Second Sunday of Lent

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Thursday, 16 March 2017 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we are presented by the Scriptures the importance of being righteous in our ways, as shown by the story of Lazarus and the rich man as Jesus had told it to His disciples. Those who are righteous will be rewarded with great rewards by God, while those who are wicked and follow the path of sin will be rejected by God.

The story of Lazarus and the rich man apparently showed how the rich and the powerful oppressed the poor and the weak. But Jesus was not against the rich and the powerful because of what they have and what they possess. However, it was the actions and the deeds of those people that were denounced by Jesus through His story on Lazarus.

The rich man lived lavishly and partied day and night, as what many rich and powerful people at that time normally do. Meanwhile, Lazarus was the poor man who was always hungry and as he was jobless and without money, he was unable to provide for himself, and had to depend on begging for a living. But no one gave him anything or took pity on him, including the rich man who lived on as if nothing else matters other than his own happiness.

Lazarus therefore died in agony and pain, and according to the story of Jesus, he went to Paradise, where he enjoyed with Abraham and the saints. In contrast, the rich man when he died, he went to the depths of hell, where he suffered greatly and in constant agony, in some sorts of a reversal of roles. Lazarus suffered in this world, and he received the succour of happiness and eternal rest in heaven, and the rich man suffered for eternity though he lived in joy in the world.

In this story, which many of us are quite familiar with, as we have heard it from our catechism classes, or from our parents, or by our reading of the Scriptures, we have witnessed what both heaven and hell are like, what it is like for us to enjoy the eternal bliss and happiness in heaven, or for us to suffer eternally in hell. But many of us think of heaven and hell in terms of happiness and suffering, in worldly terms. We always think of hell as a very hot place with fire and the torture of flames.

But in reality, the suffering in hell is so great not because of flames or any other worldly forms of sufferings. It is the separation that we have to endure for eternity which leads to the suffering we have, the despair present in our hearts. And the suffering is so great because we know that there is absolutely no hope for escape and redemption, for then it will be too late for us, when there is no more turning back for us. And we will know true suffering when God Himself has been separated from us, God Who has created us, and Who is the reason for our very existence.

And that, brothers and sisters in Christ, will be our fate if we do not turn our back to sin and continue to commit whatever is wicked and sinful in the sight of God and men alike. God is ever loving and ever merciful, but His mercy will not have any impact on us if we do not act accordingly in order to accept that mercy into our own lives. Remember that we cannot be servant to two masters, meaning that we cannot be faithful to God and at the same time remaining a sinner without repentance.

In addition to this, we also need to realise that sin is not merely just caused by our actions, for those are the sins of action and wickedness. What we have heard in the Gospel today shows us the sin of omission, that is to ignore what we could have done when we are perfectly capable of doing something to help and contribute to those who need our help.

The rich man could have done something to help Lazarus with all that he had possessed in life, all the food and drink that he had consumed. But he did not lift his fingers to do anything to help him, and left him hungry, homeless and suffering at his doorsteps, even though inside his house, food and drink flowed on without stopping. He could have done something to alleviate the suffering of the poor ones like Lazarus, but he did not do so.

He therefore committed the sin of omission, which many of us certainly had done before as well, during some parts or moments in our life. We are often guilty of ignoring those brethren of ours who are in need, and who are looking for our help. We are often blind against the sufferings and the needs of those around us, because we have been accustomed with serving our own needs and wants first, at the detriment of our fellow brethren.

In this season of Lent therefore, it is time for us to reevaluate our lives, our actions and all the things we have done so far in our lives. It is time for us to see if we have brought about good things for each other, or whether by our actions or by our lack of actions we have caused sufferings for others around us, or by ignoring those who are in need. In this time of Lent, each and every one of us as Christians are called to restrain our human desires and greed, and to deepen the love, mercy and forgiveness we have for one another.

Let us all help one another and love tenderly and graciously just as the Lord our God has loved us first. Let us make use of this time of Lent to practice almsgiving and penance, being generous in our gifts and help for those who are less fortunate than us. Let us all share the joy and the blessings that God had given us, so that no one may ever suffer any more as Lazarus had, and helping one another, being reminded of the suffering of those who have sinned and refused to repent, let us all strive to seek for the heavenly glory promised by God to all those who remain true and faithful to Him.

Let us remember that Jesus did not condemn the rich, for the rich and those blessed by God with more worldly blessings have in fact been given the means by which they will be able to help their less fortunate brethren. Rather, what the Lord condemned, is the attitude which many of us often exhibited, clinging stubbornly and jealousy to our wealth and possession that we end up being greedy as well as ignorant to the plight of the poor and the less fortunate.

May the Lord bless us all and bless all of our endeavours during this season of Lent. May He empower each and every one of us to live faithfully in accordance with the ways which the Lord had shown us, that by walking in His path, we may find our way to eternal life and salvation. May God be with us all, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Thursday, 16 March 2017 : 2nd Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Luke 16 : 19-31

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Once there was a rich man who dressed in purple and fine linen and feasted every day. At his gate lay Lazarus, a poor man covered with sores, who longed to eat just the scraps falling from the rich man’s table. Even dogs used to come and lick his sores.”

“It happened that the poor man died, and Angels carried him to take his place with Abraham. The rich man also died, and was buried. From hell where he was in torment, the rich man looked up and saw Abraham afar off, and with him Lazarus at rest. He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me, and send Lazarus, with the tip of his finger dipped in water, to cool my tongue, for I suffer so much in this fire.'”

“Abraham replied, ‘My son, remember that in your lifetime you were well-off, while the lot of Lazarus was misfortune. Now he is in comfort, and you are in agony. But that is not all. Between your place and ours a great chasm has been fixed, so that no one can cross over from here to you, or from your side to us.'”

“The rich man implored once more, ‘Then I beg you, Father Abraham, to send Lazarus to my father’s house, where my five brothers live, let him warn them, so that they may not end up in this place of torment.’ Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.'”

“But the rich man said, ‘No, Father Abraham; but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ Abraham said, ‘If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced, even if someone rises from the dead.'”

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Thursday, 16 March 2017 : 2nd Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Psalm 1 : 1-2, 3, 4 and 6

Blessed is the one who does not go where the wicked gather, or stand in the way of sinners, or sit where the scoffers sit! Instead, he finds delight in the law of the Lord and meditates day and night on His commandments.

He is like a tree beside a brook producing its fruit in due season, its leaves never withering. Everything he does is a success.

But it is different with the wicked. They are like chaff driven away by the wind. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous but cuts off the way of the wicked.

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Thursday, 16 March 2017 : 2nd Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Jeremiah 17 : 5-10

This is what YHVH says, “Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings and depends on a mortal for his life, while his heart is drawn away from YHVH! He is like a bunch of thistles in dry land, in parched desert places, in a salt land where no one lives and who never finds happiness.”

“Blessed is the man who puts his trust in YHVH and whose confidence is in Him! He is like a tree planted by the water, sending out its roots towards the stream. He has no fear when the heat comes, his leaves are always green; the year of drought is no problem and he can always bear fruit.”

“Most deceitful is the heart. What is there within man, who can understand him? I, YHVH, search the heart and penetrate the mind. I reward each one according to his ways and the fruit of his deeds.”

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Wednesday, 15 March 2017 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day, as we go on through the time and season of Lent, through the Scripture passages we heard today, we should know that by following the ways of the Lord, and by turning our backs against our sinful past, more often than not, we shall encounter difficulties, challenges and oppositions from all those who are in the world, and who obey the ways of this world.

The ways of this world are different and in opposition to the ways of our Lord, for this world is filled with wickedness, with prejudice, with hatred, with anger, with pride and arrogance, and with all the things that had led us mankind into sin. In our human greed we have caused suffering upon others from whom we covet for our worldly possessions and things. We have caused great sorrow and suffering because of the hatred and the lack of love between ourselves and our brethren.

But as Christians all of us are called by God to overcome all of these, and to convert ourselves to His ways, leaving behind all forms of hatred, of jealousy, of human greed and desire, and we have been called to be righteous and just as the Lord our God is righteous and just. When we do these, there will be those who are inspired by our examples and follow in our footsteps, but there will also be those who refuse to acknowledge our actions as good, and oppose us.

Let us remember, brothers and sisters in Christ, that our Lord Jesus Himself made it clear to His disciples, that He came into this world bearing His truth and His salvation, which according to Him would bring about division and strive to arise within families and within communities, where people would be divided against each other because some would come to believe in God, while some others would take up the stand against God.

Many of us may not have realised this, especially if we have been born to the faith, and having good environment of growth, supported by a loving, Catholic and faith-filled community. Many of us may not have realised this if all the people around us have been supporting for us and for our faith, but the reality is that there are persecutions in this world, as it was in the past, as it is now, and as it will be in the years to come.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all be aware of our brethren in many parts of the world who are still suffering the effects, even daily, of persecution against them because of their faith in God. Let us remember all of them in our prayers, and let us help them whenever we are able to do so. And we ourselves may also encounter challenges throughout our lives, be it in the form of persecution and rejection, as well as opposition and temptation to leave our faith behind.

How are we then going to resist those difficulties and manage those challenges? It is by using our time this Lent and henceforth, even beyond this season of Lent fruitfully and meaningfully. We must deepen our relationship with God, and make sure that we remain close to Him, obeying Him in all of His laws and precepts. We must strengthen our faith as well as our resolve to remain faithful to the Lord, so that we will be able to persevere when the time comes for us to be tested for our faith.

There will indeed be those times when we feel so miserable and desperate, when we are in the midst of great sufferings and persecutions, when we will want to give up and throw away our faith, because we may think that God is not with us, and that our resistance is useless. But remember, brothers and sisters in Christ, when Jesus our Lord suffered on the cross, He encountered the same issue, a normal human reaction, when pain and suffering comes our way.

But Christ remained faithful and true to His mission to the very end. He showed us the example of perfect obedience and adherence to the will of God, knowing that God our Father is always with us through everything. Jesus Himself, Who suffered on the cross for our sake is the ultimate proof of the love which God our Father has for each one of us, that He was willing to share our sufferings and our pains, our sorrows and our difficulties, as He suffered on the cross for our sake.

May the Lord strengthen our faith, and help us to deepen our relationship and our devotion to Him. May He empower us to become His faithful disciples and followers. May this season of Lent be fruitful for us, and become a time when we are able to become closer to God, and through which we are able to help one another, fellow brothers and sisters in the same Lord, on our way and journey towards God and His salvation. May God bless us all. Amen.

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Wednesday, 15 March 2017 : 2nd Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Matthew 20 : 17-28

At that time, when Jesus was going to Jerusalem, He took the twelve disciples and said to them, “See, we are going to Jerusalem. There the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law, who will condemn Him to death. They will hand Him over to the foreigners, who will mock Him, scourge Him and crucify Him. But He will be raised to life on the third day.”

Then the mother of James and John came to Jesus with her sons, and she knelt down, to ask a favour. Jesus said to her, “What do you want?” And she answered, “Here You have my two sons. Grant that they may sit, one at Your right hand and one at Your left, when You are in Your kingdom.”

Jesus said to the brothers, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They answered, “We can.” Jesus replied, “You will indeed drink My cup, but to sit at My right or at My left is not for Me to grant. That will be for those, for whom My Father has prepared it.”

The other ten heard all this, and were angry with the two brothers. Then Jesus called them to Him and said, “You know that the rulers of the nations act as tyrants over them, and the powerful oppress them. It shall not be so among you : whoever wants to be more important in your community shall make himself your servant.”

“And if you want to be the first of all, make yourself the servant of all. Be like the Son of Man Who has come, not to be served but to serve, and to give His life to redeem many.”

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Wednesday, 15 March 2017 : 2nd Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Psalm 30 : 5-6, 14, 15-16

Free me from the snare that they have set for me. Indeed You are my Protector. Into Your hands I commend my spirit; You have redeemed Me, o Lord, faithful God.

I hear whispering among the crowd, rumours that frighten me from every side – their conspiracies, their schemes, their plot to take my life.

But I put my trust in You, o Lord, I said : “You are my God;” my days are in Your hand. Deliver me from the hand of my enemies, from those after my skin.

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Wednesday, 15 March 2017 : 2nd Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Jeremiah 18 : 18-20

Then, they said, “Come, let us plot against Jeremiah, for even without him, there will be priests to interpret the Teachings of the Law; there will always be wisemen to impart counsel and prophets to proclaim the word. Come, let us accuse him and strike him down instead of listening to what he says.”

Hear me, o YHVH! Listen to what my accusers say. Is evil the reward for good? Why do they dig a grave for me? Remember how I stood before You to speak well on their behalf so that Your anger might subside.

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Tuesday, 14 March 2017 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day all of us are reminded that in all that we do in this life, in all that we say, we must be humble and be righteous, and our faith in God must be genuine. All of us Christians are expected to have these virtues with them, so as to be truly devoted to God. Our actions, our hearts, and our entire being must be attuned to the Lord.

We are reminded that we should not be like the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law who preached in one way, but practiced what they preached differently from how they have preached. In other words, they have contradicted themselves and what they said by their actions which did not reflect the words that they have spoken. They were hypocrites who did not truly believe in God, and God warned His people, all of us against following their examples.

They have not been faithful and they misused the authority which God had entrusted to them, by misleading the people and by condemning those who had come to them seeking forgiveness that came from God. They glorified themselves and sought self-satisfaction, fame and human praise, and God rebuked them for all of their waywardness.

For all of their supposed piety, their long prayers and public shows of their faith, parading before the people their piety, they were not actually serving the purpose of the Lord, but instead cared only about themselves. God had no place in their hearts, for their ego had prevented them from doing what was truly righteous and just in the sight of God. This is what all of us need to take note of, lest we also fall to the same predicament.

Now the question should come to our minds, what is the meaning of being righteous? Is being righteous equivalent to doing what the Pharisees had done, such as saying long prayers, acting good and pious before others, doing external acts of penance and abstinence? Well, doing all these things are good and they are certainly not wrong. But to be excessively focused on them and ignoring the true meaning of our faith is not something that we should do.

What does this mean? It means that whatever we do, all the things we say and do, we must do because we love the Lord our God, and let all of our actions bring glory not to ourselves but to the Lord, for we have to realise that, despite all the achievements and the greatness we mankind may accumulate in this world, all the wealth and possessions we have, we are truly nothing without the Lord our God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, in this time and season of Lent, it is appropriate for us to spend some time to reflect on our actions, and how we spend our time during this season of penance and forgiveness. We know that we need to fast on certain days, namely on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and also abstain from red meat during the season and also on Fridays throughout the year, but are we doing them just because we were told to do so? Or is it because we are just going through the motions without understanding them?

It is time for us to reflect, and ask ourselves the important question, is God at the centre of our lives? Is He the reason why we live our lives in the way that we have lived them? Has He been the reason for our actions and deeds, which bring about true righteousness and justification? Or have we rather been driven by personal reasons and desires, or by ignorance and lack of understanding of our faith?

Let us all renew our commitment to the Lord this Lent, that by the time and opportunities which He had given to all of us, we may be able to draw closer to Him, and make our observances, of fasting, of abstinence, of penance, of almsgiving and all the other good and pious deeds we have carried out this season of Lent, may become more meaningful and fruitful for the sake of our justification and salvation.

May the Lord help us to live our lives more meaningfully, by making us more and more like Him in our ways, and through His dwelling in our hearts, may He transform us completely, in body, heart, mind and soul, in our whole being, to become truly His disciples, His beloved children, and those whom He had saved from the darkness of our past sins and wickedness. May God bless us all, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Tuesday, 14 March 2017 : 2nd Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet
Matthew 23 : 1-12

At that time, then 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 raise 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 reserved 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.”