Reflection of the Bible

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Friday, 12 December 2025 : 2nd Week of Advent, Memorial of Our Lady of Guadalupe (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Our Lady of Guadalupe)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church commemorates the occasion of one of the famous Marian Apparitions, or the appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, who appeared before St. John Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin at the site of Tepeyac hill in what is today Mexico, approximately five hundred years ago. This Apparition is now known famously as Our Lady of Guadalupe, and many millions were converted to the Christian faith upon the miraculous appearance and the miracles associated with Our Lady of Guadalupe, and then many more countless souls were saved in the subsequent centuries and years because of what the Lord had done to help us through His beloved Mother, who has come before us, in order to remind us all to love her Son and to turn away from the path of sin.

Back then, much of the New World, the Americas were still relatively newly discovered by the people from the Old World, and many of the natives still did not yet know the Lord and His truth. Many of the pagan practices especially in the region of Mesoamerica or Central America, which back then involved a lot of cruelty and even human sacrifices were overcome by the power of the Lord’s truth and love, and many among the natives abandoned their past wicked ways and embraced the true faith in our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. However, at the same time, the behaviours of those Spanish conquerors and explorers back then also left much to be desired, who despite of their Christian faith carried out a lot of destruction and loss of life among the people by their actions, their killings and efforts to gain more wealth and glory for themselves, a behaviour most unbecoming and unworthy of those who called themselves as Christians.

Hence, at that time of great destructions, harm and desolation among the people of the world, where chaos reigned free, Our Lady chose to make herself available and approachable, just as later on she would do again in Lourdes and Fatima, also during times of hardships and trials for much of the world. Our Lady chose to appear to a simple and humble native man, St. John Diego, also known as St. Juan Diego. St. John Diego was one of the early Christian converts from among the native peoples of the region now known as Mexico, where he became a devout follower of Christ, and was known for his exemplary life and virtues, and who with his wife was remembered for their piety, simplicity and generosity. Back then, it happened that St. John Diego was passing by the area known as the Hill of Tepeyac when the Mother of God appeared to him, and spoke to St. John Diego in his own native language, revealing herself to be the Mother of God.

When he conveyed this message to others, no one initially believed what St. John Diego had said, and they disregarded him when he conveyed on them the message of Our Lady of Guadalupe about her identity and also her request that a church be built in her honour at the location of her Apparition. Then, at the next time when St. John Diego was supposed to meet Our Lady of Guadalupe, his uncle was very sick and St. John Diego had to get his uncle to meet a priest for the Sacrament of the Sick. And later on, St. Juan Diego tried to take another way, as he was ashamed of having failed to meet the Lady as he was supposed to, only to meet her on his way again, and she told him why she did not entrust his uncle and himself to God through her, with the words now well known as ‘Am I not here, I am, who am your mother?’. This serves as a reminder to all of us how the Lord has indeed entrusted His own Mother Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe to be our mother as well.

Then, Our Lady of Guadalupe told St. John Diego to show a sign to the local bishop, and asked him to collect some flowers that appeared there at the site of the Apparition that were not native to the region, miraculously appeared there, and then St. John Diego gathered them using his tilma or cloak. As he brought the flowers and showed them to the bishop, what stunned the bishop and all the other witnesses present was not just the unusual flowers, but the fact and evidence that the very image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mary herself was imprinted on the tilma that was worn by St. John Diego. Everyone who saw that miracle believed, and through the great occasion, many became believers and followed the Lord, all thanks to His mother and also through the faith and dedication showed by St. John Diego in faithfully living his life and in obeying God’s will.

Ever since then, countless millions upon millions had visited the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which grew more and more in popularity, drawing many people who were attracted to the Lord’s love, mercy and compassion as shown through His beloved Mother, especially during the time of hardships and difficulties. Our Lady of Guadalupe called on all of us to return to her Son with contrite heart and to devote ourselves once more to His cause. In our world today, at a time full of many distractions and worldly pleasures, of many things that have prevented us from finding our path towards God, the call that Our Lady of Guadalupe made upon us, her pleas that we reject the path of sin and embrace her Son, Our Lord and Saviour, through her, are reminders for us to make amends and to turn over a new leaf in our lives, to become God’s faithful people once again.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore, as we continue to progress through this season of Advent, the time of preparation for Christmas, let us all make sure that we do not just prepare for Christmas physically and in material, as what most people would have done. Instead, we must make sure that we are ready in heart and mind, spiritually for welcoming the Lord into our midst, as we rejoice in His past coming at Christmas, and as we also hope in the coming joy of His future return, as a mighty and conquering King when He comes again at the end of time. This is the true spirit of Advent and ultimately, Christmas that we all should have within us, the spirit and desire for us to live our lives worthily of the Lord, distancing ourselves from wickedness and evil ways, and from the excesses of worldly pleasures and temptations.

Let us all therefore draw ever closer to the Lord and spend our time now this Advent to deepen our relationship with Him. Let us all sin no more, and focus ourselves once again on the Lord and His truth, with the help of His blessed Mother, Our Lady of Guadalupe, and her lovely reminders for us all to be faithful to her Son’s Law and commandments. Let us all spend our time now to prepare ourselves that we may truly worthily celebrate Christmas with true joy and understanding, and not indulge ourselves in the excesses of worldly, secular celebrations of Christmas. It is not that we cannot rejoice and celebrate in that way, but we cannot be distracted by all those excesses of celebrations, merrymaking and festivities that we end up forgetting why we celebrate Christmas in the first place, that is our joy in the Lord’s coming and salvation for us.

May the Lord be with us always, and may He continue to guide us in our journey, so that we may remain always ever firm in our faith in His truth and love. May God bless us all in our every endeavours and actions, our every good works and efforts for His greater glory. May He remain with us always in all things, and may His blessed Mother, Our Lady of Guadalupe, intercede for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

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Thursday, 11 December 2025 : 2nd Week of Advent, Memorial of Pope St. Damasus I, Pope (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Popes)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard again the reassuring words of the Lord through the Sacred Scriptures in which He continued to strengthen the faith in each and every one of us. During this time and season of Advent, each and every one of us are reminded of the hope that is coming for us from God Himself, all that He has promised to us and which He had made fully accomplished and fulfilled through His own Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, Whom He had sent into this world to show unto us the ever wonderful and enduring love which He has always had for every one of us, without exception. 

In our first reading today, taken from the continuation of the Book of the prophet Isaiah we heard of the reassuring words of the Lord yet again for His people in which He promised all of them that He would provide for all of them, protect them and give them all His providence and blessings. He would not abandon them or be deaf or blind to their plights, difficulties and hardships. He listened to them and heard their cries for help, and all of these were clear to Him, and He would act in due time, to protect and guide all those who were truly dear and beloved to Him. He is ever faithful to His Covenant and to everything which He has promised and constantly reassured His people with, and therefore, we ourselves, inspired by this great reassurance that God has given to His beloved ones, should be reassured as well.

This Advent, this time of waiting, expectation and preparation for the coming of Our Lord and Saviour should be a time of redirection and rediscovery of ourselves and our faith in God. We should make good use of the time and opportunities that God has provided us such that we may indeed draw ever closer to His presence, embracing His ever patient, wonderful and generous love. We should believe that the Lord can truly provide for us in everything that we need, in reaching out to us whenever we need help and guidance, and in protecting us from harm, and even if we have to suffer challenges, trials and difficulties in our paths, we have to remember and keep in mind that the Lord Himself has gone through even worse sufferings for us. He did all these so that we may have a new hope in Him.

Then, from the Gospel today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus Himself speaking about St. John the Baptist, the one who had been sent to prepare His path and coming, and we heard how the Lord praised St. John the Baptist as the greatest one who have ever come from the children of mankind, and yet curiously also less than the least in the kingdom of heaven. We must understand first of all that St. John the Baptist was sent into this world to prepare the coming of the Messiah, the Saviour of the world, and hence he came from before the coming of Christ, representing the last one of the Old Testament, the so-called ‘seal of the Prophets’

Therefore, St. John the Baptist was indeed the greatest of those born under the Old Testament and the old Law, because he alone among all of the Prophets came to witness the Lord and Saviour Himself, and actively worked to prepare His coming into this world. But with the coming of Christ, all of us have been made partakers of His truth and Good News, and we are reminded therefore of just fortunate and blessed all of us are because we have received the assurance and sure evidence of God’s ever enduring love and compassion, all of His kindness, grace and blessings which He has manifested to all of us through none other than Christ, His Beloved and only Begotten Son, born into this world to lead us all into salvation through Him.

Today, we have yet another great servant of God who dedicated his life to Him, and who can also become our role model and inspiration in life. Pope St. Damasus I was the Pope, and therefore leader of the Universal Church during the important years and time of the Church when there were numerous converts and more and more coming to believe in God. At that same time, there were also a lot of divisions and disagreements in the Church, which Pope St. Damasus worked very hard to overcome as the leader of all God’s faithful people. There had been differing ideas and schools of thought at that time, where those different factions and their disagreements threatened to break up the Church unity and the Body of Christ.

Pope St. Damasus himself became Pope during a turbulent time of a succession crisis following the death of the previous reigning Pope due to interference from the secular ruling class and nobles of Rome. There was a contested election and two rival Popes were elected, in a heated campaign before Pope St. Damasus eventually prevailed against his rival. This rival himself belonged to the heretical party, the Arians, who had wrecked a lot of damage and divisions in the Church for many decades up to that time. The Arians had large following and support from the powerful and influential members of the community at the time, and they had even the backing from the Emperor and his nobles, and this made it difficult for the Pope and the Church, but nonetheless this did not discourage Pope St. Damasus I.

Pope St. Damasus was instrumental in leading the charge against the heretics and all of their false teachings, devoting much of his time and efforts to overcome the falsehoods spread by those who claimed to teach the truth of God, but in reality were spreading false ideas. He also helped the creation of the Biblical canon especially in the Western, Latin half of the Church by his works with St. Jerome, whom he tasked with the compilation and the proper translation of the Greek Septuagint Bible into Latin, which would become the renowned Latin Vulgate Bible. Through the many other contributions and great leadership which Pope St. Damasus I had shown and exhibited, 

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all continue to put our faith and trust in the Lord, doing our very best so that in everything that we say and do, in our every interactions, good works and efforts, through our every examples in life, we may indeed be ever focused on the Lord at the centre of our lives and existence, and that in what we carry out in our daily actions, we will continue to inspire hope and strength in others who may also face similar struggles in life, especially in the matters of remaining truly faithful and committed to the Lord and His path despite all the hardships, challenges and difficulties that all of us may have to encounter in our daily journeys and in our respective paths in life. We should not be idle but be ever ready to welcome the Lord when He comes again.

May the Lord continue to bless and guide us all in our respective journeys of faith and life, so that as we continue to progress through this time and season of Advent, we will continue to grow ever stronger in faith in God and in our love for Him. May He continue to inspire and guide us in practicing our Christian faith ever more courageously and faithfully in all things. May all of us continue to have a good and fruitful Advent season, now and always. Amen.

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Wednesday, 10 December 2025 : 2nd Week of Advent, Memorial of Our Lady of Loreto (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Our Lady of Loreto)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today the Church celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, which marks the popular devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Holy House of Loreto where in that place of Loreto in Italy, the very House that the Holy Family lived in during their time in Nazareth, can actually be found. The story of the miraculous translation of the Holy House of Loreto had a long tradition in the Church, and it was believed that the very same House of Loreto was translated from the site of Nazareth itself, where both St. Joseph and Mary originated from, and after a few occasions and movements, was finally settled in its current place and shrine in Loreto, where many people flocked throughout the year in pilgrimages, seeking the intercession of the Blessed Mother of God, Our Lady of Loreto, and the Holy Family.

The current shrine to Our Lady of Loreto located at the shores of the Adriatic Sea is among the largest Marian shrines in the world, and is the third largest in Europe after the famous shrines at Fatima and Lourdes. The tradition described as such that the very House where Our Lord and Saviour once lived with His family, with St. Joseph, His foster father and with Mary, His mother. It was told that after the Lord’s Ascension and at the very early days of the Church, the Holy House became a place of worship by the Apostles, who celebrated the Eucharist on its very table and place, and an Altar was built in the House. This House thus eventually became a church and place of Divine worship, being so connected to the story of Our Saviour and His life and ministry, and was brought away from the Holy Land at the end of the Crusades, to avoid destruction and harm at the hands of those who sought to destroy and desecrate the sacred places connected to the Lord’s life and ministry.

According to the same tradition, the Holy House was brought by the Angels miraculously from Nazareth first to the region of Dalmatia in what is today Croatia where pilgrims went to visit just as how it was when it was still in its original place in the Holy Land. And then later on, as the pilgrims were beset by bandits and brigands, it was told that the Holy House was brought miraculously once again by the Angels before it finally settled down in Loreto, in its current place, where it had remained ever since. Ever since then, pilgrimages had come every year and at every moment, of people seeking for the intercession of the Blessed Madonna or Lady of Loreto, and the healing power from her Son, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, as shown in the famous icon and statue of Our Lady of Loreto, the Madonna and Child enshrined within the Holy House, that remains accessible to this day.

While people have debated the authenticity and the accuracy of the accounts surrounding the translation of the Holy House from Nazareth to its current shrine at Loreto, and whether the Holy House is indeed the same House that Our Lord and Saviour had once lived in, what is important is that, given the many evidences and studies that had supported the authenticity of the Holy House, countless people throughout the years, decades and centuries had come to the Lord through His blessed and loving Mother, Our Lady of Loreto, seeking healing, consolation and help, and many became believers and were converted through their experiences and through the prayers and intercessions of our most loving and blessed mother, who extended her love and care to us just as she had loved her Son very dearly and tenderly.

As we reflect on today’s occasion of the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, the loving Mother of God and the patroness of the miraculous Holy House of Loreto, all of us are reminded that in this season of Advent, which we have now reached approximately the halfway point, we ought to spend the time and effort to deepen our connection and relationship with God. This season of Advent is a time for us to rediscover our love and faith in God, and for us to redirect our attention and attune ourselves anew to the Lord once again. It is a time when we should embrace the Lord wholeheartedly and turn our hearts and minds to Him, to welcome Him into them and to allow Him to change our lives for the better that we may become better Christians, better followers and disciples of Our Lord and Saviour.

Let us ask ourselves whether we are truly ready to welcome the Lord into our midst, or whether we have squandered the time and opportunities given to us by the Lord, especially during this time of Advent, in focusing our attention on worldly matters and pleasures rather than on God, on His truth and love. Let us ask ourselves if we as Christians have spent more time in thinking of all of our worldly concerns and ambitions, our preoccupations with all sorts of things that distract us from the path of following God and His righteousness. And not only that, but if we have been preparing ourselves in the wrong way during this time and season of Advent, we should rectify it by realigning our actions and directions in life so that we may no longer walk in the wrong path, but may finally make good use of this time to prepare ourselves to welcome the Lord with all sincerity.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all use this time of Advent to reorientate our lives and focus, and move away from the materialistic focus that many of us often have, not just in our upcoming Christmas celebrations but also in our lives in general. Let us not allow materialism and hedonistic behaviours to sway and lead us down the wrong path, and instead, let us all remember once again the love by which God has constantly shown us, in patiently leading and guiding us towards Himself and His salvation and grace, and in welcoming all of us back to His loving embrace despite of all of our constant stubbornness and rebelliousness. Not only that but He also entrusted us all to the care of His own beloved mother, whom He entrusted to be our own mother, and she, the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Loreto, as per her many other apparitions and works, has lead us ever closer to her Son, by her fervent love for us and her intercessions for our sake.

May all of us continue to walk down the path of righteousness and grace, as shown by our Lord Himself, and follow Him wholeheartedly from now on if we have not yet done so. Let us all be inspired by the faith, love and commitment which His Mother, Our Lady of Loreto, has shown us, in how she dedicated herself and obeyed perfectly, as the handmaid of the Lord, in doing God’s will and in living a life of grace and virtue, at all times. Let us all be inspired to show the same faith and love as well, in our own lives and actions, in our every interactions with one another. May God bless us always in our every endeavours and good efforts, now and forevermore. Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Loreto, pray for us sinners. Amen.

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Tuesday, 9 December 2025 : 2nd Week of Advent, Memorial of St. John Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Saints)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that as we continue to progress through this time and season of Advent, all of us should always continue to put our faith and trust in the Lord, in always believing that the promises which Our Lord has given to us will eventually come true, as He has always reassured us and actually fulfilled for us. God is indeed the only One Who will never abandon or fail us, even as many other means and methods of this world, all of our other ways and manners may fail us in the end. This Advent, as we continue to prepare ourselves well for the joyous celebration of Christmas to come, we should always keep in mind that we continue to focus our attention on the Lord.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard of the words of the prophecy of the prophet Isaiah in which the prediction of the coming of God’s salvation and liberation for His people has been made to those whom Isaiah had been sent to minister to, the people of God in the kingdom of Judah, and also to all of us who have listened to it, as reminder of God’s ever wonderful faithfulness and grace, of everything that He had done for us, in fulfilling His part of the Covenant that He has established, maintained and renewed with us. We heard in that passage of Isaiah’s prophecy of the coming of the one whom the Lord would send as His herald, to announce the coming of the salvation of God, which in time would come to be fulfilled in the person of St. John the Baptist.

Indeed, St. John the Baptist was that ‘voice in the wilderness’ that spoke of the proclamation of God’s imminent coming, the coming of the Holy One that had been sent into our midst, into this world to gather all of us back to God and to lead us all out of the darkness of evil and sin, and into the light. He called on all the people of God to return to Him, to realise their sinfulness and wickedness, and how they have fallen away from the path of God into the path of worldliness and sin. Hence, as we are reminded of the coming of God’s salvation which He had fulfilled and accomplished by first sending St. John the Baptist to prepare the way for His Saviour, and finally, through the coming of the Saviour of God, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, the One promised and assured to us all, let us all ponder on what we are truly preparing to celebrate this upcoming Christmas season and time.

In our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus Himself, our Saviour, reassuring us all of God’s ever wonderful love, compassion and mercy. Through the brief parable of the lost sheep, in which the Lord compared God’s actions to that of a shepherd who had a hundred sheep and lost one of them, and how the shepherd would go and do his best to seek that one lost sheep, therefore, we are reminded that the Lord considers each and every one of us as truly precious and beloved. Therefore, none of us should take for granted that the Lord has done everything in order to gather us all back and to find us all from being scattered and lost to Him throughout the whole world.

Today the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. John Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin, also known as St. Juan Diego, as we recall the life and holiness of this great man of God, whose devotion to Him and to His blessed mother had brought about great conversions and much good for the Church and for the people of God. St. John Diego was especially known for his role in revealing to the world the now world famous apparition of Mary, who appeared to St. John Diego as Our Lady of Guadalupe. At that time, not long after the conquest of the New World, the Americas by the Spanish forces, there were a lot of disruptions and chaos, which therefore brought the Blessed Mother of God herself to appear before her beloved children to remind them to turn away from their sins and wickedness, and return to the side of her Son, their Lord and Saviour.

St. John Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin was one of the early converts among the native populations of Central America, and he was known to be a devout person, dedicating himself to his new faith zealously, and he was also known to be a righteous and good person in his deeds. One day, at the hill of Tepeyac, where the great Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe now stands, St. John Diego saw the apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, appearing to him like a woman of his own race, and she revealed herself to him as the Mother of God and told him to inform the local bishop that a shrine should be built at the site so that she could assist those who have been troubled and distressed. St. John Diego obediently told the bishop and after another apparition, again shared with the local bishop what he had witnessed.

And when the bishop requested from the Apparition for a heavenly sign to show the authenticity of the supernatural event, the Blessed Virgin Lady of Guadalupe told St. John Diego that she would provide one. But when St. John Diego’s uncle was very sick and he missed the appointed time of the apparition, and attending to his uncle, later on when Our Lady of Guadalupe once again appeared to St. John Diego, she chided him gently for not having sought for her intercession and help, telling him in the now famous words, ‘Am I not here, who am your Mother?’ Then, while assuring St. John Diego that his uncle has fully recovered, she told him to gather flowers that were blooming at the site, using his own mantle, known as tilma, to hold those flowers to be shown to the bishop.

The moment that St. John Diego returned to the bishop and revealed the unusual flowers that he had gathered from the Blessed Lady of Guadalupe, the bishop was astonished to have seen the imprint of Our Lady of Guadalupe herself on the tilma or cloak of St. John Diego. This assured the bishop that the Apparition was truly genuine, and he immediately venerated the Blessed Lady of Guadalupe. Henceforth, the devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe became very popular, bringing countless souls to God, being saved through His mother’s love and care for us, and until today, countless millions came to venerate Our Lady of Guadalupe at her shrines, and many more throughout the world devoted themselves to the Lord through her, His Blessed Mother, who is also our Mother.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, having heard the reminders from the Scriptures about the love and the salvation which God Himself has brought unto us through His Son, and also having listened to the great faith and dedication which St. John Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin has shown us, in his commitment to God, his obedience to His Blessed Mother, Our Lady of Guadalupe, and more of his other virtues, let us all therefore strive to be ever good and worthy in our own lives and deeds, so that by our good examples and actions, our every words and interactions with each other, we may always be the good role models and inspirations for all around us, that God may be better known to more and more.

Let us all therefore continue to live our lives worthily of the Lord and do our very best so that as good Christians we may always inspire many others around us to be good, committed and faithful to the Lord as well in all things. Let us continue to be good examples in each and every moments of our lives, in our daily interactions and efforts, our works and contributions so that we may lead more and more people towards Christ our Lord and His salvation. May all of us prepare well for Christmas and be ready to celebrate it wholeheartedly with true joy and appreciation. Amen.

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Monday, 8 December 2025 : Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the great Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God. On this day, we celebrate one of the four great Marian Dogmas, that is the Immaculate Conception, as defined by the Church in the state of Mary, being the Mother of God and the bearer of the Lord and Saviour as Immaculate or free from the taint of the original sin. And it was also part of the tradition and teachings of the Church that Mary has remained free from sin throughout her life and is full of grace. This is what the Church has always believed from the very beginning days of the Church, from the days of the Apostles.

Let us now go through in detail the meaning and significance of today’s celebration of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. First of all, it does not refer to the birth of Mary, which we celebrate instead nine months from now in the Feast of the Nativity on the eighth day of September. The Immaculate Conception refers to the moment when Mary was conceived in the womb of St. Anne, her mother. It was the moment when she came into existence as willed by God, and it is indeed important that Mary was conceived in such a way by the will of God. She has been kept from sin by the power and will of God, and was made so to prepare her for her role.

How is that so? That is because as we heard from our first reading today taken from the Book of Genesis, mankind fell into sin from the beginning of time when Adam and Eve, our first ancestors, listened to the lies and falsehoods of Satan instead of obeying God and His commandments. God told Adam and Eve not to eat of the fruits of the forbidden tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Gardens of Eden, but Satan managed to persuade mankind to disobey the Lord, by saying that if they ate the fruits, then they would become like God, in knowing things good and evil. It is through this temptation and their downfall that our human nature and existence became corrupted by sin and evil.

Through that disobedience, sin entered into Man’s existence, because sin is borne by disobedience. Sin has corrupted our human nature and existence by the fact that this disobedience broke us apart from the perfect harmony with God our loving Father and Creator, and what was all good and perfect by God’s design at creation, had been by this disharmony and rupture of our union with Him, stained by the taints of sin and evil. This was mankind’s original sin, and ever since then, the corruptions of sin had affected man, from generations to generations, enslaving them under its hold and power, just as Satan intended, as he desired our destruction and downfall.

However, as we also heard in our first reading today, the Lord punished Satan and also foretold the coming of His salvation that would come through the children of Man, through a Woman who would crush Satan beneath her heels. Through this revelation, even right from the beginning of time, God already had in mind, all knowing as He is, what He would do for our sake, as we are truly His most beloved ones among all the creation. Later on, He would repeat this again and again through the prophets, particularly the prophet Isaiah, who spoke to the then king of Judah regarding the coming of the Messiah through a Virgin and a Woman, which would then be long awaited by the people of God.

This Woman is indeed none other than Mary, whom God by His special grace hallowed and made holy, immaculate and pure, and free from the taint of original sin. We may wonder how God did this, or if this was possible, but we must not forget, that God is Almighty, all-powerful. What we may think or assume to be impossible, is perfectly possible for God. Mary was special because although she is still a created being, a human person just like us, but by that singular grace of God, she had been preserved from the taints and corruptions of sin. This is because to be the Mother of Our Lord and Saviour, it is necessary for her to be prepared and set aside as such.

That was why the Archangel Gabriel during his time visiting Mary, in the Annunciation and as we heard it in our Gospel today, hailed and proclaimed Mary as being ‘full of grace’. Mary was indeed in a state of perfect grace, bestowed on her by God, and she was completely faithful and obedient to the will of God. She was hallowed and prepared such because of her role, which the Archangel Gabriel revealed, that she was to be the Mother of God, and the Son born of her known as the Son of God Most High, Jesus, the Saviour of the whole world. Through her and her obedience to the will of God, the salvation of this world has therefore come true and came to its full completion just as the Lord has planned it from the beginning of time.

If we are to understand the importance of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, then let us all look upon the Ark of the Covenant. Mary is often referred to as the New Ark of the (New) Covenant. Why is that so? That is because her Son, Jesus Christ Our Lord, is the One Who made the New Covenant between us and God, sealed by the sacrifice He Himself offered on the Cross and by the Precious Body and Blood that were broken and flowing down from the Altar of the Cross. Mary bore Jesus in her womb for nine months before He was born into this world, which we celebrate at Christmas. And He was borne within that perfect and hallowed womb, that His Divine nature is not in contact with the imperfections and taints of sin that existed in all other mankind.

In the old Ark of the Covenant, God commanded Moses to order the people to make the Ark from the finest and most precious materials, from the finest gold and wood, as well as other worthy shapes and materials. God hallowed it and the two tablets of the Ten Commandments, the manna and the staff of Aaron were placed inside that Ark. And the Ark was considered so holy that no one was allowed to touch the Ark. In one occasion, during the transfer of the Ark back to Jerusalem, one of the priests touched the Ark when it slipped. He was struck dead almost immediately.

Then, in the case of Mary, as the New Ark, she bore not just a mere tablets of the Commandments that God had written, but God Himself in the flesh, the Law personified, and not just the bread of manna, but the Bread of Life, the Lord, the Giver of Life. Mary also bore the Good Shepherd and Saviour of all, and as such, if the old Ark was so revered and so hallowed, then how can one who was to bear God Himself in her not be hallowed and made immaculate as well. Unlike the old Ark, made by the hands of men, the new Ark, Mary, was made by God to be worthy of His Presence. The Sinless One and the Perfect God could not have been contained in a womb tainted by sin. 

That is what the meaning of the Immaculate Conception of Mary and its importance to us is all about. Unfortunately there are still many among us, even among us Christians who still did not know what the Immaculate Conception is, and many of us are still ignorant of the importance of the Immaculate Conception. That is why today, as we celebrate this Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we have to realise first of all, that God’s love for us has made our salvation possible, as He resolved to save us through His coming into this world, through the womb of His Immaculate Mother.

And then, the Immaculate Conception of Mary shows us how we have been originally intended to be, as creatures that are perfect and free from corruption, perfect and all good as God had intended us to be. We were never meant to suffer in this world and from the consequences of our sins. But, our inability to resist the temptations of sin, its allures and power caused us to end up in this predicament. But God has shown us the way out, through His Son, Our Lord and Saviour. And His mother, Mary, the Immaculate Conception is our inspiration and guide to Him.

Let us all resolve to commit ourselves anew to God, in the footsteps of our Blessed Mother, Mary, the one conceived without sin, the Mother of God, of Our Lord and Saviour. Let us do our best to remain faithful to God and to keep our trust and faith in Him. Let us all do our best to resist and reject the temptations to sin, living our lives to the best of our abilities in our obedience to God, inspired by the faith, dedication and obedience that Mary has shown in her actions and commitment through life in the mission entrusted to her, even to the foot of the Cross.

May the Lord be with us always, and may He empower us all with the courage to serve Him, and to strive to be always worthy of Him. May God bless us and all of our good efforts for the greater glory of His Name. Holy Mary, Mother of God, the Immaculate Conception, conceived without the taint of sin, pray for us sinners, now and always, and lead us to your Son. Amen.

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Sunday, 7 December 2025 : Second Sunday of Advent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday we mark the occasion of the Second Sunday of Advent. Therefore, since we now have already progressed about a week through this season and time of Advent, a time of spiritual and wholesome preparation for the upcoming joyful season of Christmas, when we will celebrate joyfully and gloriously the coming of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the Divine Word Incarnate Who has been born into this world to be our Saviour. And this Sunday, the theme of Advent we mark is that of Peace, after last Sunday’s Hope. This Sunday we are reminded of the True Peace which Our Lord and Saviour Himself has brought into our midst, revealing unto us all that He has planned for us, in bringing us true peace and joy that He alone can provide.

In our first reading this Sunday, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah in which we heard of the prophecy of Isaiah regarding the coming of the time of peace and harmony, joy and jubilation when the stump of Jesse shall bear forth a Shoot, referring to the coming of the Messiah, the Son of David, to be born into the House of David, and promised by God to be the One to bring all of creation into perfect harmony and happiness again. This is a prophecy regarding the coming of the salvation and the liberation through this same Saviour long awaited by God’s people. That same prophecy spoke of how the Spirit of the Lord will be with this Saviour, with the One Whom God would send to be with His people, Emmanuel, the One Whose Name means, ‘God is with us’.

Although at that time, it was rather vague Who this Saviour would be, besides the fact that He would be born into the House of David and that His coming would herald a period of great change, no one knows Who He really would be otherwise. And it was only when the Lord Himself came into this world that He revealed to everyone that He is truly the Son of God Himself manifested in the flesh, embodying the perfection of God’s Love, walking and dwelling in our midst. And yet, His first coming into this world would not immediately bring perfect peace and harmony, which was why some of His disciples and those who refused to believe Him and doubted Him rejected the Lord Jesus because to them He was not that same Person that the prophet Isaiah had been prophesying about.

Yet, the reality is indeed that Jesus Christ, Whom we believe to be Our Lord and Saviour is the Son of David, descended directly from King David himself and in everything that He had done throughout His ministry, He was fulfilling what the prophet Isaiah had been prophesying about in all the signs, miracles and wonders that He performed, and beyond doubt, He is indeed the Messiah, the Saviour of the whole world. But what truly happened is that, not all of the prophecies of the prophet Isaiah would come true all at once, because the perfect state of peace and harmony which Isaiah foretold of, will indeed come, but only in the future, upon the Second Coming of Christ, or also known as parousia, something that all of us are looking forward to.

Then, from our second reading this Sunday, we heard of the words from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful people of God in Rome in which the Apostle spoke of the salvation that has been granted all of us the faithful through the gift of the Incarnate Son of God, Jesus Christ, the same Saviour that God Himself has promised and reassured all of His people through His many servants throughout time. This reminder from the Apostle truly mattered for those people in Rome and elsewhere who might be facing opposition, struggles, challenges and trials from the pagans and all those who opposed them around them, including the Jewish and Roman authorities, that despite all that, the Lord has assured them of His salvation through Jesus Christ, Whom the Apostles and the disciples had witnessed in His works and Resurrection.

At the same time, St. Paul also spoke of how the salvation that God has promised was not restricted to only just the Jewish people, as although the Lord was sent first to the Jewish world and to the people of Israel and their descendants, but that was just meant as a precursor of the spreading of the Good News and truth of God’s salvation, His ever enduring and patient love for all of us mankind, meant to be shared and spread to the whole world. Ultimately, St. Paul also reassured each and every one of us that God’s salvation, grace, love, compassion and mercy have been extended to everyone, regardless of their origins or backgrounds. Everyone has a place in the kingdom that God has prepared for all those whom He has created out of love, that is all of us, without exception.

Finally, from our Gospel passage this Sunday, we heard from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist in which we heard of the story about St. John the Baptist, the one who had been sent before the coming of the Lord in order to prepare the way for His coming into this world. And we heard how St. John the Baptist harshly criticised all those Pharisees and the chief priests who sent people to question and doubt his authenticity and authority to do the works of the Lord. He rebuked them all for their wickedness, their lack of faith and obedience to the Lord in what they have done, in their hypocrisy in their faith, and in seeking attention and praise from the rest of the people, and in their overly proud and selfish attitudes in life.

St. John the Baptist himself then showed true humility as contrasted to the behaviour of those Pharisees and the teachers of the Law. When he was asked and confronted whether he was the Messiah that God has promised to His people, he immediately told everyone that he was not the Messiah, but he was merely the one who preceded the coming of the Messiah, the one sent by God to prepare the way for the One Who would bring salvation to the whole world. He was merely the Herald of the Messiah, although his work and role were indeed very important. St. John the Baptist pointed out that his baptism and all of his works paled in comparison to what the Saviour would do, Who would bring forth the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, invoking the Holy Spirit of God to come into our midst, as what Christ has indeed done.

Therefore, as we have all heard from all the readings of the Scriptures that we have received today and as we have discussed them earlier, we are all reminded and called to be ever hopeful and to put our trust ever more strongly in God’s love, providence and all that He has generously provided to us, all the care and attention that He has given to us. We must not take all these for granted, but strive to do our very best in all the things we say and do, in our every actions, words and endeavours, in our every interactions with one another, so that by our examples and inspirations we may lead others ever more closely towards God and His saving grace. And as we all await the coming of God’s wonderful and everlasting Peace, let us all ourselves be the bearers of His Peace in our world today.

May all of us as Christians be the missionaries of God’s Peace, dedicating ourselves to be the peacemakers in our respective communities, in our families and among our circles of friends. Let us all bear the Light of Christ’s Hope, His Peace, Love and all the Joy that we are all preparing for this upcoming Christmas so that we may be the bearers of the Light of God to all the people we encounter, particularly to those who are still in darkness and who are suffering and in despair without hope, and all those among us who are suffering from violence and injustice. May God be with us all in our every good efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Saturday, 6 December 2025 : 1st Week of Advent, Memorial of St. Nicholas, Bishop (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Bishops)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all gathered together and listened to the words of the Lord contained within the Sacred Scriptures and as we all continue to progress through this sacred time and season of Advent, each and every one of us are called to trust in God and in everything that He will provide for us in our respective journeys, in whatever calling, missions and vocations that He has entrusted to us, His most beloved people. We should always strive to do our best in glorifying the Lord through our every actions, words and deeds, in everything that we carry out in our lives, even in the smallest and even in what we may think as the least significant parts of our actions and works. This Advent season we should focus on renewing our faith in the Lord, to put our trust and faith constantly in God, and draw ever closer to Him.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard the continuation of the passage from the Book of the prophet Isaiah in which the Lord continued to show His reassurances to His people in Zion, a manifestation of Jerusalem, where the people of God lived in at that time, in the kingdom of Judah centred in Jerusalem. As mentioned in the past week of readings and the prophecies through the earlier parts of this Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard of how the people of God had been beset by many troubles, challenges and difficulties which have all been caused by their own doing and that of their ancestors, who had disobeyed the Lord, His Law and commandments, and yet, the Lord kept on reassuring them at the same time, that if they put their faith and trust in Him, He would eventually vindicate and rescue them.

And this is because they were His chosen people, the people whom He truly cared for and loved. He did not want any of them to suffer and be lost to Him. They have all faced sufferings, challenges, difficulties and humiliations all because of their own disobedience and sins, but God had called them all and showed great patience towards them, in gathering and leading them all back towards Him, in showing them His great compassion, mercy and love. And He has also promised them all that all those who remain truly faithful to Him, they shall all enjoy the fullness of God’s love and guidance, and they shall not be found wanting, with their misfortunes to be replaced by good things and wonders, in God’s good time. Therefore, it’s the same with all of us as well, that eventually we shall all share in the great joy that the Lord alone can provide us.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we are reminded that each and every one of us are partakers and parts of those working for the Lord at His vineyard, His field, that is none other than this world. We heard how the Lord and His disciples went from places to places, ministering to the people, to those who were sick and beset by troubles and problems, and in doing so, He has fulfilled the many prophecies that were spoken and revealed about Him by the prophets including that of the prophet Isaiah. And then, He also added on with the sobering words on the reality of how the ‘harvest is plentiful but the labourers are few’, highlighting the vast opportunities for many more people to come to know the Lord, His Good News and salvation, but this is usually hampered by the lack of those who carry on works for this purpose.

That is why we are reminded of this reality today so that each and every one of us in our every moments in life, in everything that we say and do, in all that we constantly carry out in our lives, we will always do our parts as faithful members of our Christian community, in whatever areas and vocations that God had called us to do in our respective lives. We do not need to do great and wonderful things, and we should indeed never compare our efforts and works with one another. First of all, everything that we do, even in the smallest things do matter, and even the smallest things we do, when we do them with genuine and sincere hearts, and with the true understanding of what our Christian faith has shown, taught and called us to do, they will all assemble into a much greater impact, far greater than what we perhaps have imagined.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Nicholas, also known as St. Nicholas of Myra. This saint and great man of God is also perhaps better known as Santa Claus by much of the world, as the corruption of the word Sinterklaas, which is the Dutch name and pronunciation of St. Nicholas’ name. Santa Claus is often associated with Christmas celebrations and season, and is ubiquitous and present everywhere there are Christmas celebrations and festivities. However, do we truly know who St. Nicholas of Myra actually was? Santa Claus is often depicted as an elderly man who is wearing a thick and fluffy red coat and overalls, hats and having a long and thick white beard, bringing lots of gifts in a large bag or sack, to be given to children. This is likely from the tradition and beliefs that St. Nicholas of Myra did so during his time and ministry as Bishop of Myra, in showing kindness to the children in his diocese.

However, St. Nicholas of Myra did more than just all that, and he should be remembered much more than merely just in the popular memory and celebration of being a generous old man who brought forth gifts to children. St. Nicholas of Myra was a great and holy man of God, who was a devotee shepherd to the flock that God had entrusted to him. He was known for his great care for the people, both in their spiritual needs as well as their worldly and physical matters, which is why the legend of Santa Claus began in the first place, as St. Nicholas was also known for his great generosity. St. Nicholas of Myra also lived and ministered to the people of God through the time of great division in the Church, as there were many heresies and false teachings running rampant at that time, and he worked hard to keep his people from being misled and misguided.

St. Nicholas of Myra was also a participant at the Ecumenical Council of Nicaea, where he was one of the bishops and Church fathers involved in the proceedings in formalising the expressions and tenets of the Christian faith. At that Ecumenical Council, the great and harmful heresy of Arianism was outlawed and condemned by the Church. Arianism was a heresy based on the teachings of the popular priest named Arius who rejected the consubstantial and co-eternal nature of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, and instead teaching falsely that the Son was the first among those whom God had created. The truth as we uphold it, is that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Most Holy Trinity and Triune God, are co-equal and co-eternal, having existed from before time, and that the Son was begotten from the Father, not created. St. Nicholas was one of the bishops who fervently championed the true faith.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures and as we continue to prepare ourselves as we progress through this time and season of Advent, let us all continue to show our faith courageously and sincerely not merely through words but also through genuine actions, in each and every moments of our lives. Let us all be good role models, inspirations and examples for one another, touching the lives of those whom God had placed into our paths, so that many more people may come to believe in Him through us, and we truly become good labourers of His field that is this world. May God bless our every efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Friday, 5 December 2025 : 1st Week of Advent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we continue to progress through this season of Advent and as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded through the words of the Sacred Scriptures that we are all presented with, of the hope that will be restored upon us all if we continue to hold on to the hope which we have in God, if we continue to be faithful to Him and putting our trust as always in His Providence and grace. If we truly believe in God and all that He has constantly reassured and promised us with, then surely, in the end, we will be truly joyful knowing that God has triumphed in all that He has said that He will lead us to victory through, in our victory against the tyranny of evil and sin around us, which had kept us in fear and enslaved all these while.

In our first reading today, once again from the continuation of the Book of the prophet Isaiah, as is common during this time of the Advent season, we heard the very encouraging and hopeful message which the Lord had presented to His people, the story of encouragement which the Lord presented to His people, of the promises of better times and conditions which would be heralded by the coming of the miraculous signs and wonders, all of which would indeed come true and to its full completion in the coming of the Messiah, the same Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, the Son of God made Man. This Advent, we are presented with these words of the prophecy of the prophet Isaiah, reminding us all that we have indeed received such great graces and blessings from God, as we have experienced through the coming of Christ.

Those who lived back then during the time of the prophet Isaiah would not have seen the fullness of the completion of God’s promises and everything that He has reassured them, but they did see the glimpses of these through the miracles that God performed via Isaiah and His other means, like how He extended the life of King Hezekiah of Judah when the king begged the Lord to heal him from his terrible affliction which almost brought him to his early death, and also the moment when the Lord struck down the armies of the King of Assyria, Sennacherib, who came up to Judah and Jerusalem bearing massive force of arms, over a hundred thousand strong to besiege and destroy the city of God and its people, blaspheming against God with proud and arrogant words.

God humbled the king of Assyria by sending forth His might, His Angels that struck down most of the forces of the Assyrians, that the proud and haughty Assyrian king had to flee back towards his homeland being utterly humiliated, as God wiped out almost all of his army with a single mighty stroke of His hand. This is a very powerful testimony of God’s providence and His faithfulness to the Covenant that He had made, established and renewed with His people, the people of Israel, guarding and protecting them from the forces of their enemies, rescuing and helping them to get out of their predicament. And not only that, but those were just precursor and premonition of what God would eventually do, in even greater way through His Son, Whom He would send in time to rescue not just the Israelites in Judah, but the whole entire world.

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 going away from the place where He resurrected the dead daughter of a synagogue official, two blind men were following Him and begged Him to have pity on them, that He might heal them of their condition. They spoke courageously and truthfully when the Lord asked them if they believed that He could heal them and make them whole again, and they responded with truly great faith, and by that faith which they had in the Lord, they were healed by the power of God and were made whole again, just as the prophet Isaiah had once prophesied as the sign of the coming of the Messiah.

Then, curiously we heard right afterwards that the Lord immediately told the two blind men that He had just healed, that they should keep the matter quiet and not to proclaim it publicly. Yet, the two blind men, perhaps being overjoyed, went forth and spread the words nonetheless. What does this mean, brothers and sisters in Christ? Why is it that the Lord did not want His exploits and works to be proclaimed loudly among the people? Then we must understand the context of the situation of that time, when the Lord and His disciples were facing tough challenges and obstacles from the members of the Jewish Sanhedrin or High Council, composed of the chief priests, the Pharisees, the Sadducees and others who opposed Him. The more people that came to know of the miraculous healings the Lord did, the more complicated the situation became, and the more vigorous the opposition against the Lord became.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us therefore continue to reflect upon the words of the Sacred Scriptures that we have received today, so that by the words of the hope and reassurances from the Lord, we can continue to grow ever stronger in faith, courage and the dedication to walk in the path that the Lord Himself has placed before us. We are all called to put our faith and trust in God at all times, even in the challenging and difficult moments in life. We should be strengthened by the hope in the Lord, in what He had done for His beloved ones, which we are all as well, so that through our good examples and inspirations, we may be the bearers of hope and the light of God to all the people we encounter in our everyday living.

May the Lord continue to strengthen our faith within us, and may He continue to give us the courage and empowerment so that in everything that we do, we will continue to glorify the Lord by our lives, by our every efforts and endeavours, in continuing to walk ever more faithfully in the path that He has set before us. Let us all continue to strive to be good role models and examples for one another, in proclaiming the Lord’s Good News to everyone we encounter in our paths in life. May God bless us all, now and always, forevermore. Amen. 

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Thursday, 4 December 2025 : 1st Week of Advent, St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded through the words of the Lord as we continue to progress through this season of Advent, the time of spiritual renewal and preparation for the upcoming joyous celebration that we usually have in the upcoming Christmas time and season, that each and every one of us may be truly ready to celebrate it worthily and properly in the manner that we should do it. We should always strive to centre our lives on the Lord, on His truth and love, doing our very best to embody our faith in everything that we say and do. Let this time of Advent be a truly fruitful one, filled with moments that we spend preparing ourselves well in all aspects so that we can indeed celebrate Christmas with the right spirit and joy.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah in which the Lord continued to reassure His beloved people, the Israelites in the southern kingdom of Judah where Isaiah had been sent to minister in, who had been beset by many troubles and challenges, and yet, the Lord would be with them always, and they would not be abandoned even when the people themselves had often abandoned and ignored God and His constant reminders of love and compassion for all of His people. The Lord has always been a source of hope and recourse for the people whenever they faced challenges and trials, and He has sent them help and guidance repeatedly over many years and circumstances. And the Lord reassured His people that He would stand with them even through the most difficult moments.

This would come true very soon indeed in the perspective of the sequence of events that were depicted in the Book of the prophet Isaiah, as a few chapters after what we heard in today’s first reading, where the story of the events surrounding the invasion of Judah by the forces of King Sennacherib of Assyria were recorded, detailing how the Assyrians led by their king came in vast numbers, over a hundred thousand strong to raze and conquer the whole of Judah and besieging its capital city Jerusalem. And if we recall what we have just heard in our first reading today, that was precisely what the Lord had told His people through the prophet Isaiah, and just as He has reassured them, that He would protect them and laid low those who were haughty and proud, the Lord smote down the Assyrians and their king, the latter which had in his great pride and hubris claiming that he would conquer Jerusalem and not even God could stop him.

God sent His mighty Angels to strike upon the armies of the Assyrians, killing most of them through unknown means, but leaving the Assyrian king completely humiliated and shattered, and he had to flee back to his homeland in great shame. Meanwhile, Judah and Jerusalem were rescued and restored, and peace returned to the people of God and their homeland. Hence, we can see clearly here how God had intervened for the sake of those who had been faithful to Him, and that those who have been faithful and committed to God, putting their trust and hope in Him will be vindicated in the end, and no hope in the Lord will come to disappointment, as God is always ever faithful to His Covenant and everything that He has promised to us and reassured us with. This is why we are reminded of this during this time of Advent so that we can continue to grow in faith in the Lord.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the Lord Jesus Himself using a parable to highlight to His disciples what it truly means to be HIs disciples and followers, and that is to put themselves in the firm foundation of faith in God and not in all sorts of worldly means and powers, by which many often put their foundations on. He used the comparison between the strong foundation of solid rock upon which if a house were to be built, it can withstand all kind of storms and waves battering it, while those who built up upon the weak foundation of sand would easily have their houses being destroyed and torn down by the forces of nature assailing it because of the lack of that solid foundation.

In the same way therefore, if we all put our trust in our worldly means, matters and our plans and machinations, more than we put our trust and faith in God, then sooner or later we will find ourselves utterly disappointed because in the end, no matter how firm or secure they may be, none of them can truly satisfy us or support us in the manner that God can. Even if we are to face challenges and trials, but with the Lord by our side, even the greatest and hardest challenges can be overcome if we continue to hold strongly and firmly upon the faith that we have in Him. This of course does not mean that we do not do anything and solely trust in God only, but instead, in all that we do, in our every actions, words and deeds, in every moments, everything that we do must always be firmly anchored in our faith and hope in the Lord.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. John Damascene, also known as St. John of Damascus, a renowned monk, priest and theologian, who is honoured as one of the esteemed Doctors of the Church for his may works and contributions. St. John of Damascus was born in a prominent Christian Arab family in part of what is Syria today, which then was under the rule of the Umayyad Caliphate. As he came from a family of officials who were involved in the earlier Byzantine bureaucracy, and then later on the Arabic Umayyad government, St. John was raised up and educated well, and became a well-educated man, serving in the court of the Umayyad Caliph before he became a priest and monk.

St. John of Damascus dedicated his life thereafter to the study of the Christian faith, its theology and mysteries, which he discussed and touched upon in his many writings and works. St. John was also notedly involved in the controversies surrounding the matter of iconoclasm that was then widespread through the Byzantine or the Eastern Roman Empire and the other parts of Christendom. At that time, there were parties and members of the Church and the clergy, with support even from some of the Emperors, who wished to ban the veneration of icons and images, considering them to be un-Christian in nature. This iconoclastic practices were opposed by the Pope and many other members of the clergy and the Church, including that of St. John of Damascus.

St. John of Damascus worked hard against all those who took part and sided in the iconoclastic heresy, and he had to face a lot of hardships in doing so, even to the point of being persecuted, falsely implicated in crimes and suffering from plots against him, that he even had his hand cut off. Miraculously, before the icon of the Theotokos, the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Mother of God through his fervent prayers, his hand was restored. St. John remained firm and courageous in his defence of the true faith, despite the trials and challenges against him, and he persevered throughout his life, finally being vindicated and exonerated from all the false accusations against him when the iconoclast heresy was finally overthrown and defeated.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reflect upon what we have just discussed from the messages of the Sacred Scriptures and also from the life and experiences of St. John of Damascus. Let us all see in what way that we can continue to move forward in life with strong and genuine faith which we all ought to have, doing our very best to care for those whom the Lord has entrusted to us, our beloved and precious ones and all those whom we encounter in our daily and every moments in life. May God be with us always and may He continue to strengthen our faith during this journey throughout this Advent season, that we may continue to grow ever closer to Him, now and always. Amen.

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Wednesday, 3 December 2025 : Feast of St. Francis Xavier, Priest, Patron of Missions and Missionaries (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day as we gather together to worship the Lord and to proclaim His glory, and as we all heard from the passages of the Sacred Scriptures, we are reminded that as we continue to progress through this time and season of Advent, we should continue to do our part as Christians, as those whom God had called and chosen so that we may truly embody our Christian faith in everything  that we say and do, that we may indeed proclaim the Lord in every opportunities that had been provided for us, in all the encounters with those who are around us, we may always be the bearers of God’s Good News and His love, compassion, truth and hope to everyone we meet and work with, to our communities and everyone whom we care for, as is our mission in life to do so.

Today we mark the Feast of St. Francis Xavier, the Patron of Missions and Missionaries and hence, the Scripture readings speak strongly about what is the meaning of Christian mission and the role of missionaries in fulfilling and completing what the Lord has entrusted to each and every one of us, His beloved people. In the first reading from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians, the Apostle spoke of what he was called to do as a minister of the Good News of God, and that everything which he had done, he did for the greater glory of God and not for his own benefits, while in our Gospel passage today, we heard of the words of the Lord Jesus Himself to His disciples and followers after His Resurrection, reminding them all of the missions which He has entrusted to them, to go forth to all the nations and to proclaim His truth and Good News, and how He would always be with them in all of their efforts and works.

Today as mentioned, the Church marks the occasion of the Feast of St. Francis Xavier, the Patron of Missions and a member of the Society of Jesus or the Jesuits renowned for his lengthy and great missionary journeys to different parts of the world, especially his works in Asia, in the regions of India and South Asia, then Southeast Asia and the Far East, in Macau, China and Japan. St. Francis Xavier gave inspiration to many others in how he dedicated his life and service to God, in his perseverance to continue the mission despite the challenges and hardships he encountered during his journeys, and his passion and love for his fellow brothers and sisters, in the genuine desire he has to proclaim the Word of God and His Good News to more and more of the people of God all around the world.

St. Francis Xavier was born in what is today Spain as Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta in the town of Javier or Xavier which would later on made him known as Francis Xavier as we know him today. He was one of the companions of the Founder of the Society of Jesus, St. Ignatius of Loyola and one of the first members of the Jesuits, considered as one of its founding members. Back then, during the height of the Protestant reformation, St. Ignatius of Loyola gathered his companions and other like-minded people to commit themselves to the works of evangelisation and other ministries to spearhead the efforts in countering the terrible effects of the so-called reformation, which splintered the Church in many places into several factions and ‘churches’, and heresies and falsehoods were abound because of errant heretics and preachers.

The Jesuits were founded with the aim to help the Pope and the Church to oppose the tide of heresy and disunity, as well as to reform the Church in the right way. St. Ignatius of Loyola sent out the Jesuits in ministering both to the traditional areas of Christendom like in what is today Germany, the hotbed of the reformation, and also to those mission areas beyond Europe, where European explorers and adventurers made many discoveries of distant lands, all of which had not yet heard the message of God’s truth, His Gospels and the Good News of His salvation. St. Francis Xavier was among those entrusted with the responsibility to proclaim the Good News in the foreign and distant lands, and hence, he went forth, never returning to his homeland ever again.

He followed the long journey to the newly discovered areas, embarking on an extensive missionary journeys in parts of India, where missionaries had already laid some foundations earlier on, as well as areas of Southeast Asia like Malacca and the Spice Islands where he went to several islands and communities, preaching about God and gaining some people who were interested to know more about the Lord and became the first Christian converts in those areas. He did not always have it smooth though, as he did face rejection and hardships along the way, and in a well-known story about him, St. Francis Xavier almost met his end in a terrible storm in the sea, where the boat he was in was battered by waves and the strong wind. He prayed to God and thrust his crucifix into the waves, which then fell into the water and the storm stopped miraculously. A crab later on brought the crucifix back to St. Francis Xavier, who blessed it, and that crab later on always had a cross on its back.

That is just one of the many well-known stories regarding St. Francis Xavier, in his many efforts to serve the Lord through his time and work, in proclaiming the Good News to the furthest ends of the world. He went on to proclaim the Gospels in Japan, and was instrumental in laying the foundations for the later very successful Jesuit mission in Japan, which despite its termination later by the very intense persecutions under the Tokugawa Shogunate, for a period of about fifty years, the Church managed to flourish really well in Japan, with an estimated three hundred thousand Christians during the very height of the mission there, several decades after the passing of St. Francis Xavier. St. Francis Xavier himself passed away in Shangchuan Island just on the shores of China as he awaited the opportunity to enter China to begin a mission there. Some of other Jesuits like the famous Matteo Ricci would then continue what St. Francis Xavier had started.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all continue to follow therefore in the footsteps of the courageous St. Francis Xavier in his determination and commitment to serve the Lord in everything that he had done, in all the missions which he undertook even in the most difficult and challenging moments. Let us all be inspired by this great courage and faith which our holy predecessor had shown so that in our own actions, in our own words and interactions with one another, in our own lives as Christians, we will continue to be the shining examples and inspirations ourselves to everyone around us, to all those whom we encounter in our daily lives. May God bless our every good works, efforts and endeavours therefore, for His greater glory, in our respective missions in life. Amen.