Papal Inauguration

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Friday, 20 March 2015 : 4th Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

John 7 : 1-2, 10, 25-30

At that time, after Jesus told the people that He is the bread of life, Jesus went around Galilee; He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews wanted to kill Him. Now the Jewish feast of the Tents was at hand.

But after His brothers had gone to the festival, He also went up, not publicly but in secret. Some of the people of Jerusalem said, “Is this not the Man they want to kill? And here He is speaking freely, and they do not say a word to Him? Can it be that the rulers know that this is really the Christ? Yet we know where this Man comes from; but when the Christ appears, no one will know where He comes from.”

So Jesus announced in a loud voice in the Temple court where He was teaching, “You say that you know Me and know where I come from! I have not come of Myself; I was sent by the One who is true, and you do not know Him. I know Him for I come from Him and He sent Me.”

They would have arrested Him, but no one laid hands on Him because His time had not yet come.

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Friday, 20 March 2015 : 4th Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 33 : 17-18, 19-20, 21 and 23

The Lord’s face is set against the wicked to destroy their memory from the earth. The Lord hears the cry of the righteous and rescues them from all their troubles.

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves the distraught. Many are troubles of the just, but the Lord delivers them from all.

He keeps all their bones intact, and none of them will be broken. But the Lord will redeem the life of His servants; none of those who trust in Him will be doomed.

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Friday, 20 March 2015 : 4th Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Wisdom 2 : 1a, 12-22

Led by mistaken reasons they think, “Let us set a trap for the Righteous, for He annoys us and opposes our way of life; He reproaches us for our breaches of the Law and accuses us of being false to our upbringing.”

“He claims knowledge of God and calls Himself Son of the Lord. He has become a reproach to our way of thinking; even to meet Him is burdensome to us. He does not live like others and behaves strangely.”

“According to Him we have low standards, so He keeps aloof from us as if we were unclean. He emphasizes the happy end of the righteous and boasts of having God as Father. Let us see the truth of what He says and find out what His end will be. If the Righteous is a Son of God, God will defend Him and deliver Him from His adversaries.”

“Let us humble and torture Him to prove His self-control and test His patience. When we have condemned Him to a shameful death, we may test His words.”

This is the way they reason, but they are mistaken, blinded by their malice. They do not know the mysteries of God nor do they hope for the reward of a holy life; they do not believe that the blameless will be recompensed.”

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Thursday, 19 March 2015 : Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, 2nd Anniversary of the Installation of Pope Francis, Vicar of Christ and Supreme Pontiff (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the great feast day and solemnity of St. Joseph, who is the foster-father of our Lord Jesus Christ and the most devoted and chaste spouse of His mother, Mary. On this day we honour with great dedication the memory of the one person whose faith, devotion to God and whose hard works had brought so much good unto the works of Christ, whom as His adopted father, he did his best to smoothen the path of the Lord.

Indeed, Jesus is both fully God and fully Man at the same time, having assumed the flesh of Man through the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As God, He is omnipotent, All Powerful and All Knowing, but yet, in His humanity, He was also once a small and weak child, as all child are, and He was cared for very well by His parents, St. Joseph and Mary, His mother.

It was most likely St. Joseph who taught Jesus on the crafts and trades of the world, telling Him and teaching Him how to live well in this world, as all fathers are indeed supposed to do. Meanwhile, Mary most likely taught Him how to love and to be gentle to others, just as it was in her nature to love others. In that therefore, Jesus walked in the footsteps of His family, and He was also likely to be a carpenter as Hi foster-father Joseph was.

It was because of that then Jesus was persecuted and rejected by His own fellow townspeople, the people of Nazareth. These were the ones who had known Jesus since when He was just a Baby, and followed Him up as He grew in the care of His parents, Joseph and Mary. Being the Son of a carpenter certainly did not bring much prestige in those days, as even though the work of a carpenter is tough and honest, but no one is likely to want to have such a profession.

It was certainly not a job that brought about prestige, fame or human praise, and neither did it bring much wealth. The family of Jesus was most likely poor or even very poor, barely just making it through with the income they had and with meeting barely just the daily necessities. And yet, the Holy Family is indeed the happiest and most loving and perfect among the families ever present and ever will be in this world.

And part of that was because of St. Joseph himself and what he has done. St. Joseph was a righteous and upright man, who did not hesitate to do what is right and just before God and men alike. And he was also a person with a heart for mercy and love. This was shown when he found out that Mary had conceived a Baby prior to their marriage and consummation. This would have constituted adultery, and the ones involved in it would have been sentenced to death by stoning.

Being an upright man, as well as a loving person, St. Joseph did not want to subject Mary to this kind of suffering and humiliation. Although he did not know what had happened and even though he knew that Mary could not have committed adultery, given her character, St. Joseph was an upright and God-fearing man who would not let injustice be part of his action. Thus, to him the best act was to divorce her quietly, which would not bring about harsh punishment to Mary.

Yet, St. Joseph was told that he was being brought into the greater plan of God, which He had crafted and planned for many years and ages. Through Mary, God intended to bring about His salvation and to finally reveal Himself to the world. By the incarnation of the Divine Word and Son of God as the Son of Man, the Son of Mary, St. Joseph was made to be the foster-father or adopted-father of our Lord, by the ties of marriage which bonded him to Mary, the Mother of Jesus and Mother of our Lord.

And what St. Joseph had done in whatever little information we had on him, and from the Apostolic Traditions have shown us how a father in a family should have behaved like. As the father in the household, he is the head and leader of the family, and by leading his family, the Holy Family, through times of both difficulty and danger, and through times of happiness and joy, he had shown examples that would make many of us be ashamed.

He was a faithful and devoted husband who helped and who was with his wife Mary when she was heavily pregnant with Jesus and was about to give birth, and yet they had to travel a great distance from Nazareth to Bethlehem, the city of David, of whom Joseph is the heir and descendant. In this, the prophecies and words of the Scriptures were fulfilled, that the Heir and Son of David was to be born in His city, Bethlehem.

He endured on even as inns after inns and houses after houses rejected them. He found a stable where eventually the Saviour of this world was born into the world. He led the Holy Family, especially Jesus, to safety when king Herod wanted to kill Him out of jealousy and fear for his rule, which Christ would supplant eventually. He led them to live in Egypt for a while as an exile before leading them back to Nazareth after Herod’s death.

He was a dutiful and devout father, who presented Jesus in the Temple and brought Him to the Temple when He was of age. Although as mentioned in the Scriptures that Jesus recognised God as His true Father, nevertheless we also heard that He also obeyed His parents and followed their instructions as He grew up to be a Man filled with grace and blessing of God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we celebrate this feast and solemnity of St. Joseph, all of us, especially fathers and parents among us, we should reflect on our actions in this life. We have to ask ourselves, on whether we have tried to live up to the standards of the works and actions of St. Joseph. If we have not done so, then we truly have a lot of work ahead of us.

Today we also commemorate the second anniversary of the Installation and Coronation of our Pope, Francis, the Vicar of Christ and Supreme Pontiff, leader of the Universal Church who is called Holy Father because he is indeed like our father. In this we have to understand that we have to give our obedience to the Pope, the Magisterium and the entirety of the Church authority and teachings, all of which served to guard the true and authentic faith as passed down to us from the Lord through His Apostles.

In this season of Lent therefore, and from what we reflect on this solemn occasion, we should aim to follow the examples of St. Joseph, in his works, in his actions and also in his faith and devotion to God. There are many of us in this world who can benefit greatly by walking in the footsteps of the foster-father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the most faithful spouse and husband of our Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God. St. Joseph, pray for us all. Amen.

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Thursday, 19 March 2015 : Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, 2nd Anniversary of the Installation of Pope Francis, Vicar of Christ and Supreme Pontiff (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 1 : 16, 18-21, 24a

Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and from her came Jesus who is called the Christ – the Messiah.

This is how Jesus Christ was born : Mary His mother had been given to Joseph in marriage, but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.

Then Joseph, her husband, made plans to divorce her in all secrecy. He was an upright man, and in no way did he want to discredit her. While he was pondering over this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. She has conceived by the Holy Spirit, and now she will bear a Son. You shall call Him ‘Jesus’ for He will save His people from their sins.”

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do.


Alternative reading

Luke 2 : 41-51a

Every year the parents of Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover, as was customary. And when Jesus was twelve years old, He went up with them, according to the custom of this feast. After the festival was over, they returned, but the boy Jesus remained in Jerusalem, and His parents did not know it.

They thought He was in the company, and after walking the whole day they looked for Him among their relatives and friends. As they did not find Him, they went back to Jerusalem searching for Him, and on the third day they found Him in the Temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions. And all the people were amazed at His understanding and His answers.

His parents were very surprised when they saw Him, and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You done this to us? Your father and I were very worried while searching for You.” Then He said to them, “Why were you looking for Me? Did you not know that I must be in My Father’s house?” But they did not understand this answer.

Jesus went down with them, returning to Nazareth, and He continued to be subject to them.

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Thursday, 19 March 2015 : Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, 2nd Anniversary of the Installation of Pope Francis, Vicar of Christ and Supreme Pontiff (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Romans 4 : 13, 16-18, 22

If God promised Abraham, or rather his descendants, that the world would belong to him, this was not because of his obeying the Law, but because he was just and a friend of God through faith. For that reason, faith is the way and all is given by grace; and the promises of Abraham are fulfilled for all his descendants, not only for his children according to the Law, but also for all the others who have believed.

Abraham is the father of all of us, as it is written : ‘I will make you father of many nations.’ He is our father in the eyes of Him who gives life to the dead, and calls into existence what does not yet exist, for this is the God in whom he believed. Abraham believed and hoped against all expectation, thus becoming father of many nations, as he had been told : ‘See how many will be your descendants.’

This was taken into account for him to attain righteousness.

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Thursday, 19 March 2015 : Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, 2nd Anniversary of the Installation of Pope Francis, Vicar of Christ and Supreme Pontiff (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 88 : 2-3, 4-5, 27 and 29

I will sing forever, o Lord, of Your love and proclaim Your faithfulness from age to age. I will declare how steadfast is Your love, how firm Your faithfulness.

You said, “I have made a covenant with David, My chosen one; I have made a pledge to My servant. I establish his descendants forever; I build his throne for all generations.”

“He will call on Me, ‘You are my Father, my God, my Rock, my Saviour.’ I will keep My covenant firm forever, and My love for him will endure.”

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Thursday, 19 March 2015 : Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, 2nd Anniversary of the Installation of Pope Francis, Vicar of Christ and Supreme Pontiff (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

2 Samuel 7 : 4-5a, 12-14a, 16

But that very night, YHVH’s word came to Nathan, “Go and tell My servant David, this is what YHVH says : When the time comes for you to rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your son after you, the one born of you and I will make his reign secure. He shall build a house for My Name and I will firmly establish his kingship forever. I will be a Father to him and he shall be My son.”

“Your house and your reign shall last forever before Me, and your throne shall be forever firm.”

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Wednesday, 19 March 2014 : Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Today we celebrate the feast day of one of the greatest saints in the Church, none other than St. Joseph himself, the protector and head of the Holy Family, husband and spouse of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, and the foster-father of Jesus Christ our Lord. Today is a great feast day because we are celebrating the feast of an important persona, whose role in our salvation in Jesus is perhaps second only to the Blessed Virgin Mary herself.

St. Joseph wedded the Blessed Virgin and became her protector and guardian. He was a carpenter at the small village of Nazareth in Galilee, and as history told us, he was already quite old at that time of her marriage to Mary, who was still very young, and it may be likely that it was not his first marriage. And Joseph was initially hesitant to marry her when he found out that she was with Child Jesus in her womb.

Even here the quality of St. Joseph was clearly visible, as he was an upright and virtuous person, who did not wish evil upon others but only good. He wanted good on others, even on Mary after she somehow ‘cheated’ him by being pregnant even before their marriage. But after Joseph discovered the truth through the angel of God, he married her and protected both her and her Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

St. Joseph certainly taught our Lord Jesus many things, just as other fathers do. St. Joseph, even though as a sort of stepfather to Jesus, loved Him as if He is his own son. With the guidance of St. Joseph, Jesus grew to a strong and loving man, as a well-mannered and God-loving Son of God.

Most likely, by the time Jesus began His ministry upon His baptism, St. Joseph had passed away due to his old age. Yet, what he had taught Jesus certainly helped Him during His ministry, and He knew about the world and its situation at the time, also likely through the tutelage of St. Joseph, who taught Him about it.

The example set by St. Joseph still inspires us today, first is to be obedient and have a strong faith to the Lord, as what he showed, obeying the Lord and playing his part in the scheme of God’s salvation. He obeyed the angel’s warning to bring Jesus out of harm when King Herod tried to kill Him. He was a loving father and an upright man, who followed God’s will and did his best to show it in his actions.

He certainly worked hard to provide for his family, for Mary his wife and for Jesus his adopted Son. That is why St. Joseph is also the patron saint of workers, showing them how to work hard and yet remain devoted to the Lord in his actions and deeds. He is truly a role model to all of us.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, the challenge to us now is that are we able to follow and walk in the footsteps of St. Joseph? Are we able to follow what he had done, in his virtue and righteousness? That is the challenge for all of us now. We do not have to emulate entirely what he had done, as it will not be easy to us. But we have to at least make the effort, is it not?

So, brethren, let us use this opportunity to reflect on our own life and our own actions, whether we have done what is righteous in the eyes of God, or whether we have failed to do so, either by ignoring His commandments and staying idle, or by committing sins and what is evil to God.

Let us change our ways for the better, that from now on we may live in God’s grace and be blessed by His presence among us. Let us resolve to remain always in the light of God and reject the darkness of Satan and the world. May God help us all and guide us to Himself. Amen.

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Wednesday, 19 March 2014 : Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 1 : 16, 18-21, 24a

Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and from her came Jesus who is called the Christ – the Messiah.

This is how Jesus Christ was born : Mary His mother had been given to Joseph in marriage, but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph, her husband, made plans to divorce her in all secrecy. He was an upright man, and in no way did he want to discredit her.

While he was pondering over this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. She has conceived by the Holy Spirit, and now she will bear a Son. You shall call Him ‘Jesus’ for He will save His people from their sins.”

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do.

Alternative Reading

 

Luke 2 : 41-51a

Every year the parents of Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover, as was customary. And when Jesus was twelve years old, He went up with them, according to the custom of this feast. After the festival was over, they returned, but the boy Jesus remained in Jerusalem, and His parents did not know it.

They thought He was in the company, and after walking the whole day they looked for Him among their relatives and friends. As they did not find Him, they went back to Jerusalem searching for Him, and on the third day they found Him in the Temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions. And all the people were amazed at His understanding and His answers.

His parents were very surprised when they saw Him, and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You done this to us? Your father and I were very worried while searching for You.” Then He said to them, “Why were you looking for Me? Did you not know that I must be in My Father’s house?” But they did not understand this answer.

Jesus went down with them, returning to Nazareth, and He continued to be subject to them.