faithful and committed to the Lord shall not be disappointed. Even though they may encounter difficulties and challenges throughout their earthly lives, but God Who knows it all and sees all, shall know all that His people had done on earth, and He will reward them in accordance to their virtues and deeds, as they have done it.

In the first reading from the book of the prophet Jeremiah, it was made clear to us, that those who have followed the path of righteousness shall be blessed and shall receive the fullness of God’s grace, and have the inheritance and the eternal promise of God given to them as their right. But those who have been wicked and refused to do as what the Lord had told them to do, these shall be destroyed and cast out into the utter darkness.

It is a reminder for all of us still living in this world, not to wait until it is too late for us, to change our ways and abandon all the sinful and wicked things that we have done and committed in this life. God has offered us many chances and opportunities, but it is up to us now whether we want to accept His mercy and be forgiven from our sins.

And we cannot merely just say that we will repent and change our ways, as words without actions are truly empty and meaningless. Instead, we must show with real action, dedication and commitment, that we want to be forgiven, and that we will abandon all of our past wickedness, and turn over a new leaf, and embrace righteousness and justice from now on. This is what we urgently need to do, brothers and sisters in Christ.

We cannot say or think that there is still ample amount of time for us. We may think that we are still young and we have many more years ahead of us to enjoy all the goodness and the pleasures in this world, but life is not for us to decide, when the Lord Himself Who is Lord and Master of all life, is the One to decide our fate, when He calls us back to Himself, and then from there, into judgment.

Thus, in this season of Lent, this very moment, this very day, minute and second, let us not hesitate any longer, and let us not be afraid any longer, or be unsure of what to do. Instead, let us all gather every ounce of our strength, and commit ourselves to righteousness and charity, and in all of our actions, let us no longer be self-serving and selfish, but instead, let us all love one another and care for each other as our own brethren in the Lord.

May our efforts be blessed by God, and may all of us find our way to the Lord, and through our actions and commitments, let us be justified by the actions that we have done to hold upright our faith in God. Let us practice self-limitation and inculcate in ourselves, a heart for service and charity during this period of Lent. And therefore, let us all hope that God will make us stronger as His people in faith. God bless us all. Amen.

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Wednesday, 24 February 2016 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day, the Scripture readings present to us the reality about our lives here on earth if we are to be faithful to God, and what we are to encounter if we remain true to His teachings and walk in His ways. There will be difficulties and challenges, and it will not be an easy one for us to live faithfully to God and His Laws, as this world and the devil that is ruling over this world will do all that is within his abilities to keep us away from God’s salvation, by one means or another.

In the first reading, from the book of the prophet Jeremiah, we heard about how the prophet Jeremiah, the prophet God had sent to the kingdom and to the people of Judah made complaints against the Lord, for all the oppositions, the plotting and the schemes the wicked people had devised against him, refusing to listen to him and instead trying to bring him down and to silence him for all of his incessant warnings and works.

To those people, all the warnings and the urgings of the prophet Jeremiah sounded like poison in their ears, and they hated him for that. He spoke of the doom that was to come, and the punishment for the sins that the people of Judah had committed, which wickedness had come to the attention of the Lord. But God still loved His people, and He did not wish for their destruction lest they themselves were the ones who wished for it.

And thus God sent His prophet Jeremiah to them in order to give them one final chance for repentance, so that by the good works of the prophet and by his call for them to repent, hopefully that the people of God might be spared of the doom that they were heading towards, and turn themselves back into the grace of God and into His salvation.

But they refused to listen, and adamantly persisted in their disobedience and rebellion against the will of God, and they persecuted the prophets and the messengers of God, as they had also done with Jeremiah. They imprisoned them, tortured them, and for some others, they even murdered them in cold blood. And thus they closed the door to salvation in front of themselves by their actions.

And yet, again, God still loved them and wanted to forgive them, by offering His mercy freely, and yet, again, many souls were lost to eternal damnation by rejecting this generous offer. And God finally sent Jesus, His own Son, to be the Saviour and Deliverer of the whole world and of all mankind. Through Him, God wanted to reveal to the world the full extent of His love and care for us, and the mercy that He wanted grant to us.

But the people still resisted and refused the love which God would give them, if only that they would turn away from their sins and repent with wholehearted intention and commitment. And this is because they were too full of themselves, having too much ego and pride in them, which caused them to be incapable of comprehending and accepting God’s love and mercy.

And this is why, in this season of Lent, we must take this opportunity during this season of fasting and abstinence, during this time of penitence and forgiveness, to turn ourselves anew, and to find our path to the Lord with renewed fervour. And we all should heed and take note of what Jesus our Lord Himself had said in today’s Gospel, as we proceed along this time of Lent.

The greater ones among the people of God must be the servant of others. This means that with greatness must come humility and a spirit of commitment and responsibility. It is pride and greed that will become our downfall, as these kept our hearts closed against the pleas and cries of others around us, those who have great need for our help. Pride and greed will only push us to do even more wicked things to satisfy our own selfish needs.

Let us all renew our commitments to live faithfully in the Lord and to do works and actions to bring good things for our brethren in need around us. Let us no longer be stubborn and resist God’s forgiveness and mercy, but instead, let us lay down our ego and greed, and open ourselves humbly to accept the Lord’s rich offer of mercy and love. God be with us all. Amen.

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Wednesday, 24 February 2016 : 2nd Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 20 : 17-28

At that time, when Jesus was going to Jerusalem, He took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, “See, we are going to Jerusalem. There the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law, who will condemn Him to death. They will hand Him over to the foreigners, who will mock Him, scourge Him and crucify Him. But He will be raised to life on the third day.”

Then the mother of James and John came to Jesus with her sons, and she knelt down, to ask a favour. Jesus said to her, “What do you want?” And she answered, “Here You have my two sons. Grant that they may sit, one at Your right hand and one at Your left, when You are in Your kingdom.”

Jesus said to the brothers, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They answered, “We can.” Jesus replied, “You will indeed drink My cup, but to sit at My right or at My left is not for me to grant. That will be for those, for whom My Father has prepared it.”

The other ten heard all this, and were angry with the two brothers. Then Jesus called them to Him and said, “You know that the rulers of the nations act as tyrants over them, and the powerful oppress them. It shall not be so among you : whoever wants to be more important in your community shall make himself your servant.”

“And if you want to be the first of all, make yourself the servant of all. Be like the Son of Man Who has come, not to be served but to serve, and to give His life to redeem many.”

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Tuesday, 23 February 2016 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Polycarp, Bishop and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day, the message of the Holy Scriptures to us is very clear. And it is calling for us to repent from our sins, turn from all the wickedness we are committing, and turn a new leaf, finding our way in the Lord, and no longer disobeying His laws and commandments, let us all go on in our lives with a new purpose, that is to serve the Lord and to love His people, our fellow brethren.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the Gospel today spoke of the matter of human pride, selfishness and greed, when Jesus talked about the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, who liked to flaunt the rich display of their faith in public, so that the whole people might see their supposed piety and devotion to the Law of God. But they did so seeking not the approval of God, but instead, the approval of men.

Yes, they prayed and worshipped in public places, making a great scenery with loud voices and displays, so that they might be praised for whatever they had done. It was not because they truly loved the Lord or wanting to obey Him and His commandments that they had done so, but they rather loved themselves more, and wanted themselves to enjoy the satisfaction of power and pleasure of the flesh, satiating their own ego and greed.

To them, the laws of God represented an opportunity to do so, which they gladly accepted and made full use of. And thus, they misused what God had given them to be a guide for the people of God to find their way to the Lord Himself, and instead using them to further their own human agenda. They did not truly care about those whom God had entrusted to them, as leaders and shepherds to guide them to the way of the Lord.

And as a result, they sinned not just because they have not done what the Lord had expected of them as those entrusted to shepherd God’s people, but also because they had misled them and acted wickedly for their own self benefits. And that was why Jesus was so critical at them. He rebuked them harshly because of their own self-serving actions that were incompatible with what God teaches us to do.

It is difficult indeed in our world today for us to live faithfully in accordance with the will of God, and we have the tendency to be swayed and to be tempted and pulled into the lures of the devil, who with his allies and forces in this world is always trying to lay trap for us, and to bring us into our downfall that we may share with him the fate of eternal fire and damnation. And in order to do this, he is making use of our own pride, our own greed and desires, and all the things that keep us tied into the immorality of this world.

This is why it is important for us, during this season of Lent, to practice the method of self-restraint and abstinence, and as we do our fasting and abstinence, and by expanding our good works and charity, we limit and restrain our own ego, our own human pride, greed and desire, resisting the temptation of the evil one to us, and therefore gain for ourselves the rewards for our righteousness and faith to the Lord.

Today, we also celebrate the feast day of St. Polycarp, a holy bishop and martyr of the Church and the Faith. St. Polycarp was told to be the disciple of St. John the Apostle, the youngest of the Twelve Apostles of Christ, and who was appointed as the overseer or bishop of the region in Roman Asia known then as Smyrna. He ministered to the faithful there and helped to establish the foundations of the Church.

But he did not have an easy time, as many oppositions and challenges faced him, the Church and the faithful entrusted under his care. Nevertheless, St. Polycarp continued to work hard for the benefit of the faithful, the flock of the Lord placed under his care as their shepherd. It was told that he met his martyrdom at the hands of those who forced the faithful to reject the Lord and to offer sacrifices to the Roman Emperor, and St. Polycarp remained resolute and strong in his commitment to the Lord and to his faith.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all take note of the examples of St. Polycarp, and let us live our lives with the same kind of courage and strength, to resist the temptations of the world to defile ourselves, and thus, deliver ourselves free from all the bonds of sin that had held us back all these while. Let us resolve to live our lives free of sin in this season of Lent, and by striving to deepen our faith and spirituality, let us draw ever closer to our Lord and to His salvation.

May God strengthen us in faith and love, and may in all of our actions, we continue to show our faith, through our charities and care for our fellow brethren. May God be with us all in all of our endeavours. God bless us all. Amen.

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Tuesday, 23 February 2016 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Polycarp, Bishop and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 23 : 1-12

At that time, Jesus said to the crowds and to His disciples, “The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees have sat down on the chair of Moses. So you shall do and observe all they say, but do not do as they do, for they do not do what they say. They tie up heavy burdens and load them on the shoulders of the people, but they do not even raise a finger to move them.”

“They do everything in order to be seen by people : they wear very wide bands of the Law around their foreheads, and robes with large tassels. They enjoy the first places at feasts and reserved seats in the synagogues, and they like being greeted in the marketplace, and being called ‘Master’ by the people.”

“But you, do not let yourselves be called Master, because you have only one Master, and all of you are brothers and sisters. Neither should you call anyone on earth Father, because you have only one Father, He Who is in heaven. Nor should you be called Leader, because Christ is the only Leader for you.”

“Let the greatest among you be the servant of all. For whoever makes himself great shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself, shall be made great.”

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Monday, 22 February 2016 : Feast of the Chair of St. Peter the Apostle (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate a great feast day of the Church of Rome, that is the feast of the Chair of St. Peter the Apostle, the Patron Saint of Rome, the Heart of Christendom and the seat of the Pope as St. Peter’s successor as the Vicar of Christ on earth. The chair of St. Peter represents his teaching and magisterial authority as the one to whom God had given authority and power as we witnessed in the Scripture readings of today.

The authority of a bishop, leaders of God’s faithful and His flock is represented by his seat, called the Cathedra, which usually is placed in a church which is then called the Cathedral because of the presence of the bishop’s seat there, and that place is the heart of the individual dioceses and archdioceses. And in the same way therefore, the Cathedra Sancti Petri, the seat representing the authority of St. Peter the Apostle is in Rome, in the Cathedral of the Popes.

But the seat itself, as in the physical seat is only a representation of the true authority given by Christ to St. Peter and to his successors on earth. As we heard in the Gospel today, of the moment when Jesus Christ our Lord granted to Peter the authority and power over all of the sheep and flocks of the Lord, as the one in whom the whole Church would be established upon, upon the faith of St. Peter, the rock of faith.

Jesus told him, that he is to be the foundation upon which God would build His Church on earth, with the phrase, Tu es Petrus, et super hanc petram aedificabo Ecclesiam Meam, meaning, ‘You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My Church.’ And He mentioned how not even the gates of hell could prevail against it, and He shall grant him the keys of the kingdom of heaven, the authority over us all mankind, that whoever is bound, will be bound in heaven, and those loosened will be lost forever.

Such was the authority given to St. Peter the Apostle, and he and many of his successors carried their duties and responsibilities with commitment and true devotion. Not all of his successors had been faithful, but most had devoted themselves to lead the flocks of the Lord and all of the faithful towards God and towards salvation away from their sins and damnation.

But was St. Peter’s faith exemplary and perfect? Was he perfectly holy and beyond reproach all of his life? No, he was not. He was just a simple and poor fisherman doing his trade at the shores of the Lake of Galilee when the Lord came to him and some others on one day and called him to follow Him. He stumbled quite a few times during the time when he followed Jesus in His mission and works around Judea and Galilee.

Yes, St. Peter was not a perfect man, and neither was he a great, mighty or rich man. He had nothing save for his fishing boat, and even that he left behind when he decided to follow the Lord, abandoning everything for His sake. He betrayed the Lord on one important occasion, when he denied Him for fear of persecution by the Jewish authorities, when these people went to arrest Him. He denied his Lord not just once, but even three times.

And yet, God forgave St. Peter and chose him to be the tool of His work, and not just any tool, but the primary and greatest tool of His work on earth, to be His sole chief representative and leader of all the faithful in His Church. Why is this so, brethren? That is because, God Who knows all the things in one’s hearts and minds, in one’s souls and flesh, knows all things, and knows the faith in each people, and in St. Peter, He found a great faith, unshaken and tested by many trials of doubts and sufferings.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, what we have to know is that, God does not despise sinners like us. What He despises are all the sins that we have committed, all the wicked and dark things that we have done in His presence and in the presence of men alike. God hates the sins and not the sinners. He wants us to be reconciled with Him, and to be cleansed from our sins.

Those sins are what separated us from Him and from His grace, and it is these sins that we need to cast away, far far away from us in order for us to find our way to an eventual and complete reunion with our loving God. God chose the ordinary ones who wanted to love Him and devote themselves to Him, and He shall transform these into His greatest servants.

In this season of Lent, today’s feast of the Chair of St. Peter reminded us that, if we are faithful, and if we persevere, even against the rejection of the world and resisting its persecution, enduring pain and suffering for God’s sake, then there is a great hope waiting for all of us. God is looking forward to the conversion of sinners, and there is no greater joy for the Angels and saints in heaven then the conversion of even a once lost soul, who returns to God’s grace.

Let us therefore put our trust in the Lord through His Church, and let us all help support the works of the Church, which God Himself had established on the firm foundation of faith of St. Peter the Apostle, a faith which in itself was once weak and unstable, but which had undergone trials and tribulations, and in God, he was strengthened, and ended up bringing great glory to the Lord. We too can follow in his footsteps and do our best to be faithful to Him.

May the Lord bless us all, forgive us all our sins, and strengthen ever our love and commitment for Him, that through our many works and devotions in this world, we may show forth the truth about God to the nations, and walk in the footsteps of the Apostles to bring forth His Good News into the world. God be with us all, now and forever. Amen.

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Sunday, 21 February 2016 : Second Sunday of Lent, Memorial of St. Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard in our first reading from the Book of Genesis, of the covenant which God had made with Abraham, the father of many nations and our father in faith. God established His everlasting covenant with him and with his descendants because of the faith and the righteousness that he had constantly showed Him.

God showed His love and His favour to those who have been faithful to Him, and Abraham showed to us how the faithful will earn a place of honour among those whom God has blessed and favoured. All those who have listened to God and who have walked in His path has no need to fear, since God Himself will protect them, and He shall send His Angels to guard them from harm and to keep them in His path.

In the second reading, St. Paul reminded the faithful and the Church that those who followed the ways of the world were heading towards ruin and destruction, and they shall face damnation in hell. And he reminded them that those who are in the Church belong to God’s kingdom, and they therefore are bound by the covenant which God had established with them, and thus, they have to fulfil their part of the covenant.

God has always been faithful, but have we always been faithful as well? We should ask this question to ourselves as we go through this season of Lent. More often than not we are not faithful, and we often waver in our commitment to our part of the covenant, and we often were swayed by the temptations of this world and the temptations of pleasure and other things that keep us from staying in the right path towards the Lord.

In the Gospel today, we heard about our Lord Jesus Who was transfigured in glory, Who revealed His true glory among His three disciples, and He showed His light that shone brightly without compare, and in that account about the Transfiguration, we see how God is always faithful to His covenant, which He had first established with Abraham, and which He then maintained and renewed with His servants David and then the people after that, through His prophets and messengers.

God promised Abraham greatness and eternal grace to him and his descendants, and He promised David that his kingdom will never end, and his descendants shall sit on his throne forever. And all these were fulfilled in Jesus, Son of God, Son of Abraham, Son of David, the Heir of the throne of David and the Saviour of the whole race of mankind, all the children of Abraham.

Those who would believe in Him, and put their faith in Him, and those who commit themselves to obey Him and His teachings, shall not be disappointed, for if they honour their part of the covenant, God too shall reward them with everlasting grace and blessings. The Transfiguration has two important lessons and meanings for us, and it is important that we take note of them.

Firstly, through the transfiguration of His earthly flesh, Jesus our Lord showed that all the faithful ones in God shall also be transformed in body, mind and soul and receive the glory of heaven which has been promised and intended for them. They shall share the glory of the Lord, and everything wicked and impure will be cast out from them. They shall enjoy forever the fruits of the covenant that they have established with God and managed to maintain faithfully.

And then, Jesus Who was transfigured did not remain in that mountain for long. The three disciples of Jesus, Peter, James and John wanted to build three tents for Jesus, Elijah and Moses, because they enjoyed being in the presence of the glory of God. They felt the safety and the security, the comfort of being in the presence of God, as they would have feared no evil and obstacles on their path.

But Jesus told them that in order to follow Him, and to be truly faithful to the covenant of God, then one must realise that the ways of this world are not always in accordance or in harmony with the ways of the Lord. On the other hand, conflict will always arise whenever we are to choose the Lord and His ways over that of the approved ways of the world.

But we must not be afraid or be hesitant as many people had done in the past. If we are truly faithful to the Lord and to the covenant which He had established with us and our ancestors, then He will ensure that nothing will harm our eternal soul. Yes, indeed, suffering and pain may come upon our flesh, our earthly bodies that may be subjected under the powers of the world, but nothing can harm our soul but God alone.

If we want to follow the Lord our God, and accept the covenant which He had created for us, and which He is fulfilling with us, even now, then He shall bless us with eternal life, eternal happiness and glory with Him, but it will not be an easy path for us. It requires total commitment and devotion, as Jesus Himself had fulfilled His end of the covenant, by suffering a great deal and being crucified for our own sins.

In this season of Lent, shall we commit ourselves anew to the Lord, to His laws and precepts, and to obey Him in all things as the part we need to do as our part of the covenant? God offered us His love and mercy, but He has also granted us the free will to choose whether we want to embrace His love and mercy, or whether we prefer to choose the world and its wickedness, and all the temptations of pleasure instead of the love of God.

May God help us to remain faithful to Him and to His covenant with us. May He strengthen our faith and our resolve to live in accordance with what He had wanted us to live in, and may all of us grow stronger in our love and devotion for Him. May Almighty God bless us all and forgive us our sins, and may He grant us the gift of everlasting life in our righteousness. Amen.

by

Saturday, 20 February 2016 : 1st Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us are reminded of the laws and commandments that God had put in place for us, through His servant Moses, through His prophets and messengers, that all of us should obey them and act in the fulfilment of the precepts and the will of the Lord. This means that we should not do things that contradict the Law and the ways of the Lord, and in all things, we should devote ourselves to the righteousness as the Lord had shown us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, but we have to take note that we cannot become like robots in our faith, which means that we must not believe blindly or believing without understanding the true meanings of our faith. If we believe for the sake of believing or if we believe because we were told to do so, and see it as an obligation, then brethren, I fear that we still have a long way to go to become truly the disciples and followers of our Lord worthy of Him.

In the example which our Lord Jesus gave us today, He gave us the example of those who love only their friends and relatives, meaning that they love only those who love them back, as opposed to those who love everyone without discrimination, meaning that they will even love all those who have hated them, disliked them, treated them badly and spoke all kinds of evils and wicked things about them.

What Jesus our Lord mentioned was in fact, the essence of true and pure love. This kind of love is love that does not expect returns or rewards, and neither does it require any prerequisites or conditions. This is unconditional, selfless and perfect love, the same kind of love which our Lord Jesus Himself had shown us as an example to all of us how we should love Him and love one another as well.

For Jesus had given Himself up on the cross, allowing Himself to die for our sake, to suffer for our sake, that even though we were all sinners, wicked and unrepentant, He was willing to die for us, so that through His death and through His perfect love, we may find a way to Him, and by His resurrection, be reunited with Him in love, within the grace and within the loving embrace of God.

And by His many other works and examples, and through His teachings to His Apostles and followers, He had given us the examples of how we should love one another, and how we should interact with others, be it those who love us and care for us, and for those who hated us, who despised us, who cursed us, and who treated us badly. These too we should love and care regardless of what they had done for us.

Therefore, in this season of Lent, all of us have been challenged to love one another, even those who have not loved us back first. Our love must be unconditional and demanding for no reward or returns. We are all called to greater mercy and charity during this period of time, turning our hearts and minds away from selfishness, and growing deeper in our commitment to love God and His people.

Let us all pray together, and work together as one people, belonging to the one and only Church of God, to be filled with love and with the goodness of God, in this season of Lent. Let us all be converted to God, and seek to be reunited with our Lord, and may by our actions, all of us can be made whole and worthy once again. God bless us all. Amen.