Pharisees

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Thursday, 4 July 2013 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Gospel Reading)

Matthew 9 : 1-8

Jesus got back into the boat, crossed the lake again, and came to His hometown. Here they brought a paralysed man to Him, lying on a bed. Jesus saw their faith and said to the paralytic, “Courage, My son! Your sins are forgiven.”

Then some teachers of the Law said within themselves, “This Man insults God.” Jesus was aware of what they were thinking, and said, “Why have you such evil thoughts? Which is easier to say : ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or ‘Stand up, and walk’? You must know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.”

He then said to the paralysed man, “Stand up! Take your stretcher and go home.” The man got up and went home. When the crowds saw this, they were filled with awe, and praised God for giving such power to human beings.

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Monday, 1 July 2013 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Matthew 8 : 18-22

When He saw the crowd press around Him, Jesus gave orders to cross to the other shore. A teacher of the Law approached Him and said, “Master, I will follow You wherever You go.” Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

Another disciple said to Him, “Lord, let me go and bury my father first.” But Jesus answered him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

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Sunday, 23 June 2013 : 12th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Luke 9 : 18-24

One day, when Jesus was praying alone, not far from His disciples, He asked them, “What do people say about Me?” And they answered, “Some say that You are John the Baptist; others say that You are Elijah, and still others that You are one of the prophets of old, risen from the dead.”

Again Jesus asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered, “The Messiah of God.” Then Jesus spoke to them, giving them strict orders not to tell this to anyone. And He added, “The Son of Man must suffer many things. He will be rejected by the elders and chief priests and teachers of the Law, and be put to death. Then after three days He will be raised to life.”

Jesus also said to all the people, “If you wish to be a follower of Mine, deny yourself and take up your cross each day, and follow Me! For if you choose to save your life, you will lose it; but if you lose your life for My sake, you will save it.”

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Wednesday, 19 June 2013 : 11th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Romuald, Abbot (Gospel Reading)

Matthew 6 : 1-6, 16-18

Be careful not to make a show of your righteousness before people. If you do so, you do not gain anything from your Father in heaven. When you give something to the poor, do not have it trumpeted before you, as do those who want to be seen in the synagogues and in the streets, in order to be praised by the people. I assure you, they have already been paid in full.

If you give something to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your gift remains really secret. Your Father, who sees what is kept secret, will reward you.

When you pray, do not be like those who want to be seen. They love to stand and pray in the synagogues or on street corners to be seen by everyone. I assure you, they have already been paid in full. When you pray, go into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father who is with you in secret; and your Father who sees what is kept secret will reward you.

When you fast, do not put a miserable face as do the hypocrites. They put on a gloomy face, so that people can see they are fasting. I tell you this : they have been paid in full already. When you fast, wash your face and make yourself look cheerful, because you are not fasting for appearances or for people, but for your Father who sees beyond appearances.

And your Father, who sees what is kept secret, will reward you.

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Wednesday, 12 June 2013 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time (Scripture Reflection)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, Christ is our Lord and Messiah. His coming was told in the numerous prophecies by the prophets as written throughout the Old Testament of the Scripture. His coming was indeed not to destroy the Law as written in the Scripture, and not to abolish the teachings of the prophets and the Law and commandments that God has given to Moses, but to fulfill and complete all the prophecies made about Him.

In the first reading today, we also heard about how the ‘text’ of the Law brings death, while the Spirit brings life, and it also seemingly criticise those who minister to the Law. In this we can clearly see, that in his letter to the faithful in Corinth, he was referring to the chief priests and the Pharisees, whom Christ repeatedly called hypocrites, and whom repeatedly had caused troubles during the Lord’s earthly ministry.

Therefore, brothers and sisters, today we are called to live out the Law of God, the Law which God had given to Moses, and then perfected and completely fulfilled by Christ, His Son, that we do not become slaves to the Law, but become alive due to that Law, which is, according to Christ, is all about love, for God Himself is love.

The chief priests and the Pharisees had grown so accustomed and so attached to the Law, that they had entirely forgotten the Spirit of the Law, that is love, and they had entirely misunderstood the meaning of the Law, and its purpose, becoming instead mindless slaves to their own human traditions, which their ancestors established in rituals and traditions to worship the Lord, but over time, becoming corrupted with worldly desires and impurities.

Rituals and observations of the Law had become empty, and prayers had become stale, and lacking the freshness of the Spirit of the Lord. That was what Christ had criticised, when the Pharisees went praying in the public places, showcasing their piety for all to see. That they love human glory instead of seeking heavenly glory of God and praising God, and instead of using the Law as it is intended, they had abused it to their own purposes.

That is why Christ came into our world, not just to be our Saviour, but also to perfect the Law of God, and to explain them clearly to the people of God, that they would no longer misinterpret the Law and therefore sin in the eyes of the Lord. He revealed to those whom He had chosen and those who were willing to listen to His word.

The same too, brothers and sisters in Christ, applies to our Church today. We have our own Law in the Church, that is the Canon Law, to regulate matters pertaining to the Church and the faithful in God, and also the liturgical laws to regulate the way we worship the Law with its rituals and observations, much like that observed by the priests of Israel of old, and during Jesus’ time.

We have to obey these laws and norms, my brothers and sisters in Christ, particularly regarding the Mass and the liturgy, because in the Mass we worship the Lord Himself, and we have to do it worthily. Sadly, there are many today who simply do not care about the liturgy and the proper worship of the Mass as written in the Law of the Church, as are evident in the numerous liturgical abuses in the Masses all around the world.

What is important is, not that we should not obey these laws, nor should we disregard them, but to understand them, by proper preparation and explanations, just as Christ Himself once had done regarding the Laws of Moses, which were given by God. A proper understanding of our Church laws and the liturgical norms in the Mass is a must, brothers and sisters, for improper understanding will certainly lead us astray from God.

But on the other hand, neither should we be so fixated on the rules and the Law that we end up doing everything just for the sake of obeying the Law. Then in that case we are no better than the Pharisees and the chief priest of Jesus’ time. We should not follow the rules simply for the sake of obeying the rules and looking good in the eyes of others.

A simple example would indeed be, the obligation for all of us to attend the Sunday Mass. While it may seem to be trivial, but how many of us actually come to the Mass because we want to come to the Mass and worship the Lord, as all of us should be? I am certain that many of us came to the Mass because we feel that it is an obligation to do so, and being good Catholics, we ‘obeyed’. But, this is not good, because if we do it this way, our heart will not be fully in the Mass, not fully attuned to the worship of the Lord, because our mind and our heart are elsewhere, in our businesses, our other occupations, and not focused towards the Lord.

No, when we come for the Mass, my brothers and sisters in Christ, let us make sure that we truly come to be with God, to love our God, and to praise Him and give thanks to Him for all the good graces and blessings that He had given us. Seek to understand more about our faith and about the Mass from those who have the knowledge and are qualified to teach about the faith to others. Remember, obey the Law because we love the Law and understand it, not just for the sake of obedience, or worse, as a symbol of self-gratification and self-glorification. Amen.

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Tuesday, 11 June 2013 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Barnabas, Apostle (Scripture Reflection)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today, we celebrate a feast of a great Apostle and Church Father of the early Church of Christ, that is our One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. St. Barnabas the Apostle was a constant travel companion of St. Paul during his apostolic trips and missions across the Eastern Mediterranean region.

St. Barnabas was a devout follower of Christ, and was chosen among many, with Paul, whom the Lord Himself converted to His cause, to be the spearhead in the spread of God’s Gospel and as the champions of the faith, allowing the spread of the Good News and the propagation of God’s message of salvation to many people who long for God’s love and care.

At the time of the Apostles, the Church was still in its early days, in its youth. Jesus Christ our Lord had just died, resurrected, and then risen up to heaven. It was an enormous task that Jesus had entrusted to all of them, to make disciples of all the nations, and baptise them in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

There was bound to be opposition to their efforts, but certainly there were also warm receptions and acceptance of the teachings of Christ, and that of the faith, which eventually would become the roots for the growth of the Church in the centuries following the passing of St. Barnabas the Apostle and St. Paul his contemporary.

First, naturally, they went to their own people, to the people of Israel, to whom they preached the Good News and that the Lord Jesus is the Messiah and the Son of God. But, they faced an unusually strong rejection, particularly from the chief priests and the Pharisees, whom themselves had opposed Christ and harassed Him continuously throughout His ministry.

But there were also those among the Jews who accepted God’s word and teachings, and they became the basis of the Church, which was more readily accepted by the pagan people of the Greek origins, the Gentiles. Why the difference in the acceptance of God’s message by these peoples? That is because, to the pagans, they were in darkness, and they were blind. God’s word in the Good News brought to them by the Apostles, was like a warm light of revelation of the truth to them.

The rejection of God’s message by His own people was because of jealousy and human arrogance, particularly in the chief priests and the educated Pharisees, because the people of Israel themselves had known God earlier, ever since the days of Moses and Abraham, unlike the pagan nations. This made them arrogant in their own knowledge and understanding, and they thought that any prophets or teachings not in line with their own version of the faith, would be wrong, as what they certainly thought of Christ and His followers.

Indeed there were those who accepted the message and become God’s disciples, but the time had not been easy for them, for they were persecuted, and even St. Paul was once Saul the great persecutor of the faithful. Nevertheless, with the guidance of the Lord, the Church grew and became more and more anchored in this world, until it becomes what we know today, as the Church.

Missionary work is never easy brothers and sisters, for there will always be those who close their ears from the Good News and turn their hearts away from the Lord. Yes, brethren, even among our own family members, our relatives, and our friends. Even those in the Church are not entirely free from this problem. Missionary work today is not only needed outside the Church, but in fact also inside the Church, to rejuvenate the faith in the many faithful who had been led astray by the world and the evil one.

God chose those whom He was willing to call to be His apostles and disciples, to be His hands in working the good works of God. Through the Twelve Apostles and the disciples of the Lord we receive this faith we have in God through the Church, which is today led by their successors. He sent them during His lifetime to evangelise to the people and to do good works, and themselves having no possession left on them, so that they would not be distracted by material and earthly goods, but devote their time and energy for God alone.

But be careful, brothers and sisters, for it is easy for us to misunderstand the true intent of the Lord in the Gospel today. People easily attack the Church and its ministers for their seemingly ‘material’ and worldly wealth in all the gold and glitter that we see in the churches and in the Mass. The golden chalices, the golden ciboria, and the other gold vessels and vestments used in the Mass.

These are not for our own possession, nor for the Church, for the gold vessels and vestments used in the Mass and in our churches is not for human glory, for indeed, they are for God’s own glory alone. God is so great that in our own way to glorify Him, we have given the best from ourselves, to craft vessels that would be worthy of Him, made of the most precious metals and materials. Not for our own glory, but for the glory of God. That is why we need to have a better understanding of our faith.

Let us then reflect on the words of the Scripture today, and strive to be better disciples of the Lord, and to take up the mantle of the apostles and the disciples, to be messengers of God’s word through the Church, and make disciples of all the nations. May God be with our works and bless us all the time. Amen.

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Tuesday, 4 June 2013 : 9th Week of Ordinary Time (Scripture Reflection)

To Caesar, give to him what is his due, and to God, give to Him what is His due. Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the well-known tale from the Scripture, in which Christ countered the attempt of the Pharisees to test Him, by giving them a perfect answer which they could neither deny nor use against Him. Because Jesus did not say give all things to God or to the civil authorities, but give to each, what is due for each one.

Because if Jesus had said that we should not obey the civil or secular authority, the Pharisees and the chief priests would surely accuse Him to the Romans of inciting the people against them, and therefore would ask the Romans to punish Him. On the other side, if Jesus said that we should obey the civil authorities completely, which was actually disliked at the time, remembering that tax collectors were seen very negatively by the people at the time, the Pharisees too would accuse Jesus of colluding with the Romans and therefore was at fault.

That was why, Christ gave them the perfect answer, the truthful answer. What matters for us in this world is that we obey God, with all our hearts, our minds, and our soul, but in this world, we are not alone, or by ourselves only, for in this world, we also have the often secular, civil governments having power and authority over us, just as God has the power over all mankind and all governments of this world.

We should obey the rules and regulations of the civil authorities, as long as they do not violate our ultimate obedience to God. It is our right to choose out of the free will God has granted us all. But if the state and the nation do not reflect God’s will and love in their actions, we should be awakened to our conscience and our hearts, to not follow the same path, which will certainly lead to disobedience against the Lord.

But if the civil authorities are doing this for the good of all, and in accordance with God’s commandments of love, by all means we should also obey them, and give them what is due. For the states have rendered service to us by ensuring that a proper system is in place, from education and all others like healthcare which enable all of us to have a comfortable life in this world. Therefore it is just right for all of us to repay them in a way, through what is commonly used form as taxes.

But never forget, brothers and sisters in Christ, that our ultimate obedience should always be in God, and God alone. States and nations are human-made, and as human things, they also can err, because they are not perfect, unlike God who is perfect and good. That is why, often at times, states become erroneous in their path and development. But to all of us, that is in fact not the time for us to run and shy ourselves from that erroneous path. Indeed, what all of us should do, is to inspire a change in that error, that the error can be rectified, that states and nations can once again reflect the nature and the will of God in all the things that they do.

Obey the authority in this earth, and the authority that is in heaven, but place our complete and ultimate obedience in God only, brothers and sisters in Christ, and be proactive in our society, that whenever the society begins to go astray from the path of God, let it be that through our actions, things can be made right and straight once again. God bless us all. Amen.

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Tuesday, 4 June 2013 : 9th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Mark 12 : 13-17

They sent to Jesus some Pharisees with members of Herod’s party, with the purpose of trapping Him by His own words. They came and said to Jesus, “Master, we know that You are truthful; You are not influenced by anyone, and Your answers do not vary according to who is listening to You, but You truly teach God’s way. Tell us, is it against the Law to pay taxes to Caesar? Should we pay them or not?”

But Jesus saw through their trick and answered, “Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a silver coin and let Me see it.” They brought Him one and Jesus asked, “Whose image is this, and whose name? They answered, “Caesar’s” Then Jesus said, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” And they were greatly astonished.

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Saturday, 1 June 2013 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Justin, Martyr (Scripture Reflection)

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today, we heard about how the Pharisees and the chief priests doubted the power and authority of Christ, questioning the origins of His authority and works, and in doing so, failing to see the work of God that is in Christ. For all the miracles and the wonders that Christ had done in this world, are the works of the Father, and in doing all that, He did not do it for His own glory, but for the Father who had sent Him.

Why did then, the Pharisees, and the chief priests, who are supposed to be people most knowledgeable in anything related to the Scriptures and the prophecies of the prophets regarding the Messiah failed to see that Christ is the Messiah, and failed even to see the works of God in Jesus? That is, brothers and sisters, because they are blind! They are blinded by their own weaknesses, by jealousy, by hatred, and by prejudice, and the pride they had in their own abilities, in their own intellect, and in their own worldly power.

The Pharisees claimed to serve the Lord and showed this through their external piety, through loud and well-recognised prayers in public places, and by their ultra-orthodox approach to the faith by very strict observation of the Law of Moses, and the norms of the society at the time, even to the little matters such as the washing of the hands prior to meals. But in their strict observation of that Law, they had in fact become corrupted by the power and authority that had been entrusted to them as priests of the people of God.

To them had been granted the authority, the same authority and priestly power as granted to Aaron, the brother of Moses, who became the first High Priest of the people of Israel after the Exodus from Egypt. To them had been granted also the responsibility of guiding the people to remain faithful in the path and ways of the Lord, that the people would not falter and stray in their lives, and remain in God’s grace.

Yet, they had, over the centuries, grown to trust men much more than they trusted God. They placed human glory and acclamation ahead of true, heavenly glory that only God can give. They had grown so accustomed to the privileges they had in their position of authority and power, that they themselves began to stray from the path that God has appointed for them and entrusted them to keep the people faithful in. They, the leaders of the people, out of all others had themselves been bought over by the evil one. Indeed, the saying cannot be further than truth, that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

In their position of authority, and with the privileges and honour they had grown so accustomed to, the priests and the elders had become arrogant, and jealous against anyone they see as rivals to their own authority and power, even if that rival is in fact the very Messiah that God had sent to save the people of Israel, and all mankind. This defiance against the Messiah was very evident today, given how they questioned the authority of Christ, which as God, has authority over all creation.

However, it is important to note that although it seems that those priests and elders look evil from how they were portrayed in the Gospels, but they themselves were not inherently evil. All mankind are inherently capable of doing what is good, and also what is evil. Ever since our ancestors, Adam and Eve, ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, we had been exposed to both good and evil, and therefore, are fully capable of doing both. Whether to do good or to do evil, is entirely within our own decision capacity.

That is why, dear brothers and sisters in Christ, it is important that we keep our faith in the Lord strong at all times, and anchor ourselves firmly in His love, so that we will not go astray, tempted and bought off by the enticing offers of the evil one, who had in his possession, all the world and all its ‘good’ things, that can easily tempt and seduce those who are weak-hearted, and those without firm faith in the Lord.

Today, therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, and from here on, we should always be reminded on the evils of this world, and the dangers that we constantly face in our daily struggles against evil and all that he employed in this world against God’s children. Especially, brethren, if we had been entrusted with positions of authority and power, do not abuse that power that the Lord had entrusted you, and do not let the sheep entrusted to you, their shepherd, to go astray from the truth of God.

But we need not fear, brethren, for Christ is amongst us, and He is always with us, if only that we remain faithful and obedient to Him and do all the commandments that He had given us, we are safe. The devil will have no power over us, and we will truly become God’s children. And instead of jealousy, we will be in complete awe and wonder for the glory of God, and with the angels and saints, we shall glorify Him forevermore when we are reunited with Him once again, in the eternal bliss of heaven.

Today we also commemorate the feast of a great early martyr of the Christian Church, St. Justin the Martyr, who died for the faith in the second century after the coming of Christ, in the early Church times. St. Justin was born a pagan and a philosopher, with a great intellect and quality education, that made him a very well-educated person in the society at the time. St. Justin encountered many believers of Christ in his journeys and travels, and despite being involved in arguments and debates with them, in fact, gradually, it kindled in him the love for God, and the steadfast faith in Christ.

St. Justin, despite his great intellect and knowledge, did not give in to his pride and human weakness, and instead put himself in God’s love and place his full trust in Him. That is why He was glorified in death, out of his steadfast and unfailing faith, even unto death, because, unlike the Pharisees and the chief priests, he did not let human pride and arrogance to get in the way of salvation. May we be able to follow in the footsteps of St. Justin, and become truly the disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ. St. Justin the Martyr, pray for us. Amen.

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Saturday, 1 June 2013 : 8th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Justin, Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Mark 11 : 27-33

They were once again in Jerusalem. As Jesus was walking in the Temple, the chief priests, the teachers of the Law and the elders came to Him and asked, “What authority do You have to act like this? Who gave You authority to do the things You do?”

Jesus said to them, “I will ask you a question, only one, and if you give Me an answer, then I will tell you what authority I have to act like this. Was John’s preaching and baptism a work of God, or was it merely something human? Answer Me.”

And they kept arguing among themselves, “If we answer that it was a work of God, He will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?'” But neither could they answer before the people that the baptism of John was merely something human, for everyone regarded John as a prophet.

So they answered Jesus, “We do not know”, and Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you what authority I have to act as I do.”