St. Elizabeth of Portugal

by

Friday, 4 July 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we listened to the words of the Lord contained within the Sacred Scriptures today, we are reminded that God has always kept us in His mind, caring for us and showing us all His most generous love at all times, reaching out to us and providing for us everything that we need in our lives, and we need to trust in Him and follow Him when He calls upon us to follow Him, in whatever paths that He has led us into. We should always put our trust and faith in the Lord, not worrying about what we will receive in life, but trusting instead that He will always provide for us. Like what He has done to those whom He had called, and those who willingly embraced Him and followed Him, we should allow the Lord to transform us and our lives so that we may truly be worthy of Him at all times.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Genesis, we heard of the time when Sarah, the wife of Abraham died in the Promised Land. She had followed Abraham in his journey to the land that God had called him to, and miraculously gave birth to Isaac, the son that was promised by God and which yet seemed to be impossible at that time, as Sarah was already way past childbearing age, and she was already waiting for ages to try to have a child with Abraham without avail. And yet, God fulfilled her dreams beyond her imaginations, and gave her the son that she had wanted for so long. Isaac, that promised son, grew great in stature and wisdom, and God was with him, and when Sarah passed away, both Abraham and Isaac grieved greatly for their loss.

But the Lord also continued to provide, giving Isaac a bride from among his own people, by Abraham sending Isaac back to his homeland, in asking for the hand of Rebekah, from among his own relatives, to be the one to accompany Isaac. And we heard how Isaac made the journey and eventually encountered Rebekah, and they came together, were married and became the continuation of the fulfilment of God’s promises to His people, His promise that Abraham would become the father of many nations. Through Isaac would be born Esau and Jacob, the forefather of the Edomites and the Israelites respectively. And it was through the younger son Jacob, whose descendants were chosen as God’s holy and beloved people, the first ones He called, that God accomplished everything that He had promised.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the moment when the Lord Jesus called one of His Twelve principal disciples, namely that of St. Matthew himself, the author of today’s Gospel reading. Back then, St. Matthew was known as Levi, a tax collector, and tax collector at that time had a rather bad image among the people of God. They were seen as being greedy and wicked, overcharging the people for their own benefits, and some also saw and considered them as traitors to the people due to the nature of their work in collecting taxes on behalf of the Romans or the Herodians, or both, which often brought great hardships on the people who were struggling to make ends meet.

As such, they were often considered, especially by the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law as sinners, defiled and corrupted, and unworthy therefore of God’s love and grace. To interact with a tax collector is considered to be taboo because by the standards of the time, that would have caused those who interacted with them to be defiled as well, something which was shared by the others deemed to be sinners and unclean, like the prostitutes, those who were afflicted with diseases and possessed by evil spirits. And yet, the Lord Jesus reached out to the tax collectors and was kind and compassionate towards them, and He called Levi to follow Him, to be His disciple and follower, because He knew that in his heart, he had the desire and the potential to be a great servant of God.

And Levi did respond to the Lord’s call, and he answered in the most wholehearted manner, welcoming the Lord into his own household and gathering his fellow tax collectors to come and listen to the Lord. He also left behind everything, all of his work and possessions, and committed himself thoroughly to the Lord henceforth, becoming one of His closest and most faithful disciples. He changed his name to Matthew, just as Abraham was once known as Abram and Sarah was known as Sarai, symbolising that great change and conversion in life which all of them had experienced. And thanks to this, many great things happened because of what St. Matthew had dedicated himself towards the works of evangelisation, as well as in his authorship of the Gospel that we heard from today.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Elizabeth of Portugal, who was the Queen of Portugal for more than four decades as the wife of the King of Portugal then, King Denis. She was born as a princess of the Kingdom of Aragon in Spain, and she had been brought up in a very pious manner from her early youth. She was married to the King of Portugal at the age of eleven, and had a great married life with the King. She continued to be pious and devoted in all of her actions and works, committing herself as Queen to the care of the poor and the sick throughout the kingdom. She was also known for her role as a peacemaker, making peace between the warring kingdoms of Castile and Aragon in what is today part of Spain. And after her husband, the King of Portugal passed away, she retired to a monastery, while continuing with her charitable efforts and even in her peacemaking works.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore be inspired and strengthened by the words of assurances that we have heard from our Scripture readings today and from the life of St. Elizabeth of Portugal. Let us all be reminded that we are always beloved by God, and we will always be blessed and guided by Him, given the providence and protection that we need in our paths and journeys in life. We just have to trust fully and wholeheartedly in God’s guidance, doing our very best to glorify Him by every actions and good works that we do in our daily lives. May our lives be truly fruitful in the Lord, be blessed and empowered by God’s Presence in our lives. May He bless our every good works and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

by

Friday, 4 July 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Matthew 9 : 9-13

At that time, as Jesus moved on from where He healed the paralytic man, He saw a man named Matthew, at his seat in the custom-house; and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And Matthew got up and followed Him.

Now it happened, while Jesus was at table in Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners joined Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “Why is it, that your Master eats with sinners and tax collectors?”

When Jesus heard this, He said, “Healthy people do not need a doctor, but sick people do. Go, and find out what this means : What I want is mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

by

Friday, 4 July 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Psalm 105 : 1-2, 3-4a, 4b-5

Alleluia! Give thanks to YHVH, for He is good, for His love endures forever. Who can count YHVH’s mighty deeds, or declare all His praises?

Blessed are they who always do just and right. Remember me, o YHVH, when You show favour to Your people.

Rescue me when You deliver them; let me see the triumph of Your faithful; let me share the joy of Your nation; and join Your people in praising You.

by

Friday, 4 July 2025 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Genesis 23 : 1-4, 19 and Genesis 24 : 1-8, 62-67

Sarah lived a hundred and twenty-seven years. She died at Kiriatharba – that is Hebron – in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to weep and mourn for Sarah. Abraham left his dead one and spoke to the Hittites, “I am only a stranger among you; give me a burial place among you, so that I may bury my dead.”

After this Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of Machpelah. Abraham was now old and well on in years, and YHVH had blessed him in every way. Abraham said to his senior servant, who was his steward, “Put your hand under my thigh and you will swear to me by YHVH, God of heaven and earth, that you will not choose a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom we live; rather it is to my country and my kinsfolk that you will go to choose a wife for my son, Isaac.”

The servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman will not want to follow me to this country. In that case should I take your son to the country you came from?” Abraham said to him, “In no way will you take my son back. For YHVH, God of heaven and God of earth, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my birth, spoke to me and swore to me that He would give this country to my race.”

“He will send His Angel before you, that you may find a wife for my son. But if the woman is unwilling to follow you, you will be free of this oath. In any case you are not to take my son down there.”

Now Isaac had come from the well of Lahai-roi, for he was living in the Negeb. As Isaac went out in the early evening to meditate in the field, he looked up and saw camels coming. Rebekah also looked up and when she saw Isaac she alighted from her camel and said to the servant, “Who is this man in the field coming to meet us?”

He replied, “It is my master!” She then covered her face with her veil. The servant related to Isaac all that he had done, and Isaac brought Rebekah into the tent of Sarah, his mother. He made her his wife, and he loved her; and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

by

Thursday, 4 July 2024 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, each and every one of us are reminded that we must always have faith and trust in the Lord for each and every one of us are His followers and disciples, and we are all called and expected to do what He has commanded us to do, to obey His Law and commandments and to follow Him wholeheartedly in all of our ways. Each and every one of us who have put our faith and trust in the Lord, as Christians, we must always be genuine in how we live our lives with fullness of faith in the Lord, and our lives, our every actions, words and deeds should always be exemplary and filled with God’s love and grace, as much as possible. This is our calling as Christians, and we should do well to heed it.

We heard from the first reading today from the continuation of the story of the prophet Amos and his ministry among the people of the northern kingdom of the Israelites, where today we heard of the encounter and confrontation between Amaziah, a priest of Bethel against Amos. In order to understand better the context of what we heard of this confrontation and the exchange between the two of them, we must understand the history of how the Bethel priesthood even came to be, which was actually a history spanning few centuries earlier before the time of Amos. Back then, during the time when the kingdom of Israel under David and Solomon was still united, the whole people of God, the Israelites had one King and they all worshipped the Lord in His Temple in Jerusalem, where the Ark of the Covenant was placed in.

However, once the kingdom was divided into two parts because of the sins of Solomon and his descendants, the northern and southern kingdoms of Israel and Judah respectively became embroiled in conflicts and wars, and one of the initiatives of the northern kingdom was to establish a rival priesthood and temple in Bethel to rival that of Jerusalem, obliging the people of Israel to go to Bethel instead of Jerusalem. Not only that but the then king Jeroboam also built a golden calf idol to represent their god, and this led the people of Israel into sin against God, as they came to worship false idols and pagan gods instead of obeying the Lord’s Law and commandments and worshipping Him alone as they were supposed to do. The prophet Amos was sent like the many other prophets of God before him to tell the people of Israel to abandon their sinful ways, and to bring forth the premonition and warning of the punishments they would have to endure for their disobedience.

Prophet Amos answered Amaziah’s rebuke of him with stern words of the Lord, and told him that he had been sent by God Himself to prophesy among the Israelites, with the mission from God to bring this truth and the revelations to the people who have disobeyed Him and refused to believe in Him despite the constant efforts and outreach from the Lor to them, in sending them help, guidance, reminders and assistance one after another. The Lord has always been patient in loving and caring for all of them, however, there is indeed a limit to His patience, and all the sins and wickedness that those people had committed, those things could not be ignored either. The prophet Amos told the people of their impending fate of being defeated, conquered and exiled by their conquerors, which would happen at that time, when the Assyrians conquered Israel, the northern kingdom, destroyed its cities and brought the people into exile in far-off lands.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the story from the Gospel of St. Matthew in which the Lord Jesus healed a paralysed man at His hometown, where He told the paralysed man brought to him to have faith and courage, and that he would be healed because his sins had been forgiven. This was met with an immediate criticism by the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law who were there with Him, saying that the Lord Jesus had insulted God because of Him claiming that He had the power to forgive sins. It also happened in other occasions as recorded in the Gospels, when the Lord healed other people and told them that their sins were forgiven. They criticised Him and made noise against Him, claiming that He had committed a blasphemy.

Why is this so, brothers and sisters in Christ? It is because they thought of the Lord as merely a Man, and they did not agree with Him on various issues, especially in how the Law of God ought to be practiced and observed. Consequently, despite having witnessed the many signs and wonders that the Lord had done before them, which confirmed what the prophets had been predicting and prophesying about the Messiah or the Saviour of the Lord, they failed to appreciate these signs and wonders and instead, they hardened their hearts, with pride and ego blinding them from seeing the truth. They likely thought that it was impossible for them to have been wrong given their knowledge and understanding of the Law and the Prophets, but the reality is that, the Lord came bearing His truth, and they refused to believe in Him just like how the Israelites refused to believe in Amos and the other earlier prophets that had been sent to them to remind and help them.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Elizabeth of Portugal, a holy woman and devout servant of God whose faith and dedication to God should serve as a good example for each and every one of us on how we should live our own lives as Christians. St. Elizabeth of Portugal was an Aragonese princess who had a very religious upbringing, and she grew to be a woman who was very upright in her actions and very pious and close to the Lord in all things. When later on she was married to the King Denis of Portugal, she continued on with her pious way of life, caring for the needs of the sick and the poor throughout the kingdom. She was also actively involved in the maintenance of peace and harmony in the region, when she was involved in the arbitration between the neighbouring kingdoms of Castile and Aragon.

When her husband the King of Portugal passed away, the now Dowager Queen retired to a monastery where she continued to carry out pious and charitable acts, caring for the sick and the poor as much as she was capable of. She was the benefactor of many hospitals and other institutions that benefitted the people, especially those who were neglected and poor. She was also still involved in peace arbitrations, such as the one between Portugal and neighbouring Kingdom of Castile, where St. Elizabeth as the Dowager Queen helped to defuse the tensions between both kingdoms. She passed away shortly after this, but her efforts and contributions, her great piety and charity are well remembered throughout history and inspired many others.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence be inspired by the good examples which St. Elizabeth of Portugal has shown to us all, and let us all renew our faith in the Lord, committing ourselves to live a more worthy and virtuous life, and no longer harden our hearts like our predecessors, like those Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, and like the Israelites before them. Let us all be humble and allow the Lord to lead and guide us all in our journey through life, and may He continue to bless us all in our every good works, efforts and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

by

Thursday, 4 July 2024 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Matthew 9 : 1-8

At that time, Jesus got back into the boat, crossed the lake again, and came to His hometown. Here, they brought to Him a paralysed man, lying on a bed. Jesus saw their faith and said to the paralytic, “Courage, My son! Your sins are forgiven.”

Some teachers of the Law said within themselves, “This Man insults God.” Jesus was aware of what they were thinking; and said, “Why have you such evil thoughts? Which is easier to say : ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or ‘Stand up and walk’? But that you may know, that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins,” He said to the paralysed man, “Stand up! Take your stretcher and go home!”

The man got up, and went home. When the crowds saw this, they were filled with awe, and praised God for giving such power to human beings.

by

Thursday, 4 July 2024 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Psalm 18 : 8, 9, 10, 11

The Law of the Lord is perfect : it gives life to the soul. The word of the Lord is trustworthy : it gives wisdom to the simple.

The precepts of the Lord are right : they give joy to the heart. The commandments of the Lord are clear : they enlighten the eyes.

The fear of the Lord is pure, it endures forever; the judgments of the Lord are true, all of them just and right.

They are more precious than gold – pure gold of a jeweller; they are much sweeter than honey which drops from the honeycomb.

by

Thursday, 4 July 2024 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Amos 7 : 10-17

Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, then sent word to king Jeroboam of Israel, “Amos is conspiring against you in the very centre of Israel; what he says goes too far. These are his very words : Jeroboam shall die by the sword and Israel shall be exiled from its land.”

Amaziah then said to Amos, “Off with you, seer, go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there by prophesying. But never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is a king’s sanctuary and a national shrine.”

Amos replied to Amaziah, “I am not a prophet or one of the fellow prophets. I am a breeder of sheep and a dresser of sycamore trees. But YHVH took me from shepherding the flock and said to me : Go, prophesy to My people Israel. Now hear the word of YHVH, you who say : No more prophesy against Israel, no more insults against the family of Isaac!”

“This is what YHVH says : Your wife shall be made a harlot in the city, your sons and daughters shall fall by the sword, your land shall be divided up and given to others, and you, yourself, shall die in a foreign land, for Israel shall be driven far from its land.”

by

Tuesday, 4 July 2023 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard the message of the Scriptures telling us all that we have to trust in the Lord for all things and be faithful to Him even we may be facing a lot of hardships and difficulties in our lives. The Lord has always been with His faithful ones, and He will not abandon any of us to the darkness, and He will always stand by us even through the darkest of times. We have to remember this as we continue to carry out our missions in life and embark on this journey through our lives in this world, that we are not easily swayed by the many temptations all around us and by the pressures and coercions from those who seek to dissuade us from being faithful to God and from obeying His will and carrying out His commandments and Law. We have to hold firm to our faith in God knowing that in Him alone there is true hope and salvation.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Genesis in which the story of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah was told to us, in which God destroyed the two cities with brimstone and fire from Heaven for all the wickedness that the people in those two cities had committed before Him. At the same time, we also heard the great story of God’s love and kindness in caring for His faithful ones, as He sent His Angels to help and protect Lot, the nephew of Abraham, who had lived in the area of Sodom and Gomorrah, and who had to endure the wickedness of those who lived in that area with his family. Lot also proved himself righteous after he protected the two Angels sent to help guide Lot out of the city. Hence, as we heard, the Angels guided Lot and his family, bringing them to safety beyond the land of Sodom and Gomorrah before their destruction.

However, Lot’s wife, who was probably swayed by the temptations of worldliness that she had enjoyed and experienced when she stayed in Sodom and Gomorrah, she wavered and she turned to face the city, against the warnings of the two Angels who had warned Lot and his family not to look at the pandemonium that was happening as the two cities were destroyed by the power of God. She was therefore turned into a pillar of salt, as a sign of her disobedience and as a reminder for all of us that we should not doubt God’s providence and help. Of course the truth and reality is that this is easier said than done, as we may frequently be tempted and coerced to abandon the path of God for the corruptions and wickedness of the world.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the Gospel of St. Matthew the account of the moment when the Lord and His disciples were battered in the middle of the Lake of Galilee, with a great storm and huge waves that were striking at the boat where they were in. The disciples panicked and feared for their lives, and were desperately begging the Lord, Who was sleeping, to save them from their predicament. The Lord rebuked them and scolded them for their lack of faith and trust in Him, and proceeded to calm the wind, the waves and the storm, by the mere will of His words. Everyone present were astonished at the great authority and power that God has shown them, which was just yet another proof and example of God’s enduring love and providence for us all, just as He had done for Lot and his family in the old days.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, it is a reminder for us all that we should not easily allow ourselves to be swayed and turned away from the Lord simply because we may be encountering hardships and challenges in the path that we are walking now. We should always remind ourselves that we are never alone in this journey of faith through life, and as He has repeatedly shown and reassured us, He is always there with us and for us, journeying with us, and enduring the worst together with us. After all, had He not endured the worst of sufferings and hardships, trials and persecutions for us, as He bore His Cross patiently and walked down the path of His Passion to Calvary? That is why we should keep this in mind, and keep ourselves in the path of the Lord, at all times.

Today, the Church also celebrates the feast of St. Elizabeth of Portugal, whose life and devotion to God, whose trust in the Lord and commitment to Him should serve as great examples and sources of inspiration for all of us to follow. All of us should look upon St. Elizabeth of Portugal, who was the Queen Consort of Portugal, remembered for her great faith in God, her care for her people and her many charitable actions and works, leading a life that was truly worthy of God, devoting much of her time and efforts to look after the poor and the sick throughout the kingdom and even beyond. She was also instrumental in the efforts she had done to convert her husband from a life of debauchery and sin, and succeeded in bringing him back to the true and genuine faith in God.

St. Elizabeth of Portugal was also an active part in the Portuguese politics and statesmanship, involved in brokering peace between the kingdoms at that time, which were often involved in wars and conflicts. She spent a lot of time in caring for the physical and spiritual needs of the many people all around her, and her great examples of faith and dedication to God, her charity and love for the less fortunate truly inspired many, like her own husband amongst many others, to turn back towards the Lord and to follow Him more wholeheartedly. And after her husband passed away, St. Elizabeth retired to the monastery of Poor Clare nuns, continuing to show love and care for the poor and the sick, donating generously for those who were suffering during famines and troubles. She supported many hospitals and religious institutions, and her examples were truly inspirational right even up to this day.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we can see how St. Elizabeth of Portugal, our holy predecessor, dedicated herself so wholly and completely to God, that despite of her position and prestige as Queen Consort, she did not let all the worldly glory and ambition, temptations and corruptions to get to her. Instead, she remained humble and committed to God, and made great use of whatever that she had been blessed with, all her blessings and excesses, to care for those who were less fortunate and suffering. All of us as Christians should be encouraged to do the same as well with our lives, entrusting ourselves to the Lord and following Him with all of our hearts and with all of our might. Let us all therefore do what we can so that we may continue to walk ever more faithfully in God’s path from now on.

May the Lord continue to bless us all and guide us, and inspire us all with the wisdom and strength to continue walking down the path of His grace and salvation, inspired by the holy saints, holy men and women of God, particularly that of St. Elizabeth of Portugal, so that our own lives and examples may become good inspiration and role models for all others around us. May God be with us always and may He remain with us, as we continue journeying together in faith, now and forevermore. Amen.

by

Tuesday, 4 July 2023 : 13th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saints)

Matthew 8 : 23-27

At that time, Jesus got into the boat and His disciples followed Him. Without warning, a fierce storm burst upon the lake, with waves sweeping the boat. But Jesus was asleep.

The disciples woke Him up and cried, “Lord save us! We are lost!” But Jesus answered, “Why are you so afraid, you of little faith?” Then He stood up and rebuked the wind and sea; and it became completely calm.

The disciples were astonished. They said, “What kind of Man is He? Even the winds and the sea obey Him.”