priestly sermon

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Saturday, 28 October 2017 : Feast of St. Simon and St. Jude, Apostles (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate together the feast of not just one but two of the Lord’s own Twelve Apostles, the principal and most important ones among His disciples, whom He had called and chosen from among the people and the other disciples, to be the pillars of His Church, established on earth, as mentioned in the Epistle that St. Paul wrote to the Church and to the faithful in the city of Ephesus.

Jesus our Lord is the Head and the Foundation of the Church, as He founded it Himself, establishing the Church as the Body of the faithful, composed of all the faithful people of God united to Him as the Head of the Universal Church. And the Apostles are the support structures that are crucial in maintaining the integrity of the entire Church, as without them, their works and commitments, the Church would not have been what it is today.

We may think of the Apostles as those whom God had chosen among His people and were great ones among men. However, the reality is that, while God indeed gave them the authority over the Church and the faithful, the power to forgive sins and the authority over evil spirits and to continue the good works of the Lord, but the challenges and responsibilities that they faced were enormous. There were great tribulations and difficulties that they had to endure on their journey to establish and build God’s Church.

If we read throughout the entirety of the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles written by St. Paul the Apostle, as well as through the traditions and stories of the tales of the saints of the early Church and the martyrs, especially the martyrdom of the Apostles themselves, we will realise just what a calling that God had called those Twelve Apostles into, to the point that all of them, except for St. John the Apostle, died of martyrdom defending their faith in God.

And neither were these Apostles chosen because they were mighty in their deeds or power, but instead, God chose them from among the people, from among the poor and the ordinary, from those who were once fishermen, illiterate and uneducated, or tax collectors and sinners, or like St. Simon the Apostle, who was a member of the Zealots, a group of Jewish fanatical fighters, and many more. God called them from various sources and made them to be worthy.

And God called them to a mission, that is to bring all the people of God to Him, to reconcile them with Him and to bring them to a loving reunion through forgiveness and grace. They have worked tirelessly, continuing the good works of the Lord after His Resurrection from the dead and Ascension into heaven. They went from place to place, from towns to towns, and from villages to villages as the witnesses of the Lord, proclaiming to many people the truth of God.

By their faith in God, they have become indispensable key players in the earliest days of the Church, especially amidst the challenges and difficulties that many of the earliest Christian communities had. And therefore, many of the Apostles led the way in martyrdom, because they courageously went on to preach the Gospels among the various communities and when they were arrested and persecuted, they did not give up their faith.

In particular, St. Simon, also known as the Zealot, is often depicted together with St. Jude, also known as St. Jude Thaddeus, because both of them according to the sacred tradition of the Church, went on together on a mission of evangelisation in many places, from Persia, which is in present day Iran, to Armenia and then to Lebanon and the Jordan. It was also documented that they might have travelled to other parts of the Roman Empire, preaching the faith, until they died in holy martyrdom.

Through glorious martyrdom God glorified His holy Apostles, His greatest servants, that the Church declared them to be saints, those who are worthy of praise, honour and veneration, as they are now in heaven, and they now stand in the presence of God, becoming our great intercessors, praying for our sake at all times. We know how St. Jude Thaddeus in particular is well-known as the saint to whom a great devotion is present, as the patron saint for hopeless causes.

The examples of these Apostles of our Lord, their courage and commitment to serve the Lord in doing the will of God, and obeying all of His commandments, should be inspiration for each and every one of us. We should devote ourselves, our time and effort to do what they have done, continuing their good works in the Church. If I would like to compare us all, as Christians all of us are the bricks of the Church, just as the Apostles are the foundations and the pillars supporting the Church.

Just as without the pillars a building will collapse, without good bricks and good arrangement and strong bonds between the bricks, the building will not be able to withstand the pressure and forces from the outside, and the whole edifice will also eventually collapse too. This is why, all of us as Christians, are called to do the same mission that the Lord had first entrusted to His Apostles.

We should not think that there is nothing much to do in our lives as Christians in this world. We should not think that there is no more works of evangelisation and conversion that need to be done. There are in fact still numerous opportunities and areas where we can contribute our efforts, to help the multitudes of people who are still living in the dark and in the ignorance of God’s love.

There are many out there who have also lapsed in their faith, and walking down the path towards damnation, because they have lost their way, either through temptations or coercions, and it is in our hands now, that we are able to devote ourselves, our time and effort to help these brethren of ours, by our contributions, actions and deeds, imitating the examples set by the Apostles themselves.

Let us remember that God had chosen His Apostles to be His instruments to bring His salvation to more and more souls. The same calling and mission has been given to us all as well. Let us embrace this willingly, and commit ourselves wholeheartedly to God, no longer hesitating, but we should encourage each other to walk righteously in the presence of God. May God bless us all. Amen.

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Friday, 27 October 2017 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we heard a very important reminder for each one of us, that as Christians we must be ever vigilant in our lives, that in our actions and every deeds we will be able to stay faithful to the Lord, regardless the temptations to do otherwise. We cannot be lukewarm or be hypocrites in our faith.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, in the first reading today, all of us heard how St. Paul in his Epistle and exhortation to the Church and the faithful in the city of Rome spoke of how the people of God must be vigilant against the temptation of their flesh, as their bodies are vulnerable to corruption by sin, by the wickedness of the darkness of Satan, who sowed the seeds of sin in our hearts and minds.

Indeed, we may have experience it ourselves, on how even though deep in our hearts we want to be righteous and good, faithful and committed to the Lord, yet our flesh is unwilling, and the pressures of our flesh cause us to stumble and falter in our journey of faith, as Jesus Himself said to His Apostles, Peter, James and John, whom He called to accompany Him at the Garden of Gethsemane just before His Passion.

In that occasion, the Apostles were supposed to stay awake and keep the Lord company, throughout the time when Jesus was praying, and yet they fell asleep because their eyelids were heavy, and the effects of the full meal they ate at the Last Supper bore down upon them. And the Lord woke them up a few times, as He went back to them to check on them, and said to them, “While the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

This is something that perhaps all of us should keep in mind, as we reflect on our own lives and actions today. Perhaps we should begin with very simple comparison with what we have just discussed about the Apostles. How many of us feel very drowsy and lethargic after eating a heavy meal, because all the blood in our system goes down to our digestive system, and our brains not getting enough blood.

And that made us very reluctant to do anything, as our bodies feel very tired and we just want to lay down and rest. Similarly, I am sure that there were many occasions when we were moved in our hearts and minds, wanting to reach out to those others around us when we see them being wronged, persecuted or unjustly treated. Yet, our flesh, our limbs and bodies deterred us from going forth to help, because of this inertia, this laziness, this unwillingness of the flesh, corrupted by sins and the temptations to sin.

This is why many Christians have not led a very Christian life. Instead, in fact, some have been very un-Christian in nature, because of the things that we failed to do, for the sake of our brethren, and also in what we have done. There were Christians who claimed that they were the followers of Christ, and yet have acted in a manner that showed just how selfish they were, caring for their own needs, and also committed acts that were contrary to the teachings of the Lord, and instead, indulging in all sorts of the pleasures of the flesh and the body.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, all of us must strengthen our relationship with God. And how do we do that? It is by drawing ourselves closer to God through fervent and genuine prayer life, and also through active participation in the faith. We have to realise that the devil is always active, prowling about trying to snatch us from God’s salvation. And therefore, the less involved we are in the Church and in living our faith, the more likely that he will be able to strike at us.

Let us all therefore help one another in our journey of faith, so that we may do our best to resist the temptations of Satan which he had made through sin, and through the temptations of the world and the pleasures of the flesh. Let us all resist these wicked abominations, and seek to purify ourselves from all that are unworthy, and which had separated us from the fullness of God’s love and grace.

May the Lord be with us always, and may He give us the courage to live faithfully day after day, doing our best to live according to His will, and following the message and the teachings of His Word in the Gospels and according to the teachings passed down through the Church. Amen.

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Thursday, 26 October 2017 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day all of us heard how the Lord’s coming would create contradictions and conflicts, because of the incompatibility between the ways of the Lord and the ways of Satan, that is sin. That is because for us to be faithful to God, and to be steeped in the ways of sin are mutually exclusive and incompatible with each other.

Just as the Lord mentioned in another occasion in the Gospels, that we mankind cannot serve both God and money, as He related the parable of the wicked and untrustworthy servant to the people, therefore as Christians we cannot be half-hearted in our faith, or else, we will end up being lukewarm and be tempted to sin against God. And if we disobey God through sin, how can we then be truly faithful to Him?

Basically, as St. Paul mentioned in today’s first reading, which was taken from his Epistle to the Church and the faithful in Rome, all of us have two choices in life, on whether we want to embark down the path of sin, or whether we want to commit ourselves to the path of the Lord, that is righteousness and justice. And it is these choices we made, or are going to make, which eventually cause the difficulties and challenges we heard in the Gospel passage today.

It is because if we try to be righteous, those who have not chosen the righteous path will despise us, and they will rise up against us. It has happened before at the time of Jesus, when those who spoke the truth of God were silenced, just as the prophets from the earlier times were persecuted and silenced for speaking God’s words. If the world has persecuted the Lord Himself, then surely they will persecute us all the more and make things difficult for us.

On this day, all of us as Christians are asked to reflect and to spend some time to consider how our actions in life all these while have been, on whether they have been faithful and in accordance with God’s ways and teachings, or whether they have been unfaithful and as show of disobedience against God’s will. We will realise that in certain occasions, be it occasionally or frequently, we might have chosen to disobey God in the choices we made throughout life.

In fact, there are many Christians out there, among us, who often pick and choose what we want to believe in, and what we do not want to believe in. And hence, they are those who are so called ‘Cafetaria Christians’, those who refuse to believe wholeheartedly and completely to the Lord, and instead, choose what they want to do. Then, it is no longer faith, but our own selfish desires.

Let us all throw away all these attitudes, and become true Christians, that in our every actions, words and deeds, we will always stand up for the true faith, and not to discount it in any way. We must be ever more committed to the Lord, and resist the temptation to do otherwise. This will not be easy, but if we do not do anything, we will fall easily into the pressure to sin, as many of those around us will be pressuring us to conform to their worldly ideals.

Therefore, as Christians, we really must be able to stand up for our faith, not through being confrontational, but instead through dedication and real works, through actions showing how we are truly faithful to God. And hopefully, through our works and actions, we may even convince many others to follow our footsteps, and thus, through us many more can be saved from their fated destruction.

Let us draw ever closer to God, and ask Him for His protection, that despite the oppositions from the world, and despite the challenges and difficulties we may face throughout these lives, we may be able to persevere through them all, and find our way towards God and His salvation. May the Lord be with us always, and may He empower us to become His good disciples and followers. Amen.

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Wednesday, 25 October 2017 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the words of the Lord through the Sacred Scriptures reminding us all to be always ready and to be vigilant in living our lives, so that we may be always ready for the Lord when He comes again suddenly at the time of His own choosing. Otherwise, we may end up being caught unprepared and be considered unworthy in the end.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day through the Scriptures we are reminded that sin is our very dangerous enemy, which has always been present from the moment when our ancestors disobeyed the Lord and thus fell into sin. Sin has enslaved us and kept us under its tyranny for many ages, until the time when the Lord came unto us and brought us His salvation.

The Lord came, bearing His truth and offer for mercy and forgiveness of our sins. And through His many parables and teachings, the Lord Jesus wanted to remind each one of us to be holy and good in all of our actions and deeds, in all the things which we say and show to others. And we have been given these bodies, minds and hearts that we may use them for the good and faithful purposes in God.

Yet, many of us would rather allow sin to enter into our minds, into our hearts, into our bodies, our whole being, that those sins brought about corruption and wickedness. Sin is indeed a disease, like cancer, that is slowly eating us from within. And many of us do not realise that we have this affliction in us because we have often been desensitised to sin. We have committed sins and disobedient acts in our lives so much that they become somewhat like our second nature.

But if we do not do anything about this, we will end up falling into condemnation, when Our Lord and Master comes, and He will reject us because He is disgusted by our sins and wickedness. It is by our sins and by our righteousness that we will be judged, and should we be complacent in living our lives according to our faith, instead falling into the many temptations of this world, we are all in great danger, of losing our eternal souls to eternal torment in hell.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, many of us tend to take our faith for granted, just because we often think that because of that faith, then we are fine and that there is nothing else that we need to do. That is why there are so many of us Christians who have been lulled into a false sense of security and safety, and we end up becoming lapsed in the practice of our faith. This is also how sin ends up having a way with us, anchoring itself in our hearts and minds.

We have been freed from the tyranny and enslavement by sin through Our Lord Jesus Christ, Whose death on the cross broke forever the hold and power which sin and the devil have over us, and through His loving sacrifice, He has liberated us from the darkness and kept us from our fated destruction. Yet, many of us are tempted again and failed to resist those temptations, and many was such because they were incapable of resisting the temptation to sin and disobey God for our own personal gain.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all reflect on these matters, and let us think about what each and every one of us as Christians can do in our lives in order to change ourselves for the better, so that while once or indeed now, we may still experience the corruption of sin, through our thoughts, words or actions, we may then seek to be forgiven from our sins, and to sincerely repent from them, that we may gain true righteousness in God.

Let us delay no longer, but from now on devote ourselves completely to the Lord, so that through all the things we do, we will draw ever closer to Him. Let us not think that we still have time, and that the Lord will forgive us nonetheless. Any sins that remain unconfessed and unforgiven before God will become great obstacles in our path towards God’s salvation and grace.

May the Lord inflame us with the spirit and courage in order to live faithfully according to the Gospels of Christ, so that in our actions, we may show true faith and commitment to that same faith, that we may draw ever closer to God and be worthy of His eternal life and glory. May God bless us all. Amen.

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Tuesday, 24 October 2017 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Bishops)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today’s Scripture readings tell us that as Christians, all of us must always be vigilant and be ready for the Lord, as He will indeed come again just as He has promised to us His faithful ones. And when He comes again, it will be at a time we least expect, and many of us will be caught unprepared.

And if we do not take heed of the Lord’s reminders, we may end up at the wrong side when the Lord judges all of creation. Do we want to be counted among those whom God will reject and condemn? If that happens to us, we will only have regret with us and by then it will be too late for us to change anything.

We have to realise that God has given us every opportunities available in each of our lives, giving us the chance to be righteous and do what is good in our lives. He has shown us the way forward, and yet, many of us have not followed in His footsteps. Instead, many of us continue to dwell in the darkness and refuse to come into the light, by doing what is sinful and wicked in God’s sight.

Sin is the great disease affecting all of us mankind, and sin is the fruit of disobedience against God. Ever since Adam and Eve, our ancestors had sinned by their disobedience against God and followed instead the devil’s words, sin had become a part of mankind’s history, corrupting all of us by its wicked nature.

But God Who loves each and every one of us did not want us to fall into damnation in hell, for the very simple reason that He loves us dearly. He created us for a single purpose, that He may love us and may share the perfect love He has in Him, that all of us may also be like Him in everything, and forever may enjoy the heavenly bliss of our God.

That is why He sent to us our Redeemer, in Jesus Christ, His only Begotten Son, through Whom He gave us the only way out of our predicament. For without Christ, all would have perished because of their sins, and all would have fallen into the eternal damnation in hell. It was the loving sacrifice of Our Lord Jesus on the cross which had brought us a new hope, the hope of salvation and forgiveness for our many sins and trespasses.

As mentioned in the first reading from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Romans, Christ has become the New Adam, as compared to the first and old Adam. By His perfect obedience He has shown us how each and every one of us should act in our lives, fully attuned and in full obedience to God’s will, just as Jesus was obedient to His Father, even unto accepting death on the cross.

While from the old Adam we have been corrupted by sin, from the New Adam, that is Christ, we have received the hope of eternal life. As such, if we want to have a way forward in this life, we must reach out to the Lord and seek His salvation. And how do we do this, brothers and sisters in Christ? It is by turning ourselves from the path of sin towards the path of God, by obeying Him and following His examples in our own lives.

Today, we celebrate the feast of St. Anthony Mary Claret, the founder of the Claretians also known as the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, a religious order of people devoted to God, following the vision of their founder, who was a great preacher and priest, spending time preaching and teaching about the faith to the people of God. Many people followed him and listened to his preachings, and were converted.

He did not have it easy, as there were many who were not pleased at his works, and thus opposed him. Yet, St. Anthony Mary Claret did not let these to trouble him, and continued to work among the people of God, and even when he was appointed as Archbishop of Santiago in Cuba. In his new capacity, he expanded the missionary efforts as well as establishing numerous infrastructures such as seminaries for the proper education of priests, as well as hospitals and schools for the benefit of his flock.

By seeing the examples of St. Anthony Mary Claret, we see just how in many things all of us Christians can follow from the examples of this holy saint, both for our own good and for the sake of our brethren. We should turn away from sin, repent and change our ways, doing what God wants each one of us to do in our lives, and then help one another in our path towards God.

May the Lord help us and bless us in our journey, that we may be thoroughly converted to the cause of the Lord. May He empower and give us all the courage needed to say no to sin and to the temptations of the devil and the world. May all of us draw ever closer to Him and receive from Him the promise of eternal life. Amen.

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Monday, 23 October 2017 : 29th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John of Capestrano, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, in today’s Scripture readings we are presented with two very interesting contrasts in the passages we heard, both involving very rich men, who had plenty in worldly terms, blessed by God in all that they do, bountiful with all sorts of wealth and possessions, yet with very different outcomes.

In the Old Testament, we heard how Abraham, the patriarch of the Israelites and father of many nations was mentioned. Then in the Gospel, we heard the Lord Jesus telling us in a parable about a rich man who had plenty of grains stored in numerous granaries, earning him great amount of riches and wealth.

But the contrast lie in the fact that while Abraham put his trust and faith in God, as he was ready to leave behind everything in the land of his ancestors to travel into an uncharted territory solely based on God’s call, the rich man mentioned in the Gospel had trust only in himself and in his riches. The rich man mentioned in the Gospel was happy with his many riches, but not satisfied, because he wanted to have more.

Abraham placed his trust and faith in God, believing that in all he has received, all of them were due to the grace and blessings from God. He was satisfied in what he had received and was willing to give back to God what He deserved, that is his love and commitment. That was why God blessed him and chose him among many others, to be the father of many nations and as the progenitor of the race of the first chosen people of God.

The rich man in the Gospel put his trust in his wealth and possessions, and loved them more than his love for God. He was thinking about them all the time, worrying that he would not have enough barns to store all of his grains and not enough storehouses to contain all of his wealth. But God rebuked him, saying that all that he had gained would be for nothing, as if his life was to be taken away that very night, all the wealth and possessions he had would not save him.

It is therefore an important reminder for each and every one of us, that we should realise that the true treasure of our life lies in God alone, and in God we have that inheritance and promise of eternal glory that last forever, and not temporary in nature. Meanwhile, all kinds of worldly assurances and matters can be easily destroyed and perish, and if we put our trust in these, we will only be disappointed in the end.

Let us all therefore spend some time to reflect on our lives. Let us all think on how we have led our lives thus far, on whether we have spent too much time trying to assemble for ourselves worldly glories, fame, wealth and renown, to the point that we have forgotten what it is that we really should be doing with our lives. We should devote ourselves, our effort, our time and attention to the Lord, so that in all the things we do, we do not do them for our own selfish gains, but for the greater glory of God.

Today, we celebrate the feast day of St. John of Capestrano, a renowned holy man and priest, who was a Franciscan friar and preacher, giving himself wholeheartedly to the Lord, abandoning behind all forms of worldly glory, as he was once an influential ruler and governor of the province of Perugia in Italy. He left everything behind and joined the Franciscan order to serve the greater purpose of God, trusting everything to Him.

St. John of Capestrano travelled through many cities and villages throughout Europe, preaching against heresies and excesses of human nature. He called many people to repent from their sins and to turn once again towards God. He was also involved in many embassies sent by the Pope to the rulers of Christendom, going from place to place to combat heresies as well as to settle matters of state, or broker peace between kingdoms and rulers.

The examples shown by St. John of Capestrano should inspire us all as Christians, that we should put God ahead of everything else in our lives. There will indeed be plenty of temptations urging us to do otherwise, but we will do well in obeying God and putting our trust in Him, as Abraham our father in faith, St. John of Capestrano and the many other holy saints had done in their lives.

Let us all therefore renew our commitment to God, by learning to be faithful in all the things we do in life, by trusting God in each and every moment of our lives, and by learning to let go of the temptations of material goods, wealth and all other things that do bring us temporary pleasure and happiness, but in the end, bring us only to disappointment and become obstacles in our journey to reach out to true happiness found in God alone.

May the Lord bless us always, and may He continue to guide us in our path, that in our journey towards Him, we shall be able to draw closer to Him and find justification through our faith and commitment in Him. Amen.

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Sunday, 22 October 2017 : Twenty-Ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Mission Sunday (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the words of the Scripture in which we see how God had called us and chosen us from among the nations. He has called us to follow Him and to become His disciples, and yet, many of us are often reluctant to follow Him, because of our lack of faith in Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, in the Gospel passage today, all of us heard of how the Lord Jesus confronted the Pharisees who attempted to trap Him with His own words, when they asked Him whether they should pay taxes to the Romans, specifically to the Roman Emperor, the Caesar, or not. They hoped that by His answers they could find fault with Him.

If Jesus were to answer that they should not pay taxes to the Roman Emperor, then the Pharisees could easily seize that moment and reported Him to the Roman authorities, as a great treason against the Roman state. The collection of tax was a very important matter for states at that time, just as it is today. Anyone who refused to pay tax to the government, would immediately be considered as rebels.

And then if Jesus answered that they should pay taxes to the Roman Emperor, then the Pharisees could have also used that statement against the Lord, as the Jews were quite unhappy at the taxes imposed on them by the Romans. That was why in various times throughout the Gospels, we heard how the tax collectors were reviled by the Jews because they were seen as traitors to the nation and country.

Therefore, whichever answers that the Lord gave them, each of them would lead to difficulties and trouble for Him. But, the Lord knew what to do, and He simply told all of them, that since the silver coins bore the image of the Roman Emperor, they belonged to him, and it was right for the people to return them to who they belonged to. And He said that they should give to God what belongs to God.

The Pharisees were unable to respond to the statement made by Jesus, since they recognised in that statement an inviolable truth, and they could not refute what the Lord has said. Their attempts to blackmail and strike at the Lord had ended in failure, because God was not with them, and they were serving their own selfish interests, instead of obeying the Lord’s commandments.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we may think what the Pharisees had done were bad, and indeed they were, for they were putting their own selfish interests and personal jealousies and issues against the Lord ahead of their responsibility to guide the people of God, who had been entrusted to them, to the truth of God. Yet, if we look carefully on what happened, and reflect on our own individual lives, we should realise that in fact in many occasions within our lives, we have done something similar.

How is that so? That is because whenever we do not give to God what belongs to God, we are doing what the Pharisees had done. They were unable to give themselves to the Lord, that is by obeying His laws and precepts wholeheartedly. Instead, they persecuted the faithful who listened to the truth. In the same way, whenever we are too preoccupied in our daily activities and busy schedules, we tend to forget about God and our obligations to Him.

It has been too often throughout our history, that we mankind have wandered away from the path that God had set upon our feet, because we have been tempted to do what the world wanted us to do. We have also been spending so much time with our worldly concerns, that we shut the doors of our hearts and minds against God. God wants to come unto us and to be with us, but we rejected Him, because we would rather satisfy our personal desires instead of obeying God.

Let us ask ourselves, on how much time we spent with the Lord every day? How much time do we spare for Him in prayer, to talk to Him and to listen to Him speaking in our hearts? I am not saying the time we spent in our prayers and our petitions, but rather, in quality time which we spend with Him, knowing what it is that He wants for us to do in our lives. Too often we find ourselves rushing from one activity to another, without even turning to look at the Lord.

We often sidelined the Lord and only came to Him when we are in great need for help. Besides that, He is practically forgotten and non-existent in our lives. But that is not what we should be doing, brothers and sisters in Christ. Rather, what we heard in the Scripture passages today are reminders for all of us Christians, that first of all, we must give what it is that we owe the Lord, for each and every one of us, our lives, and our very breaths are due to the gift from the Lord, and without Him, we would not have existed.

Therefore, just as He has loved us dearly and cared for us, then we should also love Him back with as much enthusiasm and intensity, giving our very best to love Him, not just through words, but also through actions, loving the poor, the weak and the lonely, those who have none to love and care for them. Remember, the Lord Jesus said that, in a parable, that all which we do for the least of our brethren, we do them for the Lord as well.

Then, let us also remember to be good citizens and obedient people, observing the laws of the land as long as they are not contrary to the divine laws of God. This is fulfilling what we heard in the Gospel today, that we should ‘give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.’ After all, the states and nations we belong to have taken care of us, and provided for us in various ways. It is only right that we return the favour wherever possible.

Last of all, today we also mark the occasion of the World Mission Sunday, on which day we remember our mission as Christians, which God has given us. The Lord has blessed us so much in our respective lives, in one way or another. Should it not be rightful for us then to follow Him and obey His commands? And how do we do this? We should go forth and proclaim the truth of God, our mission in this world, by our words, as well as through our actions.

That means, we must be exemplary as far as possible, and strive as best as possible to show care and concern for our brethren, and even for our enemies and all those who disliked us. This is our mission as Christians, that we touch others through our own lives, anchored firmly in God’s love and truth, that we may bring them closer to God and to His salvation.

May the Lord help us in these endeavours, and let us pray that through our missionary efforts, united with all those missionaries who have committed their entire lives, we may bring everyone together closer to God, that we may be saved through Him and in Him. Amen.

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Saturday, 21 October 2017 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

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

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the words from the Sacred Scriptures, telling us all about what we should be doing as the people of God, as Christians who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, God Who has revealed Himself and His love for each and every one of us. And we are called to be faithful just as our predecessors have been faithful, in this manner, as we heard about the examples of Abraham, our father in faith.

We must have faith in God, and place our complete trust in Him. As Abraham, our father in faith, had been faithful to the Lord, so must we, as his children in faith, be faithful to God. And perhaps, it is good for us to explore what happened at the time of Abraham, when he answered God’s call and followed Him. Abraham was a very rich man who hailed from the region now located in the present day Iraq, at the site where very ancient civilisation existed, the ancient city of Ur.

At that time, Abraham was truly blessed with everything a man would ever need, from wealth to worldly possessions, having many cattle and servants, truly a rich and respected man, who was married to his wife Sarai. He was indeed blessed in everything, except for one thing, that his marriage to Sarai was not blessed with the presence of a child, or a son, born from him.

Nonetheless, he still lacked nothing, and had nothing to worry about in life. Yet, when the Lord God called Abraham, he willingly listened to the Lord and followed Him, leaving behind many of his worldly assurances and comforts, and travelled from his ancestral land of Ur to the land of Canaan, which God promised that it would be his own, and that He would grant him a son as well.

Abraham took that very important step of faith, entrusting everything to God. He was willing to let go of all the privileges and comfort he had in life, and travelling into the unknown, trusting that God had a plan for him, and that He would take care of him. Abraham trusted the Lord, and set off on the journey to Canaan, and from time to time again, he showed his faith in God.

When the Lord tested Abraham, by asking him to sacrifice his own son, Isaac, the promised son whom God had granted to Abraham, even though he certainly had some queries and uncertainties in his heart and mind, but he did not let those to dissuade him from being faithful and obedient to God, his Lord and Master. He listened to the Lord, obeyed Him, even to the point of being willing to give his only beloved son to God. God saw Abraham’s faith and blessed him.

As we can see in this example, Abraham was faithful to God, not just in words but also in deeds. He devoted himself to God in his works and in all the actions we can read in the Book of Genesis, Abraham showed us all how to be truly faithful to God in all things we say and do. He had shown us the example to be followed, and we should do well to follow in his footsteps.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all be truly faithful as Abraham had been faithful. It is often that we are unable to devote ourselves wholeheartedly to God because of the many temptations we encounter in our lives. We often find ourselves unable to let go of all the good things we have in this life, be it money, possessions, worldly fame, personal glory and other things that distract us from the Lord.

And the tendency is for us to desire ever more and more of these things. Even after we have received all the wealth, power, prestige and others, we cannot be satisfied and want more. As a result, these things become obstacles in our path to devote ourselves to the Lord. Are we able to let go of these and put our complete trust in the Lord as Abraham, our father in faith had done?

Let us all spend some time to reflect on our lives and how we have lived them thus far. Let us be thoroughly committed in all things, and focus our attention from now on to serve the Lord and to glorify Him, no longer distracted by our worldly desires and the temptations of this world, but be truly faithful and have a living faith inside each and every one of us, as Abraham had been. May the Lord be with us always. Amen.

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Friday, 20 October 2017 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day each and every one of us are reminded that in our faith and in how we live our lives according to that faith must be true and genuine, and we must not do as what the hypocrites like to do. The Lord Jesus often compared many of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law as hypocrites, as those who have not done as the Lord had commanded them to do.

What is a hypocrite exactly? A hypocrite is different from an unbeliever in that an unbeliever does not believe in God completely, and they often show it through outward signs, words or actions. On the other hand, a hypocrite is someone who is outwardly seems to believe in God and is a member of the faithful and yet in reality, they have no real faith in them.

The actions of a hypocrite in faith are done for the purpose of showing off their piety and devotion, just as the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had done, but they did these as mentioned, for their own personal glory and advancement, instead of for the greater glory of God as they should have done. God rewards the faithful for their deeds, as mentioned in the Scriptures today, but those who committed what is evil shall be judged accordingly.

Therefore, when we live our lives and go about our daily businesses, we must keep in mind that we have to practice our faith and do our works following what the Lord had taught us and indeed, commanded us all to do. We cannot just say that we have been saved without any need for further involvement or efforts just as some would say. The Church believes that each and every one of us are saved through faith, but not faith alone.

What does that mean? That means, according to the Epistle written by St. James the Apostle, faith without good works is as good as dead and meaningless. Faith without good works and good intentions for those works, is the same as the faith of a hypocrite. An empty faith without proper focus on the Lord is meaningless, and God knows everything inside our hearts, minds, indeed our entire being.

It does not matter how well we try to hide it, but the fact remains that God knows all that we ever think of, whatever we keep in the depths of our hearts and minds. And if we have not done what the Lord wants us to do, He will know it. He will also know if we have done His works, even though others might not have noticed them. And it is for these works that we will be judged, be it for the better or for the worse.

Those who have been righteous in their actions, and practiced their faith openly through those actions will be rewarded by God. Meanwhile, those who have not been truly faithful, are hypocrites, and do things for the sake of recognition and pursuit of worldly glory and human praise will be punished, condemned and be rejected by God. This is what each and every one of us need to know.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all from now on therefore be true in our devotion and commitment to God, that in every words that come from our mouth, in every actions that we do towards our brethren, we will always show faith, and not faith that is to be praised or applauded, but instead for the greater glory of God. Pride, greed and human desires may tempt us, but we must resist those temptations if we are to be true disciples of the Lord.

Let us all cast aside our pride and desires, and in the depth of our hearts, let us enthrone God as the Lord and Focus of our entire lives. Let us renew our devotion to Him, and be wholeheartedly committed to love Him and to serve Him, all the days of our lives. May the Lord be with us, and may He continue to guide us in our journey of life. God bless us all. Amen.

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Thursday, 19 October 2017 : 28th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John de Brebeuf and St. Isaac Jogues, Priests and Companions, Martyrs, and St. Paul of the Cross, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day through the Sacred Scriptures all of us are reminded of the love which God has shown us mankind, by wanting to forgive us from our sins and trespasses. All have sinned and fell from the grace of God, and should have merited them all destruction and damnation, according to St. Paul in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful in Rome.

Yet, the Lord still loves each and every one of us, for if He has not loved us, He would not have created us in the first place. He created us so that all of us, each and every one of us may experience His love and compassion, and share in that love. God Who is all perfect and filled with perfect love has no need for us or for our love, and yet because He wants to share that love with us, that is why He created us.

And because He has created us out of love, despite of our downfall and sinfulness, He still wants us to be freed from our bondage to sin, because He hates and despises our sins, but not us as human beings personally. As long as we are still capable of being forgiven, God will forgive us many times. But this also require from each one of us the commitment to repent from our sins and leave behind our sinful past way of life.

Yet, this is definitely easier said than done, as there are many who are adamant and stubborn in their refusal to leave behind their way of sin. The Lord Jesus used the example of the people of Israel who in the past refused to repent and to listen to the message and the words of the prophets sent to them by God. They hardened their hearts and became angry at the prophets, seizing them, torturing them and ended up killing many of them.

In the same manner, as Jesus compared it with, the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law were adamant in their refusal to believe in Jesus. They continued to walk in their path of sin, of pride and haughtiness, of human greed and desire. There were lots of temptations, of power, of worldly glory and the pleasures of the flesh that prevented many from being able to commit themselves to the cause of the Lord.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this is an important lesson for each and every one of us, reminding us that we must not be complacent in how we live our lives in faith. And we must be aware of just how much suffering that sin can cause us, because sin makes us to be separated from the fullness of God’s love and grace. And it is easy for us to lose our way and to be tempted as the Pharisees, the teachers of the Law and their ancestors had been tempted.

To be a true Christian, many of us must truly live in accordance with our faith, and believe in God wholeheartedly, often through our very actions and deeds in life. We often make compromises with the world and its ways, so that we can live comfortably without worry, but by doing so, we allow ourselves to be swayed away from God’s righteousness and into the path of our downfall through sin.

Today, let us all reflect on the lives of the holy saints and martyrs whose feast we celebrate this very day, first of all the Holy Canadian Martyrs and then St. Paul of the Cross, a holy priest of God. The Holy Canadian Martyrs were brave and courageous missionaries, all of them were Jesuits, belonging to the Society of Jesus, who went to the uncharted and new lands of what is now known as Canada in the New World.

The Jesuit missionaries travelled through very difficult terrains and went from villages to villages, enduring difficulties through various weather conditions in the wilderness to proclaim the Good News of Christ to the people who were still pagans and unbelievers at that time. Some of the people were willing to listen to them, and gradually many of them gave themselves to be baptised and were converted.

Yet, there were many others who refused to believe in God, and they made life very difficult for the courageous Jesuit missionaries. Eventually, they arrested and tortured the missionaries, and made martyrs out of them, much in the same way as what we have heard happening to the prophets sent to the people of Israel in the old times. The sins of mankind and their stubbornness made them to refuse to listen to the truth.

But does this stop the Church and God’s servants from trying to bring those who were stubborn towards the truth and salvation in God? No, in fact, it only spurs them all the more, trying to save the souls of as many as possible, many of whom were misguided by their lack of understanding about our faith and about the Lord our God. That was what St. Paul of the Cross was doing in his life, working for the greater good of the people of God.

St. Paul of the Cross was remembered for his work in founding the Congregation of the Passion of Jesus Christ, or also known as the Passionists. Through his works and dedications, he called many people to be thoroughly converted to the Lord, to turn away from their mistaken and misguided way of life, and be penitent throughout their days of life. He was also committed to a life of charity and work among the people of God, and their works had inspired many more people to join in his efforts and be converted to God’s cause.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as Christians, all of us should follow the footsteps of our holy predecessors, and not those who refused to listen to God and repent from their sins. There will indeed be difficulties and challenges, as those who went before us would have known and understood. But we must persevere, and we must realise that it is not just us who need to have a change of heart and conversion, but even more so, those around us also need the same conversion.

It is through our works and participation that we will be able to help our brethren on their way towards the Lord, following the examples of the Holy Canadian Martyrs and St. Paul of the Cross. Let us all renew our commitment to God, and to serve Him through our actions all the days of our lives. May God be with us always and may He empower us to be true Christians always. Amen.