Sunday Mass sermon

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Friday, 11 June 2021 : Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the great Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, celebrating the most wonderful love that God has shown to all of us, to each and every one of us from His Most Sacred Heart, the heart being the representative of one’s love and emotions, feelings and thoughts. Thus, we remember today the great love that God has for each and every one of us, the love that comes outpouring from His most loving heart.

In our first reading today, we heard of the passage from the Book of the prophet Hosea, in which we heard the Lord speaking to His people through Hosea, referring to Ephraim as the son whom God had brought up and led out of Egypt. This was a reference to the Israelites in the northern kingdom of Israel, which capital of Samaria is in the land of the tribe of Ephraim. The prophet Hosea has been sent to the people of the northern kingdom, to remind them of God and to repent from their wicked ways.

However, the people of the northern kingdom continued to sin against God as they had done multiple times previously, and this is what was referred by the prophet Hosea as ‘Ephraim’ having forgotten about God Who had done so much wonders for them and Who had cared for them all those while. And yet, God would not destroy them, as He truly loved them more than He despised their sins and wickedness. He still loved them, and the fact that He sent them the prophet Hosea, it was proof that He still wanted them to be saved.

God loves every single one of us, and He created us all because He loves us all and wants us to share in this love. Unfortunately, due to our disobedience we fell into sin, as we listened to the falsehood and lies of the devil rather than to trust in the Lord. The Lord could have annihilated us and crushed us there and then, willing us out of existence just as easily as He willed creation into being. Yet, He did not do that, and why? That is because He loves us, from His heart.

It is this same love that St. Paul referred to in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful in Ephesus, our second reading today, how God has revealed to all of us, His most generous and wonderful love. And He revealed this love in the person of Jesus Christ, His own Beloved Son, sent into this world to reveal before all of us the full extent of that love, and it was that same love which St. Paul and the other Apostles and disciples had preached about, and testified, for all the wonderful love He has shown to everyone.

They themselves had witnessed and seen the Lord’s ultimate expression of true love for each and every one of us, as He picked up His Cross and bore it upon His own shoulders, bearing upon them all of the punishments and the sufferings that are due for our sins and disobedience. He willingly laid down His own life, and was tortured and suffered for us that all of us may live. This action of Our Lord’s Most Holy Passion reminds us all that His love for us is truly vast and boundless, and enduring even despite our constant disobedience and refusal to believe in Him.

God’s most loving Heart continue to ache because of all of us being distanced from Him, separated by the chasm of sin. He wants to reach out to us and to embrace us with His mercy and compassion. However, unless we embrace that same mercy and compassion, by turning wholeheartedly towards Him, then we will still remain sundered from Him. That is why, He has always sent us reminders and His servants to call us to embrace Him and His loving Heart, to repent from our faults and sins, and to be forgiven from those sins.

As He lay dying on the Cross, He showed us all the most compassionate and loving face of God, a reminder of just how blessed and fortunate each and every one of us are. Through Him, we have received the assurance of eternal life and true joy, and we are all called to devote ourselves to this most loving aspect of Our Lord, His love being outpoured from His wounded and bleeding Heart, a vision seen by one of the most famous visionaries of the Church, St. Margaret Mary Alacoque.

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque saw a vision of the Lord and His Most Sacred Heart, calling on all mankind to turn towards Him and to seek Him, to be forgiven their sins and to find refuge in Him. Through this, the Lord wants us all to know just how wonderful His love for us is, and how blessed we are to be so beloved in such a manner by the Lord, Who generously showered us with His love and kindness despite us having betrayed Him, abandoned Him and refused to listen to Him and obey Him all these while.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, are we still going to be stubborn and refuse to believe in Him, although He has shown us all of His love? Do not forget that He has died for all of us, the testimony of which has been made by the pouring of blood and water from His pierced heart at the moment of His death, as mentioned in our Gospel passage today. Scientifically and medically, that is the sign that someone has truly died, and hence, the soldier who pierced the side of the Lord showed that the Lord died, on the Cross, all for our sake.

And through His Precious Blood, we have been washed clean from the taints of our sins and evils. We have been cleansed and purified from those wickedness and impurities that tainted our hearts, the taints of our sins. Yet, many of us remain in the stranglehold of sin, because we still allow sin reign over us, and we allow ourselves to be swayed by its many temptations. This is why we are all called to put our trust in the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, to come to Him and to open our own hearts, and to find Him that we may enjoy the fullness of His love and mercy.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today we also celebrate the World Day of Prayer for the Sanctification of Priests. As all of our priests have been called to be in the person of Christ ‘Alter Christus – in persona Christi’ in the celebration of the Eucharist and the Sacraments, they have been called to model themselves after the one Eternal High Priest, Christ Himself. We therefore pray that just as we all trust in the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, they too shall always trust in the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and model themselves and their hearts after Him.

We pray for holy and dedicated priests, who is as enthusiastic and passionate in reaching out to the people of God as the Lord has tirelessly sought each and every one of us for such a very long time. We pray that they will all be as patient and loving as the Lord has been patient and loving towards us. And last of all, we pray that we ourselves may be ever more faithful to the Lord and that we may be ever closer to His Most Holy and Sacred Heart, to be forgiven by Him and to be filled with His love and grace.

May God be with us all, and may He strengthen each and every one of us to live faithfully in love, and may He empower all of us to remain faithful despite the challenges and trials we may encounter in life. May God bless us all in each and every one of our good endeavours, in our every good works and efforts, for the love of His Most Sacred Heart. Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us! Amen.

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Sunday, 6 June 2021 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord, Corpus Christi (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the great Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord, also known as the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, celebrating this very important aspect of our faith that is central to our Christian beliefs. What is this central tenet and teaching, brothers and sisters? It is the belief that in the celebration of the Holy Mass, the Lord has appeared to us in the flesh and blood, in the Most Holy Eucharist at the Holy Sacrifice on the Altar. The bread and wine offered by the presider of the Mass has been turned into the Most Holy and Precious Body and Blood of the Lord.

This is the same belief that many of our separated brethren holding faithfully the Apostolic Tradition such as those in the Eastern Orthodox and the Oriental Orthodox churches also hold, as they all just like us, believe that the Lord is truly present in the Eucharist, in His complete presence, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, all entirely present in the bread and wine transformed in reality and matter into the matter and the nature of the Body and Blood of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. There are of course those who still deny this truth, claiming that the bread and wine are just merely symbolic or that they did not really turn into the Body and Blood of the Lord.

Some may come to think of that because although the bread in the Eucharistic host and the wine in the chalice remains in appearance, taste and our human recognition as bread and wine, but what is indiscernible by our human senses is the truth that by the same power and authority that the Lord has given to His Apostles, our bishops and priests who offered the bread and wine, had turned the bread and wine, by the Holy Spirit descending onto the gifts and offerings, they had been turned completely into the matter of the Body and Blood of Christ, Our Lord and Saviour.

All the early Church fathers and the Ecumenical Councils, the Apostolic traditions and others concurred that the Eucharist is none other and nothing less than the Lord Himself truly present in all completeness and perfection, not just merely symbolic or spiritually present as argued by those who reject this truth. We believe in the Doctrine of the Transubstantiation, which means exactly what I had just elaborated slightly earlier on, that the bread and wine has been completely transformed in matter and reality, fully and perfectly into the Body and Blood of the Lord, although in the appearance it is to us still that of bread and wine.

In fact there is an important parallel here to Our Lord’s own Incarnation in the Flesh, as He assumed the form and existence of Man. In what is another very important tenet of our faith, we believe that Jesus Christ, is both Man and Divine, having two natures that are distinct and different from each other, and yet are perfectly and completely united in His one Person, inseparable and indivisible. The world may perceive Him as a Man, and He did indeed appear as a Man, but in truth, He is fully Divine as well, as He showed His disciples at the Transfiguration and after He has risen from the dead.

Therefore, in a similar manner, the bread and wine although they have the appearance of bread and wine, and yet unmistakably they are fully by nature and reality, the very essence, matter and Body and Blood of Our Lord. However, it goes further that the bread and wine has also been completely transformed and are no longer just mere bread or mere wine. This is what we have seen, known, understood and acknowledged with the eyes of faith. We have received the truth from God, and we believed in it, and we put our faith in Him, because we believe in His Real Presence in the Eucharist.

And this is where then we have to appreciate that the Lord has given us all an immeasurably great gift as He gave to us nothing less than His own Precious Body and Blood, to be shared amongst us and to be partaken as we become members of His Body, the Church of God. All of us who share in this Holy Communion are therefore said to be in Communion with one another, united as the visible Body of Christ, the Church, and those who have not partaken in this same Eucharist, are separated and sundered away from this Body of Christ, our separated brothers and sisters, some of whom did not acknowledge the truth of the Real Presence in the Eucharist.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, yet, that is exactly what the Lord has told all of us, His people, plainly and clearly. In our Gospel passage today, as He gathered His disciples for His Last Supper with them, He told all of them as He broke the bread and offered it and the wine to the Lord, that the bread, is His Body, and the wine, is His Blood, plain and clear, concise and precise, never mentioning once that what He had done was just something symbolic or something that is not real. The same bread and wine transformed into the Body and Blood of the Lord at the Last Supper, which was not yet complete that night, is the same bread and wine at the Holy Mass transformed into our Lord’s Real Presence.

When He spoke of Himself as the Bread of Life before the assembled people, in one of His teaching sessions, He also referred to Himself as the Bread of Life, and explicitly and clearly mentioned that His Body is real Food, and His Blood is real Drink, and these things He spoke clearly and precisely too, without being ambiguous or figurative, and He clearly referred to all those who share in His Body and Blood that they will enjoy eternal life and will not perish, but live wonderfully with God forevermore. That moment is a foreshadowing of what would happen at the Last Supper and the Passion of the Lord.

The Lord completed His offering, of His own Body and Blood, as the High Priest representing all of us mankind, and at the same time as the Lamb of Sacrifice Himself, the Paschal Lamb, brought to the Altar on Calvary on Good Friday, the Altar of the Cross. And those who thought mistakenly that the Holy Mass is a repeat or reenactment of the Sacrifice of the Lord on the Cross failed to understand that at every single celebration of the Holy Mass, by all priests, bishops, and even the Pope, all of these are the very same Sacrifice that Christ has performed at Calvary, on the Cross that He had died on.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, the Altar on which the priests celebrate the Eucharist is the same Altar of the Cross on Calvary, and the same Body and Blood shed and given to us is the same sacrifice made two millennia ago, for all time and all occasions, the same offering and Sacrifice of the Lord, the Eternal High Priest, Who through His representatives, the ordained ministers, in persona Christi, or in the person of Christ, performed the very same sacrifice of Calvary at every single celebration of the Holy Mass, without exception.

When the Lord told His disciples ‘to do this in memory of Me’ it was not merely a memorial as how some misunderstood it. Instead, through that act, the Lord had authorised and empowered His disciples and their successors to be the priests ordained in His ministry, to be His priests representing Him in offering the most worthy sacrifice, the sacrifice of Our Lord Himself on the Cross. They are to perform the same offering and sacrifice of Our Lord that every Mass we are in fact celebrating and commemorating Our Lord’s Passion, His suffering and death for our salvation.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us ask ourselves, whether we have truly believed in the Lord’s Real Presence in the Eucharist, in His Most Precious and Holy Body and Blood that we celebrate every Mass, and which we share together as one Church, the one Body of Christ. Do we really appreciate God’s love given to us by the shedding of His Body and by the outpouring of His Blood? Remember that by His sacrifice, Our Lord has purchased us from our sins, and freed us from the certain destruction due to those sins.

If we truly believe in the Lord’s Real Presence in the Eucharist, then why we have not given Him the respect and worship that He truly deserves from us? Why have we instead acted as if the celebration of the Holy Mass is just like a mere ordinary gathering, and worse still, with inappropriate and profane music and attitudes unworthy of God? And how many of us also turned up at the Holy Mass unprepared both in body and soul, being dressed inappropriately and unrepentant from our sins?

There had been comments by those who had not believed in the Lord’s Real Presence, His Holy Body and Blood in the Eucharist precisely because as Catholics, we ourselves have not acted in the manner fitting the Real Presence of the Lord in the Eucharist. If only that we ourselves have behaved ourselves and acted appropriately, there can be so many more people who will be convinced of the truth and come to believe in the Lord and in His Real Presence as well. That is why, as Christians, we have to understand our faith well and we have to live up an upright and good life in accordance to our faith.

We have to remember the love that God has shown all of us by His coming into the world in order to save all of us and seal with us a New and Everlasting Covenant, one that will last forever, undoing the effects of our sins. The Covenant of God was sealed by none other than the outpouring of the Blood of the Lamb of God, Christ Himself, Who surrendered Himself in perfect obedience and suffering, so that through Him, and by His suffering and death we may experience and receive the sure promise and guarantee of eternal life in glory and true happiness with God.

Today therefore, on this Solemnity of Corpus Christi, of Our Lord’s Most Holy and Precious Body and Blood, broken and shared with us, let us all reflect on Our Lord’s most generous and enduring love for us, and we should also reflect on our attitudes towards the Lord, truly present in His full Divinity, His presence in the Flesh in the bread and wine transformed into the essence and reality of His Being. Let us all truly profess faith in the belief of the Real Presence of Our Lord from now on, striving to do our best to glorify the Lord especially at every celebrations of the Holy Mass, where He is truly present before all of us.

And let us all also strive to make our lives holy and worthy, to be exemplary in our way of living, in the most Christian manner possible, that as we share in the Lord and receive Him in the Eucharist, we may truly be worthy to be the dwelling place of Our Lord, the Temples of the Holy Spirit, of His Real Presence entering into us and uniting with us, body and soul. May the Lord be with us always, through His Most Precious and Holy Body and Blood, that through Him we may be sanctified and made worthy, and in all things, we may become great role models and inspiration for one another. Amen.

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Sunday, 6 June 2021 : Tenth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday we listened to the words of the Scripture in which we are called to remember the need for us to seek the Lord for His mercy and forgiveness, and not to remain in sin any longer, but allow the Lord to enter into our lives, into our hearts and deep into the very core of our beings, that we may be healed and purified from our sins. God alone can heal us from our sins, and from all those wickedness and sins, we have to be rescued and saved.

In our first reading today, we heard an account of the moment when mankind fell into sin, as our first ancestors, Adam and Eve disobeyed the Lord and chose to listen to the words and lies of Satan, succumbing to the temptations of the evil one and to the temptations of their own selfish desires and pride. They chose to eat of the fruit of the forbidden tree of knowledge of good and evil, and as such, sin entered into mankind for the very first time.

And because of that sin, mankind were cast out of the Gardens of Eden, and that was due to our own conscious choice in rejecting God and embracing the falsehoods of the devil instead. Yet, God did not just destroy or annihilate us, although He could have easily done so, or condemn us into hell for our sins, although He rightfully and justly could have done so, given that the punishment for sin is death, and death should have lead us into an eternity in hell.

But this did not happen because God still truly loved us despite all that we had done to spite Him, in rejecting, abandoning and betraying Him. God still loves us so much that He gives us chances and opportunities, again and again, reaching out to us, sending us reminders and help to allow us to find our way back to Him and to be reconciled to Him. This is what the Lord wants to do with us, because each and every one of us are precious in His sight. All of us have been created by God with love, and it is with this same love that the Lord continues to care for us.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard of the account of the confrontation between the Lord Jesus and the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law who disagreed with Him and opposed His works, simply because He did not do things according to their preferences and path. They refused to believe in Him and even accused Him of colluding with Beelzebul, one of the princes and leaders of the demons. This was indeed a really grave accusation, one that is baseless and unbecoming of those who were supposed to know the Law and the Prophets better than others.

The Lord then told those who opposed Him that whatever He had done, all had come from the Lord and it was folly to suggest that the devil or his fellow demons could have any part of it. The irony is that, the devil and all of his allies were, although divided at times, no more united than at the moment that they are going against all of us, God’s faithful people. Although they might not be fully united in all things, but they all shared the desire to see the downfall of mankind, to drag us deep down with them into eternal damnation and suffering.

The Lord proved that it was folly and indeed malicious to accuse Him of colluding with the forces of evil in order to perform His miracles and healing, for after all, everything that He had done, were all done in accordance with the words of the Scriptures, with the words and teachings of the prophets, their predictions and prophecies, all of which spoke about Christ, His entry into this world and all that He would do for the salvation of all the whole world. But those who refused to believe in Him were blinded by their jealousy, pride and worldly desires, by the temptations of the flesh, that they fell, just as their ancestors had once fallen.

Those teachers of the Law and the Pharisees were also stubborn in their opposition against the Lord because they were angry at the Lord Jesus for claiming to be able to forgive sins when God alone is able to forgive sin. This again showed them succumbing to the temptations of their pride, their desire for power and influence within the community, that they refused to accept the truth that their way of observing the Law was incorrect, and that their teaching authority and leadership could be challenged by someone else far greater than they were.

St. Paul in his Epistle to the Church and the faithful in the city of Corinth reminded them and all of us to reject this path of sin, and to return to the Lord, seeking beyond the temptations of worldly pleasures and desires, and to wish for the true happiness that can be found in God alone. He reminded all the faithful that while things of this world will fade away and disappear, all sorts of earthly glory will eventually fail, the Lord alone is a source of certainty and assurance amidst all the uncertainties of this world. The Light of God is the light that leads us down the right path, and which we should follow instead of the path of sin.

Yet, many among us still chose to walk down that path of sin, following so many others who had fallen into the same temptations, and many still refused to follow the Lord, despite the fact that following the devil and his false path obviously and certainly will lead to our own destruction. That is because many of us are unable to resist the temptations present all around us, and our faith and trust in the Lord is weak. That is why we need to strengthen our faith in God by building up our relationship and connection with Him.

Many of us are still Christians in name and formality only, not living our faith in the genuine manner required of all of us. If this is how we are going to continue living our lives, then more likely than not we will end up falling further and deeper into the path of damnation through sin. We have to be careful because the allure of sin is truly powerful, and unless we take due precaution and care, we will be easily tempted by it. This is why, today, all of us are reminded of this fact, of the need for us to renew our relationship with God, and to be reconciled with Him through the Church.

The Lord has given us plenty of opportunities to be reconciled with Him, and most importantly, He wants to be reconciled with us. Are we still going to be stubborn and are we still going to refuse His love, mercy and compassion? Remember, brothers and sisters in Christ, all that He has done for our sake, in His selfless giving of Himself on the Cross, that by His suffering and death we are freed from the tyranny of sin and shown the way to everlasting joy and true happiness, free from the bondage and power of sin that had us kept in chains for way too long.

All of us are called to return to God and to seek His ever generous and ever available mercy and compassion. Let us all be reconciled to Him and ask Him for His forgiveness, that by His grace and love, we may be made whole again, and be worthy to receive the fullness of His wonderful love as well as all the inheritance and things that have been intended for us as the most beloved and precious ones among all that He had created from the very beginning.

May the Lord be with us all, and may He strengthen each and every one of us with the resolve to remain faithful to Him, and to resist the temptations of our flesh, and the many allures of this world that we may walk in the right path, and staying true to the calling that the Lord has given us. May God bless us all in our every good works and endeavours, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 3 June 2021 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord, Corpus Christi (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the great Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord, also known as the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, celebrating this very important aspect of our faith that is central to our Christian beliefs. What is this central tenet and teaching, brothers and sisters? It is the belief that in the celebration of the Holy Mass, the Lord has appeared to us in the flesh and blood, in the Most Holy Eucharist at the Holy Sacrifice on the Altar. The bread and wine offered by the presider of the Mass has been turned into the Most Holy and Precious Body and Blood of the Lord.

This is the same belief that many of our separated brethren holding faithfully the Apostolic Tradition such as those in the Eastern Orthodox and the Oriental Orthodox churches also hold, as they all just like us, believe that the Lord is truly present in the Eucharist, in His complete presence, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, all entirely present in the bread and wine transformed in reality and matter into the matter and the nature of the Body and Blood of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. There are of course those who still deny this truth, claiming that the bread and wine are just merely symbolic or that they did not really turn into the Body and Blood of the Lord.

Some may come to think of that because although the bread in the Eucharistic host and the wine in the chalice remains in appearance, taste and our human recognition as bread and wine, but what is indiscernible by our human senses is the truth that by the same power and authority that the Lord has given to His Apostles, our bishops and priests who offered the bread and wine, had turned the bread and wine, by the Holy Spirit descending onto the gifts and offerings, they had been turned completely into the matter of the Body and Blood of Christ, Our Lord and Saviour.

All the early Church fathers and the Ecumenical Councils, the Apostolic traditions and others concurred that the Eucharist is none other and nothing less than the Lord Himself truly present in all completeness and perfection, not just merely symbolic or spiritually present as argued by those who reject this truth. We believe in the Doctrine of the Transubstantiation, which means exactly what I had just elaborated slightly earlier on, that the bread and wine has been completely transformed in matter and reality, fully and perfectly into the Body and Blood of the Lord, although in the appearance it is to us still that of bread and wine.

In fact there is an important parallel here to Our Lord’s own Incarnation in the Flesh, as He assumed the form and existence of Man. In what is another very important tenet of our faith, we believe that Jesus Christ, is both Man and Divine, having two natures that are distinct and different from each other, and yet are perfectly and completely united in His one Person, inseparable and indivisible. The world may perceive Him as a Man, and He did indeed appear as a Man, but in truth, He is fully Divine as well, as He showed His disciples at the Transfiguration and after He has risen from the dead.

Therefore, in a similar manner, the bread and wine although they have the appearance of bread and wine, and yet unmistakably they are fully by nature and reality, the very essence, matter and Body and Blood of Our Lord. However, it goes further that the bread and wine has also been completely transformed and are no longer just mere bread or mere wine. This is what we have seen, known, understood and acknowledged with the eyes of faith. We have received the truth from God, and we believed in it, and we put our faith in Him, because we believe in His Real Presence in the Eucharist.

And this is where then we have to appreciate that the Lord has given us all an immeasurably great gift as He gave to us nothing less than His own Precious Body and Blood, to be shared amongst us and to be partaken as we become members of His Body, the Church of God. All of us who share in this Holy Communion are therefore said to be in Communion with one another, united as the visible Body of Christ, the Church, and those who have not partaken in this same Eucharist, are separated and sundered away from this Body of Christ, our separated brothers and sisters, some of whom did not acknowledge the truth of the Real Presence in the Eucharist.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, yet, that is exactly what the Lord has told all of us, His people, plainly and clearly. In our Gospel passage today, as He gathered His disciples for His Last Supper with them, He told all of them as He broke the bread and offered it and the wine to the Lord, that the bread, is His Body, and the wine, is His Blood, plain and clear, concise and precise, never mentioning once that what He had done was just something symbolic or something that is not real. The same bread and wine transformed into the Body and Blood of the Lord at the Last Supper, which was not yet complete that night, is the same bread and wine at the Holy Mass transformed into our Lord’s Real Presence.

When He spoke of Himself as the Bread of Life before the assembled people, in one of His teaching sessions, He also referred to Himself as the Bread of Life, and explicitly and clearly mentioned that His Body is real Food, and His Blood is real Drink, and these things He spoke clearly and precisely too, without being ambiguous or figurative, and He clearly referred to all those who share in His Body and Blood that they will enjoy eternal life and will not perish, but live wonderfully with God forevermore. That moment is a foreshadowing of what would happen at the Last Supper and the Passion of the Lord.

The Lord completed His offering, of His own Body and Blood, as the High Priest representing all of us mankind, and at the same time as the Lamb of Sacrifice Himself, the Paschal Lamb, brought to the Altar on Calvary on Good Friday, the Altar of the Cross. And those who thought mistakenly that the Holy Mass is a repeat or reenactment of the Sacrifice of the Lord on the Cross failed to understand that at every single celebration of the Holy Mass, by all priests, bishops, and even the Pope, all of these are the very same Sacrifice that Christ has performed at Calvary, on the Cross that He had died on.

Yes, brothers and sisters in Christ, the Altar on which the priests celebrate the Eucharist is the same Altar of the Cross on Calvary, and the same Body and Blood shed and given to us is the same sacrifice made two millennia ago, for all time and all occasions, the same offering and Sacrifice of the Lord, the Eternal High Priest, Who through His representatives, the ordained ministers, in persona Christi, or in the person of Christ, performed the very same sacrifice of Calvary at every single celebration of the Holy Mass, without exception.

When the Lord told His disciples ‘to do this in memory of Me’ it was not merely a memorial as how some misunderstood it. Instead, through that act, the Lord had authorised and empowered His disciples and their successors to be the priests ordained in His ministry, to be His priests representing Him in offering the most worthy sacrifice, the sacrifice of Our Lord Himself on the Cross. They are to perform the same offering and sacrifice of Our Lord that every Mass we are in fact celebrating and commemorating Our Lord’s Passion, His suffering and death for our salvation.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us ask ourselves, whether we have truly believed in the Lord’s Real Presence in the Eucharist, in His Most Precious and Holy Body and Blood that we celebrate every Mass, and which we share together as one Church, the one Body of Christ. Do we really appreciate God’s love given to us by the shedding of His Body and by the outpouring of His Blood? Remember that by His sacrifice, Our Lord has purchased us from our sins, and freed us from the certain destruction due to those sins.

If we truly believe in the Lord’s Real Presence in the Eucharist, then why we have not given Him the respect and worship that He truly deserves from us? Why have we instead acted as if the celebration of the Holy Mass is just like a mere ordinary gathering, and worse still, with inappropriate and profane music and attitudes unworthy of God? And how many of us also turned up at the Holy Mass unprepared both in body and soul, being dressed inappropriately and unrepentant from our sins?

There had been comments by those who had not believed in the Lord’s Real Presence, His Holy Body and Blood in the Eucharist precisely because as Catholics, we ourselves have not acted in the manner fitting the Real Presence of the Lord in the Eucharist. If only that we ourselves have behaved ourselves and acted appropriately, there can be so many more people who will be convinced of the truth and come to believe in the Lord and in His Real Presence as well. That is why, as Christians, we have to understand our faith well and we have to live up an upright and good life in accordance to our faith.

We have to remember the love that God has shown all of us by His coming into the world in order to save all of us and seal with us a New and Everlasting Covenant, one that will last forever, undoing the effects of our sins. The Covenant of God was sealed by none other than the outpouring of the Blood of the Lamb of God, Christ Himself, Who surrendered Himself in perfect obedience and suffering, so that through Him, and by His suffering and death we may experience and receive the sure promise and guarantee of eternal life in glory and true happiness with God.

Today therefore, on this Solemnity of Corpus Christi, of Our Lord’s Most Holy and Precious Body and Blood, broken and shared with us, let us all reflect on Our Lord’s most generous and enduring love for us, and we should also reflect on our attitudes towards the Lord, truly present in His full Divinity, His presence in the Flesh in the bread and wine transformed into the essence and reality of His Being. Let us all truly profess faith in the belief of the Real Presence of Our Lord from now on, striving to do our best to glorify the Lord especially at every celebrations of the Holy Mass, where He is truly present before all of us.

And let us all also strive to make our lives holy and worthy, to be exemplary in our way of living, in the most Christian manner possible, that as we share in the Lord and receive Him in the Eucharist, we may truly be worthy to be the dwelling place of Our Lord, the Temples of the Holy Spirit, of His Real Presence entering into us and uniting with us, body and soul. May the Lord be with us always, through His Most Precious and Holy Body and Blood, that through Him we may be sanctified and made worthy, and in all things, we may become great role models and inspiration for one another. Amen.

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Sunday, 30 May 2021 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Trinity Sunday (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday, on the Sunday after the Pentecost we celebrate the occasion of Trinity Sunday, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, of God the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, celebrating one of the greatest mysteries of our Christian faith and one of its key and core tenets, that is our belief in the one and only True God, that is One and only One, and existing in a Godhood of Three distinct yet united Divine Persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. This is what makes us distinct from other monotheistic Abrahamic beliefs, that we believe that the true nature of God is indeed, as revealed fully by the Lord Himself, is that of the Holy Trinity.

Many of us may not even know fully what the Holy Trinity is all about, and we do not appreciate this unique relationship between the Three Divine Persons of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. It is truly something that the members of the Early Church took decades and even centuries to understand better, which historically brought about many heresies and divisions just because some among the faithful and the leaders of the Church believed in a different nature of God, either in denying the divinity of the Son or the Holy Spirit, or in denying the distinct identity of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, or in denying the existence of the Holy Trinity altogether.

Through the earliest Ecumenical Councils of the Church, those heresies had been addressed and outlawed, and the authentic teachings of the Lord and His truth were preserved as it was from the days of the Apostles. Thus, defeated were the heresy of Arianism that denied the equality of the Father and the Son, that upheld the view of the Son being merely the firstborn of Creation and as a created Being rather than Co-Eternal and Co-Equal with the Father and the Holy Spirit from the beginning of time, as the Church has preserved in truth.

Then, through the faith and perseverance of the saints and the faithful Church fathers, were defeated the heresies of Nestorianism with their belief that the Lord has two distinct and separate natures in the Son, that the Divinity and the Humanity of the Son were separate and distinct, or the other extreme of Monophysitism believing that the Son has only one nature, rather than the truth which is that in the person of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the two distinct natures of Divine and Man were united perfectly and inseparably through the bond of love.

All these showed us just how many among the faithful did not fully understand the tenets and the teachings of the Christian faith, particularly that regarding the nature of God and the Holy Trinity. That is why those divisions happened and threatened to destroy the Church and the faithful had it not been for the great efforts and perseverance from all those who had remained faithful and true to the teachings of the Lord and His Apostles, and defending the belief and truth of the Most Holy Trinity of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Triune God.

How do we then understand the Holy Trinity better, brothers and sisters in Christ? There are in fact many ways that we can use to appreciate better the nature of the Most Holy Trinity, in a more understandable and appreciable way. For example, St. Patrick, the famous missionary and Patron Saint of Ireland was remembered for his symbol of the shamrock, or a three-leaf clover that he used in order to explain the nature of God in the Holy Trinity to the pagans throughout Ireland, that they might come to understand Him better.

The symbolism of the shamrock is one of the ways that we can understand the nature of the Holy Trinity. For if one of the three leaves of the shamrock is taken away, then it is no longer the shamrocks as it is, incomplete and no longer can be properly called a shamrock. Each of the three leaves of the shamrock are also connected to each other and not distinct from each other while at the same time, each of the three leaves can be distinguished clearly from each other. They are therefore representative of the Holy Trinity, Three Divine Persons, but one Godhead, and one God in perfect unity, all Three distinct yet inseparable.

We can also use the example of the burning flame as a way to represent the Holy Trinity in a more understandable way. The burning flame produces heat, which many people for a long time had been using as a way to fend off cold and keep themselves warm. They also provide light to the place and dispel the darkness, so that we can see even in the darkest of nights and in places without any illumination. This light is produced as a result of the reaction between the particles involved in the burning, and lastly, the flame itself, which has a discernible shape, because it is in fact heated air and matter, that when heated produce that hue and shape of the flame.

If any of these properties and parts of the burning flame are missing or are taken out, then it will no longer be a burning flame. For example, if a burning flame were to lose its heat then we can definitely say that it is not a flame, no? For which flame that can be seen and yet does not give any heat, or burn us when we get too close? And if there is no light in the flame that will also be impossible, as any reactions that produce heat in the burning process will also generate light. And if we feel the heat and can see the light but cannot see the shape of the flame, it is also not a flame right?

Therefore, using these analogies and metaphors, comparisons and otherwise we can see that there are actually quite a few ways and observations we see on things around us that can show us briefly a glimpse of what the Holy Trinity is all about. The Holy Trinity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit shows us that while we can see the distinctive Three Divine Persons, manifesting Themselves in different ways, but They are all together, constituting the same, inseparable unity of the One and only God, the Creator of all.

At the moment of Creation, we can see all the Three Divine Persons at work, as God the Father willed Creation and the entire Universe into being, while God the Son, the Divine Word of God, is the Word by which Creation came to be, through words like ‘Let there be light’ and others. And lastly, God the Holy Spirit existed since before Creation and time, as represented in the accounts of the Book of Genesis as floating above the nothingness before Creation, present everywhere and in all things.

And when God created man, He said that, ‘Let Us create man in Our image’, in a clear and obvious representation that while God is One, but He also exists in a Trinity, inseparable unity between the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, when this ‘Us’ and ‘Our’ pronouns were used to describe God in this occasion. Then, when the Lord was baptised by St. John the Baptist at the Jordan, again we see the Holy Trinity in action, in Their three distinct Persons, the Father’s Voice speaking from Heaven, the Son, Jesus Christ, in the water being baptised, while the Holy Spirit, descending down to the world from the Father and to the Son, in the form of a Dove.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have listened and discussed today regarding the Holy Trinity of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, all of us are now then called to remember our mission and calling as Christians to be the bearers of the truth of God, including the mystery of His Holy Trinity to all the peoples of all the nations, revealing this truth we ourselves have received from the Lord and passing the truth to more and more people that they too may come to believe in God.

The Lord has commanded all of us to go forth and baptise all the peoples of all the nations, in the Name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit, sealing them in the Name of the Most Holy Trinity, believing in the same one God Who exists in the Triune unity of Three Divine Persons, the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. This is our faith and this is what we believe in, and brothers and sisters, we have to stand fast by what our faith is about. We must deepen our understanding of the Christian faith, the nature of the Holy Trinity and other truth we have received through the Church.

Now, let us all therefore dedicate ourselves to the Lord anew this Sunday as we celebrate this great Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. Through our common baptism, let us all proclaim our Lord, the One and only True God of all, as the One God, with Three Divine Persons, the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit, that all may come to know Him, through His love and through our knowledge of the truth, which we bear in our own lives from now on, if we have not done so yet.

Let us all be faithful and committed Christians through our lives, in our every actions and deeds, so that in everything that we say and do, we will show our Christian faith and truth to all, and everyone who sees us, hears us, and witnesses our actions and deeds, interacting and working with us, all may come to know that we belong to the Lord, and that hopefully they may also be touched by the Lord’s presence through us, and come to believe in Him as well.

May the Lord be with us all, and may He strengthen each and every one of us that we may always be firm in our faith and be genuine in living our lives daily with faith, from now on. May God, the Holy Trinity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit bless us all in our every efforts, good works and endeavours, and be our Guide at all times. Amen.

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Sunday, 23 May 2021 : Solemnity of Pentecost Sunday (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday we celebrate the great Solemnity of Pentecost Sunday marking the moment when the Holy Spirit came down upon the disciples of the Lord, descending from the Heavens like great tongues of fire that rested on each of them. The Holy Spirit gave the disciples great strength and courage, and they went forth out of their hiding place in Jerusalem, and openly preached the truth about the salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ to all the people assembled in Jerusalem at that time.

The people assembled there coming from very diverse places as far as Ethiopia, Parthia and even Rome and the distant provinces came from many different backgrounds, both those from the Jewish diaspora and Gentiles alike. They all spoke various different and intelligible languages. Yet, the moment the disciples spoke to them and give testimony of truth about Christ, they all could understand what these disciples were speaking about, and they seemed to hear them speaking in their own diverse languages.

The Holy Spirit gave the disciples the gift of speaking in tongues, and to some they have also been given the gift of miracles and power over evil spirits, allowing them to heal the sick and perform various other miracles. And through their testimony, sincerity and faith, it was told that the very day of the Pentecost itself, three thousand people gave themselves to be baptised by the Lord, and from then on, the Church began to grow and flourish. This is also why the celebration of the Pentecost marked the beginning of the Church, and we mark and celebrate it as the Anniversary of this Church that we all belong to.

From that day onwards, the disciples were no longer afraid and in hiding, and they finally went forth to fulfil the commandments and the mission that the Lord had entrusted to them. The Church was no longer something hidden but went forth into the world actively proclaiming the Lord and His Good News that still remain true even to this very day. The Holy Spirit has guided the path of the Church and its leaders from then on, leading the Apostles and their successors, the Popes, bishops and priests throughout the many centuries and ages past to the present day.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we reflect on the wondrous gift of the Holy Spirit by the Lord, we are all called to remember our baptismal Covenant with God, and the mission entrusted to each and every one of us, the same mission we all share because of our common baptism. The Holy Spirit has been given to us, and as St. Paul mentioned it in our second reading today, there are various gifts of the Holy Spirit, the wonders, the talents and abilities that have been entrusted to us and awaiting for us to make use of these for the good of all.

And because we have been given the Holy Spirit, all of us are then expected to be fruitful and be bountiful in the Holy Spirit, bearing plenty of rich outcomes as we live our lives in accordance with the will of God and making good use of the talents and gifts that we have received. What are these fruits of the Holy Spirit and how can we then make good use of these gifts to be dedicated as Christians? They are the nine fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. These are the great virtues that all of us Christians should have with us, and which we should cultivate in our lives.

First of all, love lies at the hearts of all Christians, as we cannot call ourselves as Christians unless we know love and unless we know how to love and love sincerely. St. Paul himself had written that even if he were to know the language of Angels and have various other talents and wonders, but without love, then all those things would be meaningless. It was God’s love that allowed Him to be patient with us and to seek us out constantly, even when we continue to disobey Him and distance ourselves from Him. And His love has been manifested completely and perfectly in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, born into this world and One Who died for us out of love, that by His suffering and death, He may bring all of us out of the darkness of sin and death, and lead us into eternal life.

And therefore, just as the Lord Himself has loved us so dearly and wonderfully, we too are called to follow in the footsteps of Our Lord, to love without condition and sincerely, to all those who are around us, to our friends and relatives, our family members and even those whom we encounter daily in life, acquaintances and even strangers. We are all challenged to show love not only for ourselves, but also for God, first and foremost, and then also for our fellow brothers and sisters, all those whom we meet in life, and we are challenged by the Lord to show love even to our enemies, as He Himself said, ‘Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.’

The second fruit of the Holy Spirit is joy, and joy is something that is lacking in our community and in so many among us these days. I know that during this time with the pandemic still raging and flaring up again and again in various parts of the world, the numerous disruptions and negative effects it had on our communities and livelihood, it is very difficult for us to be joyful. Yet, as Christians, we should be the source of joy for one another even during this difficult time. And why should we be joyful when all these misfortunes and terrible things are happening to us? That is because we have faith in God and we believe that no matter what, God will always be by our side, and He shall always have our back at all times. We rejoice because no matter what happens and no matter how bad things can be, in the end, as long as we remain firmly faithful in God, we will triumph.

Then, the next fruit of the Holy Spirit is peace. As Christians we must believe in peace and we are all called to be the bearers of God’s peace in our community. There are also plenty of conflicts that had been happening this past few months alone as tensions rose up between countries and peoples, exacerbated by the current pandemic situation and all the instabilities it caused. Those conflicts also came to be as a result of mankind’s greed and unbridled desires, their pride and ego, and their pursuit for power and glory. That is why, as Christians we should show through action that we should uphold peace above conflict, and do our best to reconcile ourselves and also be intermediaries for others who disagree and are in conflict.

Then comes the fruit of patience. As Christians we have to know patience, much as Our Lord Himself has shown us so much patience all these while, despite our various infidelities and wickedness. God still cared for us and loved us, and He also patiently tried again and again to call us and to lead us to return to the right path. All of us are called to be patient in life as well, and if necessary to endure with faith all the challenges, trials and difficulties that we may have to endure as we continue to live our lives faithfully as Christians in each and every moments of our lives.

Then the fruits of kindness and goodness, which must have been self-explanatory, that as Christians, we ought to have empathy and concern for others, that in all the things we say and do, we will always have consideration for others, our fellow brothers and sisters, in our minds. We should always strive to be good as well, which means that we are all called to a life of virtue, a life of obedience to the will of God. We should always show kindness in our every actions and be as true Christians in all things, resisting the temptations to sin and to do what is against God’s teachings and against His will.

And as Christians, we are all called to have strong and genuine faith in the Lord, the fruit of faithfulness in the Holy Spirit. That means we should truly believe in all the things that we profess to have faith in, and not just merely paying lip service or being outwardly pious and yet inside, God has no true place within our hearts. To be truly faithful to the Lord is not an easy task, brothers and sisters in Christ, for it will require us to commit ourselves wholeheartedly and to dedicate our time, effort and more to serve the Lord through our lives.

Lastly, the two fruits of gentleness and self-control are important reminders for all of us to live a life of virtue and faith, not controlled by our own desires and the allures of worldly pleasures. This is why we should not be quick-tempered or easy to give in to anger and pride, and we have to overcome the temptations of our flesh, which could derail our path towards God and His salvation. We are all called to focus our attention instead on the Lord and always contemplate on His ways and truth, rather than listening to the temptations of our pride and desire.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we celebrate the Solemnity of the Pentecost today, let us all remember that Pentecost is not merely just the end of the season of Easter. On the contrary, it marks a new beginning for the Church, which as mentioned, back then, the disciples were strengthened and encouraged by the gift of the Holy Spirit descending on them. Then are we going to follow in their footsteps, brothers and sisters? Are we also going to proclaim our faith courageously and dedicate ourselves and our time to the best of our abilities from now on?

This is our calling and mission as Christians, and we should embrace them wholeheartedly, if we have not done so yet. Let us all be part of the Church’s mission to reach out to more and more people, and to call on more to follow the Lord, to be His faithful witnesses, guided by the Holy Spirit with our various and diverse gifts and abilities, that we may indeed bear rich fruits of the Holy Spirit and become great inspirations to one another in faith. Come, o Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of the faithful and enkindle in us the fire of Your love. Amen.

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Sunday, 23 May 2021 : Vigil Mass of the Solemnity of Pentecost Sunday (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this evening we celebrate the Vigil Mass of the great Solemnity of Pentecost Sunday, marking the most momentous occasion when the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord assembled in Jerusalem, on the fiftieth day after the Resurrection of the Lord, not long after the Lord ascended gloriously and returning into His Heavenly Throne. This day we celebrate this important moment as the Holy Spirit came down from Heaven unto us, as promised.

Today marks the beginning of the Universal Church, as it was on this day that the disciples of the Lord began their missionary outreach and efforts, as they previously hid themselves and kept a low profile out of fear of the Jewish authorities. After the Holy Spirit descended upon them, they began to go out and preached the Good News of God’s salvation and truth to the people assembled in Jerusalem, led by St. Peter, the leader of the Apostles, and it was told that three thousand men were convinced by them and gave themselves to be baptised.

Through the Scripture readings we have received and heard today in this Vigil of the Pentecost, we heard very important and symbolic readings that we may not have realised at first why these readings were chosen as the Scripture passages for this occasion. In fact, as we heard and remembered again what we have just heard earlier on, in the readings prescribed for this Pentecost Vigil, God wanted to show us through His Church, that the coming of the Holy Spirit restored and renewed all of us, His beloved people, once weakened and brought down by sin and the darkness of evil.

In our first reading, one of the readings came from the Book of Genesis, detailing the moment when God confused the language of the men and women gathered at the site of Babel, where they all aspired in pride to build a tower so high that it would reach up to the heavens itself. Through their wickedness, sin and disobedience therefore mankind had been scattered all throughout the world, divided by their languages and different speeches, unable to understand one another, divided in purpose and essence.

Then, when the Lord sent His Holy Spirit to His Apostles and disciples at the Pentecost, if we recall what happened, the Holy Spirit came down on them all and strengthened them, and they all began to speak in tongues, as they went out preaching and glorifying God before all the people who were gathered in Jerusalem, and all those people assembled were all astonished because they heard these disciples of the Lord all speaking simultaneously and at the same time in their own languages.

What happened, brothers and sisters in Christ? When mankind became proud and fell into sin, they lost the gift of wisdom and language, knowledge of the Holy Spirit, which God withdrew from them as what happened at the Tower of Babel. When He granted the Holy Spirit back once again to His disciples, they all received the Spirit that reinvigorated them, gave them wisdom and knowledge, one of which is the gift of tongues, that they were able to comprehend and speak in various languages.

Then, we also heard the reading of the Covenant between God and His people Israel as it happened in Mount Sinai in one of the other first reading for this Vigil, which is significant because in that occasion, the people of God rebelled against God and three thousand men were lost to the sin of idolatry, as they chose a golden calf idol over themselves to be their god instead of the Lord God Who led them out of the land of Egypt. Those three thousand people were slain because of their sin against God, in denying Him and refusing to acknowledge Him as God.

And as mentioned, on the day of the Pentecost, three thousand people were added to the numbers of the faithful, as an obvious contrast with what we heard regarding the moment when the Israelites fell into sin and disobeyed God with the golden calf idol. This is very symbolic as the gift of the Holy Spirit strengthens and restores the unity that we have with God, our Lord and Saviour, overcoming the power of sin that had led to death. Instead, through the Spirit, we have received new life in God, as those three thousand people baptised on the Pentecost had received theirs.

The prophet Ezekiel saw a great field of dry bones in his vision, and he saw how those bones became a great and vast assembly of people, all living and breathing after the Lord gave them the breath of life, which is representing the Holy Spirit, that exists in everywhere and in all things, just as in the beginning of the Book of Genesis, the Holy Spirit was represented as being in all things and floating all around nothingness before Creation came to be.

It was this same life that God has given to the first man, Adam, as He moulded him from dust, and the same life that the Lord has given to each and every one of us. And it was significant that this vision was revealed to the prophet Ezekiel as Ezekiel lived during a time when the fortunes of the Israelites were at its very lowest, having been scattered and made to wander off among the nations, humiliated and cast down because of their sins and disobedience against God, even losing their own homeland and the city in which God has placed His own dwelling, Jerusalem and its great Temple.

Through that vision, God wanted to tell His people that He shall restore them and return them once again to His grace. He shall gather them all back once again and reunite them to Himself, just much like how He also would restore all the other people who had been scattered because of their sin and pride at the Tower of Babel. He would restore them all and bless them once again, calling them to repent from their sins and to abandon their wicked ways. Through the Holy Spirit He would bestow on them all, He would reveal the fullness of truth to them and that they may seek and find Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we all celebrate this Vigil of the great Solemnity of the Pentecost Sunday, all of us are called to reflect on the wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit that God has given us, that through the Holy Spirit, He has strengthened and encouraged us, giving us wisdom and guidance wherever and whenever we need them. And all of us who have shared in the same Spirit of God, through our common baptism, have also shared in the same mission of the Church, that is to be the witnesses of the Lord and His truth in our own communities, at all possible opportunities, to reach out to our fellow men and women.

God has given us the Holy Spirit that we may be sanctified, rejuvenated and strengthened, that through the various gifts and talents we have received, we may indeed bear rich fruits of the Spirit, and shine with the most wonderful light of faith such that all those who see us, hear us and witness our deeds and works, they may all know that we are God’s beloved ones, His followers and disciples. And this is the challenge that we all have today. Have we been living our lives faithfully as we should as Christians, brothers and sisters in Christ? Or have we instead been ignorant of our mission and calling as Christians?

Let us all therefore be genuine witnesses of the Lord in all possible opportunities, doing whatever we can in order to touch the hearts and minds of others, so that through us, many more people may come to believe in the Lord, just as how the Apostles and disciples of the Lord spoke with such great passion and showed their love for God that so many turned to the Lord and became His followers. As members of the same Church of God, this is what we have been called to do, and what we should embrace wholeheartedly, following the examples set by our holy predecessors in faith.

Although the season of Easter ends with this celebration of the Pentecost, it does not mean then that everything goes back to normal and we can just continue on with our lives without any action or commitment from us to live in accordance with our Christian faith. On the contrary, all of us are called and reminded this Pentecost, as always, to be fruitful in the Holy Spirit and to make best use of all that God has given us, and to walk courageously and faithfully in His path. Pentecost as I said earlier, marked the important moment when the Church was truly born, and as such, marks a beginning rather than an end.

Pentecost marks the beginning of a new, evangelistic and missionary journey that from now onwards we should continue to live our lives to the fullest, and we should commit ourselves fully to the Lord that through us, God and His works may continue to reach even more and more people, and through us, the Holy Spirit shall come down and renew the face of the whole earth, dispelling the darkness of sin and evil, and bringing forth a new era of peace and love. May God be with us always, and may He continue to guide us, through the Holy Spirit, that we will always ever be faithful and dedicated to Him. Amen.

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Saturday, 22 May 2021 : 7th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Rita of Cascia, Religious (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded of the mission that the Lord has entrusted to us, the members of His Church. Even though the season of Easter is coming to an end with the celebration of the Pentecost Sunday tomorrow, it does not mean that everything that we have celebrated throughout this Easter is coming to an end. On the contrary, Pentecost marked just the very beginning of the Church’s works and efforts that still continues even to this very day.

As we heard in our first reading today from the ending parts of the Acts of the Apostles, St. Paul reached the city of Rome and began the last step of his ministry in that city. He preached to the local Jewish community and also others who were interested in the Christian faith, establishing the foundation for the Church in Rome, from which also stemmed many other communities all throughout the Roman Empire. Through all of his efforts, many turned to the Lord and were reconciled to Him, and many came to believe in Him and became courageous missionaries themselves.

In our Gospel passage today we heard of the Lord’s conversation with His disciples at the Last Supper speaking about the one who would betray Him as well as St. Peter who wondered about the disciple whom the Lord loved, that is referring to St. John. At that time, there were still disagreements and so-called rivalry between the disciples, just as they had done earlier on when they argued among themselves who was the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, as St. John, his own mother and brother tried to also gain favour and position from the Lord by asking Him directly.

In all these we can see that first of all, the Lord called His disciples among mankind, people who were imperfect, full of human frailties, desires and shortcomings, of pride and jealousy, or any other behaviours and attitudes unbecoming of Christians, as the Apostles themselves had once exhibited. One among the Twelve betrayed the Lord and surrendered Him to the chief priests, and left their number, while St. Peter himself denied the Lord three times and with others, abandoned Him in fear when He was arrested in the Gardens of Gethsemane.

St. Paul himself was a fanatical enemy of the Church and the Christian faithful when he was young, persecuting the Church and the believers, causing untold sufferings and much pain among them. Yet, the Lord called all these to be His followers and witnesses, to be the ones to bear His truth to the people of the many nations that they had been sent to. These Apostles, like St. Paul went forth courageously and wholeheartedly, not worried about themselves but instead ever always concerned about the conversion of many and the salvation of souls.

Today we also celebrate the feast of St. Rita of Cascia, a holy and devout woman who was a dedicated wife and mother who wanted to join a convent in her early life, but forced to accept arranged marriage to a man who was bad-tempered, immoral and wicked. St. Rita of Cascia was remembered as a pious woman and faithful wife and mother despite all that she had to endure from her husband, his behaviour and temper. She endured all of his insults and abuses, as well as all of his infidelities in their marriage.

In the end, it was told that she was able to convince her husband to be a better person and at least he abandoned some of his past vices. Yet, his actions caught up to him and he was assassinated by a rival family, which led to her husband’s family vowing vengeance and expecting St. Rita of Cascia’s two sons to seek vengeance for their murdered father. Unable to persuade her sons to seek vengeance despite her repeated efforts, she prayed to God, asking that He took them away from the world rather than to have them commit a mortal sin through murder.

True enough, very soon after that, both of her sons were taken by a plague that occurred in that year. And then, having been widowed and left without family, St. Rita of Cascia finally became a religious, dedicating the rest of her life to contemplative prayer and commitment to God. It was not easy for her to do so, as the convent was afraid that her murdered husband’s family and reputation would be bad for them, and hence, St. Rita of Cascia was tasked to resolve the feuds between the families of that town, which she did with great success.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we can see here, God had called ordinary people, woman like St. Rita of Cascia, who was just an ordinary wife and mother, and yet, by her faith and commitment, she had done great deeds, leading her own husband and two sons closer to God’s grace and salvation, and helping to resolve the feud between the families of her town, among others. Through her life and example, all of us can see what it means to be a true disciple of the Lord, as a Christian.

Therefore, let us all continue to go forth proclaiming the truth of God in our lives from now on. Let us dedicate ourselves and follow the Lord wholeheartedly, as missionaries and genuine evangelisers in all of our words and actions throughout life. Let us all follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit that throughout life we will always be ever dedicated and filled with the strong desire to proclaim God’s truth in the midst of our respective communities, even when we encounter challenges and trials, opposition and persecution. Let us trust in the Lord and not be afraid for He is always by our side. May God be with us always, and bless our every good works and endeavours. Amen.

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Friday, 21 May 2021 : 7th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Christopher Magallanes, Priest and Martyr, and Companions, Martyrs (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White or Red (Martyrs)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we listened to the occasion when St. Paul stood before Festus, the governor of Judea and king Agrippa the Roman client ruler of the country, as he waited for his transfer to Rome following his decision to appeal his case to the Emperor himself. St. Paul was accused and condemned by the Jewish leaders and elders who opposed him and his efforts to spread the Christian faith among the Jews and the Gentiles alike. At that time, he testified about Christ before the two men, and tried to convince them about the truth of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world.

In our Gospel passage today, then we heard St. Peter and his conversation with the Lord at the Lake of Galilee, when after His Resurrection, the Lord appeared to His disciples as they were fishing by the lake. St. Peter was the very first one to recognise the Lord and he quickly came ashore to meet Him. The Lord called St. Peter aside after He had breakfast with the disciples, and we then heard what He told St. Peter in today’s Gospel, first asking him whether he loved Him, not just once but three times, again and again.

Through this action, the Lord showed that He has forgiven St. Peter’s thrice denial of Him at the time when He was arrested and brought before the chief priests during His Passion, and not only that but He also reaffirmed St. Peter as the leader of all the Apostles and as His Vicar, commissioning him as the first Pope and Leader of the Universal Church, to be the one to take care of His vast flock, all the people of God, together with the other Apostles and leaders of the Church.

This was also clearly not an easy task because the Lord Himself said how while in his younger years, St. Peter was free to go wherever he wanted and free to do whatever he wanted to do, in his old and end of days, he would be led in chains, endure prison and suffering, and all sorts of trials and challenges, all sorts of humiliation and ridicule for the sake of the Lord and his faith in Him. This is a revelation of how St. Peter would one day suffer and die for the sake of his faith, as he would go on to Rome, just as St. Paul also went to Rome, and while St. Paul would be beheaded at the end of his journey in Rome, St. Peter would be arrested, condemned to death and crucified upside down in the place where today stands the great Basilica of St. Peter.

The two Apostles had been called and chosen by the Lord to be His witnesses and missionaries among the various people they had been sent to. They responded with dedication and commitment, and they showed their love and devotion by committing themselves and all of their efforts to reach out to those who have not yet known the Lord, and they gave themselves wholeheartedly to the mission, even though they knew that they would have to suffer for all that they had done. They endured it all through faith.

Today, all of us are reminded through these two Apostles that being Christians and followers of the Lord require from us a total commitment, effort as well as dedication. And we should also trust the Lord in whatever that He has led us into, as we must believe that He is with us, guiding us at all times, through the Holy Spirit that He has given us, leading us through life. Often times we will have to make tough decisions and to resist the temptations to walk away from the Lord’s path. And that is why we must always anchor ourselves strongly to the Lord at all times.

Today we should be inspired by the examples set by St. Christopher Magallanes and his companions, holy martyrs of the faith, who have steadfastly dedicated themselves to the glory of God. St. Christopher Magallanes was a devoted priest in Mexico who lived and endured through the difficult years of persecution of the Church and Christians by the government that was deeply anticlerical and even anti-Christian at that time, as seminaries and schools ran by the Church were forced to close and many were deprived of the sacraments.

St. Christopher Magallanes was among the many priests who had to endure the most challenging conditions as everything were arrayed against them. Although he preached patience and refused to support pro-Christian rebellions, he was accused falsely of promoting rebellion and arrested under false charges. He was summarily executed with other Christian faithful, and to the ver end, he remained faithful and committed to the mission that God has entrusted to him and others. Many other Christians also perished during that time, and yet, their continued devotion to God despite the worst that happened to them became a great inspiration for many.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all be inspired by the examples of these great saints and martyrs who have gone before us. Let us follow in their footsteps and walk ever more courageously in the defence of our faith in the Lord, speaking up the truth of God and living our lives to the fullest possible as best as we can. May God bless us always, now and forevermore. Amen.

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Thursday, 20 May 2021 : 7th Week of Easter, Memorial of St. Bernardine of Siena, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard of the time when St. Paul was in Jerusalem, having followed the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and then was accused and attacked by the Jewish leaders from both the members of the Pharisees party and from the Sadducees party. These two groups were very influential and powerful groups of people during the time of the Lord’s ministry and the early Church, both opposing St. Paul in his missionary efforts while at the same time were also bitterly divided against each other.

The Pharisees were the spiritual leaders in the community, those with intellectual knowledge and wisdom, knowledge of the Law and the teachings of the prophets, yet because of their pride and their refusal to admit that someone else could have a greater and more complete truth than them, they failed to recognise the Lord Jesus as the Saviour and the One Whom God had sent into the world, and of Whom the prophets and the Scriptures were all speaking about. They were blinded by their own vanity and their pride, and as a result, they also opposed and persecuted St. Paul for his faith. St. Paul himself was a Pharisee before he converted to the Christian faith.

Meanwhile, the Sadducees were the secular leaders and powerful members of the community whose beliefs were almost diametrically opposite that of the Pharisees. These people did not believe in matters spiritual, in Angels and spirits, or in the Resurrection unlike the Pharisees. They represent the materialistic and worldly segments of the society, and they opposed St. Paul and the Lord because of their beliefs and the belief in the Resurrection, which the Lord Himself had gone through, as these were opposed to their own fundamental beliefs.

As such, while they both opposed St. Paul and wanted to arrest and punish him, they were not united at all in their purpose and intentions. The moment that St. Paul exposed this, when he mentioned how he was once a young Pharisee before his conversion, the whole place went up in great uproar as the Pharisees and the Sadducees went against each other instead of St. Paul, showing in the end just how bitterly divided they were, and this is especially so because neither of them had the fullness of truth, having denied Christ and His teachings, and His Apostle St. Paul.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard of the Lord in the continuation of His prayer for the sake of His disciples, on the night before He was to be arrested and put to death. The Lord Jesus prayed over His disciples, asking His heavenly Father to guide them and to strengthen them, and to keep them in the perfection of unity and truth, just as He and His Father are One, with the Holy Spirit. The Lord wanted to stress to all of His disciples that through the truth that He has brought into their midst and which He has revealed to them, He would keep them to Himself and that they would remain united and strong so long as they anchored themselves in Him.

This is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, we are all called today to embrace the truth of God wholeheartedly. We should not be stubborn like the Pharisees and the Sadducees, who clung to their thoughts and way of life so much that they refused to listen to the Lord and His truth even when He Himself has patiently explained and revealed all these to them throughout His ministry, and which is then later on continued by His disciples like by St. Paul and the other Apostles. We should allow the Lord to knock on the doors of our hearts and minds, that we may understand His truth and know Him more so that we may love Him all the more.

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Bernardine of Siena, a famous missionary priest, whose life was dedicated to the Lord, and whose works brought so many people back to the embrace of the Mother Church and many were converted to the truth. St. Bernardine of Siena was born into a noble family though orphaned at a young age. He then joined the Franciscans and became a priest, ministering to many people throughout Italy, in his various journey of preaching and outreach to them.

St. Bernardine of Siena was a great preacher, one who is truly convinced of the truth he was preaching, and although he was weak in voice and stature, his preaching and words were so powerful that throughout his more than three decades of ministry, countless people turned to the Lord and the faith was rejuvenated in so many others, leading to a great period of religious revival all over Italy, throughout all the places he has been preaching and ministering in. St. Bernardine followed in the footsteps of St. Paul and the other Apostles, reaching out to those who have not yet known the Lord and making Him known to them.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we should be inspired by the examples showed by St. Bernardine of Siena, St. Paul and all of our holy predecessors, all those who have gone before us and showed us what it means to be true Christians in actions, deeds and words. Are we all willing to commit ourselves to the Lord wholeheartedly as they had done? We have been entrusted with the same truth and are called to commit ourselves to be part of the efforts of the Church in evangelisation and conversion of the whole world.

Let us all therefore be genuine Christians not just in words but also in deeds, and do our best in whatever we do, in even the smallest and the simplest things that we do, to glorify the Lord by our lives. This is what we are all expected to do, and what each and every one of us should be inspired to do at all times, throughout our lives. Let us all seek the Lord with renewed conviction and desire to love Him and serve Him at all times, and let us reach out to our fellow brethren, proclaiming the truth of God at all times.

May God be with us all, and may He strengthen us and encourage us to walk ever more faithfully in His path, following the zeal and piety of St. Bernardine of Siena, St. Paul the Apostle, and all the other courageous and faithful saints and martyrs, our most noble inspirations in faith and life. Amen.