Patron saint of Ireland

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Thursday, 17 March 2022 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scripture, we are all reminded of how our actions in this life in this world can have great consequences for us in the future, a consequence that can last for eternity. As we continue to progress through this season of Lent, today’s readings therefore aptly reminded us of this reality, so that we can make a conscious effort to choose the right path for us before it is too late for us.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Jeremiah in which the fates of the righteous man and the wicked man were put plainly before everyone. The ones who have faith in the Lord and believed in Him shall always have the blessings and grace of God, with God as their firm foundation and assurance, with Him as their source of strength and hope. Meanwhile, the wicked shall never find their true happiness and satisfaction, unless they seek the Lord and turn towards Him wholeheartedly.

This is a reminder to all of us that following the Lord requires us to distance ourselves from the path of evil and wickedness, of evil and selfishness, distancing ourselves from all the desires and temptations of the world. We have to resist our desire to enjoy the pleasures of worldly life and happiness, and depending on all those wealth, glory, power, and any other worldly means to achieve our personal satisfaction, or else, we may end up falling deeper and deeper into the path of sin.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the well-known story in the Lord’s parable of Lazarus and the rich man, in which, Lazarus, the poor man and a rich man whose house Lazarus was often begging at, both died at the same time. The Lord highlighted in that story just how different their fates ended up, as Lazarus enjoyed a great new life in Heaven, in the presence of Abraham and the saints, while the rich man suffers for eternity in the eternal fires of hell, suffering for all the sins he had committed.

This is a reminder of how we can easily ignore the needs and the plight of the needy in our midst, especially when we are too busy and preoccupied by ourselves, our desires, greed and the many temptations surrounding us. The rich man might not have directly hurt or persecuted Lazarus, the poor man sitting by his gates. However, when he could have at least shared even the scraps of bread and food from the excesses that he had, he did not do so, and allowed Lazarus to perish out there.

That is what we as Christians should guard ourselves against, as we continue to progress through this season of Lent, we have to remind ourselves not only just to avoid committing sins and wicked deeds, that are the sins of action, we also have to avoid committing the sins of omission, that is to do nothing and to consciously ignore our obligations and our chance to help, when the Lord presented the opportunity before us. There are a lot of people out there who still need our help, and we have to reach out to them.

Otherwise, as we all heard and knew well, the fate of the rich man may very well be ours as well. If we allow ourselves to be blinded and swayed by worldly temptations, of the riches and power, of glory and fame, of all the pleasures and satisfactions, all that can distract us from the path of the Lord’s righteousness and justice, then we may end up really falling into that path towards eternal damnation. We are reminded that the fate that awaits us after death is one that is everlasting.

Today, we should model ourselves based on the very popular and renowned saint whose feast we celebrate today, namely that of St. Patrick, the well-known Patron Saint of Ireland, the one who first brought the faith to Ireland and worked to build the foundation of the Church and the Christian faith to that island. Countless peoples were converted by his works and efforts, and thanks to his faith and dedication, many people even to this day can trace their faith and that of their ancestors’ to him.

St. Patrick had an early brush with Ireland when in his youth he was actually captured and enslaved by Irish pirates, and after having been enslaved for several years, he finally managed to escape and returned to his family. However, this did not stop him to return to Ireland later on after he had taken up the clerical life and became a priest. He was sent back as a missionary to Ireland, sent to establish the Church and the influence of the faith in that still pagan island. St. Patrick laboured hard for many years, risking his life at times, to spread the word and truth of God to the Irish.

Through his great and tireless efforts, his patience and clarity in teachings and through the wisdom and guidance from God, St. Patrick managed to bring countless people in Ireland into the faith, and he established the first hierarchy and structure of the Church in Ireland, himself being one of the first bishops in Ireland. He baptised many people and influenced the life of so many people, and his faith inspired many even long after his passing from this world.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, that great faith which St. Patrick had shown is what all of us have been called to have as well. The Lord has given us the same mission and the gifts and means to carry out His will. Are we going to follow the examples of St. Patrick in being faithful and obedient to God? Or are we instead going to be like the rich man in the Lord’s parable of Lazarus and the rich man? Let us consider and discern these things carefully in our hearts and minds, brothers and sisters in Christ.

May the Lord be with us always, and may He continue to bless and guide us in our journey of faith, that we may always ever be committed to Him, to the very end. May God bless us all in our every good works and endeavours, all for His greater glory, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 17 March 2022 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Luke 16 : 19-31

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Once there was a rich man who dressed in purple and fine linen and feasted every day. At his gate lay Lazarus, a poor man covered with sores, who longed to eat just the scraps falling from the rich man’s table. Even dogs used to come and lick his sores.”

“It happened that the poor man died, and Angels carried him to take his place with Abraham. The rich man also died, and was buried. From hell where he was in torment, the rich man looked up and saw Abraham afar off, and with him Lazarus at rest. He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me, and send Lazarus, with the tip of his finger dipped in water, to cool my tongue, for I suffer so much in this fire.'”

“Abraham replied, ‘My son, remember that in your lifetime you were well-off, while the lot of Lazarus was misfortune. Now he is in comfort, and you are in agony. But that is not all. Between your place and ours a great chasm has been fixed, so that no one can cross over from here to you, or from your side to us.'”

“The rich man implored once more, ‘Then I beg you, Father Abraham, to send Lazarus to my father’s house, where my five brothers live, let him warn them, so that they may not end up in this place of torment.’ Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.'”

“But the rich man said, ‘No, Father Abraham; but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ Abraham said, ‘If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced, even if someone rises from the dead.'”

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Thursday, 17 March 2022 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 1 : 1-2, 3, 4 and 6

Blessed is the one who does not go where the wicked gather, or stand in the way of sinners, or sit where the scoffers sit! Instead, he finds delight in the law of the Lord and meditates day and night on His commandments.

He is like a tree beside a brook producing its fruit in due season, its leaves never withering. Everything he does is a success.

But it is different with the wicked. They are like chaff driven away by the wind. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous but cuts off the way of the wicked.

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Thursday, 17 March 2022 : 2nd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Jeremiah 17 : 5-10

This is what YHVH says, “Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings and depends on a mortal for his life, while his heart is drawn away from YHVH! He is like a bunch of thistles in dry land, in parched desert places, in a salt land where no one lives and who never finds happiness.”

“Blessed is the man who puts his trust in YHVH and whose confidence is in Him! He is like a tree planted by the water, sending out its roots towards the stream. He has no fear when the heat comes, his leaves are always green; the year of drought is no problem and he can always bear fruit.”

“Most deceitful is the heart. What is there within man, who can understand him? I, YHVH, search the heart and penetrate the mind. I reward each one according to his ways and the fruit of his deeds.”

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Tuesday, 17 March 2020 : 3rd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day all of us as we go deeper through the season of Lent, we are called to reflect on God’s forgiveness and mercy, His compassionate love and the wonderful providence and care that He has shown us all, His people, all throughout history. We heard from our first reading today, the prayer of Azariah, one of the three friends of Daniel, the prophet of God at the time of the Babylonian exile, and from the Gospel we heard the Lord’s parable of the unforgiving servant. Through these, God wants us to learn about forgiveness ourselves, that we may forgive our brothers and sisters, despite of the pain and troubles they may have done to us.

In our first reading today, Azariah and his companions prayed to God asking for His help and protection, at the time when the exiles of Israel in Babylon were suffering as they had lost their homeland and their Temple, shamed and suffering the consequences of their disobedience and refusal to obey the Lord. Their ancestors had rejected the many prophets and messengers that were sent in order to remind them to turn away from their sins and embrace once again God’s righteousness and justice.

When the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar ordered all of his subjects to worship a great, golden statue made in the image of himself or to be executed, almost everyone obeyed out of fear for their lives except for the three young men of the exiled Israelites, the three friends, Azariah, Hananiah and Mishael. The three of them remained firm in their faith in God and refused to worship the golden idol which was a direct violation of their faith. They did not fear death and remained faithful as they knew that God would be with them no matter what might happen to them.

Azariah made his prayer to God, showing exactly that faith which he held firmly even when he and his two companions were thrown into a blazing furnace that was made much, much hotter on the orders of the king, who was very angry at the firm faith of the three young men. Azariah trusted in God and asked Him to remember His Covenant with His people, the descendants of His servants, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the love which He has shown to all of them. And by showing the remorse that all of the people had for their past sinfulness, Azariah hoped that God would spare His people and help them in their hour of need.

God saved the three men from harm, protected them and showed them that He has forgiven His people, as He later would help them and let them all go home to their ancestral lands. And that is what He expect of them all to do as well, to be merciful and forgiving just as He has been merciful and forgiving towards us. And this is reiterated very well in our Gospel passage today, as we heard the Lord speaking to us on the parabloe of the unforgiving servant. In that parable, using the example of a servant who did not follow his master’s good example, God wants to teach us to be merciful and good towards others.

In that parable, the master represents the Lord, our God, Who is the Lord and Master over all of us. Those servants of the master represent all of us mankind, who indeed have been indebted to the master, as those debts represent our sins, with some of us having more and some of us having less, but all of us are sinners nonetheless. And everyone ought to suffer punishments because of those debts, but the master generously forgave the servant who begged to be given more time to pay off his debts. This actually showed just how loving and merciful our God has been to us, that even when we have sinned so greatly against Him, He will still forgive us and love us if we truly mean to repent from our sins.

God has always been kind to us, but it is usually we ourselves who have not appreciated this kindness, and we have often been mean towards our felllow brethren. That was shown in the Gospel parable, as the servant who had been forgiven his relatively immense debt, refused to forgive his fellow servant who had owed him a much smaller sum of debt. This represent how we mankind often ask to be forgiven our sins, but we forget to forgive our fellow brothers and sisters the debts we have made to one another.

We are therefore called to reflect and discern how we can be more loving and forgiving to one another, as we progress through this season of Lent, this time of renewal and rejuvenation of our faith. We are called to be more Christ-like in all of our actions, interactions with each other and deeds. That means, we should learn to forgive each others’ faults, remembering that all of us after all have been forgiven our sins and debts by God, even though they were much more serious than what we have owed one another.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we should focus our attention on one of our holy predecessors, namely St. Patrick of Ireland, the famous patron saint of that island country and many people of Irish descent all around the world. St. Patrick, his faith, dedication and love for God can be a great source of inspiration for all of us in how we live our lives as Christians. For his courage and dedication as a great missionary in Ireland still inspire many of our modern day missionaries and also many among us Christians.

St. Patrick was abducted by Irish pirates at a young age, but he managed to escape slavery and returned to his family. After becoming a priest, his past bitter experiences in Ireland did not prevent him from returning to that same island to spread the Word of God and the message of the Gospels to the islanders who were then still mostly pagan. St. Patrick performed many wonderful miracles and also remembered for his precious teachings to the pagans, many of whom turned to the Christian faith because of him, and he was also appointed the first Bishop in Ireland.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, are we able to love the Lord and our fellow men like St. Patrick? He has definitely suffered at the hands of those Irish pirates who brought him to slavery for a good six years or so, and yet, his return to Ireland and his dedication to serve the people of that island showed that he must have forgiven all those who have wronged him earlier on in his life, and instead worked hard to convert them all to the faith in Christ, teaching them about the love, mercy and compassion of God.

Let us all therefore follow in the footsteps of St. Patrick, in how we live our lives with faith from now on. Let us dedicate ourselves to serve God with all of our hearts and our might, and love Him and all of our fellow brothers and sisters with sincere love and compassion, showing mercy and forgiveness to those who wronged us, asking for forgiveness for our own shortcomings and faults, and showing care and love for those who need them. May God bless us all, and may St. Patrick, holy servant of God, intercede for us sinners. Amen.

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Tuesday, 17 March 2020 : 3rd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 18 : 21-35

At that time, Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, how many times must I forgive the offences of my brother or sister? Seven times?” Jesus answered, “No, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. This story throws light on the kingdom of Heaven : A king decided to settle the accounts of his servants.”

“Among the first was one who owed him ten thousand pieces of gold. As the man could not repay the debt, the king commanded that he be sold as a slave with his wife, his children and all his goods, as repayment. The servant threw himself at the feet of the king and said, ‘Give me time, and I will pay you back everything.'”

“The king took pity on him, and not only set him free, but even cancelled his debt. When the servant left the king’s presence, he met one of his companions, who owed him a hundred pieces of silver. He grabbed him by the neck and almost choked him, shouting, ‘Pay me what you owe!'”

“His companion threw himself at his feet and begged him, ‘Give me time, and I will pay everything.’ The other did not agree, but sent him to prison until he had paid all his debt. Now his fellow servants saw what had happened. They were extremely upset, and so they went and reported everything to their lord.”

“Then the lord summoned his servant and said, ‘Wicked servant, I forgave you all that you owed when you begged me to do so. Were you not bound to have pity on your companion, as I had pity on you?’ The lord was now angry, so he handed his servant over to be punished, until he had paid his whole debt.”

Jesus added, “So will My heavenly Father do with you, unless you sincerely forgive your brothers and sisters.”

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Tuesday, 17 March 2020 : 3rd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 24 : 4-5ab, 6 and 7bc, 8-9

Teach me Your ways, o Lord; make known to me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and instruct me, for You are my God, my Saviour.

Remember Your compassion, o Lord, Your unfailing love from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth, but in Your love remember me.

Good and upright, the Lord teaches sinners His way. He teaches the humble of heart and guides them in what is right.

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Tuesday, 17 March 2020 : 3rd Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Daniel 3 : 25, 34-43

Azariah stood up in the midst of the fire and prayed aloud : Do not abandon us forever, do not reject Your covenant for Your Name’s sake. Do not withdraw Your mercy from us, for the sake of Abraham, Your friend, of Isaac, Your servant, of Israel, Your holy one, to whom You promised to multiply their race as the stars of heaven and the sand on the shore of the sea.

Lord, see, we have become the least among the nations in all the world, and we are humiliated because of our sins. At this time, we no longer have a king, or prophet, or leader. We cannot offer You holocausts, sacrifices, offerings, or incense. We have no place to present to You the first-fruits of our crops, and so obtain Your favour.

But at least when we present ourselves with a contrite soul and humbled spirit may we then be acceptable to You, more than by offerings of rams and calves as holocausts, and of thousands of fat lambs. May this sacrifice of ours today obtain for us Your favour for we know that those who trust in You shall never be disappointed.

And now, we serve You with our whole heart, we fear You and we seek Your face. Do not leave us in our humiliation, but treat us according to Your kindness and Your great mercy. Free us in keeping with Your wonders, and give us the glory of Your Name, Lord.

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Thursday, 17 March 2016 : 5th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we are all reminded today of the covenant which God had established first with Abraham, His faithful servant, a renewal of the covenant which He had established with mankind, and yet which they had broken when they first sinned before the Lord. Sin had broken the covenant of God with men, but God Who loves us all mankind, wanted to renew that covenant with even greater love.

When God created us mankind with love, He wanted us all to live in bliss and perfect harmony with Him in heaven, in the Gardens of Eden, to enjoy forever the company of His grace and love forevermore without end. All that He asked for, is for us all to obey Him and to love Him back just as He had loved us first. That is what is meant by a covenant, namely a two-way contract between two parties. Both parties and sides of the covenant or the agreement must obey the rules and the responsibilities attached to the covenant or else, it would no longer be in force.

Thus, what happened was that mankind was tempted by Satan, the old enemy, the evil deceiver and the rebel who was jealous against God and mankind alike, and thus decided to ruin the ones whom God had loved the most out of all creation. His intention was to ruin us just in the same way as he had been ruined by his pride and rebellion, and thus just as he was cast out of heaven, mankind too would follow him into eternal damnation. That is the sinister design that the evil one is planning for us too.

By breaking our part of the covenant, we have deemed ourselves unworthy of God’s love and grace, and thus we were cast out of Eden, and we were made to suffer the painful suffering in the world, enduring tribulations and challenges, as our immortality became one of mortality, and death would come to devour us and destroy us forever, except that, God Himself still loved us despite all of the things we had done.

And that is why, even though the covenant that God had established with Abraham had been broken many times, and always by men, for God is always forever faithful to His covenant with us, He continued to renew it and reestablish it, giving encouragement to all those who hope in Him and put their trust in Him. He shall not disappoint all those who had given themselves to His cause, for these are the ones who would inherit the covenant of God.

And thus lastly, He sent us all His only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, the Divine Word of God, equal and inseparable part of the triune unity of our Lord, the One and only God, One in existence, but Three in Godhead and nature, Father, Son and Holy Spirit all working together as one in the attempt to reestablish a perfect and everlasting covenant once and for all, for our sake.

Indeed, to seal that everlasting covenant, and to make clear the great and infinite love which He has for all of us, He sealed His covenant not with the mere blood of animals, goats, bulls or birds, but with His own Most Precious Blood, poured down in great suffering from the cross, as our Lord Himself was made to bear the burden of everyone’s sins, and through His suffering and death, He had made everyone clean and justified, and all those who believe in Him shall receive the fullness of God’s mercy, forgiveness and love.

That is the great extent how much our Lord is willing to give of Himself when we are in need for help. As that is because, if we are to be lost to the darkness of this world, to our wickedness and all the things coming between us and God, then we are lost to God our loving Father forever. And just as fathers love their children, He loves us all too, without exception, and He wants us to be thoroughly changed for the better.

And in this season of Lent, in the remaining time we have this week and next week, let us all realise that we have so many homework to do, for us all to learn from our mistakes, learning to forgive and to be better and more devoted disciples of our Lord. There is the time for us to turn back from our sinfulness and to find our way to the truth of God and walk in His light.

And today, we celebrate the great feast day of St. Patrick of Ireland, a great bishop and missionary, whose life was dedicated to the spreading of the Gospel and the Good News of God. There are many things that we can learn from his life and from his teachings. St. Patrick was sent by the Pope to the distant country which is now known as Ireland, to bring the salvation of God to the pagan peoples living there, who have not yet heard the Word of God.

St. Patrick travelled around the island of Ireland, visiting from places to places, working with people from the kings, the nobles and to the common people. He did not have it easy, as the people ridiculed him, rejected him and even persecuted him for his efforts. But he did not give up, and he taught the people there about the faith, until eventually many of them repented from their sins and converted to the faith in God.

In one of the most famous thing attributed to him, he used the three-leaf clover as the method for him to teach about God, and explaining the difficult nature of God, just as we have discussed earlier on, God as One, but yet Three, Three and yet only One. Yes, St. Patrick used the analogy how the three-leaf clover, once a portion is taken away is no longer a clover, and yet still three leafed as it is, it constitutes only just one leaf, indivisible and yet with distinct parts.

From this, we can gain so much inspiration of what we can do. There are so many things we can do in this world, to walk in the light in the path of St. Patrick of Ireland. We should use this opportunity we have in life, not just to turn away from our sins, but also to spread the Good News of God, and help one another to reach out to the Lord our God. May we all find our path to the Lord and be brought into the life everlasting. St. Patrick of Ireland, pray for us, that we may find our path to God and remain faithful to Him. Amen.

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Thursday, 17 March 2016 : 5th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Patrick, Bishop (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

John 8 : 51-59

At that time, Jesus said to the Jews, “Truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word, He will never experience death.” The Jews replied, “Now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died and the prophets as well, but You say, ‘Whoever keeps My word will never experience death.’ Who do You claim to be? Do You claim to be greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets also died.

Then Jesus said, “If I were to praise Myself, it would count for nothing. But He Who gives glory to Me is the Father, the very One You claim as your God, although you do not know Him. I know Him, and if I were to say that I do not know Him, I would be a liar like you. But I know Him and I keep His word.”

“As for Abraham, your ancestor, he looked forward to the day when I would come; and he rejoiced when he saw it.” The Jews then said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old and You have seen Abraham?” And Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”

They then picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and left the Temple.