Saul

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Thursday, 26 December 2013 : Feast of St. Stephen, Protomartyr (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Acts 6 : 8-10 and Acts 7 : 54-59

Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. Some persons then came forward, who belonged to the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia and Asia. They argued with Stephen but they could not match the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke.

When the chief priests and the people heard the reproach that Stephen made to them, they were enraged and they gnashed their teeth against Stephen. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, fixed his eyes on heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus at God’s right hand, so he declared : “I see the heavens open and the Son of Man at the right hand of God.”

But they shouted and covered their ears with their hands and rushed together upon him. They brought him out of the city and stoned him, and the witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, saying : “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

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Friday, 26 July 2013 : 16th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Scripture Reflection)

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the Ten Commandments given by our Lord to His people, the people of Israel, through Moses, His servant, written on the two stones that would bear the very writings of the Lord, the Commandments that He wanted His people to follow for all eternity. The Ten Commandments carry the basic tenets of what being the people and children of God is all about, that is indeed summarised by Christ as the commandments of love.

For the commandments in the Ten Commandments, when looked deeper into, would show that mankind need to love God with all their attention, their hearts, minds, and soul, and with all their strength, that they will obey and worship no other god but the Lord God, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world. Automatically too, they should honour the Holy Name of their God, YHVH, the God who AM, and whose Name has also been revealed to us, Jesus, the Name above every other name, and the Name upon which all knees will bend, be it on earth, in heaven, or in hell.

Loving God with all our hearts and our strength is important, but that is just one half of the entire law and commandment. That is because as Christ had taught His disciples and which we read in the Gospels, we must also love our brothers and sisters, all our neighbours, fellow mankind, just as we have loved our God and ourselves, in the same way, giving to them our love, care, and compassion. That is the other half of the commandments, that will make perfect our observation of God’s laws and commandments.

To love our brethren and our fellow men means to give unconditional love to others, especially to those who are starved of love, to those who hunger for love and compassion, and those who are in the midst of suffering and persecution. But this is not all that love is about, because love is about giving ourselves not just to those whom we love, or just to those who we think need our love, but to love is also to embrace our enemies, those who hate us, those who persecute us, and those who did evil things to us. Love means to be able to forgive them from their faults to us, and to embrace them as our fellow brothers and sisters of the One True God, the Lord Jesus Christ.

That is why the Ten Commandments also included commands such as not to kill nor to covet one another’s goods and properties, as these are likely to be borne out of animosity that arose between two parties in the first place. Hatred leads to animosity, and then it may result in something that hurt one or both parties, or even kill, in the case of murder. The Lord wants all of us to respect one another and let go of our hatred and our animosity, replacing them instead with love, the kind of love that Jesus Christ had shown us, on the cross at Calvary.

For Jesus Himself had forgiven His enemies, the Pharisees and the chief priests, as well as the people who cried for His death. He embraced them from the cross, and His Blood is poured down the cross to wash the sins of all mankind, because He redeemed all men, without any exceptions. He also embraced His enemy, Saul, the reaper of early Christians, who hunted many people who believed in Christ and tortured them. Christ embraced Saul with His love, and made him into the greatest instrument of His works in this world, from an enemy into the most valiant defender of the faith.

We have to nurture love, not hatred; peace, not violence; hope, not despair; light, not darkness; and faith in God; not in Satan and his devices and temptations. We have to plant the seeds of love, hope, and faith in our youths, in our own families, within our circle of friends, and within our respective societies. For actions not done in love, and life lived without love is empty, and neither does any actions or life that are not bound by hope and faith. To be loving is key to achieving salvation.

Today we commemorate the feast day of the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of our God, that is St. Joachim and St. Anne, the grandparents of Jesus Christ our Lord. They are role models for all families, Christian families in particular, in how to bring God’s love into our homes. They brought up the mother of our Lord from her infancy to be the blessed person our mother Mary came to be. They cared for her since her Immaculate Conception inside her mother’s womb, the womb of St. Anne.

The care and love that St. Joachim and St. Anne had shown to Mary, the mother of our Lord, is replicated in her care for Jesus, whom Mary cared since His humble birth at the stables in Bethlehem, protecting Him from King Herod and those who would wish to harm Him. She accompanied Him through His childhood and teenage years, being revealed that Jesus is truly the Son of God when He was left behind in the Temple at the age of twelve. Mary accompanied Christ through His ministries and eventually until His death, and resurrection.

All these are made possible by the tender love and care given to Mary herself by her parents, St. Joachim and St. Anne, who showed her the meaning of love, compassion, and faith in God, that she herself become role models for all of us, the mother of God, and the greatest among all saints and apostles of Christ. St. Joachim and St. Anne are truly role models for us, and we should indeed follow in their footsteps, as well as the footsteps of Mary, the mother of our Lord, towards Christ, who longs to welcome us back into His embrace.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us renew our commitment to our Lord today, and also to renew our commitment to love, that is to love everyone, without exception, even to those who hate us the most and those who wished for our misfortune and death. Let us be gracious and courageous to forgive and to embrace those who do not have love in them, that in doing so, we will obey the commandments of the Lord, as once given to Moses, His servant so that the people of Israel will know the Lord’s laws, and so may we too, obey the same law, that is the law of love.

May the Lord bless us all with abundance of graces and blessings, and plant the seeds of love, hope, and faith within us, that they may blossom, and through our words, actions, and deeds, may we spread love, joy, and hope to all mankind, bringing everyone closer to God who is our Lord and Father. St. Joachim and St. Anne, pray for us too. Amen.

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Friday, 28 June 2013 : Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles, Great Feast Day of the Church of Rome (Scripture Reflection)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate one of the greatest feast days in our Church, that is the feast day of the two great Apostles, Saints Peter and Paul, the pillars of the Church. This is because both of them went to Rome and were martyred there in the defence of their faith. They were martyred in Rome and therefore, cemented the position of Rome as the centre of all Christendom, with Peter as the very first Bishop of Rome, and therefore the first Pope, the first leader of the Church, Vicar of Christ on earth.

Despite the greatness of Peter, the chief of the Apostles, and Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles, the great apostle through his four missionary journeys across the eastern Mediterranean region, both of them had humble and unworthy origins, and each, as we all should know had their weaknesses in the very beginning, and along their own journeys of the faith.

St. Peter was once a poor fisherman plying his trade in fishing at the Lake of Galilee, leading a simple fisherman’s life, until He was called by the Lord, through His brother, Andrew. He was Simon, son of Jonah, until Christ gave him a new name, that is Cephas, or ‘rock’, which in Greek, ‘Petros’ and in Latin, ‘Petrus’, which eventually give raise to the name Peter, the name of the chief of the apostles that we knew of.

St. Peter did not lead a very faithful life at first, although his faith in the Lord is indeed at the same time firm and solid. We surely remember that he was the one who declared that the Lord Jesus is the Messiah and Lord, when He asked His disciples about His true identity. Only a steadfast and strong faith may recognise such nature in Jesus, that others failed to do.

St. Peter did deny the Lord, by denying Him three times, out of fear of the Jewish authorities, because He did not want to be exposed as a disciple of Jesus, at the time when the Lord was under incarceration by the chief priests. He did it out of fear, not out of any true desire to betray the Lord, and Peter is still indeed faithful to the Lord. He recognised the faults that he had done, and he repented in great sorrow. The Lord knew this and forgave Peter.

That was why, even though Peter had denied the Lord three times, He forgave him three times as well, by asking Peter to profess his love for Him. The true nature of Peter came out in the Gospel reading today, that despite his frailty and fear, he truly loved the Lord, and the Lord knew that, even without asking. He rewarded him for his steadfast faith, like a ‘rock’, by establishing His very Church on the faith of Peter, on the solid ‘rock’ of faith, that no powers of evil and hell can overcome.

St. Paul, the other great apostle, did much for the Lord, by evangelising to the four corners of the world at the time, spreading the words of the Gospel like no other Apostle has done. But he too had his humble and sinful origins, as we all knew that St. Paul was once Saul, the great persecutor of the Church of Christ.

Saul did great sins once and killed many people who believed in God. He would definitely had been condemned into hell and eternal damnation, had the Lord had not actually chosen him to be His tool for bringing the faith into many who still lived in darkness. The Lord appeared to him on the way to Damascus, and transformed him from the great monster that persecuted Christians, into the greatest champion of the faith.

Saul then was transformed into Paul, the great apostle. He did not have an easy life and an easy work. Instead, he faced many persecutions and sufferings, from beatings, lashes, prison, and even many near-death experiences. He was accepted in many places, but there were equally many if not more places that rejected him and his teachings on the Lord. Even within the Christian community, he faced many problems, as they were not of the same mind, and having disparage ideas on the faith and how to believe in the Lord.

St. Paul did not fear death, and faced it openly, believing that the Lord is always with him. He embraced death, and went to Rome, to be judged by the Emperor, Nero at that time. When the Emperor caused fire to certain buildings in Rome in order to secure a place to build his palace, and caused the Great Fire of Rome, he blamed the Christians for the fire, and St. Paul faced his martyrdom there, in the defence of his faith.

The Lord our God called the two apostles from their different origins, living in a world of sin and darkness, and transformed them into the tools for the divine good works. Their story is an inspiration for all of us, to be more like them, to be faithful as they are for Christ, and to be loving for our fellow brethren as they had given their love for the fellow Christians of their time.

May God strengthen our faith, that our faith will be as strong as Peter’s, that is like a rock, and that we will not face any fear, and remain steadfast, just as Paul had done. God bless us all. Amen.

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Monday, 24 June 2013 : Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (Second Reading)

Acts 13 : 22-26

After that time, God removed Saul and raised up David as king, to whom He bore witness saying : ‘I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all I want him to do.’ It is from the descendants of David that God has now raised up the promised Saviour of Israel, Jesus.

Before He appeared, John proclaimed a baptism of repentance for all the people of Israel. As John was ending his life’s work, he said : ‘I am not what you think I am, for after me another One is coming whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.’

Brothers, children and descendants of Abraham, and you also who fear God, it is to you that this message of salvation has been sent.

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Tuesday, 11 June 2013 : 10th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Barnabas, Apostle (First Reading)

Acts 11 : 21b-26 and Acts 13 : 1-3

A great number believed and turned to the Lord. News of this reached the ears of the Church in Jerusalem, so they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw the manifest signs of God’s favour, he rejoiced and urged them all to remain firmly faithful to the Lord; for he himself was a good man filled with Holy Spirit and faith. Thus large crowds came to know the Lord.

Then Barnabas went off to Tarsus to look for Saul and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they had meetings with the Church and instructed many people. It was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians.

There were at Antioch – in the Church which was there – prophets and teachers : Barnabas, Symeon known as Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod, and Saul. On one occasion while they were celebrating the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said to them, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul to do the work for which I have called them.”

So, after fasting and praying, they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

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Sunday, 9 June 2013 : 10th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Scripture Reflection)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard that Jesus returned the dead only son of a widow to life. He had pity on her and brought her son back into life. That shows how great is our God, how great Jesus is, because He is truly Lord over life and death, because not even death can keep his hand against His authority. Even the dead is risen from their slumber, and the spirit is returned to them in life.

Brothers and sisters, God is life, and those who believe in Him will gain eternal life with Him. If only we would believe in Him! There are still so many among us who lack that faith and do not believe in Him, and they trust only in themselves and the world, instead of putting their faith and trust in God.

Today we heard the death of an only son of a widow, and in fact just yesterday, we celebrated the feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and we are reminded that that pure heart of Mary was stabbed with a sword, as prophesied by the prophet Simeon, at the Passion of Christ, when He was dying on the cross at Calvary.

Such great sorrow and sadness that is in Mary’s heart, seeing her only Son whom she loved, dying on the cross in great suffering, all for our sake and for our salvation. Jesus knows that this would happen, and therefore, He too understands the feeling of the widow, who had lost her only son, the only one who could provide for her.

God loves all of us, brothers and sisters, He loves us so much, that He gave us His only Son in death, that through His death, through His Blood, we are redeemed of our sins, and have hope of salvation, and that death would no longer have power over us, and that we would gain eternal life, if only we would believe in Him who is our Lord and Saviour.

Even a great sinner He did not shy from, nor close that sinner from the path of mercy. He turns to great sinners and works hard to bring them back to Him. That was what happened to St. Paul. As a young man, he persecuted the people and the Church of God, and his hands were soaked with the blood of God’s believers. But yet, God is willing to provide him a new life, by His appearance on the way to Damascus, that led to the conversion of St. Paul, from being the enemy of the Church of God, into its greatest champion.

Today, let us all reflect on these readings, and keep in mind always that our Lord loves all, all of us, without exception, and without preferences, and that He would give Himself, even to the greatest of sinners. He wants us to be His once again, and He wants us to be reunited with Him. He is merciful and loving, and that was why, seeing a widow in great sadness of loss, He revived her son. And that because of this, we know that He is life itself, and He has authority over all things in creation.

May God be with us and let us also remain always in His love, and let us always ask Him for mercy, in repentance of our sins and unworthiness. Amen.

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Sunday, 12 May 2013 : 7th Sunday of Easter (First Reading)

Acts 7 : 55-60

But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, fixed his eyes on heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus at God’s right hand, so he declared, “I see the heavens open and the Son of Man at the right hand of God.”

But they shouted and covered their ears with their hands and rushed together upon him. They brought him out of the city and stoned him, and the witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they were stoning him, Stephen prayed saying : “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

Then he knelt down and said in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he died.

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Wednesday, 24 April 2013 : 4th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen, Priest and Martyr (First Reading)

Acts 12 : 24 – Acts 13 : 5a

Meanwhile the word of God was increasing and spreading. Barnabas and Saul carried out their mission and then came back to Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.

There were at Antioch – in the Church which was there – prophets and teachers : Barnabas, Symeon known as Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod, and Saul. On one occasion while they were celebrating the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said to them, “Set apart for Me, Barnabas and Saul to do the work for which I have called them.”

So, after fasting and praying, they laid their hands on them and sent them off. These then, sent by the Holy Spirit, went down to the port of Seleucia and from there sailed to Cyprus. Upon their arrival in Salamis they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogue.

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Friday, 19 April 2013 : 3rd Week of Easter, Eighth Anniversary of the Election of Pope Benedict XVI in 2005 (First Reading)

Acts 9 : 1-20

Meanwhile Saul considered nothing but violence and death for the disciples of the Lord. He went to the High Priest  and asked him for letters to the synagogues of Damascus that would authorise him to arrest and bring to Jerusalem anyone he might find, man or woman, belonging to the Way.

As he travelled along and was approaching Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul! Why do you persecute Me?” And he asked, “Who are You, Lord?” The voice replied, “I am Jesus whom you persecute. Now get up and go into the city; there you will be told what you are to do.”

The men who were travelling with him stood there speechless : they had heard the sound, but could see no one. Saul got up from the ground and, opening his eyes, he could not see. They took him by the hand and brought him to Damascus. He was blind and he did not eat or drink for three days.

There was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias, to whom the Lord called in a vision, “Ananias!” He answered, “Here I am, Lord!” Then the Lord said to him, “Go at once to Straight Street and ask, at the house of Judas, for a man of Tarsus named Saul. You will find him praying, for he has just seen in a vision that a man named Ananias has come in and placed his hands upon him, to restore his sight.”

Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many sources about this man and all the harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem, and now he is here with authority from the High Priest to arrest all who call upon Your Name.”

But the Lord said to him, “Go! This man is My chosen instrument to bring My Name to the pagan nations and their kings, and the people of Israel as well. I Myself will show him how much he will have to suffer for My Name.”

So Ananias left and went to the house. He laid his hands upon Saul and said, “Saul, my brother, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me to you so that you may receive your sight and be filled with Holy Spirit.” Immediately, something like scales fell from his eyes and he could see; he got up and was baptised. Then he took food and was strengthened.

For several days Saul stayed with the disciples at Damascus, and he soon began to proclaim in the synagogues that Jesus was the Son of God.

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Wednesday, 17 April 2013 : 3rd Week of Easter (First Reading)

Acts 8 : 1b-8

All the disciples, except the apostles, were scattered throughout the region of Judea and Samaria. Devout men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. Saul meanwhile was trying to destroy the Church; he entered house after house and dragged off men and women and had them put in jail.

At the same time, those who were scattered went about preaching the word. Philip went down to a town of Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there. All the people paid close attention to what Philip said as they listened to him and saw the miraculous signs that he did.

For in cases of possession, the unclean spirits came out shrieking loudly. Many people who were paralysed or crippled were healed. So there was great joy in that town.