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Thursday, 23 September 2021 : 25th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Pius of Pietrelcina, Padre Pio, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scripture, we are all called to reflect on what we have just heard and discern in how we can be living our lives in a more Christ-like manner, in following the Lord’s call and devoting ourselves wholeheartedly to Him. God calls on us all His faithful ones to follow Him and to do His will, and this is what we should be doing with our lives, to shine forth with the light of God in our lives and be role models for our fellow brothers and sisters.

In our first reading today, taken from either the Book of the prophet Haggai or the Book of the prophet Ezra, we heard of the Lord’s emancipation of His people, as He moved the heart and mind of the Persian King Cyrus to allow the exiled Israelites to return to their homeland and rebuild their country and cities. However this process took some time, as the ancestral lands of the Israelites had been left devastated and in tatters by the Babylonian and Assyrian conquests a century and more earlier on.

Thus, while the people of God had returned to their lands, as mentioned in the Book of Ezra, but that was merely just the beginning of the restoration of their fortunes and their homeland. It was implied in the Book of the prophet Haggai that took place during the reign of King Darius of Persia, which was one of the successors of King Cyrus of Persia, two or so decades after the emancipation of the Israelites, that the Temple of God in Jerusalem had not yet been rebuilt by that time.

Ezra the priest and prophet of God had been instrumental in leading the people and establishing the firm foundation of the faith among the returned exiles. What the prophet Haggai spoke of then was the urging for the people to begin to take their faith seriously, in committing themselves and their resources to complete the rebuilding of the House of God, the Temple in Jerusalem. Although the foundation and preparation must have begun immediately after the exiles had returned to Judah and Jerusalem, but it seemed that many of the people still hesitated to commit themselves wholeheartedly to the Lord, and left His House in ruins for many years.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this is then related to what we have heard in our Gospel passage today, as the Lord spoke of the parable of the lamps and the lampstand. He spoke of how no one would put a lamp hidden, for it would have made it useless and meaningless. Instead, at the time when electrical lighting and other sources of light were still scarce, oil lamps were truly precious commodity and items that were very important for the people’s livelihood. As such, by using that parable, the Lord wanted us all to clearly understand that we cannot be idle in our faith and in living our lives.

Just as the Israelites had been idle in dragging their feet and in delaying the building the House of God, the Lord does not want this to be our approach in life and our attitude towards our faith. Instead, we are expected to be more active in living our lives with faith, and we are all expected to do our part in obeying the Lord’s will, His Law and commandments at every possible opportunities. Are we willing and capable of doing this, brothers and sisters in Christ? Are we willing to commit ourselves and our efforts to Him from now on?

Today we all celebrate the Feast of a great saint, whose life and actions may serve as great inspiration for all of us in how we live up our own faith. St. Pius of Pietrelcina, also much better known as Padre Pio, was a great priest and a Franciscan who was greatly renowned for his stigmata, or the appearance of the miraculous wounds of Jesus on his hands and feet, as well as for his great piety and love for God.

Padre Pio was born into a deeply religious family, exposed to the faith and its practices from very early on. Even since youth, it was told that he has received mystical visions and experiences, which he would come to experience more and more throughout his life. He joined the Franciscans since the young age of fifteen, becoming a novice and gradually progressing to be ordained a priest. Even during these early years, there had been credible accounts of miraculous events happening to Padre Pio, as he was once seen levitating and other wonders happening around him.

Suffering from ill health throughout his life, nonetheless despite experiencing the stigmata of the Lord, Padre Pio continued to live very simply and led a rigorous discipline of prayer and fasting, and he was soon visited and followed by many people who wanted to see and to seek confession with this miraculous priest and servant of God. Yet, this popularity also drew concern and censure from the Church authorities, who questioned Padre Pio and even for a time, forbade him from publicly celebrating the Sacraments and ordered him to be secluded from others.

Nonetheless Padre Pio obeyed humbly and committed himself even more deeply through prayer and other actions, that as the years went by, more and more people became inspired by the holiness and the exemplary life led by this holy man of God, who suffered constantly from the physical wounds of his stigmata, as well as from other spiritual attacks from the devil, as it was told that the devil and other evil spirits would often strike at Padre Pio from time to time. He endured faithfully and committed his time and effort to the Lord more and more until the end of his life. And even after his passing, numerous people still devote themselves to the Lord through St. Pius of Pietrelcina.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore emulate the good examples and the faith showed by St. Pius of Pietrelcina, in our own daily lives and actions. Let us all strive to be ever more faithful and dedicated at all times, and seek the Lord with ever greater sincerity and conviction from now on, with the intercession of St. Pius of Pietrelcina, the ever faithful holy Padre Pio. May God bless us all, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Wednesday, 22 September 2021 : 25th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we are reminded of God’s love and kindness, His ever present compassion and care for us, and His desire to be reunited with us, so that we who are sinners may be forgiven our sins, and receive from Him healing from our corruptions and sickness due to those sins, and that we may be reconciled and reunited with Him, that we may find our way back to Him, to be once again in His grace and presence.

We are all called to recall what we heard in our first reading today from the Book of the prophet Ezra, who was a priest of God that was instrumental in leading the remnants of the people of God in the days of their return from their exile in the land of Babylon and Assyria. King Cyrus of Persia had declared emancipation or liberation for all the Israelites to be able to go free to their homeland after having suffered in exile for many decades from the tyranny of the Babylonians who destroyed Jerusalem and its Temple.

Ezra was a priest and leader of the people who led them in their prayers and supplications before the Lord. Imagine the pain and consternation that those exiles might have experienced when they saw their homeland again for the first time after many decades. Most of them would not even have known or had any memories of living there before their exile, but they must have heard the tales of their historic homeland from their elders and parents, who shared with them the tales of the old kingdoms of Israel and Judah, of Jerusalem and its glorious Temple, built by King Solomon.

When the descendants of those who were exiled arrived back in their ancestral homeland, what awaited them was likely mere ruins, as Jerusalem was thoroughly looted and ransacked by the forces of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon during its conquest. The Temple was destroyed and nothing much was left of the great House of God that was once there. It was with this context that the prophet Ezra spoke on behalf of the people, as their High Priest before the Lord, in supplication for them seeking God’s mercy and forgiveness for the sins they and their ancestors had committed.

For it was because of the disobedience of the Israelites that they had fallen in disgrace and were conquered and overcome by their enemies and were bereft of their homeland. The destruction of the Temple built by Solomon to be the House of the Lord was a very visible sign of God’s displeasure and also their abandonment of Him. It was not God Who abandoned His people, for in truth, He has always been with them despite their constant and persistent refusal to obey Him or listen to Him through the words of His many prophets. It was the people who chose to follow the path of sin and Satan’s lies rather than God’s truth.

Hence, Ezra offered before the Lord on behalf of the people a public admission of sinfulness and the deep remorse that they all had on the sins they had committed and which their ancestors had stubbornly done against the Lord and His loving kindness. Ezra pleaded with the Lord to restore His people and to show them once again the same love that He has always shown to them from the very beginning. In time to come, the Temple of God would be rebuild again in Jerusalem, under the supervision of Ezra and Nehemiah, another faithful servant of God entrusted with the care of the people.

Then, in our Gospel passage today we heard about the Lord Jesus, the Saviour of the world Whom God had sent into this world, the Son of God, Who sent His disciples forth, especially the Twelve, to whom He entrusted the power and authority to teach, to heal and to empower others, to bring to them the Good News of God’s truth and salvation. Through this, the Lord wants each and every one of us to know that, answering our petitions and supplications, our cries for His mercy and forgiveness, God has always ever loved us, and He has never abandoned us. On the contrary, He had done everything He could to gather us all and to reconcile us to Himself.

And through Christ, Who manifested to us the perfect and ultimate love of God, by His Passion, His suffering and death on the Cross for our sake, for our salvation, all of us have seen the proof of just how fortunate and beloved we are. And we should indeed be thankful and happy that the Lord still thinks about us all the time, and is always ever concerned about us, for our redemption and return to Him. He wants us to be reunited with Him, and this is what each and every one of us should reflect on this day and onwards.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, have we lived our lives faithfully thus far as Christians? Have we truly followed the Lord wholeheartedly, or have we only had a shallow and superficial faith in Him? Have we lived our lives according to His way and truth, and have we heeded the words of those whom He had entrusted with our care, such as the Church, our bishops and our priests, as well as the wisdom of the saints and the prophets as contained in the Sacred Scriptures and the Church traditions and Magisterium?

If our answers to these are no, then we need to act now to change our lives for the better. We cannot be idle or ignorant anymore about how we live our faith from now on. On the contrary, we should do our best to commit ourselves to the Lord, and be great role models and inspiration for one another. Let us all commit ourselves thoroughly to the Lord, brothers and sisters in Christ, and do whatever we can to follow the Lord and obey Him and His truth from now on. May God be with us always, and may He bless us all in our every good works and endeavours in His Name. Amen.

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Tuesday, 21 September 2021 : Feast of St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate the Feast of one of great Apostles of Our Lord, one of the Twelve and also one of the four writers of the Holy Gospels, also known as the Evangelists. He was once a tax collector whose task was likely to gather taxes on behalf of the local rulers and the Roman overlords of the then region of Judea, Galilee and the other territories where the Jewish people lived in. He was known as Levi, and heeded the Lord’s call when He came over His place, left everything behind and followed Him, becoming known as Matthew from that moment onwards.

He was one of the several Apostles who have had a change of name upon their calling by the Lord, adopting a new identity upon his conversion, just like St. Peter and St. Paul, who were previously known as Simon and Saul respectively. The Lord called on Levi to follow Him, and he listened, and not only that but he even gathered his fellow tax collectors, who also wanted to know the Lord and speak with Him, and had a dinner in his place, before he was to follow Him fully. While not written or recorded in the Gospel account, it is probable that even there might have been even more among the tax collectors who later on chose to follow the Lord.

Back then, tax collectors were often prejudiced against, hated and reviled by the general society, and especially so by the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, who saw them in the same light as the prostitutes and those others deemed as great sinners, like those who were possessed by demons and those suffering from debilitating diseases, seen as being cursed and punished by God for their sins. For the tax collectors were often seen as traitors to the country and the people for their collaboration with the Romans who were hated by most of the people.

To that extent, the tax collectors were often ridiculed and dismissed as sinners and unworthy by the Pharisees, who did not even hesitate to mention it bluntly before the Lord’s disciples, when they asked them why their Lord and Master would spend the time in the company and have a meal with sinners. Yet, they all failed to realise one thing, which is that they themselves, were sinners as well. By looking down on the sins of others, they had become blind to their own shortcomings and faults.

And by embracing the Lord and answering His call, Levi who chose the Lord over the glory and wealth, the power and the satisfaction of the world has shown us that, even great sinners can be sanctified and turned into great saints, and that there is no one truly beyond redemption and salvation in God, unless the person himself or herself had rejected the Lord’s most generous offer of mercy and forgiveness. As long as one is willing to listen to the Lord and to repent from their sins, the path to Heaven and everlasting life will be open to them.

St. Matthew for example was credited with his efforts among the Jewish people themselves in Judea and Galilee, and his Gospel in particular was noted for its use of contexts and explanations familiar to the Jews, which served to explain the truth of God to his audience, which were mainly the Jewish people in the region. St. Matthew also went to other places and countries to spread the word of God, before eventually was martyred just like most of the other Apostles in the midst of his missionary works.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, what we heard today from the examples shown by St. Matthew, the story of his conversion and later on his contributions and efforts, his works as an Apostle and Evangelist, served as an important reminder to each and every one of us, God’s beloved children and disciples whom He Himself had called and gathered from the world to be His own. We have to ask ourselves this question, whether we have genuinely loved the Lord and had faith in Him, or whether our faith is still being superficial in nature.

We are also called to turn away from the path of sin, and to embrace God’s ever generous offering of mercy and forgiveness. God has always sought sinners and all those who need His help, as He Himself made it clear in our Gospel passage today. Like Levi, who welcomed the Lord and answered His call, we too should follow in his footsteps, and allow the Lord to transform us from the sinners we are, to be great disciples and even perhaps to be future saints, just as Levi the tax collector has been transformed in his life into St. Matthew, a great Apostle and Evangelist.

Let us all therefore discern carefully how we can be ever more dedicated as Christians, in doing the will of God and in committing ourselves to His cause. Let us all seek the Lord and His love, His compassion and kindness, and strive to do our best to glorify Him by our lives and actions. Let us also never be prejudiced anymore against any of our fellow brothers and sisters, and rather than being jealous against the achievements of others or in being proud over own achievements and efforts, while looking down on others, instead let us reflect on how fortunate we have been that God has chosen to forgive us our many sins, and how He has called on us all to be His followers and disciples.

Let us all realise that in each and every one of us there is that potential for greatness and holiness, as we are all called to holiness and to be like the saints. Even great saints were once also great sinners. What matters is that all of them have experienced a change in their hearts and embraced the Lord’s mercy and compassion, turning over a new leaf in their lives, becoming great role models and sources of inspiration themselves for the others who witnessed their works and lives. St. Matthew is one of these great inspiration and role model which we can also aspire to achieve.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore renew our faith in the Lord, and put our trust in Him, devoting our time, effort and attention to Him, and seeking Him with a contrite heart, with a new spirit of faith and obedience, and doing whatever we can to glorify the Lord by our lives. May all of us be true and dedicated disciples of the Lord from now on, doing whatever we can to lead more and more souls towards salvation and eternal life in God. May God bless us all and our efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 20 September 2021 : 25th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Andrew Kim Tae-gon, Priest and Martyr, St. Laurent Imbert, Bishop and Martyr, St. Jacques Chastan, Priest and Martyr, St. Paul Chong Ha-sang and Companions, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scripture, we are called to reflect on the vocation that each one of us have received from God, to be ever faithful and committed to Him as His true and genuine disciples, living virtuously and doing what we should to be role models in faith so that by our actions and deeds, even in the smallest things, we may proclaim the truth and love of God to all, so that all who see us and witness our efforts may come to believe in the Lord as well.

One of these faithful that we should emulate was that of King Cyrus of Persia, the great and legendary first ruler of the Achaemenid Persian Empire, who although was not counted directly amongst God’s followers and people at that time, but was widely and even universally accepted by the descendants of Israel as being one of the righteous among the nations for his actions. He conquered the Babylonians who have kept many of the people of Judah and Israel in captivity for many decades, in exile from their homeland. Then King Cyrus made a proclamation that he is still being remembered for to this day.

He proclaimed the Emancipation or the freedom of the people of Israel from their exile in Babylon, allowing them all to return back to their homeland after such a long period in exile. He also allowed them to bring back their properties and authorised even the rebuilding the Temple of Jerusalem that had been destroyed by king Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians. In doing so, he had reversed the many sorrows and setbacks of the Israelites, and brought God’s promised liberation and succour for His people to them.

King Cyrus of Persia might not have belonged to the nation of the Israelites, but in his attitudes, behaviour and also in his governance of his country, as attested by numerous other historical records, he was a great and exemplary leader and ruler, known as being caring and compassionate, merciful and wise, and as the lawgiver, who helped to establish the strong foundation of the rule of the Achaemenids which would last for over two hundred years from the reign of Cyrus. He showed all of us what it means for one to be a righteous and virtuous man, a man of God in actions, words and deeds.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the parable which the Lord Jesus spoke of to His disciples, regarding the lamp placed on a lampstand, and how no one would hide the light that ought to be put on the lampstand, but instead, that light should have been shown in its full brightness for all to see its light. God has given us this parable as a strong reminder that to each and every one of us, He has given the many talents, gifts, abilities and opportunities. We have to keep in mind that we should not underestimate the impact we may have on those who are around us, even in the smallest and seemingly most insignificant things.

We have to lead a life that is exemplary, virtuous and just, and we have to be good role models for one another that in our every actions and dealings, we may always be inspiration for our fellow brothers and sisters, to all those whom we encounter in our journey of life. And today, we also have the example of the faithful saints whose life and dedication to the Lord should become a great source of inspiration for us to follow in how we live our lives in our world today. They are the Holy Martyr Saints of Korea, those who have shed their blood in the persecution of the Faith in Korea across many decades.

We have these virtuous saints who gave their lives for the sake of the Lord and for their faith, as well as for their fellow brothers and sisters. At that time, Christians were heavily persecuted by the government of the Joseon-era Korea, as the foreign missionaries, the Christian faith and the local converts were seen as treasonous and undesirable elements of the society which needed to be rooted out, and which led to a bitter campaign of intense persecution of Christians much like what happened during the first centuries of the Church.

There were many courageous missionaries, both foreign and local Koreans alike who dedicated themselves to the Lord and preached the truth of God without fear despite the very difficult situation of that time. St. Andrew Kim Tae-gon was the first Korean Catholic priest who was baptised as a Christian at the young age of fifteen, whose parents were also converts, and his own father killed as a martyr of the faith. He was ordained a priest after a period of formation in Macau before returning to Korea during the height of the persecutions. He was arrested, tortured and eventually beheaded for refusing to abandon his faith in the Lord.

Meanwhile, St. Laurent Imbert was the first bishop of Korea as a foreign missionary priest, as the first Vicar Apostolic of Korea, newly established then by the Holy See. St. Laurent Imbert was remembered for his courageous leadership of the faithful during those most difficult and turbulent periods, and was particularly honoured for his decision to surrender himself and in persuading other priests to surrender themselves when the government threatened to persecute the faithful if they did not surrender themselves.

St. Laurent Imbert hoped that by surrendering himself and others, they might spare many other Christians from great sufferings, that in the same words that the Lord Jesus had spoken, and repeated by this saint, that ‘The Good Shepherd lays down His life for His sheep’ and thus, following the good examples of the Lord, the Good Shepherd, St. Laurent Imbert as the shepherd of the Lord’s flock in Korea chose to give his life in exchange for that of his flock.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we recall the virtuous examples by these faithful brothers and sisters of ours, who gave their life to the Lord and dedicated themselves so selflessly and tirelessly for the sake of the Lord and His people, let us all challenge ourselves to do the same as well, even in the smallest things we do so that we may truly glorify the Lord by our deeds and by all that we say and do. Let us all inspire one another to remain faithful to God and to be exemplary in our action and faith. May God be with us always, and may He strengthen each and every one of us to be courageous with our Christian living, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Sunday, 19 September 2021 : Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we listened and remembered the words of the Sacred Scripture passages on this Sunday, we are all called to reflect on what it means for us to be a Christian, as one who believe in the Lord and in His truth, and as one who are called to walk on the path that He has revealed and shown to us, following Christ’s example in obedience and love. As we remember those words of the Scripture, let us all ponder carefully how we should move forward in life and how we can better live our lives in the way according to the Lord and His will.

In our first reading today we heard from the Book of Wisdom the account of the words of the people who plotted against the faithful servants of God. The Book of Wisdom was often known as the Wisdom of Solomon, but was in fact written in Alexandria in Egypt during the period just around the time of Christ in the first century before or after His birth. Thus, as we heard from today’s passage, we heard how there were influences and information contained from the prophets, such as the prophet Isaiah, that detailed in one of his prophecies, the prophecy of the Suffering Messiah and servant of God.

This, coupled with the historical experience of how the prophets of God were treated during their years of ministry, rejected and ridiculed by the people they had been sent to minister to, makes understanding the context of our first reading today very important for us to appreciate just how much mankind had made it difficult for the Lord and all the messengers and servants He had sent to them. They were stubborn in their sinful ways and in refusing to listen to the truth or in embracing the forgiveness that God has offered freely to them.

In our Gospel passage today, which we listened from the Gospel of St. Mark, we heard of the time when the Lord was speaking to His disciples regarding His mission and also what it means for them to be His followers. The Lord spoke plainly before them that He, the Son of Man, would be delivered into the hands of men, to be persecuted and then killed. Then on the third day, He would rise again from the dead. This is a premonition that the Lord made on His eventual Passion, suffering and death on the Cross, and His eventual glorious Resurrection by which He would save all mankind.

Just as the prophets in the earlier times, the Lord Himself would not be spared the same fate of being made to suffer and to be rejected by the people. But why is that, brothers and sisters in Christ? The Lord has offered His people so many good things, blessed them and sent His messengers one after another to remind them of His love and patient mercy, and yet, why did they refuse to listen to Him and follow Him? Why did our ancestors persecute the prophets and messengers of God? And why did they persecute and crucify our Lord? That is because of our pride, our ego and desire, and our refusal to admit our sinfulness and our vulnerabilities.

Let us first look at what happened then in the Gospel passage, as the Lord spoke to His disciples regarding the debate that they, especially the Twelve, the Lord’s own inner circle just had before they had the conversation with the Lord. They were arguing among themselves who among them were the greatest among them, wondering who among them was the one whom the Lord cherished the most or who was the most favourite disciple among them. In another occasion in the Gospels, we even had two of the Twelve, St. James and St. John, the sons of Zebedee, who went along with their mother before the Lord asking for special favours and honoured positions from Him.

The Lord then made it very clear before all of them, and made His point by bringing a child before them, pointing out to them how if they want to be His true followers, then they had to welcome the child, and in saying this, He meant that they should learn to be small, insignificant and humble like that of a child. Adults often exclude children from their talks, debates and arguments, dismissing the latter as being immature, unknowledgeable and for other reasons. Yet, a young child is pure in his beliefs and ideals, not yet being tainted by the corruptions of worldly desires and evils.

The Lord also said to the Twelve that all those who sought to be first would be last, while those who were last would be first. This means that the more they argued among them who was the greatest, most superior and honoured among them, and the more they strived and attempted to be the first, in fact, the further away they would end up in the path towards the kingdom of God. As Christians, all of them are expected to be humble in all things, and to put God first and foremost in their lives, and not their personal desires and ambitions.

God has reminded them to do this and He also showed it by His own example. Referring to what He Himself would do for the salvation of mankind, even though He is the King of Kings, Lord of Lords and Master of the whole Universe, the Almighty God, but He willingly humbled Himself and emptied Himself of all glory, prestige, power and honour, by first assuming the humble appearance of a Man, born into this world not even of the powerful and mighty, but to a poor carpenter living in a small village on the periphery of the Jewish world back then.

He also humbled Himself and not wanting to make Himself prominent and known in the manner of how some others who claimed to be the Messiah at that time boasted of themselves as the Chosen One of God, only to falter and fail miserably because God was not with them. He has shown the perfect obedience to the will of His Father, to endure for our sake, the burdens of our sins, even though they must have been incredibly heavy, as the weight of the Cross bore down heavily on His shoulders. He obeyed and in His fervent prayers for our sake, He has been heard and through His sacrifice, we have received the assurance of salvation and eternal life.

St. James in his Epistle, part of which is our second reading today, reminded us the faithful of exactly the same thing, as he spoke of how those who follow the Lord ought to have God’s wisdom and truth in them, and that jealousy, discord and hatred all came ultimately from our own desires and wants, from the corrupt temptations of this world and others. And if we allow these things to affect and influence us, then we will end up being divided among ourselves and indulging in our desires, in maintaining our ego and pride, and in being stubborn in refusing to listen to God and to the words of His truth.

This was exactly why the people persecuted the prophets and the messengers of God in the times past, as they refused to admit that they could have been wrong or mistaken in their ways or in their thoughts. They would not admit that they were sinners and in need of help because their pride and ego would not let them to do that. They dwelled in their desires and pride, and they allowed those things to mislead them into the path of sin, in refusing the generous offer of God’s mercy and forgiveness.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, how about us then? Let us all reflect on our own lives and how we have lived them thus far. Let us remember each and every moments when we look down on others just because we feel that we are better than them, and at every moments when we refused to admit our faults and ended up in quarrelling and being divided against each other, in our own families and among our relatives and friends, in our schools and workplaces among others. How often has it been that we prioritise our own desires and wants, our ambitions and pride first over that of God and His truth?

We often seek the glory of the world, the pleasure and satisfaction of our bodies, the comfort that we can enjoy from all these temptations in life. The issue is not so much so on the things that tempt us but rather more of our unhealthy attachment to them, or unbridled desire in wanting to gain more and more of those things that ended up causing us to be more and more distant away from God. This is something that as Christians we must consider and discern very carefully, that we do not end up falling into those same temptations and into the wrong path.

Let us all turn ourselves to the Lord, brothers and sisters, with a new heart filled with genuine love for Him, committing ourselves to Him with ever greater devotion from now on. Let us cast out from ourselves the excesses of our human pride and worldly desires, the desire for wealth, fame, glory, power and any other things that are truly impermanent and do not give us true happiness and joy. Instead, let us all seek the true happiness and satisfaction that we can find in the Lord, our God alone.

May the Lord be with us always and may He continue to guide us in our journey of faith through life, so that we may find our way to Him and learn to commit ourselves more wholeheartedly from now on. Let us all devote more of our time and effort, our attention and focus on Him, and inspire one another to do the same as well. May God bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours, for the greater glory of His Name. Amen.

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Saturday, 18 September 2021 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard the words of the Lord in the Sacred Scriptures speaking to us with regards to the need for us to follow the Lord with all sincerity and commitment that we should have in obeying His will and commandments. We have to make good use of all the gifts and abilities, the opportunities and blessings that He has given to us. Each and every one of us have been granted the gifts of faith from God, which He had sown in us, awaiting for us to respond to them and to allow them to grow in us.

In our first reading today, the Apostle St. Paul has mentioned in his Epistle to St. Timothy, about the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ, which he and the other Apostles and all the disciples and the followers of the Lord have preserved and stood up for. St. Paul reminded St. Timothy as well as the other members of the Church that all of them ought to remain faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the whole world and the One true King of all, the One Who has come into the world as the perfect manifestation of God’s love for His people, that is all of us.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Luke on the account of the Lord teaching His disciples and the people using the parable of the sower, the famous parable that I am sure many of us are very familiar with. In that particular parable, a sower came bearing seeds to be sown, and he scattered the seeds randomly in places, and such that the seeds ended up in completely different places and conditions, from the roadside and rocky places unsuitable for any plant growth, to the most fertile soils that yielded many rich returns to the sower.

As the Lord explained it during His discourse as we heard in our Gospel passage today, the parable of the sower is a clear reference to the Lord and His work among us all in this world, the field of the Lord and the place of His toils and labours. The Lord has sowed His seeds among all of us, the seeds of the Word of God, the truth and the faith that He has planted in us, in each and every one of the children of mankind. He has also given us many gifts, talents and abilities, opportunities and other things.

Those seeds that fell by the roadside represent those who did not even allow the Lord to speak to them, or impart His Word of truth to them, and therefore the seeds of faith were snatched from them by the evil one and his agents before they even had the chance to take root and grow in us, just as the birds of the sky in the parable came and eat those seeds. Similarly, those seeds that did land on the rocky ground, although they managed to germinate and grow, but very quickly they dry up and die, as they did not have the right conditions to grow well.

The seeds that fell among the thistles and brambles managed to germinate and grow into young plants, but the thistles and brambles, which are weeds, compete against them for nutrients and water, and other resources, and hence, as the thistles and brambles grow around the saplings, the young plants could not grow and compete against the weeds, which often grow very quickly and can easily outcompete other plants growing together with them.

As the Lord mentioned, that represents those who has allowed the Lord’s Word and truth to come into them, but yet, they allowed the temptations of the world, of worldly desires and glory, among many other things to distract them and to keep them away from the Lord and His salvation and grace. And the same can happen to us if we allow ourselves to be swayed by the temptations of our flesh, of worldly desires, of fame and ambition, glory, wealth, power and many other things.

Instead, all of us are called to be like the case when the seeds fell on rich and fertile soil, where the seeds germinated well, grew well and eventually returned a massive produce manyfold of the original seeds that were sowed there. That is what we are all expected to be, brothers and sisters in Christ, that is to bear rich fruits of our faith, by our every actions and words, by our every deeds and interactions with one another, in our lives that we lead an exemplary life focused on God.

And how do we do that? Often, it does not require us to do amazing or wonderful things. Instead, we should aspire and strive to do our best in even the simplest and most mundane thing in life, in every little things we say and do, in our daily interactions with one another, in our habits and actions, with our relatives and friends, and even with all those whom we encounter throughout life. We are all called to be righteous in all things, and we should be true disciples of the Lord in words just as in deeds. Are we willing then to commit ourselves in this manner, brothers and sisters in Christ?

Let us all discern our path in life and the actions that we ought to take as Christians, as those who believe in the Lord. Let us all ponder on how we can better live our lives as the followers of Christ. May the Lord continue to be with us in our journey and help us to find our way to Him, and may He strengthen us with the courage to remain faithful at all times to the Lord and be fruitful in our lives. May God bless us always, in our every good works and endeavours. Amen.

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Friday, 17 September 2021 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Robert Bellarmine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church and St. Hildegard of Bingen, Virgin and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops or Holy Virgins)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Lord in the Sacred Scriptures, we are called to follow the Lord and be His disciples in the most sincere way possible. We should commit ourselves to Him just as His disciples and followers had done, as we heard how the Lord’s disciples, the Twelve and the women who always kept the Lord company followed Him wherever He went, doing His will and all the works for His glory.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to St. Timothy of the reminder that St. Paul the Apostle gave to his godson, St. Timothy, one of the earliest successors of the Apostles as the first of the bishops with regards to the concerns on the false teachings and false guidance from those who had promoted their own distorted ideas, as there were, even then, in the earliest days of the Church, the seeds of divisions and dissensions placed by the devil and his forces, in trying to destroy the Church and the faithful people of God.

St. Paul spoke of how there were those who pursued their own agenda and promoted their own flawed ideas that did not have the fullness of truth or Divine inspiration as the Lord’s disciples, the Apostles and their fellow co-workers had received. They instead caused confusion and divisions for their own glory and worldly pursuit, masquerading as a teacher of the faith while being the agent of the evil one, who used them to spread these divisions and confusion, and strike at the most vulnerable among the Lord’s flock.

Hence, St. Paul through his words reminded us that we have to be vigilant against all those that sowed dissension and divisions among us, and all those who sought to have personal gains over that of the people of God. All of us should be careful and do not easily allow the devil to have his way over us. We must remain true to our faith and understand what we believe in so that we will not be swayed by those false teachings and ideas. And it is also a reminder for us that we should not be tempted by worldly desires and end up corrupting others for the sake of our own personal glory.

Today all of us are called to remember the commitment which all of us are called to make as the disciples and followers of the Lord. Looking upon the examples that the Holy Apostles and disciples of the Lord had shown, we can see how they had given their all in serving the Lord, in preaching the truth of God and in delivering His love to all, even at times disregarding their own safety and comfort. They laboured for many years in proclaiming the words of God and enduring many persecutions, and at times they also had to go against the false teachings and heresies as St. Paul himself had to contend with.

Nonetheless, they persevered and committed themselves to the Lord without hesitation, spending a lot of effort and time, keeping their focus on the Lord throughout. They might falter and fail, but with the help, strength and grace from God, they went up again, and again, never giving up the works and efforts for the greater glory of God and for the salvation of their fellow brothers and sisters. It is this spirit and faith that our holy predecessors had, which we all should also have in our own lives, in our own faith in God.

Today, we also remember the memory of two great saints and Doctors of the Church, whose lives have been exemplary and works great and numerous, in leading so many people towards the Lord. First of all, St. Robert Bellarmine was an Italian Jesuit Cardinal, as a great reformer of the Church, and had a great and immense contribution to the Church teachings and theology. As a great teacher of theology, he inspired and spearheaded a great part of the efforts of the Counter-Reformation against those who divided the Church with their false and heretical teachings.

His great knowledge, wisdom and intellectual understanding of theology and other aspects of the faith were very notable, and the Pope himself took note of his efforts and achievements, making him the Rector of the Roman College and eventually as a Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church, and as a Cardinal Inquisitor was instrumental in leading through many aspects of Church reforms and in maintaining the integrity of the Magisterium and Sacred Tradition of the Church amidst a period of confusion and division among the faithful.

Then, the other saint whose memory we remember today, namely St. Hildegard of Bingen was canonised just less than a decade ago by His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI and then declared as a Doctor of the Church in that very same year. Her feast was added definitively to the Roman Calendar this year by Pope Francis, to celebrate her great faith and piety, her deep spiritual relationship with God and numerous works through which she inspired many who came to read of her works in remaining faithful to God.

St. Hildegard of Bingen was remembered as a great mystic and a theologian, who received visions of God throughout her life, as a monastic nun, dedicating her whole life to God. Even since a very young age, St. Hildegard of Bingen had received her visions, and later on in life, she wrote of her visions and experiences, which were widely known later after her passing. In her visions, St. Hildegard experienced the vision of God, in her various senses, experiencing the Light of God, which she described as the Three Shades of the Light of God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, each of these two wonderful saints served the Lord in their own unique ways, and they followed in the path set by the Lord before them, and following in the footsteps of the Apostles and the disciples of the Lord. Are we also able to follow in their footsteps and examples, brothers and sisters in Christ? Are we willing to embrace the Lord in the same way that they had done, and giving our time, effort and attention wholeheartedly to God? Let us all reflect on this and discern how we can be better disciples of the Lord from now on, in our every words, actions and deeds.

May God be with us always and may He strengthen each and every one of us with His truth that we may always remain true to Him, and remain committed to His truth, and do not fall into the trap of falsehoods and lies that the devil placed all around us. May God bless us all in our every endeavours and good works, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 16 September 2021 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Pope St. Cornelius, Pope and Martyr, and St. Cyprian, Bishop and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day all of us are reminded through the readings of the Sacred Scriptures to put our faith and trust in the Lord, seeking Him for His forgiveness and mercy. We must not be afraid or doubtful because we have to know that God has always looked kindly upon us and desiring for us to find our way back to Him, to be reconciled and reunited fully with Him in love.

And that is why we heard the passage from our Gospel reading today, detailing the moment when the Lord had an encounter during a meal hosted by the Pharisees for Him, as a sinful woman, widely known for her vices and sins, came to seek Him and brought an alabaster jar full of perfume before the Lord. She wept and cried on the Lord’s feet, before wiping those feet dry with her own hair, and then she used the perfume to anoint the Lord’s feet.

If we understand her context and background, then we can truly understand how significant this event was to all those who witnessed it. For that sinful woman was likely a prostitute, whom the Pharisees often looked down on and despised. The Pharisees must have been shocked that the Lord Jesus allowed such a sinner to approach Him and less still allowing her to touch Him, as at that time, even coming close to a sinner could be considered as a defilement, and hence people would distance themselves from those considered as sinners.

Yet, that sinful woman humbled herself such before the Lord and everyone present, throwing aside all pride and ego, and using her hair, the crown of her beauty, to wipe the feet of the Lord, using her precious treasure to wipe clean the part of the body considered as dirty. She came to the Lord with tears and sorrow, all because she knew how sinful she had been, and came seeking the Lord for forgiveness and healing. She gave it all to the Lord, anointing His feet with expensive perfume, honouring Him before all who saw it.

Yet, those Pharisees still failed to see the truth of God’s love, and still judged Him based on what they had seen and based on their own prejudices. They refused to see the sinners as their own fellow brethren, and preferred to remain in their arrogant and self-serving attitude, in being proud of their piety and privileged position within the community, looking down on all those who disagreed with them and who did not follow the Law and commandments of God in the manner that they had done.

God told them that He came into this world seeking for sinners, for their redemption and healing, so that they might be reconciled with Him and be forgiven from their sins, saved from the destruction that threatened them. He told the Pharisees the parable highlighting how those who had their debts forgiven more would have been more appreciative of the forgiveness, and that was a way for the Lord to tell them that they must not look down on the prostitutes, or tax collectors, the diseased, those possessed by evil spirits and others they deemed as sinners.

Everyone, after all, were sinners all the same, all equal before God and all deserving the same love from God. God wants us all to know this truth, and as we heard the Scripture passages today, we are again reminded of the grace that we have received from Him, the generous extension of His forgiveness and mercy, the love which He has lavished upon us all. And since we have been loved in such a manner, as God called us all to seek Him and be reconciled with Him, let us all remember what He told the sinful woman, that we ought to go forth in peace and sin no more. In our lives, we have to always be vigilant, resisting the temptations to sin that are always present all around us.

It does not matter how great the sins we have once committed. For as long as we are truly sincere in seeking the Lord, like that of the sinful woman, in being repentant and humble, in allowing God to come and heal us, then we shall be secure in the Lord and in the inheritance that He has promised to us. We should not be afraid to seek Him, as if we seek Him with a genuine heart full of remorse for our sins, and desiring to be reconciled and reunited with Him, God will surely hear us and grant us our longing for Him.

Let us all turn towards the Lord with renewed faith from now on, embracing Him in the manner of our holy predecessors, especially that of Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian, whose feasts we are celebrating today. They were truly great and honourable servants of God who gave themselves wholeheartedly to the missions entrusted to them by the Lord. Pope St. Cornelius was the Bishop of Rome and leader of the Universal Church while St. Cyprian was the Bishop of Carthage during the difficult years of intense persecution of the Church and the Christian faithful by the Roman state. They were both eventually martyred and died defending their faith.

At that time, the Church was not only facing persecution from the pagan authorities but also in fact suffering from internal divisions, particularly by those who adamantly refused to allow the readmission and acceptance of those Christians who had lapsed from their faith, who disagreed with the stand of the Church fathers, on the forgiveness of sinners. Those were lead by a particular priest called Novatian, who led the Church into schism with his followers on one side, and Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian on the other.

Both Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian championed the rights of those who had lapsed from their faith, either by their choice or coercion, pressure or other reasons, having abandoned their faith in God only to return later on back to the Holy Mother Church. Both Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian supported the rights of those Christians to return, against the Novatianists who argued that once they apostatised, there could be no forgiveness or return for them. Those so-called purists were in fact reminiscent of the attitudes showed by the Pharisees in our Gospel passage today.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, those two holy men of God, Pope St. Cornelius and St. Cyprian had done their all to show God’s love and mercy to repentant sinners. Therefore, we too should follow in their footsteps. First of all, are we willing to commit ourselves to the Lord, in turning away from the path of sin and wholeheartedly repenting from our past sins? And are we willing to help one another, our fellow brothers and sisters in seeking God?

Instead of looking down on others and thinking that we are in any way better, holier or more worthy than them, let us all reflect on our own sins and all that we have done in our past, all that we have failed to do in obeying the will of God, and in extending our love to one another, just as the Lord has called us all to do. Let us all reflect on this, and strive to become better Christians from now on. Let us all be exemplary in our way of life and show better care and concern for our fellow brothers and sisters in our every living moments.

May the Lord be with us all and may He guide us in our journey, so that each and every one of us will be more willing to be more committed to God, and strive to abandon our past sinfulness, embracing instead the path of God while inspiring others to turn away from their sins, by our own virtuous life examples, through which God may be glorified, and more may come to know of Him and His love for each and every one of us. Amen.

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Wednesday, 15 September 2021 : 24th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows, which is always celebrated on the day after the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, reminding us of the important role that Mary, our Lady of Sorrows and the Mother of God, played in the history of our salvation, and how faithful she has been in obeying God’s will and in following her Son, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, as He went to fulfil the mission entrusted to Him by His heavenly Father.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, just as the Lord Jesus picked up His Cross on His shoulders and journeyed with much pain and sufferings, with scourges and wounds onwards to the hill of Golgotha or Calvary, the place of His execution, Mary followed Him throughout, shadowing Him along the journey, and it was also told by tradition that they also met each other during that Way of Sorrows, as Mary beheld her beloved Son, scourged and bruised from His many wounds.

We can only imagine just what kind of sorrow and suffering that Mary herself had experienced as she beheld her Son in such a state, rejected by the people that He had loved and cared for, condemned to die for sins that He did not commit, scourged and broken, tortured and bleeding from His many wounds. No mother should ever have to see her own children suffering, and yet, that was what Mary precisely experienced as she walked the Via Dolorosa together with her Son, on the way to Calvary.

Yet, just as the Lord Jesus remained faithful and firm to His convictions, holding up His Cross despite falling on three occasions, and reaching the place of His crucifixion, Mary also remained firm in her dedication to her Son, her great love for Him, that she stayed by His side even to the foot of the Cross. She looked upon her Son on the Cross as He laboured and spent the time of suffering for the atonement of all of our sins, fulfilling what the Lord has promised to all of us. Just as the prophet Simeon had said, a sword truly must have pierced Mary’s heart, seeing all that unfolding before her own eyes.

And from the Cross, the Lord then entrusted His own mother to the care of St. John the Apostle, His beloved disciple, to be his own mother and for him to be her own son. Through this significant and symbolic act in fact, the Lord entrusted His Church, that is all of us, to His own mother Mary, giving her to us to be our mother and our caretaker, as a loving mother to her children, ever worried and concerned about us, and ever dedicated to each and every one of us, as her own adopted sons and daughters.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, it is little wonder then why the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God and Our Lady of Sorrows appeared quite often especially after periods of great turmoil and troubles, during times of war and destruction. In many times she has shown herself in many forms, to serve as a reminder to each and every one of us, passing to us her wish and the message, that all of us may be converted to the truth and embrace the salvation that her own Son, Our Lord and Saviour has offered to us freely from the Cross.

In all of those occasions, Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows always called for us to turn back towards the Lord and be converted, to pray and to do our best efforts to contribute to the conversion of souls. Having seen how her Son had suffered under the weight of the burden of our many sins, all of His wounds and scourges essentially were due to our many faults and trespasses, which He bore out of love for us, henceforth, it is no surprise that Mary has always been concerned for us, as our own loving mother, who does not want to see her children to fall into the eternal damnation in hell.

That is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we celebrate this Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows and as we recall the celebrations of yesterday’s Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, we as the people of God, as fellow Christians, let us all help one another and be sources of inspiration to lead us all towards the path of redemption and eternal life in God. Let us all be courageous to stand up to our faith and be truly committed to God in all things, that by our deeds and commitment, many more may also come to believe in God.

Let us all confide in our sorrowful mother, Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows, who is always sorrowful upon seeing our many sins, the same sins that have caused her Son, Our Lord and Saviour, so much pain. Let us all ask her for her constant intercession, that she will continue to pray for us, even to the hour of our death, for the sake of all of us, sinners unworthy of God, and yet beloved and whom God desired to forgive, out of His everlasting love for us. May God be with us always, and may His beloved mother, Our Lady of Sorrows, continue to watch over us. Amen.

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Tuesday, 14 September 2021 : Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate together the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, remembering the three moments when the Lord’s True Cross was discovered by St. Helena in Jerusalem, and the Dedication of the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre at Mount Calvary, which still stands to this very day as one of the holiest sites of Christendom, and finally the triumphant restoration of the True Cross of Christ to the Holy City of Jerusalem after it had been captured and seized the Persians during the reign of the Roman Emperor Heraclius.

It was told that the True Cross of Our Lord was discovered by St. Helena, the Christian mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great, who went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and was called to discover the True Cross of Our Lord. Upon her search, three crosses were discovered around the site of Our Lord’s crucifixion in Golgotha or Calvary, two of which belonged to the two thieves who were crucified with Him. St. Helena discovered the True Cross when a sick man was completely and miraculously healed upon touching one of the crosses. Ever since then, the True Cross has been an inspiration of all the faithful.

On this day we therefore rejoice in the great triumph of the Cross of Our Lord, Jesus Christ, Saviour of the whole world, as that Cross became the symbol of hope and salvation for all, the proof of God’s eternal and undying love for each and every one of us, and the reassurance of His providence and guidance before all of us. We rejoice today because the triumph of the Cross has led us into the path towards freedom and liberation from our sins, and it is the hope that we clings onto as we journey through life in this world darkened with sin and evil.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Numbers of the moment when the Israelites rebelled against God and refusing to listen to Him or follow Him, as despite having been well-taken care of by the Lord, they were still not satisfied and often grumbled at what they had received, wanting more and a better life. They grumbled that they had a much better life in Egypt even though they were enslaved, and these things were said despite the fact that the Lord had provided for them and taken care of them, feeding them and giving them ample water to drink daily through the dry and lifeless desert, for years.

And by their sins, caused of their disobedience and rebellion, they were struck by many fiery serpents that came to bite them and many perished from those serpents. This was referenced by St. Paul in his Epistle to the Corinthians, that ‘the sting of death is sin’, a reminder that sin is the cause of death and destruction, for sin is disobedience and refusal to believe in the Lord and the stubbornness in following one’s own way rather than walking in the path that God has shown us. As such, just as our forefathers, from the time of Adam and Eve, had tasted death because of their sins, hence the same applied to the Israelites and all of us as well.

We all suffer death because of those sins that we committed, and without God and His love, we should have perished and been condemned to hellfire. Yet, it was God’s enduring love for us from the very beginning that gave us the hope and the opportunity to be forgiven, to be reconciled with Him. Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, God loves each and every one of us, as He has created us all out of love, and to share His love with us, to make us all perfect in love just like Himself. The Cross is the symbol and proof of that love.

Just like the bronze serpent that Moses made upon God’s instruction, when he beseeched Him for the sake of the people, and which he lifted up high to be seen by all, that everyone who had been bitten by the serpents might be saved and not perish, thus, the Cross of Christ is that ultimate symbol of hope and victory, the sign of God’s love and providence for His people, that from the very beginning, He has always been with us, journeyed with us, and never abandoned us, and to the Cross at Calvary, He gave us all, even His own life, for our salvation.

St. Paul in his Epistle to the Philippians, in our alternate first reading today spoke of the obedience that Our Lord Jesus, the Son of God and Saviour of all had in His Father’s will, in fulfilling the planned salvation for all of us, that He humbled Himself, emptied Himself of all glory and power, that He, the Divine Word of God Incarnate, assumed the position of a slave, a criminal and a rejected man, to be the least of all, and as One scourged, beaten and broken so that by His sufferings, He might share our sufferings and took upon Himself our multitudes of sins upon Himself.

He obeyed so perfectly and humbled Himself, as our Eternal and True High Priest, in offering for us the sacrifice for our sins, the worthy sacrifice for the atonement of our sins. And for the eternal atonement and forgiveness of all of our sins, there is only one worthy offering and sacrifice, namely the sacrifice of Christ Himself, the Paschal Lamb, the Lamb of God, Who as the High Priest also is the Sacrificial Lamb slain on the Altar of the Cross at Calvary. That Cross therefore became the source of our salvation, the hope and light amidst the darkened world.

The cross was a symbol of the ultimate humiliation and the most severe and painful punishment that was reserved only for the worst of criminals and the traitors to the state. It was a truly terrible, painful and humiliating way for someone to die, and that was exactly what the Lord had subjected Himself into, as One Who was blameless and sinless, and yet, forced to bear the punishment of the worst sinners. But this was also something that the Lord willingly accepted upon Himself, as He took up the cup of suffering, sharing with us and bearing for us the burdens that should have been ours.

And Christ turned that symbol of utter humiliation and sorrow, of tragedy and pain, into a symbol of hope and victory so great, that no one else ever looked at the cross in any other way from then on. For all Christians, and all those who believed in the Lord and His salvation, while the crucifix remind us of the sacrifice of Christ and His ultimate love for us from the cross, as He hung from it at Calvary before His death, but that same Cross has become the proof of God’s ultimate triumph and victory, the greatest victory that He has won for us, against the tyranny of sin and death.

That is why all of us have to appreciate everything that the Lord had done for our sake. He has showed us all what true love is all about, a love that is truly great and wonderful, and He has led us to triumph against the once unsurmountable forces of evil, sin and death. As we look upon the Cross of Christ, do we see the Lord and His loving face gazing down upon us, and are we reminded at just how fortunate we have been that God is willing to do all of that, just so that we may be freed from the fate of eternal damnation?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today therefore, as we celebrate this Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, let us all keep in mind the love of God that is always ever present in our midst, in Christ our Lord, through His life-giving sacrifice, by which He has shown us the path to eternal life, by His Cross. In the glorious Cross of Christ, we have seen the Lord’s providence and love for us, and we have received the assurance of eternal life. Let us all give Him thanks and strive to love Him more and more, and regain the strength and hope through the Cross of Our Lord and Saviour.

We have once been brought low by the power of sin, but God has broken its hold and dominion over us, giving us the hope to true joy and life eternal in Him. However, we must still ever be vigilant, as temptations are still plentiful in trying to mislead us and bring us back down into the path of sin. Unless we are careful, we may end up falling into sin again, and getting further and further away from the salvation in God. This is where we should entrust ourselves to the Holy Cross of Christ, and commit our lives to Him from now on.

May the Lord, our Triumphant Saviour through His Holy Cross deliver us from the stranglehold of sin and death, and may He continue to show us the path to eternal life and true freedom through His Cross. May all of us look upon Him Who was crucified for us, and remind ourselves always of just how beloved and fortunate each and every one of us have been, to be so loved by God and to be deemed as precious in His eyes. May God bless us all, the people of His Cross, and may He lead us all into eternal joy and glory with Him. Amen.