Roman martyrs

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Thursday, 21 January 2016 : 2nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Agnes, Virgin and Martyr, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Psalm 55 : 2-3, 9-10ab, 10c-11, 12-13

O God, show Your mercy to me, for my foes are in hot pursuit; they press their attack on me all the time. My accusers pursue me all day long, many attack me.

You have a record of my laments; my tears are stored in Your wineskin. Are they not written on Your scroll? My enemies turn back when I call on You for help.

Now I know that God is for me. In God Whose word I praise.

In God I trust without fear. What can mortals do against me? I am bound to You by vows, o God; I shall offer my thanksgiving.

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Thursday, 21 January 2016 : 2nd Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Agnes, Virgin and Martyr, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

1 Samuel 18 : 6-9 and 1 Samuel 19 : 1-7

When David and his men arrived after he had slain the Philistine, the women came out from the cities of Israel to meet king Saul singing and dancing with timbrels and musical instruments. They were merrily singing this song : “Saul has slain his thousands, and David, his tens of thousands.”

Saul was very displeased with this song and said, “They have given tens of thousands to David but to me only thousands! By now he has everything but the kingdom!” From then on, Saul became very distrustful of David.

Saul told his son Jonathan and his servants of his intention to kill David. But Jonathan, who liked David very much, said to David, “My father Saul wants to kill you. Be on your guard tomorrow morning and hide yourself in a secret place. I will go out and keep my father company in the countryside where you are and I will speak to him about you. If I find out something, I will let you know.”

Jonathan spoke well of David to his father Saul and said, “Let not the king sin against his servant David for he has not sinned against you. On the contrary, what he has done has benefitted you. He risked his life in killing the Philistine and YHVH brought about a great victory for Israel. You yourself saw this and greatly rejoiced. Why then sin against innocent blood and kill David without cause?”

Saul heeded Jonathan’s plea and swore, “As YHVH lives, he shall not be put to death.” So Jonathan called David and told him all these things. He then brought him to Saul and David was back in Saul’s service as before.

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Wednesday, 25 November 2015 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Catharine of Alexandria, Virgin and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we heard about the Lord Jesus Who reminded us that by being His followers and disciples we would expose ourselves to scrutiny and persecution, opposition and even suffering inflicted by the world, all of the secular leaders and powers because they are opposed to our ways, that is the ways of the Lord.

We saw how the world profaned the Lord and His holy Name, as we heard ourselves in the Book of the prophet Daniel, a portion of which was read today as our first reading. We heard how the king of Babylon, Belshazzar disrespected and blasphemed against the Lord by using His holy vessels and cups to serve the wine and the foods to be served to the nobles and to the courtiers.

And not only that, but he also did not give honour to the Lord, and instead, blasphemed by honouring and praising the pagan and wicked gods and idols of the pagans, made of stone, silver, gold and all sorts of worldly and material beings. He used the holy vessels consecrated to the Lord for these worldly purposes and in doing so, he incurred the wrath of the Lord.

And in the Gospel today, our Lord Jesus spoke about the times of difficulties and persecutions of the faithful, and how we ought not to worry about how to defend ourselves, for God Himself will guide us just as He has guided many of His holy ones, the saints and martyrs as they struggled against the worldly and secular authorities, and against those pagans seeking the destruction of the Church and the faithful ones of God.

All these in fact pointed out to the fact that the ways of this world, the norms and ways, pleasures and customs pertaining to the societies of this world are much more likely than not, exist in direct opposition to the ways of the Lord, in direct opposition against the laws and precepts, the norms and the causes of the Lord as He had taught and shown us.

But we should not fear the world and all the things that they can inflict on us, for the suffering and persecution we are to endure are nothing compared to the rewards awaiting us all in God if we are faithful to His commandments and laws. And today we celebrate the feast of a great saint whose life and dedication to the Lord can indeed become an inspiration to all of us on how to live our lives faithfully in this world.

St. Catherine or St. Catharine the Great of Alexandria was a great and devoted servant of the Lord, who lived her life with great piety and dedication, and she herself was persuaded to be a Christian after having seen a vision of the Lord and His mother, and through her studies and commitment to understanding more of the faith, she became a very devoted servant of the Lord.

And when the then Emperor of the Roman Empire, Maxentius continued a great persecution against Christians and all the followers of Christ, St. Catherine herself with great piety and courage went to contest the Emperor and rebuke him for his harsh treatment of Christians. And despite the Emperor’s attempts to turn her away from her faith, sending even the best philosophers and pagans the Empire could gather, she remained strong and devoted to God.

And the Emperor who was astounded by her beauty tried one last time to convince her by offering her to be his spouse, and therefore through it, giving her all the power, glory, privileges and all the things the world could offer. However, St. Catherine refused the honour and the glory made at the cost of her soul and the salvation she had secured in God.

And in the end, she was martyred in great pain and torture, and yet, her faith had given her the eternal glory and reward as God had promised all of His faithful ones. God never abandoned those who are faithful to Him, and He will always guide all those who had committed themselves to Him. Let this be a lesson to all of us as well, so that we will continue to walk faithfully in His presence despite all the challenges and all the temptation to do otherwise.

May the Lord fortify our resolve and strengthen our commitment to Him, that knowing how the persecutions and sufferings caused upon us by the world will be, we will continue to persevere through to eternal life, and resisting all the efforts of the evil one to bring us down once again. God bless us all. Amen.

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Wednesday, 25 November 2015 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Catharine of Alexandria, Virgin and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Luke 21 : 12-19

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples and to the people, “Before all these things happen, people will lay their hands on you and persecute you; you will be delivered to the synagogues and put in prison, and for My sake you will be brought before kings and governors. This will be your opportunity to bear witness.”

“So keep this in mind : do not worry in advance about what to say, for I will give you words and wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends, and some of you will be put to death.”

“But even though, because of My Name, you will be hated by everyone, not a hair of your head will perish. By your patient endurance you will save your souls.”

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Wednesday, 25 November 2015 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Catharine of Alexandria, Virgin and Martyr (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Daniel 3 : 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67

Sun and moon, praise and exalt Him forever.

Stars of heaven, praise and exalt Him forever.

Rain and dew, praise and exalt Him forever.

All winds, praise and exalt Him forever.

Fire and heat, praise and exalt Him forever.

Cold and heat, praise and exalt Him forever.

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Wednesday, 25 November 2015 : 34th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Catharine of Alexandria, Virgin and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs)

Daniel 5 : 1-6, 13-14, 16-17, 23-28

King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for his nobles, a thousand of them attended and he drank wine with them. Under the influence of wine, he ordered that the gold and silver vessels his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the Temple in Jerusalem be brought in so that he and his nobles, his wives and concubines might drink from them.

The gold and silver vessels taken from God’s Temple were brought in, and the king and his nobles, his wives and concubines drank from them. While they drank wine, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze and iron, of wood and stone.

Suddenly a man’s fingers appeared opposite the lampstand and wrote on the plastered wall of the king’s palace. Watching the hand as it wrote, the king turned pale. So terrified was he that his knees knocked and his legs gave way.

Daniel was brought in and questioned by the king, “Are you Daniel, one of the exiles my father brought from Judah? I have heard that you have the spirit of the gods, that you have insight and extraordinary wisdom.”

“I have heard that you can interpret dreams and solve problems. If you can read this writing and tell me what it means, you will be clothed in purple, wear a gold chain around your neck, and be appointed third in rank in my kingdom.” Daniel replied, “You may keep your gifts or give them to someone else. Just the same I will read and interpret the writing for you.”

“You have defied the Lord of heaven. You had the vessels from His Temple brought to you, and together with your nobles, your wives and concubines, you drank wine from them. You praised the idols made of silver and gold, of bronze, iron and stones, which neither see, nor hear, nor understand; but you never glorified God Who has power over your life and all your fortunes.”

“So He sent the hand that wrote the inscription which read MENE, TEKEL, PARSIN. And these words mean : MENE, God has numbered the days of your reign and put an end to it; TEKEL, you have been weighted on the scales and found wanting; PARSIN, your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and the Persians.”

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Sunday, 22 November 2015 : Thirty-Fourth (34th) Sunday of Ordinary Time, Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Christ the King, Memorial of St. Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday marks the last Sunday of the current liturgical year, where the cycle of the Church’s liturgical celebrations reached a culmination in the celebration of Christ our Lord and King, as the One Who is the true ruler and authority over all things throughout the universe. Today we mark the occasion of the Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Lord and Master of all things that are in existence.

Through the Scripture passages today, we heard about the Lord Jesus Who is a King, and the One True King from Whom all authority, power and wisdom came from. Yet, His kingship is not akin to one that is of the world, that is, His kingdom is not like the kingdoms that exist in this world. On the other hand, His kingship and His kingdom transcends the worldly boundaries of power, authority and majesty.

Why is this so? That is because the kingdoms of this world, their rulers and masters are all very bound and affected by the worldly aspects of glory, of fame, of influence and affluence, of human praise and positions of fame, and they continue to strive ever more for the greatness in accordance of human measures, and that is why the kingdoms and the powers of this world are ever concerned about the self-aggrandisement and gathering of more power and glory for themselves.

Human and worldly powers are always fragile and temporary. These powers did not last beyond certain criteria and requirements that need to be met in order to preserve the powers in accordance with the ways of this world. This is why much misery, sufferings and injustice occurred in the world, both past and present, because of the tempting nature of having in possession such power and authority, and thus our reluctance and unwillingness to let them go from us.

Just for an example, the kings, princes, dukes and other worldly powers went to war with each other because each of them wanted to increase their dominion, influence and power. And because they have given themselves in to the ways of this world, therefore, accordingly, they wanted to preserve what they had, even at the expense of morality and justice.

This is why, if we look at the many rulers and governments that are maintained with iron fist, they are always in constant fear of losing their power to those who do not belong to the ruling elites. And they would use all things and armaments in their disposal in order to protect themselves and avoid their own fall from power and glory. This was exactly what Jesus said to Pilate, about if His kingdom were to be of this world, His supporters would have gone out all the way to save Him.

Instead, Jesus clearly stated that His kingdom and His kingship are different from all that, from all the traditional notions of power and glory that we mankind and this world are familiar with. This is because His kingdom is a kingdom of truth, of justice, of righteousness, and ultimately His kingdom is a kingdom of love. He leads as a King, not by fear and tyranny, nor by anger or hatred, but through genuine leadership shown through example and perfect love.

We have to realise that all of us are truly fortunate to have been placed under the grace and sovereignty of our Lord’s eternal and universal kingship. His kingship is eternal because it is a kingdom which reign and rule will never end, and God’s rule will persist forever without end. And His great rule will extend all over the entire universe, over all of creation and over the entire existence, since He has created all things, and therefore rightfully, He also lords it all over all of them.

But He did not despise all those that He had created, nor did He oppress them and treat them as if they were slaves. This is unlike the common action and perception of the kings and princes of this world, who stand above the rest of their respective peoples and treat them as subjects and subordinates that need to serve their needs in all things.

Instead, God is a loving Master, Who had not just expected from us obedience and genuine faith, but He also gave us the love, care and commitment that is equivalent if not greater than the obedience, faith and commitment that He is expecting from us. His kingship is a kingship of love and justice, and He as the King, leads all by His examples, through servant leadership.

Do we all still remember what Jesus frequently told His disciples about Himself? That He came into this world to serve and not to be served, meaning that even though He is King, and truly the King and Master of all the universe, but all these did not make Him proud or haughty, but instead, in order to fulfil perfectly the love and compassion which He has for us, He came down into this world, not as a great conquering King, but instead as a humble and poor Man.

Yes, and He came offering Himself to be our Deliverance and as our Saviour, to save us from our distress, and by giving Himself up, He showed us an example how a leader should lead others, by example and not by power and tyranny. We know the phrase that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. This is a reminder that we should not be obsessed with worldly power but rather we should look up at our Lord and see His good examples.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, how is this relevant to us? It is very relevant indeed, since all of us by partaking in our Lord and as we become the members of His Body, we have also shared in His divine and eternal kingship. We have been called to be a shepherd, priest and king through our baptism, and in the divine kingship we share with our Lord, we have our responsibilities to play.

And it is that all of us should live righteously before the Lord, leading one another by example through our own actions, that in all the things we do, we become paragons of righteousness, virtue, love and justice. Let us all remember this even as we rejoice and honour our Lord Jesus Christ, King of all kings and King of all the universe, that we also have a share in His kingship, both in the privilege and honour, as well as in its responsibilities.

May our Lord Jesus Christ, our King, Lord and Master be with us always, and may He guide us on our path, that we shall become ever better guides for our own brethren, and may through our actions and deeds, more souls shall come closer to the Lord and His salvation. Be with us, Lord, our Master and King. Amen.

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Sunday, 22 November 2015 : Thirty-Fourth (34th) Sunday of Ordinary Time, Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Christ the King, Memorial of St. Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 18 : 33b-37

At that time Pilate asked Jesus, “Are You the King of the Jews?” Jesus replied, “Does this word come from you, or did you hear it from others?”

Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed You over to me. What have You done?” Jesus answered, “My kingship does not come from this world. If I were a King, like those of this world, my guards would have fought to save Me from being handed over to the Jews. But My kingship is not of this world.”

Pilate asked Him, “So You are a King?” And Jesus answered, “Just as you say, I am a King. For this I was born and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is on the side of truth hears My voice.”

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Sunday, 22 November 2015 : Thirty-Fourth (34th) Sunday of Ordinary Time, Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Christ the King, Memorial of St. Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Revelations 1 : 5-8

And from Jesus Christ, the faithful Witness, the Firstborn of the dead, the Ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him Who loves us and has washed away our sins with His own blood, making us a kingdom and priests for God His Father, to Him be the glory and power forever and ever. Amen.

See He comes with the clouds and everyone will see Him, even those who pierced Him; on His account all the nations of the earth will beat his breast. Yes. It will be so. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, He Who is, Who was, and Who is to come : the Master of the universe.

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Sunday, 22 November 2015 : Thirty-Fourth (34th) Sunday of Ordinary Time, Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Christ the King, Memorial of St. Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 92 : 1ab, 1c-2, 5

The Lord reigns, robed in majesty; the Lord is girded with strength.

The world now is firm, it cannot be moved. Your throne stands from long ago, o Lord, from all eternity You are.

Your decrees can be trusted; holiness dwells in Your house day after day without end, o Lord.