Monday

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Monday, 20 July 2015 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Apollinaris, Bishop and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard the Scripture readings which all talked about one main thing, that is how we all often doubt and do not trust in the power of the Lord which He had shown clearly by signs and even miracles. In the first reading from the Book of Exodus, we see how the people of Israel trembled at the sight of the Egyptians and their chariots chasing after them at the edge of the Red Sea, but Moses reassured them of God’s strength and protection.

In the Gospel, we see also how the people keep asking Jesus for miracles and signs as a proof that He is indeed the Messiah, the Holy One of God promised to come and rescue all of them and bring them into glory. But Jesus rebuked them for their unbelief and lack of faith. These people was truly ignorant and adamant in the heart, stubborn in mind and refused to believe in what they have witnessed in Christ.

The same too often happen to us, as we often fail to see that in many things that God had done for us, we do not recognise His great works being done for our benefit. When we encounter difficulties, challenges and times of trouble, we are often quick to give up and despair, and we often like to complain that no one cares about us, and we complain that the Lord did not do anything to help us. But do we truly know what God has done for us?

What Jesus told the rebellious people was in itself the essence of what God had done for us all mankind. He has led us all His people to safety in the midst of danger, fed us and provided everything we need when we were hungry, thirsty or in need. He rescued us from the darkness and brought us back to the light. And all these He had done even though we often doubted Him, complained about Him and refused to listen to Him.

We are people who are easily awed by miracles and wonders. This is because we have no faith in the Lord and neither in ourselves. We are so doubtful and we allowed fear and uncertainty to fill our hearts and this is why we often act like the Israelites of old. They worried and lacked faith in God, fearing the chariots of Egypt over the power of their Lord who had shown His might through the ten plagues He had sent against the Egyptians.

Jesus told the people how the only sign they will see is the sign of Jonah, of the prophet who went into the belly of a giant fish for a whole three days and three nights, in which He was in fact referring to the very sign that He would show, as a concrete and undeniable proof of God’s infinite and undying love for all of us. That sign is His suffering, death and resurrection from the dead.

Jesus suffered for our sake, our own Lord being scourged and rejected for our own sins, and He died on the cross bearing the punishments and consequences for our faults, and for three days He laid in the earth, descending into hell to free all the captive souls of mankind who were righteous and just, and bring them into the light. Those souls have waited a very long time for the day of salvation, and at that moment, the feeling of joy is indeed the same as the moment when God split open the Red Sea to let His people pass through it to freedom from the Pharaoh’s Army.

Therefore, all of us ought to realise how much God had done for our sake, even though sometimes we may not realise it. He has given us so much opportunity, hope, and goodness that if we still do not have faith in Him, then we are truly blind in our hearts, and we will be counted among those faithless ones of Israel, who during their sojourn in the desert constantly complained and disobeyed the Lord, complaining that God had not done enough for them even though He had given them so much and provided for them.

Can we show gratitude and thanks to our Lord who had done so much for us? We should be thankful that He has blessed us with so much graces that we have enjoyed them so much and benefitted so much. Yet we often act like spoilt children who enjoyed the goods but then do not give proper thanks and gratitude to the one who made it all possible for us.

Perhaps the example of St. Apollinaris, the saint whose feast we are celebrating today can be an inspiration to all of us on how to live our lives faithfully to God. St. Apollinaris, also known as St. Apollinaris of Ravenna was a bishop of that city of Ravenna during the years of the Roman Empire at a time when being a Christian equals a death penalty if discovered by the state.

It was there that St. Apollinaris devoted himself to the flock which had been entrusted to him as shepherd. He and his flock were constantly threatened and persecuted by the Roman Emperors and authorities who hounded them from place to place and even sent them into exile at times. And yet, despite the challenges and difficulties, St. Apollinaris and his followers did not give up and remain faithful to the Lord.

Even in the face of martyrdom and suffering, St. Apollinaris and many others of his fellow contemporaries continued to place their faith in the Lord, for they knew that God was with them, and that no matter what the world threw at them or threatened them with, these ultimately had no power over them. We have to be mindful of what the Lord Himself said that we should not fear those who have no power to destroy our soul, for it is God Himself and only He alone has that power and authority to destroy us if we prove to be an unrepentant and stubborn person.

Based on the examples of St. Apollinaris and the other holy men and women throughout the ages, shall we all reflect on our own actions and deeds? Shall we all look once again at how we have lived our lives? Have we been faithful and obedient to God, putting our trust in Him and be thankful of what He had done for us? Or have we been unrepentant and rebellious, and not realising all the good things He had done for us? If we are truly faithful, no matter times of joy or times of difficulty, we will still be devoted to Him.

May Almighty God our Father awaken in all of us the ability to realise how much He has blessed us and helped us in this life. And may He also strengthen in all of us the love which we all ought to have for Him. May the Lord bless us and keep us in His love forever, now and until eternity. God be with us all. Amen.

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Monday, 20 July 2015 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Apollinaris, Bishop and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Matthew 12 : 38-42

At that time, some teachers of the Law and some Pharisees spoke up, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” Jesus answered them, “An evil and unfaithful people want a sign, but no sign will be given them except the sign of the prophet Jonah. In the same way that Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so will the Son of Man spend three days and three nights in the depths of the earth.”

“At the judgment, the people of Nineveh will rise with this generation and condemn it, because they reformed their lives at the preaching of Jonah, and here there is greater than Jonah. At the judgment, the Queen of the South will stand up and condemn you. She came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon; and here there is greater than Solomon.”

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Monday, 20 July 2015 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Apollinaris, Bishop and Martyr (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Exodus 15 : 1bc-2, 3-4, 5-6

I will sing to YHVH, the Glorious One, horse and rider He has thrown into the sea. YHVH is my strength and my song, and He is my salvation. He is my God and I will praise Him; the God of my father : I will extol Him.

YHVH is a warrior; YHVH is His Name. The chariots of Pharaoh and his army He has hurled into the sea; his chosen officers were drowned in the Red Sea.

The deep covers them; they went down like a stone. Your hand, o YHVH, glorious and powerful, Your right hand, o YHVH, shatters the enemy.

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Monday, 20 July 2015 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Apollinaris, Bishop and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Exodus 14 : 5-18

The king of Egypt was told that the people had fled; then Pharaoh and his ministers changed their minds with regard to the people. “What have we done,” they said, “in allowing Israel to go and be free of our service?” Pharaoh prepared his chariot and took his army with him. There were six hundred of his best chariots; indeed he took all the Egyptian chariots, each one with his warriors.

YHVH had hardened the mind of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who set out in pursuit of the Israelites as they marched forth triumphantly. The Egyptians – all the chariots and horses of Pharaoh, his horsemen and his army – gave chase and caught up with them when they had encamped by the sea near Pihahiroth, facing Baalzephon.

The Israelites saw the Egyptians marching after them : Pharaoh was drawing near. They were terrified and cried out to YHVH. Then they said to Moses, “Were there no tombs in Egypt? Why have you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done by bringing us out of Egypt? Is this not what we said when we were in Egypt : Let us work for the Egyptians. Far better serve Egypt than to die in the desert!”

Moses said to the people, “Have no fear! Stay where you are and see the work YHVH will do to save you today. The Egyptians whom you see today, you will never see again! YHVH will fight for you and all you have to do is to keep still.”

YHVH said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. You will raise your staff and stretch your hand over the sea and divide it to let the Israelites go dryfoot through the sea. I will so harden the minds of the Egyptians that they will follow you. And I will have glory at the expense of Pharaoh, his army, his chariots and horsemen. The Egyptians will know that I am YHVH when I gain glory for Myself at the cost of Pharaoh and his army!”

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Monday, 13 July 2015 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Henry (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard about how the people of Israel in Egypt after the time of Joseph were mistreated and made into slaves. The Pharaoh or ruler of Egypt feared that these people who grew numerous and mighty him and his country, and thus he oppressed them and made them suffer. In this, as we compare to what Jesus had said in the Gospel, we can see indeed how conflict and clashes would come between the Lord and those who follow Him with the ways and norms of this world.

And as we see the conflict between the Egyptians and the Israelites, there would also conflict between us all who follow the ways of our Lord and those who follow the ways of this world. This is the fact which our Lord Jesus highlighted to His disciples and to all of us through them, that following Him and walking righteously in His path will not be an easy one. There will be plenty of challenges and difficulties awaiting us, as the conflict and clashes between our interests and ways will be our obstacles.

If we look at the history of the Church and our faith, then we will realise how in many occasions, for one to accept the faith and to believe in the Lord would often mean estrangement and opposition from one’s own family members and friends. Often many of the holy martyrs especially in the early years of the Church had to suffer martyrdom because they held fast to their faith despite the staunch opposition from their own families and friends.

That is because the way of the Lord is often opposed to the ways of the world, and for one to abandon the way of worldliness for the way which our Lord had taught us often mean for many, the estrangement from the norms of the society at large. And to many people who do not understand the way of God, it would indeed seem very strange that we would give ourselves and devote ourselves to this way.

This is just as the way of the world is selfishness, the way of the Lord is selflessness, and while the way of this world is materialism and consumerism, the way of our Lord is temperance and gratitude for whatever we have. While the world values appearances and human approval, the Lord values simplicity of heart and righteousness, and the courage to stand up for the truth, even when many others do not agree with us or approve what we are doing.

However, we have to take note that while the Lord Jesus Christ warned us about the conflict, clashes and confrontations that would come our way, it does not mean that we ought to go out there and purposely cause trouble for ourselves, inviting problems and dangers that may endanger those who are around us. Some of us may have misinterpreted the intentions of our Lord in this manner, as we may think that we have to confront the world actively and overpower it.

No, this rather means that we should be vigilant and be prepared that we may be ostracised, shunned, made an object of shame of, humiliated, or even tortured both physically and mentally by others, because of what we believe in. But do we then succumb and give up to the temptations and forces of the world? No, we must resist them. We must be courageous to stand up for our faith in the face of all these difficulties.

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Henry, also known as Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor, the sovereign Augustus and ruler of the revived Roman Empire in the west, God’s secular representative in the world. St. Henry II, was a great and benevolent Emperor, who led many of the faithful in the Empire, leading many other Christian nations at the time.

However, he also encountered many great challenges in his role as the paragon of faith and virtue. He combatted many forms of vices and excesses during his reign as Emperor, and he strengthened the Church and its many works by his tireless support of the Church and its activities, even though in many occasions he had to deal against the many people who opposed him and his reforms.

St. Henry was remembered for his upright actions and for his devotion to the Lord even though many people resisted and tried to undermine his works and reforms, for the good of the faithful, and even for the good of those who have resisted his works. Indeed, what he had done was a clear example of what we have just discussed this day. If we are truly faithful to the Lord, the path forward will not be easy, and challenges will surely come our way, but if we stay faithful to the end, our rewards in the Lord will be great indeed.

May the examples of St. Henry inspire us always and help us to be true to our faith and to defend it with all of our might. Let us show our faith in our actions, words and deeds, so that all who see us will know that we truly belong to the Lord. We have no need to fear anything for the Lord is with us, and whatever difficulties and challenges we will encounter, there will always be hope in the end, for the Lord will reward all those who keep their faith in Him even amidst persecution. God be with us all, and may He guide us in our way. Amen.

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Monday, 13 July 2015 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Henry (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White

Matthew 10 : 34 – Matthew 11 : 1

At that time, Jesus said to the Jews, “Do not think that I have come to establish peace on earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. Each one will have as enemies those of one’s own family.”

“Whoever loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And whoever loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And whoever does not take up his cross and come after Me is not worthy of Me. Whoever finds his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

“Whoever welcomes you welcomes Me, and whoever welcomes Me welcomes Him who sent Me. The one who welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive the reward of a prophet; the one who welcomes a just man, because he is a just man, will receive the reward of a just man. And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones, because he is My disciple, I assure you, he will not go unrewarded.”

When Jesus had finished giving His twelve disciples these instructions, He went on from there to teach and to proclaim His message in their towns.

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Monday, 13 July 2015 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Henry (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White

Psalm 123 : 1-3, 4-6, 7-8

Had not the Lord been on our side – let Israel say – had not the Lord been on our side, when people rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us alive; such was their anger against us.

A bit more and the flood would have engulfed us, the torrent would have swept over us, the raging waters would have swept us away. Blessed be the Lord, who did not let us be devoured.

Like a bird our soul escaped from the snare of the fowler; the snare was broken and we were freed. Our help is in the Name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

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Monday, 13 July 2015 : 15th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Henry (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White

Exodus 1 : 8-14, 22

Then a new king who had not know Joseph came to power and said to His people, “The Israelites are more numerous and stronger than we are. Let us deal warily with them lest they increase still more and, in case of war, side with our enemy, fight against us and escape from the land.”

So they set taskmasters over them to oppress them with forced labour. In that way they built the storage towns of Pithom and Rameses. But the more they oppressed the Hebrews the more they increased and spread, until the Egyptians dreaded the Israelites and became ruthless in making them work. They made life bitter for them in hard labour with bricks and mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields. In all their work the Egyptians treated them harshly.

Pharaoh then gave this order to all the people : “Every infant boy born to the Hebrews must be thrown into the Nile, but every girl may live.”

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Monday, 6 July 2015 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Maria Goretti, Virgin and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard about the richness of God’s tender mercy and love. God has always loved all of us from the depths of His heart, and His love and mercy is always available for us, if only that we are able to put forth the courage to go forth and seek Him with all of our hearts’ strength and might as well.

In the first reading today, we heard about how Jacob who escaped from the wrath of his brother, Esau, after he had stolen the birthright and the blessings which his father Isaac had intended for Esau, his elder brother. At a time when he encountered such great challenge and difficulty, and when his life was in great danger, when he was on the run, God appeared to him and affirmed him with His love and faithfulness.

He reaffirmed the covenant which He had established with Jacob’s grandfather, Abraham and which He had reaffirmed with Isaac, the father of Jacob. He assured Jacob that if he remained true and faithful to his part of the covenant, then his rewards will be rich, and through him, God would make true what He had promised through Abraham, that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the grains of sand on the seashore.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the same had also happened when the synagogue official had her daughter in suffering and sickness, on the verge of death, and when he went forth to see Jesus, he was reassured that because of his faith, his daughter would be safe and healed from whatever her issues were. And the woman with the bleeding issue also was healed by Jesus because of her faith in God, reaching out her hand to touch the cloak of Jesus.

God does not desire the destruction of His beloved ones, and He does not wish to punish us all because of all of our disobedience and sins, unless it is indeed truly necessary, such as when we refuse to repent and change our ways for the better, that is when we continue to live in our state of sin. It is we ourselves who have caused our own downfall and destruction, by our own stubbornness and inability to resist the temptations of the world.

The daughter of the synagogue official, who was gravely ill, the woman with bleeding issue, who suffered in great pain, and lastly, Jacob himself, the descendant of Abraham, who was in great distress and in the danger of death. All of them were in some sorts of dilemma and trouble, and they all represent us and our current state of sin, the sickness that afflicts the soul.

Do we realise that all of us are sick because of our sins? We may be perfectly healthy in terms of our physical bodies, our appearances and other physical parameters, but inside, many of us suffer from the sins that still dwell in us, plaguing us and keeping us from being truly worthy for the Lord our God. We are sick just as the people I have mentioned had their own troubles.

Then, we truly have to ask ourselves, what do we do then? Let the example of today’s saint be our inspiration. We celebrate today the feast of St. Maria Goretti, a martyr of the faith, a holy virgin and someone who was truly devoted to her faith in God, and someone who would not let the evils and the corruption of sin to taint her pure soul, leading to her martyrdom, but with a life that is truly pleasing to God.

St. Maria Goretti had always led a life faithful and devoted to the Lord, and she had always been charitable and loving towards others, and she devoted much of her time to the Lord, her God. One day, one of her neighbour’s son sought to commit sin with her through sexual harassment, and she refused him because doing so would taint her and him both with mortal sin.

Having been refused, the boy tried to rape her but he failed, and in his anger, he stabbed her many times, mortally wounding her. On her deathbed, St. Maria Goretti forgave her assailant, and she prayed for him and for his conversion to the way of the Lord, which he eventually did. The example of St. Maria Goretti, together with that of Jacob, his ancestor Abraham, as well as the other figures from the Gospel which we have mentioned, show us how we ought to live out our lives.

We have to stand up for our faith, and be truly devoted to Him in all of our ways. Let none of our ways be wicked and unfaithful before His presence, and let every things that we do, that we say, and that we have be pleasing to Him, and may all of us be able to seek Him with all of our hearts’ strength and commit ourselves fully to Him and walk faithfully in His ways. May God Almighty guide us on this path, and bless us always. Amen.

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Monday, 6 July 2015 : 14th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Maria Goretti, Virgin and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Matthew 9 : 18-26

At that time, while Jesus was speaking to the people, an official of the synagogue came up to Him, bowed before Him and said, “My daughter has just died, but come and place Your hands on her, and she will live.” Jesus stood up and followed him with His disciples.

Them a woman, who had suffered from a severe bleeding for twelve years, came up from behind and touched the edge of His cloak; for she thought, “If I only touch His cloak, I will be healed.” Jesus turned, saw her and said, “Courage, my daughter, your faith has saved you.” And from that moment the woman was cured.

When Jesus arrived at the official’s house and saw the flute players and the excited crowd, He said, “Get out of here! The girl is not dead. She is only sleeping!” And they laughed at Him. But once the crowd had been turned out, Jesus went in and took the girl by the hand, and she stood up. The news of this spread through the whole area.