Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time

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Sunday, 12 February 2017 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this Sunday, we heard the messages from the Sacred Scriptures telling us about the wisdom of man and the wisdom of God. Many of us boast in our abilities, our intellect and our greatness, but in all of these, what we all know and are capable of, are nothing compared to the greatness and the glory of God.

It is often that we mankind try to be better than God, by not listening to Him, by not obeying His laws and ways, and by trying to come out with ways to make things convenient for themselves, but at the cost of disobedience and sinning before God. We often trust in our own judgement and in our own wisdom, but all these are incapable of bringing us true satisfaction.

For there are really many things that are beyond our grasp, and beyond our ability to comprehend them. And this is why it is so important for us to have our faith in God, for the Lord has revealed to us His truth through none other than Jesus our Lord, Who came into this world to bring light, His light into it, and dispel the darkness that clouded our minds and our visions of the way ahead.

We need to open ourselves to receive God’s truth and wisdom, and we must not be like the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, whom Jesus criticised in the Gospel today, as those who knew the Law, and yet although they knew it and remembered it, but they did not do as what the Law intended for them to do. They did not practice what they supposed to practice, and instead putting trust in their own human intellect and wisdom.

Why is this so? That is because they had become proud and arrogant as they were entrusted with the leadership of the people and with the guardianship of the laws of God. They oppress the people with many laws, rules and regulations, which they themselves did not understand and appreciate, as they enforced these with the intention of making themselves praised and honoured before others, when all others saw just how faithful and devout they were in fulfilling the laws.

Yet, they had no God in their hearts. God is not the priority in their lives, as they filled it rather with their own purposes and desires. They have not been faithful, and misled others, and in some occasions they even made it difficult for others to find their way towards the Lord, as they condemned those whom they deemed to be sinners and unworthy of God’s saving grace.

But Jesus rebuked all of them and showed just how wrong they were. They were not able to fulfil what God had entrusted to them, that is to help guide the people of God on the way to righteousness. Instead, they made these people to endure the laws like a chore, and not truly understanding what is it that they uphold and are expected to do under the Law.

Jesus revealed to them the truth, by teaching them what the laws of God truly means. He taught them all that the Law of God must be understood in its whole purpose, rather than just in individual terms. The laws of God are not individual and separate laws that just ought to be obeyed as they are, but one must learn why is it that they must be obeyed, so that these laws will benefit us.

Take for example, the law on murder, where Jesus explained that, even though the Law prescribed punishment for those who had committed murder, but murder itself is caused often by a pre-planned intention, in which the person committing murder has already contemplated doing harm to another person’s life, or plotting to kill that person for various reasons.

And that was why Jesus said that even if someone gets angry at another, he or she already commits a sin, as anger as we know can easily lead to greater anger, and then into discord, and eventually violence, that as we know can cause death if it goes unabated and uncontrolled. And sin is against love, for love is the true essence of God’s laws.

God loves each and every one of us, brothers and sisters in Christ. But, it is too often that we are caught up in our various distractions that we do not realise just how much God cares for us. He gave us His Law, because He loved us all, and through Jesus, He explained it all to us, what is it that we need to do in order to be truly faithful to Him. The Law of God is a guide that helps each and every one of us to live an ever more faithful and righteous life.

Let us all throw away all the obstacles and clear all the things that hinder us from being able to love God, by humbling ourselves and opening ourselves to accept God’s mercy, love and grace. Let us no longer put our trust in our own human power, intellect and abilities, but instead, learn to trust in God’s providence and do our best in order to obey Him through our actions, that we love instead of hate, give hope instead of despair, console others instead of mockery, and by being true to our calling to love Him and our brethren.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us today and from now henceforth draw closer to our God, giving ourselves wholeheartedly to Him, loving Him with all of our deeds and works, caring for those in need and pouring our love for the needy and for all those who have not had love in them. It is indeed easier to be said than done, but we will persevere if we can just help one another, support each other in our efforts to be more like Him in all of our ways.

May the Lord help us, brethren, that all of us will learn to obey Him and understand that love is the primary reason why God created us, showed us His laws and commandments, so that each and every one of us will gradually be more righteous, just and worthy to be in God’s presence, and therefore worthy to receive His promise of eternal life. May God bless us all, and forgive us all our sins. Amen.

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Sunday, 12 February 2017 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Matthew 5 : 17-37

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples and to the people, “Do not think that I have come to annul the Law and the Prophets. I have not come to annul them but to fulfil them. I tell you this : as long as heaven and earth last, not the smallest letter or dot in the Law will change until all is fulfilled.”

“So then, whoever breaks the least important of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be the least in the kingdom of heaven. On the other hand, whoever obeys them, and teaches others to do the same, will be great in the kingdom of heaven.”

“I tell you then, if you are not righteous in a much broader way than the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was said to our people in the past : Do not commit murder; anyone who does kill will have to face trial. But now I tell you : whoever gets angry with a brother or sister will have to face trial.”

“Whoever insults a brother or sister deserves to be brought before the council. Whoever calls a brother or a sister, ‘Fool!’ deserves to be thrown into the fire of hell. So, if you are about to offer your gift at the altar, and you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar, go at once and make peace with him, and then come back and offer your gift to God.”

“Do not forget this : be reconciled with your opponent quickly when you are together on the way to court. Otherwise he will turn you over to the judge, who will hand you over to the police, who will put you in jail. There you will stay, until you have paid the last penny.”

“You have heard that it was said : Do not commit adultery. But I tell you this : anyone who looks at a woman too lustfully has in fact already committed adultery with her in his heart. So, if your right eye causes you to sin, pull it out and throw it away! It is much better for you to lose a part of your body than to have your whole body thrown into hell. If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away! It is better for you to lose a part of your body than to have your whole body thrown into hell.”

“It was also said : Anyone who divorces his wife, must give her a written notice of divorce. But what I tell you is this : if a man divorces his wife, except in the case of unlawful union, he causes her to commit adultery. And the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”

“You have also heard that people were told in the past : Do not break your oath; an oath sworn to the Lord must be kept. But I tell you this : do not take oaths. Do not swear by the heavens, for they are God’s throne, nor by the earth, because it is His footstool, nor by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Do not even swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. Say yes when you mean yes, and say no when you mean no. Anything else you say comes from the devil.”

Alternative reading (shorter version)
Matthew 5 : 20-22a, 27-28, 33-34a, 37

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples and to the people, “I tell you then, if you are not righteous in a much broader way than the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was said to our people in the past : Do not commit murder; anyone who does kill will have to face trial. But now I tell you : whoever gets angry with a brother or sister will have to face trial.”

“You have heard that it was said : Do not commit adultery. But I tell you this : anyone who looks at a woman too lustfully has in fact already committed adultery with her in his heart. You have also heard that people were told in the past : Do not break your oath; an oath sworn to the Lord must be kept. But I tell you this : do not take oaths. Say yes when you mean yes, and say no when you mean no. Anything else you say comes from the devil.”

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Sunday, 12 February 2017 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green
1 Corinthians 2 : 6-10

In fact, we do speak of wisdom to the mature in faith, although it is not a wisdom of this world or of its rulers, who are doomed to perish. We teach the mystery and secret plan of divine wisdom, which God destined from the beginning to bring us to Glory.

No ruler of this world ever knew this; otherwise they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory. But as Scripture says : Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it dawned on the mind what God has prepared for those who love Him. God has revealed it to us, through His Spirit, because the Spirit probes everything, even the depth of God.

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Sunday, 12 February 2017 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Psalm 118 : 1-2, 4-5, 17-18, 33-34

Blessed are they whose ways are upright, who follow the law of the Lord. Blessed are they who treasure His word and seek Him with all their heart.

You have laid down precepts to be obeyed. O, that my ways were steadfast in observing Your statutes!

Be kind to Your servant, that I may live to follow Your word. Open my eyes that I may see the marvellous truths in Your law.

Explain to me, o Lord, Your commandments, and I will be ever faithful to them. Give me understanding, that I may observe Your law with all my heart.

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Sunday, 12 February 2017 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green
Sirach 15 : 16-21 (Greek Septuagint version – Sirach 15 : 15-20)

If you wish, you can keep the commandments and it is in your power to remain faithful. He has set fire and water before you; you stretch out your hand to whichever you prefer.

Life and death are set before man : whichever a man prefers will be given him. How magnificent is the wisdom of the Lord! He is powerful and all-seeing. His eyes are on those who fear Him. He knows all the works of man.

He has commanded no one to be godless and has given no one permission to sin.

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Sunday, 15 February 2015 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Quinquagesima Sunday (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we approach ever closer to the beginning of the Lenten season which will begin on this coming, the Ash Wednesday, today we celebrate the Quinquagesima Sunday, or the Seventh Sunday before Easter, as a reminder of the saving power and works of our Lord Jesus Christ, who had come unto this world and became incarnate as Man, that through His mission and works, He might bring healing to a sickened people.

Truly, the readings today, both that of the sixth Ordinary Sunday and the Quinquagesima Sunday are talking about the sickness of the flesh, and thus lead us all to understand that we are all, by our nature, sickened with sin, that is the sickness of the soul, or to link to the readings today even more closely, sin is the leprosy of the soul.

In the first reading, God stipulated the law regarding leprosy and what ought to be done to a person who has leprosy, to His people through Moses. Lepers ought to declare themselves as unclean and walk in shame, while at the same time they also must isolate themselves and exile themselves from the community of the people of God. They ought to remain outside the encampment where the people of Israel stayed in the presence of God.

At the first glance, this may seem to be very harsh and it may seem that God was punishing those with leprosy very severely. But in fact, the truth is that God desires their healing and salvation. If we read the entirety of the Book of Leviticus, and discern the meaning of what God had commanded to His people, we will find that for the case of leprosy, when those afflicted were cured of their condition, they have to present themselves to the priests who would then gave worthy sacrifice for the Lord and welcomed them back into the community of the people of God.

Thus, the same has happened to all of us mankind. We are all sick from the sickness of sin that affects our soul and tainted it. Sin is an abomination and filth that separates us from the loving embrace of our Lord and God, and sin has no place in His presence. Therefore, it would not indeed be too different from the lepers in the past, when Israel walked through the desert from Egypt to the Promised Land, that they were temporarily cast out of the society and had to wander in the wilderness beyond the confines of the camp of the faithful.

We have been separated from God and from being worthy of His salvation by the taint of sin, and as the Gospel of Quinquagesima Sunday also shows us, that blindness is another form of illness that we are suffering from. The blind man begged for Jesus to heal him, and in his faith, he was cured completely from his blindness. Here, there is again yet a clear link between what we heard and another story, when Jesus healed yet another blind man.

The blind man from his birth, who used to beg at the entrance of the Temple was healed by Jesus, and he gave thanks to God and testified to the glory of God, and yet, the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law accused him of sinning and of committing the sin by having been healed on the Sabbath day. They cursed him and were angry against him, but indeed, that other story from the Gospel also yet show us how, all of us men are sick, sickened by sin.

For sin blinded our hearts and minds against the love and mercy of God, and also prevented us from recognising the good works of the Lord present around us. It was precisely just as what the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had done to Jesus and His works. They refused to recognise God’s love made evident and real through Jesus Christ, who was willing to endure the worst of sufferings and scourges, and bear the consequences of all of our sins with Him to the cross.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, Christ brought about healing and justification to all those who believe in Him, in all those who have abandoned their old ways of sin and evil, and decided to follow Him and walk in His ways for the rest of their lives. This healing and cleansing is the healing of our soul and heart, as well as our mind and body from the corruption of sin and the desires of the world. He is the High Priest, who had offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice to reconcile us with God.

The sad fact is that, like the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, too many of us are still too proud to accept our sinfulness as a fact and reality, and too many of us are too haughty and prideful to seek for God’s forgiveness and to humble ourselves before His presence. It is also in our nature to boast of our abilities and greatness, as well as achievements, but not our shortcomings and failures, especially that of sin.

As we approach the season of Lent, and as later we are to celebrate the Most Holy Week of our Lord’s Passion, suffering, death and resurrection from the dead, all of which are part of His works to bring about our salvation and the deliverance of all those who put their trust and faith in Him, let us therefore reflect on our own lives and attitudes. Have we been truly faithful to the Lord, and have we been reflecting and be aware of our own sinfulness and wickedness in life that prevented us from being truly be with our loving God?

As St. Paul mentioned in his epistle we heard for this Quinquagesima Sunday, that our faith must be complemented with hope and love, the three cardinal and most important gifts of the Lord to all of us. If the three are not present together, then they are incomplete. And the greatest gift of all is indeed love, for it is love itself that drove our Lord to come down and to do His works to save us all. Sinners as we are, and unworthy as we are, He still loves us all very much.

Thus, we cannot say that we are truly faithful to the Lord, unless we imitate the love which Christ had shown to us all, who in His gentle and tender love had brought about our healing, the healing we receive so that our entire being are purged from the sickness of sin and evil. But we have to open our hearts to His love and mercy, and the best way to do this is to practice them in our own lives.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us be truly faithful to our Lord from now on, and show our thanks and gratitude for the love and mercy which He had shown us. Although we are sinners, unworthy and wicked, He was still willing to give Himself for our sake, and even to suffer and die for our sake. Let us all from now on be thoroughly transformed in faith, hope and love, that through these gifts which we exercise in our daily actions and deeds in life, we may grow stronger and more just in the eyes of our Lord, and be worthy for His eternal life. God bless us all. Amen.

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Sunday, 15 February 2015 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Quinquagesima Sunday (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 1 : 40-45

At that time, a leper came to Jesus and begged Him, “If You want to, You can make me clean.” Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, “I do want to, be clean.” The leprosy left the man at once and he was made clean.

As Jesus sent the man away, He sternly warned him, “Do not tell anyone about this, but go and show yourself to the priest, and for the cleansing bring the offering ordered by Moses; in this way you will give to them your testimony.”

However, as soon as the man went out, he began spreading the news everywhere,so that Jesus could no longer openly enter any town. But even though He stayed in the rural areas, people came to Him from everywhere.

Homily and Reflection :
https://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/2015/02/14/sunday-15-february-2015-sixth-sunday-of-ordinary-time-quinquagesima-sunday-homily-and-scripture-reflections/

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Sunday, 15 February 2015 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Quinquagesima Sunday (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Corinthians 10 : 31 – 1 Corinthians 11 : 1

Then, whatever you eat, or drink, or whatever you do, do it for the glory of God. Give no offense to the Jews, or to the Greeks, or to the Church of God, just as I try to please everyone in everything. I do not seek my own interest, but that of many, this is, that they be saved.

Follow my example as I follow the example of Christ.

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Sunday, 15 February 2015 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Quinquagesima Sunday (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 31 : 1-2, 5, 11

Blessed is the one whose sin is forgiven, whose iniquity is wiped away. Blessed are those in whom the Lord sees no guilt and in whose spirit is found no deceit.

Then I made known to You my sin and uncovered before You my fault, saying to myself, “To the Lord I will now confess my wrong.” And You, You forgave my sin, You removed my guilt.

Rejoice in the Lord, and be glad, you who are upright; sing and shout for joy, you who are clean of heart.

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Sunday, 15 February 2015 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Quinquagesima Sunday (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Leviticus 13 : 1-2, 44-46

YHVH said to Moses and Aaron, “If someone has a boil, an inflammation or a sore on his skin which could develop into leprosy, he must be brought to Aaron the priest, or to one of the priests, his descendants.”

“This means that the man is leprous : he is unclean. The priest shall declare him unclean; he is suffering from leprosy of the head. A person infected with leprosy must wear torn clothing and leave his hair uncombed; he must cover his upper lip and cry, ‘Unclean, unclean.'”

“As long as the disease lasts he must be unclean; and therefore he must live away from others : he must live outside the camp.”