Sunday Mass sermon

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Sunday, 26 March 2023 : Fifth Sunday of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday we mark the occasion of the Fifth Sunday of Lent and therefore we are reminded that it is just another one week from the beginning of the Holy Week and two weeks from the glorious season of Easter. As we come closer to the most solemn and important parts and celebrations of our whole entire liturgical year, each and every one of us are reminded at this point and juncture, of what we have to do as Christians, in living our lives in accordance with the way of the Lord and in having His Presence in our lives, to be filled with His Spirit and His love. Each and every one of us have been blessed with many great and wonderful gifts from God, and it is truly up to us whether we want to live our lives in a way that is worthy of the Lord or not. This Sunday, as we enter into this time of deeper reflection, all of us are reminded that if we have not yet done so, we should make good use of the remainder of this time of Lent to reexamine our path, our actions and way of life.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel in which we heard the Lord’s words to the prophet Ezekiel and to His people, the Israelites and their descendants, of how He still truly loved them and cared for them, and how through Him they would have life once again. The Lord told them all that He would put His Spirit in them again and they would live, as a reference to the earlier part of the same chapter of the Book of Ezekiel, in which the prophet Ezekiel saw a vision of a valley filled with many dry human bones, and how suddenly right before his very own eyes, all those bones began to reassemble themselves and becoming humans once again, becoming covered with muscles and sinews, and then the Spirit of God coming down upon them all, and before Ezekiel was laid a huge throng of the people of God, all living and breathing.

This was a symbolic representation of how God would restore His beloved people, and how He would grant them new life and restore them to grace and happiness with Him. He would gather all of them and give them His Spirit, to rejuvenate them and bring them back from their land of exile into the land that has been promised and kept for them, the land of their home and the land of their ancestors. God would save them all just the way He has once saved their ancestors from the land of Egypt. Back then, the people of Israel at the time of the prophet Ezekiel had been scattered away from their homeland, exiled in distant lands and had their cities, towns, villages and land ransacked, destroyed and crushed. Their great Temple of God, long defiled by their wickedness and evils, the worship of idols by their ancestors, were destroyed and the great Ark of the Covenant disappeared.

Therefore, this was akin to some kind of ‘death’ in the psyche of the people of God, and God therefore was revealing through Ezekiel that He would restore them back to a new life through Him, when He would rescue them and bring them all back to their homeland. The Lord revealed what He would do in allowing them all to return to their homeland, as how it would indeed happen, when several decades later, He moved the heart of the Great King of Persia, Cyrus the Great, to allow the whole people of Israel to return back to their homeland and even to rebuild their cities and the Temple of God in Jerusalem. The Lord reminded His beloved people that He would not abandon them and leave them behind despite the rebellious attitude that the people has shown Him, and despite them having abandoned and rejected Him first. He did not want them all to perish but live forever with Him, as He has always intended.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the well-known story of the Lord Jesus resurrecting one of His friends, Lazarus, from the dead. In a similar theme to the first reading we heard from the Book of Ezekiel, we heard how God restored life to His beloved ones, and in this case to one of His own close friends. Lazarus was the brother of the sisters Mary and Martha, who were also good friends of the Lord and often followed Him in His ministry. Back then, as we heard from the Gospel passage, Lazarus fell really ill and was on the verge of death when his sisters sent a message to the Lord telling Him about their predicament. The Lord truly loved and cared for Lazarus, but at the same time, the events had also likely been preordained by His heavenly Father, to be the example and showcase of the truth behind the true identity of the Lord Jesus, as the One sent into our midst to be our Saviour, and to rescue us from destruction and death.

Thus, the Lord intentionally delayed His departure for Lazarus’ place near Jerusalem until eventually, the latter passed away before the Lord arrived. The Lord was indeed struck deeply by the passing of Lazarus, and that was the origin of the famous shortest sentence in the entire Gospels and Scriptures, ‘And Jesus wept.’, which highlighted the love that He has for His beloved friend, and the love which He also has for each and every one of us. That sentence, though short, delivered to us the very powerful meaning and revelation that God truly loves us, from deep within His heart, and He does not want any one of us to be lost to Him through death, which is an echo of what we heard in our first reading today. God’s love was made manifest to us in His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, Who came into our midst to show the perfection of this Love incarnate in the flesh, and which was made even more tangible to us, by the tears that Our Lord Himself has shed.

This was one of the several occasions that the Lord shed tears, the other one being the Lord weeping over Jerusalem, and lamenting all the sins and wickedness that the people had committed, which would have led them into the path towards damnation. God does not want any of them to fall into this path precisely because He loved all of them very much, and does not desire to see their destruction. The other occasion that some Biblical scholars argued as the occasion when the Lord shed tears was when He was in agony in the Gardens of Gethsemane just before He was to be betrayed and condemned to death during His Passion. At that time, the Lord agonised over the great responsibility and burden that He had to bear for us, but He bore it all with love, and some experts said that it was likely that the Lord might have shed tears too at that time, when He remembered each and every one of us and willingly took upon Himself the burdens of our many sins.

Thus, this is where all of us need to realise just how blessed and fortunate all of us are, to have been beloved so much by the Lord, Our God and Saviour, our loving Father and Creator. He Who loves us so much certainly does not want us to be lost from Him or to be separated from Him, and as mentioned, He gave us all His only begotten Son, the Son of God, incarnate in our midst, for this very purpose. He, the Master of Life and Death, the Lord and the Giver of Life, endeavoured to lead us all out of the darkness of our current existence, just as what He has proclaimed to the people of Israel back then through the prophet Ezekiel. We have sinned against God, disobeyed Him and refused His love and mercy many times, but He still cared for us and loved us very much nonetheless, and sent us His many servants, messengers and reminders to help us in our path, that hopefully His words may touch us and lead us to repentance and reconciliation with Him.

Through what we have heard in our Scripture passages today, we can see that not even death can part us from the love of God. God loves us all and He desires to lift us all up to Himself, freeing ourselves from the bondage of sin and death. And since death is the just consequence and punishment for sin, He sent His Son to us, in order to break the chains of sin holding down us once and for all. This is what we have been preparing ourselves for this whole season and time of Lent, which is to bring our attention back towards the Lord and everything that He had done for us, in everything He did, by leading us out of the darkness and bringing us by His own hands to the path towards righteousness and eternal life. We look forward to the celebrations of the deepest mysteries and aspects of our faith in the Holy Week of Our Lord’s Passion, His suffering and death, and ultimately glorious Resurrection from the dead, to remind ourselves firstly of God’s love for us, and also that in Him alone we can have true life and joy.

That is what St. Paul reminded the faithful in Rome in his Epistle to them in our second reading today, and which is also an apt and timely reminder for all of us as well. The Apostle spoke of how those who have life ought to have the Spirit of Christ within them, or else, they will not have any part with the Lord, and hence, on the day of Judgment will be cast out and destroyed. This means that we must receive the Spirit of God, the Spirit that renews and rejuvenates us in the same manner as how God turned that valley of dry bones into a vast multitude of living and breathing people, and how He has raised Lazarus from the dead. He had put His Spirit into us, and we have been restored into life, a new life and existence that is blessed by Him, and by this reconciliation and renewed unity we have with the Lord, all of us may enter into the glory of the kingdom and eternal life promised to all of those who have remained firmly faithful in Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we enter into the period known as the Passiontide, beginning on this Fifth Sunday of Lent, traditionally known as the Passion Sunday, let us all therefore deepen our immersion into the penitential nature of this season of Lent, a time of preparation of our hearts and minds such that we may come into deeper understanding of the mystery of our faith, the love that God has for each and every one of us, and the acuteness of the sins and the wickedness that have afflicted us deep within our beings. Sin comes from our disobedience against God, from our rebellion against His will and the rejection of His love, and God has given us all the freedom to choose our path in life. Now, it is really therefore up to us whether we want to embrace God’s path and love, or whether we prefer to follow the path of sin and evil that many of us have often walked in all these while.

Let us remember that the path of sin and evil leads to nothing but eternal damnation and destruction, and while that path may seem to be easier or much more convenient than the path that God has shown us, we have been given the Wisdom, knowledge and revelation of what awaits us should we continue to walk down that path. On the other hand, if we follow the path that the Lord has shown us and willingly lead us all by His own hands, we shall attain the perfection of His love and grace, and the new life, blessed existence with Him, that begins right here in this world, and then continuing for everlasting life beyond death. Death has no hold or power over us who adhere to the love of God and to the path of His righteousness and grace, because He, the Master of Life, will deem us worthy of Him, and deserve therefore the gift of eternal life and blissful existence forever in His Presence.

Let us therefore do our best, brothers and sisters in Christ, to live our lives well and to contemplate our choice of action, beginning from this Lent onwards, and through each and every moments of our lives so that we may no longer fall again and again into the trap of sin and the vices of the world. May the Lord our most loving God, He Who raised Lazarus from the dead, the Lord and the Giver of Life, through His Holy Spirit, grant us strength, courage and rejuvenate our spirit, that we may continue to persevere in this life and overcome the many temptations and obstacles surrounding us in our journey and path towards Him, Our Lord and Saviour. May God bless us all, in all things, now and always, forevermore. Amen.

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Sunday, 19 March 2023 : Fourth Sunday of Lent, Laetare Sunday (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Rose or Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we mark the Fourth Sunday in the season of Lent, all of us notice that today we have a somewhat more festive and joyful atmosphere in our celebration of the Holy Mass, as we mark the occasion of Laetare Sunday, one of the only two days in the whole liturgical year that the colour rose is used as the colour of the day. Together with Gaudete Sunday during the season of Advent, this Laetare Sunday marks the moment when amidst the more penitential and sombre nature of both Advent and Lent, we remind ourselves of the great joy and the exultation that we are expecting and looking ahead towards in Christmas and Easter respectively. Thus, as we continue to progress ever closer to the coming of the Holy Week and the Easter season, all of us ought to remember what we have been preparing ourselves for in this upcoming celebration and festivities, and remind ourselves of our penitential practices this Lent which are meant to prepare ourselves wholly for the great celebrations to come.

In our first reading this Sunday, we heard from the Book of the prophet Samuel regarding the story of the time when God told Samuel to visit Jesse the Bethlehemite, a man of Judah whom we know as the father of the then future King of Israel, the famous King David. Back then, Saul was the king of Israel, the first one to rule over the people of God, but he has fallen into disobedience and sin against God by not following the instructions and the commands that God had given him and instead following his own desires and whims. Thus, God chose David to be the new king to rule over His people, and sent the prophet Samuel to anoint him with the holy oil. We heard how Jesse presented his seven sons before Samuel, and none of them except David pleased the Lord. When Samuel saw the eldest son of Jesse and thought that he was good in appearance and stature, the Lord told Samuel that He did not judge by appearance but by what is in the heart of man.

David truly loved God, and was a righteous, good and faithful man, who led the people of God faithfully and with great wisdom in his reign as King over them, leading them down the path of faith in God. And despite him failing in some occasions later on throughout his reign, by far and large he remained firm in his faith in following God, and he was also a humble man at heart, who was always ready to humble himself before God and man alike. Compared to other kings and rulers who have been swayed by the temptations of worldly pride and glory, or by their own success and greatness, including that of David’s own son and successor, Solomon, the Lord’s choice of David as King of Israel was indeed reflective of how God chose the best not by their appearances or their outward facade, but by their interior disposition and real self, which God knows all about.

This sets the tone for what we have heard in our Scripture passages today, that is about our ability to see the truth and light of Christ, and seeing the path towards God’s salvation and grace, as well as being truly sincere and genuine in our faith and life. Today, as we remember the love of God and look forward to the joyful celebration of Easter, in our anticipation of that Joy to come, our Laetare Sunday celebration and Scripture passages remind us that each one of us are called to be truly filled by the light of God, His truth and His love. We are reminded that each and every one of us are the children of God, and as the children and people of His light. Therefore, it is important that all of us truly embody in all things, in our whole lives and existence, the true values and beliefs of the Lord’s teachings, His Law and commandments, and not be like those hypocrites who outwardly believed in God but inside, they are all rotten and wicked.

This is also what St. Paul told to the faithful people in Ephesus, calling on them all to arise from the darkness of the world and abandon that darkness for the light of Christ’s truth and love. The Apostle reminded the faithful that they are the children and people of God, and they belong to the Light, and therefore, their actions and way of life should indeed reflect this nature, and that they should be genuinely faithful in all things. They should not scandalise the faith, the Church and all the other faithful people of God because of their wickedness and sinful actions. That is why he has called on all of them to embrace the Lord fully and wholeheartedly, to truly love God with all of their hearts and minds, with all of their strength. Unless they commit themselves wholly to God and if they continue to allow the temptations and attachments to worldliness to sway and distract them, then the path towards God and His salvation will truly be a difficult one.

That is why in our Gospel passage today, we are reminded yet again about this by the story of the moment when the Lord healed a man born blind, who was blind since birth. The Lord performed that healing on the blind man, opening his eyes and allowed him finally to see the light of this world. Immediately, that brought about the attention of the people who remembered this man who had been blind all the time since his birth, and then suddenly could see clearly. As this happened on the Sabbath, some of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law present there immediately questioned the formerly blind man, who it was that healed him, and how he was healed in the first place, with some even doubting that he had been blind in the first place. This was because those people cannot reconcile with the fact that someone had performed this miraculous healing on the Sabbath day, as it had happened.

The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had often gotten in conflict and disagreements with the Lord because He often performed His healing on the Sabbath, which was to highlight the point that He wanted to bring across that it was truly foolishness that the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law were interpreting the Law in the way that brought about inconveniences and difficulties for the people of God to live their lives, not only in making it an offence to do anything on the Sabbath, but even forbidding and preventing anything good from being done on the Sabbath. Their way of obeying and observing the Law was based on external and ritualistic observance, on literal understanding of the precepts, but failing to understand the true intention and purpose of the Law, which was in truth meant to help the people of God to live their lives in accordance with His truth and love.

That is why, the Lord told them all that while they might be physically capable of seeing, unlike how the blind man was, but they were suffering from spiritual blindness. Their pride and ego, their arrogance and greed for power and worldly glory and praise led them to shut the doors of their hearts and minds, and also their spiritual eyes to the truth and the light of God. That is why although they could see perfectly well and had witnessed many of the miracles that the Lord had performed before them, but they consistently and stubbornly refused to believe, kept on asking the Lord for more signs when they had witnessed so many things and heard so many words of Wisdom and truth that the Lord had done before them. They even doubted Him and cast doubts in the hearts of others by openly challenging Him and accusing Him of colluding with the demons in the action of His miracles.

All those things happened because they allowed sin to cloud their minds and to make them blind to God’s truth and love. They had practiced their faith outwardly and were pious in the sight of others, showing all their ritual expertise and knowledge of the Law, but most if not all of those were superficial in nature. Below all of that, there was no true love for God. Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, it is possible for one to be outwardly faithful to the Lord but in the inside, to have no real or genuine faith in Him. It means that they were just going through the motion as they practiced their faith, and they just carried on doing all their works without real understanding and appreciation of the true intentions of God’s Law and commandments. They were like a brilliant pot that is highly polished on the outside, but the inside is empty, or even ugly and dirty. That is what St. Paul had warned the faithful against, that they should not be bereft of the light of Christ in their hearts.

How do all these then relate to us, brothers and sisters in Christ? It means that as we continue to progress through this season of Lent, all of us are called to reflect deeply in our hearts, and look within us if Christ’s Light can be found within, and if His truth and love are the bedrock and strong foundation of our faith and lives. What the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had been doing, are exactly what we ourselves had been doing as well. How many of us practiced our faith in the way that we were just going through the motion? How many of us went and attended the Holy Mass or other celebrations of our faith, and yet we were not spiritually or mentally present there. How many of us cannot wait until everything is over so that we can go back to our usual daily routines and pursuits in life? Some of us even have the bad habit of leaving before the Holy Mass had concluded, even when we did not have the legitimate reason to do so.

The list can go on and on for us, like how many of us prayed by reciting the prayers and devotions and yet did not mean what we were saying. That is why I call these recitations and utterances rather than true, genuine prayer. We may think that we have done what our faith has been asking us to do, but we forget that what the Lord wants from us is to build a genuine and living relationship with Him, that of course begins from us spending more quality time with Him and nurturing that relationship we have with God. We do that by refocusing our lives and our attention truly on the Lord, and by learning to listen to Him instead of us just keep on reciting, telling or demanding for Him to do something for us. And we can also spend more time to reflect on our way of life and actions as well, on whether they have been truly a reflection of what God’s holy people should be like.

In this season of Lent, all of us are called to spend more time in prayer so that we may deepen and build up a genuine relationship with God, and we are also called to practice fasting and abstinence, not so that others may see how pious or great we are in our faith, but so that we may restrain the allure of worldly pride, greed and desire. All those things are great obstacles and barriers that keep us separated from God, and which have also kept causing us to fall again and again into sin. That is why this Lent we are constantly being reminded to distance ourselves from those sinful way of life and from all the obstacles that have been making it difficult for us to reach out to God. We are also called to be more generous in sharing our love and blessings to others, by practicing more almsgiving, again not for fame or praise from others, but so that others who are less fortunate than us may also truly experience joy and relief in their lives.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore as we look forward to the coming of our true Joy in Christ this Easter, let us all open the barred doors of our hearts and minds, and humble ourselves, seeking God for His forgiveness and compassionate mercy. Let us all remember the love and kindness that He has always shown us, and endeavour therefore to live our lives from now on in accordance with the path that He has shown us. Let us all be good examples and role models for each other, and inspire the people around us by our genuine faith and love-filled hearts, that also shine with the Light of Christ, so that more and more people may also come to believe in God through us. Let us all be thoroughly good and worthy of God, not just outwardly only, but our interior orientation should also be attuned with God. May God bless us all in the remaining time we have this Lent and help us to continue doing our best in living our lives and faith as good and truly devoted children of God. Amen.

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Sunday, 12 March 2023 : Third Sunday of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday is the Third Sunday in the season of Lent, and as such we are reminded again to place our focus on God and not on things of this world. When we allow worldly desires and attachments to lead us in life, more often than not it will lead us down the wrong path that bring us into the slippery slope into sin and more. We have to resist those temptations and trust in the Lord wholeheartedly, allowing the Lord to lead and guide us in our lives. We often hardened our hearts and minds because of our stubbornness and refusal to let go of all those unhealthy attachments in life, all the temptations and wicked things surrounding us that led us to sin. This is why this Sunday, all of us are reminded and called again to turn away from sin and embrace God and His forgiveness fully.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Exodus, we heard of the moment when the Israelites, the people of God, rebelled against God and whined against Him greatly at a place known as Massah and Meribah. Massah and Meribah was infamous for generations afterwards as the place where the people of Israel went into open defiance and rebellion against God, and even Moses, their leader, was driven into despair, for the refusal of the Israelites to budge from their demands. The people of Israel were angry against God and complained that God had led them out of Egypt to die in the desert with their children and cattle, and regretted that they had moved out the land of Egypt, the place where they were enslaved for many decades and treated with disdain and contempt by the Egyptians and their Pharaoh. God has liberated them by His own hands from the dominion of the Egyptians, and led them to the land He has promised them and their ancestors.

Yet, the people of Israel were looking with some kind of nostalgia at the kind of life that they had in Egypt, that while they were enslaved but they had what they wanted to eat and even things they wanted to enjoy. When the Lord freed them and led them on the journey towards the Promised Land, quite evidently many of those people were still attached to the life that they had back in Egypt, regardless of their slavery and status there. Hence, although the Lord had provided for them and all their needs throughout their journey, they would always make comparisons and desire for things that they actually did not really need, and began to grow arrogant and greedy in their actions. They disregarded God’s love and kindness, and hardened their hearts against Him even though God had truly cared and provided for them, not only by delivering them from the hands of the Egyptians, but also in giving them what they needed in an empty, lifeless and terrible desert.

If we look through the account of the journey of the Israelites, we see how God provided them all with the bread from Heaven itself, the manna, every single day, and even accounting for the Sabbath day, the Lord provided twice of the manna needed to cover the Sabbath itself. Not only that, but the Lord also sent flocks of large birds every evening to feed the people with more food, and provided crystal clear and good quality water to drink throughout the entire journey in the desert. If we consider just how dry, terrible and lifeless a desert is, to have the whole multitudes of the people of Israel travelling through the desert, and cared for in such a way by the Lord, from our perspective we can only stare in awe at just how wonderful God’s love for them was, and yet, the people refused to acknowledge that love, and still complained for what they have already received in abundance.

Not only that, but the Lord even provided for all of the people after they had rebelled against Him and were punished for a whole period of forty years in the desert, before they could enter the Promised Land. He still cared for them and loved them despite of their many sins, wickedness, lack of gratitude and faith, and disobedience. And then, linking to what we heard in our Gospel passage today, regarding the account of what happened when the Lord Jesus travelled through the region of Samaria, during the Exodus, it was told that a ‘Rock’ always followed the Israelites, providing them with water even in the driest and most barren part of the desert, that everyone had enough water to drink and survive on, despite their constant groaning and complaints. This water is referred to by the Lord Jesus in His conversation with the Samaritan woman, as the ‘spring of the living water’ that will never cease.

In that Gospel account, we heard of the encounter between the Lord and a Samaritan woman, who belonged to the group of people often considered by the Jewish people as pagans and wicked, unworthy of God. The Samaritans inhabited the region where Samaria, the old capital of the northern kingdom of Israel was located at, and they were descended from a mixture of people that the Assyrians brought in to settle in the land after they conquered and destroyed the northern kingdom, and the resulting mingling of those foreigners and some leftover members of the ten northern tribes of Israel eventually became the Samaritans. The Samaritans, based on their practice, also believed in some form of worship of God, although they believed, as the Samaritan woman mentioned, that the correct way of worship was in the mountains that they dwelled in, and not in Jerusalem as the Jews argued. They could not be reconciled as each party proudly maintained their views and ideas as the correct one while the other one was wrong.

The Lord told her that ultimately, seeking the Lord, the true Spring of Life, is what matters, and not how each of the people argued whether their way of doing it was correct. The woman was looking for a water in the well at the area, known as the ‘Well of Jacob’ after the well that Jacob, the patriarch of the Israelites established in that area, and which the Samaritans considered as their forefathers as well. The Lord told her that the water that she sought would not truly satisfy her, as she will become thirsty again, while the ‘Spring of Living Water’ that He has, will provide for eternity, and she will never be thirsty anymore. This was a reference and can be compared to how the Lord provided for His people throughout the period of the Exodus, that Rock that always provided water without cease, that came from the Lord Himself. But in deeper level, this refers to things that the Lord alone can provide, that worldly things cannot.

If we recall back in the First Sunday of Lent, of the account on the temptation of the Lord Jesus by Satan, Satan tried to tempt Him first with food, by asking Him to turn stones in the desert into food, and also by offering Him the glory and power of the world, which were all rejected, as the Lord rebuked Satan, first of all, with the words, ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every words that come from God.’, as a reminder to all of us that all the things of this world that we often seek, like material possessions, food, wealth, riches, fame, glory and all those things are all superfluous and impermanent in nature. None of those things will last forever, and no one can retain them beyond this world. We come into this world with nothing, and will leave this world without whatever we have gained in this world. But what we truly have is the love of God, the love that comes from God Who loves each and every one of us unconditionally.

However, many people are still distracted by the many temptations found in this world and life, and we often find it hard to resist those temptations, coercions and pressures all around us to do what are against God’s teachings and ways. The Lord has called upon us to resist those wicked things and not to give in to the many temptations we may often face as part of our journey in life. This is why this Sunday, as we approach the halfway point in this season of Lent, each and every one of us are reminded to reflect on our own respective way of life, and our actions. Have we truly put our lives around God, our true focus in life, He Who can provide us all that we need, and Who can give us all things that last forever and not just merely temporary like worldly glory and possessions? Have we put the Lord, the Spring of Living Water and enthrone Him in our hearts, so that from Him we will receive the Wisdom and grace to carry out our lives worthily as Christians?

This season of Lent, all of us are called to redirect our attention in life to follow the Lord and to commit ourselves to Him more wholeheartedly. Each one of us have been given the grace and gift of faith from God, to live our lives in accordance to His path and His truth. If only that we have more faith in Him and not be easily swayed by the temptations around us, we will come closer to Him and get further and further away from the path of damnation, and closer indeed to the path towards eternal life. The choice is ours, brothers and sisters, as God has given us the freedom to choose how we will live our lives, whether we want to follow the examples of the Israelites in the past, who disobeyed the Lord and walked down the path of sin and wickedness, or whether we are willing to embrace God and His path wholeheartedly, in living our every moments in life in accordance to His will?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us spend our time this remaining season and period of Lent carefully, that we do whatever we can to discern our path in life going forward. May all of us deepen our relationship with God and rediscover that faith and love that we ought to have for Him through our Lenten observance. Let us all do our best to be exemplary Christians in our way of life and be good examples and inspiration for one another, that more and more people may come to believe in God as well through us. May God bless us in our every good efforts and endeavours, all the work we do for His greater glory, not only just for the duration of this season of Lent, but continuing on for the rest of our lives. Amen!

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Sunday, 5 March 2023 : Second Sunday of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we gather together to celebrate this Second Sunday in the season of Lent, all of us are reminded of this Sunday’s Scripture theme that is on the topic of calling and mission, which God has called each and every one of us to do, in following Him and entrusting ourselves to Him, to obey Him and listen to His words, as He guides us down the right path, one that is not necessarily the easiest and happiest path for us. But as long as we follow Him and remain faithful to Him, we shall find our satisfaction in the Lord, and we shall gain true joy in Him and with Him. Yet, we have to keep ourselves rooted firmly in faith in God, and focus our attention wholly on Him or else, we may find it easy to be distracted by worldly temptations and all the things which may mislead us down the wrong path in life.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Genesis, the story of how God called a man named Abram from the land of Ur in Mesopotamia, in the present day Iraq, to follow Him. Abram obeyed the Lord and listened to Him, chose to depart from his homeland, which he never saw again in his lifetime, and went first to the land and city of Harran just at the boundary between Syria and Mesopotamia, together with his father, before he embarked on his own journey with his wife, Sarai and his household and belongings to the land of Canaan, following God’s instructions and commands, and it was mentioned that Lot his nephew also followed Abram as well. This was how Abram went and follow the Lord’s calling wholeheartedly, even when he could have done otherwise and just enjoyed the riches and the comfort of where he used to live in. He instead entrusted himself to the Lord completely.

Abram listened to the Lord and trusted Him, even when there were so many uncertainties in the path that he embarked on. He had great faith in God and consequently, he was greatly blessed by God, who promised him that he would become the father of many nations, by the Covenant which God Himself established with Abram. Abram dedicated and committed himself to this Covenant, and changed his name to Abraham as a mark of his commitment. Back then, a name change often signified this commitment which one made, in establishing a pact, which in this case is the solemn Covenant that Abraham had made with God. Sarai, his wife also went through the same change, known as Sarah henceforth, as would be his grandson, later on, Jacob, who was known as Israel after he renewed the same Covenant with God.

From the examples made by our forefathers in faith, all of us can see how each and every one of us are called to do the same as well, reminded that God has always been faithful to His Covenant, in how He fulfilled everything that He has ever promised to man, to Adam and Eve, to Abraham and Sarah, and then to Jacob, also known as Israel, and his descendants, with whom God continued to renew and reestablish His Covenant. St. Paul in our second reading today in his Epistle to St. Timothy, his godson and protege has highlighted how the Lord has called us to Him, and how He has always renewed His Covenant and showing His love for us, especially through His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the whole world, of all mankind. Christ has come into the world, into our midst so that by His coming, God might fulfil everything that He Himself has promised to us.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the story of the Transfiguration of the Lord, detailing the moment when the Lord Jesus Christ was transfigured before three of His disciples, His inner circle, of St. Peter, St. James and St. John, who went up to Mount Tabor with Him. There, they witnessed how the Lord revealed the glimpse of the truth about His true nature, as the Divine Son of God, the Divine Word Incarnate in the flesh, God Himself, taking up our human nature and existence, coming down into our midst and walking among us, so that through His coming, He may reach out to us and embrace us truly, as His own. He came to us as God Who truly loves each and every one of us, gathering us from among the nations, and calling on us all to follow Him, turning away from our sins.

By His Transfiguration and appearance with Moses and Elijah at Mount Tabor, Christ our Lord also highlighted to us all yet again everything that He has done for our sake. Moses represented the Law of God, the Law and the Ten Commandments, and everything that God has provided to His people Israel, during the time of their Exodus from Egypt and journey to the land promised to them and their ancestors, while Elijah represented the Prophets of God, the many prophets through whom God had sent His reminders and assurances to His people, reminding them of His love and faithfulness, of the coming of His salvation, and the revelation of His love and truth. The appearance of Moses and Elijah together with the Transfigured Christ therefore affirmed us all that the Lord has truly been faithful to the Covenant that He has established with us, and He wants us all to put our complete trust and faith in Him, and follow Him.

Like Abraham in the past, and Sarah, and Jacob, who have all witnessed the Lord present in their midst and journeying with them, St. Peter, St. James and St. John who have all witnessed the Lord Transfigured before their very own eyes, have seen for themselves the love of God manifested in all of His glory. That was why, after the Lord had died, and risen in glory, and then ascended into Heaven, they together with the other Apostles and disciples of the Lord, having witnessed and received, shared and understood this same truth, they all went forth fearlessly and courageously, dedicating themselves completely to the Lord and His cause, following Him in much the same way as how Abraham trusted wholeheartedly in the Lord, and all of us have also received this same truth passed down to us through the Church of God.

Those three disciples obeyed and listened to the Lord, despite having initially wanted to stay on that mountain with the Lord, in that blissful glory, with Moses and Elijah. We must understand that this request as mentioned by St. Peter was likely made because if they were to stay there in that blissful place, then they could enjoy being there and away from the hardships of the struggles and trials that they had to endure in following the path of the Lord. But God reminded all of them to listen to His Son, and to follow Him. The Lord Himself could very well have stayed there, in a great moment of blissful glory, revealing for a moment, His true glorious nature. He did not need to endure sufferings and hardships, persecution, humiliation and pain, and if we recall the Gospel passage from the last Sunday, the First Sunday of Lent, that was exactly the intent of the devil too when he tried to tempt the Lord to give in to the many temptations he presented to Him.

Yet, all those things did not prevail as the Lord showed us all true obedience, and as the Son of Man, He shows us all mankind, how to be truly obedient to God, to listen to Him and follow Him wholeheartedly, as He Himself showed by His coming down from Mount Tabor, ready to go forth to His Passion, His suffering and death in Jerusalem, to be betrayed by one of His own disciples, to be rejected by His own people and the chief priests, condemned to death and blamed for mistakes and sins that were not His own. The Lord our Saviour obeyed His Father’s will so perfectly that He offered Himself for our own behalf, and from that, gained for all of us the promise and assurance of eternal life. He showed all of us the perfect example of perfect and most selfless love, and showed us that trusting in Him and putting our faith in Him is indeed something that we should do, because He Himself has given us His promises, not just in mere words, but He truly showed us all these in person.

That is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we listened to this Sunday’s Scripture passages and reflect upon them, let us all be truly touched by the Lord and be inspired by Him and His own examples, and also the examples of our holy predecessors, who had followed the Lord and answered His call. Let us also follow the Lord in our own way, and listen to Him calling on us to follow Him, and discern carefully our path in life so that, in whatever it is that the Lord had led us towards, we may indeed be able to commit ourselves fully to His path, and strive our best to walk in that path throughout our lives, so that our lives may truly be worthy of Him, and our deeds and actions may truly reflect who we are, that is God’s holy and beloved people, as Christians, called to be the disiples of the Lord and as the beacons of His light and truth in our communities today.

May this season of Lent be a time for us to recommit ourselves to the Lord once again, turning ourselves away from the many temptations of the world all around us, and spend more time with God in prayer and by other means, so that we may come to know fully what God truly wants us to do, and what He has called upon us to do as well. Let us do our best to make use of the time and opportunities that had been given to us to draw ever closer to God and to know Him more. May God bless us all and guide us through this season of Lent so that we may be able to resist the many temptations all around us, and be ever more faithful and better role models and inspirations in faith in all of our actions and deeds, throughout our lives. Amen.

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Sunday, 26 February 2023 : First Sunday of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday is the First Sunday of Lent, the first of the five Sundays of the season of Lent before we enter into the Holy Week, as we all prepare ourselves for the coming of the great mystery of the Passion of the Lord and all of His saving works, and the glorious celebration at Easter. On this Sunday we are all brought to the very beginning of how sin came into us and led us all into corruption and our downfall, so that hopefully we may realise just how dangerous and terrible sin can be, and why we have to remain vigilant and careful throughout our lives such that we do not end up falling down the slippery path towards damnation because of us being tempted to sin. It is quite easy for us to fall into sin unless we remain strong in our conviction and faith in the Lord, as how it had happened to many of our predecessors. And this is why we need to make good use of this season of Lent to remind ourselves to be more faithful and committed to God, resisting the temptations of sin.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Genesis the story of how the first mankind fell into sin, that is of Adam and Eve, the ones whom God created in the beginning of time. God created mankind after He had created the whole universe and existence, and prepared everything all well and good, crafting man in His own image. God made everything to be all good and perfect, and He intended for us to enjoy forever the happiness, bliss and joy of our existence, full of grace and love for God, for eternity. That is what why we had been created, to share in the love of God, and to enjoy the blissful existence in Eden as our ancestors had once enjoyed. Yet, unfortunately they fell into sin because they chose to listen to the sweet lies and falsehoods of Satan rather than to trust in the Lord and His love.

Satan tempted Adam and Eve by playing into their desires, their curiosity for knowledge and understanding, their willingness to try out new things and to experience what it may be like to know good and evil like how God Himself is all-knowing. Yet, it was by their disobedience against God that they allowed sin to enter into their hearts and minds, corrupting them and their descendants henceforth, and because of that, we have to wander off in the hardships of this world, away from the fullness of God’s grace and love. This is because sin and wickedness have no place before God and His perfection, His all good nature. Sin has therefore held dominion over us all ever since then right up to the moment when the Lord sent us His salvation, through none other than Jesus Christ, His own beloved and only begotten Son. Through Christ, all of us have seen, witnessed and received the perfect manifestation of God’s love.

The fact is that God truly loves each one of us, brothers and sisters in Christ. He could have crushed and destroyed us easily for our disobedience and wickedness, but He chose to be patient with us, reaching out to us with genuine love and compassionate mercy. He gave us His beloved Son because through Him, we are going to be led out of the darkness of sin into the eternal life and justification in God. This is what St. Paul in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful in Rome has spoken about, as he highlighted to them all how sin had entered into this world through the first man, but then, God gave us the gift of His only begotten Son, to come into our world and becoming Man like us, as the Son of Man, so that by the perfect example of His obedience to the will of His heavenly Father, He may lead us all into the right path towards full reconciliation and reunion with the Lord, our loving Father Who loves each and every one of us, without exception.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, St. Paul clearly highlighted the comparison and difference between what Adam, the first man had done, in listening to Satan instead of listening to God, choosing to obey the words of Satan together with that of his wife Eve, so that they ended up disobeying God and doing what the Lord had forbidden them to do, with Jesus Christ, Whom St. Paul mentioned sometimes as the New Adam, the New Man, through Whom He showed us all the example of perfect obedience to the will of God. Our Lord Jesus obeyed the Father’s will so perfectly and well, that He obeyed even when He had to bear the burden of His Cross, that is the multitudes of our many and innumerable sins, evils and wickedness, our faults and corruptions, all of which should have led us to our deaths and destructions. Yet, by His great and ever patient and enduring love, God Himself has willingly done all He could for us, so that by His most loving and selfless sacrifice on the Cross, He could save us from our fated destruction.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard how the Lord Jesus Himself was tempted by Satan after He was baptised in the River Jordan by St. John the Baptist, at the beginning of His ministry in this world. In this quite well known story, at that time, the Lord Jesus went through a period of forty days of physical fasting and spiritual exercise in the wilderness and desert, where Satan came to Him and tried not just once but three times to tempt Him to stop His work and mission in this world, by offering Him the same kind of persuasions and temptations that He had once tempted our ancestors with. Satan struck with all of his persuasions, tempting the Lord with all sorts of the most dangerous temptations, by first striking at Him with the satisfaction of the flesh through food, and pride, and yet again another one through hubris, ego and pride, and finally the greed and desire for worldly glory and fame.

Satan tempted Adam and Eve with the allure of knowledge and greatness, so that by eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Garden of Eden, expressly prohibited by God, they could become equal like God, to be like God in His might and knowledge, tempting them with glory, power and knowledge, among others, which moved them to disobey the Lord and choose to walk their own rebellious path as Satan himself had done before them, instead of trusting in God and His providence. But this failed to tempt the Lord, Who as the Son of Man, the New Adam, showed us the perfect example of great obedience as He obeyed His Father’s will, and refused to bend to the demands of Satan, or even paying attention or any heed to his falsehoods, his sweet lies and wicked words. He refuted Satan’s claims and lies, and spoke courageously of the truth that He Himself has brought into this world.

When Satan tried to highlight to the Lord that He is the Son of God in order to make Him to be swayed by pride and ego, to do something for His own selfish gain and benefit, by turning the stones into bread to nourish Himself, the Lord rebuked Satan and rejected his effort in tempting Him, by saying that mankind do not live and survive on bread alone, but on every words that come from the Lord. Instead of doing something for the sake of His own benefit, the Lord chose to do what is most unconventional, and that is to do what He had done for everyone’s sake, in giving Himself to them all. Instead of turning the stones into bread for His own consumption, He, Who is the Bread of Life, chose to be broken Himself, and to offer Himself for everyone, in a most selfless sacrifice and offering of love, for the salvation of the whole world.

And when Satan brought the Lord over to the top of the Temple of Jerusalem, telling Him using the phrases from the Scriptures to try to trick Him and to make Him be swayed by the fame and glory that he offered, the Lord told Satan off once again, that one should not put the Lord to the test, which is an important reminder for each and every one of us not to lose faith in the Lord and His providence. Instead, we have to keep our faith in Him and put our focus on Him, and not to indulge in the desire to be seen or to be praised for our actions. Everything we do in our lives, all of them should indeed be to glorify the Lord by our own exemplary life and works, which should be in accordance to the will of God. We should not seek to be selfish and pursuing personal glory and satisfaction over our obedience and faith in God, and also our love for one another.

Lastly, the Lord also rebuked Satan when he showed Him the whole vastness of the wealth and the greatness of the world, as the latter desperately tried to bring the Lord to succumb to the temptations of worldly glory and riches, to no avail. The Lord told Satan off and rebuked him hard with the words that the Lord alone is worthy and ought to be worshipped, and not Satan. This last effort from Satan that was greatly rebuffed by the Lord struck at the very core of Satan’s own rebellion against God, as he aspired to ascend even the Throne of God and become the ruler over all of Creation. Essentially, the Lord proclaimed to Satan that in the end, the justice and goodness of the Lord will triumph over him, and that the faith in the Lord alone will lead us mankind to salvation through the same Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour. Meanwhile, Satan and all those who choose to side with him will be crushed and destroyed.

That is why, each and every one of us are reminded today at the early beginning of this season of Lent, that we must not allow ourselves to be swayed by the lies and false promises of Satan and all other tempters and those sent to convince us to abandon our path and journey towards the Lord. We have to be ever vigilant and not allow ourselves to be twisted and corrupted by our own pride, ego, arrogance, hubris, desires and greed, jealousy, lust and other things by which we often encounter serious obstacles in our journey of faith towards the Lord. We must follow the examples shown by Our Lord Himself, as well as the innumerable saints and martyrs, our holy predecessors, those holy men and women who have resisted the temptations to sin, the temptation of worldly glory, fame and ambition in our hearts and minds.

During this season of Lent, all of us are called and reminded to deepen our relationship with God through the three pillars of Lent, that we all should be well aware of. These three pillars are that of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, and our whole season of Lent should be filled with them. Not only that, but when we carry out those actions and fulfil what we have been recommended to do during this solemn period of Lent, we should do them with the right intention and purpose, that is to bring ourselves closer to God and to restrain the many temptations from outside and within us, so that hopefully we may come ever closer to God and His salvation, and distance ourselves from Satan and all those who seek nothing else but our destruction and damnation. We should make good use of whatever opportunities and time provided to us, and do what we can to live our lives worthily of the Lord.

We must of course have a good and vibrant prayerful life, as for Christians, it is inconceivable for us not to spend any time in prayer. But our prayers must also not be one that is merely reciting and saying words, as we should use prayer as how it is intended to be, for us to communicate with the Lord. All of us may come to deeper appreciation of God’s love and actions through our interactions and time spent with Him in prayer and through our other means of reaching out to Him. And when we fast, we should do so because we want to restrain the temptations of our flesh, which can be indeed weak in the face of relentless attacks and temptations present all around us. We should not fast because we seek renown or praise for our actions, but rather we fast because we have that genuine and strong desire to distance ourselves from sin and come closer to God and His merciful love.

We should also be ever more generous, in almsgiving, that is in giving whatever we can spare for all those around us who are less fortunate than us. And almsgiving should not just be limited to material giving, but rather, should also include our time and attention, our love and care in particular for all those who are less fortunate and unloved, all around us. During this time of Lent, each and every one of us are reminded to sharpen the side of our humility and faith, deepening our relationship with God through charity and love, while at the same time rejecting Satan and all of his false promises and lies, and resist the many temptations all around us to commit what is sinful against the Lord. We are all called to be ever more faithful to God and to be good and worthy role models in our faith, inspiring many others to follow in our footsteps as well.

May God be with us always and may He empower us all throughout this Lenten season so that we may continue to serve Him and to walk in His presence, now and always. May God bless us all in our every good works, efforts and endeavours for His greater glory. Amen.

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Sunday, 19 February 2023 : Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, in this Sunday, which marks the last Sunday before the beginning of the season of Lent with Ash Wednesday just this coming Wednesday, all of us are reminded to be holy and loving, to be filled with all righteousness, virtues, goodness and justice so that we may truly become worthy disciples, followers and children of our Lord and God. We are all reminded that as Christians, as God’s followers and people, all of us are expected and called to be His holy people, as the ones to be the examples and beacons of His light and truth in this world, and this call is truly timely and right for us at this moment, just as we are about to enter into this holy season of Lent in preparation for the most solemn and joyful celebration of the Holy Week and Easter.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Leviticus in which God spoke to His people, the Israelites, reminding all of them of the obligations that each and every one of them have as His people, in doing His will and obeying His Law and commandments, in being holy and devout people, that are truly worthy of being called His children and His flock, as the people whom He had rescued by His own hands from their enslavement in Egypt. God reminded all of His people that they all have to be righteous, virtuous, holy and good just as He is holy, or else, if they did not do so, they would scandalise their faith and the Lord Himself. He told them all to be loving to one another as well, which is essentially doing what He has decreed and taught them through His Law and commandments.

Then, in our second reading passage today from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in the city of Corinth, we heard of the call of the Apostle telling all the faithful to keep themselves holy and truly worthy of the Lord, echoing what the Lord Himself had told Moses in the Book of Leviticus. St. Paul told the faithful and hence to all of us that we have to keep in mind that we are all Temple of the Lord’s Holy Presence, the Temple of the Holy Spirit, and thus because we are the dwelling place of the Almighty and Most Holy God Himself, we must not defile this Temple that is our body, mind, heart and soul, our whole being with wickedness of sins and our unworthy actions, words and deeds that bring about scandal to our faith and lives as good and dedicated Christians.

Contextually, we must understand that the Temple of God is a most holy and sacrosanct place where God Himself dwelled, His Presence coming down from His Heavenly Throne to be with us all His people. In the earliest days, during the time of the Exodus from Egypt, the Israelites built the Holy Tent of Meeting as the centre of their entire community, and it was upon the Holy Tent that God’s very own Holy Presence descended upon, to the Ark of the Covenant placed inside the Holy of Holies within the Holy Tent, with God Himself seated upon the Cherubim atop the Ark of the Covenant. The Holy Tent and especially the Holy of Holies was considered so holy only those who were allowed could be permitted entry, and like the later Holy of Holies in the Temple of Jerusalem, the House of God, even the High Priest was only permitted to enter the Holy of Holies only during one solemn occasion in the whole entire year.

Similarly, the Ark of the Covenant was also considered so holy and sacrosanct that touching it is considered taboo, and in fact, an incident happened earlier on in the Scriptures where a priest of the Lord died on the spot the moment he touched the Ark upon trying to hold it and prevent it from slipping and falling down to the ground as it was being transported by King David to Jerusalem. The point that I want to highlight here is that, the Ark of the Covenant, the Holy of Holies of the House of God, where historically God’s Holy Presence resided, were all considered so holy and sacrosanct that no imperfections, wickedness and sin can or should ever be in its presence and place. How is it related to us all then, as the aforementioned Temple of the Holy Spirit, as the Temple of God’s Holy Presence?

Each one of us have received the Lord Himself, wholly in the flesh, in His own Most Precious Body and Blood that He has given us all most generously and lovingly in the Sacrament of the Most Holy Eucharist, that He has instituted Himself at the Last Supper, and passed down to us through His Apostles and other disciples, through their successors in the Church, right up to our Pope, bishops and priests, all those who have been given the faculty and the authority and power, in their role as Alter Christus, in offering the same gifts that the Lord Himself has offered, and turned the bread and wine into the very essence, reality and Holy Presence of God, in the Most Precious Body and Blood, the Most Holy Eucharist that we all have partaken and received.

As we believe that the Lord Himself has come into our midst and dwelled within us through the Eucharist, which is not just mere symbol or reminder, but real Body and Blood of Our Lord, hence, how can we not then endeavour to keep ourselves holy, blameless and spotless just as the Ark of the Covenant and the Holy of Holies of the House of God were kept holy and sacrosanct? In addition, as St. Paul mentioned, we are also the Temple of the Holy Spirit, as the Holy Spirit has also come upon us through the Church, since the day of the Pentecost right up to now, as all of us who have received the Sacrament of Baptism has also received the Holy Spirit from the Lord Himself, and for all of us who have received the Sacrament of Confirmation, this gift of the Holy Spirit has been further reaffirmed and strengthened in us all.

That is why as Christians, all of us must do what we can to keep our lives holy and worthy of the Lord, distancing ourselves from sin and wickedness of the world, from the excesses of worldly desires and ambitions, and from the corrupting nature of sin. We must resist the temptations of sin, and do what we can to help and inspire one another to continue keeping our beings, the Temples of God’s Holy Presence, good and worthy of Him. How do we do this, brothers and sisters in Christ? It is by heeding what we have heard from the Gospel passage today, in which the Lord highlighted to all of His disciples and hence to all of us, what it truly means to become one of His disciples and followers, to be truly filled with love of God, and the righteousness and virtues that He has taught us all.

As we heard from our Gospel passage today, what is important for us as Christians to do with our lives is essentially to love, to be filled with God’s love, which in itself is already obeying God’s Law and commandments. The Lord Jesus Himself in another occasion, before the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law had summarised the Law as a whole into two main commandments, that is to love God first and foremost with all of our hearts and strength, and then to love our fellow brothers and sisters in the same way, just as much as we love ourselves. It is our Christian calling and vocation for all of us to be always grounded in love, in our every words, actions and deeds, so that by our love everyone may truly know God’s love and that we truly belong to the Lord, and hopefully more and more people may be inspired to follow our examples and believe in the Lord as well.

We have to love sincerely and generously, and as the Lord mentioned in our Gospel passage today, we should not just love because there is something in it for us, or that we stand to benefit from loving that person, as that kind of love is not the kind of true, Christian love that we are called to show. We have to show what the Lord Himself has shown us by His own examples, that in loving us all so greatly, all of us who have often hurt and betrayed Him, abandoned Him and rebelled against Him, He chose to willingly embrace His Cross, bearing upon Himself the whole burden of the innumerable sins of the world, of all mankind, past, present and future, so that by loving us that way, He may bring us all to eternal life. Christ Himself has shown us how we ought to live our lives with genuine Christian love, as He Himself had done, and now, the question is, what are we going to do then, brothers and sisters?

Let us all therefore embark on a new journey of faith, and renew our conviction to remain faithful to God, as we are about to enter into the season of Lent this Wednesday with the Ash Wednesday. Let us all renew our conviction to love the Lord wholeheartedly once again, and with the resolve to love one another most generously, forgiving those who have hurt or pained us, and helping one another to grow ever stronger in faith, by living our own lives most worthily and by doing what God has taught and shown us all to do. Let us all make good use of whatever time and opportunities that God has given us all, and do our best to make our whole beings truly worthy and holy Temples of His Holy Presence, not just for this upcoming Lent, Holy Week and Easter, but for the rest of our lives, till the day we encounter the Lord once again in His heavenly abode. May God bless us all and be with us always in our journey of faith and life, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Sunday, 12 February 2023 : Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we all gather together in the Holy Presence of God in His House, each and every one of us are reminded to keep faithfully the Law and the commandments that He has bestowed upon us, all that He has given us in order to help us find our way to Him, to His salvation and grace. All of us as Christians are called to be good and faithful disciples of our Lord, to be good and exemplary role models in our way of life, in everything we say and do, so that everyone who hears us, sees and witnesses our actions and works, may all come to know the Lord and His truth more through us, and hopefully we may inspire more people to come to believe in the Lord as well. Whether we are to do good or to do evil is completely within our choice, and God has given us the freedom to choose our course of action in life.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Sirach, we heard the words of the prophet Sirach speaking to the people of God and reminding them all, including all of us that God has given us His Law and commandments, and it is really up to us to make the choice whether to do what is right and just in accordance to God’s Law and commandments, or whether we want to disobey Him and walk down the path of sin instead. The Lord has given us all the free will and the freedom to choose our paths, and He has also taught us and revealed to us what we all need to do if we want to be faithful and committed to Him. Unfortunately, more often than not we chose to walk down the path of rebellion and evil than to obey the Lord and His commandments, especially because we were unable to resist the temptations all around us, and because we see the path of disobedience and sin as the ‘easier’ path.

In our second reading today, we heard from the Apostle St. Paul in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful people of God in the city of Corinth in which he spoke of the teaching and revelation of Divine wisdom, the Wisdom of God, the truth that the Lord Himself has revealed to His disciples and Church, and which He reaffirmed to us through His Holy Spirit. St. Paul compared this Wisdom and truth to the wisdom and ways of the world, which is finite and which leads us down the wrong path in life, while the Wisdom of God and all that He has revealed and taught to us will lead us down the path of righteousness and grace, and through that path, we shall enter into a new life blessed and truly worthy of God, a path that he has exhorted, encouraged and reminded all the faithful people of God to follow.

It is in our Gospel passage today then that we heard parts of what each and every one of us as Christians are expected to follow and obey, in being good and dedicated followers and disciples of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. In that Gospel passage, we heard from the Lord Himself, speaking before all the people gathered to listen to Him, how He told them that He came into this world to fulfil the Law and the commandments of God, not to cancel or eradicate them. He came into this world to reveal the true meaning, purpose and intention of the Law, to purify the commandments and laws of the Lord from all the accumulated misinterpretations, misunderstandings and abuse from the people entrusted with their enforcement and preservation, those who had even appropriated the Law for their own selfish desires and benefits.

What the Lord presented before the people as we heard in our Gospel passage today, was the call to everyone to be truly faithful to God and to be devoted to Him out of genuine love and devotion, and not because one is just merely fulfilling the obligations or doing things out of fear or in desiring to maintain good and favourable appearances, or merely as a formality to be fulfilled and completed. In essence, the Lord told all of the people and hence all of us that being Christians means that we all have to be sincere in doing God’s will and in obeying His Law and commandments, and most importantly, we must always be centred and focused on God as the focus, emphasis and the main reason of our lives and existence in this world. Each and every one of us are called to be truly righteous, good and just in the manner that our Lord Himself is all good and righteous.

The Lord made His comments and spoke before the people with the context that the people had been making excuses and trying to find and exploit loopholes in the Law, and not truly believing in the Lord or not truly having faith in Him, and not loving Him as they should have. They were focused more on themselves and their selfish desires and wants, their ambitions, pride, ego and worldly achievements, and as such, while they may outwardly appear to be faithful, but inside, their faith are truly found wanting and lacking. Unless they are more faithful than just being superficial and outwardly faithful, and truly develop a strong and dynamic faith in God, then it may be hard for one to come closer to the Lord and to be worthy to receive His grace and salvation. This is why the Lord reminded all of us this Sunday through these readings, so that all of us may develop the right attitude in life, and nurture in our lives the love that we ought to have for the Lord, as well as for our fellow brothers and sisters, just as the Lord has taught us.

Essentially, as Christians we cannot be idle in our lives, and we must make good use of whatever we have been blessed and given, so that our lives may be fruitful and filled with love for both God and for our fellow men, and that we resist the temptations to sin and to disobey the Lord. When the Lord mentioned in our Gospel passage today, the rather intriguing advice to the people to cut off their hands and to pluck out their eyes if those things led them all to sin, what He actually meant was that, first of all, sin is harmful and dangerous, and if we are not careful and if we do not take the necessary steps to resist the temptations to sin, those sins may end up leading us down the path towards damnation, out of which there is no hope and escape for us, if we realise it too late that we have allowed sin to jeopardise and destroy us.

We should not be complacent and remain vigilant against the temptations all around us, and against the vile efforts and works of Satan and all of his wicked allies, the fallen angels, demons and evil spirits, all of whom are always hard and busy at work in trying to destroy us and to mislead us all down the path towards damnation and destruction. We must also remember again, just as I had mentioned in the beginning of this Sunday’s discourse, that God has given us the free will and the freedom to choose our path in life. At the same time, we have also been given the means and the opportunities to do either what is good and just in the sight of God and man alike, or instead to do what is wicked and evil. The choice is ours, and God has given us that choice to make. And now, can we discern well our path so that we will make the right choice?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence listen to the Lord calling on us to follow Him, and let us all commit ourselves to live our lives henceforth in a most Christian manner, doing wholeheartedly all that the Lord has shown and taught us to do, in loving Him and in loving our fellow brothers and sisters, generously offering ourselves and our love for the glory of God and for the wellbeing of our fellow brethren all around us. May God continue to guide us all in our every actions and efforts in life, and may He bless us all in out every endeavours and good works, now and always, evermore. Amen.

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Sunday, 5 February 2023 : Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday all of us are reminded of the responsibilities and the calling which all of us as Christians are called to do in our lives. Each and every one of us as the disciples and followers of the Lord are expected to be good, committed, faithful and active servants and followers of God, in that each one of us are always active in living our lives with faith, practicing whatever we believe in with sincerity and devotion at all times. We cannot be true Christians unless our actions and dealings, works and interactions, words and all that we do are in alignment with the path and the way that the Lord has shown us. Otherwise, if we do not do or say or act as how we profess to believe in God, we are no better than hypocrites, and we may even cause scandal for our faith and besmirch the Holy Name of God.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard of the Lord speaking to His people and calling upon them all through Isaiah to do what is right and just, as He has taught and shown them through His many messengers and prophets. The Lord wanted all of them to live worthily of Him, by showing love to one another and to show compassion on the poor and the weak, to be merciful and just in their way of life and actions, as examples to one another so that more and more hopefully may come to believe in the Lord as well, through our exemplary lives and role models. This can only be achieved if we learn to resist the temptations of our desires for selfish pleasures and wants in life, and if we can learn to put God at the forefront and centre of our whole lives and existence, and if we can truly dedicate ourselves to the service of God and to do what He has told us to do, then surely we will have lived our lives worthily of the Lord.

In our second reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful people of God in the city of Corinth, in which St. Paul told the people about his perseverance in proclaiming the message of God’s truth and Good News in their midst, resisting the temptations of worldly power and glory, and instead, proclaiming fearlessly about the Crucified Messiah, Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the Saviour of the world, to an audience that were sometimes lukewarm and at times even hostile against his efforts. Nonetheless, the Apostle continued to labour hard and spent a lot of effort and time to glorify God and to proclaim Him, which eventually bore much fruits as more and more people came to believe in the Lord through the efforts that St. Paul had put into place in proclaiming the Gospels of Christ.

He was doing what the Lord Jesus Himself had spoken about in our Gospel passage today, as we recall in that passage the words of the parable of the salt of the earth and the light of the world. The Lord Jesus spoke of this parable to His disciples comparing them all to the all-important salt and light, two commodities that are still important and crucial today, but which were even more indispensable and important back then. For without salt and light, the world at the time of the Lord Jesus cannot operate much, as salt and light both played very important roles in the communities of the people, in everyone’s homes and in many activities involving daily living and actions, in work and more things, more than what we may need of those two things today, that is salt and light in our lives.

First of all, salt is used as an important flavouring agent, which is necessary to impart taste and flavour to food which could usually be rather bland tasteless. Salt is also important for the body in order to replenish certain ions and substances that our bodies require in order to function properly. While salt may be easily available these days and many even have problems of excessive consumption of salt, back then, many people did not even have steady supply of salt, as salt production was rather difficult, labour intensive and tightly controlled by the state back then, and without modern technologies that allowed mass production of salt, salt became a rather expensive commodity that was widely sought and desired, and was truly a precious item back then. Salt was also used in the preservation of food, which was important in the era before the advent of effective refrigeration as is present in our world today.

Meanwhile, light was also something very important as although light is abundant from the Sun during the daytime, but at night time, light was often lacking, as even the full brightness of the Full Moon and the stars of the sky paled in comparison with the brightness of the Sun. Night time was therefore often dark, particularly during the time when the Moon was not visible. The roads and the areas outside towns and villages were often very dark and treacherous, filled with all sorts of wild animals and predators, and nobody dared to travel alone or in the dark without the guidance of any light, in the form of lanterns and torches, which could provide assurance and protection for anyone who wished to travel in the dark times. Otherwise, people would rather wait until the morning before they continued to travel. And this was the reality of a world before the advent of electricity and easily available lighting from electricity, a world that we may not be truly familiar with.

Hence, imagine just how useless it is for salt to lose its taste and flavour, its saltiness and hence the ability to give flavour and to prevent food from spoiling and becoming bad. How useless and pointless it is also therefore for light to be hidden without been used to dispel the darkness wherever they are needed, for this light to be hidden and not used as a source of inspiration, hope and assurance, in the times of darkness. What the Lord wanted to say to us in providing this parable to us all through His disciples is that, our lives have to be meaningful, virtuous, righteous, good and just, filled with the virtues and righteousness of God, with Christian values and goodness, with all the things that the Lord Himself has shown and taught us to do. However, many of us as Christians are still ignorant of this calling and this mission which each and every one of us have in this life.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday we are therefore called and reminded yet again by the Lord to be active in living our Christian lives, full of commitment and devotion to God, and full of the sincerity and the desire to serve the Lord, and to do what He Himself has taught us to do, and to make it such that our every words and actions in our respective lives truly become great sources of inspiration and good examples for others to follow, just like the salt of the earth and light of the world. God has provided each and every one of us with so many distinct and unique sets of gifts, talents, abilities, blessings and opportunities, giving us many chances to make good use of them for everyone’s benefits and for the greater glory of God. Now the question is, are we willing to embrace God’s call and are we willing to follow Him and walk in His path, faithfully and with conviction?

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all hence help one another to remain firm in faith and to be ever more active in reaching out to our fellow men and women, in our respective communities and in whatever areas that we are able to contribute in. Let us no longer be ignorant of the many opportunities and chances that God had provided us in being able to live up to our Christian mission and calling. Like the Apostles, St. Paul and many other holy men and women of God, let us all truly be the flavourful salt of the earth and the ever wonderful light of the world, proclaiming the love and truth of God, in our daily living, in our every words, actions and deeds, at all times. May God be with us all and may He bless us all in our every good works and endeavours, as salt of the earth and light of the world. Amen.

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Sunday, 29 January 2023 : Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday all of us as Christians we are all reminded to be ever more righteous and committed to the path which the Lord has shown and taught us all, and each one of us are called to embody what the Lord taught His disciples and hence all of us, as He laid out for us in the Eight Beatitudes that we heard in our Gospel passage today. Each one of us as Christians are expected to be exemplary in our lives and we are all reminded that our actions and way of life do affect others and can either be an inspiration to one another to follow or can instead be a source of scandal for the Lord and His Church.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Zephaniah, we heard of the about the words of the Lord speaking to His people through Zephaniah, a prophet who lived and ministered during the reign of King Josiah of Judah, one of the last kings of that kingdom and in the last decades of Judah as an independent entity. Zephaniah called on the people of the Lord to be meek, humble and just, as well as to seek refuge in the Lord so that on the Day of Judgment, they may truly find rest and consolation in God, their Hope and their Strength. Zephaniah spoke of these in the context of how the people of God in the past centuries before that time had often refused to obey the Lord and His words, and had acted proudly and with ambition, seeking worldly glory and satisfaction, all of which led them down the path of sin.

And due to their sins, they had been sundered from God’s grace and love, and suffered the consequences of their sins. They had been defeated, crushed and conquered by their enemies, their cities and towns destroyed and burnt, their houses and dwelling places turned upside down and occupied by the others brought in to dwell in their lands. Many of the people of God themselves were also brought into exile as what happened when the northern kingdom of Israel, consisting of ten of the twelve tribes of the people of God, were destroyed by the Assyrians, and many of its people were brought away to distant lands by the victorious Assyrians. This happened just a few decades before the time of the prophet Zephaniah and his ministry.

Hence, what Zephaniah delivered before the people is a reminder to the people that each one of them ought to return once again to the path that God has shown them, to be willing to listen to God and to allow Him to guide and lead them down the right path instead of insisting on walking down the path of rebelliousness, pride, greed and ambition that many of their ancestors had taken. Zephaniah assured them of the Lord’s guidance and that if they remained faithful in God, then the Lord would provide for them and that they would be preserved and protected. They would once again be God’s people and they would be restored once again to their honourable state and position. Unfortunately, the people of God lapsed again into sinful ways after King Josiah passed on, rebelling against God and hardening their hearts against Him, eventually leading to the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem by the Babylonians, much like how the Assyrians destroyed the kingdom of Israel earlier on.

In our second reading passage today, we heard of the words of St. Paul in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful people of God in Corinth, in which he told them how God chose the seemingly weak and unimportant people to receive His grace and salvation, and how God will strengthen and give His grace, wisdom and strength to the weak and the humble, all so that they can indeed gain glory through the Lord, and be saved, as opposed to the proud and the haughty, all those who trusted in their own power and greatness more than they trust in the Lord and His providence. The Apostle hence reminded the people of God not to follow the path of worldliness, greed, pride and ambition, which the world advocates, but to follow the Lord and the path He has shown us all and taught to us.

That brings us now to the Eight Beatitudes itself, which the Lord pointed out in His famous ‘Sermon on the Mount’ as detailed in our Gospel passage today. The Eight Beatitudes highlighted to us some of the great virtues that all of us as God’s faithful and righteous people ought to have in our lives. Unless we live our lives according to the Beatitudes, we cannot truly call ourselves as true and genuine Christians, as if we profess to have faith in God and yet, our actions are otherwise, and in opposition to what He has presented in the Beatitudes, then we are no better than hypocrites and unbelievers. Through His presentation of the Beatitudes, the Lord is exhorting and reminding us all to model our lives based on the Beatitudes, to be good and righteous just as He is good and righteous.

As we heard from the Beatitudes, the virtues of being a Christian is essentially to be able to put God as the focus and centre of our lives and existence, and removing from ourselves the taint of pride and ego, to put the need of others and our fellow brothers and sisters around us ahead of our own selfish desires, ambition and greed. A good Christian and a good follower of the Lord is someone who seeks the Lord with all of his or her heart and strength, who loves Him and who desires to obey Him and His will, and who wants to walk with Him in the path of righteousness, justice and peace. That is what is meant by being poor in spirit, as it refers to our internal desire to let God come into our lives and transform us to be His righteous and good servants, realising the limitations of our own human power and ability.

And allowing God to lead us, all of us ought then to seek for a good and holy life, one that is filled with the same love that God has for each one of us, in loving our fellow brothers and sisters, in seeking peace and harmony between all the peoples, and in doing what is right and just in every opportunities available to us, and in enduring the persecutions, challenges and trials that may come our way in the midst of our journey as Christians wandering through this world filled with sin, evil and darkness. We should be good examples and role models for one another, living our lives faithfully and commit ourselves each day with faith, so that all others who witness our actions and hear our words, see our way of life, may all come to believe in God and know Him as well through us.

The Lord Himself has said and reassured us that if we live in the way that He has taught and shown us, in the way of the Beatitudes, then we truly will be blessed and be filled with His grace, and on the Day of Judgment, mercy and love shall be shown us, as the gates of Heaven and eternal life will surely be opened to us. However, if we continue to persist in our state of sin, in our disobedience and rebellion against God, then we will end up falling deeper and deeper into the path towards damnation and destruction, as what had happened to many among our predecessors. And if we recall what we have just discussed earlier on, all these were caused by their failure to adhere to the values and virtues espoused in the Beatitudes. As good Christians, we truly need to live our lives according to the Beatitudes.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore do our best (if we have not done so yet) to live our lives according to the Beatitudes. Let us all be that examples of virtue and love, of righteousness and justice in our daily actions and living, so that by our faith and dedication to God, we may continue to inspire one another in living our Christian lives faithfully, and we may also remain humble and committed to the Lord, and not be easily swayed by the many worldly temptations all around us, which can indeed mislead us down the wrong path in life. Let us all resist those many temptations and attachments we may have to worldly vices and evils, and get rid from ourselves the excesses of worldly matters and desires, so that we may indeed grow ever closer to the Lord and be ever more worthy of Him and His grace and salvation.

May God be with us all and may He empower all of us with the strength and courage, the virtues and the goodness in us so that we may truly walk in the path of His Beatitudes, ever reminding ourselves to be good and righteous in all things and at all opportunities available to us. May He show us His love always and may all of us continue to live worthily in His Presence, loving Him and our fellow brothers and sisters, that we may all inspire one another to get ever closer to the Lord, our Saviour and loving Father. May God bless our every good efforts, works and endeavours, all of our actions and dealings, interactions and more. Amen.

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Sunday, 22 January 2023 : Third Sunday of Ordinary Time, Sunday of the Word of God, Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday, the Third Sunday of Ordinary Time we mark the occasion of the Sunday of the Word of God which was instituted a few years ago by Pope Francis, our Supreme Pontiff with the purpose of rediscovering our love and zeal for the Lord through the deepening of our knowledge and understanding of the Sacred Scriptures. It is important that we have to spend some time and effort to get to know more about the Word of God contained within the Scriptures and hence, that is why this Sunday in particular, let us all delve into what we have just heard from the Scripture passages and focus our attention on the truth that the Lord Himself has brought into our midst.

In our first reading today, all of us heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah of the prophecy speaking of the coming of the Messiah, of the coming of the Light of salvation that dispels the darkness surrounding the region of Naphtali and Zebulun, which by the time of the Lord Jesus was known as the region of Galilee. It was in Galilee that the Lord’s family originated from, as St. Joseph and Mary stayed in the small town of Nazareth in Galilee, although St. Joseph at least initially hailed from the tribe of Judah in Bethlehem. The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, the members of the Sanhedrin or the Jewish High Council later on said that no prophet were to be expected to come from the region and hence, Jesus must have been a false prophet and Messiah.

Yet, if only they had read the prophet Isaiah and his prophecies more carefully, just as we have heard ourselves in our first reading today, then they would have realised that the Saviour of the world would indeed come through the region of the north, the lands of Naphtali and Zebulun, the land of Galilee, where the Lord indeed stayed during the early years of His life, and also where He began His ministry after His Baptism at the Jordan. Contextually it is also significant to take note that back then, at the time of the prophet Isaiah, the land of Naphtali and Zebulun, as part of the northern kingdom of Israel, had become a foreign land, after the destruction of that kingdom by the Assyrians, as its people had been brought off into exile in far away lands, and foreigners were brought in to dwell in those lands.

By the time of the Lord Jesus, a few centuries after the time of the prophet Isaiah, the lands mentioned was known as Galilee, and that region was also still in the peripheries of the communities of the people of God, which was mainly centred in Jerusalem and Judea back then. That the Lord decided to come to those regions was also highly symbolic and meaningful, as it represents the Lord’s desire to gather back all of His scattered people, and to restore the honour of the people of God, and at the same time also calling upon the people from distant lands and from the pagan nations to embrace the truth and love of God. It means that God’s salvation was not only meant for the Jewish people only, but to all the children of mankind, to all the peoples of all races and origins, just as God has always intended.

And as we heard the Gospel passage today, again that same prophecy from the prophet Isaiah was repeated, proclaiming the coming of God’s salvation as made true and real by the actions that the Lord carried out in Galilee, as He called His first disciples and gathered them all, choosing the Twelve among them to be His Apostles, while also performing many miracles and wonders, healing many of the sick who came to Him and were brought to Him. He went from places to places, healing the sick, casting out demons, making those who were blind to be able to see again, and opening the ears and loosening the tongues of the mute, fulfilling the many other prophecies that Isaiah and the other prophets had been proclaiming about the Messiah.

And all of these had been proclaimed to us as well, the truth that God has shown us and delivered to us through His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour. Through His Church, the Lord has revealed and taught to us His ways, and showed us the proof of His salvation. Like the Apostles we have received the same truth and Good News, and it was through them and their successors that we have received this truth, passed down successively down the generations through the Church of God. Without the hard work and efforts of the Apostles, the other disciples and their successors throughout the history of the Church, there would have not been any of these things happening. We would have remained ignorant of the truth of God, and separated from His salvation and grace.

This reminds us today as we commemorate this Sunday of the Word of God that each and every one of us have been called by God to our various ministries and callings in life, depending on the various gifts, talents and abilities that He had given us. All of us have been called to embrace the Lord’s calling of not only just knowing and appreciating the Word of God more in our lives, but also in proclaiming the Word of God and the truth of God in the midst of our respective various communities, in our schools and workplaces, amidst our families, relatives and circles of friends and acquaintances, and even to strangers whom we encounter daily in our respective lives. And we cannot be effective and faithful servants of the Lord and His Word, unless we have good knowledge and understanding of the Scriptures.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, hence, it is important that we commit some time to spend each day and each and every available moments to us, to read the Sacred Scriptures and deepen our knowledge and understanding of it. However, it is important that we also have to deepen our knowledge and understanding of the teachings of the Church as well because if we read the Scriptures and interpret it based on our own understanding and comprehension, then as history had shown us, it can lead us into the path of error, as the many heresies and the false paths had done, and also those who believe that the Scriptures alone hold the sole authority of God’s truth, or ‘sola Scriptura’. Instead, the teachings of the Church, its Magisterium is important in ensuring that our understanding and appreciation of the Sacred Scriptures remain rooted in Christ and His truth.

That is why, first of all we need to spend more time in reading the Scriptures, as if we do not even know the words contained within it, how can we even begin to discern if something we heard from elsewhere or others are true or false? Especially during this time of rapid information exchange and greater availability of informations from all sources, it is very easy for us to be swayed into falsehoods, just as misinformations and fake news had been making rounds all around the world in the past few years and decade. That is why, after we have spent the time to read more of the Scriptures, we also have to deepen our understanding of the Scriptures through knowing more of the teachings of the Church as contained within the Catechism of the Catholic Church, as well as through careful listening and reflection of the words of the bishops and priests who are our teachers and guides, in guiding us together within the Church into the right path.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, that is why it is also important that we also help one another to stay in the path of truth, by sharing with one another whatever insight and understanding we have of the Scriptures, rooted in the traditions and teachings of the Church and the Apostles. Let us all be zealous and committed evangelisers and missionaries, in our daily living, in our every moments. Let us do our very best to be exemplary in faith and to be inspiration to each other in our faith and in our lives. May the Lord continue to guide us and strengthen us as well, so that hopefully we may lead more others to the path of God’s salvation and grace. May God bless us in our every good efforts, works and endeavours, all for His greater glory, now and always, forevermore. Amen.