Monday

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Monday, 16 October 2023 : 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 Holy 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 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, 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 as we listened to the words of the Lord, we are all called and reminded to be loving and kind towards our fellow brethren, as each and every one of us as Christians have to emulate the Lord’s ways and His loving examples, His Law and commandments, in all of our way of life, words, actions and deeds. All of us must do what the Lord has called all of us to do, in our best way, in whatever ways He has taught and entrusted to us, as the ones whom He had called, chosen and revealed His intentions and ways to, in all of our actions and ways throughout this world. All of us should not be ignorant or idle in what we are expected to do, in reaching out to our fellow brothers and sisters, with great love and compassion.

In our first reading, we heard from the Book of the prophet Jonah about the calling and mission which God had entrusted to Jonah, as God told Jonah to go forth to the great city of Nineveh, which was then the capital and great city of the mighty and powerful Assyrian Empire. Contextually, by that time, the Assyrians had rose to power and conquered many nations, and the prophet Jonah lived and was called by God during this period of the Assyrians’ rise to power, about seven or eight centuries before the birth of Christ. At that time, the Assyrians were known for their power, but they had also risen to power amidst a lot of bloodshed and evil deeds, destroying many people and cities, killing countless thousands, tens of thousands and more during their many wars and conquests.

Hence, the Lord was sending Jonah to the people and city of Nineveh, to the Assyrians, their king and nobles in order to warn them of their impending destruction because of their own evil and wicked deeds. The Lord is Lord and God over all the whole world, and not only over the Israelites, His chosen people, only. Hence, just as the Israelites had suffered the consequences of their disobedience, sins and wickedness, thus, the Assyrians would also face similar consequences, just as how the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah in the ancient past, according to the Scriptures, were destroyed by God when their wickedness were truly great and vile. That was how most of the people during the time of Noah were destroyed by the Great Flood, save for that of Noah and his own family, the only ones that remained righteous among mankind.

All these reminded us first of all that God wants us all, His creation, to be truly virtuous, good and free from sin and evil. Sin comes from our disobedience against God, His will, Law and commandments, and through sin, corruption and wickedness come into us, and we will have to face the consequences for sins and all the evils and wicked deeds we have done in our lives. But, just as we have heard how God sent His prophet Jonah to the people of Nineveh, and how He has also sent many other prophets like Isaiah, Elisha, Isaiah and others to His people in both the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, to point out to them their sins and wickedness, and to help guide them to the right path, we can see that God truly loves us all, and what He despises is not us, but rather our sins and wickedness.

This is also where, the contrast between the attitude of the people of Nineveh and those of God’s chosen people, the Israelites can be clearly seen. The people of Nineveh, if we read on further in the accounts from the Book of the prophet Jonah, actually listened to the Lord and heeded Jonah’s warning and proclamation of their doom with repentance and true regret for their wickedness and sins, as the whole entire city, from the king right to the lowest among the people all publicly showed their repentance, wearing sackcloth and declaring fasting and regret over their sins. On the contrary, the people of Israel kept on hardening their hearts and refusing to believe in God, despite repeated reminders, omens and all the punishments that they had all suffered.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the famous parable of the Good Samaritan being told by the Lord to His disciples and followers. The Good Samaritan refers to the Samaritan who bothered to stop by a Jew who was assaulted by robbers on his way to Jericho, when a Levite and a priest each refused to help the injured man. Back then, the Samaritans were hated and despised by the Jewish people, and they were seen by the latter as those who had adopted the heretical and mistaken beliefs incompatible to the version of faith held and preserved by the Jewish people and elders. This came about because the Samaritans were descended from the mixture of the people living in the northern regions of the northern kingdom of Israel, that had been destroyed by the same Assyrians mentioned earlier, and intermingled with the foreigners and other peoples brought in by the Assyrians.

As such, the disagreements and the misunderstandings that existed between both peoples led to the bitter divisions and prejudices between both communities. The Samaritans were despised and hated by the Jews, and were treated no better than pagans and foreigners, or even worse than those, even when the Samaritans actually worshipped the same Lord and God as the Jewish people. But as we heard from the parable, the despised and hated Samaritan was the one who actually had pity on the injured Jewish man, while ironically the Levite and the priest, who were both highly respected and esteemed among the Jewish community, did not even stop to help their own fellow countrymen, as they would have been expected to. They did not even show any care or even bothered to stop.

On the contrary, the Good Samaritan not only stopped by and helped the injured man, but he even took good care of him and paid all the expenses for the injured man and told the innkeeper to settle everything for him, to make sure that he fully recovered, and paid for everything with bonus added. He truly had gone the extra mile with his care and compassion, and through this story, we are all first of all reminded that we must not be prejudiced or biased against anyone simply because of their backgrounds or due to our preconceived notions or often flawed understanding of others. We must always remember that each and every one of us are equally beloved by God, and that everyone has the opportunity and the potential to be like the saints, to be reconciled fully with God and to be filled once again with God’s grace.

What matters now is for us to embrace God’s call and answer Him with faith. We should not be like Jonah, who ignored the Lord’s call and even tried to flee from the Lord, in ignoring the mission which God has entrusted to him. Neither should we be like the priest and the Levite in the parable of the Good Samaritan, who have ignored the pleas and the need of the injured man. Instead, we should enthusiastically and courageously answer God’s call with dedication, just as what the Good Samaritan himself had done. We should always carry ourselves with commitment and faith, and with the genuine desire to love the Lord as well as our fellow brothers and sisters, all around us. Thus, we should also be inspired by the great examples set by our holy predecessors, the saints and martyrs, so that we too can live lives that are truly worthy of God.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Denis and his companions in martyrdom, as well as that of St. John Leonardi, a devout man of God and priest, the founder of the Order of Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca. First of all, St. Denis was the Bishop of Paris during the middle of the third century, in which he was remembered for his most miraculous martyrdom among with many others, who were oppressed and martyred during the intense persecution of Christians by the Roman Emperor Decius. St. Denis was arrested and tortured after his efforts in converting many pagans made many pagan priests and officials to be afraid of them, and he and others were brought to a hill where they were executed, with St. Denis being beheaded. However, miraculously, St. Denis still continued to preach while his head had been severed from his body, walking for a few miles before he finally died at the site where a great Basilica in his honour stands now. Not few were converted to the faith by this miraculous occasion.

St. John Leonardi meanwhile was a priest in what is now Italy, who answered God’s call for him to be a priest, and to serve among the people of God, ministering to their spiritual needs, while spreading the devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the popular Forty Hours devotion, which were instrumental in checking the growth of the heresy of Protestant reformation at that time. He helped spreading the reforms of the Council of Trent, and established the aforementioned Order of Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca. He did not have it easy as he encountered opposition and challenges from those who were politically motivated back then in opposing the establishment of the new religious order, known well as the Lucca Fathers. Nevertheless, St. John Leonardi continued to do his best in doing God’s work among His people.

May the Lord continue to guide and strengthen us in all things, so that we may be inspired and encouraged to follow in the footsteps of our holy predecessors, the saints and martyrs, particularly those of St. Denis and his companions in holy martyrdom, and also the commitment and faith shown by St. John Leonardi. Let us all continue to strengthen and deepen our faith in each and every opportunities provided for us, and draw ever closer to the Lord, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 9 October 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, 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 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, 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 2023 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop and Martyr, 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 did, 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 2023 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Holy Guardian Angels, commemorating all the Angels that God has placed in our midst, guarding each and every one of us. The Holy Guardian Angels protected all of us from the constant attacks and assaults by the forces of evil, from Satan and all of his fellow fallen angels, demons and evil spirits, who are all hell-bent on bringing about our destruction and downfall. They watched over us and kept us on the right path of God, whispering to us God’s words and reminders, whenever temptations come to our way, and whenever the devil and his forces came to tempt and mislead us down the wrong paths in life. They truly guarded us and kept us safe each day and every moments of our lives.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Exodus in which the Lord reassured all of His people of His continued guidance and protection as they journeyed towards the land that He has promised to them and to their ancestors. Back then, the people of Israel had been taken out of the land of Egypt by the Lord Himself, Who sent Moses, His servant to carry out His will and to help lead His people out of their slavery in Egypt. He showed all of them His power and providence, having smittened Egypt and its Pharaoh, its armies and chariots under His might, crushing them with the Ten Great Plagues and other signs, and with a pillar of fire and a pillar of cloud leading the people on their journey towards the Promised Land.

This supernatural presence of the pillar of fire at night and the pillar of cloud at day represents God having been ever present among His people, and how He has set and sent His Angel to be with them, to guard them and to go ahead of them on their journey, clearing their path and way before them. This is what the Lord assured them all as we heard in our first reading passage today from the Book of Exodus. The Lord reassured the people that His Guardian Angels are always ever ready to stand by them, to guard and protect them, showing the protection, love and grace of God, ever generously shown and manifested to His beloved ones, and the Lord would go on to send His Angels to help guard and protect the Israelites throughout their long journey and detour in the desert for the whole forty years and afterwards, during the time when they conquered the Promised Land for themselves.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the words of the Lord speaking to His disciples and all the people assembled, while He was speaking and interacting with the young children who came to Him, seeking Him and loving Him. He told each and every one of them that He welcomed and desired children to be in His Presence and to come towards Him, telling them all that their faith and love for Him should indeed be like those children, or else, they cannot come close to the Lord. Why is that so? That is because the faith of those young children are indeed genuine and pure, being innocent and untainted they still are, by the vile things and wickedness of the world. When such a young child believes in something, he or she will truly believe it with all of his or her heart.

That is why, all of us should also heed the Lord’s words and reminders, for us to follow the Lord wholeheartedly and with great and genuine faith. Each and every one of us should do our best so that we may indeed live in the path that the Lord has set before us, striving to be true and committed Christians, in all things and at all opportunities. All of us should do our best to inspire all around us with our actions and way of life, that our lives, actions and works should be truly devout and committed to God, and that we may show the love and truth of God through each and every small little things that we do, and in whatever we say and how we interact with each other. We should always strive to do God’s will in all opportunities and to obey Him wholeheartedly in all our hearts.

In relation to our Holy Guardian Angels, let us all heed their reminders and words in our hearts and minds, as they ceaselessly protected us against all the harm coming from the devil and all of his wicked forces, desiring our downfall and destruction. Let us all be reminded and be turned from our evil, wicked and disobedient ways, heeding our Guardian Angels instead of the lies and the falsehoods spread by the ones who tried to tempt us away from the path of God and His salvation and grace. Let us all strive to keep ourselves blameless and free from those evil and wicked things, and resist the many temptations that may undermine our faith and distract or prevent us from truly being able to be faithful to the Lord in all of our ways.

Let us all be thankful to our Holy Guardian Angels, and let us all remember how they constantly and ceaselessly stood guard by our side, at all times, be it when we are awake or when we are asleep, or be it when we are happy or when we are sad and sorrowful. Let us remember the care and love which each and every one of our Guardian Angels have shown us, and be touched by their dedication and love, so that we ourselves may also strive to be truly faithful and loving towards the Lord, our God, Who has sent us these Holy Angels to be with us, to protect us and care for us, in their own way, from the invisible harm by those who sought our destruction and downfall. Let us all deepen our love for the Lord and be ever more faithful to Him.

Let us now pray the prayer to our Holy Guardian Angels, asking them to intercede for us always in our daily struggles in life. Angel of God, my guardian dear, to whom God’s love commits me here, ever this day be at my side, to light and guard, to rule and guide. Amen.

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Monday, 2 October 2023 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 18 : 1-5, 10

At that time, the disciples came to Jesus and asked Him, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

Then Jesus called a little child, set the child in the midst of the disciples, and said, “I assure you, that, unless you change, and become like little children, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble, like this child, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, and whoever receives such a child, in My Name, receives Me.”

“See that you do not despise any of these little ones; for I tell you, their Angels in heaven continually see the face of My heavenly Father.”

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Monday, 2 October 2023 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 90 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 10-11

You, who dwell in the shelter of the Most High, who rest in the shadow of the Almighty, say to YHVH, “My Stronghold, my Refuge, my God in Whom I trust!”

He will rescue you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His pinions and give you refuge under His wings.

You shall not fear the terror of the night nor the arrows that fly by day, nor the pestilence that stalks by night, and the plague that destroys at noonday.

No harm will come upon you; no disaster will draw near your home. For He will command His Angels to guard you in all your ways.

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Monday, 2 October 2023 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Exodus 23 : 20-23

See, I am sending an Angel before you to keep you safe on the way and bring you to the place I have made ready. Be on your guard in his presence and listen to him; do not resist him for he will not pardon your wrongdoing, for My Name is in him.

If you listen to him and do what I say, I will be the enemy to your enemies and the opponent of your opponents. My Angel will go before you and bring you to the land of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hivites and the Jebusites; all these I will destroy.

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Monday, 25 September 2023 : 25th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the grace and love of God, by which He has rescued and saved His wayward people, that despite of their constant and persistent rebelliousness and wicked actions, in disobeying Him and refusing to listen to Him and His Law and commandments, but God still cared for them all nonetheless and promised them His salvation and help, the promise that He has always fulfilled, again and again, from time to time as He continued to love them all patiently in each and every moments throughout history. And He has given us His Law and precepts so that all of us may know His ways and grow to love Him more and more, and be more committed to Him, in all things.

In our first reading today, we heard of the story of the liberation and emancipation of the Israelites from their exile in the distant lands of Babylon, after a period of approximately seventy years or several decades, that they were finally allowed to return back to their own homeland, the lands that the Lord had promised to their ancestors and to them. The Lord moved the heart and mind of King Cyrus of Persia, who had crushed the Babylonians and other rulers, to become the supreme ruler of much of the lands. The enlightened Cyrus declared the liberation of the people who have lived in bondage and exile, and allowed the Israelites in particular to return back to their own homeland, and to rebuild their homes, as well as the Temple and House of God in Jerusalem.

The people of Israel had been uprooted from their lands, firstly by the Assyrians who destroyed the northern kingdom of Israel, and then later the Babylonians who destroyed the southern kingdom of Judah, completing the desolation and humiliation of those who have rejected and abandoned God for the worship of pagan idols and false gods, because they have not been obedient to God and to His Law and commandments, having persecuted and oppressed the prophets and messengers sent into their midst in order to help and remind them, to guide them and to accommodate them to find the right path towards God. Instead, their persistence in disobeying God had led them to their downfall and destruction, humiliation and defeat. And yet, God did not let them to be wholly destroyed because ultimately, He still loved them.

That was how He emancipated and helped them, freeing them through the words and hands of Cyrus, King of Persia, that they might once again return to their lands and live once again the grace and love of God. He would not abandon them, and kept on guiding and helping them throughout the journey, and eventually fulfilled His promises to them, of salvation and deliverance which He provided to them through the coming of His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of all, into this world, to our midst. He came revealing to us the fullness of God’s love and care for each one of us, calling us all to follow Him and to put our trust in Him once again, so that we may truly break free from the chains of sin and darkness that had oppressed us.

That is why we heard in our Gospel passage today in which the Lord told His disciples and the people listening to Him to put the light on the lampstand in the well-known parable, in which the lampstand refers to the prominence that the light should have been placed in so that the light may illuminate the whole entire room. This light represents the truth, love and grace of God, which He Himself has bestowed upon us and blessed us all with. And in all of us, we have to put these gifts of our faith and everything that God has blessed us with, with great confidence and trust in God, in our own lives, in how we carry ourselves and do our parts in doing God’s works and in obeying Him, His Law and commandments. The Lord has reminded us all that to be His disciples, we must be truly faithful and committed to Him.

This means that our faith cannot be one of merely empty proclamations and creed. We cannot just be idle in how we live our faith, but we have to be truly committed, in all things, in all aspects and areas of our lives, by doing whatever we can, even in the seemingly least significant things, so that we may truly embody our faith and beliefs in all things, and that everyone who witness our lives and works, and interact with us may come to know God and His truth by our examples and inspirations. This is what each and every one of us have been called to do, and this is what all of us should keep on reminding ourselves each day, so that by our lives and commitment to God, we may be true people of God, those who walk ever more faithfully in His path, and becoming the source of His light to others in this world darkened by sin.

Let us all therefore commit ourselves from now on, if we have not yet done so, to do God’s will and to obey His Law and commandments, to love God with all of our heart and mind, with all our strength and capabilities, and with all of our whole being. Let us all also be loving and forgiving, compassionate and kind to our fellow brothers and sisters, in fulfilling and obeying everything that He had given to us and provided for us. Let us not be disheartened or be tempted to do otherwise, but keep on striving to do what God has taught us to do, in every aspects and in every moments of our lives. Let us all be great and faithful disciples of the Lord, with hearts and minds ever focused and directed towards Him at all times.

May God be with us always and may He always bless us, in each and every one of our endeavours. May He empower us always in living our lives as exemplary Christians, in all things that we say and do, now and always, forevermore. Amen.