Monday

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Monday, 27 November 2017 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Daniel 1 : 1-6, 8-20

In the third year of Jehoiakim’s reign as king of Judah, king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon besieged Jerusalem. The Lord delivered into his hands king Jehoiakim of Judah, and some of the vessels from the Temple of God as well. These he carried off, to the land of Shinar, and placed in the treasure house of his god.

King Nebuchadnezzar ordered his chief eunuch Ashpenaz to bring in some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility : young men without physical defect, handsome, intelligent and wise; well-informed, quick to learn and understand; and suitable for service in the king’s palace.

They were to be taught the language and literature of the Chaldeans. They were allotted a daily portion of food and wine from the king’s table; and were to be trained for three years, after which, they were to enter the king’s service. Among these were young men of Judah : Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.

As Daniel was resolved not to make himself unclean with the king’s food or wine, he begged the chief eunuch to spare him this defilement. By the grace of God, the chief eunuch had been sympathetic to Daniel. But he was afraid of the king, so he said, “If the king, who has allotted your food and drink, sees that you look more emaciated than the other young men of your age, he might think ill of me. It will put my life in danger to give in to your wish.”

Daniel then turned to the steward whom the chief eunuch had put in charge of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. “Please test your servants for ten days. Give us only vegetables to eat and water to drink, and see how we look in comparison with the young men who eat food from the king’s table. Then treat us in accordance with what you see.”

The steward agreed and tested them for ten days, at the end of which, they looked healthier and better fed than any of the young men who ate the king’s food. So the steward continued to give them vegetables instead of the choice food and wine. To these four youths God gave wisdom and proficiency in literature, and to Daniel the gift of interpreting visions and dreams.

At the end of the period set by the king for the youths’ training, the chief eunuch presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. The king talked with them and found none to equal Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. These four became members of the king’s court. In any matter of wisdom and discernment about which the king consulted, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom.

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Monday, 20 November 2017 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, in today’s reading, we begin the discourse from the Book of the Maccabees, in which we heard how the king of the Seleucid Empire, king Antiochus IV Epiphanes, persecuted the Jewish people living in his territory, as the Holy Land was then under Seleucid rule, and he also tried to enforce the Greek customs upon the Jewish people.

The suffering and dilemma faced by the Israelites at the time was truly great, as they were forced to choose between obeying God’s Law and suffer to the point of death, or to abandon the customs of their ancestors and the Law of God and live, receiving great honours and favours from the king and his court. Many of the Jewish people at the time were unable to resist the temptation to avoid suffering, and they abandoned their faith.

The Greek king even led his forces to capture the Temple of God in Jerusalem, desecrating it and built pagan idols within its compounds. Many were forced to worship those pagan idols and abandon their old faith to God. And such were the Jewish people scandalised by the great sins committed by the king, yet, there were many of those who resisted and persevered through the difficult times.

And the ones who led them in resistance were the namesake of this book, the Maccabees family, led by their father, Mattathias, who refused firmly against the king’s order to abandon their faith in God. Led by his sons, the people of Judea would rise up against the king, and through the help and grace of God, through many difficult years, persecutions and further troubles, they succeeded and triumphed against their enemies.

In the Gospel passage today, the Lord healed a man who was blind, who begged Him many times as He passed through near his place, that He might want to heal him from his blindness. He kept on trying and shouted begging for Jesus to have mercy on him, despite many people around him who told him to shut up.

Jesus had mercy on the man, and with His compassionate love, He healed the blind man from his affliction. In this we can see, as we relate it to the first reading, the story of the Maccabees rebellion, that God never abandoned His people. He is always ever faithful, even though we have often been unfaithful to Him. He always loved us no matter what.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, there will be plenty of times when we will feel that we are alone against the world, and that no one is around to help us, and not even God. That is why we give up on God, give up on everything, on our faith and all else, and give up to the demands of the world, much as how many of the Jewish people gave up to the demands of king Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who demanded that they abandon their God.

Let us remember what we have heard this day, and keep in our minds and our hearts at all times, that we are always beloved by God, no matter what. He is always around for us, and He will guide us and help us according to His will. Sometimes, yes, we did have to suffer for a time, but if we remain faithful, our reward in God will be great.

Shall we strive to look for eternal joy that we can find in God alone, and not in the temporary and illusory false joy that this world offers? Let us remain true to our faith, and commit ourselves, our whole lives to God, by doing what He has asked us to do in our loves. May the Lord be with us always, for we are all His beloved children, those whom He will bless and protect at all times, against all evils. Amen.

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Monday, 20 November 2017 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 18 : 35-43

At that time, when Jesus drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the road, begging. As he heard the crowd passing by, he inquired what was happening, and they told him that Jesus of Nazareth was going by. Then he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

The people in front of him scolded him, “Be quiet!” they said, but he cried out all the more, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped, and ordered the blind man to be brought to Him; and when he came near, Jesus asked him, “What do you want Me to do for you?” And the man said, “Lord, that I may see!”

Jesus said, “Receive your sight, your faith has saved you.” At once the blind man was able to see, and he followed Jesus, giving praise to God. And all the people who were there also praised God.

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Monday, 20 November 2017 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 118 : 53, 61, 134, 150, 155, 158

I feel indignant at the wicked who have forsaken Your law.

The wicked have me trapped in their snares, but I have not forgotten Your laws.

Rescue me from human oppression, and help me keep Your precepts.

My persecutors close in with evil intent; they are far from Your law.

Salvation is far from the wicked, for they do not seek Your statutes.

I look upon the faithless with loathing, because they do not obey Your ruling.

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Monday, 20 November 2017 : 33rd Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Maccabees 1 : 10-15, 41-43, 54-57, 62-64

From their descendants there came a godless offshoot, Antiochus Epiphanes, son of king Antiochus, who had been held as hostage in Rome. He became king in the one hundred and thirty-seventh year of the Greek era, in the year 175 B.C..

It was then that some rebels emerged from Israel, who succeeded in winning over many people. They said, “Let us renew contact with the people around us for we had endured many misfortunes since we separated from them.”

This proposal was well-received and some eagerly went to the king. The king authorised them to adopt the customs of the pagan nations. With his permission, they built a gymnasium in Jerusalem in the pagan style. And as they wanted to be like the pagans in everything, they made artificial foreskins for themselves and abandoned the Holy Covenant, sinning as they pleased.

Antiochus issued a decree to his whole kingdom. All the people of his empire had to renounce their particular customs and become one people. All the pagan nations obeyed and respected the king’s decree, and, even in Israel, many accepted the imposed cult. They offered sacrifices to idols and no longer respected the Sabbath.

On the fifteenth day of the month of Chislev, in the year one hundred and forty-five, in the year 167 B.C., Antiochus erected the “abominable idol of the invaders” on the altar of the Temple. Pagan altars were built throughout the whole land of Judea; incense was offered at the doors of their houses and in the squares.

There wicked men tore up the books of the Law they found and burnt them. They killed anyone they caught in possession of the book of the Covenant and who fulfilled the precepts of the Law, as the royal decree had ordered. But in spite of all this, many Israelites still remained firm and determined not to eat unclean food. They preferred to die rather than to make themselves unclean with those foods prohibited by the Law that violated the Holy Covenant. And Israel suffered a very great trial.

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Monday, 13 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the Sacred Scriptures, in which we heard that first of all, we must be responsible in living our lives, in our actions towards others, that we always show righteousness and justice in all things, especially as Christians, because if we do not do so, we will end up causing scandal for our faith and for the Church.

In today’s passage from the Book of Wisdom, our first reading, spoke of how the Lord through His Holy Spirit has inspired all of us to do what is right and just in the sight of the Lord, and all of us who have received the Holy Spirit ought to follow the example shown to us, or else, we will be judged and condemned because we have failed to do what the Lord commanded us to do.

And God knows all that we have done, and even all that is in our minds and hearts. There is nothing that we can hide from Him. Yet, many of us committed sin as if we think that God does not know or cannot know what we have done. If only that we realise how angry God is at our sins and wickedness, we will not even dare to think about sinning against Him, much less so, doing it. We always have to remember that God despises our sins and disobedience, but not ourselves.

What does this mean? Even though God loves each one of us but if we sin, we are distancing ourselves from Him. And all forms of disobedience and sin has their consequences, which ultimately lead to death. If we sin, we have to realise that our actions have consequences, and those who see and witness us sin, may also be lured to commit the same sin as well. And in the Gospel today, the Lord Jesus had harsh words for those who have misled others into sin, especially the innocent ones.

Therefore today, the first thing that all of us as Christians must learn and do, is that we have to abhor sin in all of its forms. This will be easier said than done, as sin is everywhere, in every aspects of our human and worldly lives. Temptations are always around us, as tools by which Satan and his allies are trying to steal us away from God and His salvation. We must actively resist this temptation to sin, by deepening our relationship with God, through active prayer life and charitable actions, loving and caring for our brothers and sisters who are in need.

Secondly, all of us must also learn to forgive one another, just as God has forgiven us. This is the calling which God had made to all of us, that as Christians we must love others and to forgive our faults and mistakes to one another. No man or woman has not done a single mistake in each of his or her life. We have been corrupted through our sins, and yet, all of our sins are willingly forgiven by God, because of His great love for us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, there is no point for us if we do a lot of good deeds and love, and yet, we are unable to forgive those who have slighted us, made us felt inconvenient and even causing us to suffer and be in pain. It is not easy to forgive others just as it is not easy for us to love. Yet, if we do not forgive others their sins and mistakes, how can we expect to be forgiven? Let us remember the phrase in the Lord’s Prayer, “Forgive us our sins just as we have forgiven those who sinned against us.”

If God is willing and wants to forgive us in the multitudes of our sins, as massive and unimaginably huge they are, then why we mankind are so hesitant to forgive others for faults that are so much smaller compared to our own faults and sins? Let us all reflect on this, and from now on, think of the many ways in which all of us are indeed able to obey God’s will, by starting to learn to forgive each other, even for simple matters, that eventually in everything we do, we will show what being true Christians is about.

Let us all therefore, from now on, devote our effort, time and commitment to the Lord, doing whatever we can in order to serve the Lord ever more by sinning no more, and trying our best to be faithful in everything we say and do, so that through our examples, instead of misleading and misguiding many others through scandal and impropriety, we can bring more souls towards God, by inspiring them to live righteously and in obedience to God. May the Lord bless us all, and help us in this endeavour. Amen.

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Monday, 13 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Luke 17 : 1-6

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Scandals will necessarily come and cause people to fall; but woe to the one who brings them about. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone around his neck. Truly, this would be better for that person, than to cause one of these little ones to fall.”

“Listen carefully : if your brother offends you, tell him, and if he is sorry, forgive him. And if he offends you seven times in one day, but seven times he says to you, ‘I am sorry,’ forgive him.”

The Apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” And the Lord said, “If you have faith, even the size of a mustard seed, you may say to this tree, ‘Be uprooted, and plant yourself in the sea!’ and it will obey you.”

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Monday, 13 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 138 : 1-3, 4-6, 7-8, 9-10

O YHVH, You know me : You have scrutinised me. You know when I sit and when I rise; beforehand, You discern my thoughts. You observe my activities and times of rest; You are familiar with all my ways.

Before a word is formed in my mouth, You know what it is all about, o YHVH. From front to back You hedge me round, shielding me with Your protecting hand. Your knowledge leaves me astounded, it is too high for me to reach.

Where else could I go from Your Spirit? Where could I flee from Your presence? You are there, if I ascend the heavens; You are there, if I descend to the depths.

If I ride on the wings of the dawn, and settle on the far side of the sea, even there, Your hand shall guide me, and Your right hand shall hold me safely.

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Monday, 13 November 2017 : 32nd Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Wisdom 1 : 1-7

Love justice, you who rule over the world! Think rightly of God, seek Him with simplicity of heart, for He reveals Himself to those who do not challenge Him and is found by those who do not distrust Him. Crooked thinking distances you from God; and His Omnipotence, put to the test, confounds the foolish.

Wisdom does not enter the wicked nor remain in a body that is enslaved to sin. The Holy Spirit Who instructs us shuns deceit; it keeps aloof from foolishness and is ill at ease when injustice is done. Wisdom is a spirit, a friend to man, and will not leave the blasphemous unpunished, because God knows his innermost feelings, truly sees his thoughts and hears what he says.

For God’s Spirit has filled the whole world; and He Who holds together all things, knows each word that is spoken.

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Monday, 6 November 2017 : 31st Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, the essence of what we heard in today’s Scripture readings is a reminder for all of us as Christians, that we all need to go out of our comfort zone, reaching out to our brothers and sisters in practicing and living our lives faithfully. This is what all of us are called to as Christians, and not to be passive and inactive, thinking that once we have received the grace of the Sacraments of Baptism, Eucharist and Confirmation, and that is it for us.

In the Epistle written by St. James, there is a famous saying which many of us may be familiar with. “Faith without works is dead.” And he wrote more about that phrase, in which I summarise as, faith that is not accompanied with actions inspired by that faith, good works in accordance with what we believe in the Lord, is meaningless and useless in the eyes of the Lord. And salvation will not come to those who profess the faith in God, and yet do not practice what they believe in.

That is why, we must understand this important tenet of our faith, lest we misunderstand it, just as there are those who misinterpreted and misunderstood this approach of our faith. It does not mean that we are saved by our good works or that by doing more then we are considered to be of higher standard and quality as compared to others who did not do as much.

Instead, it means that we are still saved by our faith in God, by our belief in Him. Yet, what is important is that, our faith emphasises the need for us to have a genuine and living faith, which means we must not be idle in our faith, and in living our lives. We cannot call ourselves as faithful, unless we truly live in accordance with our faith and actively expressing our faith through our actions, directed through love for our brethren in need. This is our faith, evidenced through our ‘good works’.

We are all called to love generously, to care without any prejudices or bias. We should not only love those who we think can love us back, or return us the love that we have given. That is what the Lord Jesus mentioned in the Gospel passage today, with His parable, comparing this to those who invite people to come to the wedding banquet. Those who are invited should not be just those who we also love, but should be everyone without prejudice.

In the same manner, the Lord Jesus had told us to love even our enemies, and all those who hate us. We ought to pray for those who persecute us and forgive those who have caused us suffering and harm. This is what we should do as Christians, rather than perpetuating the endless cycle of hatred and violence, which is common in this world. Are we all able to challenge the conventional ways of this world and showcase our Christian faith through our actions?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore renew our faith and commitment to the Lord, by trying our best in each and every day to show love in our actions and deeds, to care for our brothers and sisters, strangers and all who are in need of our love, attention and help. We should not be ignorant to their needs, and be selfish in our actions. We should not put ourselves above the rest, and we definitely should not do things that can cause detrimental effect on others just so that we can benefit from it.

Let us all seek to become true Christians, by following the examples of the holy saints and all those whose life have been exemplary, so that we may give more of ourselves and become ever better Christians, dedicated wholly to God in all things. May the Lord bless us and guide us in His path, now and always. Amen.