Saturday

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Saturday, 18 May 2024 : 7th Week of Easter, Memorial of Pope St. John I, Pope and Martyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White or Red (Martyrs)

Acts 28 : 16-20, 30-31

Upon our arrival in Rome, the captain turned the prisoners over to the military governor but permitted Paul to lodge in a private house with the soldier who guarded him. After three days, Paul called together the leaders of the Jews.

When they had gathered, he said to them : “Brothers, though I have not done anything against our people or against the traditions of our fathers, I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans. They examined me and wanted to set me free, for they saw nothing in my case that deserved death.”

“But the Jews objected, so I was forced to appeal to Caesar without the least intention of bringing any case against my own people. Therefore, I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I bear these chains.”

Paul stayed for two whole years in a house he himself rented, where he received without any hindrance all those who came to see him. He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught the truth about Jesus Christ, the Lord, quite openly and without any hindrance.

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Saturday, 11 May 2024 : 6th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we continue to be reminded of our calling and obligation to proclaim the words and truth of God as we have been commissioned to do by the Lord through His Church. Each and every one of us as members of God’s Church have been made partakers of the mission of the Church in proclaiming the truth and the Good News of God to all the people of all the nations. This is the Great Commission which the Lord has entrusted to His Church and faithful ones, the Commission to go forth to bear God’s salvation and light to everyone. We must still be properly instructed and guided in our faith and works so that we can truly proclaim the right truth to everyone.

In our first reading today, we heard the continuation from the Acts of the Apostles of the works of the Apostles, as St. Paul continued to carry out his mission throughout the region of Asia Minor and elsewhere, in the long missionary journeys that he carried out to proclaim the Good News of God to more and more people throughout the places he had visited. While St. Paul’s ministry was the most well-known and written due to the Acts of the Apostles likely being written by St. Luke the Evangelist, who accompanied St. Paul on many of his missionary works and travels, but there were also others like Apollos as mentioned in the passage today, also revered as St. Apollos, a Jewish convert to the Christian faith, who was very charismatic and capable in his preaching among the people.

However, as we heard, Apollos did not fully know the fullness of the teachings of the Lord, and taught the people according to what he knew from his Jewish background. It was likely that he was a supporter of the Lord or a disciple of St. John the Baptist, who later on followed the Lord Jesus and believed in Him. At that time in the early Church, before the full codification and formalisation of the teachings of the Church, there was no fixed set of teachings that every Christians adhered to yet unlike that of today, and there were indeed regional variations in the details of the Christian beliefs and teachings which the disciples and missionaries of the Lord proclaimed like that of St. Apollos. However, we heard that some of the Christians in the region, St. Priscilla and St. Aquila, a missionary couple, helped to correct St. Apollos and guided him in what he should be teaching to the people.

Even in this case we can see the great beauty of the Church and how it encompassed all the faithful, both those from the Jewish and non-Jewish or Gentile origins alike. Both the Jews and the non-Jewish people were all called to God’s presence and everyone are truly equal before the Lord regardless of their background and origin. The fact that St. Apollos himself, a devout Jew from Alexandria, worked amongst the non-Jewish people in the region proclaiming the Word of God among both the Jews and Gentiles alike, showed just how egalitarian and open the Christian faith and Church were. The Church therefore kept on growing rapidly, welcoming more and more converts from all people, who sought the Lord for His grace and salvation.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the Lord telling His disciples that He has revealed to them the truth and wisdom which He had brought into this world, which He has imparted to them and which He would show them all through His actions and teachings, as He loves all of them, and wants everyone to know of His love and compassion towards them. God’s love has always ever been patient and generous, and all those who love the Lord will truly receive the fullness of His love and grace, and the promise of everlasting life and true joy with Him. Each and every one of us must continue to do the missions and works which Our Lord Himself had entrusted to us and to His Church, doing our very best so that in everything we say and do, we will always glorify the Lord.

This is why He wants to remind us all as His disciples that He is truly a loving and compassionate God, Who seeks to reunite all of us with Himself, through our reconciliation and by the forgiveness of our many sins and wickedness. We are all called to abandon our past sinful and wicked way of life, turning away from the path towards darkness into the new path of God’s light and salvation. We are all the children of Light and through our Lord’s guidance, help, and strength, and by His truth and Good News, He shall lead us all into a most triumphant path and victory, as we acclaim Him in all the encounters we have with everyone we meet, in our daily lives and in our schools and workplaces. All of us need to proclaim the Lord and bring forth His truth and love to the world, which is our primary mission and calling in life.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all reflect upon these words from the Scriptures, and having heard and been reminded of the great examples shown by our holy predecessors, we are all called to proclaim God’s truth and love to all the people we encounter in our respective lives, to reveal Him and His truth to more and more people who have not yet known Him. Each and every one of us should continue to do what God has commanded us to do, to reveal Him to everyone, and it is imperative that we must always continue to live our lives being focus and centred on God so that in all the things that we say and do we will always glorify the Lord our God and reveal Him to our fellow brethren. We are all called to continue the good works which the Lord had begun with His Apostles and our holy predecessors.

May the Risen Lord continue to guide us and may He continue to empower us in our journey to do God’s will. May He continue to bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours, to do what is right and just in all things so that by our good examples we will continue to be the inspiration for everyone to follow, just as our holy predecessors have been our inspiration and strength. May all of us glorify God always by our worthy lives, our every actions, words and deeds. Amen.

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Saturday, 11 May 2024 : 6th Week of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 16 : 23b-28

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My Name, He will give you. So far you have not asked in My Name; ask, and receive, that your joy may be full.”

“I taught you all this in veiled language, but the time is coming when I shall no longer speak in veiled language, but will tell you plainly of the Father. When that day comes, you will ask in My Name; and it will not be for Me to ask the Father for you, for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and you believe that I came from the Father.”

“As I came from the Father, and have come into the world, so I am leaving the world, and going to the Father.”

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Saturday, 11 May 2024 : 6th Week of Easter (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 46 : 2-3, 8-9, 10

Clap your hands, all you peoples; acclaim God with shouts of joy. For the Lord, the Most High, is to be feared; He is a great King all over the earth.

God is King of all the earth; sing to Him a hymn of praise. For God now rules over the nations, God reigns from His holy throne.

The leaders of the nations rally together with the people of the God of Abraham. For in His hands are the great of the earth, God reigns far above.

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Saturday, 11 May 2024 : 6th Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 18 : 23-28

After spending some time at Antioch, Paul left and travelled from place to place through Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening the disciples. A certain Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, arrived at Ephesus. He was an eloquent speaker and an authority on the Scriptures, and he had some knowledge of the way of the Lord.

With great enthusiasm he preached and taught correctly about Jesus, although he knew only of John’s baptism. As he began to speak boldly in the synagogue, Priscilla and Aquila heard him; so they took him home with them and explained to him the way more accurately.

As Apollos wished to go to Achaia, the believers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. When he arrived, he greatly strengthened those who, by God’s grace, had become believers, for he vigorously refuted the Jews, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Messiah.

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Saturday, 4 May 2024 : 5th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures in which we are all reminded that as Christians, each and every one of us have been called from the world and chosen to be God’s own beloved people, as we have embraced His love and truth, His salvation and assurance of eternal life for all of us. All of us as His beloved and holy people have been called and expected to live our lives worthily of God, that we may do our very best in proclaiming His truth and love in our respective communities, in every opportunities and responsibilities entrusted to us. Each and every one of us as Christians have been called to be those who are truly exemplary and inspirational in our lives and actions so that by our every actions, words and deeds, we may continue to inspire and touch the lives of many others around us.

In our first reading today, we heard the continuation of the account from the Acts of the Apostles in which the works of St. Paul was further elaborated to us, in how he carried on his missionary journey and works among the people in various places. At that time in particular, St. Paul was travelling with his companions such as St. Timothy mentioned in the passage today, and others like St. Luke, St. Barnabas and more, all throughout the different parts and regions of Asia Minor, going from place to place, towns to towns to glorify the Lord and to proclaim His Good News and truth. Through their hard works and efforts, they had convinced many people to become Christian believers as well, embracing God’s fullness of truth and love, and entering into a new relationship with Him and a new life in Him.

We heard how the Lord was with His Apostles, guiding and strengthening them in their path as they carried out their mission, amidst all the challenges and trials that they were facing. He guided them through the Holy Spirit, Who led and guided them to go wherever God had wanted them to go to, just as we heard how the Spirit guided St. Paul to go to a certain place, giving him dreams and leads to bring him and his companions to places where there are more need for evangelisation and outreach towards all those who have not yet known the Lord. Essentially what we have heard was the way how the Lord exercised His guidance and providence for His faithful servants, guiding and leading the works and ministries of His Church so that through everything that they did, they might spread ever further the message of the Gospel of Christ, the Good News of God.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the words of the Lord Jesus Who reassured His disciples and reminded them all that if they were to suffer persecutions, oppressions and hardships in the future, then all those happened just because the world itself had also opposed and persecuted the Lord Himself, Who had to endure the most painful sufferings and the greatest of humiliations for the sake of our salvation, just as He took upon His Cross and faced the greatest of all of His trials, so that by His suffering and death, He might save all of us and bring us all into a new and eternal life with Him, reconciled and reunited with God. If the Lord Himself had suffered, then it is only natural that His disciples and followers would likely have to endure the same fate as well.

But the Lord reassured them all that they were not alone, and the Lord Himself would always be with them, promising them that the Advocate, the Helper, Who is the Holy Spirit, would come into their midst and be with them, helping and guiding them in their works and ministries, in everything that they say and do, for the greater glory of God. The Lord promised them all that their rewards would truly be great in Him and that He will be with them in all things and at all times, and would prepare for them the everlasting glory and honour reserved to those who have remained and kept their faith in Him, despite all the challenges, trials and sufferings that they had to face as the disciples, followers and missionaries of the Lord and Saviour of all.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to these words from the Sacred Scriptures, we are therefore reminded of the Lord’s Presence in our midst and in all the things that we say and do, in all of our efforts, endeavours and good works that He has entrusted to us and which we have carried out and are doing for the greater glory of God and for the salvation of souls. We are all called to continue the great works which the Lord had begun through His Apostles and disciples, all those who have given their best efforts and their whole lives for the Lord. There are still a lot of works for us to do in this world today, in our various communities and places of responsibilities, in proclaiming God’s Good News and truth to all the people of all the nations.

Each and every one of us have been entrusted with the gifts, abilities and opportunities which the Lord had provided to us and blessed us with. With these comes the responsibilities and calling through which we should commit ourselves in even the smallest ways that we will always continue to show the Lord’s Good News and truth, His love and ways to everyone whom we encounter and interact with. We should always strive to be the bearers of God’s truth and be good and worthy role models for one another. Like that of the Apostles and the disciples of the Lord before us, who have inspired us with their exemplary lives and actions, we should ourselves therefore be good and worthy disciples and followers of the Lord as well, in living our own lives led and strengthened by the Holy Spirit.

May the Risen Lord continue to be with us and guide us in all of our journey and efforts throughout life. May He continue to strengthen our resolve to live our lives worthily of Him and to endure all sorts of trials, challenges and tribulations, so that despite whatever it is that we may need to face in our lives, we will always be strong and inspired to follow His path, and the examples of the holy men and women who had gone before us, so that by our lives and perseverance, our own faith and commitment, more and more may come to believe in the Lord as well and be saved through God’s light and salvation. Amen.

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Saturday, 4 May 2024 : 5th Week of Easter (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 15 : 18-21

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “If the world hates you, remember that the world hated Me before you. This would not be so if you belonged to the world, because the world loves its own. But you are not of the world, since I have chosen you from the world; because of this the world hates you.”

“Remember what I told you : the servant is not greater than his master; if they persecuted Me, they will persecute you, too. If they kept My word, they will keep yours as well. All this they will do to you for the sake of My Name, because they do not know the One Who sent Me.”

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Saturday, 4 May 2024 : 5th Week of Easter (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 99 : 2, 3, 5

Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.

Know that the Lord is God; He created us and we are His people, the sheep of His fold.

For the Lord is good; His love lasts forever and His faithfulness through all generations.

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Saturday, 4 May 2024 : 5th Week of Easter (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 16 : 1-10

Paul travelled on to Derbe and then to Lystra. A disciple named Timothy lived there, whose mother was a believer of Jewish origin but whose father was a Greek. As the believers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him, Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him. So he took him and, because of the Jews of that place who all knew that his father was a Greek, he circumcised him.

As they travelled from town to town, they delivered the decisions of the Apostles and elders in Jerusalem, for the people to obey. Meanwhile, the churches grew stronger in faith and increased in number every day.

They travelled through Phrygia and Galatia, because they had been prevented by the Holy Spirit from preaching the message in the province of Asia. When they came to Mysia, they tried to go to Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to do this. So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas.

There one night Paul had a vision. A Macedonian stood before him and begged him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” When he awoke, he told us of this vision and we understood that the Lord was calling us to give the Good News to the Macedonian people.

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Saturday, 27 April 2024 : 4th Week of Easter (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we all listened to the words of the Scriptures in which we are reminded yet again of the responsibilities and the calling we have as Christians to proclaim the Risen Lord to all the people, just as He has told His Apostles and disciples to do, and which works and ministries have not yet been completed. In this world today, there are still many more opportunities and occasions in which we have been provided with in order to proclaim the Lord and His truth to the many people all around us, in our workplaces and schools, and in the various other occasions and places where we may be in our lives, where many people have yet to know the truth about Christ, our Risen Lord and Saviour, and have yet to witness His light and truth, experience His love and grace.

In our first reading today, we heard from Acts of the Apostles in which the Apostles St. Paul and St. Barnabas were mentioned as ministering to the faithful and proclaiming the truth of Christ to the people during their missionary journey and time in the region known as Pisidia in Asia Minor, where there were both Jews and Gentiles alike who responded positively to the message which both Apostles were bringing and proclaiming to them. St. Paul had spoken at length earlier on about everything that the Risen Lord Jesus had done for the salvation of all the whole world, and convinced quite a few among the Jewish diaspora to become the followers and believers in Christ, while the others among the Jewish population refused to believe in the Lord, hardening their hearts and minds against Him and His Apostle.

That was why from those Jewish diaspora population who resisted the Lord and His truth, the two Apostles faced a lot of opposition and obstacles. This was likely because those Jewish people belonged to the group of the Pharisees, many of whom rejected the Lord, refused to believe in Him and stubbornly persecuting Him and His disciples simply because they did not agree with the Lord’s way and teachings. The Pharisees believed and adopted a very strict and rigid interpretation of the Law of God, immersing themselves in the intricate details and rules of the Law and its practices, all the rituals and observances which made them to criticise almost everything that the Lord and His disciples had done, thinking that they were better and knew things better, or more worthy in the eyes of the Lord.

In addition, many of them also held the belief that the descendants of Israel, the children of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the first chosen people of God were superior and preferred than everyone else. They took it to the extreme by thinking that salvation and grace of God only belonged to the Jewish people, and that the non-Jewish people or the Gentiles had no place in God’s Kingdom, unless and only unless they adopted the whole entirety of the Jewish customs and practices, laws and rules, essentially making them to be part of the Jewish nation and people. Some of the early Christians who converted from among the Pharisees shared this view and attempted to enforce Jewish customs and practices on all the early Christians and the Church, but the Apostles led by St. Peter decided against this erroneous path and idea.

St. Paul and St. Barnabas were among those who championed better outreach and support for the none-Jewish people, embracing them and not enforcing the Jewish customs and practices on them, requiring them only to obey the central tenets of the Christian faith as taught by the Lord and agreed and decided by the authority of the Church through the Apostles. As we heard, this quickly earned the ire and opposition from the Jewish people who opposed the teachings of the Lord, when they heard how the two Apostles proclaiemd that the Lord’s salvation was also given to the Gentiles, and how the Lord’s grace and love have been extended to everyone, and not just to the Jewish people only. This led to the friction and hardships endured by St. Paul and St. Barnabas, who were cast out of the town by the efforts of those Jewish opponents of the Lord.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the conversation between the Lord Jesus and His disciples, represented by St. Philip the Apostle, who asked the Lord to show them the Father, which the Lord responded with some frustration and disbelief at how His disciples still failed to appreciate what He had been doing all those while, having told them everything about the Father and having shown them the love of the Father manifested in Himself, as the Son of God, the perfect manifestation of God’s Love in the flesh, having been shown to us, made approachable and tangible that while once God is One Who is infinitely far beyond us, now we can truly experience His love and compassion, through what His Son had provided to us. The Lord told all of His disciples and followers that everything that He had revealed to them truly came from the Father, and is the absolute truth.

This is therefore the same truth which St. Paul and St. Barnabas had proclaimed as mentioned in our first reading today, and which the other Apostles and disciples of the Lord had also proclaimed throughout their various missionary journeys and works. Through their efforts, their works and sacrifices, the time that they spent in telling the people about the Risen Lord and the salvation that God had promised through His Son, all these had brought many people to come towards His grace, opening the doors of His mercy and forgiveness to countless people who have come to seek His love and mercy. They courageously went forth to do so despite the challenges and oppositions that they had to encounter from the enemies of the Lord and from all those who rejected His love and truth.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, each and every one of us as Christians are therefore reminded of the important obligations that we have in proclaiming Christ our Lord and Saviour through our way of life, our every actions, words and deeds. May the Risen Lord continue to strengthen and encourage us all in our every path, and in what we do, for His greater glory, so that by our exemplary lives and efforts, we may truly bring the Lord and His truth, His salvation and grace ever closer to all those whom we encounter in life, now and always. Amen.