Reflection of the Bible

by

Monday, 20 February 2017 : 7th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we are reminded that while we mankind can perform all sorts of wonderful deeds and achievements, but we are truly nothing compared to the wonders of our God. And we are also nothing if we do not have God on our side. If we are separated from God, we cannot do anything, as all that we have achieved all ultimately have come from God.

Without God, His wisdom and grace, there will be no wisdom in us, as we are all like empty vessels made from dust, as when He created us from the earth, without the Wisdom of the Spirit of God, which He Himself placed in us. And for all of our boasting and hubris about our own achievements and abilities, not even mankind’s greatest technologies and achievements are able to give an answer for all of our needs.

It is in God alone that we can find an answer to all of our needs. In the matter of the material and worldliness, indeed, we may be able to find satisfaction and answer from the world and its ways, but in the matter of the spiritual, our answer comes from God alone. That is why in the Gospel today, Jesus chided and rebuked His disciples and the people for their lack of faith in Him.

They tried to cast out the evil spirits in the boy, but they did not have complete faith in Him. They perhaps had thought that they had their power of healing and creating miracles because of their own power and might, but all the authority which had been given to them came ultimately from God. God granted them the power and authority over the whole world, over all mankind, and even over the spiritual forces, the evil spirits.

Jesus rebuked them for their lack of faith, and said that there is a need for them to have faith in Him. Without faith, there could be no healing and power, and without faith, nothing good will happen. It was because of faith that the Lord was able to exercise His work and power through His people and principally through His disciples. They carry out the good works of His hands, and He gave them the means to do so.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all ask ourselves, whether we have been faithful to God, and not just any kind of faith, but indeed, to have a genuine and true faith in the Lord. Faith in the Lord is the foundation of everything we have, and should be the cornerstone of all of our actions, words and deeds. With faith, even things that seem to be impossible are possible, for nothing is truly impossible with God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as Christians it is important that each and every one of us must have genuine faith in our God. We must not become only a ‘paper’ Christian, where we are just Christians by formality, or because we have been brought up in the faith but then we do nothing more or worse still, want to have nothing to do with our faith and beliefs in God.

We must show our faith through action, to show that what we believe in God, is not just a formality alone, but instead that we really ingrain it in ourselves, that we really understand and appreciate the importance of our faith in our lives. Let us all therefore from now onwards, if we have not done so, spend our time to carry out good works of charity, love and mercy, and also showing care and concern for one another, for our neighbours, especially those who have fallen in the darkness and become lost from God and from us.

May the Lord bless us all and may He strengthen our faith. May He empower us with the strength to carry out daily what He has given us to do. May He be the pillar of our strength, and may He be the foundation of our lives. God be with us all, now and forever. Amen.

by

Sunday, 19 February 2017 : Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today on this Sunday, the holy day of the Lord, all of us are called by God to be holy. Indeed, we have all been called to be holy just as the Lord Himself is holy, and this means that our every words, actions and deeds must reflect that holiness and sanctity that must be present inside each one of us. This is what the Lord wants from us, brothers and sisters in Christ.

To be holy however, does not mean for us to boast about our piety and our devotion to God. That is the way of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, which our Lord Jesus Himself had denounced and rebuked before His disciples and the people. Being holy does not equate us saying prayers aloud in public, or reciting prayers after prayers, or by carrying with us holy relics and items to be seen by others. All these are external signs of faith and without genuine holiness inside us, they mean nothing for us.

Indeed, what the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had done were not real and true holiness, as they did so in order to advance their own worldly achievements, fame and glory, rather than being truly holy in the sight of God and men. Instead, as we read through the Scripture passages we have heard today, we can understand better how we ought to be holy and devout to God.

While the Pharisees and the elders, the teachers of the Law shunned the poor, the sinners like prostitutes and the tax collectors, and while they heaped burdens upon burdens on others, rejecting those who they deemed to be unworthy of them, the Lord said that all of us must embrace our brethren in need, our neighbours and all those who have not been loved and abandoned by the society.

This is true holiness, that we show our holiness through action, where we show our understanding of what it truly means to be holy and good in the sight of God. True holiness is love, mercy and compassion, to show compassion and love even on our enemies and those who despise and hate us. To be holy is to be able to forgive others their trespasses against us, and to have compassion on those who are suffering and those who have been sundered from the love of God through sin.

This is the essence of what Jesus our Lord told His disciples and also all of us in the Gospel today, that as Christians called to a holy life, we all ought to love tenderly and sincerely, showing unconditional love to all the people, without the need and want for return and reciprocation. That kind of love which requires reciprocation and returns is not true love, but a transaction of a worldly type, like that of money.

We do business and transactions expecting that each party would honour each other’s pledge to give according to what had been agreed. But love cannot be given in this manner, as if we put condition to our love, the love which we give, then it is no longer genuine love, but instead twisted and changed by our desires and human greed. This is not true love, and it will not lead us into true holiness.

Rather, let us all look at the examples of the holy saints and servants of God, all of whom had practiced the actions of true holiness in their own lives. Throngs of saints showed mercy, compassion and care for the poor and the needy, both those who were materially poor, and even more importantly, to those who were spiritually poor and in need of help.

Many of the holy saints of God worked hard to bring the Word of God to those who have been led astray by the temptations of the devil and this world. Some went forth to faraway lands such as St. Francis Xavier and the many other brave and courageous missionaries who went to spread the word of God’s salvation to many people who are still living in the darkness and ignorance of the Lord. And many followed them not because they were outwardly holy and pious, but rather because they showed through their dedication and through their actions, that they were servants of God, and His holiness shone through them.

And we know of those holy men who by their actions and work among the people had inspired many others to follow in their footsteps, the likes of St. John Mary Vianney and St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina. Many other holy saints like them showed true holiness to others and are venerated by many through the ages, until even this very day as many of us well know just how popular these saints are, because of their humility, and because of their total submission to the will of God.

This is what we, as the people of God, as Christians who believe in the Lord, should be like, that we follow in the footsteps of the saints who had been deemed holy and worthy by the Church, by the virtues of their life, their faith and dedication, that they are worthy of becoming the source of inspiration and light to brighten the path we ourselves are to take on our way to the Lord, that we may find our path to the Lord.

Why is this so important? That is because as St. Paul pointed out in the second reading we have today, in his Epistle to the Corinthians, we are all the Temples of the Holy Presence of God, as God Himself had made us all to be His dwellings on earth. Not only just that He had come into this world, as one among us, through Jesus Christ, but through that act also, He had given us His own real Flesh and Blood to eat, and all of us who have shared in this ultimate gifts of our Lord, have received Him in our very own beings.

And therefore, it is only appropriate that if the Lord Himself resides within us, and really present in us, then we should make ourselves as holy and pure as possible, distancing ourselves from all sorts of sins and wicked actions and deeds. If we do our best to make our places of worships, our churches and cathedrals to be immaculate and worthy, then why should we not do the same with our own bodies, our own hearts, minds, and indeed our whole beings? For we are also the Temple and House of God’s residence.

I like to compare ourselves as windows and mirrors, and a good mirror ought to let the light to pass through and show the beauty of that light. In our churches and cathedrals, we often have stained glass decorations on the walls, with images of the saints and other biblical figures, and indeed, that is what saints are truly like. They are like stained glasses that are beautifully decorated, and when light shines through them, they showed their great beauty because of that light.

It means that the light of God is reflected in the life and works of the saints of God, all of whose obedience, humility and all the myriads of forms of their devotion to God had become examples for us to follow. They are like beautiful stained glass untainted by dust, dirt, grease or grime. Then how about ourselves, brethren? Are we like them, or are we more like stained glass that have long been left without maintenance, filled with dirt and all other things that have made us ugly and hideous in the sight of others?

That is the nature of our sin, brothers and sisters in Christ. Sin has made us to be twisted, corrupted and bereft of the true beauty of our beings, that is holiness in God. We must reject our past ways of sin and wickedness, and follow in the footsteps of the holy saints and all those who have been faithful in their life. Let us all begin by showing love for those who are around us, to those whom we meet along the way. Let us show mercy and forgiveness for those who have hurt us, and let us from now on lead a righteous and faithful life without sin.

May the Lord help us all to be holy in all of our deeds, that eventually we will be great and glorious like the holy saints and all those whom God had called and made worthy. May He bless us all and show His light, that our lives may be filled with His light, and through us, the light of God will lead many others to salvation and grace. God bless us all and be with us all always. Amen.

by

Saturday, 18 February 2017 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we are presented with the passages from the Sacred Scriptures, calling us to be faithful to the Lord our God, by the examples of our forefathers, who had been made just and righteous by their faith, from the time of Abel, whose faith was a great and shining light amidst the darkness in the hearts of men, to the time of Enoch and Noah, and finally to the time of Jesus itself.

While mankind had been corrupted by sin, and through their disobedience they had been sundered from God’s love, but among the sons and daughters of mankind, there had been those who were willing to resist the temptations to sin, and preferred to walk in the path of the Lord, following the path of righteousness and faith, and for that, they had been greatly rewarded.

Abel had been faithful to the Lord, and offered to Him a worthy sacrifice, and He had been faithful to the Lord’s commands, offering only what was the best for Him. Abel gave his offering with a sincere heart, and God answered Abel’s faith with His approval. But Cain was jealous of his younger brother’s acceptance by the Lord, while his offering was rejected, because he was likely not sincere and genuine in offering his own gifts.

As we know, Cain murdered Abel for that, and were cursed for what he had done. For he had sinned before God and men alike. But Abel did not suffer and die for nothing, for his faith in God had justified him, and by his blood, the blood of his martyrdom for his righteousness had made him just, and God surely welcomed him into His place in heaven.

Enoch was exceptional among the sons and daughters of mankind, for he alone among all others, have been raised and lifted up directly to heaven, not having to endure the pain of death, which is the punishment and consequence for our sins. Enoch was righteous and just in all of his actions, and therefore God rewarded him with the gift of heavenly grace, for his faith and dedication to Him.

And Noah had been faithful amidst a world filled with wickedness, evil and all sorts of sin. He alone among all others had been faithful, and therefore God rescued him and his family from the great flood, with which God cleansed the whole world from the taints of mankind’s great sins. By his faith, Noah had been made worthy and brought away from the calamities that befell all others around him.

And it is the great contributions and examples of these three great predecessors of ours which should inspire us to also walk in their footsteps and be obedient to the Lord as they had been obedient and faithful. In the Gospel today, Jesus was transfigured before His disciples on Mount Tabor, where He revealed the truth about Himself and His glory to St. Peter, St. John and St. James, showing to them Who He really was, and indeed what they and all other men and women are going to be, as a preview of the time that is to come.

The story of the Transfiguration of our Lord is more than just the revelation of our Lord Jesus as the Divine Word of God and the Messiah to His disciples, but even more so, because He has taken up the nature of our flesh and blood, and therefore as the perfect Man, He had shown us all our future, if we are to follow Him and obey Him in all of His laws and precepts.

The Transfiguration of our Lord is a prelude and a brief taste for us to see how God revealed to us what awaits all those who have kept their faith in Him. This is because by sin we have been made dirty and tainted, unworthy to receive the grace of God, but at the same time, God wants us to be cleansed and be purified from all those things that had tainted us, all for the same reason that God loves each and every one of us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all spend some time to reflect on today’s Scripture passages, and ask ourselves whether we have been faithful to God in all of our actions, words and deeds. Have we loved and showed care for one another, for our brethren and neighbours around us, just as the Lord had taught us to do? Have we committed ourselves faithfully to be true disciples of our Lord, or is our faith just an empty and meaningless faith without action?

Let us all remind one another, that each and every one of us will always do our best to help each other to reach out to the Lord and to His salvation, that we may always persevere to resist the temptations to sin and the pressure to commit things that cause corruption and wickedness to enter into our beings. Let us all pray that all of us may become more like Christ in our ways, that we will be transformed by His light and His love, that we are no longer children of sin and darkness, but instead like Abel, Enoch and Noah of the ancient times we may be found worthy to be with God and receive His eternal life and grace. God bless us all. Amen.

by

Friday, 17 February 2017 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of the Seven Holy Founders of the Servite Order (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we all heard the proclamations of the Scripture reminding us not to follow in the footsteps of the proud, the arrogant and the haughty ones. In the first reading we heard about the story of the Tower of Babel, which was the place where God scattered all of His people because of their pride and arrogance.

In that passage, we heard about how mankind after the time of Noah had grown powerful, great and filled with many great things and riches of the world. Everyone spoke the same language since they were descended from Noah and his family, and all the people gathered together, having ambition in their hearts to surpass even the glory of God, plotting to build a great tower which height would reach out to heaven itself.

It was their pride that had become their undoing, as it had for Satan, who fell from his haughtiness, and became an example for all others who thought that they could become like God, or to be even greater than God. He wanted to surpass God and the other Angels, such was the pride and ambition in his heart, who had been created with great and unsurpassed beauty and might among the Angels of God, as Lucifer.

But Lucifer rebelled against God, and disobeyed Him. And he was defeated, and was humiliated and cast out of heaven. Such was his fate because of his pride, and such was therefore also the fate of those others who followed in his footsteps, the people who tried to build up the great tower of Babel. They were scattered and confused in their language, as a reminder that no matter how great, mighty and powerful we are, our power and might are nothing if we are not with God.

It is what the Lord wanted us all to remember, even as we now continue to live our respective lives here on earth. He Himself has come into this world in order to show us the way. Many kings and lords of this world were powerful, proud of their power, intellect, achievements and greatness, but He, Who is the King of all kings, and Lord of all lords, came into this world humbly, not flaunting to others His might and power, even though His power is true power, and His might is real might.

He came into this world to humbly work the works that His Father has entrusted to Him to do, that is the salvation of this world. He bore the burden of the cross for our sake, His people, that by all of His sacrifice, He might save us all from the hopelessness and despair because of our sins, and from all the sufferings caused by our disobedience against God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we should also heed what our Lord Jesus had said in the Gospel today. He said that it is better for someone to lose one’s life and lose other things for the sake of the Lord, rather than for someone to try to save his or her life, and at the cost of his or her own soul. It is a kind reminder by our Lord that to be His disciple, we often will need to make sacrifices, and also to endure rejection and opposition from others.

Are we as Christians ready to take up the challenges and the crosses of our life together with Jesus? Are we ready to follow in the footsteps of our Lord, be humble and be meek in all things, and not to be proud, arrogant or haughty just because of our human achievements, power and greatness? It is important that we should resist the temptations of our flesh, through which the devil is constantly trying to pull us into sin.

Let us all follow in the footsteps of the seven Holy Founders of the Servite order. These seven men were people of exceptional piety and devotion to the Lord, and each of them were committed to serve God’s people, and for that reason, they established the congregation of the Servites. They led others into a life of poverty, simplicity and humility before God.

Many people were inspired to follow in their footsteps, to let go of their pride and their human ambitions, and instead endeavour to follow the Lord and be humble in all of their deeds. Let us all seek to be humble and to devote ourselves wholeheartedly to the Lord. Let us all spend our whole lives and all the things that we do, glorifying the Lord by our deeds.

May the Lord bless us all and all of our endeavours and works. May He remain with us always, and keep us all in His loving grace. May God be with us all, now and forevermore. Amen.

by

Thursday, 16 February 2017 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, from what we heard in the Scripture passages today, we can see how God loves each and every one of us mankind, whom He had created out of love, the concern and care He has shown for us. We heard how He saved Noah from the great flood that engulfed the whole world and consumed all the others who were wicked and filled with evil. He made a covenant with him, promising that He would no longer wipe out mankind for their transgressions.

God is so full of mercy and patience, that even when we mankind had disobeyed Him and walked away from His path, but He was always willing to forgive and to allow us to return to His grace. And He gave us all every help that He could give, including sending upon us many helpers, and His messengers and prophets to call us back to repentance and to turn away from our sins.

But many of us refused to listen to Him, and refused to believe in the truth which He had preached into the world, and even when He sent us all His own Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, many refused to listen to Him, and turn their back against the Saviour of the world. There were those who believed in Him, the Apostles and disciples of Jesus, who believed in the Lord despite of the challenges and difficulties facing them.

This then brings us to the reality of our world, where those who walk in the ways of the truth are always going to face difficulties, opposition and challenges, just as the world had risen up against the Lord Jesus before. There are a lot of resistance from man to remain as they are in their current state of sin and wickedness. Yet, the Lord never gave up on us, so much so that He was willing to endure the persecution and suffering at the hands of the Pharisees, the elders and the chief priests.

That was what we all well know as what truly happened during the time when our Lord Jesus faced His Passion in this world. He loved us all so dearly that He was willing to endure the weight of the cross and the burdens of the sins of all mankind. He suffered lashes and whips, torture and pain of thorns and the pain of the nails of the crucifixion, all for the aim that we mankind may have hope to be redeemed from our sins.

Yet, many of us are not yet appreciative of what we have been given, all the blessings that we have received, all the things that we have enjoyed in this life. Many of us lived in the same manner as the people living wickedly during the time of Noah. And we all know how they all met their end. No one who remains wicked and unjust can enter into the kingdom of God, and all will perish in the darkness and suffering unless one turns wholeheartedly towards the Lord.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as Christians we are all called to be true servants of our Lord, following and imitating the Lord in all that He had shown us and revealed to us. As Christians we should open ourselves to receive the love of Christ, remembering the great love which He had shown to us. We should resist the temptations for us to sin, for the devil is always at work trying to pull us away from the path to salvation.

Let us all help one another, brethren, that we may resist the temptations and persuasions of the devil, for us to abandon the way of the Lord just because it seems to be too difficult for us. This is what he had done, when he tried to put obstacles before the path of Jesus our Lord, but Jesus was not intimidated at all, and rebuked Satan and his works.

Let us all understand that following God may often mean that we have to endure rejection, opposition and even persecution from the world, because the way of the Lord is not compatible with the ways of this world. But we must never give up, for to give up means for us to submit to the attempts of the devil trying to drag us into damnation and darkness with him.

Let us work together, as brothers and sisters in Christ, imitating the love which God had shown us, and practice it in our own lives. May we be merciful towards each other, showing care, concern and compassion to all those who need them. Let us do our best to make sure that the wickedness of Satan and all sorts of sin have no place in our hearts, which are instead filled with the love of God. May the Lord be with us all, bless us and keep us in His grace forevermore. Amen.

by

Wednesday, 15 February 2017 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day, as we continue the discourse from the Sacred Scriptures, we listened to the tale of Noah and his Ark, which endured the great flood with all of his family and with all of kinds of living animals and plants. Noah was saved from damnation and utter distraction because of his faith, dedication to God and to His ways, there is a new hope that arises within us, because God did not forget His beloved ones, and neither did He want to see us perish.

He had sent the great flood to the earth, wiping out all mankind save for Noah, for they were wicked and they refused to repent, and therefore, they met their fated destruction, because of their inability to change themselves and their ways of life. They died and perished because of their own sins, the result of their disobedience against God and His ways.

Noah alone had remained faithful, and therefore, God extended His protection and grace over him and his whole family, that he would not be counted among the wicked and the unjust, and perish with them. Instead, he was carried away safely in the Ark with his whole family, and from him descended all the sons and daughters of man, all the way down the generations to us today.

We are all around in this world because God has had mercy on our ancestors, on our forefathers. He has showed His love and forgiveness to them, and there were those among them who believed in God, turned away from their sins and followed Him. These were the ones who passed down their faith to their descendants, and from them, and also through the Church, we receive our faith.

And so great was God’s love for us that He gave us help and assistance throughout time, that whenever we fall into sin, He would give us His guides, prophets and messengers to remind us all of the true and right path, so that we would not fall deeper into the darkness and sin. There were many of those who refused to listen and therefore perish, but there were also those who listened to the Lord’s call, believed, and were saved.

Ultimately, He also gave us Himself through Jesus Christ His Son, Who came into the world in order to save us. He has done His many miraculous works, as what we heard in the Gospel today, healing those who were blind, and also those who were deaf, mute, paralysed, and also those who were afflicted and possessed by demons and wicked spirits.

He came into this world to rescue us, that we may not sink into the multitudes of our sins, and all the wickedness that are all around us. To this extent, He has established His Church, through which He gathered all those who believe in Him, and bring them to safety. For often the Church is likened to a boat, a ship sailing through the turbulent waters of this world. It was indeed just as how the Ark of Noah saved him and his family, with many other animals and plants from the destruction by the great flood.

God had given us all so much of His love, and now what we all need to do, is to replicate the same love which He had given us. We should not harden our hearts so much so that we became like those people living at Noah’s time, who must have laughed at Noah and mocked him for obeying the Lord’s command to build a great Ark. It was only when it was too late for them, when the flood took over them, that they realised their folly. But it was way too late for them.

Let us all spend some time to reflect on this matter, and learn to put forth more of our effort to love the Lord, by obeying Him and by listening to His words, following in His laws and commandments, so that in everything we say and do, we will always be found righteous by God, and be worthy to receive the eternal glory God had promised to all those who remain true and faithful to Him.

May the Lord bless us all and may He strengthen in us our faith, so that we may continue to serve Him with all our heart, and draw closer to Him with each and every passing day. God be with us all. Amen.

by

Tuesday, 14 February 2017 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Cyril, Monk and St. Methodius, Bishop, Patron Saints of Europe (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, in today’s Scripture readings, we heard of the time when God saved the righteous among His people from among the wicked and those who refused to repent their sins, when He cleansed the whole earth from the wickedness of the descendants of Cain, those who involved themselves in all sorts of debauchery and wickedness.

He saved Noah and his family with the Ark, rescuing them from the great flood that came to engulf all the wicked people of the world, bringing with them all sorts of animals and plants. This is a story which all of us are surely quite familiar with. But at the centre of it all is how God loves all of mankind, all those whom He had created with love, those who live in this world.

That is what Jesus had also done to the people whom He loved, in the Gospel today when we heard about how Jesus had fed the multitudes of the five thousand men, not counting the women and children, which led to even more people whom God had fed and cared for, out of the love and pity which He had for His people who are suffering.

Then one might ask, why then God sent a great flood to destroy all the wicked and erase their existence from the earth? Should He not be loving and kind, merciful and graceful to us? Should He not show His love to all, even to great sinners and disobedient people? But why did He then destroy His people? Surely this is what bothered many of us, something that we cannot comprehend, that the God of love should destroy His people?

That is because while God loves all of us mankind, each and every one of us without exception, and He also extends His mercy freely and gracefully, but His love and mercy only come to its fullness when we mankind are receptive to that love, and open our hearts to welcome the love which God gave us. The love of God then can enter our hearts, and transform us with love, and make us into a people filled with love, grace, righteousness and justice.

But when mankind refused to open their hearts to welcome God’s love, and stubbornly closed the doors of their heart before the Lord, rejecting the offer of God’s mercy and love, then God’s mercy and love will not take effect with us. And that is why while the sins of sinners who repent and commit themselves to change will be forgiven their sins, but sinners who refuse to repent will remain in the state of sin.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today is a time of reflection, a time for us to take a step back and look into our lives, whether we have been faithful to God, and whether we have been receptive to God’s love and mercy. If we have been faithful thus far, then it is good with us, and we need to continue the good works that we have started. Meanwhile, if we have not been faithful, then we really need to do something in order to change our lives for the better.

Perhaps we should look up the examples of St. Cyril and St. Methodius, the saints whose feast we are celebrating on this day. St. Cyril and St. Methodius were brothers who devoted themselves and their lives into the service of God, and were known as Patron Saints of Europe because of what they had contributed massively in the field of evangelisation to many people, particularly to the pagans who lived in what is now central and eastern parts of Europe.

St. Cyril and St. Methodius helped to translate the Scriptures and the teachings of the Church into the versions readable and understandable by the pagans, particularly among the Slavic peoples. It was their evangelising work that laid the foundation of the faith among the Slavs, most of whom now call themselves as Christians, all of which were rooted from the work of these two saints.

They have allowed God to work His great and wonderful works through them, committing themselves to a life of service to Him, spreading and preaching the word of God to peoples in faraway lands, those who have not yet had the chance to listen to the word of God, and still lived in the darkness of sin. This is what all of us Christians ought to do, that we become God’s intermediate, that through us the conversions of many can be done.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all commit ourselves anew to the Lord, and inspired by the examples of St. Cyril and St. Methodius, and also from the righteous Noah and his family, let us all commit ourselves to a life of virtue and grace, filled with God’s love and light, and share this faith we have with one another, helping each other to find our way to the Lord.

May the Lord bless us all and strengthen us, that our faith will be ever stronger, so that we may commit ourselves and empower one another to be righteous and be worthy of God’s love, that we will not find our due among those who perished in the great flood. May God be with us all, now and forever. Amen.

by

Monday, 13 February 2017 : 6th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the Sacred Scriptures, to the reading from the Book of Genesis, where we heard the famous story of Cain and Abel, the sons of Adam and Eve, where the account of the first murder, a very serious sin in the sight of God, was done by mankind. Cain murdered Abel because of his jealousy, that his sacrifice to God was not accepted while that of Abel was accepted.

It is the overarching theme of today’s Scripture readings, that is of sin and the refusal of mankind to repent from their sins and from their waywardness. Beginning with Cain to the sons of men and women down the ages, to the Pharisees and the opponents of Jesus during His time, and right down to us living here in this era and time, and most likely to the time in the future and beyond. Sin is always a part of our life, and many found it difficult to disentangle themselves from the trap of sin.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, one may be wondering why Cain and his sacrifice was rejected, while the sacrifice of Abel was accepted by God. It is most probably because due to the sins of mankind, the ground and earth itself has been corrupted and cursed, and all the products of the earth had been tainted as a result. When God banished mankind from Eden, He cursed the very earth itself, saying that man will have to work hard and toil, and even though they work hard, there will be little produce.

And as shown throughout the Old Testament, God prefers animal sacrifices, and Abel as a shepherd offered his best sheep to God, at the same time when Cain offered his produce of the land, his crops and vegetables. In this manner, the contrast can be drawn in that while Abel obeyed the Lord and offered his very best, as what the Lord had instructed man to do, while Cain disobeyed and gave what was inferior.

This is a representation and comparison between those who obeyed the Lord, righteous in their ways, and followed the Lord, with those who have erred and wandered away from God, disobeyed Him and sinned. And we saw how the jealousy of Cain caused him to kill his own brother in cold blood, just because his sacrifices was not accepted by God.

Cain was the older brother, while Abel was the younger. From what we can understand in the relationships between siblings, it is likely that Cain felt humiliated by what he experienced, and his pride and ego took over him, as he felt the inability to accept that his brother had been honoured while he had not been given the same recognition. Thus, jealousy arose in his heart, and from jealousy comes anger, and from anger comes the intention to murder.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the same happened to the Pharisees, who always tried to test Jesus and to hinder His works wherever He went, because they were unable to restrain their pride and ego, as they saw in Jesus a rival who must be eliminated so that their privileges and positions of honour could be maintained. This is why they were so adamant in their opposition to Jesus, and sin therefore prevailed over reason and truth.

All of these are reminders for us, that we are all weak and feeble creatures, sinful and unworthy men and women, who so easily succumb to the temptations of sin, to the distractions of the world, and to all the allures of the flesh. We are all like Cain who can succumb to our pride and ego, to the pull of our greed, to the malign forces and influences of jealousy and hatred, which lead us all into committing sin before God and before our brethren.

Therefore, let us all today, now and henceforth do our best in order to resist the temptations of sin, the distractions of this world, and learn to do our best in order to commit ourselves wholeheartedly to the Lord, by giving our love to Him, by deepening our spiritual relationship with Him through prayer and charity, loving our brethren who are in need, those who have no one to care for them.

It is through our faith and through the love we have in our works, that we are all brought closer to God, and further away from the darkness of our sins. It is important that we should learn to change our ways and to devote ourselves to righteousness from now on. Let us all repent our sins, be genuine in our conversion to God’s ways, and say to the Lord that we are all ready to walk in His ways.

May the Lord bless us all, and may He strengthen our faith, that we may always walk in His ways, and be righteous all of our lives, so that we will keep ourselves pure amidst a world filled with sin and darkness. May the Lord be with us all, guide us, and remain with us forevermore. Amen.

by

Sunday, 12 February 2017 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this Sunday, we heard the messages from the Sacred Scriptures telling us about the wisdom of man and the wisdom of God. Many of us boast in our abilities, our intellect and our greatness, but in all of these, what we all know and are capable of, are nothing compared to the greatness and the glory of God.

It is often that we mankind try to be better than God, by not listening to Him, by not obeying His laws and ways, and by trying to come out with ways to make things convenient for themselves, but at the cost of disobedience and sinning before God. We often trust in our own judgement and in our own wisdom, but all these are incapable of bringing us true satisfaction.

For there are really many things that are beyond our grasp, and beyond our ability to comprehend them. And this is why it is so important for us to have our faith in God, for the Lord has revealed to us His truth through none other than Jesus our Lord, Who came into this world to bring light, His light into it, and dispel the darkness that clouded our minds and our visions of the way ahead.

We need to open ourselves to receive God’s truth and wisdom, and we must not be like the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, whom Jesus criticised in the Gospel today, as those who knew the Law, and yet although they knew it and remembered it, but they did not do as what the Law intended for them to do. They did not practice what they supposed to practice, and instead putting trust in their own human intellect and wisdom.

Why is this so? That is because they had become proud and arrogant as they were entrusted with the leadership of the people and with the guardianship of the laws of God. They oppress the people with many laws, rules and regulations, which they themselves did not understand and appreciate, as they enforced these with the intention of making themselves praised and honoured before others, when all others saw just how faithful and devout they were in fulfilling the laws.

Yet, they had no God in their hearts. God is not the priority in their lives, as they filled it rather with their own purposes and desires. They have not been faithful, and misled others, and in some occasions they even made it difficult for others to find their way towards the Lord, as they condemned those whom they deemed to be sinners and unworthy of God’s saving grace.

But Jesus rebuked all of them and showed just how wrong they were. They were not able to fulfil what God had entrusted to them, that is to help guide the people of God on the way to righteousness. Instead, they made these people to endure the laws like a chore, and not truly understanding what is it that they uphold and are expected to do under the Law.

Jesus revealed to them the truth, by teaching them what the laws of God truly means. He taught them all that the Law of God must be understood in its whole purpose, rather than just in individual terms. The laws of God are not individual and separate laws that just ought to be obeyed as they are, but one must learn why is it that they must be obeyed, so that these laws will benefit us.

Take for example, the law on murder, where Jesus explained that, even though the Law prescribed punishment for those who had committed murder, but murder itself is caused often by a pre-planned intention, in which the person committing murder has already contemplated doing harm to another person’s life, or plotting to kill that person for various reasons.

And that was why Jesus said that even if someone gets angry at another, he or she already commits a sin, as anger as we know can easily lead to greater anger, and then into discord, and eventually violence, that as we know can cause death if it goes unabated and uncontrolled. And sin is against love, for love is the true essence of God’s laws.

God loves each and every one of us, brothers and sisters in Christ. But, it is too often that we are caught up in our various distractions that we do not realise just how much God cares for us. He gave us His Law, because He loved us all, and through Jesus, He explained it all to us, what is it that we need to do in order to be truly faithful to Him. The Law of God is a guide that helps each and every one of us to live an ever more faithful and righteous life.

Let us all throw away all the obstacles and clear all the things that hinder us from being able to love God, by humbling ourselves and opening ourselves to accept God’s mercy, love and grace. Let us no longer put our trust in our own human power, intellect and abilities, but instead, learn to trust in God’s providence and do our best in order to obey Him through our actions, that we love instead of hate, give hope instead of despair, console others instead of mockery, and by being true to our calling to love Him and our brethren.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us today and from now henceforth draw closer to our God, giving ourselves wholeheartedly to Him, loving Him with all of our deeds and works, caring for those in need and pouring our love for the needy and for all those who have not had love in them. It is indeed easier to be said than done, but we will persevere if we can just help one another, support each other in our efforts to be more like Him in all of our ways.

May the Lord help us, brethren, that all of us will learn to obey Him and understand that love is the primary reason why God created us, showed us His laws and commandments, so that each and every one of us will gradually be more righteous, just and worthy to be in God’s presence, and therefore worthy to receive His promise of eternal life. May God bless us all, and forgive us all our sins. Amen.

by

Saturday, 11 February 2017 : 5th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, World Day of the Sick (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we celebrate together as the whole Church the celebration of Mary, whom we know to be the Mother of God, of our Lord Jesus Christ, who appeared to us mankind in various occasions throughout history, one of the latest of which is the famous apparition at the site of Lourdes in southern France.

Mary as Our Lady of Lourdes had appeared to the simple and humble woman, St. Bernadette Soubirous, a simple daughter of a miller to whom the Blessed Mother of our Lord had given the privilege of witnessing her apparition at Lourdes, then a garbage dump and a place of little importance. She appeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous in a series of visions, totalling eighteen times, in which she revealed to her, of the need for mankind to seek penance and forgiveness from their sins.

Our Lady of Lourdes appeared to St. Bernadette imploring mankind to atone for their sins and lead a prayerful and repentant life, and to that extent, she wanted St. Bernadette to pass on the messages she had given her to the people around her, that more and more people will heed her messages, and come to believe in the Lord through her. And through the spring which St. Bernadette dug up on the instruction from the Blessed Virgin, healing came upon many of those who came in faith.

Thus the famous healing miracles of Lourdes was brought forth, and many countless people had experienced the miracles of being healed by the holy and blessed water of the spring at the grotto of Lourdes. Through the intercession of Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes, many have received the healing from the Lord, and many of them had been healed from their bodily and spiritual afflictions, and became whole again.

What is the significance of this, brothers and sisters in Christ? Many of us have deep spiritual devotion to Mary, the Blessed Mother of our Lord, but many of us may not understand fully or even misunderstood why we have such a devotion. In the Scripture readings specially selected for this occasion, we see how God fulfilled the promises He had made to all of us mankind through one woman, that is Mary, who was to become the new Eve, as a renewal over the old Eve.

While the old Eve, the first woman had sinned and failed to overcome the temptations of the devil, and therefore by that action, with the first man Adam, sinned before the Lord and fall into the darkness, bringing all of mankind with them, the new Eve, Mary, showed her steadfastness and faith before God and before men alike. She is the epitome of faith and commitment, of purity and righteousness, showing all others how to become a true disciple of the Lord.

And as the mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, she has the privilege of being a mother, to have her Son listening to her. As we see in the reading on the Wedding at Cana, which many of us should be quite familiar with, Jesus listened to His mother, who pleaded for the sake of the wedding couple who were in trouble as they ran out of wine during the celebrations.

At that time, for someone to not have provided enough wine and provisions for a celebration as important as a wedding would have been a very major mishap and a very embarrassing moment for both the bride and the groom and their respective families. That was why Mary wanted to help them, and she knew that her Son could help them, but at first He refused to do so, because it was then not yet His time to reveal Himself.

But Mary continued to persist in her attempt, and asked the servants to listen to what Jesus would tell them. And therefore, Jesus performed His first miracle there at Cana, turning the jugs of water into sweetest and highest quality wine, which saved the wedding couple from the predicament. That was how Mary saved the couple and through her intercession, they were rescued by the Lord, Who showed His love and mercy to them.

Mary is the one whom God had promised to us mankind, to our forefathers, when He stood before them and Satan, coming in between them and the deceiver, promising that while Satan would hound the sons and daughters of mankind, becoming a thorn at their side for many ages, but deliverance will come from God through the Woman, and through her, the Saviour Lord that was to come into the world, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, on this feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, the Blessed Mary mother of God, who appeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous over one and a half centuries ago, we are all called to heed her calling, that we should turn towards God, and do penance and reparation for our sins and wickedness. Today as we remember the moment of the World Day of Prayer for the Sick, we ask our Blessed Mother, Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes, to intercede for the sake of all who were sick, suffering and dying.

And not least of all, for all of us as well. Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, as although we may be perfectly healthy in the body and mind, but because of our sins, we have been made diseased and corrupted in our hearts and souls. We need help from the Lord to make us whole again, pure and clean from all the afflictions of our sins. We need to pray for each other, that God will come to us and bring us from the darkness of our sins and into the light of His grace.

Let us all follow the example of Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes, in her faith, piety and dedication to the Lord our God. Let us imitate her in all of her examples, in all that she had done to obey the will of God, that through her faith, so many good things had come into the world, the greatest of which is the salvation we find in our Lord Jesus, her Son. O, Our Lady of Lourdes, Mary, mother of our God, pray for us sinners and those who are sickened by sin, that we will be blessed with His healing grace and be made worthy of His glorious eternal life. Amen.