Sunday

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Sunday, 29 May 2016 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord, Corpus Christi (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

1 Corinthians 11 : 23-26

This is the tradition of the Lord that I received and that in my turn I have handed on to you; the Lord Jesus, on the night that He was delivered up, took bread and, after giving thanks, broke it, saying, “This is My Body which is broken for you; do this in memory of Me.”

In the same manner, taking the cup after the supper, He said, “This cup is the new Covenant in My Blood. Whenever you drink it, do it in memory of Me.” So, then, whenever you eat of this bread and drink from this cup, you are proclaiming the death of the Lord until He comes.

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Sunday, 29 May 2016 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord, Corpus Christi (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 109 : 1, 2, 3, 4

The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand till I make Your foes Your footstool.”

From Zion the Lord will extend Your mighty scepter and You will rule in the midst of Your enemies.

Yours is royal dignity from the day You were born in holy majesty. Like dew from the womb of the dawn, I have begotten You.

The Lord has sworn, and He will not take back His word : “You are a Priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.”

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Sunday, 29 May 2016 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of the Lord, Corpus Christi (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Genesis 14 : 18-20

Then Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought bread and wine; he was a priest of God Most High, and he blessed Abram saying, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Maker of heaven and earth! And blessed be God Most High Who has delivered your enemies into your hands!”

And Abram gave him a tenth part of everything.

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Sunday, 22 May 2016 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Trinity Sunday and Memorial of St. Rita of Cascia, Religious (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we commemorate together a great solemnity and occasion, celebrating the mystery of our Lord and Master, Who is One and only One God, and yet, consisting of Three inseparable and equal Divine Persons. This is the mystery of the Holy Trinity of our God, One but Three, Three but One, equal and distinct, and united perfectly through perfect love.

This mystery is one of the most difficult aspects of our faith to be understood, as we have to realise that disagreements about the nature of our Lord and Divine Master had caused numerous divisions in the Church, with countless heresies and peoples claiming their own versions of the teachings to be correct. And most contentious of all was indeed the nature of Jesus, our Lord and Saviour.

Throughout history, and even until this very day today, there are many peoples and groups who ridicule us Christians, the people of God, because of our believe in the Most Holy Trinity, One God with Three Divine Godheads. They thought that we are those who believe in many gods, like the pagans do. They ridiculed us because they misunderstood our faith, and what we believe, and Who we believe in.

There were those who thought that we were committing sacrilege and blasphemy against God, especially those who refused to believe in the nature of God as a Trinity. They thought that we are committing a great sin by thinking that we have three Gods instead of just one God. But that is exactly because they have failed to understand the truth about our Lord which He Himself had revealed to the world, to us all who believe in Him.

Then I should ask all of you, each and every one of us, to reflect on the Most Holy Trinity, about what we believe in our God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Do we truly believe in the Most Holy Trinity? And in fact, do we mean what we always say, when we made the holy sign of the Cross? The Sign of the Cross is not just merely a symbol of victory and triumph over evil and death, but it is also the standard of the Most Holy Trinity.

When we mark ourselves with the Cross of Christ, do we feel proud of having been marked as the children and the possession of our God through the cross? Do we feel the pride of telling all that we believe in the Most Holy Trinity of Father, Son and the Holy Spirit? Or do we do it in secret, or out of apathy, just doing it for the sake of doing it? We can see it clearly in how we make even in such a basic gesture as making the sign of the Cross.

The belief in the Most Holy Trinity is crucial and essential part of our faith, and it is what distinguishes us from all those who believe in heretical teachings and aberrations, or from the pagans and those who rejected God and His truth. And it is important therefore that we are familiar with all of its aspects, so that if someone is to ask us about it, we will not be embarrassed, and worse, turn people away from salvation because of our failure to show the truth to them.

We do not believe in three Gods, all separate and distinct from each other. Instead, our core belief remains the same as it had been since the days of Abraham and Israel of old. We believe in one and only one God, the one God Who created all creation and all the universe. There is no other God besides Him, and all other gods, pagan or otherwise, are all false gods and idols, and in fact, even demons.

But at the same time, as Jesus our Lord and Saviour had revealed to His disciples, and from them to us, is that that one God, Supreme and Almighty, consists of three Divine Persons, or Aspects, distinct from each other, and yet remained united in a perfect harmony with each other, as the inseparable part of the whole One Divinity, the one and only True God. Without one or the other, the wholeness of the one God is not complete.

Thus, when we talk about the Father, we cannot separate Him from the Son and the Holy Spirit, or the Son from the Father and the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit from the Father and the Son. To separate out any of them from the others means to diminish the Lord and the wholeness of His divinity. And when they are working, they work together as one, working in perfect harmony in all things.

When God created the world, His Holy Spirit were all around, hovering over all creations. And by His words, He has willed all thing to be created. And that Word of life, the Word through which God created all life, has descended down upon us, taking up the flesh, and through the Holy Spirit, was made Man, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour.

At creation, we saw how the Trinity worked together harmoniously as one, with one will and intention. The Father willed all things to creation, which the Son in the Word executed the will of the Father and made all things to be created, and which in the end, the Holy Spirit filled all things and all creation, and gave life to all. As a result, the universe with all of its wonders were created, through the works of the one and only true God, and yet we can see clearly the Three Divine Aspects of God, the Trinity.

And at the moment of the incarnation, God the Father willed the incarnation of His own Son, the Divine Word, part of Himself and the Trinity, to become one like us, as a Man, save for being pure and free from sin. And the Holy Spirit came over Mary and covered her, and by the Holy Spirit, the Lord became Man, just as what we believed and which is part of our Creed.

In all these examples, taken from the Scriptures themselves, we can see how God is indeed One, and even though He consists of the Three Divine Persons, the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, but one cannot understand the Father without understanding the Son and the Holy Spirit and vice versa. This is what we must know, and what we must understand with all of our hearts and minds.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, if someone asks us about our belief in the Holy Trinity, then how should we respond to it? Perhaps then we should tell them about something as simple as a flame. And not just that this is for them to think and discover about the truth of the Trinity, but perhaps for many of us too, who doubted in the Trinity, may now come to believe the fullness of God’s truth.

A flame consists of the visible flame that we are able to see with our eyes, but a flame also consists of the material of the flame that we can touch with our hands, the energies of the flame which made it visible in the first place as the flame. And last of all, a flame can also be felt as we place our hands nearby the flame but not touching it, in the form of the heat that warms our hands and bodies close to it.

We cannot take out the light out of the flame and then still call the remaining object as a flame, and neither can we take out the heat or the matter of the flame and can still call the remaining as a flame. Undeniably, the light and the heat and the matter of the flame are distinct from each other, as they are all different, and yet they are inseparable parts that made up a flame. In the same manner, and even more so, the Most Holy Trinity is similar to this approximation.

Instead of muddling our minds and thoughts in trying to understand the nature of the Lord our God, One but Three, and Three but One, we should rather have faith in Him. If only that we can learn to trust Him and His truth, and learn to accept the truth which He had brought to us. Mankind had refused to believe His truth, often and simply because it was too much for their feeble minds and intellect to understand God and His ways.

Let us all instead work together, brothers and sisters in Christ, that we may find our way to the Lord our God, and work together in the same way as how harmonious the Lord in the Trinity is. Jesus Himself prayed to His Father in the time before His suffering and Passion, that He would make His people to be one, just as He and Jesus, and the Holy Spirit were one.

Thus, as we proceed on with our lives in this world, let us all heed the examples of the Most Holy Trinity, our Lord, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, that we too may be united in faith, hope and love in our Lord. Let us never be shaken in our faith and devotion to the Most Holy Trinity, believing in the one and only True God, and in His Three inseparable but distinct Aspects, and then show the same love which has united Them as One, so that we too, the faithful people of God, may be united in love and harmony with one another.

May God bless us all and strengthen us, that we may resolve to keep this faith burning strongly in each one of us, and have the love in us, and show that love by caring for each other, devoting our time and efforts to care for our brethren, especially to those who are in the greatest need for our help. May God awaken in each one of us, the love we ought to have for each other. O, Most Holy Trinity, the Triune God, be with us all, now and forever. Amen.

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Sunday, 22 May 2016 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Trinity Sunday and Memorial of St. Rita of Cascia, Religious (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

John 16 : 12-15

At that time, Jesus spoke to His disciples at the Last Supper, “I still have many things to tell you, but you cannot bear them now. When He, the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into the whole truth.”

“He has nothing to say of Himself, but He will speak of what He hears, and He will tell you of the things to come. He will take what is Mine and make it known to you; in doing this, He will glorify Me. All that the Father has is Mine; because of this, I have just told you that the Spirit will take what is Mine, and make it known to you.”

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Sunday, 22 May 2016 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Trinity Sunday and Memorial of St. Rita of Cascia, Religious (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Romans 5 : 1-5

By faith we have received true righteousness, and we are at peace with God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Through Him we obtain this favour in which we remain and we even boast to expect the Glory of God.

Not only that, we also boast even in trials, knowing that trials produce patience, from patience comes merit, merit is the source of hope, and hope does not disappoint us because the Holy Spirit has been given to us, pouring into our hearts the love of God.

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Sunday, 22 May 2016 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Trinity Sunday and Memorial of St. Rita of Cascia, Religious (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 8 : 4-5, 6-7, 8-9

When I observe the heavens, the work of Your hands, the moon and the stars You set in their place – what is man that you be mindful of him, the Son of Man that You should care for Him?

Yet You made Him a little lower than the Angels; You crowned Him with glory and honour and gave Him the works of Your hands; You have put all things under His feet.

Sheep and oxen without number and even the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, the fish of the sea, and all that swim the paths of the ocean.

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Sunday, 22 May 2016 : Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Trinity Sunday and Memorial of St. Rita of Cascia, Religious (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Proverbs 8 : 22-31

YHVH created Me first, at the beginning of His works. He formed Me from of old, from eternity, even before the earth. The abyss did not exist when I was born, the springs of the sea had not gushed forth, the mountains were still not set in their place nor the hills, when I was born before He made the earth or countryside, or the first grains of the world’s dust.

I was there when He made the skies and drew the earth’s compass on the abyss, when He formed the clouds above and when the springs of the ocean emerged; when He made the sea with its limits, that it might not overflow. When He laid the foundations of the earth, I was close beside Him, the Designer of His works, and I was His daily delight, forever playing in His presence, playing throughout the world and delighting to be with humans.

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Sunday, 15 May 2016 : Solemnity of Pentecost Sunday (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Red

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate a very great occasion of the Pentecost Sunday, celebrating and commemorating that moment when the Lord sent the Helper and Advocate which He had promised to His disciples and servants, the Holy Spirit of God that empowered them and gave them the courage and strength to carry out the mission which have been entrusted to them.

On that day, the Apostles received the Holy Spirit that appeared to them as the tongues of flames coming down from heaven and settled on each of their heads. This is the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which Jesus had promised to them, when He said that while John baptised with water, He shall baptise them with fire and the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit dwelled in them, and became in them the source of unquenchable flame, the passion and desire to go forth and courageously testify for the faith that they had in God. And it marked in them, the moment of great and unmistakeable transformation and change, which if we were to scrutinise the whole Gospels and the New Testament, we would be able to see the difference.

Before His death and resurrection, Jesus was always with the Apostles and disciples, and He always guided them and taught them all that He wanted to reveal to them. And like sheep under the guidance of their shepherd, they felt secure and safe while the shepherd was with them. Yet, their faith were still shaky and uncertain, as they did not yet fully believe in the entirety of God’s truth which Jesus had taught them.

And that was why, when the Lord and Master was suddenly taken away from them, they became confused and wandered without guidance. St. Peter even wavered such that although just on that same day he promised the Lord Jesus, that he would lay down his life for Him and follow Him to the death, he refused to recognise his Master out of fear and doubt, when those who tortured Him asked if St. Peter knew him or if he belonged to His group.

If we notice, even after the resurrection, the disciples were still afraid, not understanding fully the meaning of our Lord’s Passion, suffering and death on the cross. They locked themselves in their room, closing all their windows and hide in fear of repression, retaliation and persecution by the Jewish authorities, the chief priests and the Pharisees.

When the holy women who followed Jesus saw and witnessed His resurrection on Easter Sunday, and told the disciples of what they saw, still they refused to believe until the Lord Himself appeared to them. Only then they believed fully in Him. Jesus Himself at that time, and at various times prior to His suffering and death chided His disciples for their lack of faith, and rightly so, because these were easily shaken and were not firm.

And now, we should contrast this with how the Apostles acted after the coming of the Holy Spirit, when they fearlessly went forth to the streets and preached God’s truth in all languages. Their hearts have received the Holy Spirit, and God Himself dwelled in them through His Spirit. And that Holy Spirit gave them great strength and the courage to carry out the mission which the Lord had entrusted to them, that is the conversion of the whole mankind to the ends of the earth.

God led them and guided them through His Spirit dwelling in each and every one of them. The Apostles faced persecutions after persecutions, and gradually their own numbers were declining as they met cruel and terrible end in the hands of those who have persecuted them and the Church. And yet, through their tireless and zealous works, they have called many others to follow the Lord and continue the work which they have started.

We are surely familiar with the phrase, “The blood of martyrs is the seeds of Christians.” Truly, this means that even though the Church and the faithful were persecuted for their faith and devotion to God, but those persecutions and challenges were simply means through which the faithful could live their lives even more faithfully and devoutly, and by clinging to the Spirit of God and to the faith which they had in Him, they had brought salvation to more people, who saw what they did and believed in God as well.

The Apostles, for example St. Peter and St. Paul travelled widely across the known world at that time, preaching about Jesus our Lord, His words and His promised salvation to many communities, establishing the Church in those locations. Indeed, the amazing deeds of the Apostles were the deeds of the Lord Himself, Who had made these wonderful servants of God to be great instruments of His salvation of mankind by His Spirit.

And it all began on that moment of the Pentecost Sunday, fifty days after the celebration of Easter Sunday. It was after the Lord Jesus had ascended into Heaven, and in which He had promised that the Holy Spirit would be sent to His disciples soon. And the sending of the Holy Spirit marked a pivotal point in the history of our Church, for truly, it was the birthday of our Church, the moment when it was truly born.

Why is this so, brothers and sisters in Christ? All of us, although we came from different origins and places, with different histories and backgrounds, we all share in the same God, the same Eucharist which we receive, and in the same Spirit of God which has descended upon all of us. The Lord Himself sent His Spirit to His Apostles and the first disciples, who then went on to preach, teach and bring into conversion many others, who therefore received the same Spirit through the hands of the Apostles and the disciples of Christ.

And from them, the Holy Spirit had been passed down through the generations, and ultimately, to each and every one of us the faithful, who have been baptised, confirmed and received the Holy Communion, completing the three important Sacraments of the Church, having received the fullness of God’s Presence and Spirit in each of us. The Holy Spirit Who dwells in us now is the same Spirit Who had dwelled in the Apostles and those faithful who came before us.

And what we have to take note is that, if the Holy Spirit had made such a tremendous change in the life of the Apostles, from those who feared and doubted, uncertain about their faith and were unable to live out their faith fully, even to the point of abandoning our Lord at the time of His greatest need, to those who are courageous, and willing to carry out the word of God and preach the Good News even though knowing that they would face intense persecution and suffering for doing so, then we must know that it can be and will indeed be the same for us too.

What does this mean, brethren? It means that we who have received the Holy Spirit ought to realise that the Spirit has been given to us as a great gift, and indeed the Holy Spirit gave us many great gifts. He planted in each and every one of us, the seeds of faith, of hope and of love. But remember, that seeds will remain as seeds, and gifts will remain unused and useless, if we do not make use of the opportunity which the Holy Spirit has given to us.

Our faith is one of action, and not of inaction. We cannot profess to be Christians unless we ourselves believe fully and completely that we all have to know what is love and show love in our actions. Remember the most important commandments that the Lord Jesus Himself told a teacher of the Law who asked this of Him? Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind and strength, and then love one another, our fellow men with the same love which we show to God and to ourselves.

It means that just as the Apostles had done it in the past, we too should act with love, care for the needy and the poor, protect the innocent and the weak who were oppressed and unjustly treated, love those who are ostracised and unloved, and many other acts and opportunities which we can use in order to cultivate and grow the gifts of the Holy Spirit inside each one of us.

And this is very important because, just as in one occasion, our Lord Jesus cursed a fig tree because He passed by it, was hungry and He could find no fruit on it, when He came unannounced and suddenly even when it was not a fig season, but this is the same for us as well. The Lord has promised us all that He will come again, and He will come again at the time of His choosing which is unknown to us. When He comes again, will He find in us a fruitful tree, filled with the rich and vibrant fruits of the Holy Spirit? Or will He find us a barren tree, filled with wickedness and sin instead?

Let us no longer doubt or be fearful, brethren, for the Lord Himself is always faithful and He will always bless and protect those who are faithful to Him. He has given us all His own Spirit to guide us and to lead us to the path of righteousness leading to our salvation. What we need to do now is to walk, and follow in the footsteps of the Apostles, as indeed, they have left us with many responsibilities, and there are still many works of the Lord left undone.

We are the modern day disciples of our Lord, and the mission which the Lord has given to His Apostles is now ours too. Gather people from all over the world, from all the nations and from all the ends of the earth, and baptise them in the Name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, with the sole intention that these too, may be saved. And truly, it is often our own actions, our deeds, and not just our words alone that will convince them to listen to the truth of God, discover Him and finally find salvation in Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all reflect on this as we celebrate Pentecost Sunday. Have we been truly faithful to the Lord? And have we kept that zeal and faith which we have for God, burning brightly in our hearts? Can we from now on redouble and reinforce our efforts, to do more for the sake of our brethren? It is us who have the choice, and we have been given the opportunity by our Lord, to make a difference in the life of many through our works and actions.

Let us help those who have yet to receive the truth of God, that they may also hear it, know it and witness it through us, so that they may come to believe and receive the same Holy Spirit that we have received. Let us also pray, that the Holy Spirit of God will always inflame our spirit, that we may no longer fear the darkness, but instead be filled with joy and with courage to preach the Good News to many.

May God help us in our endeavour, and may His Holy Spirit ever strengthen our faith in Him. O Holy Spirit, dwell in us, transform us and make us to be the instruments of Your Divine will. God bless us all, now and forever. Amen.

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Sunday, 15 May 2016 : Solemnity of Pentecost Sunday (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Red

John 14 : 15-16, 23b-26

At that time, Jesus spoke to His disciples at the Last Supper, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments; and I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper to be with you forever.”

“If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word and My Father will love him; and We will come to him and make a room in his home. But if anyone does not love Me, he will not keep My words; and these words that you hear are not Mine, but the Father’s Who sent Me.”

“I told you all this while I was still with you. From now on the Helper, the Holy Spirit Whom the Father will send in My Name, will teach you all things, and remind you of all that I have told you.”

Alternative reading

John 20 : 19-23

At that time, on the evening of that day, the first day after the Sabbath, the doors were locked where the disciples were, because of their fear of the Jews. But Jesus came, and stood among them, and said to them, “Peace be with you!”

Then He showed them His hands and His side. The disciples kept looking at the Lord and were full of joy. Again Jesus said to them, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent Me, so I send you.”

After saying this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit! Those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven, those whose sins you retain, they are retained.”