Monday

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Monday, 29 April 2024 : 5th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Catherine of Siena, Virgin and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 14 : 5-18

A move was made by pagans and Jews, together with their leaders, to harm the Apostles and to stone them. But Paul and Barnabas learnt of this and fled to Lycaonian towns of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding countryside, where they continued preaching the Good News.

Paul and Barnabas spent a fairly long time at Lystra. There was a crippled man in Lystra who had never been able to stand or walk. One day, as he was listening to the preaching, Paul looked intently at him and saw that he had the faith to be saved. So he spoke to him in a loud voice, “In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I command you to stand up on your feet!” And the man stood up and began to walk around.

When the people saw what Paul had done, they cried out in the language of Lycaonia, “The gods have come to us in human likeness!” They named Barnabas Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes, since he was the chief speaker. Even the priest of the Temple of Zeus, which stood outside the town, brought oxen and garlands to the gate; together with the people, he wanted to offer sacrifice to them.

When Barnabas and Paul heard this, they tore their garment to show their indignation and rushed into the crowd, shouting, “Friends, why are you doing this? We are human beings with the same weakness you have and we are now telling you to turn away from these useless things to the living God Who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and all that is in them.”

“In past generations He allowed each nation to go its own way, though He never stopped making Himself known; for He is continually doing good, giving you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, providing you with food and filling your hearts with gladness.”

Even these words could hardly keep the crowd from offering sacrifice to them.

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Monday, 22 April 2024 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded that we must always follow the path and way set by the Lord, our loving God and Good Shepherd, and we must not allow ourselves to be easily swayed and tempted by all sorts of worldly temptations and evils, by those desires which may lead us astray into the wrong path, because we trusted more in our own intellect, power and abilities rather than to trust in the Lord and in what He has provided, revealed and explained to us, in all the guidance and path that He has shown us. As Christians, we should always be strongly rooted in faith, in our commitment and dedication to God, at all times.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles, where St. Peter the Apostle was speaking to the assembly of the faithful people of God, which included converts from various origins, from among the Jewish people and also from others, like the Gentiles or the non-Jewish peoples, the Greeks, Romans and many other nationalities who have come to embrace the Christian faith. At that time, the Church was increasingly being divided alongside the differences in practices that each converts from certain communities brought with them, including the linguistic differences and obstacles, as well as the misunderstandings between the Jewish and Gentile communities among the first Christians that almost tore the Church apart.

That was because some among the Jewish converts came from the group of the Pharisees who were well known for their very strict and rigid interpretation of the Law of God, and who continued to live in accordance with their Jewish customs and practices, especially in the manner how they lived as the Pharisees, in being extraordinarily rigorous on the application and enforcement of the Law. And this was extended to the point that even they made efforts to impose these practices, customs and rules upon the new converts to the Christian faith from among the non-Jewish people, or the Gentiles. Quite a number of those rules and practices were problematic and difficult to be practiced by the faithful, but even more so for those who hailed from the non-Jewish populations.

This was because certain practices such as circumcision which was mandatory according to the Jewish customs and practices, was seen as abhorrent and disgusting by the non-Jewish people, particularly by the Greeks and the Romans. Similarly, the strict dietary restrictions and rules practiced by the Jews, especially by the Pharisees might make it difficult for the non-Jewish converts to the faith to live their lives or carry out their livelihood. Therefore, enforcing the full Jewish customs and practices upon all the newly converted Christians from non-Jewish backgrounds is something that the Church decided from early on as something that should not be done. As St. Peter himself made it clear in his explanation, that God revealed to him through the vision he received and the experiences he had with the family of Cornelius, a convert Christian from non-Jewish origin, that the old Jewish customs should not be enforced anymore.

Instead, from then on, based on what the Lord Himself had taught the disciples and revealed to His Church through the Holy Spirit and other revelations, new set of rules that were attuned to the true intention and purpose of God’s Law that Christ Himself had purified and reemphasised, have been given to us all, through the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, which we are all members and parts of. The Lord wanted all of us to follow these instead of the unnecessarily rigorous and strict observances of the Jewish laws and customs, which led to a lot of hardships and difficulties by the people of God when they were burdened greatly by those rules and laws which made it especially difficult for the non-Jewish people to come towards the Lord and His salvation.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the continuation from the Gospel of St. John of the discourse on the Good Shepherd by the Lord Jesus to His disciples and followers. In that discourse we heard today, we are reminded by the Lord Himself that He, as the Good Shepherd, is the One to Whom all the sheep should go towards, just as He also compared to Himself as the Gate of the sheep. He mentioned that how the thieves and robbers would use other means rather than the gate to enter into the sheep’s compound and place, to cause harm to them and to take the sheep away from the flock. Meanwhile, the sheep also would not hearken or respond to the call of the thieves and the robbers, or the false shepherds, as the sheep of the flock respond only to their one true shepherd.

This is actually an important reminder for all of us that Christ, Our Lord, the Good Shepherd of all the faithful, is the One and only One Whom all the Lord’s flock, that is all of us, should be following and focusing our attention upon. Unfortunately, in this world, there are many of those who claim to know better and spread false teachings and ways, which are contrary to the way that the Lord, our Good Shepherd had shown and taught us. This can be compared to the actions of some of the Pharisees among the early Christians who attempted to spread and enforce the full, strict and extra-rigorous Jewish customs, practices and rules upon all the Christians. But the Lord helped to guide His Church through those shepherds He had appointed, the Apostles and their successors, that just as St. Peter had done, he helped to steer the Church, the flock of the Lord down the right path.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, through today’s Scripture readings, we are all therefore reminded to focus our attention once again towards our Good Shepherd, our Lord and Saviour. We should heed His call and embrace His path, and we should be vigilant and careful lest the temptations and the allures of worldly glory, fame and all the falsehoods and lies around us, the paths shown by false leaders and false shepherds may end up leading us down the path of ruin and destruction. Let us all therefore seek to follow the Lord, our Good Shepherd ever more faithfully at all times, doing what He has called and entrusted to all to do in our respective parts and areas in life. May He continue to bless us all and guide us in our every good works, efforts and endeavours. Amen.

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Monday, 22 April 2024 : 4th Week of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 10 : 1-10

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly, I say to you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber. But the shepherd of the sheep enters by the gate. The keeper opens the gate to him and the sheep hear his voice; he calls each of his sheep by name and leads them out.”

“When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but rather they will run away from him, because they do not recognise a stranger’s voice.” Jesus used this comparison, but they did not understand what He was saying to them.

So Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, I am the Gate of the sheep. All who came were thieves and robbers, and the sheep did not hear them. I am the Gate. Whoever enters through Me will be saved; he will go in and out freely and find food. The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy, but I have come that they may have life, life in all its fullness.”

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Monday, 22 April 2024 : 4th Week of Easter (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 41 : 2-3 and Psalm 42 : 3, 4

As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for You, o God.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I go and see the face of God?

Send forth Your light and Your truth; let them be my guide, let them take me to Your holy mountain, to the place where You reside.

Then will I go to the Altar of God, to God, my gladness and delight. I will praise You with the lyre an harp, o God, my God.

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Monday, 22 April 2024 : 4th Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 11 : 1-18

News came to the Apostles and the brothers and sisters in Judea that even foreigners had received the Word of God. So, when Peter went up to Jerusalem, these Jewish believers began to argue with him, “You went to the home of uncircumcised people and ate with them!”

So Peter began to give them the facts as they had happened, “I was at prayer in the city of Joppa when, in a trance, I saw a vision. Something like a large sheet came down from the sky and drew near to me, landing on the ground by its four corners. As I stared at it, I saw four-legged creatures of the earth, wild beasts and reptiles, and birds of the sky.”

“Then I heard a voice saying to me : ‘Get up, Peter, kill and eat!’ I replied, ‘Certainly not, Lord! No common or unclean creature has ever entered my mouth.’ A second time the voice from the heavens spoke, ‘What God has made clean, you must not call unclean.’ This happened three times, and then it was all drawn up into the sky. At that moment three men, who had been sent to me from Caesarea, arrived at the house where we were staying.”

“The Spirit instructed me to go with them without hesitation; so these six brothers came along with me and we entered into the man’s house. He told us how he had seen an Angel standing in his house and telling him : ‘Send someone to Joppa and fetch Simon, also known as Peter. He will bring you a message by which you and all your household will be saved.”

“I had begun to address them when suddenly the Holy Spirit came upon them, just as it had come upon us at the beginning. Then I remembered what the Lord had said : ‘John baptised with water, but you shall be baptised with the Holy Spirit.’ If, then, God had given them the same gift that He had given us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to resist God?”

When they heard this they set their minds at rest and praised God saying, “Then God has granted life-giving repentance to the pagan nations as well.”

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Monday, 15 April 2024 : 3rd Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded through them of the important mission which we have as Christians, that is as God’s chosen and beloved people, as His disciples and followers, to proclaim Him in the midst of our communities and societies, in our various areas of commitment and lives, so that by our good and faithful living as well as by our dedication to the Lord, we may inspire more and more people to come to believe in the Lord as well. Each one of us have been entrusted with the unique mission and calling in our respective lives, so that by our lives we may truly proclaim the Risen Lord, His Good News and salvation to the whole world, and not to fear losing the glory and pleasures of the world.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles in which the story of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, the first martyr of the Church and one of the seven first deacons was told to us. St. Stephen had been appointed to minister to the people of God, the first and earliest Christian community as a deacon, one of the seven who were tasked with the distribution of the common communal goods and the care of the needs of the faithful. He proclaimed the Good News and salvation of God like those of the other Apostles and disciples of the Lord. St. Stephen was full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom of God, and through his works, he managed to convince many to follow the Lord and to turn towards the true faith. This brought about the ire and anger, jealousy and hatred from the Jewish authorities.

At that time, the Jewish authorities, many of the members of the Sanhedrin or the Jewish High Council opposed the Lord and His works, His teachings and truth, and they persecuted not just Him but also all of His disciples and followers who continued His works and proclaimed the truth in the many places all throughout the land. The Lord’s truth could not be silenced or kept on hold, and through His many disciples like that of St. Stephen, His works of salvation and the spreading of His truth continued quickly and unabated, with more and more becoming believers, embracing the truth of God, day after day. This led to desperate measures from the chief priests and the other members of the Sanhedrin who resorted to making and paying people to be false witnesses and utter lies and false accusations against St. Stephen.

Yet, as we heard in the despite their desperate efforts in trying to falsely accuse St. Stephen of blasphemy and sin against God, they could not stand against the truth and wisdom of God which St. Stephen brought against those who sought to slander and accuse him of misdeeds without firm evidence. The Holy Spirit guided and strengthened St. Stephen, gave him the strength, courage and wisdom to proclaim God’s truth and Good News, His revelation and truth against all those who were ganging up against him. The enemies of St. Stephen all were gathering up and trying very hard to discredit and defeat the arguments of St. Stephen, but they could not do so, no matter what they tried to do, and they still hardened their hearts and minds, refusing to believe in the truth and wisdom which St. Stephen had received from the Lord.

St. Stephen was eventually martyred by being stoned to death, but not before standing up firmly for his faith before the assembly of the members of the Sanhedrin, the powerful and influential members of the Jewish community. He remained adamant in his commitment, dedication and faith in God despite the challenges he faced, and the fact that everyone assembled was against him. He spoke with great vigour, empowered by the Holy Spirit, through which St. Stephen proclaimed the work of God’s salvation in the succeeding parts of this day’s passage from the Acts of the Apostles, showing how God had done His works among His people throughout all history from the very beginning, and culminating in the coming of the Saviour of the world, Jesus Christ, the Risen Lord Whom those same people persecuting St. Stephen had once persecuted and condemned to death. St. Stephen kept on proclaiming the truth of God right up to the very end.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the moment when many people came flocking to find the Lord after He had miraculously fed a whole multitude of five thousand men and many thousands more of women and children. The Lord told all of them that they were looking for Him because they were mesmerised at the miracle that they had witnessed, and how they all had their fill from all the bread and fishes that they had eaten and partaken. They therefore might not have sought the Lord out of true faith and desire to commit themselves to Him and His teachings, but rather because they sought comfort and satisfaction in life, that is the desire to seek worldly glory, pleasures and attachments, all of which were not what the Lord wanted to have in all of them. He told all of them were meant to come seeking the Lord and His truth, and to do what the Lord had called them to do, much as what St. Stephen had done.

Essentially it is an important reminder for each and every one of us that as Christians we must not allow the temptations and desires of the world to mislead us down the wrong path and to distract us from doing what we are all supposed to do, in serving the Lord faithfully at all times, and in living our lives in a most Christian manner. The Lord has shown us the way and has taught us, given us the Holy Spirit and His Wisdom to strengthen and guide us in our journey. Each and every one of us have been entrusted with the various gifts, blessings and missions for us to proclaim ever more the salvation and Good News of the Lord to more and more people. This is why all of us should always strive to do God’s will, to be ever faithful in all the things we say and do in every moments of our lives, and place the Lord as the focus and emphasis of our whole lives.

Let us all therefore walk in the path that St. Stephen, holy deacon and protomartyr of the Church has shown us. Let us all strive to proclaim God’s truth and salvation to more and more people by living holy and worthy existence, in all that we say and do. Let us all be truly genuine in our desire to love and serve the Lord, and be the shining beacons of God’s Light and truth amidst the darkness surrounding all of us in our world today. May the Risen Lord continue to be with us and be our source of Hope, strength and power as we continue to navigate the trials and difficulties present in each and every moments of our lives. May the courage of His servant, St. Stephen, his dedication unto the very end, be our inspiration at all times, and help us to draw ever closer to Him. Amen.

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Monday, 15 April 2024 : 3rd Week of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 6 : 22-29

At that time, the next day after Jesus fed the five thousand men, the people, who had stayed on the other side, realised that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not entered it with His disciples; but rather, the disciples had gone away alone.

Bigger boats from Tiberias came near the place where all these people had eaten the bread. When they saw that neither Jesus nor His disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. When they found Him on the other side of the lake, they asked Him, “Master, when did You come here?”

Jesus answered, “Truly, I say to you, you look for Me, not because of the signs which you have seen, but because you ate bread and were satisfied. Work then, not for perishable food, but for the lasting food which gives eternal life. The Son of Man will give it to you, for He is the One on Whom the Father has put His mark.”

Then the Jews asked Him, “What shall we do? What are the works that God wants us to do?” And Jesus answered them, “The work God wants is this : that you believe in the One Whom God has sent.”

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Monday, 15 April 2024 : 3rd Week of Easter (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

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.

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Monday, 15 April 2024 : 3rd Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

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.

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Monday, 8 April 2024 : Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today marks the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, marking the important moment when the Archangel Gabriel came from the Lord to Mary, who was to be the Mother of God, through her motherhood of the One Whom God had sent into this world to save all of us, that is His own Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, the Son of God and the Divine Word of God. This important event marked by today’s Solemnity happened exactly nine months before Christmas, which showed that this was the moment when the Lord, Our Saviour was conceived in the womb of Mary, His Mother.

Usually this Solemnity is celebrated each year on the twenty-fifth day of March, but as that date fell on the Monday of Holy Week earlier on, and the commemorations of both the Holy Week and the Easter Octave take priority over all other Solemnities and Feasts, therefore, this celebration of the Annunciation of the Lord is postponed this year to this day, the day after the Second Sunday of Easter, the Octave Day of Easter. Nonetheless, despite this change of dates, it does not diminish the importance of the event that we commemorate, as linking to what we are celebrating this Easter, it was all made possible by the acceptance of Mary of her crucial role in being the Mother of our God and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

The Annunciation of the Lord marks the moment when Mary received the Good News from the Archangel Gabriel, proclaiming to her the long awaited coming of God’s salvation to all mankind, that He would send into this world His own beloved and begotten Son, the Divine Word of God, Who would become incarnate in the flesh, becoming the Son of Man, through the role and intercession of Mary herself. This pivotal event is truly important because by her acceptance of the role entrusted to her by God through the Archangel Gabriel, Mary had made possible what seemed to be impossible, that God Himself would come in our form and nature of humanity, incarnate in this world, showing to us the perfection of His love manifested in all of His glory and yet made approachable to us.

As we compare the attitudes of King Ahaz of Judah and Mary, the Mother of God as highlighted in our Scripture readings today, we can clearly see the difference in their attitudes and response to the revelation of God which they received through the prophet Isaiah and the Archangel Gabriel respectively. While King Ahaz of Judah refused to believe in the Lord and did not trust or have genuine faith in Him, Mary submitted humbly and despite her uncertainties, she did not doubt the Lord’s providence and plans for her. Contextually, we must also understand that King Ahaz of Judah was counted among those many kings of Judah who were not faithful to God, in the way that they did not worship the Lord faithfully and led the people into sin by allowing or even promoting the worship of pagan gods and false idols.

When the prophet Isaiah asked the king for a sign, the king said that he would not ask or put the Lord to the test. Some might consider or perceive this as an act of humility, but if we understood his background and other actions, we will quickly realise that he was being a hypocrite in his action and response to God’s instructions. Through his failure to do what he had been expected to do in his own reign as king, he had tested the Lord many times and brought great misery and sufferings on God’s people because of his disobedience and wickedness. He did not refuse to ask of the Lord of any sign or wonders because he was humble, but rather because he did not truly believe in the Lord or did not want to bother with the matters pertaining to God, or that he did not trust that the Lord would actually do as He had said He would do.

On the contrary, Mary who was then just a young maiden, a young virgin who was still really young in age, chose to trust in the Lord wholeheartedly, and while she naturally was apprehensive given the breadth and scope of the mission and the responsibilities entrusted to her, to be the Mother of the Son of God Himself, and to be pregnant, bearing a Child when she was not even married yet, while she had already been betrothed to St. Joseph, her husband-to-be, but she still ultimately trusted the Lord with the words, ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be done unto me according to Your will.’ Mary embraced the Lord, His words and promises, His will and His desire for her to do as she had been entrusted to do, and hence, through her resounding and firm ‘Yes’ to the Lord, the work of God’s salvation has been made evident in this world, showing unto all of us the perfect example of obedience and faith.

God has given us all the free will and the freedom to choose our course of action in this life we have been given. Unfortunately, our ancestors beginning with Eve chose to disobey the Lord, listening to the lies and wickedness of Satan instead, and we allowed ourselves to be swayed by worldly temptations and glory, by the allure of pride and glory which had twisted our perception of the world, our existence and relationship with God. This is why we must not allow ourselves to be swayed by these temptations, or listen to the falsehoods and the lies of the devil, who had done in his every opportunities and capabilities to try to mislead us down the path towards our downfall. Instead, we should follow the good examples and inspiration set for us by Mary and her Son, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, Who as the New Eve and the New Adam, had undone the damage and the corruption done unto us by the original Eve and Adam.

That is why, on this great Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, we remember the role that Mary, the Mother of God, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, who has answered God’s call and mission with faithful and firm dedication, entrusting herself completely and wholly to the Lord. Her Son, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, has also shown perfect and complete obedience to the will of His Heavenly Father, embracing His Cross, bearing willingly all the weight and burdens of our many and innumerable sins, wickedness and evils, so that through Him, His obedience and love for all of us. by dying on the Cross for us at Calvary, we may receive the hope of salvation and eternal life, liberation and freedom from the tyranny and bondage of sin, from the power of death and destruction, which He has done through His glorious and triumphant Resurrection from the dead.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, as we celebrate this day with great joy, marking the moment when the Salvation of God entered into this world and become incarnate in the womb of Mary, the Mother of God, let us all recall the salvation which Our Risen Lord has brought unto us, and which we rejoice and celebrate this season and time of Easter. Let us all follow the faith and dedication of Mary, His Mother, and strive to do the will of God at all times. May the Risen Lord be with us all, and may He guide us all in our journey of faith. May His Blessed Mother continue to pray and intercede for us, at all times. Amen.