Liturgical Colour : Purple
Luke 6 : 36-38
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not be a judge of others and you will not be judged; do not condemn and you will not be condemned; forgive and you will be forgiven; give and it will be given to you, and you will receive in your sack good measure, pressed down, full and running over. For the measure you give will be the measure you receive back.”
Liturgical Colour : Purple
Psalm 78 : 8, 9, 11 and 13
Do not remember against us the sins of our fathers. Let Your compassion hurry to us, for we have been brought very low.
Help us, God, our Saviour, for the glory of Your Name; forgive us for the sake of Your Name.
Listen to the groans of the prisoners; by the strength of Your arm, deliver those doomed to die. Then we, Your people, the flock of Your pasture, will thank You forever. We will recount Your praise from generation to generation.
Liturgical Colour : Purple
Daniel 9 : 4b-10
Lord God, great and to be feared, You keep Your covenant and love for those who love You and observe Your commandments. We have sinned, we have not been just, we have been rebels, and have turned away from Your commandments and laws. We have not listened to Your servants, the prophets, who spoke in Your Name to our kings, leaders, fathers and to all the people of the land.
Lord, justice is Yours, but ours is a face full of shame, as it is to this day – we, the people of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the whole of Israel, near and far away, in all the lands where You have dispersed us because of the infidelity we have committed against You. Ours is the shame, o Lord for we, our kings, princes, fathers, have sinned against You.
We hope for pardon and mercy from the Lord, because we have rebelled against Him. We have not listened to the voice of YHVH, our God, or followed the laws which He has given us through His servants, the prophets.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this holy day of our Lord, we listened to several different discourses from the Holy Scriptures, telling us firstly from the Book of Exodus, the tale of the time when the Israelites defeated the people of Amalek, the greatest enemy of the people of God by the guidance of the Lord through Moses, His servant.
Then, we heard about how inspiration and true wisdom comes from God in the form of the Scriptures itself, as St. Paul mentioned in his correspondence letter to St. Timothy. The Scriptures are the words of the Lord, His servants and His prophets who all delivered the word of God to us all and made known to us all His will. By reading through the Scriptures we will then come to understand the way that God wants us to walk and tread on.
In the Gospel then we also heard about Jesus our Lord Who taught the people using the parable of an evil judge and a widow who harassed him day and night, from time to time, so that the evil judge who did not bother about anyone, would come to her rescue by giving what she righteously desired for, the protection and guarantee over her share of inheritance.
In the end we heard how the evil judge acquiesced to her demands and fulfilled what she had asked him, just so that he might be spared from her constant nagging and demands. In all these three readings and the Psalm which we heard, we can see a theme that is arising to us, telling us to look towards the One and the only One indeed Who can be the freedom and the liberation from our troubles.
God stood by His people on that day when Amalek unexpectedly and unprovoked launched an attack on the people of God, Israel. He stood by them faithfully as they fought against this ferocious and dangerous enemy, and eventually they triumphed, not by the might of their own arms, but because God was with them. This was shown to us through Moses who was told to raise his hand holding the staff of God in his hands. Whenever he lifted up his arms, the people of God would be winning, and when he became tired and lowered his arms, the people of God were losing against the Amalekites.
How is this relevant to us, brothers and sisters in Christ? It is relevant because we ourselves are always in a constant struggle and conflict, not just within our own lives in this world, with all of its goods and troubles, but even more importantly, the battle and conflict over our souls, the eternal soul within us that will determine our fate for eternity, whether it will be in glory with our God or in agony suffering torment for the consequences of our wickedness.
And we are not in this conflict alone, brethren. Satan is more than willing, and indeed wanting and desiring to claim us all, our souls, and bring all of these with him as he descends into hell with all of his fellow rebel angels. But on the other side, we have our guardian Angels, whom God had sent together with His many other Angels, all the servants and holy men and women He had called and inspired to lead us to the right path and to resist the pull of evil.
God protects us from the depredations of these demons and all those seeking to destroy us with themselves. However, it does not mean that we do not have to do anything and just wait patiently and quietly for salvation to come to us. In that same second reading, St. Paul as mentioned earlier on told St. Timothy about the importance of the Holy Scriptures for us.
It is therefore that by adhering and understanding the Word of God in the Holy Scriptures that we are able to appreciate better what our Lord wants from us, and which is the way that we need to take as we embark on this life. Otherwise we may lose our path and ended up committing ever more sins and wickedness that will eventually be held accountable against us.
How many of us spend time to read the Bible and its contents, trying to understand the Word of God contained inside it? How many of us attempted to comprehend the examples of the holy saints and the servants of God as written and recorded in the Old Testament, and the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord in the New Testament? There are truly many examples of their courageous faith, and also some other examples of wickedness that we should avoid.
But we must also be careful lest we fall into another trap of the devil. Never think that the devil cannot use the Word of God as contained in the Scriptures against us, as he had shown when he used the Word and twisted its meaning against Jesus Who was fasting in the desert just after He was baptised in order to test Him and made Him fall. But he did not meet any success at all.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, we have to spend time reading through the Scriptures, for the Word of God is key to our ability to keep the faith and understand the Lord and His will, His commandments and ways. But we have to understand it and read it through the guidance and help from the Church and from our Faith. That is why we should not allow ourselves to have our own interpretation of the meaning of the Word if these are not in accordance with the teachings of the Church.
Let us all from now on devote ourselves to be ever more devoted and committed people and servant of our God, spending time to read the Scriptures and then commit ourselves to do what the Lord had told us to do through His words in the Scriptures, loving our brethren who are in need, be charitable and be loving to our unloved, hated and ostracised brethren, being merciful and forgiving to all those who have slighted or angered us whether intentionally or unintentionally.
May the Lord bless us all and keep us always in His grace, that we may draw ever closer to Him and at the end of our days, He may bless us and strengthen us, and consider us all worthy of His salvation and eternal life. May God bless us all, now and forevermore. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Luke 18 : 1-8
At that time, Jesus told His disciples a parable, to show them that they should pray continually, and not lose heart. He said, “In a certain town there was a judge, who neither feared God nor people. In the same town there was a widow, who kept coming to him, saying, ‘Defend my rights against my opponent!'”
“For a time he refused, but finally he thought, ‘Even though I neither fear God nor care about people, this widow bothers me so much, I will see that she gets justice; then she will stop coming and wearing me out.'”
And Jesus said, “Listen to what the evil judge says. Will God not do justice for His chosen ones, who cry to Him day and night, even if He delays in answering them? I tell you, He will speedily do them justice. But, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?”
Liturgical Colour : Green
2 Timothy 3 : 14 – 2 Timothy 4 : 2
As for you, continue with what you have learnt and what has been entrusted to you, knowing from Whom you received it. Besides, you have known the Scriptures from childhood; they will give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, refuting error, for correcting and training in Christian life. Through Scripture the man of God is made expert and thoroughly equipped for every good work.
In the presence of God and Christ Jesus, Who is to judge the living and the dead, and by the hope I have of His coming and His kingdom, I urge you to preach the Word, in season and out of season, reproving, rebuking or advising, always with patience and providing instruction.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Psalm 120 : 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8
I lift up my eyes to the mountains – from where shall come my help? My help comes from the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth.
Will He let your foot slip, the One watching over you? Will He slumber? No, the Guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps.
The Lord is your Guardian, the Lord is at your side and you in His shade; Sunstroke will not be for you by day, nor the spell of the moon by night.
The Lord guards you from every evil; He will protect your life. The Lord watches over your coming and going both now and forever.
Liturgical Colour : Green
Exodus 17 : 8-13
When the Israelites were at Rephidim, the Amalekites came and attacked them. So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites in the morning. As for me, I will stand with God’s staff in my hand at the top of the hill.”
Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had directed, while Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. It happened that when Moses raised his hands, the Israelites would win but when he lowered them, the Amalekites would have the advantage.
As Moses’ arms grew weary, they placed a stone for him to sit on while Aaron and Hur on either side held up his arms which remained steadily raised until sunset. For his part Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the sword.
Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us heard the very profound message which St. Paul proclaimed to the faithful during his journeys to many cities across the Eastern Mediterranean region, establishing the foundations of the Church and the Faith in those places, and planting in the believers the seeds of faith in the word of God which he passed on to them.
And this phrase is that “We must go through many trials to enter the Kingdom of God.” It is a phrase which many of us, especially as we live in this world, often tend to forget and overlook, thinking that trials and tribulations are not part of our lives, if we faithfully walk in the path of the Lord. We mankind are so used to living comfortably in this world, that we often would prefer an easier path than one that is more difficult or challenging to follow.
And that is why the Apostles, as shown by St. Paul and his teachings, reminded the people at first that in order to follow Jesus and His way, mankind would have to sacrifice quite a few things, and they may also be needed to give away certain things, especially those which they have indulged in all these while, and reorientate themselves to the service and obedience to God.
And how is this related to what we heard in the Gospel today? Jesus spoke to His disciples in our Gospel today, during the time when He had the Last Supper with His disciples just before He was to suffer on the cross and die. He gave them a new commandment, the commandment to love one another, just as they ought to love Him. And this commandment was given to them on the day when He also instituted the Eucharist for the Church, establishing the Church and the Faith in which we belong now.
What Jesus had said to His disciples was in fact an exhortation for all of us to act, and not just to remain passive or quiet. God called us all to action, and the action which we must show to one another and to Him is love, pure love that comes from the heart and permeates everything else around us. For the reality is that, while we mankind profess to know love, but in reality, true love is something that is often distant for us.
What is love, brothers and sisters in Christ? Is love something that blossomed between people who like each other and then decide that they want to come together as a couple? Well, that is indeed love, but it is only a small aspect of love, and merely just one small example of love. True love is so much more than that, and true love entails so much more than just what we understand about that kind of love.
Love is not something that is just happiness or just as something that is easy to be done. For the feeling of love that many of us are feeling towards another can in fact be said as infatuation or even as lust. These are not true love. And if our love depends on the mutual commitment of one another to fulfil one another’s needs, then it is not true love either, but instead, our human greed trying to fulfil itself by manipulating each other.
Instead, true love can be seen in what our Lord Jesus Christ Himself had done, in His actions in this world, and that is exactly what the Apostles had preached to the people, calling them to practice the same kind of love. And what is that love? Love that knows sacrifice, and love which is selfless and perfect. Love that our Lord Jesus Himself showed us on the cross, when without doubt or hesitation, He allowed Himself to willingly suffer for our sake.
Let us look at it, brothers and sisters in Christ, just as St. Paul himself in another occasion reminded the faithful, that the love of God is so good and perfect. St. Paul mentioned in one of his letters that it is difficult for someone to lay down his or her life for another, even if that someone is a very good person. Indeed, it may be worthwhile for someone to lay down his life for another very good person, but how about what our Lord had done to us?
We are all sinners brethren, and in one way or another, our sins have preceded us, and have grown so great that we should all be ashamed at our sins, all the wicked things which we have done. And yet, our Lord and God, Who loved us all, every single one of us without exception and hesitation, was willing to die not for us all who were righteous, but we who were sinners, great rebels and wicked in the things which we did.
And if God had been so selfless and loving in His love, can we do the same as well? It is not easy indeed, for it is not part of our human nature and habits to give of ourselves to another so willingly. But if we do not try, then we will never know love, and our actions will not have true love. To understand love, we must know how to endure pain and suffering, and be ready to make sacrifices and commit ourselves fully to the one to whom we are showing our love.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we go through this Easter season, and as we live our lives in faith, we have to realise that all that we believe in, is precisely about love, and that is the love which God has shown us, the mercy which He showed us, willing and wanting us to be reunited with Him, and to be redeemed from all of our faults and wickedness.
Shall we recommit ourselves to what the Lord had commanded all of us to do? Shall we show love in all of our actions, loving those who are less fortunate and those who have little or nothing, those who are unloved and rejected by the society? Shall we devote ourselves to give our heart and attention to those who need our love?
It will not be easy indeed to walk on this path, and St. Paul himself had warned the people that the path ahead would be arduous. But if we do not walk on this path, then who else would? How can we call ourselves Christians if we do not suffer and endure the cross as our Lord had? Remember that He had done it first, so that He might show us how to love in the same manner as well.
Let us all dedicate ourselves anew to God, and let us all walk the path of our faith from now on, filled with commitment and dedication, and filled with love and devotion, may our faith be living and true, and may everything that we do, will always be based on the love which we have for one another, and ultimately loving the Lord from Whom we have received that love. God bless us all. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : White
John 13 : 31-33a, 34-35
At that time, when Judas had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in Him. God will glorify Him, and He will glorify Him very soon. My children, I am with you for only a little while.”
“Now I give you a new commandment : Love one another! Just as I have loved you, you also must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 