Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
1 Thessalonians 4 : 9-11
Regarding mutual love, you do not need anyone to write to you, because God, Himself, taught you how to love one another. You already practice it with all the brothers and sisters of Macedonia, but I invite you to do more.
Consider how important it is, to live quietly, without bothering others, to mind your own business, and work with your hands, as we have charged you.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Holy Virgins)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we are reminded from the readings of the Sacred Scriptures today that we should always be humble and righteous in life, in everything that we say and do, in our every actions and interactions with one another so that we may indeed be truly genuine in being faithful to God. We should not merely be paying lip service of our faith or be superficial in our Christian faith and commitment, but we should instead seek to be wholeheartedly devoted in all things to God’s will, and in committing ourselves to whatever it is that He has entrusted to us and called us all to do in our respective areas and capacities in life, in making good use of the opportunities that God has given to us.
In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Ruth we heard of the story of one woman named Ruth, who hailed from the land of Moab beyond the land of Israel, and hence was a Moabite. She was the wife of one of the sons of Elimelech and Naomi, two Israelites whose children married Moabite women. When Elimelech and the two sons of both him and Naomi passed away prematurely, both of their wives were widowed, and when Naomi released both of them from their obligations to her, Ruth kept on staying and refused to go, vowing that she would always follow her and take care of her mother-in-law, and that she would have Naomi’s God as her own God and Master. And that was how both Naomi and Ruth returned to the land of Judah.
And then we heard of the encounter between Ruth and Boaz, one of the relatives of Ruth’s late father-in-law, Elimelech. We heard how Boaz was eventually touched by Ruth’s great sincerity and devotion to her mother-in-law, her great personality and beauty, and they eventually fell in love and were married together, becoming the ancestor of the House of David, as their son Obed was the father of Jesse and the grandfather of David, whom God would call to be the great King over all of His people, the Israelites. And we can also clearly see how even among David’s ancestors, there were foreigners like Ruth, a Moabite, whom many of the Israelites often deemed to be wicked and unworthy, and yet, like Ruth has shown it herself, her faith in God and her virtues were greater than many of the Israelites themselves.
Then, from 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 to His disciples and followers regarding the behaviours and attitudes of the Pharisees. In that account of the Lord’s words regarding the Pharisees, the Lord criticised the actions and ways that the Pharisees took in carrying out their daily activities and also their attitudes towards the faith. Those Pharisees often paraded their faith and pious practices, seeking to be praised and adored for their great dedication and piety to God. That was why they often prayed loudly and publicly in the places where many people could see them doing so, wearing their wide prayer bands and headdresses, proclaiming their fast days and other works, and seeking important places in celebrations and feasts.
Yet, despite all these public display of piety and faith, many among the Pharisees at that time often had condescending attitude against those whom they deemed to be inferior than them, and they often criticised and attacked those whom they disagreed with in the matter of how their faith should be lived and practiced. They sought worldly glory, ambition and influence rather than truly and genuinely being faithful to the Lord, and that was how they ended up resisting the Lord so frequently in everything that He had done, in refusing to believe in Him even when the evidences and reality have all pointed out that what the Lord had done, taught and shown them all were indeed the truth. This is why all of us as Christians should always be vigilant against the temptations of pride, ego and ambition, and seek instead to be humble and truly faithful to God in all things.
Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Rose of Lima, the very first saint from the New World or the Americas to be canonised as saint. She was born in Lima as Isabel Flores de Oliva in what is today Peru during the late sixteenth century in what was then Spanish colony in the New World, to a noble family of mixed heritage, with her father being an officer in the Spanish Army then, while her mother was a criolla or a mixed-race native of the region. She was more popularly known as Rose because of one of her servants who said that her face was miraculously transformed into a rose upon looking at her. And the young St. Rose of Lima grew strong in the faith and dedication to God, carrying out great acts of penance and devotion to God, resisting all the suitors who came to seek her.
St. Rose of Lima was renowned for her commitment to chastity and dedication to God, and against her parents wishes for her to marry, she was committed to a vow of virginity to God, and she further deepened her devotions, to the Blessed Sacrament in her daily reception of the Lord, and more, as she continued to grow older. She really wanted to become a religious sister, to be a member of the Dominican Order that was attracted to her great piety and dedication to God. However, her parents’ objection prevented that, and St. Rose of Lima chose instead to become the member of the Third Order of St. Dominic, taking a perpetual vow of virginity, and living in a most holy, pious and chaste manner for the next eleven years until her passing, famously wearing a heavy silver replica of the crown of thorns to emulate the sufferings of Christ.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have listened from the examples and inspiration of St. Rose of Lima and also from the Scripture readings which we have received today, we are reminded of the need for all of us to listen to the Lord calling on us to follow Him, to be humble in all things and to reject the temptations of worldly glory and desires, so that we may truly be committed and faithful to the Lord, and not to fall into the temptations to sin. As Christians, that is as God’s holy and beloved people, all of us should always strive to be good role models and examples in our faith and way of life. We should proclaim God’s truth, His Good News and salvation through our actions and deeds in life, and not just merely by our words and appearances, like what the Pharisees had done.
Let us all therefore help one another in remaining truly faithful and committed to God, putting Him as always at the very centre of our lives and existence. May God be with us always, and may He continue to strengthen us in faith and in our perseverance to follow Him ever more wholeheartedly, now and always. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Holy Virgins)
Matthew 23 : 1-12
At that time, Jesus said to the crowds and to His disciples, “The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees have sat down on the chair of Moses. So you shall do and observe all they say; but do not do as they do, for they do not do what they say. They tie up heavy burdens and load them on the shoulders of the people, but they do not even lift a finger to move them.”
“They do everything in order to be seen by people : they wear very wide bands of the Law around their foreheads, and robes with large tassels. They enjoy the first places at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues, and they like being greeted in the marketplace, and being called ‘Master’ by the people.”
“But you, do not let yourselves be called Master, because you have only one Master, and all of you are brothers and sisters. Neither should you call anyone on earth Father, because you have only one Father, He Who is in heaven. Nor should you be called Leader, because Christ is the only Leader for you.”
“Let the greatest among you be the servant of all. For whoever makes himself great shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be made great.”
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Holy Virgins)
Psalm 127 : 1-2, 3, 4-5
Blessed are you who fear YHVH and walk in His ways. You will eat the fruit of your toil; you will be blessed and favoured.
Your wife, like a vine, will bear fruits in your home; your children, like olive shoots, will stand around your table.
Such are the blessings bestowed upon the man who fears YHVH. May YHVH praise you from Zion. May you see Jerusalem prosperous all the days of your life.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Holy Virgins)
Ruth 2 : 1-3, 8-11 and Ruth 4 : 13-17
Naomi had a well-to-do kinsman, Boaz, from the clan of her husband Elimelech. And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to pick up the left-over grain in the field whose owner will allow me that favour.” Naomi said, “Go ahead, my daughter.” So she went to glean in the fields behind the harvesters. It happened that, the field she entered belonged to Boaz of the clan of Elimelech.
Boaz said to Ruth, “Listen, my daughter. Do not go away from here to glean in anyone else’s field. Stay here with my women servants. See where the harvesters are and follow behind. I have ordered the men not to molest you. They have filled some jars with water. Go there and drink when you are thirsty.” Bowing down with her face to the ground, she exclaimed, “Why have I, a foreigner, found such favour in your eyes?”
Boaz answered, “I have been told all about you – what you have done for your mother-in-law since your husband’s death, how you have gone with her, leaving your own father and mother and homeland, to live with a people you knew nothing about before you came here.”
So Ruth was taken by Boaz and became his wife. YHVH made her conceive and give birth to a son. The women said to Naomi, “Blessed be YHVH Who has provided you today with an heir. May he become famous in Israel! He will be your comfort and stay in your old age, for he is born of a daughter-in-law who loves you and is worth more than seven sons.”
Naomi took the child as her own and became his nurse. And the women of the neighbourhood gave him his name, saying, “A son has been born for Naomi.” They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, who was David’s father.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the need for all of us to remain truly faithful to the Lord at all times, through good and bad times, through moments of difficulties and trials, and when we are facing various temptations and challenges that may make us to question our faith in God or to forget and abandon Him. When times and moments are good, we may also be so preoccupied by our joy and pursuits in life that we may ignore the Lord and forget about Him as well. This is why it is important for us to remain truly grounded in our faith in the Lord and not to be easily swayed by the various temptations, pressures and coercions all around us.
In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Joshua of the moment when many years after the Israelites had arrived in the promised land of Canaan and having settled there with God’s guidance, protection and providence, managing to overcome their enemies and all those who have opposed them, then Joshua and the Israelites gathered together in Shechem which was roughly at the centre of the land of Israel, to renew their commitment towards God. Why is that so? That is because by that time, Joshua was already old and he knew that he did not have much longer as the leader of the people of Israel. The older generations who had witnessed God’s miracles, providence and works had passed away and many of the younger generations might not have known and experienced God’s works, providence and signs.
Therefore Joshua gathered the Israelites and told them that they should all choose and decide whether they want to follow the Lord and commit to Him or not, highlighting all the great wonders and deeds which the Lord Himself had done for the sake of His beloved ones, and they need to remember all that God had done for their sake because it would be easy for them to forget about God and abandon Him when things are good and happy for them in the lands that they were settling in. And like their predecessors before them, they might be tempted to worship other gods and idols instead of following the Lord, as they were still surrounded by their Canaanite neighbours with their idols and all their pagan way of living, which might lead them away from the path of the Lord.
As we heard, the Israelites were united in their commitment towards the Lord, and they professed their faith in Him together there at Shechem before Joshua and in the presence of all the assembly of God’s people. And it was there that Joshua renewed the Covenant between God and His people, solemnly establishing the pact between God and those whom He had called and chosen to be His own, that God would always be their God, providing for them and protecting them all, while the people of God ought to obey the Law and commandments which God has shown, taught and revealed to them all, and to pass these down to their own descendants as well. The reality is such that, even after this moment, God’s people would still falter in their commitments, and they would repeatedly disobeyed and abandoned Him, but each time, God continued to love them and send to them leaders, judges and prophets to help guide them to the right path.
Then 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 telling His disciples that they should not keep children from coming towards Him. This was because the disciples were likely annoyed at people bringing the little children towards the Lord, for Him to bless them and to be with them. But the Lord told the disciples not to stop those children from coming to Him, because in fact, the kingdom of Heaven truly belong to those who behave like those children, those who are truly humble and faithful in God. On the contrary, for many adults including the disciples themselves, many among them did not truly have genuine faith in the Lord, as many among them attached many conditions to their faith in God.
This is indeed a reminder for all of us as Christians that we must always have genuine and strong faith in God, and not one that is dependent on our desires, ambitions and worldly pursuits. Many among the disciples and followers of the Lord at that time often bickered and quarrelled among themselves because they were seeking vanity, ambition and worldly glory in following the Lord, thinking that they would gain much from following Him and becoming close to Him, such that when Christ restored the Kingdom of Israel as they expected, they would be richly rewarded. But this is not what true faith is all about, and true faith in the Lord is something more than merely just our desires for worldly things and matters. True faith is about truly loving God at all times, and continuing to trust in Him even in most difficult and challenging moments in life.
Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Stephen of Hungary, the very first King of Hungary who was crowned as King and ruler of the Hungarian nation, consecrated as the Divinely appointed ruler of the people entrusted to him and with the blessing and approval of the Pope. At that time Hungary was still in the midst of transformation from the previously pagan Magyar tribal nation after their migration from the Eurasian Steppe to the Pannonian plain where Hungary lies today. St. Stephen was the member of the ruling House of Arpad and while he was not the first Christian in his family, but he was indeed the first one to be devout and truly dedicated to the Christian faith, the first of the Christian Kings and rulers of Hungary.
St. Stephen took his duties and responsibilities as King very seriously, dedicating his time and effort to care for the well-being of his people, to improve their livelihood and to care for their spiritual needs, by establishing the Church and its institutions in all parts of his kingdom. He established many archdioceses and dioceses throughout Hungary, building churches, hospitals, monasteries and other institutions that help improve the livelihood of the Hungarians, both in physical and spiritual dimensions. He also led a pious life, dedicating himself to be a good Christian in all things, reigning justly and maintaining a relatively peaceful time in his reign over Hungary. He was well-remembered for his great faith and commitment to God and to the people entrusted to him, and he is indeed a good source of inspiration for all of us as well.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore do our very best so that we may indeed be truly faithful in the Lord, with the purest intentions and desire to follow and serve the Lord wholeheartedly at all times. Just as we have been inspired by St. Stephen of Hungary, let us all be good inspiration and examples for one another so that we may continue to encourage everyone around us, so that more may come to know the Lord through us, through our actions and interactions with those whom we encounter daily in life. May the Lord give us His guidance and strength, and help us in our journey of faith and life, now and always. Amen.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Matthew 19 : 13-15
At that time, little children were brought to Jesus, that He might lay His hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples scolded those who brought them. Jesus then said, “Let the children be! Do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to those who are humble, like these children.”
Jesus laid His hands on them and went away.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Psalm 15 : 1-2a and 5, 7-8, 11
Keep me safe, o God, for in You I take refuge. I say to YHVH, “O YHVH, my inheritance and my cup, my chosen portion – hold secure my lot.”
I praise YHVH Who counsels me; even at night, my inmost self instructs me. I keep YHVH always before me; for with Him at my right hand, I will never be shaken.
You will show me the path of life, in Your presence, the fullness of joy, at Your right hand, happiness forever.
Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Joshua 24 : 14-29
Joshua said to the people of Israel, “So fear YHVH, and be sincere and faithful in serving Him. Set aside those gods your ancestors worshipped in Mesopotamia and Egypt. Serve only YHVH. But if you do not want to serve YHVH, make known this very day whom you shall serve – whether they be the gods your ancestors served in Mesopotamia or the gods of the Amorites who formerly occupied the land in which you now live. As for me, I and my household will serve YHVH.”
The people answered, “May God not permit that we ever abandon YHVH to serve other gods! For it was He Who brought us and our ancestors out of Egypt, the house of slavery. It was He Who did those great wonders that we have seen; He protected us on the way and through all the land where we passed, driving away before us all the nations especially the Amorites who lived in this land. So we shall also serve YHVH : He is our God!”
Joshua asked the people : “Will you be able to serve YHVH? He is a holy God, a jealous God Who does not tolerate wickedness or faults. If you abandon YHVH to serve other gods, He will turn against you and just as He has done you so much good, so shall He punish you and destroy you.”
The people replied, “No, may it not be as you say. We will serve YHVH.” Joshua said, “You yourselves are witnesses that you have chosen YHVH to serve Him.” They answered, “We are witnesses.” Joshua then said, “Remove now from your midst any other gods and serve YHVH, the God of Israel, with all your heart.” The people answered : “We will serve YHVH, our God, and obey His commands.”
On that day at Shechem, Joshua made a Covenant with the people and fixed laws and ordinances. He also wrote down everything expressed in the book of the Law of God; he chose a great stone and put it under the oak tree in the sacred place of YHVH. Then Joshua said to the people : “This stone shall be a witness to all that YHVH said to us, for it heard all these words. It shall be a witness against you, lest you deal falsely with YHVH.”
Joshua immediately sent the people away and everyone returned to his land. After all these deeds, Joshua, son of Nun and servant of YHVH, died at the age of a hundred and ten.
Liturgical Colour : Green or Red (Martyrs) or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded that as God’s holy and beloved people, all of us should always believe in the Lord and put our trust in Him, and not be easily swayed by the many temptations and distractions found all around us in this world. We also need a strong and vibrant relationship with the Lord, and develop a strong commitment in following Him at all times, in our prayerful and faithful living, in doing what God had taught and shown us all to do in being good and dedicated disciples and followers of our God. If only our faith in God is stronger, then we should have remained firm in our conviction to walk in His path, and we will not easily fall into the wrong paths in our lives.
In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Deuteronomy, we heard of the continuation of the exhortation which Moses, the leader of the Israelites made to the people of God, calling on all of them to keep the Law and commandments of God, and to live their lives faithfully and worthily of the Lord, so that the Lord will continue to bless them and their descendants, for their faith, love and devotion to Him, as part of the Covenant which God had made with each and every one of them. Moses reminded the people that even after they had reached the land which had been promised and assured to them, they and their descendants should continue to worship the Lord and obey Him as they had always done, and not instead be swayed by worldly desires and forgetting what God had done for them.
That was why Moses spent the time and effort to remind the people of Israel, who have already begun to abandon the Lord even as the Lord had continued to show His signs and wonders in their midst. They had shown how stubborn and wicked they could be, in hardening their hearts and refusing the great grace and blessings which God had blessed them with, complaining about their lives and conditions when God had constantly taken care of them, protected them from their enemies, and reassured them that He would fulfil all of His promises and words, without exception. Hence, Moses reminded the people again and again of the great love and faithfulness of God to His Covenant, which He has constantly renewed and reassured us with from time to time.
And since God had made His Covenant with His people, that is why it is imperative that we should remember our part of the Covenant since we ourselves like the Israelites in the past have also been partakers of God’s Covenant, ours being the New and Eternal Covenant which He has made and sealed with each and every one of us through none other than His own Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour. God has always loved us, and He has always been patient in caring for us, even to the point of providing for us the ultimate gift of His love, His own Son, manifested in the flesh, so that by the ultimate sacrifice that He undertook on the Cross at Calvary, He might liberate us all from our sufferings and troubles, from our bondage to sin that had separated us all from Him. He has always wanted us to be reconciled to Him.
Then, from our Gospel passage today, we heard of the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist in which a man who had an epileptic son asked the Lord why His disciples could not drive out the evil spirits from his son, and the Lord chided the lack of faith of the people and that of His disciples, and showing forth His power and authority, He healed the man’s son and cast those evil spirits that had made that son to suffer such hardships. And He told His disciples afterwards when they asked Him privately why they could not cast the evil spirits out, that the kind of evil spirits whom they encountered required prayer and indeed, faith in God for grace and power to flow from God and cast out those evil spirits.
It may indeed be a bit difficult to understand the intentions and nuances of the Lord from what we have heard in those words and from the events depicted in the Gospel, but it is quite evident and implied strongly that the disciples did not have genuine or strong faith in the Lord. They had indeed been given the power and authority by the Lord to heal and perform miracles, and to cast out evil spirits and heal the possessed. However, it is important that we realise how this power came from God and it is God Who exercised His power and authority through those disciples. It was likely that the disciples who attempted the healing thought that it was their own power and greatness that allowed them to perform such actions and exercise those powers, and hence, their tenuous connection to the Lord allowed the evil spirits to resist and even attack them back.
This is why it is again very important for us to remember to deepen our faith and relationship with God, in following His Law and commandments sincerely and faithfully at all times, and by spending good and quality time with Him each day through prayer and spiritual connection with Him, and even in whatever we do in each and every days of our lives, because in whatever we do with faith, even in the smallest things, done in obedience and faith in God, that is where we have grown in our connection and relationship with God. As Christians, we should indeed always embody our faith in all of our every words, actions and deeds, so that by our lives and examples we may be good inspiration to everyone around us.
Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, also more famously known by her birth name of Edith Stein. She was a convert to the Catholic faith and was born into a German Jewish family in the early twentieth century. After encountering the works of St. Teresa of Avila during his education in her doctoral studies and afterwards, she was attracted to the Catholic faith and eventually became a follower of Christ. She wanted to join the Discalced Carmelite nuns, and despite some setbacks, she eventually managed to do so, during the difficult years at that time because the NAZI regime was rising to power in Germany and began to make many anti-Jewish laws and regulations which also impacted her as well. Nonetheless, she continued to dedicate herself to the Lord through her community of nuns, and despite being sent to a monastery in the Netherlands for her safety, she was eventually arrested by the NAZI secret police, the Gestapo and was martyred in a concentration camp with many others.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have heard from the life and examples of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, her courage and faith in the Lord, in standing up to the face of evil and sin in this world, and inspired by the great lvoe that God has always had for each and every one of us, let us all therefore strive to be ever more faithful and dedicated to the Lord at all times. Let us continue to walk faithfully with the Lord, doing our very best to glorify Him and to proclaim His Good News and truth, show His love and compassion to everyone through our own actions, words and deeds. May the Lord be with us all and all of our good works and deeds, in all things and at all times. May God bless our every efforts and bless His Church. Amen.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 