Saturday

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Saturday, 26 August 2023 : 20th Week of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, all of us are reminded that each and every one of us are called to be truly faithful to God and to do whatever we can in order to follow and obey God and His Law and commandments faithfully and with sincere desire to love God and to follow His path in our lives. We have to put the Lord at the centre and as the main focus of our lives, so that in all the things we say and do, we will always do what is right and just, worthy and truly faithful to God. It is easier said than done actually, just as our predecessors had shown us, in how they lived their own lives. To be faithful to God may often mean for us to have the need to resist the many temptations and pressures all around us, so that we do not end up falling into the wrong path in our lives, on the path towards worldliness and our downfall instead on the path towards righteousness and glory in God.

In our first reading today, we heard from the account from the Book of Ruth, in which we listened to the continuation of the story of Ruth, a Moabite woman, that is a foreigner at that time, when the Judges were ruling over Israel before the days of the kings of the kingdom of Israel. As a foreigner, and a woman no less, back then, it was really unlikely for someone like Ruth to be viewed positively and with esteem by the people of Israel, who were rather exclusive and different from their neighbours, and who back then were often embroiled in conflict and struggles against those who lived with and around them. That was because most of those foreigners and neighbours worshipped pagan idols and gods in a polytheistic nature, while the Israelites were those who kept the Law and commandments of God, and worshipped the Lord, their God alone, in a monotheistic worship.

Ruth was distinct and important because if we remember what we heard in our first reading passage yesterday, she made a very firm profession of faith and commitment to God, before her own mother-in-law Naomi, declaring that the latter’s God would be her God as well. She had no obligation or need to do so, and she could have just returned to the land of Moab just as her sister-in-law, Orpah, had done. Yet, Ruth followed Naomi back to the land of Israel, and we saw here how she ended up in the favour and love of one called Boaz, a relative of Naomi and her late husband, Elimelech. Boaz was from the tribe of Judah and was one of the ancestors of David, the great King of Israel. When Ruth gained the love and favour of Boaz, because of her righteousness, virtues and dedication to God, as highlighted in our first reading passage today, this made her to be one of the ancestors of David as well, and from him, therefore, as one of the ancestors of the Lord Jesus, our Lord and Saviour, Who was born into the House of David.

The examples, dedication and commitment of Ruth the Moabite foreigner, all of these come in contrast against what we have heard in our Gospel passage today, in which the Lord Jesus spoke to His disciples and to the people regarding the attitudes of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, which the Lord criticised for their approach and adoption of a very rigid interpretation, application and enforcement of the Law of God and His commandments, rules and precepts as revealed to Israel through Moses. Historically, the Law and commandments of God had been passed down by oral traditions from generations to generations, and over time, the context, meaning and significance of the Law and its details did tend to get lost and twisted, as various people made adjustments and additions to them, which resulted in the Law and the rules being excessively restrictive and rigid by the time of the Lord’s ministry.

And in the manner of how those Pharisees and the teachers of the Law observed and enforced them, the Lord criticised those people, who have been entrusted with the guardianship and the care of the Law, and also the well-being and the guidance of the rest of the people of God, because the former had done things that have kept God’s people away from the Lord and His salvation and grace instead of bringing them closer to Him as they should have done. They have paraded their piety and devotion before everyone else, and prided their revered and highly respected status in the community, and as a result, many of them became indulgent in that reverence and vanity, and ended up losing focus and sight on what truly matters, that is their obligation to lead a life that is truly attuned to God, and to be good role models, that are willing to lead others to the right path in life towards God.

Instead, they closed the gates of salvation to many people, by being prejudiced and even hostile against those whom they perceived to be less than worthy of God and His salvation, such as the tax collectors, prostitutes, those suffering from various diseases and demonic possessions. All of those were the members of the people of God as well, and those whom the Lord Jesus often went to visit and minister for, in the effort to bring God’s love, His truth and Good News to them, so that they might find the path to salvation, to sin no more and to follow wholeheartedly the path of God and His truth. The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, contrary to the examples shown by Ruth in our first reading today, focused more of their attention on themselves and their perceived greatness and worthiness before God, making it difficult for many others to find their way to God through their excessively rigid application of God’s Law and commandments.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, what the Scripture readings today presented to us is a reminder that we must not allow ourselves to be swayed by worldly temptations and the vices of human greed and ambitions, our ego and pride. As long as we allow those things to lead us down the wrong path, it may be difficult for us to remain truly faithful to God. And at the same time, we are also reminded not to be biased or judgmental simply because of our perceptions and preferences, such as the perfect example shown by Ruth against that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law. While the former, who as a foreigner and a woman was often considered as unworthy and wicked, was actually very devout, committed and faithful to God, the latter group, those considered as the religious elites and guardians of the Law, were actually the ones who did not truly obey the Law wholeheartedly.

This is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us are reminded to have true and genuine faith in God, a faith that is truly living and vibrant, one like that which Ruth possessed back then. We must allow the Lord to transform and guide us, by focusing our lives and attention on Him, and not on the many worldly matters and attachments that we all may have, all around us. We must learn to focus our attention on the Lord and to distance ourselves from the many distractions and wickedness all around us, the allure of worldly glory and human desires, among other things, which can lead us down the wrong path, like what happened to the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law who were swayed by their pride, ego and vanity, and like what had happened to many of us and our predecessors throughout history.

Let us all therefore strive to renew our faith and our conviction to live our lives ever more worthily of the Lord from now on. Let us all turn towards God with all of our heart, our soul and our might, so that in all the things we do, we will always do them out of love for God, and with the intention of bringing glory to God and for the well-being of our fellow brothers and sisters, just as the Lord had commanded us to do. Let our lives be inspirations and good examples for others to follow, as how Ruth has inspired many who came after her. May God bless us all in our every efforts and endeavours, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Saturday, 26 August 2023 : 20th Week of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

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.”

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Saturday, 26 August 2023 : 20th Week of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

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.

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Saturday, 26 August 2023 : 20th Week of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

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.

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Saturday, 19 August 2023 : 19th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Eudes, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the readings from the Sacred Scriptures, each and every one of us are reminded again to remain true to our faith in God at all times, and each one of us are called to deepen our faith and knowledge of God and His ways, so that in all and every thing that we do, we will always do what He has taught and commanded us all to do in our daily lives. We should have faith that is strong and pure, unbridled by the many temptations of worldly glory and fame, and faith that is truly vibrant and alive, that can inspire many others to continue to be faithful and dedicated to God. This is what we have been called to do as Christians, and we are constantly being reminded so that we will always be exemplary in our every actions and deeds throughout life.

In our first reading today, we heard the continuation of the Book of Joshua in which Joshua, the leader of the Israelites that succeeded Moses, continued to remind the Israelites of what they had to do in obeying God’s Law and commandments, in doing God’s will and in living their lives truly worthily of His cause. Each and every one of us ought to heed these reminders as well, because we are all have been called and chosen by God as His people too. Joshua told all the people of Israel that they all should not forget about the Lord, their God, and they must not establish or erect any altars or worship any pagan idols or gods in their midst, aside from the Lord only. This is because the Lord alone is the one true God Who is worthy of worship, and the people of God must not be easily swayed by the allures of their neighbours or other worldly temptations all around them.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the Lord telling off His disciples for keeping young children from coming to Him, when many of them came to be with Him and to greet Him with joy. The Lord’s disciples tried to keep those children away from Him and scolded those who brought the children to the Lord, and this immediately brought about a stern rebuke from the Lord for all those disciples, because the Lord truly wanted all those children to come to Him, and presented of how faithful those children truly were, with faith that were really living and vibrant, true and pure, unadulterated and uncorrupted by the temptations and other forms of worldly vices and allures, and which all of us as Christians, all of God’s disciples and followers, should truly aspire to have in our own respective lives and faith.

What is the faith of a child, brothers and sisters in Christ? It is a pure faith where the child seeks the Lord and focuses their attention on Him alone, just as we can notice how innocent children really are. If they believe in something, or were told about something, they will really believe in it without any skepticism or doubt, and this kind of pure faith is what the Lord truly seeks from all of us, His beloved people and children. However, the reality is such that many of us did not truly have this kind of pure, unadulterated and uncorrupted life, faith and commitment to God, as many of us have been swayed and corrupted by the temptations of worldly glory and desires, all the things which had kept us away from truly being able to serve and follow the Lord wholeheartedly in all of our lives, as we all should have done.

Take for example the people of Israel themselves, whom God had rescued and led out of the land of Egypt, and whom He had loved and taken care of throughout that journey and beyond. There were many times and instances throughout that journey when the Lord were repeatedly angered and saddened by their stubborn refusal to listen to Him or to obey His ways, because all of them sought worldly satisfaction and pleasures, rather than to obey Him and His Law and commandments. Whenever the Israelites rebelled against God and disobeyed Him, or established pagan idols and false gods over them, it was because they were swayed by those temptations, of wickedness and evil, pride, ambition, ego, greed, pleasures of the world, and more, and all those things led them down the slippery path towards their downfall.

The same will likely happen to us as well, brothers and sisters in Christ, unless we take due precaution to avoid suffering the same fate by being ever vigilant in our lives and in how we live them. Unless we watch ourselves and our actions in life, we may all easily end up falling into the trap of sin and evil, and as a result, we may end up losing sight and focus on the Lord and His saving grace, His light and path. When we allow the corruptions and the temptations of this world to sway us, it will likely lead us astray, away from the Lord and His truth, and in the end, we may regret when it is already too late, and when we have to suffer the consequences for our sins and faults. But the Lord is forever always gracious and kind, and He has always given us many opportunities to turn away from the wicked paths and to embrace the path of His light and righteousness.

That is why, all of us should seek inspiration from the good examples of our holy predecessors, like that of St. John Eudes whose feast we are celebrating today. St. John Eudes was a French priest and the founder of the religious congregation, the Congregation of Jesus and Mary. He had been devout and pious throughout his whole life, even from an early age, and developed an intense devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary throughout his formative and priestly years and vocation. He dedicated much of his time and efforts to help those who were suffering and sick, and spent the time to evangelise and to let the Lord and His truth known amongst more and more of God’s people. St. John Eudes also cared for some prostitutes and others who had been ostracised by the community for their sinful way of life, developing what came to be known as the Order of Our Lady of Charity of the Refuge.

There were numerous other good deeds and actions which St. John Eudes had done for the greater glory of God and for the benefits of his fellow brothers and sisters, particularly those who had been abandoned and ostracised, and had none to welcome or care for them. Through his efforts in preaching and ministry, and by his establishments of institutions to help the people of God and to gather those who desire to serve the Lord more faithfully, St. John Eudes had touched countless people, and brought so many souls, much closer to God and to His salvation. His strong devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary helped many others to come to love the Lord and to know Him more through His blessed Mother as well, and also by the inspiration set by St. John Eudes himself in all of his works.

Let us all therefore do the same in our lives, brothers and sisters in Christ, inspired and strengthened by the good examples and inspiration from St. John Eudes, so that we may also lead lives that are truly worthy of the Lord, free from sin and evil, and full of virtue and righteousness in God. Each and every one of us are expected and called to do God’s will, and to follow Him wholeheartedly, just as how Joshua had reminded the Israelites to be always ever faithful to God in all things. May all of us draw ever closer to God and His salvation, and do our best to remain truly faithful to Him, at all times. Amen.

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Saturday, 19 August 2023 : 19th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Eudes, Priest (Gospel Reading)

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.

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Saturday, 19 August 2023 : 19th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Eudes, Priest (Psalm)

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.

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Saturday, 19 August 2023 : 19th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. John Eudes, Priest (First Reading)

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.

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Saturday, 12 August 2023 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jane Frances de Chantal, Religious (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded to continue to be faithful in God and to trust in Him at all times. We should do whatever we can to walk faithfully in His Presence, doing His will and obeying His commandments. Each one of us as God’s people, all of us have been called to holiness and entrusted with the Law and commandments that He has given us because we have received His truth and Good News, and the teachings and explanations of those same truths through the Church, which had preserved the Good News from the Lord and His Apostles, and also through the Wisdom and the knowledge granted to us through the Holy Spirit that has been sent unto us, dwelling in us, as God Himself has come down to dwell with us and within us. How can we then, as His beloved and holy people, act in ways that are contrary to His path? Unfortunately, many of us are still lacking in strong and truly genuine faith, and have acted waywardly and away from the Lord’s true path.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Deuteronomy, we continue to hear the reminders said by Moses to the whole assembly of the people of Israel, after the discourse that he went through with them in our first reading yesterday, telling them of the greatness of God and all the love which He has imparted upon them, all the wonderful things that He has done for their sake, in guiding and leading them through their darkest and most difficult moments. He had performed many signs and wonders, crushing all the enemies and opponents of His people, protecting them all from hardships and challenges, persecutions and oppressions, providing them with food and sustenance, drink and help throughout the entire journey in the desert, providing and loving them even as He chastised and punished them for their disobedience, rebellions and stubborn attitude, in refusing to obey Him and in disobeying His Law and in their betrayals against Him.

Today, we then heard from Moses reminding the people that the Lord, YHVH, alone is their God, and they should only worship and follow Him alone, and remember the Law and commandments that He had given all of them. He reminded the people of everything that God had promised to their ancestors, the Covenant that He has established with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and which He had remembered and was fulfilling at that very moment, through His guidance and deliverance of all of the Israelites from their enslavement in Egypt, leading them each day by hand, to the land that He has promised to the same Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and to their descendants. Moses reminded all of them that even in the good times that they would be having in the future, when they were well-fed and taken care of, in the blessed new lands they would live in, they must never forget about God and continue to follow Him faithfully as they should always do.

Each and every one of them should have strong and enduring faith in Him, as faith is something that anchors us to God and to His truth, His path and His love. As we all heard from our Gospel passage today, the Lord Jesus chastised some of His disciples for not having enough faith in Him, and therefore failed to cast out evil spirits and demons that had possessed a young boy. The disciples had been entrusted and given the power and authority to heal, perform miracles and other great works, including casting out demons and evil spirits, and yet, it was likely that at that moment, they had grown proud and forgot about whose power and authority by which they had performed all those miracles, and perhaps, they thought that it came from their own power and strength, or that when the evil spirits proved to be resilient and strong, they faltered and gave in to fear, and that was likely why they could not cast those out from the young boy.

Therefore, that was why the Lord chastised and reminded the disciples that they must first have strong faith and trust in Him, so that they may indeed do what God has commanded and entrusted for them to do. The same therefore applies to each and every one of us, the members of His Church as well. All of us as Christians have been called to remember our Lord and all that He had done for us, the Covenant and the enduring love that He has always ever shown unto us, from the very beginning, and how He even sent us His deliverance through His Son, Jesus Christ, to be our Saviour and Guide. Through Him, His works, and ultimately His suffering and death on the Cross, the Lord has led us all from the darkness and tyranny of sin and death, into a new life and existence blessed and full of His grace, free from evil, and free to live once again as children of God’s light and truth.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, each and every one of us are called and challenged to follow the Lord wholeheartedly, and we are all called to be great role models, inspirations and examples for each other, in how we live our lives, so that others may see God’s light and know His truth, through our every actions, words and deeds. And today, all of us should be inspired by the great examples set before us by our holy predecessors, particularly that of St. Jane Frances de Chantal, a holy woman of God whose feast we are celebrating today. St. Jane Frances de Chantal was born into a noble family in what is now France, and was a woman of high standing and reputation, who married another noble, Baron de Chantal who was killed early on, which left St. Jane Frances de Chantal as a widow at a young age with several children.

St. Jane Frances de Chantal took good care of her family, while at the same time establishing a new order for women who had been rejected because of them being in poor health or by being advanced in age by the order religious orders. The sanctity and great examples showed by St. Jane Frances de Chantal who dedicated herself to the cause of the Lord, inspired many others to follow her and her good examples, in serving God and in doing His commandments and Law. Many came to be convinced to be followers of Christ, and many still came to join the order that St. Jane Frances de Chantal had established, and performed so many wonderful things to the people of God. She also showed us all what it truly means for us to be faithful as Christians, in doing God’s will at all times, and in following God’s commandments and Law, living a life truly holy and worthy of God.

May the Lord continue to bless and guide us all as He has always ever done, all these while. May God be with us always and may He empower and help each one of us in our journey of faith and life, now and always, inspired as always by the saints and the holy men and women who came before us. Amen.

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Saturday, 12 August 2023 : 18th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Jane Frances de Chantal, Religious (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Religious or Saturday Mass of Our Lady)

Matthew 17 : 14-20

At that time, when Jesus and His disciples came to the crowd, a man approached Him, knelt before Him and said, “Sir, have pity on my son, who is an epileptic and suffers terribly. He has often fallen into the fire, and at other times into the water. I brought him to Your disciples but they could not heal him.”

Jesus replied, “O you people, faithless and misled! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.” And Jesus commanded the evil spirit to leave the boy, and the boy was immediately healed. Later, the disciples approached Jesus and asked Him privately, “Why could we not drive out the spirit?”

Jesus said to them, “Because you have little faith. I say to you : if only you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could tell that mountain to move from here to there, and the mountain would obey. Nothing would be impossible for you.”