Jesus Christ

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Tuesday, 11 March 2014 : 1st Week of Lent (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Prayer, prayer is important, and prayer is an integral part of our faith. We cannot say that we are faithful to God if we do not pray, and if we do not have a good and healthy prayer life. A good prayer life means maintaining constant and genuine devotion to the Lord. But sadly, brothers and sisters in Christ, many of us still do not know or are not aware of what constitutes a good prayer.

In fact, we all know the prayer that Jesus taught to His disciples today, the Pater Noster, or ‘Our Father’, the prayer which Jesus Himself taught to the people, as the example and the pinnacle of what a prayer should really be. It is a perfect prayer, because it encompasses every single dimension of prayer, of what prayer should be.

First of all, prayer is not a litany of request, demands, or wishes which we convey to the Lord, asking or even demanding God to fulfill them. In fact, we are often angry or disappointed if our wishes are not fulfilled. We thought that God did not want to fulfill our wishes or failed to do so. If we think in that way, then we have failed in our understanding of what prayer truly is.

Prayer is first and foremost, the media of communication between us and the Lord our God who loves and cares for us, who is our Father, and who watches over us every single day of our life. And just like all parents do, God wants to talk to us, as often as possible, and He also wants us to talk to Him as well. Yet, what actually happened is that we speak all the time, and did not allow God to speak to us.

We are often not aware that prayer involves a two-way communication between us and God, and it is in fact not the correct way for us to launch a litany of demands in our prayers. Instead, we should talk sincerely to God from our hearts, and before we can do that, we have to first put forth a listening ear to God’s word, for He speaks in our heart.

Very often, the noise of this world, the distractions that exist around us, and the noise of our own incorrect way of praying prevent us from listening to God’s words. We therefore have to find a way so that we can quieten down all those noises and distractions, and find a quiet time where we can spend it with God in full quality. That is why when we pray, it is better to do it in private, and in the time when we do not think about all our worries and concerns of the world.

And by noting the example of the Lord’s Prayer, the prayer taught to us by Jesus, we can learn how to make best use of prayers and how to be truly a prayerful servant of God. First we should praise and glorify God and His Name, just as the angels and saints in heaven do every moment and every day, praising God without end.

Then, prayer must also be a thanksgiving for the goodness and graces that God had shown us. We have to thank Him first of all for the gift of life, which God extended to us, allowing us to continue in our devotion, and to continue to do many good and marvellous things in our respective lives.

And lastly, in prayer, we have to be humble at all times, for we are all sinners and we all should ask in a great supplication for the forgiveness of our sins. But just as we do that, we must also remember that we also owe our brethren, whenever we commit things that cause them hurt or pain, just as they do the same things to us, and that is why, when we pray, we have to also forgive one another, getting rid of hatred and bitterness in our hearts, so that ultimately our hearts will be completely open for the Lord to come in and dwell within us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, now that we all know how to pray well and how to utilise prayer for the benefit of our faith, let us all then put it into practice from now on, that we may truly be a prayerful people, and our lives be filled with genuine and devoted prayers, as well as actions, which we do for the good of all, and out of love for God our loving Father. Amen!

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Tuesday, 11 March 2014 : 1st Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Isaiah 55 : 10-11

As the rain and the snow come down from the heavens and do not return till they have watered the earth, making it yield seed for the sower and food for others to eat, so is My Word that goes forth out of My mouth : It will not return to Me idle, but It shall accomplish My will, the purpose for which It has been sent.

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Monday, 10 March 2014 : 1st Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 25 : 31-46

When the Son of Man comes in His glory with all His angels, He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be brought before Him, and as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, so will He do with them, placing the sheep on His right hand and the goats on His left.

The King will say to those on His right, “Come, blessed of My Father! Take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed Me. I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink. I was a stranger, and you welcomed Me into your house. I was naked, and you clothed Me. I was sick, and you visited Me. I was in prison, and you came to see Me.”

Then the good people will ask Him, “Lord, when did we see You hungry, and give You food; thirsty, and give You something to drink; or a stranger, and welcome You; or naked, and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and go to see You?”

The King will answer, “Truly I say to you : whenever you did this to these little ones who are My brothers and sisters, you did it to Me.”

Then He will say to those on His left, “Go, cursed people, out of My sight into the eternal fire, which has been prepared for the devil and his angels! For I was hungry, and you did not give Me anything to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not welcome Me into your house; I was naked, and you did not clothe Me; I was sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.”

They, too, will ask, “Lord, when did we see You hungry, thirsty, naked or a stranger, sick or in prison, and did not help You?”

The King will answer them, “Truly I say to you : Whatever you did not do for one of these little ones, you did not do it for Me.”

“And these will go into eternal punishment, but the just to eternal life.”

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Sunday, 9 March 2014 : 1st Sunday of Lent (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Brothers and sisters in Christ, in today’s readings, we see how the ‘old’ Adam and the ‘new’ Adam are compared to each other. You may be asking, why is there two Adams? That is because, Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, is the new Adam who came to rectify the faults and mistakes committed by the first Adam, as what he had done in the Book of Genesis.

In the readings, we see the clear contrast between the two Adams. The first Adam, our first ancestor, fell to the temptation of Satan with Eve, and they disobeyed God’s will by eating the forbidden fruit of knowledge, thinking that they might become like God as the devil spoke to them about. Yet Christ, as the new Adam, did the exact opposite, refusing to listen to the sweet lies of the devil and firmly held onto the faith in God His Father.

Yes, how right it is when it is said that because of the first Adam, every single one of humanity, including all of us have been condemned to a life in difficulty on this earth, and a life that is subjected to the power of death because of the disobedience of our ancestors. Initially, because of the disobedience of the first Adam, we were also destined for doom and destruction, which were our due for our disobedience, but all that was changed with Christ, the new Adam.

In Christ, the new Adam, mankind was made anew. Christ our Lord became one of us, the sons and daughters of Adam, that through His perfect obedience to the will of God and the total rebuke and refusal to follow the ways of Satan, He had made all of us anew, and bring us into the light of God. As the new Adam, He broke free the fetters and chains holding us, that is the sin of the first Adam, our ancestor.

Adam and his wife, Eve, the first two mankind to be created by the Lord, showed us the things that we are vulnerable to, when the devil came and offers us things that are contrary to the goodness and to the will of God. And the temptation of Jesus in the desert by the devil further highlighted the many vulnerabilities that the devil may attack us, to tempt us away from the salvation in God.

Yes, brethren, even though Jesus through His death had liberated us from the chains of original sin, that is the sin of the first Adam, that tainted all mankind until the moment when Christ broke free that chain of sin as the new Adam, the progenitor of new life of man, the devil can still attack us and as he always does, he tries at every moment to bring us away from the salvation offered through the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ.

The temptations which Christ went through can show us the venues through which the devil may strike at us. The devil can strike at our desires, our greed and desire for things like food, as in the first temptation of Jesus. He can also strike at our ego and our desire and affinity for praise, and that was the second temptation of Jesus.

And lastly, the temptation of power and glory, which he may strike us with, is one of the most dangerous, which he made in the last of his three attempts to tempt Jesus. All of these he can utilise to break us and bend us to his ways. It is easy for us to fall if we do not prepare ourselves well. The devil has many tools in his disposal to trap us and make us fall.

Do not think that we can also use the Scriptures to ward off his attacks, if we are unprepared. The devil himself quoted from the Scripture passages when he tried to tempt Jesus! If he did so before, then certainly if we are unprepared, then we will be more vulnerable to the devil’s attacks. We have to prepare ourselves, by deepening our faith in God, and strengthening our devotion to Him.

Yes, brethren, we need to strengthen our faith, the shield of our souls, that we will not fall to the tricks of the devil. Our faith should be firm like the faith of Jesus. It is not easy, brothers and sisters, as the devil will be merciless and relentless in his attacks. We need to strengthen ourselves, and reject the alluring temptations of Satan, rejecting the false pleasures that he may offer us.

This is because the joy and pleasures he offers us are just temporary and illusionary in nature. They are pleasures that gives happiness briefly for a moment, and later on may bring about great sorrow and suffering. And ultimately, if we want to gain these false promises from Satan, we will have to serve and pay him our obedience.

Brethren, we cannot have two masters, either we serve the Lord or Satan, we have to make a decisive and concrete choice. And if we serve Satan we all should know that for a brief moment of joy and pleasure, we will suffer for eternity with the devil. Serving the Lord will not be easy, and there will be challenges awaiting us.

Therefore, let us from now on, seek the Lord with all of our strength. Do not be complacent in our faith but keep our faith living and strong, by devoting ourselves genuinely and sincerely to God, giving out our love to Him and to our fellow mankind. Be faithful brethren, and be strong always, against the evil one! Amen.

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Sunday, 9 March 2014 : 1st Sunday of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 4 : 1-11

Then the Spirit led Jesus into the desert that He might be put to the test by the devil. After spending forty days and nights without food, Jesus was hungry.

Then the devil came to Him and said, “If You are the Son of God, order these stones to turn into bread.” But Jesus answered, “Scripture says : One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

Then the devil took Jesus to the Holy City, set Him on the highest wall of the Temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down, for Scripture says : God has given orders to His angels about You. Their hands will hold You up lest You hurt Your foot against a stone.”

Jesus answered, “But Scripture also says : You shall not put to the test the Lord your God.”

Then the devil took Jesus to a very high mountain, and showed Him all the nations of the world in all their greatness and splendour. And he said, “All this I will give You, if You kneel down and worship me.”

Then Jesus answered, “Be off, Satan! Scripture says : Worship the Lord your God and serve Him alone!” Then the devil left Him, and angels came to serve Him.

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Sunday, 9 March 2014 : 1st Sunday of Lent (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Romans 5 : 12-19

Therefore, sin entered the world through one man and through sin, death, and later on death spread to all humankind, because all sinned. As long as there was no law, they could not speak of disobedience, but sin was already in the world. This is why from Adam to Moses death reigned among them, although their sin was not disobedience as in Adam’s case – this was not the true Adam, but foretold the Other who was to come.

Such has been the fall, but God’s gift goes far beyond. All died because of the fault of one man, but how much more does the grace of God spread when the gift He granted reaches all, from this unique Man Jesus Christ. Again, there is no comparison between the gift and the offense of one man. The disobedience that brought condemnation was of one sinner, whereas the grace of God brings forgiveness to a world of sinners.

If death reigned through the disobedience of one and only one person, how much more will there be a reign of life for those who receive the grace and the gift of true righteousness through the one person, Jesus Christ.

Just as one transgression brought sentence of death to all, so, too, one man’s good act has brought justification and light to all; and as the disobedience of only one made all sinners, so the obedience of one person allowed all to be made just and holy.

 

Alternative Reading (shorter version)

 

Romans 5 : 12, 17-19

Therefore, sin entered the world through one man and through sin, death, and later on death spread to all humankind, because all sinned.

If death reigned through the disobedience of one and only one person, how much more will there be a reign of life for those who receive the grace and the gift of true righteousness through the one person, Jesus Christ.

Just as one transgression brought sentence of death to all, so, too, one man’s good act has brought justification and light to all; and as the disobedience of only one made all sinners, so the obedience of one person allowed all to be made just and holy.

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Saturday, 8 March 2014 : Saturday after Ash Wednesday, Memorial of St. John of God, Religious (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Luke 5 : 27-32

After this Jesus went out, and noticing a tax collector named Levi, sitting in the tax-office, He said to him, “Follow Me!” So Levi, leaving everything, got up and followed Jesus.

Levi gave a great feast for Jesus, and many tax collectors came to his house, and took their places at the table with the other people. Then the Pharisees and their followers complained to Jesus’ disciples, “How is it that You eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”

But Jesus spoke up, “Healthy people do not need a doctor, but sick people do. I have not come to call the just, but sinners to a change of heart.”

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Friday, 7 March 2014 : Friday after Ash Wednesday, Memorial of Sts. Perpetua and Felicity, Martyrs (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we continue our progress through this holy season of Lent, and as we follow our faith’s instruction on fasting and abstinence, let us all keep in mind that we all have to do them with full and complete understanding of why we fast on certain days, and why we abstain from certain activities throughout this season of Lent.

Yes, brethren, our fasting and abstinence cannot be merely an observance of fhe customs or the laws of God or of the Church. Our fasting and abstinence cannot be done, especially if it is just for show, that we boast in our piety or greatness when we fast. And when we fast and abstain, we should do them with full understanding, and perfect grace, truly abstaining ourselves from doing anything that is evil in the sight of God.

Recall indeed what the first reading today had told us. That passage from the Scripture told us much about what we ought to do and not to do in fasting, and indeed in any kind of observations of the law of God. When we do something, we have to be genuine, and when we do it, we must have purpose in our hearts. And yes, our purpose is to do penance for our sinfulness, asking God to forgive us from our faults and purify us in His light.

Fasting is our way to kill and dampen our own human ego. Remember what Jesus said that in order to be truly His disciples we have to die to ourselves? This is what He meant, that we all destroy our own human ego, pride and arrogance, and lower ourselves as sinful, unworthy man before the presence of God. Through fasting, we train ourselves to shun excesses in the world, and we train ourselves to reject the temptations of Satan, which are designed to make us fall into damnation.

Abstinence is even more appropriate, because while fasting deals with the limiting of food intake in a day, abstinence is broader in scope, which includes anything that basically cause us to sin or bring us towards disobedience, such as worldly pleasures of the flesh, gambling, computer games, and many other examples. It is important that we understand the reason behind doing such practices that we can do it meaningfully.

And remember always, brethren, that fasting is not meant to be like mourning, nor should it be like self-punishment and self-condemnation. The purpose of fasting and abstinence, as well as the other Lenten practices are not to be a burden to us or to crush us, but to bring us closer to the love of God. Their purpose is to bring us to greater understanding about how we stand in the sight of God.

Today, brethren, we celebrate the feast of two great martyrs, that is St. Felicity and St. Perpetua, both of whom were the converts to the faith. They were arrested and put on trial for their following the faith in the Lord, in contrast to the pagan ways that the Roman Empire adopted at the time. St. Felicity and St. Perpetua were persuaded and forced to abandon their faith and recant their obedience to the Lord, but they refused to do so.

St. Felicity and St. Perpetua persevered through various sufferings and torture, and yet they did not give up. This is the cross they carried with them, as they went along with the Lord towards their martyrdom and death. They accepted death willingly, knowing that their death will serve to be inspiration for countless other faithfuls.

The blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians, and indeed, St. Felicity and St. Perpetua persevered till the end, and through their exemplary faith, they inspired countless others including us, to also follow in their example of the faith, in the example of their devotion. They shirked not their obedience nor duty just in order to gain happiness and avoid troubles in this world.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, are we also able to follow the examples of St. Felicity and St. Perpetua? Are we able to be like them in our faith? Let this Lenten season be the perfect opportunity for us all to be more like them, and to change our ways if we have gone wayward. Let us all go and find the Lord, and when we find Him, let us seek forgiveness and may we be in His love forever. Amen.

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Friday, 7 March 2014 : Friday after Ash Wednesday, Memorial of Sts. Perpetua and Felicity, Martyrs (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 9 : 14-15

Then the disciples of John came to him with the question, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast on many occasions, but not Your disciples?”

Jesus answered them, “How can you expect wedding guests to mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The time will come, when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.”

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Thursday, 6 March 2014 : Thursday after Ash Wednesday (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Brothers and sisters in Christ, carrying one’s cross is the thing which most of us did not want to do, and we refused to do so even after the Lord made it clear what He wanted from us. We prefer to enjoy the pleasures of this world rather than following the Lord, and we prefer the ways of Satan to the way of Christ.

The path of the Lord is not an easy one, and there will be lots of suffering and challenges, as Satan owns this world, and he works his plots and attacks against God and His people through that same world, the one where we are living at the moment. But even though the path of the Lord is not an easy one, at the end of the way is happiness and blessing, such as what God had promised His people in the first reading today, if they kept His commandments and walked in His ways.

On the other hand, the path of Satan appears to be an easier and a much better one, because it seems that this path has much fewer obstacles and challenges facing us, as compared to that of the path of the Lord. But the pleasures and happiness with which the devil had spiced up his path are not true happiness and joy. These are illusions and attempts to replicate true happiness that exists only in God.

And brethren, you all know what awaits at the end of the path of Satan, that is death, and not just the kind of death that we know of, but eternal death. That is because the Lord, as He also said to the people in the first reading, will withdraw His blessing and instead His curse will hang over the people should they fail to follow His commandments and disobeyed His will.

If we choose to follow the path of evil, and choose the apparently easier path, then we are dooming ourselves. That is because in doing so, we reject the Lord and His love, rejecting the blessing of eternal life which He had promised for all those who remain faithful to Him and those who dedicate themselves to Him. We certainly do not want ourselves to end up this way, do we not?

Perseverance is the key, brothers and sisters in Christ. If we are to receive the blessings of Almighty God, then we ought to persevere in our faith. We cannot take our faith for granted, and neither should we take for granted the salvation which God had promised us all who believe in Him. Our faith must be living and genuine, and we must keep in mind always, that our faith must indeed be like carrying the cross, our own crosses, imitating what Jesus had done as He went on His Passion to save us.

Yes, brethren, if we want to follow the Lord and walk in His ways, then we should be ready to bear the burden of being His faithful ones. There will be opposition and even mockery, and there will be those who will look down on us because of our choice. But if we are to persevere and keep strong our faith, then we will persevere. Shall we choose the easy way out, a good life in this world, and yet in the end, be thrown into eternal suffering?

It is not wrong, brothers and sisters, to enjoy our life in this world, but it also means that we cannot just enjoy and do nothing else. We cannot just enjoy the pleasures and happiness of this world, without doing anything in accordance to the will of God. In fact, the more we immerse ourselves in the joy of this world, the less likely we are to act in the way that is pleasing to God. We have to be always mindful of this and keep a steady balance in our life.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, it is imperative for us to carry our cross, not literally or figuratively, but to do what is right and what is according to the will of God, that we may endure together as one, the suffering of Christ, and therefore understand the love that God had for us all, so much that He gave us Himself and His own life, that we all may live.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, in this Lenten season, let us maximise the time and opportunity that we have, so that we may seek to devote ourselves more and more to the Lord, and if necessary, changing our ways that we may once again walk in the way of the Lord, and no longer following the devil into his rebellion. May God our Lord and our loving Father continue to bless us, watch over us, and protect us as we walk with Jesus His Son, towards our salvation and eternal glory. Amen.