Sunday

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Sunday, 15 November 2015 : Thirty-Third (33rd) Sunday of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Albert the Great, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this sacred day we celebrate together the Holy Mass in remembrance of the fact which the the Lord Who had offered and given Himself for our sake, that through Him and through His loving works, we may be given safety and assurance of the eternal life, which God has promised to all of those who remain faithful to Him.

And His desire is for us to bring us out of the darkness and back into the light. And through His works, He will liberate us from all the wickedness and vile things that held us back from our path to salvation. God will deliver us from the punishment and the suffering that awaits us all if we continue to progress on this path towards damnation. This path is the path of selfishness, of individualism and indifference and apathy towards God and His people.

Many of us in our human nature, we have the tendency to satisfy our own needs and desires first before the needs of others, and it is often that we even trample on the rights of others and bring suffering to others in order to make ourselves feel happy and satisfied. As a result, through these behaviours, we committed sin before the Lord, and thus we sink deeper into the darkness that seeks to claim our souls.

At first, indeed, there seemed to be no hope out of the darkness, for through sin, our ancestors had been cast out of the good and wonderful life they had led in the Gardens of Eden, and for their sins they had to suffer the consequences of their disobedience, succumbing to the sentence and the power of death. And death would have won the final victory had it not been for our Lord Himself, Who endeavoured and did His best to help us all.

Because of sin, we have been defiled and corrupted in our bodies, hearts, minds and souls. And because of the filth and corruption, we have been sundered from the Lord our God, Who is all good and perfect, as no evil and wickedness can withstand His presence. But this does not mean that we have been condemned forever or assured of hell, as sin is just like debt, and debt can indeed be paid for.

In the past, the priests offered sacrifices for the sake of the people by sacrificing unblemished lamb and other animals, shedding their blood and pouring them on the altar. The sweet offering of these goods pleased the Lord, who took them as the payment for our debts, that is our sins. The sweet smell of the offerings and the blood which is then sprayed on the people of God are the symbol of purification from the sins that had assailed them.

But these sacrifices and the blood of the lamb and the other animals are only temporary solutions to our problem of sin, as these do not offer us lasting protection and absolution from all of our sins. No amount of mortal blood, sacrifices and offerings can remove from us the multitudes and the huge amounts of our wickedness, sins, and unworthiness.

We may not realise it, but in our own lives, we have committed so many sins in our life, from the beginning to its end, and even now for us still living in this world, our sins are still adding up and growing in amount. Even all the small sins we have committed will be considered, as we have to realise that no matter how small the sin is, it will still impact us and prevent us from reaching out to the Lord our God, for sin has no place in His presence.

And many of us are unaware of this fact, thinking that we are all alright and have no issues in living our lives, in ignorance of the sins which we committed. And even more of us are likely to be unaware of the very important role that our Lord had taken up and in which capacity He had endeavoured to bring us all into the salvation and eternal life which He had promised all of His faithful ones.

He has taken up the role to be our Saviour, and to be the One High Priest, the True High Priest, as Priest of all priests, to offer the perfect sacrifice through which He would sanctify all of His beloved people, purifying all of us mankind from the taints of our original sins, the accumulated sins of our rebellion and our iniquities since the very beginning of time and creation.

And He did not offer the blood of animals, or their flesh to be immolated and offered to God, but rather, He came down to us in the flesh of Man, that by mingling Himself with our substance, we become sharers in His divine mission, through which, He offered His own Most Precious Body and the Most Precious Blood to be the perfect sacrifice and offering, through which the salvation of this world came from.

He did not offer this offering many times, as the priests of old had done. Instead, through the one and only sacrifice which He performed on that fateful day at the hills of Calvary, bearing His cross on His back, He was lifted up high as the very perfect sacrifice that becomes the sacrifice which obliterates and absolves all of us from the taints of our sins. And this purification He offered to all of us, and to all of us who receive Him as our Lord and Saviour, He will bless us with the eternal life and blessings that He had promised all of us.

But this comes with a reminder, that all of us, even after we have been baptised into the Faith in God, and received as the members of His Church, we are still susceptible to the corrupting power of sin, and temptations are always abound around us. Satan and all of his allies, his fellow fallen angels, the demons and the tempters are always trying day and night to assault us, corrupt us and turn us away from the path towards salvation and instead into damnation.

It is important therefore that we are prepared for what is to come, that we must know that the Lord Jesus, our Lord, Saviour and God will come again just as He has said and promised to all of us, that when He comes again at the end of time, He shall judge all of creation, and all those who are righteous He will gather up and keep to Himself, while those who have not walked in His path will be rejected and cast out to eternal darkness.

What is important is that we must take note that the time of His coming will not be known to us. Only God alone knows at what exact and precise time He will come again to judge all things. This means that we cannot be lax and ignorant of this fact, living our lives as we please and as we want it, committing sins day and night, big and small, while thinking that we are assured of salvation.

Rather, all of us must always be vigilant and be ever ready to welcome the Lord when He comes again, and when He comes again, we want ourselves to be found worthy and in His grace, and thus merit the eternal life and joy He has promised to all those who remain true to Him to the end. Let us all strive for goodness in all things and commit ourselves to do good in all of our actions, trusting in God and in all of His promises, and make ourselves ever worthy of Him. God bless us all. Amen.

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Sunday, 15 November 2015 : Thirty-Third (33rd) Sunday of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Albert the Great, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 13 : 24-32

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples and to the people, “Later on in those days, after that disastrous time, the sun will grow dark, the moon will not give its light, the stars will fall out of the sky, and the whole universe will be shaken.”

“Then people will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. And He will send the Angels to gather His chosen people from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the sky.”

“Learn a lesson from the fig tree : as soon as its branches become tender and it begins to sprout leaves, you know that summer is near. In the same way, when you see these things happening, know that the time is near, even at the door. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all this has happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.”

“But, regarding that day and that hour, no one knows when it will come, not even the Angels, not even the Son, but only the Father.”

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Sunday, 15 November 2015 : Thirty-Third (33rd) Sunday of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Albert the Great, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Hebrews 10 : 11-14, 18

So, whereas every priest stands daily by the altar offering repeatedly the same sacrifices that can never take away sins, Christ has offered for all times a single sacrifice for sins and has taken His seat at the right hand of God, waiting until God puts His enemies as a footstool under His feet. By a single sacrifice He has brought those who are sanctified to what is perfect forever.

So, if sins are forgiven, there is no longer need of any sacrifice for sin.

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Sunday, 15 November 2015 : Thirty-Third (33rd) Sunday of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Albert the Great, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 15 : 5 and 8, 9-10, 11

O Lord, my inheritance and my cup, my chosen portion – hold secure my lot. I keep the Lord always before me; for with Him at my right hand, I will never be shaken.

My heart, therefore, exults, my soul rejoices; my body too will rest assured. For You will not abandon my soul to the grave, nor will You suffer Your Holy One to see decay in the land of the dead.

You will show me the path of life, in Your presence the fullness of joy, at Your right hand happiness forever.

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Sunday, 15 November 2015 : Thirty-Third (33rd) Sunday of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Albert the Great, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Daniel 12 : 1-3

At that time, Michael will rise, the Great Commander who defends your people. It shall be a time of anguish as never before since the nations first existed until this very day.

Then all those whose names are written in the Book will be saved. Many of those who sleep in the Region of the Dust will awake, some to everlasting life but others to eternal horror and shame.

Those who acquired knowledge will shine like the brilliance of the firmament; those who taught people to be just will shine like the stars for all eternity.

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Sunday, 8 November 2015 : Thirty-Second (32nd) Sunday of Ordinary Time (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, on this sacred and holy day of the Lord, we heard about the Lord our God Who shows great love and concern for us, the providence which He will give to all those who clung themselves strongly to Him, and He will bless all those who have given their all and devoted their all for the sake of the Lord their God.

And we heard about the story of two poor and suffering woman in both the first reading today from the Book of Kings, and in the poor woman from the Gospel of St. Mark, who gave all the possessions she had, despite herself having difficulties to persevere in her own difficult life. But what Jesus wanted to tell us is that, her gifts and offerings, being given out through times of difficulty is truly a genuine gift pleasing to the Lord.

For Jesus showed rightly that those who are rich, when they gave to the poor or donated money to the Temple treasury, they tried to outdo the other man in our giving to all those who needed them. While they gave what they had, they gave from their plenty and had no concerns or qualms about giving what they had, whereas the woman who had so little, still yet gave from her own pocket, whatever she could give to help the Temple building at that time.

In trying to glorify the Lord by her actions and by her dedication, she has shown all of us true and genuine faith, and a courageous and real commitment to the Lord, by giving all she had without worry or concerns for this world and for whatever she had in this world. She placed her trust completely and entirely in the Lord, and in doing so, she will indeed receive eternal and glorious reward of heaven.

But yet, at the same time, we have to take note that Jesus was not condemning the rich and those who have many possessions and things of this world. For we know of the rich people and those who have much with them, who have generously given from their own coffers to help others who are in need, and for various other good purposes and deeds.

The key here is that when we give to others, and we give something that belongs to us to help other who are around us, we have to be sincere and devoted in our giving, and we cannot give with the expectation that whoever we gave to, we demand them to return the gift in the same manner. And when we give something, let us not be too concerned about the loss we incur because of our giving.

Why is this so, brethren? This is important as it is our tendency to grow too attached to what we have, and we do not like it when we need to lose them or to part ways with them, because it is in our human nature to always desire for more things, to accumulate what we already have to get even more of them. It is this attachment that is so harmful and so dangerous for us, as unchecked, they can bring about ruin to our souls.

The wealth and possessions that we have, they are in themselves not evil or wicked in nature, for they are just objects and tools that can indeed be used for the purpose of evil, as well as for good purposes and for the benefit of all those who are around us. It is in how we use them, that we can effect either good or bad things upon others, and it is in how we look at them and treat these that we can use them for good or evil, and in doing so bringing either blessings or disgrace and condemnation upon our souls.

The Lord wanted us all to know that if we want to love Him and if we want to be truly faithful to Him, then there is truly no greater price to pay than our total devotion and commitment, and the full trust that we all should place in Him, our Lord, Master and Saviour. Just like the widow of Zarephath who suffered greatly from the famine that came over Israel because of their disobedience, she had less and less food, and soon enough, her food stock would run out and she and her son would perish.

But the prophet Elijah came to her seeking for help and food, and when she voiced her concerns, Elijah told her not to worry, for the Lord Who is loving and kind to all those who put their trust in Him will provide all that is needed for sustenance and survival, as well as joy and happiness for His people. He will not abandon them to suffer in need without what they need, and He will in His own ways, bless His people and grant them help.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, God proved His love and commitment to help His people, by showing His everlasting providence through the flour jar that never finished, and the jug of oil that never ran out. In this, He wanted the widow of Zarephath and all of us to know that if we put our trust and complete faith in Him, then we truly have nothing to be worried about.

Remember on another occasion Jesus told His disciples and the people about how God blessed the beautiful flowers in the field and the birds with colourful feathers and various raiments of colour with much blessings, and how if He has blessed these with such great blessings then we should not need to worry if we put our trust in Him. In one way or another, in His own way, He will take very good care of us.

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ, let us make use of the opportunities that God has given us, and let us use whatever blessings He has graced us with, we may share the goods and the joys we have with one another. Let us not be greedy or be selfish, in selfishly keeping all the wealth, goods and blessings of God to ourselves. May God awaken in all of our hearts the desire to love one another, so that we may realise that even if we are in unfortunate condition, there are always those who are poorer and who are in greater suffering than us.

Let us all act now, and from now on let us all devote ourselves completely to serve the Lord in all the things we do, and let us all commit ourselves to care about each other, and sharing the joys we have received from the Lord. May Almighty God, our Lord bless our endeavours and keep us always in His grace. God bless us all. Amen.

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Sunday, 8 November 2015 : Thirty-Second (32nd) Sunday of Ordinary Time (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Mark 12 : 38-44

At that time, as Jesus was teaching, He also said to the people, “Beware of those teachers of the Law, who enjoy walking around in long robes and being greeted in the marketplace, and who like to occupy reserved seats in the synagogues, and the first places at feasts. They even devour the widow’s and the orphan’s goods while making a show of long prayers. How severe a sentence they will receive!”

Jesus sat down opposite the Temple treasury, and watched the people dropping money into the treasury box; and many rich people put in large offerings. But a poor widow also came and dropped in two small coins.

Then Jesus called His disciples and said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all those who gave offerings. For all of them gave from their plenty, but she gave from her poverty, and put in everything she had, her very living.”

Alternative reading (shorter version)

Mark 12 : 41-44

Jesus sat down opposite the Temple treasury, and watched the people dropping money into the treasury box; and many rich people put in large offerings. But a poor widow also came and dropped in two small coins.

Then Jesus called His disciples and said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all those who gave offerings. For all of them gave from their plenty, but she gave from her poverty, and put in everything she had, her very living.”

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Sunday, 8 November 2015 : Thirty-Second (32nd) Sunday of Ordinary Time (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Hebrews 9 : 24-28

Christ did not enter some sanctuary made by hands, a copy of the true one, but Heaven itself. He is now in the presence of God on our behalf. He had not to offer Himself many times, as the High Priest does : he who may return every year, because the blood is not his own. Otherwise he would have suffered many times from the creation of the world.

But no; He manifested Himself only now at the end of the ages, to take away sin by sacrifice, and, as humans die only once and afterwards are judged, in the same way Christ sacrificed Himself once to take away the sins of the multitude. There will be no further question of sin when He comes again to save those waiting for Him.

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Sunday, 8 November 2015 : Thirty-Second (32nd) Sunday of Ordinary Time (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green

Psalm 145 : 6c-7, 8-9a, 9bc-10

The Lord is forever faithful; He gives justice to the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free.

The Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord straightens the bent. The Lord loves the virtuous, but He brings to ruin the way of the wicked. The Lord protects the stranger.

He sustains the widow and the orphan. The Lord will reign forever, your God, o Zion, from generation to generation. Alleluia!

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Sunday, 8 November 2015 : Thirty-Second (32nd) Sunday of Ordinary Time (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green

1 Kings 17 : 10-16

So Elijah went to Zarephath. On reaching the gate of the town, he saw a widow gathering sticks. He called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel that I may drink.”

As she was going to bring it, he called after her and said, “Bring me also a piece of bread.” But she answered, “As YHVH your God lives, I have no bread left but only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I am just now gathering some sticks so that I may go in and prepare something for myself and my son to eat – and die.”

Elijah then said to her, “Do not be afraid. Go and do as you have said, but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me; then make some for yourself and your son. For this is the word of YHVH, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of meal shall not be emptied nor shall the jug of oil fail, until the day when YHVH sends rain to the earth.'”

So she went and did as Elijah told her; and she had food for herself, Elijah and her son from that day on. The jar of flour was not emptied not did the jug of oil fail, in accordance with what YHVH had said through Elijah.