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Wednesday, 2 July 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Lord contained within the Sacred Scriptures, we are being reminded that God and His love for each and every one of us is so great that no one among us will be left out from His most generous and wonderful love, which has always been given to us without limits and boundaries, in His desire to see us all prosper and safe from harm and danger. He has always listened to our prayers especially during times of distress, and He sees the faith that we have for Him. There is nothing that the Lord cannot do for us, especially if it is within His will and desire for us. That is why through what we have heard in our Scripture readings, we are reminded to always have faith in the Lord and to trust in Him wholeheartedly.

In our first reading, we heard from the Book of Genesis in which the story of Abraham and his sons, Ishmael and Isaac, was told to us. Earlier on this week, as we heard from our passage taken from the Book of Genesis, Ishmael, the firstborn son of Abraham came to be because of the plans laid down by Sarah, his wife, in trying to get a son for herself and Abraham by giving her own slave Hagar to be the mother of the child. According to the customs and practices of the time, if the slave of a woman had a child with her owner’s husband, then that child would be considered as a legal child belonging to her master and not her own. As such, Ishmael was indeed considered as a legal heir to Abraham, who had been childless for a long time and been waiting to have a child that God had promised him and Sarah.

But that was not what God had planned for them, and indeed, God’s promises would be fulfilled perfectly with the arrival of Isaac, the promised son who was born miraculously by Sarah for Abraham. And with Isaac and Ishmael both being the sons of Abraham, that set the stage for confrontation between both of them and also the frictions that arose between them, and also that of Sarah and Hagar, their respective parents. And this eventually led to Sarah asking Abraham to cast both Hagar and Ishmael out, to definitively show that Isaac was the only one meant to be the heir and successor of Abraham, and not Ishmael. God reassured Abraham, telling him to do what Sarah had asked, and that He would also take care of Ishmael and bless him greatly as he was also a son of Abraham.

This is a reminder for all of us of how great God’s love for each one of us are, because even though Ishmael was not conceived and born with the approval of God, but God made all things into good things in the end, and even though it was not ideal, but God was so full of love for each one of us that He turned all things to be good in the end, making everything to be part of His grand design, while giving us the freedom to choose our action and path in life. He took care of Hagar and Ishmael, fulfilling what He had promised to Abraham in turn, making Ishmael to be a father of many nations just as Isaac also did. God did not abandon Hagar and Ishmael when they were abandoned and were struggling in the desert, but took good care of them and blessed them.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, as we heard from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, the account of how the Lord Jesus cast out demons and evil spirits from within two men who had been afflicted and possessed by them was highlighted to us. The Lord ordered those evil spirits to get out of the two men to the herd of pigs that happened to be nearby. Those evil spirits obeyed the Lord and went to those pigs, which therefore were driven crazy and ran towards a nearby cliff and jumped down, all perishing together as a herd. Through what we have heard, the Lord provided for those two men, and extended His help to them when they were so afflicted by those evil spirits, and freed them from their troubles.

And we heard how He did this when no one else dared to come near to them because of the great ferocity of the evil spirits afflicting the two men. The Lord came to those two men, not fearing them and full of love and compassion, knowing that each one of them were truly dear and beloved to Him, and the Lord did not want them to be under the subject and the domination of the evil ones any longer. He reached out to them and saved them, bringing those who have been in darkness back into the light, restoring hope and true joy to those who have been deep in darkness and despair, not allowing evil to dominate us any longer. That is why we have to appreciate all the love we have received from God and all these generous wonders we have received, and not to take them for granted.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore renew our faith in the Lord and remember firmly the love and kindness which we have received from God. Let us appreciate everything that He had done for us, in ever being patient to reach out to us and touching our lives, showing us all His love without cease and without limit. He has never abandoned us even when we have frequently disobeyed Him and abandoned Him, time and again. The Lord has been there for us in our good and bad times, and when things are the darkest for us, He has always helped us, lifted us up and restored us from our fallen state into the renewed existence in Him, full of His love and grace, and strengthened with His light and hope.

May the Lord continue to grant us His great and most wonderful love, the generous love and kindness, compassion and all the tender mercy which He has always shown us. May He continue to help and guide us to remain truly committed and faithful to Him at all times, even when we are facing lots of hardships, uncertainties and troubles in life, so that by remaining firm and committed to Him, we may be reassured and strengthened, and will not lose our focus and emphasis in Him, and that we may truly be able to walk down this path that He has shown and led us through. May God bless our every good works, efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Tuesday, 1 July 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the love that God has for each and every one of us, all the guidance and help that He has provided to us from time to time, as He constantly watches over us, helping us in times of great distress, just as he had done to Lot and his family and to His own disciples when they were facing predicaments and troubles. God never abandoned those who are dear to Him, and He has always shown His kindness and patience in leading us all out of our troubles, and in our darkest times, God’s hands are actually always with us, and if only we can have more faith in Him, then surely we can be more assured and less worried, knowing that God is always there for us, no matter what.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Genesis, we heard of the moment when God told Lot, the nephew of Abraham, and his whole family to leave Sodom and Gomorrah through His Angels, whom He had sent to Sodom and Gomorrah with the purpose of rescuing Lot and his family. Abraham earlier on, if we recalled what we heard in yesterday’s Scripture readings, had pleaded with the Lord to spare both Sodom and Gomorrah if there were some righteous people that could be found there, including that of Lot and his family. Unfortunately, as the events unfolded, there was no one else who were considered righteous, and the people of Sodom and Gomorrah doubled down on their wickedness and disobedience against God.

And hence, the destruction of those two cities proceeded as the Lord had intended it, but He did not let the righteous ones to suffer the same fate as the wicked, and that was why He guided Lot and his family out of danger, so that they would not get caught in the destruction that was to come upon Sodom and Gomorrah. And the whole family except that of Lot’s wife, who turned and looked upon the two cities, disobeying what the Angels of God had told her and her family, they all were saved and protected from harm in the end. In the end, we heard how God’s love and providence helped those who have been faithful to Him to endure and to survive through bitter hardships and challenges in life, and be saved and liberated in the end from all kinds of harm and troubles.

Then, similarly, as we have heard in our Gospel passage today taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, the Lord intervened for the sake of His disciples when they were all assailed by the strong winds and waves battering against their boat in the middle of the Lake of Galilee. The disciples were afraid and fearful, despite some of them being fishermen themselves and should have been accustomed to such storm. That also gave us insight that the storm and the waves must have been particularly bad and terrible, for them to be so worried for their lives. They asked the Lord for help and the Lord chided them at first for having little and no faith in Him, and then He proceeded to calm the storm, which immediately ceased upon His orders.

This is a reminder for all of us that even when we are facing troubles, hardships, challenges and difficulties in life, we must always have faith in the Lord and we must not give up despite the temptations, pressures and coercions to do so. As Christians, we and the Church will surely face challenges, trials and hardships, oppositions and difficulties in our paths, as we have likely experienced ourselves in our past experiences and lives as well. But this is where this event of the Lord calming the storm for His disciples is a reminder for all of us that no matter how tough things may be for us, we must never give up and we must still have faith and hope in the Lord, because if we choose to abandon Him and find other means to save ourselves, we will surely fall into destruction instead.

Why is that so? Those disciples had the choice of whether they stayed in the boat and trusted in the Lord, or to abandon the boat to save themselves, but they chose, despite being fearful and afraid, to put their faith in Him and begged Him for help. Should any one of them choose to abandon the boat, more likely than not, in the great intensity of the storm and the waves, they would have been swept away and drowned in the water. And there is also deep symbolism in this boat and the disciples within it, as the Church itself is often represented as a ship or a boat, and the disciples within that boat symbolises all of us, God’s holy and beloved people, the members of the same Church of God, and as we can see in that event, the Lord was with His disciples, even in the most troubled times.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, can we ourselves also put our faith and trust in the Lord in the same manner as well? As we have been reminded from how the Lord rescued Lot and his family, and how He calmed the storm and the waves for His disciples, therefore we should also have that strong and enduring faith, believing that with God everything is possible and there is nothing that God cannot do for us in helping and providing for us. We should always hold firmly to the promise and assurance from God, and believe that with Him we can do great things beyond what we can do alone, and with God by our side, we will not falter and be dissuaded in our efforts to walk in the path that the Lord has shown and revealed to us. And as Christians, it is important that we continue to be faithful in the Lord at all times, even in the most difficult moments, knowing that with God, we will eventually overcome all those difficulties.

May the Lord, our most loving God, continue to help and strengthen us in our journey in faith, so that no matter what hardships and obstacles we may encounter in our paths in life, we will always persevere and remain faithful in the Lord, remaining firm in our conviction, dedication and desire to glorify the Lord always at all times by our exemplary and worthy lives. May God be with us always and may He empower each and every one of us to serve Him in whatever capacities that He had entrusted to us, and also in helping one another, our fellow brothers and sisters, in overcoming our troubles and difficulties, showing care, concern and compassion at all times, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Monday, 30 June 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the First Martyrs of the Holy Roman Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded of the love and compassion which the Lord has shown to us all, His faithful and beloved people. We are reminded of the generous mercy and kindness which He has shown all of us, by His constant efforts in forgiving us all from our sins and in being patient with us despite us having frequently and constantly disobeyed Him from time to time again. He has even sent us His only Begotten Son to our midst so that by His coming into this world, He may become for us all the source of salvation and hope, and lead us all to Himself once again, reconciling us sinners with Him and allowing us all to find our way back to Him, our loving God and Father.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Genesis the account of the conversation between Abraham and God when he found out about God’s plan to bring about the destruction of the two cities of Sodom and Gomorrah for the great sins and wickedness which they had committed before the Lord, and for their stubbornness in remaining in such sins and wickedness. But Abraham also knew and was aware that his own nephew, Lot and his family dwelled in the lands of Sodom and Gomorrah, and hence, should God bring about destruction to Sodom and Gomorrah, it might have led to harm to Lot and his family too, as with any other righteous people who might be found there in those two places as well. Hence, Abraham went on a series of conversations and requests to the Lord, asking Him to show mercy and withhold His destruction should there be some of those who were righteous in those two places.

God then repeatedly answered and reassured Abraham as he kept on asking about the fate and well-being of those righteous who might be found in the land of Sodom and Gomorrah, that for his sake and his faith in Him, He would not punish and destroy Sodom and Gomorrah should there be any of the righteous remaining in those places, as he has asked of Him. However, as we ought to know that there was only so few of the righteous in Sodom and Gomorrah, essentially only Lot and his own immediate family, that not even what Abraham had asked of the Lord could be done. In the end, Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by fire and brimstone from Heaven, but not before the Lord sent His Angels to help rescue Lot and his family to safety.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus was asked by a teacher of the Law who told Him that he would follow Him wherever He would go, and the Lord told this teacher of the Law that following Him would mean moving from place to place, having no stable and steady place for him and anyone else following Him to stay at, and that commitment to follow Him often required them, that is His disciples to dedicate themselves, their time and effort to follow Him and do the works that He has entrusted them to do. And therefore, that was why the Lord asked for commitment from those who have asked Him to be His followers, as if they were still divided and unsure about what they wanted, it would be difficult for them to be truly His disciples and followers.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, first of all, we have to understand this from the context of what the disciples of the Lord did at that time, as the teacher of the Law asked of the Lord, his intentions was quite clear that he wanted to be like those members of the Twelve, the disciples that were always around the Lord and always helped Him to carry out His missions and works. And such missions and works would require one to be thoroughly committed to the cause, and hence, it was imperative that those who wanted to follow the Lord in this manner ought to be truly committed and not be divided in their attention and thoughts. This is essentially what those who have committed themselves to the calling to priesthood and religious life in our Church today have also done as well.

In another occasion, the Lord also told His disciples and those who followed Him, that none of those who have devoted themselves to Him, their effort and time, and all of their works would be ignored and abandoned by the Lord. In fact, the Lord knows all that they have done for Him and hence, if we are truly faithful to the Lord, in the end, we will be vindicated and will be triumphant with Him. There is nothing that the Lord does not know, and as long as we continue to do our best to entrust ourselves to Him and to fully have faith in Him regardless of the challenges and trials that we may encounter, then in the end, we will find true joy and satisfaction in the Lord, our most loving and faithful God.

Today, the Church also celebrates the occasion of the Feast of the First Martyrs of the Holy Roman Church. This feast, which is celebrated on the day after the Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul, Holy Apostles and Patron Saints of Rome, has a special significance for the Church in Rome, referring to the Diocese of Rome, of which our Pope is the bishop of, and as the leader of the whole entire Church and particularly as part of the Roman Rite, we have this special connection with the Church of Rome and its bishop, as well as its past and history, in which today we recall the memory of all those who have been martyred together with the two Apostles, St. Peter and St. Paul, during the first great persecution of Christians in Rome.

At that time, the Christian Church has been growing and flourishing in Rome during the reign of the Roman Emperor Nero after Christian missionaries have reached the capital of the Roman Empire during their missions, and the arrival of St. Peter the Apostle and St. Paul the Apostle no doubt strengthened those missionary efforts, with St. Peter having become the first Bishop of Rome and thus the leader of the local Church on top of his responsibilities as the head of the whole Universal Church, while St. Paul in his great missionary zeal and efforts to proclaim the faith and the Good News to the people, especially to the Gentiles or the non-Jewish people. However, as the number of Christians continued to grow, it began to lead to frictions with the traditional Roman pagan beliefs and traditions.

And at the time, the Emperor Nero, who was infamous for his lack of morality and his megalomaniac behaviour, began to come into friction with different segments of the Roman state and governance, which eventually would lead to his downfall and overthrow in the Year 68 AD. However, about four years prior to this event, Emperor Nero instigated a great fire in Rome, which many historical evidences pointed out to him being the mastermind behind the events. And he blamed the fire on the Christian populations in Rome, which had already been poorly regarded by the people of Rome, as scapegoats so that the Emperor could get away with his wicked ideas and plans. As a result, many of the Roman Christians were martyred, and it is their memory whom we remember today.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we remember the great faith and courage which the first martyrs of the Church of Rome has shown amidst the great trials and challenges facing them, let us all be inspired by their examples so that we ourselves may continue to serve the Lord faithfully at all times, dedicating ourselves to His cause to the best of our abilities. May the Lord be with us always and may He encourage us all to be ever strong in out commitment to walk courageously in the path that He has shown us, and bless our every good efforts and works. Amen.

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Sunday, 29 June 2025 : Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul, Apostles (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday all of us celebrate together the occasion of the great Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul, the two great pillars of the Church, as two of the most important Apostles in the Church, with St. Peter the Apostle being the leader of all the Apostles, the leader of the Twelve Apostles, the chief servant of God as the one to whom the Lord had entrusted His Church, as the ‘Rock’ of faith upon which the Church had been founded upon. St. Peter the Apostle as the first Pope and Vicar of Christ led the whole entire Church in communion and together with all the whole body of the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord, together with the whole entire Church, and he was called from his work as Simon the fisherman at the lake of Galilee to be a fisher of man in gathering all of God’s people to Himself.

Meanwhile, St. Paul the Apostle was once known as Saul, a young Pharisee who was very impulsive and zealous in pursuing the ideals and goals of the Pharisees and their version of the Jewish customs, faith and tradition, and was initially very militant in his efforts to attempt to root out the early Christian Church and faith, persecuting and arresting many of the disciples of the Lord. However, God had a different plan for Saul, whom he called on the way to Damascus in attempting to arrest more of the disciples and followers of the Lord. Saul was touched by the Lord and he had a life-changing experience, choosing to follow the Lord henceforth and becoming one of His greatest disciples and defenders, becoming Paul, the great Apostle to the Gentiles, for his courageous efforts in mission to the Gentiles or the non-Jewish people.

And this Sunday’s celebration particularly has a very great importance for all of us as we belong to the Roman Catholic Church and as part of the Roman Rite of the Church, with our Pope, Pope Leo XIV as the Successor of St. Peter as the Vicar of Christ and leader of the whole entire Church being also the Bishop of Rome, as the Ordinary of the Diocese of Rome, which was during the time of the Lord and His Apostles, the heart and centre of the then mighty Roman Empire. And it was in Rome that both St. Peter and St. Paul went to minister to the people of God and proclaim the Good News of the Lord to those who had not yet believed in God and known Him, and they were both eventually martyred there in Rome. Hence, that is why both St. Peter and St. Paul are celebrated this Sunday with this Solemnity as the Patron Saints of Rome, the seat of our Pope.

Then, as we all reflect upon the Scripture readings this Sunday, we are reminded of the great wonders and things which the Lord had done through St. Peter the Apostle and the other Apostles and disciples, who were merely ordinary men, and yet, they had been given great power and authority, with His guidance and providence as we heard from our first reading taken from the Acts of the Apostles. In that occasion, we heard of the persecution which King Herod of Galilee carried out against the early Christians including the Apostles, whom he arrested, including that of St. Peter himself, with the intention of persecuting him to please the members of the Sanhedrin, the Pharisees and the Sadducees in order to gain their favour and support.

But the Lord was with St. Peter and the other disciples, and He sent His Angel to them to their prison, miraculously freeing them from their shackles and their bonds so that they could continue to carry out their mission, which St. Peter and the other disciples carried out most fervently and faithfully, encouraging the other disciples by the testimony of their faith and that of God’s assurance and providence, as the faithful themselves witnessed how the Lord was with St. Peter and those who had been arrested, freeing them miraculously from the shackles of those who had incarcerated them. Through this and many other miraculous occasions, St. Peter and the other disciples of the Lord continued to labour tirelessly for the Lord and His Church.

In our second reading this Sunday, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul to St. Timothy, St. Paul the Apostle sent a message of encouragement to his protege, St. Timothy, whom he had set and prepared as a leader and elder of the early Church, that despite all the hardships and trials that he had to face and endure as a servant of God, but the Lord was always with him and all the other missionaries and therefore, St. Timothy and the other members of the faithful should not be afraid to continue carrying out the missions and works which had been entrusted to them. With the Lord by their side, as how He had guided St. Paul in his ministry, they would all surely do great and wonderful things for the greater glory of God and in proclaiming His truth and Good News to many more people.

Then finally, from our Gospel passage this Sunday, taken from the Gospel according to St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the Lord Jesus asking His disciples on who they thought He was, and they all spoke of what they had heard and what was commonly believed at the time, that Jesus was a Man of God, a Prophet and Teacher that the Lord had sent, but it was only St. Peter, then known as Simon, who had the courage and faith to speak the full truth, that the Lord Jesus was truly the Messiah or the Saviour, which had been promised, and also the Son of God Most High, not merely like any other Prophets and Teachers that the Lord had sent to His people. For this, the Lord bestowed upon Simon the new name of Peter, which means ‘Rock’ knowing that in St. Peter lies a truly strong and enduring faith that would become a steady Rock and Foundation of His Church.

Through what the Lord had told to St. Peter in our Gospel passage today, He clearly established His Church in this world, the Body of all the faithful united in communion with the Apostles and especially to St. Peter and his successors, to the Lord Who is the true Head of the Church. To St. Peter and his successors, the Lord had entrusted the authority and power to govern, guide and strengthen the whole Church, over all the faithful, giving them the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. By this action, He established the Church as we all know it today, which still remain strong even after two millennia, against all the threats and challenges that it had faced, fulfilling what the Lord Himself had said, that not even the gates of hell would prevail against it. St. Peter would go on to Rome, and establish that line of Popes which lasts till today, until Pope Leo XIV, our current Pope, and together with St. Paul, St. Peter would be martyred in that city, the heart of the Roman Empire then.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, just as we have heard in our Scripture readings today and in all that we have just discussed, the Lord called both St. Peter and St. Paul from their ordinary and even most unlikely origins, the former being a mere illiterate and brash fisherman from the Lake of Galilee, who had even denied the Lord three times in times of distress, while the latter was an overzealous young Pharisee who persecuted the Church in the beginning. And yet, the Lord transformed them from their ordinary and unlikely origins and beginnings to be His great servants, to do many of His great works and perform many great wonders and miracles, touching the lives of so many people that they had encountered in their missions and journeys.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we rejoice greatly in this Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul, in honour of these two great saints and servants of God, let us all realise that the Lord has also been calling on each and every one of us to follow in their footsteps as well, and to do our very best in our lives so that by our commitment and good works, by our dedication and faith, our every actions, words and deeds, we will always glorify the Lord at all times and be active parts of the labours of His Church. May God be with us always, and may He strengthen us all in faith, in our love for Him, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Sunday, 29 June 2025 : Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul, Apostles (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday all of us celebrate together the occasion of the great Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul, the two great pillars of the Church, as two of the most important Apostles in the Church, with St. Peter the Apostle being the leader of all the Apostles, the leader of the Twelve Apostles, the chief servant of God as the one to whom the Lord had entrusted His Church, as the ‘Rock’ of faith upon which the Church had been founded upon. St. Peter the Apostle as the first Pope and Vicar of Christ led the whole entire Church in communion and together with all the whole body of the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord, together with the whole entire Church, and he was called from his work as Simon the fisherman at the lake of Galilee to be a fisher of man in gathering all of God’s people to Himself.

Meanwhile, St. Paul the Apostle was once known as Saul, a young Pharisee who was very impulsive and zealous in pursuing the ideals and goals of the Pharisees and their version of the Jewish customs, faith and tradition, and was initially very militant in his efforts to attempt to root out the early Christian Church and faith, persecuting and arresting many of the disciples of the Lord. However, God had a different plan for Saul, whom he called on the way to Damascus in attempting to arrest more of the disciples and followers of the Lord. Saul was touched by the Lord and he had a life-changing experience, choosing to follow the Lord henceforth and becoming one of His greatest disciples and defenders, becoming Paul, the great Apostle to the Gentiles, for his courageous efforts in mission to the Gentiles or the non-Jewish people.

And this Sunday’s celebration particularly has a very great importance for all of us as we belong to the Roman Catholic Church and as part of the Roman Rite of the Church, with our Pope, Pope Leo XIV as the Successor of St. Peter as the Vicar of Christ and leader of the whole entire Church being also the Bishop of Rome, as the Ordinary of the Diocese of Rome, which was during the time of the Lord and His Apostles, the heart and centre of the then mighty Roman Empire. And it was in Rome that both St. Peter and St. Paul went to minister to the people of God and proclaim the Good News of the Lord to those who had not yet believed in God and known Him, and they were both eventually martyred there in Rome. Hence, that is why both St. Peter and St. Paul are celebrated this Sunday with this Solemnity as the Patron Saints of Rome, the seat of our Pope.

Then, as we all reflect upon the Scripture readings this Sunday, we are reminded of the great wonders and things which the Lord had done through St. Peter the Apostle and the other Apostles and disciples, who were merely ordinary men, and yet, they had been given great power and authority, just as we heard in our first reading this Sunday from the Acts of the Apostles. In that occasion we heard how St. Peter and St. John were both at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple of Jerusalem and they encountered a man who had been afflicted with paralysis since his birth, and seeing his sufferings and predicament, they told him that they had nothing to give him, not money or help in that manner, but they were giving him an even greater gift, the gift of salvation and healing in the Name of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of all.

This happened shortly after the Lord had risen from the dead and ascended into Heaven, and after the Holy Spirit had come upon all the Apostles and disciples of the Lord, the whole Church of God. The once fearful and timid Apostles and disciples began going forth most courageously and fearlessly in proclaiming the Good News of God, despite their earlier fears and uncertainties over the threats from the Pharisees and the other members of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish High Council, which had threatened action and gave pressure against all those who proclaimed and taught in the Name of the Lord Jesus, or spoke of His Resurrection and truths. However, as we heard in our first reading this Sunday, St. Peter and St. John fearlessly and courageously invoked the Name of the Lord as they healed the man from his affliction.

Then, as we heard from our second reading this Sunday, as was mentioned earlier on, in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful people of God in Galatia, St. Paul the Apostle spoke of his past experiences of persecuting the early Christian communities and how he had been young, impulsive and misguided by wrong upbringing and mistaken perspective as a Pharisee. But God rescued him out of that situation and predicament, and through His guidance, help and strength, what was a great enemy of the Church turned into one of the Church’s greatest champions and defenders, making great use of his talents, energy and enthusiasm for the greater glory of God and for spreading the Good News of God instead of persecuting the Church wrongly as he had done earlier on.

St. Paul received the baptism and was welcomed into the Church, receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit and was instructed in the faith by the Apostles themselves, the members of the Twelve whom St. Paul mentioned meeting, and despite not being member of the Lord’s disciples when the Lord was still around in the world, he received the same truth that the other Apostles and disciples of the Lord had themselves received and preserved, by the sharing of the experiences and truths which the Lord’s disciples and followers had experienced firsthand. And from this exchange, St. Paul was strengthened through the Holy Spirit to go forth to the many places where he ministered to many of the Gentiles or the non-Jewish people throughout his many missionary journeys, that he became known as the Apostle to the Gentiles, the one spearheading the rapid expansion of the Church beyond its homeland in Judea and Jerusalem.

Lastly, from our Gospel passage this Sunday Vigil Mass, we also heard the account from the Gospel according to St. John the Apostle andLuke the Evangelist where the exchange between the Risen Lord Jesus and St. Peter the Apostle in Galilee was highlighted to us, where the Lord Jesus asked St. Peter not just once but three times, ‘Peter, do you love Me?’, and the significance of these questions must be understood from the context of what happened before between them during the time of the Lord’s Passion, the moment when He was betrayed by Judas Iscariot and persecuted. It was at that time, as we all should know that the Lord was also abandoned by all of His disciples, and St. Peter, who earlier on had declared that he would even die for Him, denied knowing Him when confronted by the people, not just once but three times.

Therefore, when the Risen Lord asked St. Peter not just once, but three times whether he loved Him, this was a very powerful symbol and reminder for St. Peter that the Lord has truly forgiven him and everything he had done in denying Him earlier on. The Lord’s love and compassion are truly boundless, and St. Peter, whose love and commitment to the Lord was also truly real and strong, devoted and committed himself totally to the Lord from then onwards. It was this great faith which the Lord saw and knew to be present in St. Peter, and which was why He chose him to be the leader of all of His Apostles and disciples in the first place, to be His Vicar and the first Pope. The Lord entrusted His Church and His entire flock of the faithful to St. Peter and the other Apostles, to be the ones to take care of them and to represent Him in this world.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, just as we have heard in our Scripture readings today and in all that we have just discussed, the Lord called both St. Peter and St. Paul from their ordinary and even most unlikely origins, the former being a mere illiterate and brash fisherman from the Lake of Galilee, who had even denied the Lord three times in times of distress, while the latter was an overzealous young Pharisee who persecuted the Church in the beginning. And yet, the Lord transformed them from their ordinary and unlikely origins and beginnings to be His great servants, to do many of His great works and perform many great wonders and miracles, touching the lives of so many people that they had encountered in their missions and journeys.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we rejoice greatly in this Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul, in honour of these two great saints and servants of God, let us all realise that the Lord has also been calling on each and every one of us to follow in their footsteps as well, and to do our very best in our lives so that by our commitment and good works, by our dedication and faith, our every actions, words and deeds, we will always glorify the Lord at all times and be active parts of the labours of His Church. May God be with us always, and may He strengthen us all in faith, in our love for Him, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Saturday, 28 June 2025 : 12th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today, on the day after the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, we celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of His most loving Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God. On this day we remember the loving and most Immaculate Heart of Mary who has always been filled with love for God, for her Son, the One entrusted to her to care, and also for all of us, all of whom had also been entrusted to her as her own children, that she may truly love us all as much as she has loved Jesus, her Son, Our Lord and Saviour. On this day we remember the Immaculate Heart of Mary, our loving Mother, which has been pierced by the sword of pain of seeing her own Son, Jesus, being made to suffer, to be crucified and to die on the Cross for faults that were not His own.

First of all, let us all look upon our Scripture readings today, beginning with our first reading today from the Book of the prophet Isaiah. In that passage from the prophet Isaiah we heard the words of the Lord speaking to His people reassuring them that He will bless them and give them all His grace and kindness, restoring them to honour and happiness, allowing them to rejoice once again after they had suffered indignity and difficulties earlier on in their experiences and those faced by their ancestors. Contextually, we must understand the events that happened during the time of the ministry of the prophet Isaiah and what happened beforehand in order to appreciate the full significance of what the Lord had been telling His people with this message of hope and reassurance.

The prophet Isaiah ministered to the people of the southern kingdom of Judah, the southern half of the divided kingdom of Israel, during the reign of King Ahaz and King Hezekiah, during which time and reign the northern kingdom of Israel, the northern half of the divided kingdom with most of the twelve tribes of Israel, was destroyed by the mighty forces of the Assyrian Empire which brought destruction upon the kingdom of Israel and its capital, Samaria, and many of the people living in that kingdom had been uprooted and exiled in distant, far-off lands of Assyria and beyond, with foreigners being brought in to dwell in the lands that used to belong to the people of God. The same misfortune and hardship would in time also happen to the kingdom of Judah as well, and the threat of the Assyrians also happened against the people of Judah.

Therefore, amidst all these hardships, the Lord promised His people of restoration and hope, of renewed trust and assurance that if they were all to have faith and trust in Him, He would deliver them all from their troubles and difficulties. If the people of God trusted in Him and followed His path, and sinned no more against Him, eventually they would be liberated from all those troubles and be led into the right path through His patient and ever consistent guidance and help. God does not want any of us to be lost to Him, and that is why He has always done everything He could to find us and to help us to return to Him, giving us hope and help, and one of the ways that He has done this, is through entrusting to us His own Blessed Mother to be our own Mother and intercessor.

Then, from our Gospel passage today taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the events that happened during the time when the Lord Jesus was still only twelve years old, when He was left behind in the Temple of Jerusalem while His family was already on their way back to their hometown in Nazareth. We heard how Mary and Joseph realised that the young Jesus were not with them in the entourage, and therefore went back all the way to Jerusalem in order to find Him. And once there, they found Jesus in deep discussion with the priests and the educated men there, and the latter were all astonished at His great wisdom and eloquence. Mary in particular was mentioned as having heard and kept all the things that she witnessed in her heart.

This is a reminder for all of us of the loving heart of a Mother, who has been entrusted with the love of her Son, the One that was told to her as the Son of God Most High, and yet, through her also the Son of Man. And through His great love for us all mankind, from His Most Sacred Heart, therefore Mary also share the same love that her Son has for us, in how she has constantly loved all of us, her own beloved children, entrusted to her by her own Son from His Cross. And from her Immaculate Heart, immaculate because as we all believe that Mary was conceived without any taint or corruption of original sin, and remained full of grace throughout her life, Mary has shown the love of God manifested to us, the beautiful love of a Mother all these while.

That is why as we may have noticed, how often Mary, our loving Mother has appeared to us in various occasions, particularly during times of great upheavals and distress, most famously in the sites of Guadalupe, which happened after the Spanish conquests of the Americas and also during the time of the Protestant reformation, and also Lourdes, which happened during time of great upheavals in Europe and traditional Christendom regarding the relationship between the Church and the state, and at Fatima in Portugal, which happened during the height of the First World War. These famous apparitions, together with other apparations of Mary serve to remind us all of just how much love that Mary our loving Mother has for all of us, and how much she wants to show this love, care and attention in order to help us to find our way to her Son, our Lord and Saviour.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence entrust ourselves to our Blessed Mother, to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, ever full of love for us and for her Son. Through her, let us all come ever closer to the path to salvation, knowing that through Mary is indeed the most direct path to her Son, Our Saviour and King. Blessed Mary, ever Virgin, our Mother and intercessor, pray for all of us always, and may your constant love for us, from your Immaculate Heart continue to inspire us all to love one another in the same manner as well. Amen.

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Friday, 27 June 2025 : Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today on the Friday after the Sunday after the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord, we celebrate this great Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, celebrating the great love of God which had been manifested in the flesh in the person of the Son of God, the Divine Word Incarnate, Jesus Christ, the Lord and Saviour of all the whole world. On this day we remember the most loving and Sacred Heart of our Lord, the same Heart which has loved us all from the very beginning of our Creation and which had also bled and pained by our rebellions and disobedience, by our sins and wickedness, all of which had wounded Him in His Most Sacred Heart greatly.

And yet, at the same time, we are reminded of the infinite and boundless love of God manifesting and presenting itself so generously from His Most Sacred Heart, which has become visible, tangible and approachable to us through Christ, Our Lord. The Lord has always been so patient, kind and generous in loving us, never giving up on us, even the greatest of sinners amongst us. He has always extended His loving hands and patient care on everyone, and He has always shown us all His love without limit, without boundaries, ever being kind and compassionate whenever we erred against Him and disobeyed Him. While He is indeed angry and displeased against our sins and wickedness, but His love for us, His compassion and mercy are greater than the former.

In our first reading this day, taken from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel, we heard of the great love and ever patient and enduring compassion which He has always had for His people, the people of Israel, the people whom He had called and chosen from the world to be His own. And through these words He had spoken through Ezekiel, He wanted to show His beloved ones, to the ones whom He was speaking to, that His love for them was truly boundless and great, surpassing even His anger and annoyance at them for having constantly disobeyed Him, His Law and commandments, all of which had led them to be exiled in distant off lands, away from their homeland and suffering the consequences of their disobedience.

The Lord told His people in the land of exile in Babylon and elsewhere through the prophet Ezekiel that He would gather them all back once again to His loving Presence, as the Shepherd of all the flock of His people, all of whom had been scattered because of their own stubbornness in sin and disobedience, and yet, the Lord, the Good and most loving Shepherd of His people, wanted all of them to be found once again, to enjoy once again the fullness of His grace and love, His blessings and His generosity, all the things that He had intended for them. God reassured His people that He Himself would find them all, gather them and call them all back to His loving Presence, tending to their wounds and restoring them once again in grace and blessings.

And all of those words were indeed a prophecy of what the Lord would do through His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who manifested this love in a most tangible way just as St. Paul the Apostle elaborated it to all of us through his Epistle to the Church and the faithful people of God in Rome just as we have heard it from our second reading passage today. St. Paul reminded the faithful in Rome and hence all of us that God has indeed given us such great love through His giving to us of His Holy Spirit which we have all received at baptism and affirmed further for those of us who have received the Sacrament of Confirmation. The Holy Spirit has dwelled in us and giving us the rich love and grace from God, which we have all enjoyed and experienced, and which we are therefore expected to share with everyone around us.

Then, from the manifestation of His love in the flesh in the Son of Man, in Jesus Christ, the intentions and love flowing from the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, manifesting God’s perfect love has been presented and shown to us, in the clearest manner, and we have seen this love being given to us so generously, so wonderfully through no clearer way than what the Lord Jesus Himself had done so selflessly and so lovingly from His Cross at Calvary, when He willingly took upon Himself the weight of His Cross so that by bearing upon the burdens of our many sins and wickedness, our faults and the punishments meant for them, His love may truly be manifested in full for us, a most selfless and unconditional love which He has given to us, in caring for us and wanting us all to be truly beloved and full of grace as He has always intended.

Finally, as we heard from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, the Lord Jesus Himself told the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law listening to Him using the parable of the lost sheep, telling all of them that if they were to put themselves into the shoes of the shepherds, which among them would not leave behind the ninety-nine sheep that were already safe and gathered in the barn to look out for the one lost sheep that had been separated from the flock. The Lord also highlighted the great effort that the shepherd would have done for the sake of finding that lost one, so that the lost one could be reunited with him and the other sheep, and how a great celebration and rejoicing would come when the lost sheep had been discovered.

And that was exactly what the Lord Himself, Our most loving and generous Good Shepherd had done for us all, all of us who are the sheep of His flock. He did everything to seek us out, sending us all His Son, Jesus Himself, to be the One to hold us all by hand, and to bring us all back to Him, reuniting us with Him with His love and mercy. God has never given up on any of us, no matter what circumstances we may be in, and how difficult we may have behaved. Our loving Good Shepherd has always been patient with us, and from His Most Sacred Heart we can see this ever enduring love and compassion being constantly poured out for us, given to us so that we may be full of His love ourselves, and that we may also learn to love one another just as He has always loved us.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all continue to love the Lord most wholeheartedly just as He has loved us all from the very beginning, doing our very best so that by our love everyone may truly know that we belong to the Lord, our most loving Shepherd and Master, the One Who has loved us so dearly and Who has shown us His most generous mercy and kindness. Let us all do our very best to love Him and to love one another in the manner that He Himself has shown us so that by our love, we may truly bring joy and warmth to everyone’s hearts, restoring hope and light in the hearts of those who have been afflicted by sufferings in life and by the darkness of despair. May the Lord, our most loving God and Father, continue to help and strengthen us in our efforts, and help us in our every good efforts and endeavours.

O Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, we trust in You, and we trust in the love that You have constantly given to us. Help us all to love in the manner that You have loved us, and help us to remain faithful to You and Your ever generous love, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 26 June 2025 : 12th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Lord contained within the Sacred Scriptures we are reminded that we have to put our faith and trust in the Lord and not in our own often weak and flawed human judgment and intellect, our ideals and thoughts without putting regard to God’s will and wisdom which He has shared with all of us. At the same time of course we are also being reminded that each and every one of us have been given the free will and the freedom to choose our course of action and path in life. And God will allow us to act within the freedom that He has granted to us and still give us all His blessings regardless even though it is not the ideal case. This is why we should always seek to know God’s will by regularly communicating with Him and being attuned to Him through a life well-lived in faith.

In our first reading today, we heard of the account of what happened from the Book of Genesis in which Abram, the one later known as Abraham, took Hagar, his wife’s maid to bed according to what Sarai, his wife had suggested to him. In order to understand what happened here, we must first understand the context in which this action took place, as according to the customs of the time, it was common for a woman who could not bear a child for her husband to take one of her slaves to bear a child on her behalf with her husband. Any child born of such an action would be then considered legally as the child of the woman and not of the slave, as slaves were not considered to have any rights at all at the time, and lived in the mercy of their masters and mistresses.

Therefore, this suggestion made by Sarai for Abram to take Hagar, her own Egyptian slave, to be the one to bear for her a child, made common sense if understood through the context and understanding of the common event and practice at tha time. However, at the same time we must also remember that God also promised Abram and had been reassuring him that he would indeed have a son after what must have been very long wait, of being childless with his wife, and God told him that it would be through his wife that he would bear a child, even if any human logic or understanding would have considered such a thing to be impossible. The reality is such that there is nothing impossible or beyond God’s power to do, and He wanted Abram and his wife to have faith in Him.

But Sarai chose to take the easier way out and did not listen to God, and chose to ask and persuade Abram to agree with her instead, and therefore, that was how Ishmael, the son of Abram and Hagar was conceived and born. And according to what we have just discussed earlier, Ishmael was indeed a legal son of Abram and his eldest born son according to the social customs and practices at the time, and therefore Ishmael did have the right to inheritance of what Abram had in his possessions and all, but God still told Abram nonetheless that His promises would be fulfilled through the son to be born for him from Sarai, and not Hagar. And as we can read in the later account from the Book of Genesis, although this happened not in accordance to what God had told Abram, but God still blessed Ishmael and promised Abram that as his son, he would also become the father of many nations, although implicitly, being inferior to Isaac, the promised son to be born to Abram by Sarai.

Therefore, through what we have heard in today’s reading from the Book of Genesis, we are reminded that we should not allow ourselves to be tempted by the many temptations and coercions of worldly nature, of desires and attachments to worldly ambitions and ways. Or else we will end up like the predicament of Abram, Sarai and Hagar, having two sons who eventually competed for inheritance from their father, resulting in the then Sarah asking Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael away, essentially banishing them away from the family. And God still did take care of both Hagar and Ishmael despite all these, showing just how patient and loving God towards all of us are, and how He wants us all to follow Him and to obey Him in all things, at all times.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist in which the Lord Jesus spoke to His disciples and followers, telling all of them that they must have truly genuine and strong faith in God, and they cannot be fickle and shaky in their conviction and belief in the Lord, or else, they would be easily swept away by all the pressures, oppositions, pressures and challenges from all around them, which He highlighted using yet another parable to show and underscore His intentions and teachings to those same disciples. The Lord used the parable of the two foundations, one of shaky and unreliable sand, and another one of firm rock and solid foundation. Each of these foundations in fact represent one’s faith in the world, and the other the faith one has in the Lord.

The ones who built their foundation, the foundation of their homes on sand, shaky and weak, unreliable and unsupportive as it is, may have had an easier time, but in the end, their homes would be easily swept away by the wind and the waves, by all the forces arrayed against them. This is therefore similar to how those who out their trust in the world and all of their human strength without God guiding them and providing for them would end up in, as compared to those who trust in the Lord. Those who trust in the Lord are like those who built their houses on the firm foundation of solid rock, which while this may be more challenging, tedious and time consuming, but it leads to a much more sturdy and stronger house that can withstand all sorts of forces arrayed against it.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, as we have heard from our Scripture passages today, and as we should have reflected carefully therefore as we discuss this matter, we all should trust in the Lord more and have faith in Him, in everything that He has in plan for us instead of doing things rashly without considering carefully what the Lord truly wants from us. That is because such rash actions can cause harm and sufferings for others around us and also even problems for ourselves as well. What may seem to be easy may not be actually easy for us at all. In fact, trusting the Lord is something that we should always do because no matter what happens, only the Lord alone will never disappoint us, because He is always ever faithful to the Covenant which He had made with all of us.

May the Lord therefore continue to strengthen us in faith and give us the courage and power to continue striving in life with great faith and commitment, with the perseverance and ever stronger trust in Him. Let us all continue to be good role models and inspirations for one another in faith so that by our great examples of faith we may help many more of our fellow brethren to be strong in their commitment and conviction to serve the Lord to the best of their abilities as well. May God bless us all in our every good efforts and endeavours, all for His greater glory, now and always. Amen.

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Wednesday, 25 June 2025 : 12th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures in which we are all reminded of the need for all of us as Christians to be always truly faithful to the Lord in all things, in all of our actions, words, deeds, in each and every one of our dealings with one another, in our every efforts and endeavours, so that we can truly be good role models and examples to each other and to everyone else, in truly being faithful to the Lord in everything, and be the ones to bear good fruits of our faith in God. As Christians, we should always bear rich fruits of our faith, and our faith should truly be lived daily and in each and every moment so that we may indeed embody everything that we have believed in, and not merely paying lip service to the Lord or be superficial in our faith and beliefs.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Genesis we heard of the continuation from the account of the calling of Abram, the man whom the Lord had called to follow Him to the land that He would show and entrust to him and to his descendants, namely the Land of Canaan. And in today’s passage we heard of the very moment of time when the Lord made His Covenant with Abram, promising him not just the ownership of the lands that He had told him about, but even more importantly that he would have a son as promised, and became the father and progenitor of many nations, how his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the grains of sand on the shores of the seas. Essentially, God promised Abram many things, and everything did come true in the end.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, why Abram in particular? Abram was a man close to a hundred years old at that time, still not that old as a hundred is considered today, but was already rather advanced in age, and he was still childless in the marriage he had with Sarai, his wife. He was wealthy and having a lot of possessions, but without a legal heir, all of his earthly goods and possessions would indeed go to a servant. Abram was indeed ready to accept such an outcome, but as we heard, the Lord not only assured him of a son, but that through this son, he would be great and blessed, and his descendants would also be equally blessed, and God would make them all His people as well. And most importantly, Abram trusted fully in the Lord and knew that there is nothing impossible that God cannot do.

That is why as we listened to the story of the Covenant that God made with Abram, later known as Abraham after this Covenant, we are reminded of the great faith of Abraham, and all of his good character and qualities, the faith and love which he had for the Lord, which made the Lord to choose him out of all the others, to make him truly blessed and honoured among all the other people, and to make him the progenitor of many nations. And we are reminded also of the power and might of God, Who can make even the most impossible thing to be possible, as indeed, there is no limit to the power of God, and everything is possible for God as long as it is within His will. That is why we should always have strong and firm faith in the Lord at all times.

Then, as we heard from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, what was highlighted was the Lord’s teaching to His disciples and followers using a parable, the parable of the good fruits and bad fruits, and the associated trees that produced them. By using parables as the Lord had often done, He wanted to explain His thoughts and intentions to His disciples and followers, many of whom were relatively uneducated, and yet knowledgeable about the experiences of the world such as in the field of agriculture, where this parable of the trees and their fruits would make good sense to those whom the Lord had spoken His words and teachings towards.

Therefore, as the Lord Himself highlighted, that the good trees would bear good fruits, and how the bad and unhealthy trees would produce bad and spoilt fruits, therefore, in the same manner that if they were not truly genuine in their faith and commitment to God, they would indeed be like the bad trees, producing bad fruits, and even though the tree might have looked good on the outside, yet the rottenness of its core could not be truly hidden, as if the tree is truly bad and rotten inside, then the fruits it produces will also be rotten and bad as well. Conversely, a good tree, even if it does not look very well from the outside, will certainly produce good fruits. Essentially, what the Lord told His disciples and followers is that, they all must be truly genuine in their faith and trust in the Lord.

This means that for all of us as Christians, as the disciples and followers of the Lord, we must also be genuine in our faith and belief in the Lord, and we should always be sincere in our desire to love Him and to follow His path as Abraham, our father in faith had done in his great and ever enduring faith and commitment to God despite the challenges and trials, all the uncertainties and difficulties that he had to face amidst his journey. All of us should learn to live our Christian life and faith sincerely and to the best of our abilities so that in all of our actions, words and deeds, and indeed in our every interactions we will always bear rich and good fruits of our faith, and not the rotten and wicked fruits of evil and sin. And all these require us to put into practice what we believe in.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence renew our commitment to the Lord, the same Lord and God Who had made the Covenant with Abraham, and Who has renewed this Covenant with the New and Eternal one through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. By the most loving and selfless sacrifice on the Cross, Christ has shown us the perfect love of God manifested to us. Let us all also love the Lord in the same manner then, and love one another similarly as well, manifesting this great and loving Covenant that we have with God, in all of our whole lives, in everything that we say and do, at all times. May God bless us always, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Tuesday, 24 June 2025 : Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the joyful occasion of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, which takes place on the twenty-fourth day of June, which is about six months before that of Christmas, based on the Scriptural evidence that Elizabeth, the mother of St. John the Baptist, the Herald of the Messiah, conceived a child in her old age, a truly miraculous occasion before Mary, the Mother of the Messiah and God herself conceived the Holy Child, and it was such that at the time when the Archangel Gabriel announced to Mary the good news of the miraculous event, Elizabeth was already pregnant for about six months. As such, the Church tradition dictated that this occasion of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist to take place about three months after the Annunciation of the Lord and six months before Christmas.

And St. John the Baptist is one of the only three figures in the entire liturgical calendar, whose Nativity or birth into this world are celebrated, together with the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, Our Lord and Saviour, as well as with Mary, the Mother of God, whose birthdays we celebrate respectively in Christmas, the Nativity of the Lord on the twenty-fifth day of December, and that of Mary’s Nativity on the eighth of September every year. And why is it that St. John the Baptist was so honoured in our faith and the Church’s celebrations, brothers and sisters in Christ? That is because St. John the Baptist was truly a very important figure in the history of the salvation of all mankind, almost as much involved in the history of salvation as Mary herself, who being the Mother of God is the one closest and most honoured among all of us mankind.

St. John the Baptist was the Herald of the Messiah, the one whom God had sent into this world to proclaim the salvation and the fulfilment of the many promises which God Himself had constantly reassured all of us His people, from time to time through His many prophets and messengers. Through what the Lord shared through the Angel, traditionally associated with the Archangel Gabriel, to Zechariah, the father of St. John the Baptist, it was the very first clue of the fulfilment of God’s long awaited promises to His people, as it happened before the Good News itself came to Mary in Nazareth at the Annunciation of the Lord. That the Lord was sending His servant and messenger into this world to prepare the path for His Saviour and Son, it was indeed a great news and great joy awaiting the people of God, as prophesied through the prophets.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we have indeed heard of the prophecy which the Lord Himself has spoken through Isaiah regarding the servant that He would send to prepare the way for the coming of His salvation and grace, speaking of the coming of the one whom God had prepared since from within his mother’s womb, who has been pronounced by name before he was even born, as St. John the Baptist himself experienced, as the Angel of God told his father the name that the Lord had wanted him to name the yet to be conceived and born child of his, as John. Something similar also would happen to the Messiah Himself, whom the Archangel Gabriel told Mary the Name of Jesus at the moment of His conception at the Annunciation.

Therefore, the prophecy of Isaiah spoke of the coming of both St. John the Baptist and the Lord Jesus Himself, and particularly our attention today is brought towards St. John the Baptist himself, whom the Lord had sent to prepare the path for the coming of His Son, the long awaited Saviour of the world. From the time of his miraculous conception in the womb of Elizabeth, his mother, St. John the Baptist has been meant to serve the Lord all his life, dedicated to God from the time of his birth and set aside for the purpose of the glory of God. And today as we celebrate his Nativity, his appearance and entry into this world, let us all recall everything that he had done for the greater glory of God, in his lifelong commitment to the Lord, and in all the great works that God had done through him.

As St. Paul told the faithful people of God about St. John the Baptist in our second reading today from the Acts of the Apostles, this great and dedicated servant of God had done all he could to prepare and smoothen the path for the coming of the Lord’s Saviour, by calling on all the people to repent and turn away from their many sins and evils. He has called on them to embrace God’s grace and mercy, His forgiveness and love, calling on all of them to show their sincerity in repentance and in following God through their acceptance of baptism which St. John the Baptist was well-known for, in his works of baptism in the Jordan River, which he did for many years while preparing the way for the Lord, and which he continued on even after he had encountered and baptised the Lord Jesus Himself.

The same St. John the Baptist also spoke courageously against all those crooked and wicked leaders and elders of the people, the members of the Pharisees who had questioned him for his authority and the authenticity of his works, not mincing his words, calling them all ‘brood of vipers’ for their lack of genuine faith in God and for their failure in doing what they had been entrusted to do, in guiding God’s people to Himself. He also sternly criticised Herod, the King of Galilee for his improper and adulterious relationship with Herodias, the wife of his own brother that he took as his own wife even when his brother was still alive. And for this courage, he was imprisoned and later martyred by beheading on the instigation of the same Herodias, who held a great grudge against the man of God. But St. John the Baptist was faithful to the very end, and he is indeed an inspiration to all of us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we all recall the great examples and faith, the dedication and courage which St. John the Baptist, the Herald of the Messiah and our role model has shown us, let us all therefore do our best to follow in his good examples, faith and commitment, such that in everything that we do, we will always be ready to commit ourselves to the Lord, be righteous in all of our deeds and works, and be exemplary in all of our way of living our Christian faith through real action and commitment to God. May the Lord continue to strengthen our faith in us, and give us the same courage and faith which He has given to St. John the Baptist, His Herald and courageous servant, that all of us may also dedicate ourselves in serving God in the same way as well, now and always. Amen.