Monday

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Monday, 5 June 2023 : 9th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us are reminded that as Christians, each and every one of us are to remain committed to the Lord, righteous and just, worthy in how we live our lives and in how we carry out our actions so that we may indeed live our lives in the manner that the Lord has always expected us all to live them, to be good role models and inspirations for one another in all things. The Lord has shown us through His servants and by His own examples what they and He Himself had done in glorifying God, contrasting these with those who had disobeyed the Lord for their own selfish desires and those who have given in to the worldly temptations, those who have wickedly carried out their lives and actions, refusing to listen to the Lord and those who have lived selfishly as the Lord highlighted in today’s Gospel passage.

In our first reading today from the Book of Tobit we heard the story of Tobit, an Israelite exile hailing from the tribe of Naphtali, which dwelled in the northern kingdom of Israel after it was separated from Judah under the House of David. Tobit and many others in the northern kingdom were carried off from their homeland by force through the conquest done by the Assyrians who have conquered their homeland and kingdom, destroyed their cities and towns, and then brought them away from their ancestral lands while bringing many other people from all parts of their Empire to dwell on those lands. Tobit and his family was therefore brought to the region of Assyria itself, around Nineveh, where they dwelled, and as we heard in our first reading today, life went on initially as rather normal for them, with Tobit continuing to carry out his life, supporting fellow Israelites in exile in their lives after they had left their homeland.

It was there and then that Tobit faced the harsh reality of the situation when he heard from his son Tobias that one of his fellow Israelites had been strangled and killed, which disturbed Tobit greatly. Tobit went on to bury the man and became distressed, having been a truly righteous and selfless man who had not placed himself and his own desires above that of the rest. We can see that Tobit was truly an upright and just man, who loved others just as much as himself, not caring even about his own reputation, safety and personal matters, and who was also faithful to God despite the faithlessness among most of the people of Israel that had led to them ending up in exile in the first place. Despite the ridicule and the contempt from his neighbours, Tobit still did what he had done because of his faith and principles.

Later on when he became blind by an unfortunate accident, Tobit remained faithful and trusting in God, and sending his own son Tobias to settle matters for his family, God would help them all and bless Tobit and his whole family if we continue to read on the rest of the story of Tobit and his son Tobias. This is a reminder that God never abandons His people, and for all those who are faithful to Him, God will always be with them, guiding them and providing them at the time of their need, giving them His help and assistance through His mysterious ways and at His appointed time, just as He did to Tobit and his family without them all realising at first. Then, linking to what we have heard in our Gospel passage today, we are reminded to be similarly upright in life, and not be like those wicked tenants who were selfish and who allowed themselves to be swayed by worldly temptations and greed.

In that Gospel passage, we heard of the Lord Jesus telling His disciples about this matter using a parable, namely the parable of the wicked and evil tenants. It was told that the tenants who had leased a vineyard and its plots from its owner had reneged on their dues and supposed pay for the lease, and they refused the efforts from the master of the vineyard to collect their due payment, even harassing, persecuting and murdering all those servants who had been sent to them to remind them. In the end, they did not even respect or listen to the son of the master who was sent to them, and in fact, they even plotted against him and had evil designs and wicked desires in their heart to seize full control of the vineyard for themselves. It was then that the master therefore struck at those evil tenants and destroyed them.

These are all reminders for us to stay upright in our lives as Tobit and others had done before us, and not to give in to the temptations of worldly desires and greed, all of which can lead us down the slippery slope of sin and evil, that will bring us to our downfall, if we are not vigilant and ever careful. All of us should do our best not to allow all these things to happen to us, and hence, that is why we are always reminded to keep an eye on our actions and way of life, and be willing to listen to the Lord speaking to us, reminding us in our path and journey in life so that we do not end up falling away from the path that He has shown us. We are reminded that we all should also be humble, humble in being able to listen to the words of the Lord speaking in our hearts and minds, guiding us to Himself. And besides that, we also have our holy predecessors, the saints whose lives may inspire us.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Boniface, a great bishop and martyr who had dedicated his life and all of his works for the greater glory of God. He was an English Benedictine monk who was especially remembered for his efforts in evangelising amongst the Germanic people in the northern parts of what is Germany today, proclaiming the Good News and salvation of God to many of the people there who still believed in pagan and false gods and beliefs. He was born in England to a rather prominent family and then against the wishes of his father, learnt theology and eventually became a monk and priest. St. Boniface was then appointed as a missionary to the region in northern part of Germany and what is today Netherlands known as Frisia. In his mission to Frisia, the Pope appointed him as a missionary bishop to establish the Church in that region and to convert the people there to the true faith.

In a story still well-remembered to this day, St. Boniface once persuaded many among the pagans as he chopped a great oak tree held sacred by the German pagans, who revered the tree and the spirits. Miraculously a great wind blew upon the oak tree and the whole tree fell down to the ground. Having witnessed the miracle and the fact how St. Boniface was not struck down by their gods and deities for such a supposedly sacrilegious act, many among the pagans believed in God and gave themselves to be baptised by St. Boniface and other missionaries. He went on to establish many churches and institutions in his mission areas, and continued to labour for the good of the Lord and His Church until eventually he was martyred when he and his entourage was beset by a group of Frisian bandits during his last missionary trip to the region.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the courageous examples of Tobit and other faithful servants of God like St. Boniface and many others of our faithful and holy fellow brothers and sisters, our predecessors should inspire us all to also be faithful to God and to be fully dedicated to Him, to give our time and effort, our attention and more to serve the Lord our God at all times. May the Lord continue to bless us all and our every good efforts, works and endeavours, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Monday, 5 June 2023 : 9th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Mark 12 : 1-12

At that time, using parables, Jesus went on to say, “A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a hole for the wine press and built a watch tower. Then he leased the vineyard to tenants and went abroad. In due time he sent a servant to receive from the tenants his share of the fruit. But they seized the servant, struck him and sent him back empty-handed.”

“Again the man sent another servant. They also struck him on the head and treated him shamefully. He sent another and they killed him. In the same way they treated many others : some they beat up and others they killed. One was still left, his beloved son. And so, last of all, he sent him to the tenants, for he said, “They will respect my son.”

“But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the one who is to inherit the vineyard. Let us kill him and the property will be ours.’ So they seized him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. Now what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”

And Jesus added, “Have you not read this text of the Scriptures : The stone which the builders rejected has become the keystone; this is the Lord’s doing, and we marvel at it?”

They wanted to arrest Him, for they realised that Jesus meant this parable for them, but they were afraid of the crowd; so they left Him and went away.

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Monday, 5 June 2023 : 9th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 111 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Alleluia! Blessed is the one who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in His commands. His children will be powerful on earth; the upright’s offspring will be blessed.

Wealth and riches are for his family, there his integrity will remain. He is for the righteous a light in darkness, He is kind, merciful and upright.

It will be well with him who lends freely, who leads a life of justice and honesty. For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered and loved forever.

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Monday, 5 June 2023 : 9th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Tobit 1 : 3 and Tobit 2 : 1b-8

I, Tobit, have walked in the ways of truth and justice all the days of my life; I have given many alms to my brethren and to those of my countrymen who were deported with me to Nineveh, a city in the country of the Assyrians.

At the feast of Pentecost, the sacred feast of the Seven Weeks, they prepared a good meal for me and I sat down to eat. I saw the many dishes and said to my son : “Go and bring as many as you can find of our relatives who are in need and who remember the Lord. I will wait here for them.”

When Tobias returned, he said : “Father, one of ours has been strangled and thrown into the public square.” Before I ate anything I hurried out and carried this man into the house and waited till sunset to bury him. When I returned home I washed myself and ate my food in sorrow.

I remembered the prophecy which Amos uttered against Bethel : “Your feasts will be turned into mourning. All your songs will be turned into lamentations,” and I wept. After sunset I went out and, after I had dug a trench, I buried the man. My neighbours mocked me, saying : “He no longer fears to be put to death for doing that; he had to flee but look he is again burying the dead.”

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Monday, 29 May 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today is the day after the Pentecost Sunday, and therefore mark the beginning of the second part of the Ordinary Time of this current liturgical year. And on this day the Church celebrates the Feast of Mary, the Mother of God herself in her aspect as the Mother of the Church or Mater Ecclesiae. We remember Mary in her constant guidance and protection for the Church that has been entrusted by her own Son to her care, so that all of us may always seek for her intercession and guidance, and do not easily give up the struggles and the trials that we may have to face in this world in becoming faithful disciples and followers of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of our beloved Mother, who is also the Mother of the Church, the Mother of all of us.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Genesis of the account of the downfall of mankind which happened because the first woman, Eve, was unable to resist the temptations of the devil who convinced her to disobey the Lord and succumb to the temptations of her desires, eating the forbidden fruit of the Tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Gardens of Eden. Through her therefore, disobedience and sin entered into the hearts of mankind, separating us from the grace and love of God. Mankind was cast out from the Gardens of Eden, and forced to wander off and suffer the consequences of our disobedience and evils, our sins and failure to listen to the words of God. And this was highlighted today because Mary is also known as the New Eve just as Christ is the New Adam.

That is because unlike and opposite that of the original Eve, Mary as the New Eve obeyed the Lord perfectly and wholeheartedly, saying yes to the Lord Who revealed to her through the Archangel Gabriel that she would be the Mother and bearer of the Messiah, the Son of God Himself, incarnate in the flesh. Such a task must have been very challenging and difficult, and yet, despite all the uncertainties, Mary chose to entrust herself to the Lord and to dedicate herself wholly to Him, answering His call with a resounding yes. Her obedience to God and her faith became therefore the source through which salvation entered into the world, coming through her Son, Who was in her womb for nine months, and afterwards, she continued to take care of her Son, Our Lord and Saviour, and followed Him throughout all His works and ministry.

And we heard of how the Lord entrusted her to His disciple St. John in our Gospel passage today, to be his Mother and hence, by extension, as the Mother of all the faithful and of the whole entire Church. Mary followed her Son all the way even throughout all of His Passion, His sufferings and crucifixion right up to the very foot of the Cross. She watched her own Son dying before her, and faithfully continued to dedicate herself to Him. That is all how Mary, as the New Eve, have shown us true obedience, love for God and faith in Him, an example and inspiration that all of us as Christians should be inspired to follow and emulate as well. Mary, as the Mother of the Church is also our Mother, loving and ever caring towards us, ever concerned about us falling again and again into sin and being separated from His Son.

That is why, today, all of us are reminded of our obligation and need to follow our Blessed Mother’s own examples in faith and do whatever we can so that we can be good role models and inspirations ourselves for our fellow brethren in faith, and for many others who have not yet known the Lord or those who have not yet understood His teachings and commandments. And it is through our own examples and actions, our worthy and exemplary way of life that just like Mary, our Mother herself had done, we can inspire others and be great missionaries and evangelisers of our Christian faith. Through Mary, the Mother of the Church, all of us are also led to follow her examples and to follow the path that she led us into, the most direct path to her Son, Our Lord and Saviour.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we embark on this time post Easter, with this Ordinary Time and season, let us all remind ourselves that this time is not for us to slacken our faith life and our Christian obligations and duties. The word Ordinary here as we all ought to know does not refer to anything being ordinary or usual, but rather refers to the word ‘Ordinal’, which pertains to the numbered nature of the weekly observance of the Lord’s time and year, right up to the very last day of our current liturgical year. And all of us as Christians have the important calling and mission to lead a worthy and holy life, dedicated and committed to God much like Mary, our Mother and the Mother of the Church had done in her own life.

Let us all ask Our Blessed Mother to intercede for us and to lead us down the path of righteousness, to always inspire and remind us whenever we err or make any mistakes in life, so that we will not be easily be swayed by the many temptations all around us, all the evils and wickedness of the world. Let us all follow the Lord and His Mother, and do whatever it is that we have been called to do, to be worthy in all things and to commit our lives anew as Christians, those whom God had called and chosen to be His own beloved people. Let all of our actions, works and deeds from now on continue to inspire many others and help many of our fellow brethren to be able to come ever closer to God together with each one of us.

Mary, our loving Mother and the Mother of the Church, pray for us all sinners and pray for the Church that your Son, Our Lord and Saviour, had established in this world. Intercede for us all whenever we need your help, and be with us always in our journey towards your Son. May God be with us all and with His Church, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 29 May 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 19 : 25-34

At that time, near the cross of Jesus stood His mother, His mother’s sister Mary, who was the wife of Cleophas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw the mother, and the disciple whom He loved, He said to the mother, “Woman, this is your son.” Then He said to the disciple, “This is your mother.” And from that moment the disciple took her to his own home.

Jesus knew all was now finished and, in order to fulfil what was written in Scripture, He said, “I am thirsty.” A jar full of bitter wine stood there; so, putting a sponge soaked in the wine on a twig of hyssop, they raised it to His lips. Jesus took the wine and said, “It is accomplished.” Then He bowed His head and gave up the Spirit.

As it was Preparation Day, the Jews did not want the bodies to remain on the cross during the Sabbath, for this Sabbath was a very solemn day. They asked Pilate to have the legs of the condemned men broken, so that the bodies might be taken away. The soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man and of the other man, who had been crucified with Jesus.

When they came to Jesus, they saw that He was already dead, so they did not break His legs. One of the soldiers, however, pierced His side with a lance, and immediately there came out Blood and water.

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Monday, 29 May 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 86 : 1-2, 3 and 5, 6-7

He Himself has built it in His holy mountain; YHVH prefers the gates of Zion to all of Jacob’s towns.

Great things have been foretold of you, o city of God. But of Zion, it shall be said, “More and more are being born in her.” For the Most High Himself has founded her.

And YHVH notes in the people’s register : “All these were also born in Zion.” And all will dance and sing joyfully for you.

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Monday, 29 May 2023 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Genesis 3 : 9-15, 20

YHVH God called the man saying to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard Your voice in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.” God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree I ordered you not to eat?”

The man answered, “The woman You put with me gave me fruit from the tree and I ate it.” God said to the woman, “What have you done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me and I ate.”

YHVH God said to the serpent, “Since you have done that, be cursed among all the cattle and wild beasts! You will crawl on your belly and eat dust all the days of your life. I will make you enemies, you and the woman, your offspring and her offspring. He will crush your head and you will strike his heel.”

The man called his wife by the name of Eve, because she was the mother of all the living.

Alternative reading

Acts 1 : 12-14

Then they returned to Jerusalem from the Mount called Olives, which is a fifteen minute walk away. On entering the city they went to the room upstairs where they were staying. Present there were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James, son of Alpheus; Simon the Zealot and Judas son of James.

All of these, together, gave themselves to constant prayer. With them were some women, and also Mary, the mother of Jesus, and His brothers.

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Monday, 22 May 2023 : 7th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Rita of Cascia, Religious (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, each one of us are called to continue to live our lives faithfully as Christians and continue to carry out what the Lord had commanded us to do, to live our lives in the manner that He has taught us all to do, so that in everything we say and do, we will always be the worthy bearers of His light and truth, and that we may be inspiration and good role models for others around us, proclaiming the Good News and truth of God through our own lives and works, through our every words and interactions. All of us should do what we can to spread God’s message and ways to others whom we encounter in our lives. This is our calling and vocation as Christians, regardless whichever specific vocation that we have been called to.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Acts of the Apostles about the works of St. Paul the Apostle among the faithful in the region of Ephesus in Asia Minor. Ephesus was one of the early centres of Christianity, and the faithful there grew rapidly in numbers as both Jews and Gentiles alike embraced the new faith in God. The Lord has called on all of them to be His followers, and He spread to them His Good News and truth through His disciples and missionaries like St. Paul, who went to their region to proclaim the Good News and the truth of God. St. Paul was speaking to some of those disciples who were likely to have belonged to the Jewish diaspora there, who believed in the teachings of St. John the Baptist, the Herald of the Messiah. As was evident from the accounts from the Acts of the Apostles and the other parts of the New Testament, St. John the Baptist and his teachings were quite widespread around the region.

However, those disciples like the ones in Ephesus have not yet received the fullness of truth as what the early Christians have received, and hence, the Lord called on His Apostles and disciples to evangelise and spread the Good News to all of those people who have not yet heard of this truth and Good News. St. Paul taught them about the teachings and truth of the Lord, proclaiming to them the Good News and the Gospel of salvation. Those disciples believed in the Lord Jesus Christ and received Him as their Saviour and Master, and were baptised by St. Paul. The Holy Spirit came down upon them and many great miracles happened, as St. Paul continued to minister to all the faithful there and carrying out the good works that God had planted among them. That was how the Church kept on expanding and growing at that time in Ephesus and elsewhere.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard of the Lord speaking to His disciples when they told Him that He was finally telling them the truth and no longer was using parables, hidden meanings and other forms of story-telling through which those who listened to the Lord had not been able to discern fully what He wanted to tell them. But this was because the Lord did not want them all to know everything at once, and wanted them to journey with Him, and to discover their faith in God gradually through their experiences and by listening to the word of God speaking in their hearts and through the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Spirit stirring in them, prodding them to follow the path that the Lord has shown them, and for them to find out about the truth which He has presented and brought before all of them.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, essentially through what we have received in our Scripture readings today, all of us are reminded that each and every one of us who have received the same truth and revelation of the Good News of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, all of us have the obligation and calling, the mission and vocation to proclaim the truth of God to more and more of the people whom we encounter daily, at each and every moments. In our every works, our words and actions, in our every deeds and interactions with one another, all of us should do our part in living our lives worthily so that we may indeed bear our Christian faith and truth to others who interact with us and witness our work and actions. All of us bear within us this calling and mission, with whatever it is that the Lord has blessed and entrusted us with, in our various areas and competencies.

Today, all of us should be inspired by the examples of St. Rita of Cascia whose feast we are celebrating today. St. Rita of Cascia was an Italian saint and Augustinian nun, a holy and devout religious sister who had dedicated her life to the service and the glory of God. She was married at a very young age by her family and despite her desires to enter a convent even from an early age, she remained as a good and faithful wife to her husband, who was quick-tempered and immoral in nature. She was remembered for her efforts in trying to change her husband’s ways, in the marriage that lasted for eighteen years until her husband and sons passed away. It was known that her husband’s family was involved in the then bitter interfamilial struggles and conflicts, and when her husband was murdered, St. Rita of Cascia tried to dissuade her sons from seeking revenge for their father’s death. She also forgave her husband’s murderers and enemies.

And when the sons of St. Rita of Cascia were in danger of committing sins in the pursuit of vengeance, she voluntarily asked the Lord to take them away so that they would not fall into the path of sin and damnation. Miraculously, God listened to her prayers, and her sons were taken away from her, as they passed away from dysentery, before they could commit murder and mortal sins that could harm and endanger their eternal souls. Afterwards, St. Rita of Cascia entered the monastery of St. Mary Magdalene in Cascia, in which she devoted the rest of her life to a work of prayer and piety, and managed to bring the two feuding families together in fulfilling the conditions that were imposed to her before she was to join the monastery community, devoting her life henceforth only to the glorification of God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence be inspired by the examples and the role models showed to us by St. Rita of Cascia and many others of our holy predecessors. Let us all turn towards the Lord once again and commit ourselves to His path, doing whatever we can to do His will and to love Him at all times. May the Risen Lord, Our Saviour Jesus Christ continue to be with us and guide us all, and bless us all in our every good works, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 22 May 2023 : 7th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Rita of Cascia, Religious (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 16 : 29-33

At that time, the disciples said to Jesus, “Now You are speaking plainly and not in veiled language! Now we see that You know all things, even before we question You. Because of this we believe that You came from God.”

Jesus answered them, “You say that you believe? The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each one to his home, and you will leave Me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with Me. I have told you all this, so that in Me you may have peace. You will have trouble in the world; but courage! I have overcome the world.”