Sunday

by

Sunday, 13 August 2017 : Nineteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 84 : 9ab-10, 11-12, 13-14

Would, that I hear God's proclamation, that He promise peace to His people, His saints. Yet, His salvation is near to those who fear Him, and His glory will dwell in our land.

Love and faithfulness have met; righteousness and peace have embraced. Faithfulness will reach up from the earth while justice bends down from heaven.

YHVH will give what is good, and our land will yield its fruit. Justice will go before Him, and peace will follow along His path.

by

Sunday, 13 August 2017 : Nineteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Kings 19 : 9a, 11-13a

On reaching the place, Elijah came to the cave and stayed in it. Then YHVH said, "Go up and stand on the mount, waiting for YHVH." And YHVH passed by.

There was first a windstorm, wild wind which rent the mountains and broke the rocks into pieces before YHVH, but YHVH was not in the wind. After the storm, an earthquake, but YHVH was not in the earthquake; after the earthquake, a fire, but YHVH was not in the fire; after the fire, the murmur of a gentle breeze.

When Elijah perceived it, he covered his face with his cloak, went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.

by

Sunday, 6 August 2017 : Eighteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time and the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this Sunday, we celebrate not just the Eighteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time, but also the great occasion of the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. On this occasion, we remember the time when our Lord Jesus Christ was revealed in the fullness of His glory and divinity before His disciples at the Mount Tabor, in the presence of three of His disciples, St. Peter, St. James and St. John.

The occasion the Transfiguration of the Lord is truly rich with numerous symbolisms that are very significant to our faith, as it is a great revelation of not only just Who our Lord Jesus truly was, but also what the purpose of His coming into this world was, and He also showed us all an example of what all of us as Christians must do in our own respective lives.

First of all, the Transfiguration was the moment when Jesus revealed the fullness of His divine glory before mankind, represented by His own Apostles. It was where He revealed that He was not just merely a Man, the Son of Man, but instead, He was also at the same time, the Divine Son of God, Who was incarnate in the flesh through His mother Mary. Thus, Christ has two natures, Man and Divine, perfectly united in the person of Jesus Christ.

He revealed the fullness of His divine glory, as the Son of God and Saviour of all, Who then met with Moses and Elijah during that moment of Transfiguration, another important revelation and symbolism that all of us should take note of. Moses and Elijah each represents the two important tenets and aspects of the faith, namely the Law of God, for Moses was the one through whom God made known His laws to His people, while Elijah represents the prophets of God, who laboured to reveal and teach the Word of God to the people.

This is an important representation of Christ as the embodiment and fulfilment of both the Law and the Prophecies of the prophets. The Law of God was made perfect in Christ, Who revealed to His people the true meaning of the Law, teaching them what is the true purpose of the Law and how all of us mankind are able to live according to the Law, in order to love the Lord our God, by loving our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

Then, Christ is also the the perfect fulfilment of the prophecies which had been spoken by the many prophets and messengers of God, through whom God had made known His will to His people across the ages. God has promised His salvation to His people, to redeem them from the chains of sin. This is a promise which He had made from the beginning of time, from when our first ancestors first sinned against Him because of the temptation by Satan.

And thus, Jesus Christ our Lord was born through the Blessed Virgin Mary, His mother, to be the One through Whom God would fulfil His long promised salvation, and as the keystone and centrepiece in the entirety of God's grand plan of salvation and liberation for us all, His most beloved people. It was through His loving sacrifice on the cross, bearing the burden of our sins and faults that He has shown this love for us, and it is through the cross that God brought us all a new hope in Him.

Mankind have long lived in the darkness, the darkness of ignorance and the darkness of their sins and disobedience against God. The lies and wickedness of the devil have covered us, and we have been corrupted by those sins and faults which we committed in life. But deep in our hearts, all of us truly groaned for the opportunity and filled with the hope that one day all of us can be freed from the tyranny of sin and evil. And yet, it is too often that temptations of the world and the persuasions of the devil and his allies have kept us from being able to listen to this desire, the desire for us to receive God's salvation and be freed.

Thus, to all those who have seen the glory of the Lord Jesus Transfigured before their eyes, they must have seen in Him the long awaited promise of God, through the piercing light and the exceedingly bright white garments and the Body of the Lord that shone forth, as God is the True Light, Light of the world, Whose light penetrates the darkness of evil and wickedness, and Whose light is terror to evildoers and wicked people, yet a tender and loving source of hope for all those who cling on to hope in Him.

The Lord showed through His Transfiguration a glimpse into our own future state of grace, for all of us are indeed called to become like Christ, and all of us who have made ourselves worthy through our actions and deeds in life, will receive God's grace and love, and we will be, in accordance with the words of the Scriptures, transformed wholly, body and soul, our entire being, to be like the Lord, and to rejoice and share with Him in His glory forevermore.

Just as the Lord had assumed the flesh of Man by coming down upon us through Jesus Christ our Lord, therefore, by assuming His humanity, He has united us all to Him, all of us who seek Him and desire to be with Him, and just as He is glorified in His Transfiguration, we too shall also be glorified together with Him, at the time when He will come again to gather all of those whom He deems to be worthy of Him and His grace.

To us, the best examples of how we can best understand this is like that of the saints of the Church, whose deeds and actions in life are still remembered and honoured even to this very day. The saints shone with glory and greatness, but not because of their own greatness and power, but because they shine with the glory of God and the righteousness found in them. They lived in accordance with God's will and therefore, God glorified them all and lifted them up to share with Him the glory of heaven.

The saints are like the stained glass in our churches. The stained glass on their own without light do not look beautiful or shiny, and they are just like any other glass, dark and devoid of goodness. Yet, when light shines upon them and pass through them, all of us who see the light through the stained glass see the great beauty of the stained glass, just as the saints were glorified because of what God had done through them in this world.

This Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord is a reminder to all of us that God is calling us to be thoroughly transformed in our respective lives, to adhere faithfully to His ways and obey His laws wholeheartedly. We are called to walk in the footsteps of the saints and martyrs who have preceded us, and now are in the glory of heaven. They were themselves once sinners too, just like us, and yet, they listened to the Lord speaking in their hearts, calling them to righteousness.

And they responded with action, following the Lord and obeying Him, just as God reminded His disciples, that Jesus, is His Beloved Son, and that they ought to listen to Him. That is how the saints end up where they are now, because they followed the example of our Lord Jesus Christ, and they made themselves to be His faithful servants through which He exercised His good works among His people.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all no longer be trapped in the darkness of sin, and strive to be freed from the chains of slavery, the slavery of sin and worldly desires, the chains of greed and hatred, of jealousy and anger, all of which had weighed us down and threatened to bring us down into the damnation in hell. Let us all instead put our trust in the Transfigured Lord, He Who had revealed His truth to us, so that we may know it, and see through Him, what we will become should we walk in His footsteps.

Yet, let us not forget, that the story of the Transfiguration of our Lord ended with a stark reminder for us, that we must not be complacent nor must we expect a life that is easy and without challenges. The three Apostles, St. Peter, St. James and St. John wanted to stay on at the Mount Tabor, in the glory of the Transfigured Christ. They wanted to pitch tents for the Lord, Moses and Elijah, so that they might continue to revel in the glory of the Lord.

But, the Lord did not have it that way. He knew that He had to go down the mountain, leaving behind His glory and the moment of His glorious revealing in His Transfiguration. He knew that going down the mountain would mean travelling on to Jerusalem and from then on to suffer the Passion, bearing the heavy cross on His shoulders, on which was laid the burdens of all of mankind's sins and faults.

Nonetheless, He went on, going down the mountain, showing His disciples by example, that firstly, for the sake of His love for His people, He was willing to shed away all of the glory of His divinity to be ridiculed and mocked, to be scourged and battered with blows, all for the sake of His love for us. Who else would have been willing to endure such punishment for our sake?

And He showed perfect humility and obedience to the will of God, His Father. All other men would have succumbed to the temptation of power and worldly glory, as Christ stood up there on the mountain, the temptation must have been great for Him to show forth His might unto the world. Yet, He humbly stepped down from that glory, and as shown in various other occasions, He always listened to the will of God His Father, and obeyed Him, even unto taking up the cross and dying for us.

Are we all able to imitate the examples of Christ in that manner? Many of us are too proud and filled with personal ego and desires, to be able to submit to the will of God. Instead, we want to bring glory to ourselves, and to gain good things for ourselves, often at the expense of others who have to suffer because of our desires and greed. This is what we cannot do, brothers and sisters in Christ. All of us must seek to be humble as Christ was, and allow God to enter into our hearts that we may be transformed.

It is often that we close our hearts to the Lord because of that pride, as we are unable to admit that we have been wrong or mistaken in our ways, that we have been sinful and wicked in our deeds. Yet, if we continue to harden our hearts, the only ones who will lose will be us, as we will end up persisting in our ways of sin. We should instead pray for the grace of humility, to listen obediently to the word of God and know His will, and what it is that He wants us to do. We should throw away the shackles placed on us by our pride and ego, and seek to become more like Christ day after day.

May the Lord, Who in His glorious Transfiguration has revealed to us the truth about Himself, help us to be ever closer to Him, to be more like Him day after day, that we will be transformed completely from the creatures of darkness we were once, to be the glorious children of God, worthy of Him and the eternal glory He has prepared for us, to be like the holy men and women, the holy saints who have gone before us to the eternal glory of God. Amen.

by

Sunday, 6 August 2017 : Eighteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time and the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 17 : 1-9

At that time, six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James, and his brother John, and led them up a high mountain, where they were alone. Jesus' appearance was changed before them : His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became white as snow. Then suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Jesus.

Peter spoke up and said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here. If You wish, I will make three tents : one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." Peter was still speaking, when a bright cloud covered them with its shadow; and a voice from the cloud said, "This is My Son, the Beloved, My Chosen One. Listen to Him."

On hearing the voice, the disciples fell to the ground, full of fear. But Jesus came, touched them, and said, "Stand up, do not be afraid!" When they raised their eyes, they no longer saw anyone except Jesus. And as they came down the mountain, Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone what they had seen, until the Son of Man be raised from the dead.

by

Sunday, 6 August 2017 : Eighteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time and the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

2 Peter 1 : 16-19

Indeed, what we taught you about the power, and the return of Christ Jesus our Lord, was not drawn from myths or formulated theories. We, ourselves, were eyewitnesses of His majesty, when He received glory and honour from God, the Father, when, from the magnificent glory, this most extraordinary word came upon Him : "This is My beloved Son, this is My Chosen One."

We, ourselves, heard this voice from heaven, when we were with Him on the holy mountain. Therefore, we believe most firmly in the message of the prophets, which you should consider rightly, as a lamp shining in a dark place, until the break of day, when the Morning Star shines in your hearts.

by

Sunday, 6 August 2017 : Eighteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time and the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 96 : 1-2, 5-6, 9

YHVH reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the distant islands be glad. Clouds and darkness surround Him; justice and right, are His throne.

The mountains melt like wax before YHVH, the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim His justice, all peoples see His glory.

For You are the Master of the universe, exalted far above all gods.

by

Sunday, 6 August 2017 : Eighteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time and the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Daniel 7 : 9-10, 13-14

I looked and saw the following : Some thrones were set in place and One of Great Age took His seat. His robe was white, as snow, His hair, white as washed wool. His throne was flames of fire with wheels of blazing fire. A river of fire sprang forth and flowed before Him. Thousands upon thousands served Him and a countless multitude stood before Him. Those in the tribunal took their seats and opened the book.

I continued watching the nocturnal vision : One like a Son of Man came on the clouds of heaven. He faced the One of Great Age and was brought into His presence. Dominion, honour and kingship were given Him, and all the peoples and nations of every language served Him. His dominion is eternal and shall never pass away; His kingdom will never be destroyed.

by

Sunday, 30 July 2017 : Seventeenth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this day we listened to the words of the Scriptures which called us all to reflect on our lives, and one important question that all of us must ask ourselves, that is 'what is it that is most precious to us?' This is something that many of us ignored or refused to reflect on, but it is actually something that we need to do, so that we can know how we ought to proceed on with life from now on.

In the first reading today, all of us heard the prayer of King Solomon of Israel, son and successor of the famous King David. In his young age and inexperience, King Solomon prayed to God asking for a favour, that He might grant him wisdom, the wisdom to discern what is good from what is evil, the wisdom to make the right decision and judgment. He did not ask for wealth, power, influence or worldly fame; which are all the things that we normally would have desired.

He sought for a greater treasure, one that is far surpassing the treasures of this world. For there is no greater treasure in this world than the treasure of the wisdom and knowledge of God. There can be no greater gift than the gift of the love of God, for His love is eternal and to come to the presence of God is what all of us should be aiming for. His grace and inheritance is everlasting while the goods and glories of this world are fleeting and merely temporary.

This is what the Lord Jesus in our Gospel reading today told His disciples, and which we have heard as well. He spoke about the kingdom of heaven, using a parable, as a way to convey the message of His truth to the people, many of whom at the time were farmers, fishermen, merchants and shepherds. He spoke to them of the kingdom of God as represented by a very valuable treasure hidden in a field, as a pearl of great and exceptional value, and as a great and big fishing net spread out, catching numerous fish of all kinds and sizes.

Through those parables, God wanted to reveal to His people, what a great treasure that they had coming upon them, which He had given them through none other by the revelation of His love through Jesus Christ, His Son. Jesus did not only come into this world in order to reveal the truth of God to mankind, but He also came to bring all mankind closer to God, to be their Saviour and Redeemer, liberating them from the chains of their sins.

If we reflect deeply on the history of man, and how we mankind ended up living in this world today, we will realise that how mankind had chosen what is lesser in value in terms of the treasures we seek, and threw away the greater treasure that we have once had in the Lord. Our ancestors were created by God and were destined for an eternity of happiness, enjoying the goodness and the fruits of the earth in Eden, in perfect harmony with God. We were intended to enjoy forever a life of true joy and bliss.

However, the devil, Satan, our great enemy, came to tempt us through persuasions, sweet talks and lies, by which he managed to turn the hearts of mankind away from God, beginning from the time of Adam and Eve, when they chose to submit to the temptations of Satan who offered them the knowledge over good and evil, by eating from the forbidden fruit of the forbidden tree of knowledge.

Satan was using our humanity's natural curiosity and the desires in our hearts to trick and to tempt us into sin. We are curious to know more, and we desire to have more, and this is part of our humanity. And as Satan used this opportunity to strike at us, it is indeed important for all of us to look up into what each and every one of us value in life, and what we think of as our priorities in this life.

Many of us are often too preoccupied with our work, with our career and our businesses. Many of us work many hours, often at the expense of our relationships with our loved ones, with our families and friends, because we want to accumulate for ourselves more money, more possessions and wealth, as we want to live a more comfortable or even luxurious life. And it does not help us that we live in a world inundated with so many worldly temptations, and with so many commercial materialism.

We often judge and think of others based on their possessions and wealth, or based on their status or influence in the society. We labour hard, hours after hours seeking for more of these, wealth or fame, renown or praise from others. But we have to realise that whatever it is that we have received and gained, it is unlikely that we will be satisfied with whatever we have. It is our human weakness that we are easily tempted to want and to desire for even more of what we have gained.

It is the greed in our heart that cause us to desire for more, and never be satisfied by all the goods and the blessings that we have received. The saying is indeed true that power corrupts, but absolute power corrupts everything. The more it is that we have, in power, wealth and fame, the more that they may corrupt our minds and our hearts, and twist us into committing sin against God and mankind alike.

That is why many kings and rulers of the world, while some were good and just, but many others were wicked and tyrannical in their rule. They oppressed the people and their subjects, levying high taxes on them, and demanding unjust exactions and pressures on them, in order to advance their own interests, to make themselves be more wealthy and powerful, and gain greater esteem and influence among their fellow rulers and kings.

This applies to others as well, because even in little things, we often get into feud and rivalries, conflicts and troubles as we are incapable of letting go of our desires. When our desires and wants come into conflict with each other, we end up in dispute and even infighting among ourselves, and such were the reasons for wars and atrocities that happened in the history of this world. And we will never be happy or be satisfied, for as I mentioned, when we have more, we will want even more.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us ask ourselves, the same question that I have placed at the very beginning of this discourse, 'What is it that is most precious to us?' or if I rephrase it, 'what is our priority in life?'. Let us ask ourselves what it is that we live for, that whether it is to accrue for ourselves the wealth and treasures of this world? Remember, the Lord Himself said that if we gather up these treasures of the world, all would end up with nothing.

After all, it does not matter how much wealth we obtain, how great a fame and position that we have attained, how far in life we have gone, nothing of these we will carry with us to the life that is to come. We may have attained the wealth and capability to purchase and own the biggest houses, the most luxurious lifestyle and all, but in the end, when we face the Lord in judgment, none of this will be able to help us, less still if we commit vile and wicked deeds in order to attain and gain all those possessions we have.

What King Solomon had done, in asking God for true wisdom in his prayers is something that we all should also do, instead of asking for more power, more wealth, more affluence or fame. As King Solomon has resisted the temptation for all those worldly desires, all of us should do the same as well. Instead, let us all as Christians seek to become ever closer to God, and indeed pray for the wisdom to understand God's will, that He will show us the way forward in how we should live a life faithful to Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all not be swayed by the lies and the falsehoods spread by the devil, who is always constantly trying to lure us away from God and to trap us in his insidious traps. Let us strive to do what is right and just in life, turning away from sin and by dying to our pride and selfishness. Let us be humble in life, and instead of seeking personal enrichment and satisfaction, let us be focused on obeying the will of God and be righteous in all that we do. Seek not what can be destroyed by human means, but seek the eternal treasure found in God alone.

How do we do this, brothers and sisters? We begin from ourselves and from those who are around us. Through our little actions and deeds in life, by showing love, care and concern for others, and by sincerely sharing the love and the blessings we receive, especially with those who have little or none, with those who are suffering and those who have no one to love them, we have done what God wants us to do.

Spend our time to do what is beneficial to everyone rather than being too busy with ourselves, with our work or with our businesses. And the Lord Who knows all of our actions and deeds, will give us His everlasting treasure, the eternal glory of heaven. We shall not want again, and we shall be God's people forever. Amen.

by

Sunday, 30 July 2017 : Seventeenth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Matthew 13 : 44-52

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure, hidden in a field. The one who finds it, buries it again; and so happy is he, that he goes and sells everything he has, in order to buy that field."

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a trader, who is looking for fine pearls. Once he has found a pearl of exceptional quality, he goes away, sells everything he has and buys it."

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a big fishing net, let down into the sea, in which every kind of fish has been caught. When the net is full, it is dragged ashore. Then they sit down and gather the good fish into buckets, but throw the bad away."

"That is how it will be at the end of time; the Angels will go out to separate the wicked from the just, and to throw the wicked into the blazing furnace, where they will weep and gnash their teeth."

Jesus asked, "Have you understood all these things?" "Yes," they answered. So He said to them, "Therefore, every teacher of the Law, who becomes a disciple of the kingdom of heaven, is like a householder, who can produce from his store things both new and old."

Alternative reading (shorter version)

Matthew 13 : 44-46

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure, hidden in a field. The one who finds it, buries it again; and so happy is he, that he goes and sells everything he has, in order to buy that field."

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a trader, who is looking for fine pearls. Once he has found a pearl of exceptional quality, he goes away, sells everything he has and buys it."

by

Sunday, 30 July 2017 : Seventeenth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Romans 8 : 28-30

We know that in everything, God works for the good of those who love Him, whom He has called, according to His plan. Those whom He knew beforehand, He has also predestined, to be like His Son, similar to Him, so, that, He may be the Firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

And so, those whom God predestined, He called; and those whom He called, He makes righteous; and to those whom He makes righteous, He will give His glory.