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Monday, 26 December 2022 : Feast of St. Stephen, Protomartyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we come to this day after the Christmas Day, we celebrate together as the Church the Feast of St. Stephen, the Protomartyr or the very first Martyr of the Church. This means that St. Stephen the first one to die for his faith in God, in giving his life for the sake of the glory of God and in the midst of his mission. We may wonder why just immediately right after the most joyful celebration of Christmas Day we suddenly enter into this sombre occasion of the memory of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, but in truth, this celebration of St. Stephen and his martyrdom is an important reminder for all of us what Christmas is truly all about. St. Stephen reminds us all that Christmas is about celebrating the coming of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, Who brought into our midst the truth about the love of God for each one of us, and which truth is the reason why St. Stephen died courageously in defending that truth and Good News from those who tried to silence him and the Church.

Contextually, back then, when St. Stephen began his ministry as one of the first seven Deacons appointed to minister to the Church and to the people of God, it was still not long after the suffering, crucifixion and the death of the Lord Jesus on the Cross, as well as His Resurrection from the dead on the third day after the Crucifixion. The Sanhedrin, or the Jewish High Council which members were mostly opposed to the Lord and His teachings, tried to hide the truth by spreading lies and falsehoods, bribing the Roman soldiers sent to guard the tomb to speak up with the false words that the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord had come to steal His Body from the tomb while the soldiers were sleeping. They tried to hide the truth of the Lord’s words, how everything happened just as He had predicted it, and hence, showing that what they had done in trying to persecute the Lord and His ministry, had been flawed and mistaken in the first place.

Yet, the High Priest and the other chief priests, many of the most influential members of the Pharisees and the Sadducees both continued to maintain their lies and attempted to silence the Apostles and the disciples of the Lord, persecuting the Church and arresting all those who professed to believe in the Lord and His Good News. The Sanhedrin commanded them all to stay silent and not to speak or teach anymore in the Name of the Lord, but they could not silence the courageous and most faithful servants of God. Those servants, including that of St. Stephen, the Apostles and the many disciples and followers of the Lord chose to continue to proclaim the Lord and His truth, the words of wisdom and the salvation that He has promised to all of us, even when they face a certainty of oppression, suffering and even death at the hands of their enemies.

That was how St. Stephen ended up facing his martyrdom, just as we heard in our first reading passage today. St. Stephen had been most vocal and active in his ministry among the people, distributing the goods to the faithful. That made him marked and targeted by his enemies who then plotted against him and tried to destroy him, just as we heard. They made false statements and accusations, but all of those could not hold against the wisdom of God found in St. Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit and the gifts that the Spirit bestowed on him. That was also the moment when St. Stephen courageously defended his faith before the whole assembly of the Sanhedrin and their supporters, sharing the wisdom and truth of God to dispel the falsehoods and lies they had spread.

That was exactly how the Lord Himself had predicted would happen to His disciples as we heard in our Gospel passage today, and how He told them all that they had no need to be afraid because God and His Holy Spirit would always be with them, and the Wisdom of God would guide and strengthen them against their enemies and all those who plotted against them. St. Stephen showed great courage despite facing certainty of suffering and death, and did what he could to defend his faith and the truth of God, proclaiming the words of truth before everyone and still hoping that they would finally listen to reason and turn away from their wicked ways. Although many of those people continued to harden their hearts and minds, and stoned St. Stephen to death, the servant of God died in peace knowing that he had done what he could for the Lord and His people.

The death of St. Stephen, his suffering and everything that he had to endure for the sake of the Lord all are reminders for us that this Christmas we are all called to be the witnesses of the Lord and proclaim His truth in our own communities, as those who have seen and received the fullness of truth just as St. Stephen had, through the gift and wisdom of the Holy Spirit, and through the teachings of the Church. Christmas is not just a time of great rejoicing and celebrations, but also a time for us to remember that Christ is the Love of God personified and manifested in the flesh, Who has come down into our midst to dwell among us and to gather us all into His presence and embrace once again. It is this same truth which St. Stephen had suffered and died from, defending it from all those who rejected the Lord as their Saviour.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all consider carefully as we progress through this Christmas season that we do not end up forgetting the real reason why we celebrate Christmas in the first place. Christmas is celebrated because we truly honour the Lord Who has come into our midst, reaching out to us sinners, as we see the love which He has for all of us, manifested in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ, born that day in Bethlehem in Judea, fulfilling all the promises which God has made to us. And it is imperative that we stand by Him and His truth, and make Him the centre of our celebrations so that not only we rejoice in His coming, but more and more people may come to see the truth and love of God and therefore come to believe in Him as well. That is what St. Stephen had done, in reminding everyone, including all of us, of the reason why we celebrate Christmas.

Christmas is truly about a celebration of the love of God which has allowed us all to have hope today, because without God and His love, there can be no hope for us, and we would have been doomed to eternal damnation because of our disobedience and multitudes of sins. It was by the suffering, death and ultimately, the Resurrection of the Lord, our Saviour that we have received healing and rejuvenation, hope and new strength, which He has provided us through His coming into this world, His actions and providence by His ministry in the world, as He came offering us this new hope and the light that He delivers unto us all, and by which we have seen the Light of His salvation. And because God has loved us so much that He was even willing to suffer and die for our sake, should we not then love Him in the same way as well?

Christ’s love is what encouraged and strengthened St. Stephen, that guided by the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, he chose to stand by his faith in God. Let us all therefore be inspired in the same way by the love of Our Lord and Saviour, which He has shown us from His Cross, and also by the courage of St. Stephen, holy martyr and most devout servant of God. May the Lord bless us all and may He grant us His strength to persevere against all the challenges and trials we may have to face in life, because of His love and truth. Amen.

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Sunday, 25 December 2022 : Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, Christmas Day Mass (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today is the glorious and joyful Christmas Day, the day we have been awaiting for throughout the previous season of Advent, and what we have been hopefully preparing for well, all these while. Today as we rejoice together with the whole entire Universal Church, we are all again reminded of what and why we celebrate Christmas in the first place. What is it that we are celebrating in Christmas, brother and sisters? It is the joyful celebration of the birth of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, and hence is why we call it as Christmas in the first place. And why do we celebrate it then? It is because we rejoice at the coming of Our Lord and Saviour, through Whom all of us have seen the salvation and glory of God, made manifest through His Son.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard of the Lord’s proclamation of joy and salvation for His people Israel, in which God proclaimed to them that He would restore the glory of His people and erase from them the shame of their forebears. Back then, the people of God had been suffering humiliations and sufferings one after another as they encountered various hardships and challenges, all of which were caused by their lack of faith and trust in God. Their disobedience and wickedness led to them being punished for their wrongdoings. But God did not despise them, as He still cared for them and loved them despite their constant disobedience and lack of faith. He showed them His love by sending them His salvation in the person of Jesus Christ, His own only begotten Son.

It is this same Jesus Christ mentioned in the beginning of the Gospel of St. John at our Gospel passage today, which in the past used to be the Last Gospel read at the end of every celebration of the Holy Mass, except on certain occasions. This reading being read on the Christmas Day must have been strange for some as unlike the other Gospel readings of the Christmas Masses, this one does not specifically mention about Jesus Christ and the account on His birth. Yet, if we read on more carefully, this Gospel passage is in fact a very important one as it highlighted to us the very importance and significance of why we even celebrate Christmas in the first place. If Christmas has been about the birth of just any other man, or any other persons, then it would not have the same significance or meaning to us.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, if Christmas is about any other man, just a mere prophet or ordinary man, then His birth would have been just like any other men, with no special significance unless to those who knew Him well like His family and friends. On the other hand, it was what St. John the Apostle mentioned in his Gospel passage that indicated to us and also reminded us that, the One Whom we celebrate at this Christmas festivities and joy, is none other than God Himself, Incarnate in the flesh, entering into our world and existence as Man, the Divine Word Incarnate, the Word that was made Flesh, the Son of God and Son of Man. The One born over two millennia ago in Bethlehem in Judea is indeed the Saviour promised by God, and not just that, but God Himself has come to our midst to dwell among us and to be with us always.

He is no longer distant and intangible for us. He is no longer the God of the Old Testament that seems to be far and mighty beyond any of us human beings to approach. Instead, He showed us all that His love has made us to be the sharers of His most generous love and kindness, as He reached out to us and come to touch us and our lives, to bring us our of the darkness and into the light. God has always wanted us to be reconciled to Him, and to forgive us our sins when we desire to commit ourselves to the path of righteousness and be forgiven from our many faults. Yet, it is often that we do not have enough faith in Him, and we end up continuing to disobey Him, and walking down the path of sin, that lead us more often than not to our downfall.

God has taken up our human existence and our human nature, by the Incarnation of the Divine Word, His own Word that has proclaimed the creation of the whole world because through this act of perfect love and self-giving, God may reunite us all to Himself. God has reached our to us by sending His own Son to help lead us to Himself, and to gather us all as our Shepherd, so that all of us the lost sheep of the Lord’s flock may be gathered all once again, and become God’s flock once more, reunited and reconciled with Him. He also sent us His herald, St. John the Baptist, to be the one to prepare His way for Him, that more and more people may come to be saved. This task has then on be passed through to the Church, and hence, the Church today still has the obligation to care for those who have been lost from God, to follow in the example of Christ our Lord, by Whose love we have been saved and seen the salvation of God.

In coming into this world, the Lord has done what others may think to be irrational and impossible. Even many of the people of God at the time of the Lord’s coming refused to believe in Him and this truth, and some accused Him of blasphemy when He revealed later on before them, how He was truly the Son of God and Son of Man both. It might seem irrational because throughout history, mankind had always aspired to be great and to be like God, with dictators and those who sought glory and power desiring others to honour, respect and even worship them. And many people sought to become like God, to be invincible and mighty, and to be free from their limitations, without avail, throughout the history of the world, from desiring to live longer and to extend their lives, to gain more power and might, and to become indeed like God, which they all could not do.

There is then only one God and One Who willingly embraced us and willingly humbled and lowered Himself, that He was made sharer of our human existence, that God Himself might come and dwell with us, and to be by our side. Again these might have seemed impossible for some, and as mentioned, some did doubt the Lord and refused to believe in Him. Yet, because God is Almighty and All-Powerful, surely something like that is within God’s power to do? We simply think that just because God is great and Almighty that He will definitely not want to lower and humble Himself in this manner, and yet, that was exactly what God had chosen to do, and all of that was because of His continued and persistent love for each one of us. He did all of these for our sake, and that is what Christmas is all about and why we rejoice because of that.

God made Himself small and vulnerable as a Child, and as a Man like us so that through Him, and His sharing of our human nature and existence, He may bring unto us the perfection of love and obedience as our loving Shepherd and Guide, showing us what it truly means to be a disciple and follower of the Lord. Christ could have come as a conquering King and Mighty One, just as many believed or thought that He would have, but He chose to come to us in this way, because He wants to be the Mediator between us and our Heavenly Father, God in Heaven, becoming the Bridge through His Cross, suffering, death and resurrection, that bring us back to the Father, and reestablish the Covenant between Him and us, which had once been broken by our disobedience and sins. He became Man so that by uniting our human nature to Himself, we may see and receive the fullness of redemption and glory, together with Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we enter into this glorious and joyful season of Christmas, are we willing and ready to commit ourselves anew to the Lord, Our God and Saviour? We are reminded this Christmas of the great Love of God made Man, and because He has made Himself approachable and His most generous love tangible and within our reach, all of us no longer wallow and suffer in the darkness and sin. We are reminded that God is and has always been with us, no matter whenever it is, and regardless of the highs and lows in our lives. The love of God personified and manifested in Christ is what we are celebrating this time and season of Christmas, and it is what we all need to focus and put emphasis on during this time of grace.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, it is important that this Christmas should be a reminder to all of us in living our lives that we may seek to become better Christians, and that we do not just be like nominal Christians, having faith in name only. How we celebrate Christmas is one of the way that this is reflected and shown. We can see just how easily we access the mostly secularised and hedonistic Christmas celebrations all around us are, and how even many among us Christians, we celebrate Christmas in the same way, with great excesses in pleasures, merrymaking and rejoicing, but one that is empty because Christ is not at the centre of all of our rejoicing and celebrations. Christ has often been forgotten and ignored at the celebration of His own birthday, and that is truly something that is sad at Christmas every year.

Many of us spent our Christmas busy in trying to outdo one another in celebrating our Christmas with parties and gift-exchanges, trying to have more of the celebratory moods and the feasting, focused primarily on indulging ourselves on the various goods and worldly excesses of the usual Christmas festivities. Many of us treat Christmas as a time of holiday and rejoicing, to gather back with our families and friends, and exchange various stories and experiences over good food and drink. Yet, again, we often ignored the Lord and did not leave Him any place in our hearts and minds, and leaving Him out of our Christmas rejoicing and merrymaking. It is not wrong to celebrate Christmas with great feasting and merrymaking, but we must not let those to distract us from the true meaning and purpose of Christmas.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore make good use of this time of Christmas to share the love of God which He has shown us to all of our fellow brethren, in becoming one like us and in dwelling with us, Incarnate in the flesh, by reaching out with love to all the people we meet and encounter, even to acquaintances and strangers. It is not a time to love ourselves and to immerse ourselves in our self-indulgence and excessive merrymaking. Instead, it should be a time for us to be more generous in the giving and sharing of our love and joy with others, especially with all those who are less fortunate and not capable of celebrating Christmas in the manner that we do. We should do our best to show others around us what Christmas truly means, and share whatever extra blessings and graces we have received, with those who have less or even none at all.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we enter into this Christmas season, let us all continue to make good use of the time and opportunity in order to deepen our relationship with God, and to immerse ourselves in the celebration of God’s love and compassion, to return our focus and attention, and all of our Christmas celebrations and joy on Christ as the reason why we rejoice throughout this glorious and most joyful season. Let us draw ever closer to the Lord and His love, and let us all be ever more exemplary in how we live our lives from now on, and also in how we share the love of God with one another. May God bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours, now and always, forevermore. Wishing all of us a most blessed and wonderful Christmas season for all of us and our loved ones. Amen.

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Sunday, 25 December 2022 : Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, Christmas Mass at Dawn (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this morning of the Christmas Day, as we gather together to rejoice in the memory of the glorious coming and appearance of Our Lord and Saviour in the flesh, we are all reminded to give thanks to God for everything that He had done for us, all the love, generosity and kindness that He has shown us. He has shown us His great love, manifested and made real in Jesus Christ, His Son, Who was born from His mother Mary, ever Virgin, and came into our midst as the Emmanuel, God Who is with us, His beloved people. God did not abandon us to the darkness and destruction, but He opened for us the path of His eternal light and salvation by the incarnation of His Son in the flesh, that through Him He might save us all from the certainty of death and eternal damnation.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah the words of the Lord proclaiming His salvation to His people, calling upon all of them to return to Him and to be faithful once again to Him, as He Who loves His people will always be with them, and they shall once again be great and blessed as God has always intended. Back then, the fortunes of God’s people, the Israelites have been at a very low point because they had faced a lot of opposition, and the entire northern half of the nation of the Israelites, named the northern kingdom of Israel, had been crushed and destroyed by the Assyrians, who went to destroy their nation and as well as exiling many of the people away from their ancestral homeland to distant lands, all because of their sins and wickedness. They had been humbled and humiliated, because earlier on their pride and ego had led to their rebellion against God, and their wickedness in refusing to listen to His words and commandments.

The people of God had often rebelled and disobeyed against the Lord, refusing to listen to His words and reminders, persecuting and rejecting the prophets and messengers sent to them to remind them. They hardened their hearts to His words, and as such, they had to face the consequences of their wickedness and evils, and thus faced those great humiliations and punishments due to their sins. But it did not mean that God despised them, as the truth is that, God despised the sins that they have committed and not the people themselves. It was their persistence to remain in the state of sin, and their many sins which had led them to be punished and to face the consequences of their sins. But God never gave up on them, and He has always reached out to them again and again, nudging them to return to Him and to be reconciled with Him.

That is exactly the hope and encouragement that God hoped to show His people, by sending His Son into this world to be in the midst of His people, calling on them to return from their wayward way of life and embracing His way of righteousness and grace once again. God has shown His most generous love to us by reaching out to us and showing us the path and hope out of the eternal darkness and from the chasm and precipice of eternal damnation, because He wants us all to be liberated and free from our bondage to our desires, pride, ego and sins. As the second reading today from the Epistle of St. Paul to St. Titus highlighted to us, that God sent us the Saviour, Our Lord Jesus Christ, to mark upon us the works of His mercy and love, to redeem us and draw us out of the darkness and into the light, to renew us and to strengthen us once again in His love.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the account od the birth of the Lord Jesus according to St. Luke, as the Holy Child was born in a small stable just outside Bethlehem, a Child born as predicted and prophesied by the prophets, from the Virgin. And the Lord announced the Good News to all the people through His Angels, who all sang in great joy, ‘Gloria in Excelsis Deo!’, ‘Glory to God in the Highest!’ to the shepherds who witnessed all of that in the wilderness of Bethlehem in Judea. God announced the joy of His coming to the world, as truly, the salvation long awaited by His people and by all those who sought Him has finally come into this world, in the form of the Child born on the manger in Bethlehem, that day, over two millennia ago, which we now celebrate as Christmas.

God made Himself small and vulnerable as a Child, and as a Man like us so that through Him, and His sharing of our human nature and existence, He may bring unto us the perfection of love and obedience as our loving Shepherd and Guide, showing us what it truly means to be a disciple and follower of the Lord. Christ could have come as a conquering King and Mighty One, just as many believed or thought that He would have, but He chose to come to us in this way, because He wants to be the Mediator between us and our Heavenly Father, God in Heaven, becoming the Bridge through His Cross, suffering, death and resurrection, that bring us back to the Father, and reestablish the Covenant between Him and us, which had once been broken by our disobedience and sins. He became Man so that by uniting our human nature to Himself, we may see and receive the fullness of redemption and glory, together with Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we enter into this glorious and joyful season of Christmas, are we willing and ready to commit ourselves anew to the Lord, Our God and Saviour? We are reminded this Christmas of the great Love of God made Man, and because He has made Himself approachable and His most generous love tangible and within our reach, all of us no longer wallow and suffer in the darkness and sin. We are reminded that God is and has always been with us, no matter whenever it is, and regardless of the highs and lows in our lives. The love of God personified and manifested in Christ is what we are celebrating this time and season of Christmas, and it is what we all need to focus and put emphasis on during this time of grace.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, it is important that this Christmas should be a reminder to all of us in living our lives that we may seek to become better Christians, and that we do not just be like nominal Christians, having faith in name only. How we celebrate Christmas is one of the way that this is reflected and shown. We can see just how easily we access the mostly secularised and hedonistic Christmas celebrations all around us are, and how even many among us Christians, we celebrate Christmas in the same way, with great excesses in pleasures, merrymaking and rejoicing, but one that is empty because Christ is not at the centre of all of our rejoicing and celebrations. Christ has often been forgotten and ignored at the celebration of His own birthday, and that is truly something that is sad at Christmas every year.

Many of us spent our Christmas busy in trying to outdo one another in celebrating our Christmas with parties and gift-exchanges, trying to have more of the celebratory moods and the feasting, focused primarily on indulging ourselves on the various goods and worldly excesses of the usual Christmas festivities. Many of us treat Christmas as a time of holiday and rejoicing, to gather back with our families and friends, and exchange various stories and experiences over good food and drink. Yet, again, we often ignored the Lord and did not leave Him any place in our hearts and minds, and leaving Him out of our Christmas rejoicing and merrymaking. It is not wrong to celebrate Christmas with great feasting and merrymaking, but we must not let those to distract us from the true meaning and purpose of Christmas.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore make good use of this time of Christmas to share the love of God which He has shown us to all of our fellow brethren, to all the people we meet and encounter, even to acquaintances and strangers. It is not a time to love ourselves and to immerse ourselves in our self-indulgence and excessive merrymaking. Instead, it should be a time for us to be more generous in the giving and sharing of our love and joy with others, especially with all those who are less fortunate and not capable of celebrating Christmas in the manner that we do. We should do our best to show others around us what Christmas truly means, and share whatever extra blessings and graces we have received, with those who have less or even none at all.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we enter into this Christmas season, let us all continue to make good use of the time and opportunity in order to deepen our relationship with God, and to immerse ourselves in the celebration of God’s love and compassion, to return our focus and attention, and all of our Christmas celebrations and joy on Christ as the reason why we rejoice throughout this glorious and most joyful season. Let us draw ever closer to the Lord and His love, and let us all be ever more exemplary in how we live our lives from now on, and also in how we share the love of God with one another. May God bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours, now and always, forevermore. Wishing all of us a most blessed and wonderful Christmas season for all of us and our loved ones. Amen.

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Sunday, 25 December 2022 : Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, Christmas Midnight Mass (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this night we celebrate greatly in the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, marking the glorious occasion of the birthday of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. On this night, after the whole entire month of the season of Advent, that we spent preparing ourselves to welcome the Lord, we finally have arrived at this moment when we rejoice wholeheartedly in great rejoicing and festivities, as we enter into this season and time of joy. Tonight, we truly sing from our hearts and minds, with the Angels of God and the innumerable saints, ‘Gloria in Excelsis Deo!’, glory to God in the highest, praising Him for all that He has done for us, as He entered this world, becoming a Child for us, born and revealing to us the fullness of His love and ever enduring kindness.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah about the proclamation of the coming of the salvation from God, as Light has come from God to the people who have lived in the darkness, to illuminate their lives and their paths, restoring unto them their hope and strength. That prophecy also mentioned the time of liberation and freedom, as the light and salvation of God was revealed in the person of Jesus Christ, the Holy Child born in Bethlehem in Judea, the city of David just as the prophets had spoken about for a long time. That prophecy is a direct reference to the Saviour Whom God would send into the world, and He has indeed come in the person of Jesus Christ, the Holy Child born of His mother Mary, the Virgin who has given birth to a Son, that is none other than God Himself, Incarnate in the flesh, Emmanuel, God Who is with His people.

That is why we heard the very peculiar titles that the prophet Isaiah mentioned regarding this Holy One born to save all the people of God. His titles are ‘Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.’ Truly peculiar and interesting is it not? On a hindsight, people back then at the time of the prophet Isaiah and even at the time of the Lord’s birth would not have realised that it is none other than God Himself, willingly coming down to be with us, to dwell in our midst, although the hints and predictions had been aplenty. It was because until the Lord Himself revealed it all, they would not have realised the truth, and they would not have known the truth. But all of us today who have heard and received the fullness of truth, truly know Who it is that came that day more than two millennia ago, the birthday of Our Lord and Saviour.

After all, how can He not be the Divine Word Incarnate, if we heard the prophet himself saying about this One and this Child as Mighty God and Everlasting Father? How can the prophet referred to any man alive or coming in the future as God, if it is truly not God Himself coming to our midst in the flesh? He is the one and only Father and Creator of all, and this same One Who has created us all out of His perfect love, is the One born on Christmas, and Whom we are celebrating today and this entire glorious and joyful season of Christmas, remembering how His love for us led to Him coming to us in order to save us from impending destruction and damnation. He wants us all to be reconciled to Him, and because of all of that love, and the desire to save us, He has come into our midst, humbling Himself as a small, little Child.

God made Himself small and vulnerable as a Child, and as a Man like us so that through Him, and His sharing of our human nature and existence, He may bring unto us the perfection of love and obedience, showing us what it truly means to be a disciple and follower of the Lord. Christ could have come as a conquering King and Mighty One, just as many believed or thought that He would have, but He chose to come to us in this way, because He wants to be the Mediator between us and our Heavenly Father, God in Heaven, becoming the Bridge through His Cross, suffering, death and resurrection, that bring us back to the Father, and reestablish the Covenant between Him and us, which had once been broken by our disobedience and sins. He became Man so that by uniting our human nature to Himself, we may see and receive the fullness of redemption and glory, together with Him.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the account of the birth of Our Lord according to St. Luke, which I am sure we are all familiar about, telling us how St. Joseph and Mary went to Bethlehem in Judea according to the census order of the Roman Emperor Augustus. That became the fulfilment of the prophecies of the prophets, as by Divine plan and will, the Saviour would indeed be born in the city of David, and through St. Joseph and his legal marriage to Mary, the Mother of God, Jesus Christ was born the Son and Heir of David, in the city of Bethlehem that day, more than two millennia ago. But what we also should take note is how, when the heavily pregnant Mary and St. Joseph came to Bethlehem, all the inns and accommodations there were full, and there was no place for them at all, so that they had to settle for a stable outside of the town, a place not even fit for human dwelling.

It was there that the Saviour of the world was born, not in palace made with the finest stones and adorned with gold, but amongst animals and shepherds, and Whose coming was announced to those same shepherds, with the bright Star of Bethlehem resting upon His birthplace, guiding the Three Magi or Wise Men to Him. The Lord loves each one of us so much that He became One like us, making Himself tangible and approachable by us, embracing our humble human existence and life, so that by His appearance and coming into our midst, He may show us the light of His hope and salvation, as something that is within our reach and something that we can approach without fear, reminding us of the great and ever enduring love that He has always had for us. God has never left us alone, and He has always desired that we find our way back to Him, calling us to return through His Son.

Yet, many of us have yet to acknowledge that call, and just as Mary and St. Joseph had difficulty finding any place in Bethlehem, how about us? Have we welcomed the Lord into our hearts and minds when He comes to us? Or have we been like those innkeepers and other accommodation places in Bethlehem that turned the Lord, His mother and foster father away, just because there was no place in them? Let us all look into our lives and our way of believing in God all these while, and especially also in how we are going to celebrate Christmas, not just today but for the entire season, and even beyond that. Are we so full of worldly things and preoccupations that we have no place at all for the Lord in our hearts and minds? And is the Lord even the focus and the reason why we celebrate Christmas?

Too often we can see all around us that Christmas celebrations have been centred not on Christ but on other things, and we see how people seek pleasures, joyful celebrations, merrymaking, parties and all kinds of activities that made them filled with revelry and joy, and yet, Christ was noticeably absent from all of the celebrations. That is unfortunately what happened in how Christmas is celebrated all around the world. Not only that but even among us Christians, have we been truly celebrating Christmas because we understand its significance and importance to us, or have we celebrated Christmas because we seek all of its festivities and joy, for our own selfish desires and wants? Have we celebrated Christmas not remembering Christ and all that He has done for us, because of His love for us?

Let us all therefore rediscover the true meaning of Christmas and do our best to return the Lord to the very focus and heart of all of our celebrations if we have not yet done so. If we have allowed our many temptations and distractions, worldly glamour and secularised Christmas focus to distract us from the true meaning of Christmas, let us now then return to the Lord once again and make Christmas once against about Christ. Christmas is also a time when we should imitate and follow in the loving example of Our Lord, in how He has loved all of us so dearly, that we too may love our fellow brothers and sisters, loving all those whom we encounter in life, our families and relatives, our friends and acquaintances, and even all those stranger we meet in our daily lives. It is also a time for us to share our joy and love, especially with those who are not as fortunate as us, in not being able to celebrate Christmas the way we could, and those who are bereft of hope and joy this season.

May all of us have a great and most blessed Christmas season, and may each one of us grow ever stronger in our faith and love for God, remembering all the love which He has shown us. Let us all reach out to one another and remind ourselves not to be distracted by worldly excesses, but instead, be inspired by God’s great love for us through Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, that we too may be filled with His love and grace, and be the bearers of the true spirit and meaning of Christmas. May all of us be the beacons of God’s light, hope and truth in the world today, in whatever we do, and may God bless us all in our every good works and endeavours, now and always. Blessed Christmas everyone! Amen.

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Saturday, 24 December 2022 : Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, Christmas Eve (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, after a whole month of the season of Advent, tonight we have finally reached this day that we have been awaiting for so long, and that is the moment when we rejoice greatly at the celebration of the Lord’s birth, His Nativity and entry into this world. This night, we mark the Vigil of the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, and truly we can sing and praise the Lord in great joy, welcoming Him as He comes into our midst, and as we remember all the love which He has poured upon us. And as we enter into this most joyful Christmas season, we are called to remember why we rejoice in the first place. It is the coming of Christ, the Saviour which we are most happy about, as His coming fulfilled all the many promises and assurances of salvation, as He had made to us from the beginning of time.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, the words of assurance from God to His people Israel, to the people of the southern kingdom of Judah as He delivered it to those who have been downtrodden and troubled, all those who have suffered difficulties, hardships and destruction, humiliation at the hands of their enemies. Back then, the fortunes of God’s people, the Israelites have been at a very low point because they had faced a lot of opposition, and the entire northern half of the nation of the Israelites, named the northern kingdom of Israel, had been crushed and destroyed by the Assyrians, whose king led the forces to destroy Samaria, the capital of that kingdom, as well as exiling many of the people away from their ancestral homeland to distant lands, all because of their sins and wickedness.

The people of God had often rebelled and disobeyed against the Lord, refusing to listen to His words and reminders, persecuting and rejecting the prophets and messengers sent to them to remind them. They hardened their hearts to His words, and as such, they had to face the consequences of their wickedness and evils, and thus faced those great humiliations and punishments due to their sins. But it did not mean that God despised them, as the truth is that, God despised the sins that they have committed and not the people themselves. It was their persistence to remain in the state of sin, and their many sins which had led them to be punished and to face the consequences of their sins. But God never gave up on them, and He has always reached out to them again and again, nudging them to return to Him and to be reconciled with Him.

Hence, the Lord reminded His people in our first reading today that if only they repented from their sins, turned away from their wicked ways and came back to Him, that they would be glorious and blessed once again, and God would gladly bestow upon them what their ancestors had once enjoyed, the grace and favour, the glory and might among all the nations of the Earth. If only that they would listen to Him and embraced His ways once again, then they would be glorious and mighty again, as a people blessed by God, and as a nation united in the same Lord and King. The Lord has always been faithful to the Covenant that He has made with His people, and He has given them in the end, the ultimate form of His love, with the coming and appearing of Christ, His Son in our world.

In our second reading today, St. Paul in the Acts of the Apostles spoke courageously before the people regarding God’s salvation which He had extended to all of His people through time and time again, reaching out to them and fulfilling His promises to them, just as He raised up first Saul and then David to be King over His people, Israel, and then, just as He had promised David, in making his reign and the dominion of his house secure, He would fulfil all these through the coming of Jesus Christ, born of the House of David, as the long awaited Messiah or Saviour, having been born and entered into our history, so that by His coming into this world all of us can see all of the goodness of God and the love which He has always consistently showed us, right from the beginning.

The account of the birth of Jesus in our Gospel from St. Matthew also further highlighted this, as we heard of all the generations right from Adam to Jesus, through Abraham and David, the ancestors of the Saviour of all. The birth and coming of Jesus Christ into this world is therefore marking that pivotal moment when God finally made evident and perfect all that He has put into place from the very beginning. God has always loved us, and even when our first ancestors disobeyed Him and refused to follow His path, He did not will them to annihilation and destruction although He could have perfectly done so. He exiled them from the Gardens of Eden as a consequence of their sins, but He also promised them all the coming of His deliverance, through the Saviour He would send unto them.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we rejoice today in this great Solemnity of the Lord’s Nativity, celebrating His birth and coming into this world, let us all keep in mind of what He has done for us, and what we ourselves should be doing with our lives knowing of everything that He has given us out of love. The Lord has showed His love and taught us to do the same, so that everyone should be the bearers of His love and truth, doing His will and walking henceforth in His Presence, erasing the past humiliations due to our sins and wickedness. God has always showed us the path of righteousness, and through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, He showed us the perfect example of love, obedience and faith, essentially how all of us should act and behave as Christians.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, it is important that this Christmas should be a reminder to all of us in living our lives that we may seek to become better Christians, and that we do not just be like nominal Christians, having faith in name only. How we celebrate Christmas is one of the way that this is reflected. We can see just how pervasive and ubiquitous the secular and worldly Christmas celebrations all around us are, and how even many among us Christians, we celebrate Christmas in the same way, with great excesses in pleasures, merrymaking and rejoicing, but one that is empty because Christ is not at the centre of all of our rejoicing and celebrations. Christ has often been forgotten and ignored at the celebration of His own birthday, and that is truly something that is sad at Christmas every year.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore make good use of this time of Christmas to share the love of God which He has shown us to all of our fellow brethren, to all the people we meet and encounter, even to acquaintances and strangers. It is not a time to love ourselves and to immerse ourselves in our self-indulgence and excessive merrymaking. Instead, it should be a time for us to be more generous in the giving and sharing of our love and joy with others, especially with all those who are less fortunate and not capable of celebrating Christmas in the manner that we do. We should do our best to show others around us what Christmas truly means, and share whatever extra blessings and graces we have received, with those who have less or even none at all.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we enter into this Christmas season, let us all continue to make good use of the time and opportunity in order to deepen our relationship with God, and to immerse ourselves in the celebration of God’s love and compassion, to centre ourselves and focus on Christ as the reason why we rejoice throughout this glorious and most joyful season. Let us draw ever closer to the Lord and His love, and let us all be ever more exemplary in how we live our lives from now on, and also in how we share the love of God with one another. May God bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours, now and always, forevermore. Wishing all of us a most blessed and wonderful Christmas season for all of us and our loved ones. Amen.

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Saturday, 24 December 2022 : 4th Week of Advent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded of the great joy that is coming to us this Christmas, which is just tomorrow. Are we prepared to welcome the Lord and to celebrate in His coming into our midst, brothers and sisters? After a whole entire season of Advent, all the more that the Advent season this year is at the longest possible duration, have we been spending our time right in doing what we can to prepare our hearts and minds to welcome the Lord into them? Or have we instead been so busy and preoccupied with worldly matters and concerns, and with all sorts of temptations and distractions, that we have prepared in the wrong way for Christmas?

Let us all spend some time today to reflect upon the words of the Scriptures to remind us why we celebrate Christmas, so that we may be fully ready tomorrow and the entire Christmas season to rejoice worthily and well. In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Samuel, regarding the time when King David of Israel, having been made secure in his reign and rule, wanted to build a House for God, and asked the prophet Nathan on his opinion and what the Lord would say regarding his plan to build God’s House and Temple in Jerusalem. God said that it would not be David that would build a House for Him in Jerusalem, but his son, Solomon, who would be King after him. God at the same time also promised David that his reign and his house will be forever secure.

And all that would indeed come true as David’s son, Solomon, would become the King over all of Israel. Solomon would also build the Temple and House for God in Jerusalem, to house the Ark of the Covenant and to be the place where God’s Holy Presence would dwell among all of His people. Then, while Solomon and his descendants eventually fell into sinful paths and disobeyed God, which resulted in the downfall of the kingdom of Israel, but God did not take away His promise, as what He had promised to David remained true, as His prophets said that one day, the Messiah, the Holy One of God, and the Saviour of the world would come from the House of David and be born as his heir, to restore the kingdom of Israel and the Lord’s dominion and rule over His people.

In the Gospel passage today, we then heard of the great song which Zechariah, the father of St. John the Baptist, Herald of the Messiah sang in praising and glorifying God, what is also known as the Canticle of Zechariah. Zechariah had seen the fulfilment of God’s promises, that the Lord had given him a son when all hopes were lost. Zechariah and Elizabeth, the parents of St. John the Baptist had been without any child for a long time, and while Elizabeth had been barren for years was way past her child-bearing age, but God proclaimed to Zechariah through His Angel that Elizabeth would bear a son, and that he would become a great servant of God, named John. And St. John the Baptist would be the one through whom God prepared His path, when He Himself come in the birth of His Son.

All those point out to the evidence and the proof that God truly keeps His words and promises, and that His salvation and grace have all come to us through His promised Saviour, the Messiah, the Heir of David, the One Whom St. John the Baptist had been tasked to prepare the people for, in calling on all of them to repent from their many sins and embrace God’s love and mercy, shown to them all through Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour of all. Hence, we are all reminded that in Christmas, we celebrate with joy this coming of the Saviour of the world, the fulfilment of the long awaited promises of God, which He had indeed delivered unto us, no less and no more. He came into our midst, revealing unto us His perfect love and most generous attention to us, as He wants us all to be reconciled with Him and to return once again to Him.

That is what Christmas is all about, and yet, we see all around us is Christmas that is often bereft of the One Whom Christmas is actually all about and the One Whom Christmas has been named after. How can we celebrate Christmas if there is no Christ in our celebrations and festivities? How can we truly rejoice in Christmas if Christ is not the reason why we rejoice and are happy in this time of joy? This is a reminder for us all that as we enter into the glorious and joyful Christmas season tomorrow, we must have the right disposition and readiness in our hearts and minds to celebrate Christmas as the joyful moment when we welcome Christ into our midst, and enthrone Him in our hearts, as the King of our lives, Who has come into our midst, to save us all and to lead us into His glorious kingdom.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we approach the beginning of the Christmas season, let us all rediscover the true joy of Christmas in our Lord and Saviour, and rejoice for all that He had done for us. Christmas is a time for us to return once again to the Lord, to grow in love with Him once again, remembering everything that God had done for us, in coming down to us, emptying Himself and humbling Himself to become as a Man just like us, to dwell among us and to show us all the perfect manifestation of God’s love. This Christmas we are reminded that God has shown us His faithfulness, and He will not abandon us, but will dwell amongst us, and stay with us. Christmas is that time we are reminded how God reached out to us and touched us with His love, as He has always done.

May all of us continue to grow in faith, and may all of us enter the season of Christmas with better understanding of the reason why we celebrate. Let us all begin Christmas with a renewed reason to live our lives with greater faith and dedication to God. Let us all be the beacons of God’s light, truth and hope in our communities, doing whatever we can to inspire others by our righteous and just way of life, and by sharing our Christmas joy with all those who have little or no chance to rejoice and celebrate this Christmas. May the Lord continue to inspire us to be loving and filled with hope, the hope of God’s everlasting joy and truth, and be generous sharers of them to our fellow brothers and sisters. May God bless our upcoming Christmas season and celebrations. Amen.

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Friday, 23 December 2022 : 4th Week of Advent, Memorial of St. John of Kanty, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures and draw ever closer to Christmas, we are all reminded of the coming of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, into our midst. The Lord has sent us His messenger and herald to prepare the path for His coming into this world, and He has fulfilled that promise, with the coming of St. John the Baptist, the one who was prophesied to be the one to prepare the way for the Lord. As we heard in our Scripture passages today, all these happened so that the Lord might come and rescue us all from our troubles and bring us into His loving presence once again, and that is the reason why we rejoice this Christmas.

In our first reading today, we heard of the words of the prophet Malachi, speaking about the coming of the days of God’s messenger, who would come to prepare the hearts and minds of the people, to prepare for the coming of the Lord, which was also alluded to in the words of the prophet Malachi. Malachi was one of the last prophets chronologically in the Old Testament era, who ministered to the people of God a few centuries before the Lord’s coming, and his words of prophecy further set the expectation of the coming of God’s salvation, which the people of God looked forward to, as they heard the words of reassurances that God had made through His many prophets, including that of Malachi.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard of the account of the birth of St. John the Baptist, the one whom Malachi and the other prophets had been prophesying about, the one to prepare the path for the coming of the Lord. His miraculous conception and birth truly became knowledge among the people, as he was conceived by his mother at the age well-past childbearing and after being barren for so many years. His coming, conception and birth were also announced by the Angel of God before his father Zechariah, whose doubt led him to become mute before the moment as we heard in our Gospel today, that once the baby was named John as the Angel spoke of, Zechariah was miraculously able to speak once again. All of these and the later events in the life of St. John the Baptist serve as a reminder for us that as we approach the coming Christmas season with expectation and joy.

St. John the Baptist went on to call the people of God to be converted and to turn away from their sinful paths, and this is also therefore a reminder for all of us that as we approach Christmas, we should also prepare ourselves in heart and mind to turn towards the Lord, to return our focus upon Him, and to make Him the centre of our upcoming Christmas celebrations and rejoicing. We should not be distracted by the many temptations and distractions all around us, all the glamour and merrymaking surrounding the often secular and worldly Christmas celebrations. We have to be committed to the Lord and renew our faith in Him, and serve Him with ever greater conviction and zeal. We should do our best to make sure that we celebrate Christmas in the right way, and with the right predisposition and mindset.

That is why we should make use of this short remaining time before Christmas, whatever is left this Advent season to deepen our understanding of Christmas and its true meaning, its significance and importance for us. Today we should therefore spend some time to reflect upon the life and works of one St. John of Kanty, also known as St. John Cantius, a Polish priest and philosopher whose life and work should inspire us to become ever more worthy of God, ever more connected to Him, and ever closer to Him. St. John of Kanty was remembered for his great intellect and philosophical as well as theological prowess, as he became great professor and instructor, helping many of his students and followers to understand better their faith in God, as well as the many mysteries and aspects of the Christian faith.

Not only that, but the same St. John of Kanty was also well remembered for his great love for God, his personal piety and holiness, and especially also for his great compassion, love and care for the poor and the suffering all around him. He was known for his care for the needy students at his university and faculty, helping to support them whenever and wherever it was possible. He also spent time and effort to care for the poor and the needy in his community, and at wherever he was visiting and ministering. He lived his life simply and full of devotion, spending not more than what was necessary for him, and he made several pilgrimages on foot all the way to Rome. The faith and humility that St. John of Kanty showed in his life should be inspiration for all of us to follow in our own lives.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us therefore seek the Lord with a new heart, with a new commitment to follow Him and to devote our time and attention to Him, and from this upcoming Christmas celebration, to put Him back as the centre and focus of our lives. Let us all follow the examples set and shown by St. John of Kanty, doing our best to walk faithfully in the path that God has shown us. First let us all start by changing our Christmas celebrations from one that is worldly and self-centred into one that is centred on God, as well as love and life-giving, inspired by the love and generosity which St. John of Kanty has shown to those who were less fortunate all around him. Let us also remember that Christmas is all also possible, and that we can rejoice exactly because God has shown us His most generous love and kindness, compassion and grace.

May the Lord continue to guide us and strengthen us, empowering us with the love and courage to do our best in our lives, to be ever more loving and generous to each other. Through our faithful and worthy Christmas celebrations, where Christ is at the very focus and heart of our joy, let us all inspire more and more people that each one of us may be the shining beacons of God’s hope, light and truth. Let us show our love and generosity to those around us and not be distracted by the worldly glamour and desires. May all of us draw ever closer to God and be blessed as we approach the glorious and joyful season of Christmas. Amen.

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Thursday, 22 December 2022 : 4th Week of Advent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, all of us are reminded of the joy that each one of us should have in the Lord, keeping in mind that it is through His work and His coming into our midst that we celebrate at Christmas which brought us all a new hope and assurance of happiness and salvation, grace and all the things that can only come through Him, and we heard of that assurance today in our Scripture passages in which we heard of what the Lord had done to His faithful servants, to Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel, as well as to Mary, the Mother of God, of Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Our Saviour.

In our first reading today, we heard the story of Hannah, and how she thanked the Lord for all that He had done for her, in answering her prayers and the wishes she had for a son. The Lord granted her the wish she wanted, after she had endured scorn and ridicule from the other wife of her husband, Penninah, who often teased her for not having a son despite being more beloved by her husband. God lifted the veil of shame from Hannah, and gave her a son that would become a great prophet in Israel and also the last of the great Judges before the days of the Kings. Hence, today we heard Hannah in great joy as she went to the House of God bringing the young Samuel to offer him to the service of the Lord just as she has promised.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of Mary and her great song of thanksgiving, thanking God for everything that she has received from God, all the graces and wonders she had been blessed with, to be the one entrusted as the Mother of God and the Mother of the Saviour of the whole world. In that Magnificat, the great song of joy which Mary sang filled with the Holy Spirit, is contained the great joy that she has upon becoming the Mother of the Saviour, as well as the great joy representing mankind having finally seen the salvation of God, long awaited and expected by the people, to whom God had promised His salvation from the very beginning of time, when He promised them that He would deliver them from the dominion and bondage of sin.

Through Mary’s song, we have been reminded what Christmas is all about, that is a most joyful rejoicing and celebration that we carry out because we have seen the love and salvation that the Lord has brought into our midst, in the coming of Christ, His only begotten Son, Our Lord and Saviour. By His coming and entry into the world, Christ has shown us the Love of God manifested and made flesh, tangible and approachable to us. No longer that God is distant and unapproachable by us, as He has become Emmanuel, God is with us, and He has come to dwell amongst us, sharing with us our joy and sorrow, walking amongst us and touching our lives. He has become the Hope for us, lifting us out of the darkness and into His everlasting light and grace.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we approach ever closer to Christmas, all of us should spend some time to reflect on our preparations for Christmas, and whether we have already prepared ourselves well and properly for the celebration of Christmas, or whether we have not gotten ourselves properly ready yet, and have not done our right actions to be truly able to celebrate Christmas worthily and well. We can see all around us just how Christmas is celebrated in a mostly worldly and secular way, without Christ and His Presence, and where people immersed themselves often in excessive merrymaking and festivities while forgetting why we even celebrate Christmas itself in the first place.

Christmas is not about all the festivities and celebrations, all the joyful gift exchanges and the excesses of our feasting and partying. Yes, we can definitely do all of that, and we should indeed rejoice in Christmas. But we must always remember that after all, everything happened because of what the Lord had done in giving us His only Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, to be our Saviour. It is because Christ has been born into this world that we have seen the Light of God’s salvation and the Hope out of the darkness of sin, and that is why we rejoice so greatly, all because of the joy of this new life which God has promised us all who believed in Him, that through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, everyone will receive the sure guarantee of everlasting joy and grace.

That is why as Christians, each one of us have to lead by example and do our best to show others what the true meaning and spirit of Christmas is all about. Christmas is not about partying excessively or rejoicing in ways that we are often accustomed to. It is a time for us to give thanks to God for having shown us such a great love and kindness by giving us His Son, to be our Saviour, and we should be like Hannah and Mary, who gave their heartfelt thanks and glorified God, and thanked Him for all that He had done for them. We must therefore place the Lord at the very centre and as the focus of our existence, our way of life and also our way of celebrating the upcoming Christmas season. We have to make sure that we understand fully what the true joy of Christmas is all about.

May the Lord continue to guide us and strengthen us, empowering us with the love and courage to do our best in our lives, to walk in His path and to follow Him ever more faithfully. Through our faithful and worthy Christmas celebrations, where Christ is at the centre of our joy, let us all inspire more and more people that each one of us may be the shining beacons of God’s hope, light and truth. May all of us draw ever closer to God and be blessed as we approach the glorious and joyful season of Christmas. Amen.

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Wednesday, 21 December 2022 : 4th Week of Advent, Memorial of St. Peter Canisius, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the words of the Scriptures reminding all of us to focus on the coming of the Lord Who has come to dwell among His people and how we, as those who are so fortunate to have been given such a great grace from God, should be ever grateful and appreciative of everything that He had done for our sake, from the very beginning until now. And as we continue to come ever closer to the season and celebrations of Christmas, we are constantly being reminded of why we rejoice this upcoming Christmas and what it is that we are all celebrating about. It is not about ourselves and our desires for merrymaking and festivities, all the joy and parties that we are celebrating Christmas for, but rather we rejoice because God’s love and mercy have been shown to us in the most concrete ways possible in Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Song of Songs, we heard the words of the joy that a lover had found in discovering the true love, which was in fact a reference to mankind and their love for God. It was in fact the Lord speaking directly to all of us, His beloved people, the ones whom He loves dearly, of the joyous and happy days that will come our way, when our Lord will come to us and we will walk in His Presence once again, with the fullness of joy, and with the shame and the veil of sin have been lifted up from us, and death and destruction no longer hold their power and dominion over us. God has always reached out to us and sought for us, seeking to reconcile us with Himself, and in doing so, He sent us His own begotten and beloved Son, to be our Saviour, Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Son of Man.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the account of the Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth, her cousin, which happened because Mary heard from the Archangel Gabriel that Elizabeth, even in her old age and way past childbearing age, was bearing a child, who would be St. John the Baptist, the Herald of the Messiah. Meanwhile, Mary herself was in fact also bearing within her, her own Son, the Son of God just as the Archangel Gabriel had announced to her earlier on at the same occasion in Nazareth. It was the moment when God finally fulfilled the promises which He had promised mankind since the very beginning, that He would send unto them a Saviour, to deliver all of them from the hands of Satan, the dominion and bondage under sin, evil and death. Through the Son that Mary had borne within her, God will save all of His people.

Elizabeth herself, filled with the Holy Spirit and great joy, recognised Mary and the One she bore within her the very moment that she encountered her. She was thankful for the opportunity to be in the very presence of the Mother of God, to bring forth the Saviour Himself so close to her. Her own baby, St. John the Baptist, who was also still in her womb, also recognised his Lord and Master in the womb of Mary. Then, we heard as in our Psalm today, the glorious and most joyful words of Mary’s song of praise, the Magnificat, praising God for all that He had done for His people, and the grace He has bestowed on all of us mankind, and also for herself, to be the Mother of God and Saviour, bringing for His salvation to all the people, fulfilling the many promises and the Covenant that He had made with all of us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we reflect on these words of the Scriptures, we can clearly see that there is that sense of great joy that should also be present in each one of us, as we await the imminent coming of our Lord and Saviour, just as He has come into this world and entered our human history two millennia ago. As we draw now already so close to Christmas and the end of the current preparatory season of Advent, we really ought to be asking ourselves, if God is truly at the centre of our lives and existence? Is God truly our Lover, the One Whom we truly we love with all of our hearts and might, the One to Whom we give our fealty and heartiest obedience, with the greatest devotion and commitment? Is God the One Whom we truly celebrate this Christmas and all of its joyful festivities, as we should?

Or have we instead allowed the many temptations of this world to distract us and to prevent us from finding our path towards God? Have we allowed the many excesses of worldly and secular Christmas festivities and celebrations to distract us and make us forget of why we celebrate Christmas in the first place? That is why today’s Scripture readings serve to remind us all that Christmas is truly all about Christ, of God’s Love made manifest and tangible to us through His Son, that we may truly come to Him, approach Him and be cared by Him, our loving God and Shepherd, Who embraced each one of us and is willing to forgive us all our many sins and faults. He has always loved us all, without exception, and we truly should do our best to do the same, beginning first of all by remembering this Love at our Christmas celebrations this year.

Not only that, but we should also be ever more exemplary Christians in our way of life and deeds, following the good examples of the saints, our holy predecessors. And today we have a great example in St. Peter Canisius, holy Priest and one of the venerable Doctors of the Church, through whom many people had great inspiration and strength, hope and perseverance because of his many hard works and efforts, his patient teaching and ministry among the people who have gone wayward in their faith and lives. St. Peter Canisius was one of the founders of the Jesuits or the Society of Jesus, who was close friend of the founder of the Jesuits, St. Ignatius of Loyola. St. Peter Canisius hence became an integral part and member of the Jesuits, and was tasked with the conversion of all those who had lapsed and broken away from the Church during the height of the Protestant reformation.

St. Peter Canisius carried out his mission patiently, and went through many places in what is today Switzerland and Germany, preaching the word of God and establishing Jesuit institutions and also put a lot of emphasis on Catholic education and teaching, as according to him, it was poor understanding of the faith that led to many Christians falling away from the Church and its teachings and embracing false ideas and heresies that were aplenty at that time, as various dissidents proclaimed their own versions of the Christian faith and led many to the wrong paths. St. Peter Canisius calmly and patiently reached out to all those who have left the Church while caring for those who still remained in the Church, and expressly warned against actions that can be considered hostile or violent against those who have separated themselves from the Church could backfire and make things worse. In his own words, he said that ‘with words like these, we don’t cure patients, we make them incurable.’

St. Peter Canisius emphasised on proper teaching, catechism and better understanding and appreciation of the faith as the way to lead the people of God back to Him, and he was also credited with his famous Catechism, through which countless multitudes of people have believed in the Lord and knew more about Him, returning back from their rebellious path and being reconciled with God. These were just some of the many other great deeds that St. Peter Canisius had done, and which all of us should also therefore be inspired to follow in our own lives as well. We are all called and reminded to be focused on God and to dedicate our lives and works to Him just as St. Peter Canisius himself had done. Are we able to do that, brothers and sisters in Christ? Are we willing and able to commit our time and effort to serve the Lord and to honour Him at all times?

Let us all therefore do our best to do what we can to be ever more faithful and committed to God, in everything we say and do, in our every actions and interactions with one another. Let us also make our upcoming Christmas celebrations one that is truly centred on Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, that each and every one of us may become inspirations and source of strength for one another to be the beacons of God’s hope and light in the midst of our communities, walking in the same path that our holy predecessors had walked, especially that of St. Peter Canisius. May the Lord be with us always and may He bless our every good works and endeavours, all for His greater glory. Amen.

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Tuesday, 20 December 2022 : 4th Week of Advent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded again on the love of God which has become Incarnate and present in our midst as the Son of Man, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, as we approach ever closer to the end of the current season of Advent and thus the beginning of the glorious and joyful season of Christmas. And on this day, we are all reminded through the examples of the two people to whom God had revealed His Good News, through the prophet Isaiah and the Archangel Gabriel respectively, how they responded to the Lord’s effort to reach out to them, and how the responses were so different from each other and how these can also reflect what we ourselves have done in our own response towards the Lord and His love for us.

In our first reading today, we heard again the famous passage from the Book of the prophet Isaiah in which God spoke to King Ahaz of Judah through Isaiah regarding the Sign that He would show to him and to all of His people in Judah, but which Ahaz then refused to obey or listen to. Isaiah told Ahaz to ask God for a Sign, the Sign that God would willingly and generously showed to His beloved ones, to show them the path of Hope and Light out of the darkness. But King Ahaz refused to ask for a Sign, and said that he would not put God to the test. This was followed immediately by a stern rebuke from Isaiah to Ahaz as he and many of his predecessors had disobeyed the Lord and put the Lord to the test so many times, and misled and misguided the people of God down the wrong path that what he had said, was truly a hypocrite’s word.

Not only that, but it might even be seen as King Ahaz not having faith and trust in God, as he would likely prefer to trust more in various things and worldly means to secure his reign and rule rather than to follow the Lord and His ways. Ahaz himself was one of the kings who was considered and counted among the ‘wicked’ ones as he led the people into the path of sin and disobedience, abandoning the Lord their God and worshipping instead the pagan idols and demons, which were placed upon the Lord’s sacred Altar, desecrating the holy places and also neglecting the observance of the Law and commandments of the Lord. Thus, Isaiah proclaimed God’s words that the Sign would indeed one day come, that all those who eventually witnessed it, would believe that indeed, God is the one and only True God, and not all the false idols that Ahaz and the people of Judah had worshipped.

On the contrary, if we remember the Gospel passage today, we heard of the Annunciation of Mary, the moment when the Archangel Gabriel proclaimed the Good News of God to Mary, that she would become the Mother of God, as she had been chosen by God to be the one through whom God’s own begotten Son, the Son of God, Incarnate in the flesh and becoming the Son of Man, have become the manifestation and personification of God’s eternal and ever-enduring love for us. This is the moment when the promise and the words of God that He had spoken through Isaiah before King Ahaz came to be fulfilled, as Mary was the Virgin that God spoke of, who would be bearing a Child, and this Child would be called Emmanuel, ‘God is with us’. This alone has already shown us that the Child that Mary bore within her, is truly not just like any other ordinary children.

Most importantly, as contrasted with the attitude showed by King Ahaz, Mary obeyed the Lord and believed in Him wholeheartedly, although she did wonder why she among all the women had been entrusted with such a responsibility. Yet, what she asked the Archangel Gabriel was made out of natural uncertainty and honest bewilderment as such a great revelation was made before her, not withstanding the fact that Mary was a mere young woman and virgin from the small town of Nazareth in Galilee, a very unimportant place and town, and herself coming from a relatively unknown origin. All of that must have obviously been hard to reconcile at the first moment, when Mary heard of the Good News from the Archangel Gabriel, and hence, her question of how it would be possible for that to happen to her, considering that she was still a virgin, to bear a Son.

God revealed to Mary all that He would do through His Archangel Gabriel, and what is important is how Mary responded to all of that. Unlike King Ahaz who refused to obey the Lord, His will and commandments, His request and wish, Mary gave herself totally to the Lord and accepted everything that God had planned to happen through her. Through her response that she is the ‘handmaid of the Lord’ and that it may be done unto her as the Lord has willed it, Mary’s yes to the Lord made through His Archangel Gabriel was the catalyst that sparked the beginning of the final fulfilment of God’s long awaited salvation and liberation for His people. Through Mary’s acceptance of her role in becoming the Mother of God and Saviour of the whole world, she has shown us all that each and every one of us as Christians, should also obey the Lord, listen to Him and His commands, Law and will.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we draw now ever closer to Christmas, we truly need to ask ourselves, are we like that of King Ahaz, who refused to obey the Lord and chose to walk his own path? Or are we more like Mary, whose obedience and commitment to the Lord brought forth the Saviour into this world? We do not have to look far but to our own way of preparing ourselves for the upcoming celebration of Christmas as well as our actions and works in life. We should see if we have allowed our pride and ego to come between us and our obligations to God, just as King Ahaz had done. His pride, ego and worldly desires had become stumbling blocks preventing him from admitting his errors and that he was in need of God’s guidance and help, and hence instead leading the people of God further and further into the path of sin. Hence, we should be more like Mary, in her faith in God and love for Him, and also for the humility that she had in embracing and accepting what the Lord willed to do through her.

Let us all make good use of the remaining time this Advent season to reconsider our paths in life, and see in what way we can reconnect ourselves with God and draw closer to Him, and if we have let worldly temptations, desires, ambitions, pride and greed, as well as all the excesses of worldly attachments and things to distract us thus far, then we should start making the effort to distance ourselves from those and return once again, wholeheartedly towards God. Let us all make our Christmas celebration most worthy and meaningful, as we grow to understand that all the celebration and joy of Christmas is not about ourselves and all the pleasures we shall enjoy, but rather is a joyful celebration of God’s love made manifest and tangible before us all through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

May God be with us all and may He continue to guide and lead us down the right path, that we may continue to seek Him and be ever better Christians, inspired by the faith and examples that His own Mother Mary has shown us. May all of us be more courageous and able to also say ‘yes’ to the Lord calling on us to follow Him. May all of us continue to have a blessed and fruitful season of Advent, towards the joyful Christmas that is soon to come. Amen.