Purple

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Wednesday, 12 March 2025 : 1st Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 50 : 3-4, 12-13, 18-19

Have mercy on me, o God, in Your love. In Your great compassion blot out my sin. Wash me thoroughly of my guilt; cleanse me of evil.

Create in me, o God, a pure heart; give me a new and steadfast spirit. Do not cast me out of Your presence nor take Your Holy Spirit from me.

You take no pleasure in sacrifice; were I to give a burnt offering, You would not delight in it. O God, my sacrifice is a broken spirit; a contrite heart, You will not despise.

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Wednesday, 12 March 2025 : 1st Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Jonah 3 : 1-10

The word of YHVH came to Jonah a second time : “Go to Nineveh, the great city, and announce to them the message I give you.”

In obedience to the word of YHVH, Jonah went to Nineveh. It was a very large city, and it took three days just to cross it. So Jonah walked a single day’s journey and began proclaiming, “Forty days more and Nineveh will be destroyed.”

The people of the city believed God. They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. Upon hearing the news, the king of Nineveh got up from his throne, took off his royal robe, put on sackcloth and sat down in ashes. He issued a proclamation throughout Nineveh :

“By the decree of the king and his nobles, no people or beasts, herd or flock, will taste anything; neither will they eat nor drink. But let people and beasts be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call aloud to God, turn from his evil ways and violence. Who knows? God may yet relent, turn from His fierce anger and spare us.”

When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, He had compassion and did not carry out the destruction He had threatened upon them.

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Tuesday, 11 March 2025 : 1st Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Lord in the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of firstly the importance for us all to obey the words of the Lord, His Law and commandments, and to follow wholeheartedly everything that He has shown and taught us all through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, and also through His Church, by which He has revealed His love and everything that He has intended for us all, His faithful and beloved ones. Each and every one of us are also then reminded of the need for us to be in constant contact and communication with God, our loving Father and Creator so that we may always come to know His will for us, and be attuned to His path and ways, so that we may not end up being distracted, swayed and tempted away towards the path to damnation.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah in which God spoke to His people through Isaiah revealing some information about the coming of the Messiah, the Saviour Whom He has promised to the people of Israel, and of Whom Isaiah had spoken a lot about. The Lord revealed how this Messiah or Saviour would be the One to accomplish His will, like the Word that came out from His mouth to proclaim the will of God and the salvation to all the people. This was in fact a revelation of what God would do for all of His beloved ones in this world, that He would send none other than His own only Begotten Son, the Word of God or the Logos, to be Incarnate in the flesh, by the will of the Father and by the power of the Holy Spirit, to be born of the Virgin, His mother, Mary, so that He may become like one of us, the Son of Man.

And through this action, God had made Himself to share in our human nature and existence, taking up upon Himself the Humanity that He has shared with each and every one of us, and which is united to His Divine nature in the person of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, Whom we believe to be truly and fully God, and fully Man at the same time. We may not fully realise the significance and importance of such an action by God, which He had willingly done for us, until we realise that precisely because the Lord chose to take up our human nature and embody Himself and His Divinity in that Human form, therefore, He has come to share in our experiences and humanity, and becoming the One through Whom mankind would be reunited with their Divine Lord.

As we heard in our Gospel passage today, that the Lord taught His disciples how to pray to the Lord, referring to Him as ‘Our Father in Heaven’. This is the prayer that we all well know and recognise as ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ or ‘Our Father’, in Latin ‘Pater Noster’. In this ideal and perfect prayer, the Lord showed us all how we should pray, not with long litanies of requests or demands, as we may commonly have done, but instead, beginning with praising and glorifying God, thanking Him for all the love that He has shown us. That prayer also highlights our humility and willingness to listen to God our loving Father, in our words ‘Let Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven’. Ultimately, prayer is not about us imposing our demands on the Lord, because who are we, the humble creatures of God, to demand things from our Almighty Creator?

And then, what we request is not for grandiose things, but asking for ‘our daily bread’, which highlights and summarises what we all need in our respective lives. God knows what we need, and He will provide for us in manners and ways that may be beyond our knowledge and understanding. We must truly have faith in Him and believe that He can provide us what we need, and that He may guide us in the right paths in life, if we truly trust in Him and put our whole faith in Him. We also ask for forgiveness for our many sins, recognising our shortcomings, faults and weaknesses, being again humble before God, and committing ourselves to do the same to our fellow brothers and sisters. All of these essences and parts in the Lord’s Prayer serve to remind us of our relationship with God, and why it is important for us to deepen our relationship with Him through constant prayer.

First of all, through Christ our Lord, Whom I mentioned earlier having shared in our human nature and existence, we have become sharers in the nature of the Son, Who is both the Son of God and Son of Man. And because the Lord called God in Heaven as His Father, therefore, through this Incarnation of Christ, all of us can also call God as our Loving Father as well, and hence, ‘Our Father in Heaven’. God’s love for each one of us has indeed been revealed as a truly genuine and powerful love, one that resulted in our Creation in the first place, and which endures even our separation from Him through our sins and disobedience against Him. Like that of wayward and prodigal children who disobeyed their parents, no matter what, their parent still loved them all and would want their children to be reunited with themselves. It is therefore the same with the Lord as well.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore as God’s beloved children, His adopted sons and daughters, realise the depth of our sinfulness, our wayward behaviours and actions, our inappropriate way of life and our disobedience against our loving Father, Who has always been so patient in loving us and in trying to reach out to us, to teach us all how to love Him and to follow Him back towards His loving embrace. Let us no longer be stubborn in refusing His love and kindness, and do whatever we can so that our lives may be truly worthy of Him once again, and strive to commit ourselves and our lives to Him from now on, if we have not yet done so. We should humble ourselves and admit our shortcomings and problems before the Lord, so that He may help and guide us in our journey towards Him, and that He may teach us how to be faithful and obedient to Him once again.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we continue to progress ever further through this time and season of Lent, let us all continue to live our lives with faith, devotion and commitment to God, doing whatever we can so that we may come ever closer to our loving Father, and come to know His will, through good quality time and effort spent in establishing a strong and vibrant relationship with God our Father. Let us continue to make the effort to embody our faith in our every actions, to be truly faithful in all things, not merely in words or formality only. All of us should remember the love and mercy that God has shown to us His people, and make good use of the opportunities which had been given to us this Lent such that we will reconcile with our loving Father, and live a life that is in harmony with Him from now on, glorifying Him by our lives, in each and every moment.

May the Lord be with us always, and may He strengthen us all with the courage and blessings needed for us to persevere through the many trials and challenges that we may have to face in the midst of our journey during this time and season of Lent. May God bless our every good efforts and endeavours, and bring us all ever closer to Him, to be once again His beloved children and people, the inheritors of the great glory of God, all that He has promised us, through our devotion, faith and commitment to Him. Amen.

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Tuesday, 11 March 2025 : 1st Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 6 : 7-15

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “When you pray, do not use a lot of words, as the pagans do; for they believe that, the more they say, the more chance they have of being heard. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need, even before you ask Him.”

“This, then, is how you should pray : Our Father in heaven, holy be Your Name, Your kingdom, come, Your will, be done on earth, as in heaven. Give us today, our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we forgive those who are in debt to us.”

“Do not bring us to the test, but deliver us from the evil one. If you forgive others their wrongdoings, your Father in heaven will also forgive yours. If you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive you.”

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Tuesday, 11 March 2025 : 1st Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 33 : 4-5, 6-7, 16-17, 18-19

Oh, let us magnify YHVH; together, let us glorify His Name! I sought YHVH, and He answered me; from all my fears He delivered me.

They who look to Him are radiant with joy, their faces never clouded with shame. When the poor cry out, YHVH hears and saves them from distress.

The eyes of YHVH are fixed on the righteous; His ears are inclined to their cries. But His face is set against the wicked, to destroy their memory from the earth.

YHVH hears the cry of the righteous and rescues them from all their troubles. YHVH is close to the brokenhearted and saves the distraught.

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Tuesday, 11 March 2025 : 1st Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Isaiah 55 : 10-11

As the rain and snow come down from the heavens and do not return till they have watered the earth, making it yield seed for the sower and food for others to eat, so is My Word that goes forth out of My mouth : it will not return to Me idle, but it shall accomplish My will, the purpose for which It has been sent.

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Monday, 10 March 2025 : 1st Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we continue to progress through this time and season of Lent, all of us are reminded through the words of the Sacred Scriptures of the need for us to live our lives carefully, being ever vigilant against the many temptations present all around us which may lead us into the wrong paths in life, moving ever further away from the Lord and His salvation. We are all reminded today that while God has generously given us all the many opportunities for us to follow Him and to embrace His mercy and forgiveness, but we must not take those for granted, or else we may come to regret it when the time comes for us to account for our lives before the Lord, at the time of the Last Judgment. Will we want to end up in the wrong side of the judgment at that time, brothers and sisters?

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Leviticus in which God spoke to His people, the Israelites during the time of their Exodus from Egypt, detailing to all of them the Law, the commandments and all the things which He had taught and revealed to them.  Through those Law and commandments, He wants all of His people to know how to carry on living their lives with true and genuine faith in Him. God reminded the Israelites to act in the manner of righteousness, justice and virtue, that they do not cause suffering to others and pervert justice, or to manipulate others for their own benefits. All of these reminders that God had told His people are still important reminders for us even up to this day, because as the disciples and followers of the Lord, we ourselves are called to live lives that are truly worthy of Him, and we should be good role models and examples for everyone to follow.

The Lord wanted the Israelites to keep faithfully the Law and commandments which He had provided to them so that they would not fall into the temptations to sin, which could lead them all into their downfall and destruction. This is therefore also an important reminder for all of us so that we ourselves do not let those temptations of the world, desires, ambition, greed, or our ego and pride from leading us astray from the path towards the Lord. We have to strive to resist the wickedness of the evil ones who are constantly trying to lead us into our downfall. We should show genuine love towards our brothers and sisters, caring for the needs of those who are around us, such that through our loving actions and examples, we may inspire others to follow the Lord as well, because they will come to know God through us and our lives.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist in which the Lord Jesus presented to His disciples and to all those who were listening to Him about the time of the Final or the Last Judgment, which will come to happen at the end of time. The Lord told them all how everyone will have to account for their lives before God, the Judge of all, Who is none other than the Lord Jesus Himself. Essentially, He has come into this world not just to lead us all into the salvation and eternal life by His loving sacrifice on the Cross, but also to reveal to us the coming time of reckoning at the end of time, when we have to account for all of our actions in each of our lives, be it those that are good or those that are wicked, as well as any failures for us to act.

All of these things will determine whether we will be worthy of God and His glorious inheritance. God has always been generous in loving us and on showing us His mercy, and He certainly wants us all to be reconciled and reunited with Him. However, at the same time, we must always remind ourselves that God, Who is all holy, good and perfect, will not allow sin and evil to exist in His Holy Presence. If we are to come towards Him with sins and wickedness that we have not repented from and have not been forgiven from, then we will be condemned by those same sins and wickedness which we have committed, all the disobedience and other unworthy deeds which we have done, which prevents us from truly being worthy of the Lord.

We must remember well as we continue to progress through this time and season of Lent that our faith in the Lord is the source of our salvation, for God has given us His grace through our faith in Him. However, we also must not think that our faith in the Lord without action and concrete deeds to back it up will benefit us in any way. As St. James the Apostle mentioned in his Epistle, and also the Apostolic tradition of the Church stated, that faith without good works is dead. This must not be misunderstood as what some believed wrongly, that we can gain salvation through our works without faith. Instead, it means that our faith in God must always be supported and made concrete and alive through real actions, not by mere words and formalities only, or else, that faith will not avail us.

And how should we live our faith such that we are truly worthy of the Lord? It is by following what He Himself had said in the Gospel passage today about the Final Judgment. He told all of His disciples and all those who were listening to Him about the actions taken by all those who will be found worthy at the time of the Final Judgment, that is those who have shown love to the least among their brothers and sisters, caring for those who are sick and needy, showing love and attention to the marginalised and all those who are suffering from various difficulties. All those actions show true faith that is indeed lived with genuine desire and sincerity to love both God and one’s fellow men and women alike, which is exactly what all of us as Christians have been called to do.

On the other hand, if we neglect to do those good deeds and ignore the need to show love and sincere care towards our fellow brethren, no matter how we may claim to be faithful to God, but in the end, that faith will not avail us, because all of our ignorance of the opportunities and the actions that we could have done for the benefit of others, or if we only care about ourselves, causing suffering for others and ignoring the plight of the needy and those who are suffering in our midst, all those things led us into sin against God, the sin of omission, which will be judged against us, and makes us unworthy to share in the true happiness and eternal glory that God has promised to those who have been truly faithful to Him. Essentially, we cannot come towards the Lord unless we make the conscious effort to do what is right and just, as well as commit ourselves to do His will, to show love towards our brethren in our midst.

Therefore, during this time of Lent, let us all continue to deepen our relationship with God, and strengthen our faith in Him by doing whatever we should be doing in this period of renewal and rejuvenation of our faith. Let us all do them with true understanding of our faith and with genuine desire to seek to be forgiven by God from our many sins and wickedness. We must continue to journey towards the Lord, reestablishing the connection which have been weakened by sin, and resist the many temptations present around us trying to drag us away from our loving God and Father. May the Lord also help us in this journey so that we may continue to persevere and move forward in our path towards Him, and with this blessed time and opportunity of Lent, may we rediscover that love which we all ought to have for God, and grow ever more committed to Him, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 10 March 2025 : 1st Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 25 : 31-46

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “When the Son of Man comes in His glory with all His Angels, He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be brought before Him; and, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, so will He do with them, placing the sheep on His right hand and the goats on His left.”

“The King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, blessed of My Father! Take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed Me. I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink. I was a stranger, and you welcomed Me into your home. I was naked, and you clothed Me. I was sick, and you visited Me. I was in prison, and you came to see Me.’”

“Then the righteous will ask Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and give You food; thirsty, and give You something to drink; or a stranger, and welcome You; or naked, and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and go to see You?’ The King will answer, ‘Truly I say to you : just as you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of Mine, you did it to Me.’”

“Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Go, cursed people, out of My sight, into the eternal fire, which has been prepared for the devil and his angels! For I was hungry, and you did not give Me anything to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not welcome Me into your house; I was naked, and you did not clothe Me; I was sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’”

“They, too, will ask, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, thirsty, naked or a stranger, sick or in prison, and did not help You?’ The King will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you : just as you did not do it for one of the least of these, you did not do it for Me.’ And these will go into eternal punishments; but the just, to eternal life.”

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Monday, 10 March 2025 : 1st Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 18 : 8, 9, 10, 15

The Law of YHVH is perfect : it gives life to the soul. The word of YHVH is trustworthy : it gives wisdom to the simple.

The precepts of YHVH are right : they give joy to the heart. The commandments of YHVH are clear : they enlighten the eyes.

The fear of YHVH is pure, it endures forever; the judgments of YHVH are true, all of them just and right.

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart find favour in Your sight, o YHVH – my Redeemer, my Rock!

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Monday, 10 March 2025 : 1st Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Leviticus 19 : 1-2, 11-18

YHVH spoke to Moses and said, “Speak to the entire assembly of the people of Israel and say to them : Be holy for I, YHVH, your God, am holy. Do not steal or lie or deceive one another. Do not swear falsely by My Name so as to profane the Name of your God; I am YHVH.”

“Do not oppress your neighbour or rob him. The wages of a hired man are not to remain with you all night until morning. You shall not curse a deaf man nor put a stumbling block in the way of the blind; but you shall fear your God; I am YHVH.”

“Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor nor bow to the great; you are to judge your neighbour fairly so as not to share in his guilt. Do not go about as a slanderer of your people and do not seek the death of your neighbour; I am YHVH.”

“Do not hate your brother in your heart; rebuke your neighbour frankly so as not to share in his guilt. Do not seek revenge or nurture a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbour as yourself; I am YHVH.”