Monday

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Monday, 23 October 2017 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John of Capestrano, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Romans 4 : 20-25

Abraham did not doubt, nor did he distrust the promise of God, and, by being strong in faith, he gave glory to God : He was convinced, that, He Who had given the promise, had power to fulfil it.

This was taken into account, for him to attain righteousness. This was taken into account : these words of Scripture are not only for him, but for us, too, because we believe in Him, Who raised Jesus, our Lord, from among the dead, He, Who was delivered for our sins, and raised to life, for us to receive true righteousness.

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Monday, 16 October 2017 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Hedwig, Religious and St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Virgin (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious and Virgins)

 

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the words of the Scripture speaking to us about being called by God and believing in Him, through what we have heard and witnessed. In the Gospel passage today, Jesus the Lord compared the people of Israel at the time of His coming with the people of the city of Nineveh, to whom the prophet Jonah had been sent.

In the past week, we have been listening to the story of the prophet Jonah and how he initially was reluctant to follow God’s orders telling him to declare to the people of Nineveh the message, but eventually he obeyed and went to Nineveh. He told the city and the people of Nineveh that the entire city would be destroyed because of the sins and wickedness committed by them.

The entire city believed in the message of the prophet Jonah, and repented from their sins, turning from their wickedness, sincerely showing forth their repentance. And God forgave them their sins. He spared their city and the entire people from destruction. When the prophet Jonah was angry at God’s seemingly sudden turnaround and change of mind, He explained that after all, He loved each and every one of them, regardless of their sins.

The key message here is that, if only that they are willing to repent from their sins, then God will forgive them. But if they refused to repent and believe in the Lord’s message, and continued to walk in the path of sin, then God will reject them because of those sins. It was due to sins unconfessed and unrepented that many had fallen into damnation and into the fires of hell.

And why did Jesus make the comparison with the people of Nineveh? That is because while the people of Nineveh believed and repented. On the other hand, the people of Israel at the time of Jesus and their ancestors refused to believe in God, either through the prophets sent to remind the Israelites, or through the Lord Jesus Himself. They hardened their hearts and closed their minds against God.

That is why God was angry at the people of Israel, for not following the examples what the people of Nineveh had done. The people of Israel always took pride in themselves being the chosen people of God, and as the descendants of Abraham and Israel, and yet, the people of Nineveh, often considered as a pagan and unbeliever, belonging to the Assyrians who were often reviled in the history of Israel as the destroyer of the northern kingdom, in fact believed in God and repented.

What the Lord wants each and every one of us to know is that, for all of us, God has given the equal chance for redemption and forgiveness, to be reconciled with Him and to be transformed from the creatures of darkness and sin that we were once, into the creatures of the light. But it is ultimately up to us to make the conscious choice between obeying and following God, or to abandon God and walk in the path of sin.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day all of us should heed the examples of our holy predecessors who have gone before us, devoting their lives for the sake of God and His people, loving God their Lord through all of their actions. St. Hedwig or St. Hedwig of Silesia was the wife and widow of the Duke of Silesia in what is now Poland, renowned for her great piety and love for her people, while St. Margaret Mary Alacoque was a holy woman renowned for her devotion to God, particularly to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.

St. Hedwig was renowned for her great piety and exemplary religious life, devoting her time to care for her people, and she spent much of her time for charitable purposes and in the proper upbringing of her children. In fact, one of her sons and daughters is now considered as a candidate for sainthood himself, as two years ago the case for the beatification of Henry II the Pious, son of St. Hedwig was opened. St. Hedwig devoted herself completely to God after she was widowed, and joined religious life, to live in a life filled with prayer and commitment to God.

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque meanwhile was a nun and mystic who received many visions from the Lord, showing her particularly the aspect of His Most Sacred Heart. It was through her visions that the now popular devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus was propagated and promoted among the faithful. She wrote extensively about her experiences and all that the Lord Jesus told her.

In her own way, St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, as well as St. Hedwig had inspired countless numbers among the faithful and those who did not believe in the Lord alike, calling all of us to the salvation and reconciliation with God. Through these holy saints, God wants to call us and to give us a chance at redemption, and now the choice falls upon us. Are we willing to listen to God’s words speaking to us in the depths of our hearts?

May the Lord bless us with strength, courage and the ability to devote ourselves anew to our God, listening to Him and following Him in our lives. Let us turn our backs from sins and from all the wickedness that we have committed in this life. May the Lord be with us always, and may He empower us to be ever better disciples of His. Amen.

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Monday, 16 October 2017 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Hedwig, Religious and St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Virgin (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious and Virgins)

Luke 11 : 29-32

At that time, as the crowd increased, Jesus spoke the following words : “People of the present time are troubled people. They ask for a sign, but no sign will be given to them except the sign of Jonah. As Jonah became a sign for the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be a sign for this generation.”

“The Queen of the South will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and here, there is greater than Solomon. The people of Nineveh will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for Jonah’s preaching made them turn from their sins, and here, there is greater than Jonah.”

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Monday, 16 October 2017 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Hedwig, Religious and St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Virgin (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious and Virgins)

Psalm 97 : 1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4

Sing to YHVH a new song, for He has done wonders; His right hand, His holy arm, has won victory for Him.

YHVH has shown His salvation, revealing His justice to the nations. He has not forgotten His love, nor His faithfulness to Israel.

The farthest ends of the earth all have seen God’s saving power. All you, lands, make a joyful noise to YHVH, break into song and sing praise.

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Monday, 16 October 2017 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Hedwig, Religious and St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Virgin (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious and Virgins)

Romans 1 : 1-7

From Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, an Apostle, called and set apart for God’s Good News, the very promises He foretold through His prophets in the sacred Scriptures, regarding His Son, Who was born in the flesh a descendant of David, and has been recognised as the Son of God, endowed with Power, upon rising from the dead, through the Holy Spirit.

Through Him, Jesus Christ, our Lord, and for the sake of His Name, we received grace, and mission in all the nations, for them to accept the faith. All of you, the elected of Christ, are part of them, you, the beloved God in Rome, called to be holy : May God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, give you grace and peace.

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Monday, 9 October 2017 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the Sacred Scriptures in which we are challenged as Christians to be ever more ready and willing to devote our effort and works for the sake of those who are in need of our help. For ultimately our faith cannot be kept within us alone, but instead we must share this faith which we have, and make use of whatever blessings God had given us, for the good of each other.

In the first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Jonah, of the time when God called Jonah to be the instrument of His will, to deliver the message to the people of Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire, that their city together with the entire inhabitants would be destroyed because of the great sins which the Assyrians had committed. But Jonah refused to obey God, and instead he tried to flee the Lord to a faraway land.

Jonah ran away because he was hesitant, and he was unwilling to do what the Lord had wanted him to do. Instead, he tried to do his own will, and fled to the faraway land on a ship. Yet, God reminded him in His own way, that no matter what he tried to do, if the Lord had willed something, His will shall be done. Thus, when the storm came upon the ship carrying Jonah, the shipmen had no choice but to throw him into the water, and a great whale took him in its belly for three days and nights before releasing him on the shore.

Eventually, Jonah continued on and did what the Lord had asked him to do, and as a result, through his warning of the doom awaiting the city and people of Nineveh, the whole city repented from their sins, from the king to the least among the slaves and inhabitants, and showed true and sincere remorse before God. And God stayed His hand, sparing the population of Nineveh and the city the destruction He had planned for them.

Had Jonah continued to refuse to obey the Lord, the city would not have turned away from its sins, and God’s punishment would still be carried out even though it might have gone unannounced. And many more people would have been damned because of the failure of one man to do what he could have done to avoid the catastrophic outcome. And it is a similar case which the Gospel passage today also presented us.

In the Gospel passage, we heard the familiar story of the Good Samaritan, a parable which the Lord Jesus spoke to the people, including the Pharisees, to show them that it was in doing what was pleasing to God, that a man is considered to be righteous, as exemplified in the person of the Good Samaritan. It will also be good if we can understand the nuances and the context of the story as told by Jesus, as we can then truly understand why the Lord Jesus came up with such a parable.

The Jewish people, especially the priests and the Pharisees often looked down on the Samaritans and criticised them as pagans. On the other hand, they looked on themselves as pious and holy, as those whom God had chosen out from the many nations to be His people, and they were fiercely proud about that fact. However, their pride and their stubbornness ended up becoming the sources of their downfall.

In the story that Jesus told the people, three people passed by the man on the way from Jerusalem to Jericho, who was attacked by bandits and left to die on the road. The priest and the Levite passed by without stopping to help the poor man, who without any help would surely end up dead. Instead, it was a Samaritan passing by, who stopped and showed compassion on the man.

Jesus was not glorifying the Samaritan or chastising the Jewish priest or the Levite by the fact of their background and race. Rather, through the story, He chastised the inaction of the people who were supposed to be holy and pious, in their mind. Those people were perfectly capable of helping the man, and yet, they ignored him and walked past by. The Samaritan was praised because of his action, and the fact that he ignored the prejudices existing between the two peoples, that a Jew ought to have no interaction whatsoever with a Samaritan and vice versa.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all of these that we have heard today are reminders for us that as Christians we should not be idle or be lukewarm in our faith. We cannot be passive as Christians, or thinking selfishly only about our own salvation and not be concerned about others. Instead, we have to actively reach out to others, just as our Lord Jesus taught us to love our brethren, and commanded us just as He had commanded His disciples to preach the Good News to all the peoples.

Perhaps we should follow the examples of the holy saints whose feast we celebrate today. St. Denis and his companions were the holy martyrs of the Roman Empire’s persecution of Christians during the time of the Emperor Decius. He was the Bishop of Paris, and together with his companions in martyrdom, were arrested because of their Christian faith. As they refused to recant their faith and abandon the Lord, they were persecuted and tortured.

In the end, they were martyred by beheading. But miraculously, it was told that St. Denis continued to preach to the people around him after his head had been separated from his body. Many people were inspired by this action, a miracle of God that strengthened the hearts of the faithful and stirred the faith in many others who witnessed the miraculous spectacle. St. Denis preached for several more miles before he died.

Meanwhile, St. John Leonardi was a renowned priest and hardworking servant of God, who went out of his way to help educate the youths in his areas of work about the faith and spread the devotion to the Lord, through the dedication to the Blessed Virgin Mary as well as the popular Forty Hours devotion to the Lord. Through the works of St. John Leonardi, many people were turned from their sins, and became righteous and worthy of God.

As we can see, brothers and sisters in Christ, that the servants of God must be active in their faith, and must be ready to stand up for the Lord whenever it is necessary. And as we heard today from the Scriptures, there are truly many opportunities around us in which we are able to do our part to contribute as Christians, as those who believe in the Lord and walk in His ways.

Let us all therefore, heed the call of the Lord, and do our best in order to devote our time, effort and attention to those who need us. Let us all renew our commitment in faith to God, so that we will always be ever faithful to Him, and be zealous in how we live our lives just as the holy saints, St. Denis and his companions, and St. John Leonardi had lived theirs. May God bless us always. Amen.

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Monday, 9 October 2017 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Luke 10 : 25-37

At that time, then a teacher of the Law came and began putting Jesus to the test. And he said, “Master, what shall I do to receive eternal life?” Jesus replied, “What is written in the Law? How do You understand it?” The man answered, “It is written : You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind. And you shall love your neighbour as yourself.”

Jesus replied, “What a good answer! Do this and you shall live.” The man wanted to justify his question, so he asked, “Who is my neighbour?” Jesus then said, “There was a man going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him and went off, leaving him half-dead.”

“It happened that a priest was going along that road and saw the man, but passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite saw the man, and passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan also was going that way; and when he came upon the man, he was moved with compassion. He went over to him, and cleaned his wounds with oil and wine, and wrapped them in bandages. Then he put him on his own mount, and brought him to an inn, where he took care of him.”

“The next day, he had to set off; but he gave two silver coins to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him, and whatever you spend on him, I will repay when I return.'” Jesus then asked, “Which of these three, do you think, made himself neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

The teacher of the Law answered, “The one who had mercy on him.” And Jesus said, “Then go and do the same.”

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Monday, 9 October 2017 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Jonah 2 : 3, 4, 5, 8

In my distress I cried to YHVH, and He answered me; from the belly of the netherworld You heard my voice when I called.

You cast me into the abyss, into the very heart of the sea, and the currents swirled about me; all Your breakers and Your billows passed over, engulfing me.

Then I thought : I have been cast out from Your presence, but I keep on looking to Your holy Temple.

When my soul was fainting within me, I remembered YHVH, and before You, rose my prayer up to Your holy Temple.

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Monday, 9 October 2017 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Companions, Martyrs, and St. John Leonardi, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Jonah 1 : 1 – Jonah 2 : 1, 11

The word of YHVH came to Jonah, son of Amittai, “Go to Nineveh, the great city, and preach against it, because I have known its wickedness.”

But Jonah decided to flee from YHVH and go to Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, found a ship bound for Tarshish, and paid the fare. Then he boarded it and went into the hold of the ship, journeying with them to Tarshish, far away from YHVH.

YHVH stirred up a storm wind on the sea, so there was a sea tempest, which threatened to destroy the ship. The sailors took fright, and each cried out to his own god. To lighten the ship, they threw its cargo into the sea. Meanwhile Jonah had gone into the hold of the ship, where he lay fast asleep. The captain came upon him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your God. Perhaps He will be mindful of us and will not allow us to die here.”

The sailors said to each other, “Let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this disaster.” So they dod, and the lot fell on Jonah. They questioned him, “So you are responsible for this evil that has come upon us? Tell us where you are from. What is your country, your nationality?” And Jonah told them his story, “I am a Hebrew and I worship YHVH, God of heaven Who made the sea and the land…”

As they knew that he was fleeing from YHVH, the sailors were seized with great fear and said to him, “What a terrible thing have you done! What shall we do with you now, to make the sea calm down?” The sea was growing more and more agitated.

He said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea. It will quiet down, for I know it is because of me that this storm has come.” The sailors, however, still did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea had grown much rougher than before. Then they called on YHVH, “O YHVH, do not let us perish for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us guilty of shedding innocent blood. For You, YHVH, have done this as You have thought right.”

They took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm again. At this the men were seized with great fear of YHVH. They offered a sacrifice to YHVH and made vows to Him. YHVH provided a large fish which swallowed Jonah. He remained in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights. Then YHVH gave His command to the fish, and it belched out Jonah onto dry land.

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Monday, 2 October 2017 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate together the Feast of the Holy Guardian Angels, remembering all those spiritual guardians who are constantly watching each one of us, defending us in the constant battle raging around us, even though we may not be aware of what is happening.

In the first reading today, taken from the Book of Exodus, we heard how God sent His Angels to guide the people of Israel as they made their way down towards the Promised Land from Egypt, from where they had been freed from the bonds of their slavery. The Angels of God protected them and cleared the path before them, and all of the enemies of Israel were defeated while the Angels of God were with the Israelites.

That was what God had done with His people, sending His Angels to help them. Those who are faithful will not be abandoned or left alone, for God will send His Angels to defend us, against all those who seek to destroy us. We may not be aware, but Satan and his fellow fallen angels are always out there, ready to strike at us and snatch us from God’s loving hands. They do this through their persuasions, temptations and even if necessary, force.

In the Gospel passage today, we heard Jesus talking to His disciples, about the faith of a child, that is truly the greatest among the people in the kingdom of heaven. And unless they have the same kind of faith as the faith of young children, they will not be great in the kingdom of Heaven. Why is that so? That is because, a child’s faith is pure and genuine, not yet corrupted by the many concerns of the world and by the temptation of sin.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we often find it difficult to listen to the Lord, because temptations are always around us, the tempters are out and active, speaking to us, urging us to follow our desires, and therefore, doing what is sinful in the sight of God. And when we sin, the devil has been victorious in his plans for us, as with every sin we committed, we draw ever closer to the path to damnation.

But our guardian Angels are also always active, protecting us from the predation and attacks by these demonic forces. They are always out and about, keeping us safe and close to the way of the Lord. They also speak in the depth of our hearts, urging us to think about what it is that we believe in our faith, and how the temptations are wrong, and are urging us to do something that is against God’s teachings, and which are rebellious acts against His will.

This constant struggle is the spiritual warfare raging at all times around us, like a game of tug-of-war, with our souls at stake. Should Satan and his forces win, then we will end up in the eternal damnation in hell. And should God and His Angels, including our guardian Angels triumph by pulling us free from the bonds of Satan and from the temptations of sin, then we will receive the eternal glory and joy in heaven promised to us all who are faithful to God.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, we must be really careful so as not to ignore the constant battle raging around us and not to be lukewarm in our faith. Otherwise, we will become easy prey for the devil who will do whatever is in his disposition to tempt us, to persuade us, to cajole us, to force us to do what he wants us to do, that is to sin against God.

Many of us have also been too busy to spend time with God, and our faith in Him had been muddled by the many worldly concerns we have. That is why all of us need to rediscover that faith which we once had as a child, or what we have seen in how a child believes. We must have that pure heart once again, wholly dedicated to God, just as a child would.

Therefore, let us from now on pledge ourselves, to do our best in order to do God’s will, guided by our holy Guardian Angels, that we always ready our ears, open our minds and hearts to listen to them, as they convey to us the message of God. Let us resist the temptation of sin, and do our best that we may come out from the daily and constant spiritual struggle over our souls triumphant, worthy of God’s grace and eternal life. May God and His Guardian Angels be with us always. Amen.