Monday

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Monday, 25 February 2019 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Sirach 1 : 1-10

All wisdom comes from the Lord and endures with Him forever. The grains of sand, the drops of rain and the days of eternity, who can count them? The height of heaven, the extent of the earth and the depths of the abyss, who can measure them?

Wisdom was created before all things and the prudent intellect before the beginning of time. To whom was the source of Wisdom revealed? Who has known her secret designs? One alone is wise and greatly to be feared. The One Who is seated upon His throne.

The Lord Himself created Wisdom. He looked on her and knew her value. He poured her out over all His works; upon all mortal beings, in accordance with His goodness. He lavished her on those who love Him.

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Monday, 18 February 2019 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the story from the Scriptures beginning with the tale of Cain and Abel, the firstborn children of men, of the first family, Adam and Eve. We heard how Cain and Abel grew up in this world, tilling its earth and shepherding the animals of the field. And as they grew up, we heard of the sad and unfortunate tale of how Abel killed his own brother, of his own flesh and blood, because of jealousy and anger.

We see in this unfortunate occasion, the greed and desire, the ego, pride and ambition that are present within us, that when we do not restrain ourselves, it can cause us to do things that can lead us into sin, as what Cain’s actions had shown us. Cain desired acceptance, acknowledgement and honour, and when his offerings to God were not accepted while his younger brother’s offering was accepted, he became angry and jealous at his brother.

And such feelings of anger and jealousy became source of temptation for Cain, and Satan made use of the opportunity to pull the strings at his desire and his ego, and as a result, without thinking further of the grave consequences, he killed Abel, his own younger brother, just so that he might be able to satisfy his jealousy and justify his anger and ego. In that action, he has committed a great sin of murder, and worse still, as he murdered his own brother.

In the Gospel reading today, we heard of another story, in which the people asking the Lord Jesus to perform signs and miracles before them. And especially, it was the Pharisees who asked the Lord to perform those miracles with the malicious intent of hoping to embarrass Him, despite themselves having seen how the Lord Jesus could perform all those wonders and powers which no one, except those sent by God, could have performed.

Yet they still asked the Lord to perform the miracles, with the intention to harm His reputation and to embarrass Him. This came about because of the jealousy that they had against the Lord Jesus, as they saw Him as a rival to their own teaching authority, power and prestige within the community of the people of Israel. They saw His courageous and authoritative teachings as threats to their influence and privileges, especially because large crowds always followed the Lord wherever He went.

Just as Cain felt angry and jealous because his ego and pride was seemingly slighted by the acceptance of Abel’s sacrifice over his, the Pharisees were also affected by the same anger and jealousy, when they saw that the people were no longer solely depending on them as the sole source of knowledge and authority, but instead turning towards the truth that Christ has brought into the midst of His people.

This shows each one of us how dangerous our ego and pride can be. History has shown that when we allow pride and ego to guide our way and our thoughts, our choice of actions and decisions in life, we can end up committing even heinous and wicked crimes and deeds, that can cause the sufferings of others, pain and hurt in those whose livelihood may be affected negatively by our own desires and ego.

Cain killed Abel over this matter, and the Pharisees joined all those who sought the death of the Lord Jesus, and condemned Him to die on the cross at the hands of the Romans, all because of their ego and pride. They allowed all these things to become obstacles in their way of faith, and in the end, sin entered into their hearts and minds, corrupting their whole beings. This is what we can also suffer from, unless we realise how dangerous our pride and ego is, and restrain them.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we should temper our pride and our ego within us. These are things that are always within us, and we will always be tempted to be proud and to be selfish, to be seeking for our own glory and comfort, even at the expense of others. However, as Christians, we have all been called to overcome all of these, and resist the temptation to sin by this manner. Thus, instead of being filled with jealousy and pride, let us instead turn towards God and learn to love Him with all of our hearts.

May the Lord sow within us all the seeds of His love, that we may grow ever stronger in love, and remove from our hearts and minds all pride, egoistic and selfish attitudes, wicked thoughts and desires, and jealousy against others. Let us all love our brothers and sisters from now on, just as much as we love ourselves and love God in the same way as well. Amen.

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Monday, 18 February 2019 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 8 : 11-13

At that time, the Pharisees came and started to argue with Jesus. Hoping to embarrass Him, they asked for some heavenly sign. Then His Spirit was moved. He gave a deep sigh and said, “Why do the people of this present time ask for a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this people.”

Then He left them, got into the boat again and went to the other side of the lake.

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Monday, 18 February 2019 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 49 : 1 and 8, 16bc-17, 20-21

The God of gods, the Lord has spoken, He summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. Not for your sacrifices do I reprove you, for your burnt offerings are ever before Me.

What right have you to mouth My laws, or to talk about My covenant? You hate My commands and cast My words behind you.

You speak ill of your brother, and slander your own mother’s son. Because I was silent while you did these things, you thought I was like you. But now I rebuke you and make this charge against you.

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Monday, 18 February 2019 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Genesis 4 : 1-15, 25

Adam had intercourse with Eve his wife; she became pregnant and gave birth to a child. She named him Cain, for she said, “I have got a man with help from YHVH.” She later gave birth to Abel, his brother. Abel was a shepherd and kept flocks, and Cain tilled the soil.

It happened after a time that Cain brought fruits of the soil as an offering to YHVH. Abel for his part brought the firstborn of his flock, and some fat as well. Now YHVH was well pleased with Abel and his offering, but towards Cain and his offering He showed no pleasure. This made Cain very angry and downcast.

Then YHVH said to Cain, “Why are you angry and downcast? If you do right, why do you not look up? But if you are not doing what is right, sin is lurking at the door. It is striving to get you, but you must control it.”

Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let us go to the fields.” Once there, Cain turned on his brother Abel and killed him. YHVH said to Cain, “Where is your brother, Abel?” He answered, “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?”

YHVH asked, “What have you done? Your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground. Now be cursed and driven from the ground that has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood that your hand had shed. When you till the soil, it will no longer yield you its produce. You will be a fugitive wandering on the earth.”

Cain said to YHVH, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. See! Today You drive me from this land. I must hide from You and be a wanderer and a fugitive on the earth, and it will so happen that whoever meets me will kill me.” YHVH said to him, “Well then, whoever kills Cain, will suffer vengeance seven times.” And YHVH put a mark on Cain to prevent anyone who met him from killing him.

Adam again had intercourse with his wife and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth; for she said, “YHVH has given me another child in place of Abel since Cain killed him.”

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Monday, 11 February 2019 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, World Day of the Sick (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Our Lady of Lourdes)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate the feast of oUr Lady of Lourdes, the aspect of Mary, the Blessed Mother of Our God, Jesus Christ, who appeared to a young peasant girl in the remote village of Lourdes in southern France, over a hundred and fifty years ago. At that time, the Blessed Virgin appeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous, the young woman, a few times, revealing to her the messages calling for the repentance of mankind, and also showed her the nature of her Immaculate Conception, asking her to build a chapel in that place where she had appeared to her.

St. Bernadette Soubirous faced much opposition and ridicule from all those who refused to believe in the truth and the credibility of her accounts, but she persevered nonetheless, and continued to visit the Blessed Virgin despite having been told not to, and there were those who even had barriers and obstacles installed in order to prevent her from returning to the grotto of Lourdes where the Blessed Virgin appeared to her. Through the miraculous appearance of a spring of clear and healing water at the grotto, the place gradually became more and more popular and the truth about St. Bernadette Soubirous’ account on the apparition was verified as the truth.

That was how the grotto of Lourdes became one of the most famous places in the world for pilgrimages, where millions came down every year, bringing their sick ones in particular, seeking for miraculous healing that came with the holy water that St. Bernadette Soubirous discovered upon the instruction of Our Lady of Lourdes. They wanted to be healed from their bodily and physical troubles, all the sicknesses and illnesses they suffered from.

Through today’s Scripture readings we heard the many wonderful deeds that the Lord has performed in our midst, beginning with His creation of the world and all the good things found in creation. He has loved us all and provided us with all that we need despite our rebelliousness and stubbornness in refusing to love Him, and in continuing to sin against Him, again and again. And the Lord showed pity and mercy when His people asked for Him to forgive them.

That was why, He sent into this world, the fulfilment of the promise of His deliverance and healing, in His Son, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, Who came into our midst, healing people who were sick, casting out demons and evil spirits from all those who have been possessed, helping all those who were distressed and loving all those who have been rejected and ostracised by the society, reaching out to the poor, the condemned, the sinners and the ostracised, those who were looked down upon.

And in this, the role of the Blessed Mother of Our Lord and Saviour cannot be understated, for it was her love for each and every one of us, her adopted children, that helped us to link to the compassion and mercy that her Son shows to each and every one of us. Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes showed us her compassion, by appearing to St. Bernadette, calling on her children to return to the loving embrace of God and repent from their sins.

That was why she appeared to us, providing with us the means to seek the help of her Son, Our Lord and Saviour, for is she not our mother, just as she is the mother of Christ? From the cross, Our Lord entrusted her to us, and also each and every one of us to her, when He entrusted Mary, His mother to the care of His disciple, St. John the Apostle, and vice versa. Since then, each and every one of us have also had Mary as our mother.

And as she looked out for our well-being and salvation through her Son, are we making the conscious effort to keep ourselves away from the corruption of sin? Today, as we pray for the sake of all those who suffer illnesses and enduring from various diseases, we have to also look deep into ourselves, and discover the state of our sickness in sin. For we may be free from physical ailment and problems, but sin may be corrupting us and causing us to be sick spiritually, which is even more than physically being sick.

Let us all therefore seek the healing in God, putting our trust and faith in the providence and the love of our Lord and Saviour, in His healing grace, and in being forgiven from our many sins. Let us all turn towards our loving God, through the help and tender care from His blessed mother Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes, who constantly prays for us and intercedes for our sake at every moments. May the Lord be with us, and may Our Blessed mother, Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes continue to pray for us sinners. Amen.

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Monday, 11 February 2019 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, World Day of the Sick (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Our Lady of Lourdes)

Mark 6 : 53-56

At that time, having crossed the lake, Jesus and His disciples came ashore at Gennesaret, where they tied up the boat. As soon as they landed, people recognised Jesus, and ran to spread the news throughout the countryside.

Wherever He was, they brought to Him the sick lying on their mats; and wherever He went, to villages, towns or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplace, and begged Him to let them touch just the fringe of His cloak. And all who touched Him were cured.

Alternative reading (Mass of Our Lady of Lourdes)

John 2 : 1-11

At that time, three days after Jesus called Nathanael, there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus was also invited to the wedding with His disciples. When all the wine provided for the celebration had been served, and they had run out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”

Jesus replied, “Woman, what concern is that to you and Me? My hour has not yet come.” However His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever He tells you.” Nearby were six stone water jars, set there for ritual washing as practiced by the Jews; each jar could hold twenty or thirty gallons.

Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them to the brim. Then Jesus said, “Now draw some out and take it to the steward.” So they did. The steward tasted the water that had become wine, without knowing from where it had come; for only the servants who had drawn the water knew. So, he called the bridegroom to tell him, “Everyone serves the best wine first, and when people have drunk enough, he serves that which is ordinary. Instead you have kept the best wine until the end.”

This miraculous sign was the first, and Jesus performed it at Cana in Galilee. In this way He let His glory appear, and His disciples believed in Him.

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Monday, 11 February 2019 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, World Day of the Sick (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Our Lady of Lourdes)

Psalm 103 : 1-2a, 5-6, 10 and 12, 24 and 35c

Bless the Lord my soul! Clothed in majesty and splendour; o Lord, my God, how great You are! You are wrapped in light as with a garment.

You set the earth on its foundations, and never will it be shaken. You covered it with the ocean like a garment, and waters spread over the mountains.

You make springs gush forth in valleys winding among mountains and hills. Birds build their nests close by and sing among the branches of trees.

How varied o Lord, are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all – the earth full of Your creatures. Bless the Lord, my soul!

Alternative reading (Mass of Our Lady of Lourdes)

Judith 13 : 18bcde, 19

My daughter, may the Most High God bless you more than all women on earth. And blessed be the Lord God, the Creator of heaven and earth, Who has led you to behead the leader of our enemies.

Never will people forget the confidence you have shown; they will always remember the power of God.

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Monday, 11 February 2019 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, World Day of the Sick (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Our Lady of Lourdes)

Genesis 1 : 1-19

In the beginning, when God began to create the heavens and the earth, the earth had no form and was void; darkness was over the deep and the Spirit of God hovered over the waters.

God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. God saw that the light was good and He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light ‘Day’ and the darkness ‘Night’. There was evening and there was morning : the first day.

God said, “Let there be a firm ceiling between the waters and let it separate waters from waters.” So God made the ceiling and separated the waters below it from the waters above it. And so it was. God called the firm ceiling ‘Sky’. There was evening and there was morning : the second day.

God said, “Let the waters below the sky be gathered in one place and let dry land appear. And so it was. God called the dry land ‘Earth’, and the waters gathered together he called ‘Seas’. God saw that it was good.

God said, “Let the earth produce vegetation, seed-bearing plants, fruit trees bearing fruit with seed, each according to its kind, upon the earth.” And so it was. The earth produced vegetation : plants bearing seed according to their kind and trees producing fruit which has seed, according to their kind. God saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning : the third day.

God said, “Let there be lights in the ceiling of the sky to separate day from night and to serve as signs for the seasons, days and years; and let these lights in the sky shine above the earth.” And so it was. God therefore made two great lights, the greater light to govern the day and the smaller light to govern the night; and God made the stars as well. God placed them in the ceiling of the sky to give light on the earth and to separate the light from the darkness. God saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning : the fourth day.

Alternative reading (Mass of Our Lady of Lourdes)

Isaiah 66 : 10-14c

Rejoice for Jerusalem and be glad for her, all you who love her. Be glad with her, rejoice with her, all you who were in grief over her, that you may suck of the milk from her comforting breasts, that you may drink deeply from the abundance of her glory.

For this is what YHVH says : I will send her peace, overflowing like a river; and the nations’ wealth, rushing like a torrent towards her. And you will be nursed and carried in her arms and fondled upon her lap. As a son comforted by his mother, so will I comfort you. At the sight of this, your heart will rejoice; like grass, your bones will flourish.

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Monday, 4 February 2019 : 4th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the words of the Scripture which related to us about the power of God that He exercises in our world, the salvation which He has given to His people, and which He reminded us through various occasions, how He saved His beloved ones by His mighty power through His servants, as mentioned in the Epistle to the Hebrews, from the days of Moses and the judges of Israel, and then in the Gospel itself we heard the miraculous deed that the Lord Jesus performed as He cast out demons from a man in Gadara region.

We heard of God’s wonderful love and providence for His people, in how He helped all those who have placed their faith in Him. He liberated them from the tyranny and oppression of the Egyptians, the Amalekites, the Canaanites and many others who have became the enemies and oppressors of Israel through the centuries of their stay in the land promised and given to them. He brought them out of their troubles and provided for them, and blessed them.

Then, in the same Epistle to the Hebrews, we heard the mention of all those who have been persecuted and have received oppression and challenges, and yet refused to give in to the demands and pressures from those who sought to destroy them or to subvert them to abandon the Lord. They remained in good faith and committed themselves despite the pains and sufferings, putting their trust in the Lord fully.

The Lord reassured all those who have heard of all these things happening, especially for the early Jewish Christians who were oppressed both by the Jewish authorities and by the Romans and the Gentiles, that He was still with them, providing for them and guarding them despite all the troubles, pains and sorrows that they had to endure. Through the words of the Epistle, the Apostles were bringing this reassurance of God’s promise that He will stand by His people and that ultimately there is nothing, no matter how great, can stand up against God’s power and will.

In the Gospel passage today, we heard how the Lord Jesus cast out from a man who had been ostracised and cast aside from the community because of the numerous multitudes of evil spirits and demons that had possessed him, so many that they called themselves as legion. The Lord showed His might and power by casting out those demons from the man, from whom everyone else had fled. He showed His people, that God’s love and power overcomes everything.

We see how the Lord loves each and every one of us, even those of us who are in the deepest darkness, dirtiest and most tainted by sin. He does not want any one of us, His beloved ones, to suffer the consequences of our unrepented sins, that is, eternal damnation in hell. He Who created us out of love, with His desire to love us and to share the perfect love found in Him with us, certainly wants each and every one of us to be reconciled with Him.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, what is the true significance of today’s Scripture readings to us all? It is the fact that each and every one of us are God’s beloved people, that we should put our complete trust in Him, knowing that He is always ever present in our midst, and standing by us, even in the moments of our greatest sorrow, suffering, agony and pain. God will not abandon us no matter what, and He will always be there. To trust in God is something that we should be doing.

Let us all therefore learn to put our trust in God, and love Him as much as we can, knowing that He has loved us first, with so much love, that He always stands by us, even in our most difficult moments. Let us all be thankful for all the love and grace that He has given to each and every one of us, and strive to do our best in life, to be faithful and to serve the Lord with all of our hearts and strength. Amen.