St. Vincent Ferrer

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Saturday, 5 April 2025 : 4th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures and as we continue to pass through this penitential season of Lent, we are being reminded through what we heard from the Word of God of the challenges and trials that the Lord Himself had been facing in His ministry, and the similar sufferings and challenges which His servants and messengers, the prophets and the Lord’s disciples had also endured in the midst of their works and efforts. And all of these things happened because of the temptations of worldly desires and pleasures which had afflicted many people and made them to disobey the Lord and entertain instead their greed, pride, ambition and other worldly pursuits that brought them to clash against God and His ways.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Jeremiah in which the prophet spoke about the plotting and all the sufferings which the people of God, those who resisted God’s words and truth, had done towards His prophets, including to that of Jeremiah himself. For the context, Jeremiah was sent to the kingdom and people of Judah at the last years of its existence as an entity, and just before Judah and Jerusalem were crushed, conquered and destroyed by the Babylonians and their armies. Jeremiah tried to remind the people of the sins that they had committed, which had greatly angered God, and of the consequences which they would have to face amidst the sins that they had committed. But the people of Judah continued to resist his efforts and even plotted against him, almost killing him on occasions, but God saved him from death and safeguarded him.

That was mentioned in the same passage where Jeremiah mentioned how God would indeed remember His servants, and how He would protect them and provide for them, so that even though they would have to suffer and endure challenges and trials, but ultimately, God will avenge all those misdeeds from those who have wronged His servants and messengers. He would not abandon them in their time of need, and this is a reminder therefore also for those who have kept their faith in God, for all of us that if we trust in the Lord and believe in Him wholeheartedly, we will then receive the assurance of God’s providence and guidance, and in the end, we will share together in the Lord’s triumph and glory. Not even the forces of evil and darkness can overcome us all if we remain truly faithful in God.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the moment when the members of the Sanhedrin, or the Jewish High Council, consisting of many of the Pharisees, the Sadducees and other influential leaders of the Jewish community, deliberated and debated with one another, disagreeing on the nature and identity of the One known as Jesus, Whom some of them considered as the Prophet of God or the Messiah, but many others rejected and refused to believe in, accusing Him of wrongdoing and even blasphemy against God in whatever He had taught and done before the people of God. Many of those who opposed the Lord were truly ‘blinded’ by their jealousy against Him, because He grew increasingly popular, and they probably even feared Him and His growing influence, fearing that it would affect their own popularity and privileged status in the community.

That was why we heard such bitter and persistent opposition against the Lord despite all the Wisdom that He has shown in His teachings and words, and despite all the wonders and miracles that He has performed, which certainly and clearly indicated that He is truly the Messiah, the Holy One of God, the One sent into this world in order to redeem and save it, to save all of us mankind from certain damnation and destruction. The same hardships and challenges that the prophets in the past like Jeremiah had faced, which we heard in our first reading passage today, was also faced by the Lord. And this pointed out to us the ugly nature of our human and worldly desires, our ambitions and greed, all the things which can prevent us from truly finding our way to God and His salvation, and which this Lenten season is meant to help us to overcome these obstacles.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Vincent Ferrer, a renowned and holy priest who was born in the region of Valencia in what is now the eastern part of Spain. St. Vincent Ferrer joined the Dominican Order or the Order of Preachers from a rather young age of eighteen, and he committed himself to become a Dominican priest despite his parents pleading with him to take the path of secular priesthood instead due to the latter having more worldly privileges and renown than being a religious priest. But St. Vincent Ferrer remained firm in his vocation and conviction to serve the Lord as a Dominican, and eventually he was ordained as a priest. He was involved in the conflicts surrounding the contemporary Western Schism in which rival claimants to the Papacy caused bitter divisions among the faithful people of God along political lines. He was a good preacher and missionary, converting many of those who have fallen to the wrong paths into the true path of Christ.

St. Vincent Ferrer was also known for his role in mediating political issues and conflicts, in helping to resolve the conflicts between the rival kingdoms at the time, ending wars and bringing about peace to the region. He also continued to do many other good works for the glory of God and for the benefit of the faithful and holy people of God. Through his commitment and dedications, his efforts and tireless works, his personal piety and faith in God, he has inspired many others to follow the Lord and to believe in Him. And therefore, we ourselves have also been called to be good role models and inspirations to our brethren around us, to everyone whom we encounter in our daily lives, so that by our examples and actions, we may help lead more and more people ever closer to God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, just as we have all heard from the story and life of St. Vincent Ferrer and through what we have just discussed from the readings of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all called to embrace God’s love and mercy, and to be truly virtuous and just in our actions, in our whole way of life. Each and every one of us should not allow the temptations of the world, the temptations of worldly pleasures and ambitions to keep us away from God or to put obstacle in the path of our fellow brethren as we all journey together towards God as one faithful flock of His beloved people. Let us instead be the shining beacons of His truth and love, and be the bearers of His Good News and salvation to the nations, through our every actions, words and deeds, all anchored in our firm faith in Him, now and always. Amen.

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Saturday, 5 April 2025 : 4th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

John 7 : 40-53

At that time, many who had been listening to these words began to say, “This is the Prophet.” Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some wondered, “Would the Christ come from Galilee? Does Scripture not say that the Christ is a descendant of David and from Bethlehem, the city of David? The crowd was divided over Him. Some wanted to arrest Him, but no one laid hands on Him.

The officers of the Temple went back to the chief priests, who asked them, “Why did you not bring Him?” The officers answered, “No one ever spoke like this Man.” The Pharisees then said, “So you, too, have been led astray! Have any of the rulers or any of the Pharisees believed in Him? Only those cursed people, who have no knowledge of the Law!”

Yet one of them, Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier, spoke out, “Does our law condemn people without first hearing them and knowing the facts?” They replied, “Do you, too, come from Galilee? Look it up and see for yourself that no prophet is to come from Galilee.” And they all went home.

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Saturday, 5 April 2025 : 4th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 7 : 2-3, 9bc-10, 11-12

O Lord, my God, in You I take shelter; deliver me and save me from all my pursuers, lest lions tear me to pieces with no one to rescue me.

O Lord, my righteousness; You see that I am blameless. Bring to an end the power of the wicked, but affirm the just, o righteous God, searcher of mind and heart.

You cover me as a shield. Oh God, for You protect the upright. A righteous judge is God, His anger ever awaiting those who refuse to repent.

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Saturday, 5 April 2025 : 4th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Jeremiah 11 : 18-20

YHVH made it known to me and so I know! And You let me see their scheming. But I was like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter. I did not know it was against me that they were plotting, “Let us feed him with trials and remove him from the land of the living and let his name never be mentioned again.”

YHVH, God of hosts, You Who judge with justice and know everyone’s heart and intentions, let me see Your vengeance on them, for to You I have entrusted my cause.

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Tuesday, 5 April 2022 : 5th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all called to remember our sinfulness and all of our unworthy actions that had led us to sin against God. The Lord has given us so many opportunities to be reconciled to Him and to find our way back to Him. However we are often stubborn and refused to listen to Him and His call to us, calling us to holiness and to be forgiven from our many sins and wickedness. For unless we are forgiven our sins and all those that kept us away from God and the fullness of His love, we will end up being judged and condemned by those same sins.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Numbers regarding the moment when the people of Israel rebelled against God, grumbled and complained against Him when they journeyed through the desert and were enduring the heat and hardships. However, they forgot how God had cared for them, how He led and guided them, showed them where to go and provided for them. He gave them water to drink and plenty of food to eat, in the form of the heavenly bread, the manna that they could collect every morning except on the day of the Sabbath,

Yet, they complained against God, complaining that they had no water to drink and were impatient, demanding for more things and comforts in life, even mentioning disgust at the manna although God had been ever so generous in providing them with that food to sustain them. It would not have been possible for the entire multitudes of the Israelites to sustain themselves in the desert without any help. And God made it all possible. The people had clearly forgotten the situation they had when they were once still enslaved in Egypt, when their lives and livelihood were at the total mercy of the Egyptians, enduring extortion and humiliation.

They refused to see how God has been so kind and compassionate towards them that He has always been patient in reaching out to them and in withstanding their constant disobedience and stubborn attitudes. God has always loved His people, but those same people were overcome by their greed and worldly desires, wanting more and thinking of pleasuring themselves first, and thus committed grievous sins against God. Fiery serpents therefore came into their midst and struck many of them, and many among the people died because of the fiery serpents.

Those fiery serpents were reminders of the punishments and the consequences of our sins. For although God is indeed most loving and merciful, but we must never forget that at the same time, He is holy, all good and perfect. Sin has no place before Him and should we come to Him with sinful hearts and minds, we will be struck down by those same sins we have committed, crushed, condemned and judged by those vile deeds and acts we had done. No sin can remain unaccounted for before the Lord, and we will have to answer for every sins we have against the Lord, be it great or small. And those rebellious Israelites tasted firsthand the consequences of their sins and disobedience against God.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the Lord speaking to the people, especially many of the Jewish people who were skeptical of Him and His teachings. Some among them like the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law opposed the Lord and even saw Him as a blasphemer, a fraud and a great threat of their power and influence within the community of the people of God. They doubted Him and questioned Him, His authority and teachings. Yet, the Lord continued to speak courageously and revealed to them what He would do for their sake, so that all those who believe in Him will not perish and be destroyed by their sins.

As we heard the Lord saying about Himself going to be raised up, as the Son of Man, being raised up between the heaven and the earth, we now know that He was in fact referring to the moment of His crucifixion, the time when He laid down His life for the sake of everyone. In the comparison which the Lord Jesus Himself made in another occasion with Nicodemus, one of the Pharisees who sympathised and believed in Him, just as Moses crafted and lifted up the bronze serpent as instructed by the Lord, He would also therefore be lifted up on His Cross, for everyone to see and to witness His Passion, suffering and death.

And just as all those who were bitten by the fiery serpents and looked upon the bronze serpent did not perish but lived, hence, all of us who gazed upon the Lord and His Cross, and believed in Him, all of us who have been bitten by the venom and sting of sin will also be saved and not perish. We will be spared from eternal death and suffering. We will enjoy forever the wonders of God’s love and will be fully reconciled to Him, provided we truly have that faith in us and believing that in Him alone we can find true happiness in this life. And we are all reminded of this fact today and are all called to draw ever closer to God.

We are reminded not to continue walking down the path of sin, and do our very best to follow the Lord and walk down His path from now on. Sin is something very dangerous and can easily trap even the best and the most righteous ones among us. We have to resist the temptations to sin and the pull of our desires. And for this, we can seek the help of our holy predecessors, such as St. Vincent Ferrer, a holy priest and servant of God whose life is a great inspiration for all of us. St. Vincent Ferrer was a Dominican preacher and friar who devoted his time and effort to bring the people of God ever closer to the Lord and to return to Him.

St. Vincent Ferrer spoke courageously about the Lord among the people, encouraging many people to seek Him and His mercy and forgiveness. St. Vincent Ferrer also worked hard to make peace among conflicting parties at that time, spending a lot of time and effort to abandon their sinful ways, and embracing the path of God’s salvation. The Lord has worked through St. Vincent Ferrer as well as through many other saints, holy men and women who had gone before us, to do His many great works in our midst. How about us then? Can we do the same as well?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are all called to find our way to the Lord with faith. Let us renew our love and faith in Him. May all of us be ever more committed to the Lord in all the things we do, and may we be good role models and inspirations for each other, in how we live our lives and devote our time and attention to the Lord. May God bless us always, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Tuesday, 5 April 2022 : 5th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

John 8 : 21-30

At that time, Jesus said to the Jews, “I am going away, and though you look for Me, you will die in your sin. Where I am going you cannot come.” The Jews wondered, “Why does He say that we cannot come where He is going? Will He kill Himself?”

But Jesus said, “You are from below and I am from above; you are of this world and I am not of this world. That is why I told you that you will die in your sins. And you shall die in your sins, unless you believe that I am He.” They asked Him, “Who are You?”; and Jesus said, “Just what I have told you from the beginning. I have much to say about you and much to condemn; but the One Who sent Me is truthful and everything I learnt from Him; I proclaim to the world.”

They did not understand that Jesus was speaking to them about the Father. So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He and that I do nothing of Myself, but I say just what the Father taught Me. He Who sent Me is with Me and has not left Me alone; because I always do what pleases Him.”

As Jesus spoke like this, many believed in Him.

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Tuesday, 5 April 2022 : 5th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 101 : 2-3, 16-18, 19-21

O Lord, hear my prayer; let my cry for help come to You. Do not hide Your face from me when I am in trouble. Turn Your ear to me; make haste to answer me when I call.

O Lord, the nations will revere Your Name, and the kings of the earth Your glory, when the Lord will rebuild Zion and appear in all His splendour. For He will answer the prayer of the needy and will not despise their plea.

Let this be written for future ages, “The Lord will be praised by a people He will form.” From His holy height in heaven, the Lord has looked on the earth to hear the groaning of the prisoners, and free those condemned to death.

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Tuesday, 5 April 2022 : 5th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Numbers 21 : 4-9

From Mount Hor they set out by the Red Sea road to go around the land of Edom. The people were discouraged by the journey and began to complain against God and Moses, “Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is neither bread nor water here and we are disgusted with this tasteless manna.”

YHVH then sent fiery serpents against them. They bit the people and many of the Israelites died. Then the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, speaking against YHVH and against you. Plead with YHVH to take the serpents away.”

Moses pleaded for the people and YHVH said to him, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a standard; whoever has been bitten and then looks at it shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a standard. Whenever a man was bitten, he looked towards the bronze serpent and he lived.

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Friday, 5 April 2019 : 4th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the words of the Lord through the Scriptures reminding us all about the opposition that those who are faithful to God has to experience through life, and we are going to focus more and more on this theme as we approach the beginning of the Holy Week of the Passion, suffering and death of Our Lord, which will be in just about more than a week’s time.

In the first reading today, we heard the passage from the Book of Wisdom relating to us how there were a lot of opposition against the faithful and against all the servants of God. The Book of Wisdom is a book that focuses on much of the internal thoughts and deliberations of the people, and in today’s segment, we focus on the thoughts that went in the minds of those who persecuted the prophets and the messengers of the Lord.

And we see the kinds of wickedness and stubbornness present in the minds of those people who refused to believe in the prophets and in the messages of truth they brought with them. They plotted against the faithful ones of God simply because they refused to let go of the pride, ego and the greed within their hearts and minds. They took it personally that those prophets and messengers had criticised them and the way they lived their lives.

This is parallel to what the Lord Jesus mentioned and spoke before the people in our Gospel passage today. At that time, as the time was coming close to the moment when Jesus was about to be betrayed and handed over to His enemies, the oppositions against Him among the priests, the scribes, the Pharisees and all others who saw Him as their rival and as a dangerous influence were increasing rapidly.

And this is where unfortunately, the pride of men came in between them and the ability to welcome the truth of God. They were doubting the truth that the prophets and eventually, Christ Himself revealed because they thought of themselves as being holders and owners of the real truth, as they perceived themselves as being better, more educated and even more worthy than the ones who have come speaking the truth of God before them.

That was why they refused to listen, as they hardened themselves and their mindset on what they thought were the right ways and attitudes to do. They viewed the words of the prophets and the Lord Jesus as dangerous threats and perhaps even falsehoods from their point of view. That was why they even refused to allow the truth of God to enter into their minds, and continued to do what they thought was right, even when they were actually wrong and committing sins.

Today as we heard all of these, we are reminded that each and every one of us may have been like the Pharisees, the priests, the teachers of the Law and all those who have oppressed the prophets and the Lord Himself. We may have refused to listen to the words of the Lord that He spoke deep within our hearts and minds, and closing the doors of our hearts and minds to Him. We are often so preoccupied with the many worldly matters and concerns that we do not allow God and His truth to get through to us.

Unless we open our hearts and minds, by putting aside ego and pride, desire and greed from all things, by humbling ourselves before the Lord and by realising that each and every one of us are not perfect in our ways and in our thoughts, we will likely not be able to change our ways and as such, continuing to sin, and getting more and more distant from God as time passes by. There is a need for us to reorientate and change our direction in life, so that we may find a new way and path in life, one that leads to the Lord.

Today, all of us are also called to follow the good examples set by St. Vincent Ferrer, in how he devoted his life to the good service of God, travelling to many places and preaching the truth about God to the people in various places. St. Vincent Ferrer helped many people to turn themselves to the Lord, and was very generous with his work among the poor and orphans, caring for the need of the people of God.

Through all these, we are all reminded that we need to have a profound change in attitude and approach in life. And during this season of Lent, we are called to turn away from sin, and to die to our human pride, greed, desire and all the things that have been preventing us from being able to come closer to God. We are reminded through the call to repentance, that each and every one of us are sinful and are in need of healing from God.

Let us all turn away from sin, and let us all refocus our attention to God from now on. May the Lord be our guide, and may He continue to bless us and by His encouragement, may He help us always to overcome the many temptations and challenges in this life. May God bless us all, now and always. Amen.

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Friday, 5 April 2019 : 4th Week of Lent, Memorial of St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

John 7 : 1-2, 10, 25-30

At that time, Jesus went around Galilee; He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews wanted to kill Him. Now the Jewish feast of the Tents was at hand.

But after His brothers had gone to the festival, He also went up, not publicly but in secret. Some of the people of Jerusalem said, “Is this not the Man they want to kill? And here He is speaking freely, and they do not say a word to Him? Can it be that the rulers know that this is really the Christ? Yet we know where this Man comes from; but when the Christ appears, no one will know where He comes from.”

So Jesus announced in a loud voice in the Temple court where He was teaching, “You say that you know Me and know where I come from! I have not come of Myself; I was sent by the One Who is true, and you do not know Him. I know Him for I come from Him and He sent Me.”

They would have arrested Him, but no one laid hands on Him because His time had not yet come.