Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet or White (Popes)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, in the Lord lies our rest, and in Him lies our true joy and hope, and the hope of true happiness in Him. This hope of joy is not the same as the joy of this world, of that which is offered by the evil one to us, through the pleasures of this world. In God only lies all the comfort and satisfaction that the world cannot give.

It may seem to us that following the Lord is not an appealing option to us, and we would prefer indeed to follow the ways of the world, enjoying what is there in the world to give us, rather than troubling ourselves with the burdens of following the ways of God. But this is exactly where we are mistaken, for indeed, the burdens that are laid upon us if we follow the Lord, are temporary, but the burdens that we will have to endure, if we deny the Lord, is heavier and eternal.

Our God loves us in ways that all of us can never completely comprehend, due to the vastness and infinite nature of this divine love. He never gives up on us, even as we fell into sin and evil, and even as we betrayed Him and caused Him suffering, as He bore our sins down with Him on the way to Calvary, and onto the cross. He loves us all the same, even after all of that.

He is rich in mercy and great in compassion. We might have caused Him much sorrow, for our constant rebellions and disobedience against His will, but He did not give up His love and care for us all, unless we ourselves continue to defy Him, all the way to the end, and reject His offer of love and forgiveness. It is our defiance and arrogance that ultimately will lead us to ruin.

Following the Lord and to walk in His ways is not easy, not easy indeed for us. This is because we who have been tempted by Satan, in our ancestors, are predisposed to temptation by sin, and to be tempted to veer away from the true path towards salvation. We are easily swayed, by the goodness of the other way, that is the evil’s way, easier but deadly. We are also easily tempted by the offers of Satan, who gave us the offering of all the goods that he can give.

And as often mentioned, the ways of this world and the way of the Lord frequently do not match, and therefore, there will be displeasure and difficulties should we decide to follow the path of righteousness. There will be even jeers, mockery, and even hatred towards us, because we are different. Yet, such are the little price that we ought to pay, for the greater price of our salvation.

Today we celebrate the feast of Pope St. Damasus I, one of the saints who were also jeered, mocked, and opposed in his ministry. This is exactly as how the Lord Himself had been opposed and rejected by those who walked in the ways of evil. Pope St. Damasus I was opposed by his own people, many of whom supported a rival candidate as Pope, nominating him as an Antipope. Nevertheless, Pope St. Damasus I did not fear nor was he affected by all those negative opinions about him.

Pope St. Damasus I stood strong in the face of those oppositions and campaigned against them with the fury and wrath that is of the Lord Himself. He was particularly staunch in his opposition against heresy, particularly Arianism, which was truly widespread in Christendom at the time, poisoning the minds of many people against the true faith.

Pope St. Damasus I worked hard to strengthen the faith in many people and many areas under his care, as the Vicar of Christ. He was also credited with the codification of the Holy Scriptures and its translation of the Scripture into the Latin language in the Vulgate Bible as done by St. Jerome. Pope St. Damasus I was the patron of that great saint and Doctor of the Church.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, you have seen how walking in the way of the Lord and to be His servant, is by no means easy. There will be many challenges and opposition, precisely as what had been experienced by Pope St. Damasus I, and by many other saints and the Apostles themselves. But they did not let these to hinder them, and instead these oppositions helped to further push them on to work even harder for the sake of the Lord.

Pope St. Damasus I and the other saints showed us that, we should not worry or fear rejection from this world, for after all, it has first rejected the Lord Himself. Instead, we should put our complete faith and trust in the Lord, in whom we will have true joy and true rest. For indeed, the Lord did offer us a burden, because His path is not an easy one, but that burden is a light one, and at the end of the way, He will lift up that burden from us, and give us an unparalled crown of unending and heavenly glory.

May the Lord with the intercession of Pope St. Damasus I and other holy men and women who ceaselessly praise Him daily with the angels, continue to watch over us, strengthen us, and reinforce our faith in Him. God bless us all. Amen.