Liturgical Colour : Red
Psalm 118 : 23-24, 26-27, 29-30
Although princes conspire against me, Your servant will observe Your decrees. Your laws are my delight, my counsellors who uphold Me.
When I explained my ways, You responded; instruct me then in Your precepts. Explain to me all Your ordinances, and I will meditate on Your wondrous deeds.
Keep me away from deceitful paths; be gracious and teach me Your law. I have chosen the way of truth; I have set my heart upon Your laws.
Liturgical Colour : Red
Acts 6 : 8-15
Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. Some persons then came forward, who belonged to the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia and Asia. They argued with Stephen but they could not match the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. As they were unable to face the truth, they bribed some men to say, “We heard him speak against Moses and against God.”
So they stirred up the people, the elders and the teachers of the Law; they took him by surprise, seized him and brought him before the Council. Then they produced false witnesses who said, “This man never stops speaking against our Holy Place and the Law. We even heard him say that Jesus the Nazarean will destroy our Holy Place and change the customs which Moses handed down to us.”
And all who sat in the Council fixed their eyes on him, and his face appeared to them like the face of an Angel.
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate the great occasion of the Solemnity of the Annunciation of our Lord Jesus Christ, which should have occurred as it does every year on the twenty-fifth day of March, but as that day coincided with the Good Friday celebrations, therefore, it was postponed to this day, the first day after the Easter Octave had ended.
On this occasion, we commemorate that very important moment, when the Good News of God was first announced to us mankind, the sign of salvation for all humanity, the sign of hope beyond all despair and darkness that had covered our world and our lives, like a piercing light through a veil of great darkness. For with the announcement of the Good News of the coming of our Saviour by the Archangel Gabriel, a world once in darkness now has seen the Light of God again.
Today while we continue to celebrate together the joyful season of Easter, we are called to recall once again, how it all began, and of the Lord’s promise, where He had promised His salvation upon us, and His liberation of us all from our enthrallment to sins and to all the wickedness of our sinfulness. He has promised us the coming of a Saviour, and in Jesus Who was announced to the world that fateful day in Nazareth, God made full and perfectly completed, His eternal promise.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we see the example of Mary, the Mother of our Lord, the greatest of all saints and the closest to the throne of her beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. For Mary was an essential instrument in the salvation of all mankind, whom God had prepared from the beginning, special and adorned to be the vessel to bear the Saviour and Lord of all creation Himself in her.
And that was why she was conceived herself without sin, without the taint of sin and wickedness which would make her unworthy to bear the Lord in her. But even more important than this, is that she remained true and faithful to God and all of His plans, even though such a plan was truly so grand and beyond our human understanding. And the burden of such a revelation was truly great indeed. Just imagine, if we are in Mary’s position, and an Archangel of God appearing before us, telling that she would become the mother of the Lord Most High Himself?
Mary, human as she was just like us, she was filled with uncertainty and doubts too. That was why she sought clarification from the Archangel Gabriel, that she was still a virgin, betrothed but had not yet consummated the marriage she was to have with Joseph her betrothed, and yet she was to bear the Son of God in her? And the Archangel Gabriel through his words revealed the truth about our Saviour to the whole world.
That He is the Son of God, the Word of God made flesh, that from the beginning and before the beginning of time, had been with the Father, inseparable and perfect in unity as God, and yet, by the will of the Lord, had been incarnate into the flesh of man, and became as men are, and as the Son of Man, He was to bear all of mankind’s sins and faults, and bearing with Him all these, He was to offer Himself as the perfect sacrifice and offering to God for our trespasses.
And thus now, as we glory and rejoice in the outcome of the Lord’s plan for our salvation, and as He had shown us the path to our redemption through our faith in His Son Jesus, our Lord, now we also remember the moment when it all began, when God revealed to the world, that His Saviour is coming, and is entering the world. And as we rejoice together celebrating our Lord’s love and care for us, let us heed the examples of Mary.
For Mary is our example in faith, in her devotion and undying commitment to our God, that she surrendered herself completely to God and entrusting herself to His plans and to His will. She followed on the path God had set up for her, even to following her Son in His ministry, and even all the way through the path of the cross, until she was there at the moment of His crucifixion, through which we have gained the redemption from our sins.
Let us all follow her examples, and practice our faith in our own actions. And as we rejoice in this Easter season, let us all remember those who have little or no joy, and especially our brethren who have yet to hear the word of our God’s salvation. Let us bring to them the light of our God, and may all of us receive salvation together as one people, and one day be able to glorify Him together, with His blessed mother Mary, whose faith is an inspiration to us all. God bless us all. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
Luke 1 : 26-38
In the sixth month, the Angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth. He was sent to a young virgin, who was betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the family of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.
The Angel came to her and said, “Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you.” Mary was troubled at these words, wondering what this greeting could mean. But the Angel said, “Do not fear, Mary, for God has looked kindly on you. You shall conceive and bear a Son, and you shall call Him Jesus.”
“He will be great, and shall rightly be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the kingdom of David, His ancestor; He will rule over the people of Jacob forever, and His reign shall have no end.”
Then Mary said to the Angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” And the Angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the Holy Child to be born of you shall be called Son of God. Even your relative Elizabeth is expecting a son in her old age, although she was unable to have a child; and she is now in her sixth month. With God nothing is impossible.”
Then Mary said, “I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be done to me as you have said.” And the Angel left her.
Liturgical Colour : White
Hebrews 10 : 4-10
And never will the blood of bulls and goats take away these sins. This is why on entering the world, Christ says : You did not desire sacrifice and offering; You were not pleased with burnt offerings and sin offerings. Then I said : “Here I am. It was written of Me in the scroll. I will do Your will, o God.”
First He says : Sacrifice, offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings You did not desire nor were You pleased with them – although they were required by the Law. Then He says : Here I am to do Your will.
This is enough to nullify the first will and establish the new. Now, by this will of God, we are sanctified once and for all by the sacrifice of the Body of Christ Jesus.
Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 39 : 7-8a, 8b-9, 10, 11
Sacrifice and oblation You did not desire; this You had me understand. Burnt offering and sin offering You do not require. Then I said, “Here I come!”
“As the scroll says of Me. To do Your will is My delight, o God, for Your law is within My heart.”
In the great assembly I have proclaimed Your saving help. My lips, o Lord, I did not seal – You know that very well.
I have not locked up in My heart Your saving help, but have spoken about it – Your deliverance and Your faithfulness. I have made no secret of Your truth and of Your kindness in the great assembly.
Liturgical Colour : White
Isaiah 7 : 10-14 and Isaiah 8 : 10
Once again YHVH addressed Ahaz, “Ask for a sign from YHVH your God, let it come either from the deepest depths or from the heights of heaven.”
But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask. I will not put YHVH to the test.” Then Isaiah said, “Now listen, descendants of David. Have you not been satisfied trying the patience of people, that you also try the patience of my God?”
“Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign : The Virgin is with Child and bears a Son and calls His Name, Immanuel. Devise a plan and it will be thwarted, make a resolve and it will not stand, for God-is-with-us.”
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we continue to rejoice in the Easter celebrations, let us all heed the words of the Scripture, reminding us that God’s love for all those who are faithful to Him will keep all of us safe from all harm and troubles, and no enemy is going to be able to threaten us or harm us if we put our full trust in the Lord our God.
In this Easter season we all rejoice together celebrating the triumph that our Lord had shown us against the forces of evil and darkness, the triumph and victory He had shown us all against sin and against death, as He proved that mankind has a way out of their enslavement to sin, and they do not need to fear sin and death, for the Lord Himself had shown them His care and love, and through Him, they have hope for a new life renewed in grace.
But alas, it is mankind themselves who refused to listen to reason and refused to accept God’s offer of grace and forgiveness. They refused to open themselves and allow God to come in and transform them for the better. They shut themselves out of God’s love and tender mercy, and instead in their pride and arrogance, they thought that only their ways were correct.
That was why the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law refused to listen to the Lord and His truth, and even after He had suffered, died and risen to glory, they refused to accept the truth that He is the Lord, the Messiah, the Saviour of all, even the Saviour of all of them, all who have rejected Him. Remember, that on the cross, Jesus prayed for those who have condemned them to death? He has forgiven them from their sins, and even to those sinful people, He has offered His salvation and redemption.
And yet, they were adamant in their refusal. Why was it so, brothers and sisters in Christ? Why did the Pharisees, the elders and the chief priests persisted in their futile and wicked attempts to oppose Jesus, so far as to tell lies and falsehoods to the people, telling them that the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ was false? Should they not instead then believe in Him Who had shown everything just as they had been foretold by the prophets?
No, that was not the case because of their attachment to worldliness and human greed, the temptations of power, glory, fame and majesty, the allures of human praises and the temptations of things that please the flesh. They were highly respected in the society, and they held important positions of power and honour. To give all these up by abandoning all of their old, worldly ways to follow Jesus the Lord in all things were simply too much for most of them.
They were jealous of the Lord and His teaching authority, and of the truth which He was preaching to the people of God. They saw Him as a great and dangerous rival to their own influences, to their own fame and positions, and as they were so attached to all those, they were unwilling to let them go, and thus they persisted in resisting the Lord’s good works and set obstacles in His paths.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we hear all these things today, let us then ask ourselves. Are we like the Pharisees, the elders and the chief priests? Did we allow our worldly attachments to dull our love and commitment to God and His ways? Did we allow ourselves to be taken over by our greed, our pride, arrogance, haughtiness, and all the vices and wickedness in our hearts, by jealousy and hatred?
Let us all dedicate the time and opportunities given to us this Easter in order to push ourselves ever further on the path towards eternal salvation, and let us all seek to resist the temptations of our flesh, telling no to Satan and reject all of his evil and wicked advances. Let us all pray, that God will strengthen our faith and our resolve, to become ever more faithful and devoted in His presence. God bless us all. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
Matthew 28 : 8-15
At that time, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary left the tomb at once in fear, yet with great joy, and they ran to tell the news to Jesus’ disciples. Suddenly, He met them on the way and said, “Rejoice!” The women approached Him, embraced His feet and worshipped Him. But Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid! Go and tell My brothers to set out for Galilee; there they will see Me.”
While the women were on their way, the guards returned to the city, and some of them reported to the chief priests all that had happened. The chief priests met with the elders, and decided to give the soldiers a large sum of money, with this instruction, “Say that His disciples came by night while you were asleep, and stole the Body of Jesus. If Pilate comes to know of this, we will explain the situation and keep you out of trouble.”
The soldiers accepted the money and did as they were told. This story has circulated among the Jews until this day.
Liturgical Colour : White
Psalm 15 : 1-2a and 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11
Keep me safe, o God, for in You I take refuge. I say to the Lord, “O Lord, my inheritance and my cup, my chosen portion – hold secure my lot.”
I bless the Lord Who counsels me; even at night my inmost self instructs me. I keep the Lord always before me; for with Him at my right hand, I will never be shaken.
My heart, therefore, exults, my soul rejoices; my body too will rest assured. For You will not abandon my soul to the grave, nor will You suffer Your Holy One to see decay in the land of the dead.
You will show me the path of life, in Your presence the fullness of joy, at Your right hand happiness forever.
